The events of the Ip massacre escalated in the early hours of 14 September 1940, in Ipp, (today
Ip,
Sălaj County
Sălaj County () (also known as ''Land of Silvania'', ''silva, -ae'' means "forest") is a Counties of Romania, county (''județ'') of Romania, located in the north-west of the country, in the Historical regions of Romania, historical regions of Cr ...
),
Northern Transylvania. After two
Hungarian soldiers died there in an accidental explosion, rumors spread that they had been killed by
Romanians
The Romanians ( ro, români, ; dated exonym '' Vlachs'') are a Romance-speaking ethnic group. Sharing a common Romanian culture and ancestry, and speaking the Romanian language, they live primarily in Romania and Moldova. The 2011 Roman ...
. After another incident the
Royal Hungarian Army
The Royal Hungarian Army ( hu, Magyar Királyi Honvédség, german: Königlich Ungarische Armee) was the name given to the land forces of the Kingdom of Hungary in the period from 1922 to 1945. Its name was inherited from the Royal Hungarian Hon ...
, influenced by the rumor, indiscriminately
massacre
A massacre is the killing of a large number of people or animals, especially those who are not involved in any fighting or have no way of defending themselves. A massacre is generally considered to be morally unacceptable, especially when per ...
d around 150 ethnic Romanians in the nearby locations and surrounding areas.
Events
After the
Second Vienna Award
The Second Vienna Award, also known as the Vienna Diktat, was the second of two territorial disputes that were arbitrated by Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. On 30 August 1940, they assigned the territory of Northern Transylvania, including all o ...
of 30 August 1940, as a result of
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
–
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
arbitration, northwestern
Transylvania
Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the Ap ...
reverted to
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...
. The area ceded by
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
contained the northwestern part of the homonymous region and the
Székely lands. A total of eight of the 23 Transylvanian counties that had been part of Romania during the
interwar period were entirely alienated, and another three were split. Thus,
Sălaj County
Sălaj County () (also known as ''Land of Silvania'', ''silva, -ae'' means "forest") is a Counties of Romania, county (''județ'') of Romania, located in the north-west of the country, in the Historical regions of Romania, historical regions of Cr ...
was also attached to Hungary. On 7 September 1940 the
Hungarian Second Army
The Hungarian Second Army (''Második Magyar Hadsereg'') was one of three field armies (''hadsereg'') raised by the Kingdom of Hungary (''Magyar Királyság'') which saw action during World War II. All three armies were formed on March 1, 1940. ...
arrived at Ipp (present-day
Ip) where they made a short stop. After preparing to leave, more acquired grenades exploded in one of the
sling-carts and in the detonation two soldiers died. The negligence of the proper storage was quickly identified but soon rumor had it that it was a willful action. This view escalated rapidly.
[A történelem tanúi – Erdély – bevonulás (1940), p. 25; ]
On 8 September 1940, the Second Army entered the city of
Zalău
Zalău (, unofficial and former official name: ro, Zălau (; german: Zillenmarkt or , hu, Zilah, tr, Zile) is the seat of Sălaj County, Romania. In 2011, its estimated population was 56,202.
History
Ancient times
Zalău is situated in the ...
.
On 13 September, the military commander of the district of Szilágysomlyó (present-day
Șimleu Silvaniei
Șimleu Silvaniei (; hu, Szilágysomlyó, german: Schomlenmarkt) is a town in Sălaj County, Crișana, Romania with a population of 14,436 people (2011 census). It is located near the ancient Dacian fortress Dacidava.
Three villages are adminis ...
) was informed that the nearby villages of Alsókaznacs, Felsőkaznacs, Márkaszék, Porc, Lecsmér, Somály, and Kémer (present-day
Cosniciu de Jos,
Cosniciu de Sus,
Marca,
Porț,
Leșmir,
Șumal, and
Camăr) armed Romanian groups were looting. According to the report their number was between 80–100. Based on this report the 32nd Regiment stationing in Zilah (present-day
Zalău
Zalău (, unofficial and former official name: ro, Zălau (; german: Zillenmarkt or , hu, Zilah, tr, Zile) is the seat of Sălaj County, Romania. In 2011, its estimated population was 56,202.
History
Ancient times
Zalău is situated in the ...
) assigned a group to investigate the area. Meanwhile, the road, they arrived to Szilágynagyfalu (present-day
Nușfalău) where they had been informed a few days before in Ipp two soldiers died in a detonation thus the same day they entered the commune where they conducted a raid instantly.
After the reconnaissance, 18 suspicious persons were found and 16 have been executed, according to the official reports, because of their attempts to desert. Overnight, the Hungarian troops were residing in the local school when they were shot at from the street with a machine gun around 03:00 AM (some witnesses attested that the shooting came from a flat in the center, and five persons with machine guns were captured). In retaliation, between 152 and 158 ethnic Romanians were killed.
The commander of the Hungarian troops who perpetrated the massacre of civilians was lieutenant Zoltán Vasváry.
Some sources have stated that the Hungarian Army was supported by local vigilantes.
The soldiers went house-to-house and shot everybody indiscriminately. On 14 September, in Somlyócsehi (present-day
Cehei), one person was killed. In the nearby Felsőkaznacs and Szilágcseres forests (present-day Cosniciu de Sus and
Cerișa) 55 persons were killed. According to some other sources, the area most affected was Sălaj, where 477 Romanians were massacred.
On September 14, at the order of Lt. Vasvári, a pit 24 meters long by 4 meters wide was dug in the village cemetery; the corpses of those killed in the massacre were buried head-to-head in two rows, with no religious ceremony.
Trial
The facts were established by Decision no. 1 of the
Northern Transylvania People's Tribunal (which sat in
Cluj
; hu, kincses város)
, official_name=Cluj-Napoca
, native_name=
, image_skyline=
, subdivision_type1 = County
, subdivision_name1 = Cluj County
, subdivision_type2 = Status
, subdivision_name2 = County seat
, settlement_type = City
, le ...
and was presided by Justice Nicolae Matei
), in a public sentence from 13 March 1946. The findings of the Tribunal were as follows:
* Lieutenant colonel Carol Lehotcsky, the military commander of
Șimleu Silvaniei
Șimleu Silvaniei (; hu, Szilágysomlyó, german: Schomlenmarkt) is a town in Sălaj County, Crișana, Romania with a population of 14,436 people (2011 census). It is located near the ancient Dacian fortress Dacidava.
Three villages are adminis ...
district, was found guilty of ordering reprisals against the Romanian inhabitants of Ip and nearby villages.
*Ștefan Farago, a landowner from Ip and commander of a local militia was convicted for inducing Lehotcsky to order those repressive measures. (Adalbert Ujhaly was also found to have participated in this inducement, but he had died before the trial.)
*Lt. Vasváry was found guilty of commanding the unit that carried out the massacre.
*Fifteen locals (Nicolae Bereș, Sigismund P. Bereș, Francisc Borzási, Vasile K. Dereș, Biro Emeric Jr., Biro Emeric Sr., Alexandru Csepe, Francisc I. Csepei, Sigismund Csepei, Paul B. Fazekas, Alexandru Kisfaluși, Bálint Kisfaluși, Arpád Ösz, Ștefan Pinces, and Mihai Soos) were found guilty of cooperating with the Hungarian soldiers in perpetrating the massacre.
See also
*
List of massacres in Hungary
*
List of massacres in Romania
The following is a list of massacres that have occurred in the territory of present-day Romania (numbers may be approximate):
See also
* 1848–1849 massacres in Transylvania
*
References
{{Europe topic, List of massacres in
Lists of ...
*
Luduș massacre
The Luduș massacre occurred in the village of Luduș ( hu, Marosludas), in the Kingdom of Romania. Between 5 and 13 September 1944, on the outskirts of the village, the Royal Hungarian Army occupied the village and, with the help of natives, shot ...
*
Nușfalău massacre
*
Sărmașu massacre
*
Treznea massacre
The Treznea massacre occurred in the village of Treznea, Sălaj in north-western Transylvania on 9 September 1940, in the immediate aftermath of the Second Vienna Award, when Romania ceded Northern Transylvania to Hungary. The massacre was perp ...
References
External links
Ip massacre{{in lang, ro
September 1940 events
Massacres in 1940
World War II massacres
20th century in Transylvania
World War II crimes in Romania
Massacres in Romania
Massacres in Hungary
Military history of Hungary
1940 in Romania
1940 murders in Hungary
Massacres of Romanians
Hungary–Romania relations
September 1940 events in Romania
Hungarian war crimes