Vitéz Baron Sándor Szurmay de Uzsok (19 December 1860 – 26 February 1945) was a Hungarian military officer and politician, who served as

Minister of Defence A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

for the Hungarian portion of the Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary between 1917 and 1918.

Life

Early life and career

Sándor Szurmay was born in 1860 at Boksánbánya (now: ''Bocşa,

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, a ...

'') which located in the historical Krassó-Szörény County. He attended the secondary school for sciences in

Szeged Szeged ( , ; see also other alternative names) is the third largest city of Hungary, the largest city and regional centre of the Southern Great Plain and the county seat of Csongrád-Csanád county. The University of Szeged is one of the m ...

, then interrupting his studies he joined the Imperial Royal Privileged Austrian State Railway Company, where he worked as a trainee and later as an official. In 1882 he chose the military way. Szurmay started his service at the Eighteenth Home Defence Battalion of Lugos. After completing the course of studies at the

Ludovica Military Academy The Royal Hungarian Ludovica Defense Academy ( hu, Magyar Királyi Honvéd Ludovika Akadémia, la, Ludoviceum, german: Ludovika-Akademie), shortened to Ludovica or Ludovica Academy, was Hungary's officer cadets training institute prior to ...

classes he served as adjutant in a rank of Second Lieutenant at the various corps of the

Magyar Honvédség The Hungarian Defence Forces ( hu, Magyar Honvédség) is the national defence force of Hungary. Since 2007, the Hungarian Armed Forces is under a unified command structure. The Ministry of Defence maintains the political and civil control over t ...

. Between 1886 and 1887 he finished the academy's upper classes and between 1887 and 1889 the Imperial and Royal Staff College (''K.u.k. Kriegsschule''), that is the staff officer's academy. He was promoted to a First Lieutenant in 1889 and he was ordered onto the Fourth Army Corps' headquarters in

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

Later career

By November 1917 Szurmay held the rank of

General der Infanterie General of the Infantry is a military rank of a General officer in the infantry and refers to: * General of the Infantry (Austria) * General of the Infantry (Bulgaria) * General of the Infantry (Germany) ('), a rank of a general in the German I ...

and held the ministerial portfolio for the Hungarian branch of the armed forces, the Honvéd. In November 1917 he officially demanded the separation of the joint army of Austria-Hungary into separate Austrian and Hungarian formations. At a crown council chaired by

the emperor ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in E ...

the following month he again pressed for a full division of the k.u.k. army, adding that "all groups in Hungary are united on the issue of a Hungarian army."Rothenburg, G. ''The Army of Francis Joseph". West Lafayette: Purdue University Press, 1976. p 209-210. This policy was addressed again at a council of marshals in January 1918, where the decision was put off until the end of the war.

Publications

* ''A wörthi (fröschwilleri) csata 1870. 6 Aug.. Harczászati tanulmány''. with maps and images Budapest, 1890. * ''Az anspachi hadseregek ismertetése.'' U. ott, 1891. (Hungarian adaption of

Richard Knötel Richard Knötel (January 12, 1857 – April 26, 1914) was a German artist and pioneer of the study of military uniform. Life Knötel was born in Glogau in 1857. His father, August Knötel, was an art teacher and gave him lessons in drawing and ...

German language German ( ) is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Italian province of South Tyrol. It is als ...

work). * ''A mohácsi vész 1526-ban''. Battle plan and detailed description onto Ezredéves Országos Kiállítás of 1896 aims. Budapest, 1896. * ''A mohácsi hadjárat 1526-ban.''. Térképvázlattal, rajzmellékletekkel, Budapest, 1901. * ''A szolgálati szabályzat II. részének új kiadása'', Budapest, 1896. * ''A honvédség fejlődésének története annak felállításától napjainkig 1868–1898.'' Képekkel és mellékletekkel. Megjelent a Ludovika Akadémia Közlönyében, Budapest, 1898. * ''A Thaya menti Waidhofen környékén 1891-ben tartott hadtest-gyakorlatok'', megjelent a Ludovika Akadémia Közlönyében, 1892. * ''Weiterentwicklung der kön. ung. Landwehr (A Magyar Királyi Honvédség fejlődése),'' megjelent a Minerva c. katonai folyóiratban, Bécs, 1893. 23. és 24. sz. * ''Die Honvéd-Institution (A Honvédség intézménye),'' megjelent a Pester Lloydban, 1894. okt. 25-i és 26-i sz. * ''A magyar gyalogság'', Budapest, 19...?. * ''Az orosz vörös veszedelem és Magyarország szerepe''. ABC könyvtára, Magyar Bolsevistaellenes Liga, Budapest, 1921. * ''A magyar katona a Kárpátokban'', Királyi Magyar Egyetemi Nyomda kiadása, Budapest, 1940

(Újabb kiadás: N.R.G.-COM Kiadó, Budapest, 2005, összeállította és az előszót írta Pap Krisztián). * Háborús emlékírások, in: ''Diárium 1940–1942'', I. évfolyam 1–10. szám/II. évfolyam 1–12. szám/III. évfolyam 1–12. szám, Királyi Magyar Egyetemi Nyomda kiadása, Budapest, 1942. He wrote several books, and articles, based on military history, on hunting, sport fishing, reptiles, and about the occult: * ''Vadászemlékek, horgászélmények'', with foreword of

Archduke Joseph August of Austria Archduke Joseph August Viktor Klemens Maria of Austria, Prince of Hungary and Bohemia (9 August 1872 – 6 July 1962) was a ''Feldmarschall'' (field marshal) of the Austro-Hungarian Army and for a short period head of state of Hungary. He wa ...

Budapest, 1937 * ''Horgászvízen, vadcsapáson'', Budapest, ?. (Hasonmás kiadás: Facsimile Ex Kiadó, Budapest, 1994).

References

Magyar Életrajzi Lexikon
{{DEFAULTSORT:Szurmay, Sandor Hungarian soldiers Austro-Hungarian military personnel of World War I Austro-Hungarian Army officers 1860 births 1945 deaths Defence ministers of Hungary People from Bocșa Knights Cross of the Military Order of Maria Theresa