Zoltán Tildy (; 18 November 1889 – 3 August 1961), was an influential leader of
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
, who served as
prime minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
from 1945 to 1946 and
president
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
from 1946 until 1948 in the post-war period before the seizure of power by Soviet-backed communists.
Biography
Early life and family
Zoltán Tildy was born in
Losonc (
Lučenec
Lučenec (; german: Lizenz; hu, Losonc; yi, לאשאנץ; la, Lutetia HungarorumLelkes György (1992), Magyar helységnév-azonosító szótár, Balassi Kiadó, Budapest, 508 p.) is a town in the Banská Bystrica Region of south-central Slovaki ...
now in
Slovakia
Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...
), in the
Austro-Hungarian Empire
Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
to the family of a Hungarian official in the local government. He took a degree in theology from the Reformed Theological Academy in
Pápa
Pápa is a historical town in Veszprém county, Hungary, located close to the northern edge of the Bakony Hills, and noted for its baroque architecture. With its 32,473 inhabitants (2011), it is the cultural, economic and tourism centre of the re ...
, afterwards spending a year studying at
Assembly's College
''This page is about a college in Northern Ireland. For institutions with similar names, see Union Theological Seminary and Union School of Theology''
, mottoeng = ''“Buy the truth and sell it not”'' (taken from Proverbs 23:23)
, establi ...
, Belfast, in
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
. Tildy served as an active minister of the Reformed Church beginning in 1921, and edited the daily paper of the Reformed church in Hungary, the Keresztény Család (Christian Family), as well as other periodicals. In 1929, Tildy joined the
Independent Smallholders' Party
The Independent Smallholders, Agrarian Workers and Civic Party ( hu, Független Kisgazda-, Földmunkás- és Polgári Párt), known mostly by its acronym FKgP or its shortened form Independent Smallholders' Party ( hu, Független Kisgazdapárt), ...
(FKgP) with other noted Hungarian political figures, including
Ferenc Nagy
Ferenc Nagy (; 8 October 1903 – 12 June 1979) was a Hungarian politician of the Smallholders Party who served as Prime Minister of Hungary from 1946 until his forced resignation in 1947. He was also a Speaker of the National Assembly of Hung ...
. He became executive vice-president of the organization soon afterwards.
He married
Erzsébet Gyenis (1896–1985) in 1916 and had three children:
Zoltán Tildy, Jr. (1917–1994), Erzsébet Tildy (1918–2012), and László Tildy (1921–1983).
Political career and later life
Tildy was elected to the Hungarian parliament in 1933, being reelected in 1936 and 1939. He put pressure on
Horthy's government to pull out of the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. After Hungary was occupied by the
Germans
, native_name_lang = de
, region1 =
, pop1 = 72,650,269
, region2 =
, pop2 = 534,000
, region3 =
, pop3 = 157,000
3,322,405
, region4 =
, pop4 = ...
, Tildy was forced into hiding. After the
Soviets
Soviet people ( rus, сове́тский наро́д, r=sovyétsky naród), or citizens of the USSR ( rus, гра́ждане СССР, grázhdanye SSSR), was an umbrella demonym for the population of the Soviet Union.
Nationality policy in th ...
occupied Hungary and drove out the Germans, Tildy became leader of the FKgP. Tildy became
Prime Minister of Hungary
The prime minister of Hungary ( hu, Magyarország miniszterelnöke) is the head of government of Hungary. The prime minister and the Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Parliament, to their political party ...
, serving from 15 November 1945 until 1 February 1946, when Tildy was elected
President of Hungary
The president of Hungary, officially the president of the republicUnder the Basic Law, adopted in 2011, the official name of the state is simply Hungary; Before, the state was called the Republic of Hungary. However, the office is nonetheles ...
. He was an ex officio member of the
High National Council
The High National Council ( hu, Nemzeti Főtanács) was the collective head of state of the Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th ...
from 7 December 1945 until 2 February 1946.
Tildy served as the first President of the Republic of Hungary until 31 July 1948, when he was forced to resign after allegations emerged about his son-in-law being arrested for corruption and adultery. Tildy was held under house arrest 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 ...
until 1 May 1956. He was appointed to the position of a state minister in the coalition government during the
1956 Hungarian Revolution
The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 (23 October – 10 November 1956; hu, 1956-os forradalom), also known as the Hungarian Uprising, was a countrywide revolution against the government of the Hungarian People's Republic (1949–1989) and the Hunga ...
. He was eventually arrested by Soviet forces after the revolution was crushed by
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact (WP) or Treaty of Warsaw, formally the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, was a collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland, between the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist republic ...
intervention. On 15 June 1958 Tildy was sentenced by the Supreme Court to six years' imprisonment, in the trial of
Imre Nagy
Imre Nagy (; 7 June 1896 – 16 June 1958) was a Hungarian communist politician who served as Chairman of the Council of Ministers (''de facto'' Prime Minister) of the Hungarian People's Republic from 1953 to 1955. In 1956 Nagy became leader ...
and associates. However, he was released under an individual amnesty in April 1959 in view of his advanced years (in fact due to illness). He then lived in complete retirement until he died 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 ...
on 3 August 1961.
Zoltán Tildy
Heads of States and Governments Since 1945, page 364
References
Föglein Gizella: Az államfő "intézménye" 1944 és 1949 között
Haas György: A kisgazda államminiszter
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tildy, Zoltan
1889 births
1961 deaths
People from Lučenec
People from the Kingdom of Hungary
Hungarian Calvinist and Reformed Christians
Hungarian Calvinist and Reformed clergy
Independent Smallholders, Agrarian Workers and Civic Party politicians
Presidents of Hungary
Prime Ministers of Hungary
Members of the National Assembly of Hungary (1945–1947)
Burials at Farkasréti Cemetery
Heads of government who were later imprisoned