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The Treaty of Trianon was an agreement that regulated the situation of the new Hungarian state that replaced the Kingdom of Hungary, part of the former Austro-Hungarian monarchy, after World War I. It was signed on June 4, 1920, at the Petite Trianon (not at the Grand, shown on the picture) Palace at Versailles, France.
The main parties to the Treaty were the winning powers, their allied countries, and the losing side. The winning powers included the United States, Britain, France and Italy; their allies were Romania, Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (Yugoslavia) and Czechoslovakia; and the losing side was the former Austro-Hungarian monarchy, represented by Hungary. The winning powers included one economic mainstream within Europe, that is the nations that had gone through rapid progress in the 19th century due to industrial revolution and, to a certain extent, to colonialism (Britain, France, and to a smaller extent Italy). Austria-Hungary also experienced economic progress especially in the late 19th century (without relying on colonization), but remained a European country with a relatively underdeveloped economy.
Frontiers of Hungary
Hungary proclaimed its independence from Austria on November 16, 1918. Previously, on October 31, the Banat Republic was proclaimed in Timisoara, and the government of Hungary, already in place at that time, recognized its independence. Temporary borders of independent Hungary were defined in November–December 1918. Compared with the former Kingdom of Hungary (part of Austria-Hungary), these borders did not include:
- a part of Transylvania, which became part of Romania.
- Slovakia, which became part of Czechoslovakia.
- Croatia, Slavonia, Vojvodina and Bosnia, which joined the newly formed Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, along with the Hungarian cities of Pécs, Mohács, Baja and Szigetvár.
The final borders of Hungary were defined by the Treaty of Trianon in 1920. Compared with the borders set eighteen months previously, the Trianon borders of Hungary did not include:
- the rest of Transylvania, which became part of Romania.
- Carpathian Ruthenia, which had become part of Czechoslovakia, pursuant to the Treaty of Saint-Germain in 1919.
- most of Burgenland, which had gone to Austria, also pursuant to the Treaty of Saint-Germain; the district of Sopron opted to remain with Hungary after a plebiscite held in December 1921 (it was the only place where a plebiscite was permitted in the decision).
By the Treaty of Trianon, the cities of Pécs, Mohács, Baja and Szigetvár, which were on the Yugoslav side of the border after November 1918, were restored to Hungary.
Compared with the former Kingdom of Hungary, the population of post-Trianon Hungary was reduced from 19 million to 7 million and its land area reduced by two-thirds.
After 1918, Hungary did not have access to the sea, which the former Kingdom had through Croatia for over 800 years.
With the help of Nazi Germany and Italy, Hungary expanded its borders towards neighbouring countries at the outset of World War II, under the Munich Agreement (1938), the two Vienna Awards (1938 and 1940), following the dissolution of Czechoslovakia (occupation of northern Carpathian Ruthenia and eastern Slovakia) and following German aggression against Yugoslavia. This territorial expansion was short-lived, since the post-war boundaries agreed on at the Treaty of Paris in 1947 were nearly identical with those of 1920.
Consequences of the treaty
Demographic consequences
According to the census of 1910, the largest ethnic group in the Kingdom of Hungary were the Magyars (usually called "Hungarians" in English), who were approximately 48% of the entire population (and 54% of the population of the so called "proper Hungary" excluding Croatia-Slavonia). The Kingdom of Hungary was not a nation-state as were many Western European nations. Some demographers, however, believe that the 1910 census overstated the percentage of the Magyar population, arguing that there were different results in previous censuses of the Kingdom and subsequent censuses in the new states. Another problem with interpreting the census results is that 1910 census did not recorded the ethnicity, but only the language and religion, thus the numbers of ethnic groups in the Kingdom of Hungary are actually the numbers of speakers of various languages, which may not correspond fully with the ethnic composition.
The provinces Hungary lost in the treaty had a majority population of non-Magyars, but also a significant Magyar minority.
The number of Hungarians in the different areas based on census data of 1910:
- In Slovakia: 885,000 - 30%
- In Transylvania (Romania): 1,662,000 - 32%
- In Vojvodina (Serbia and Montenegro): 420,000 - 28%
- In Transcarpathia (Ukraine): 183,000 - 30%
- In Croatia: 121,000 - 3.5%
- In Slovenia: 20,800 - 1.6%
- In Burgenland (Austria): 26,200 - 9%
The Hungarian population in all these regions decreased in percentage after the Treaty, although Magyars can still be found in these countries today.
On the other hand, a considerable number of other nationalities remained within the frontiers of the new Hungary, e.g. some 450,000 Slovaks (399,170 according to Hungarian sources, 450,000–550,000 according to Czechoslovak sources), some 800,000–900,000 Germans, some 82,000 Serbs and Croats (for lack of other information, the last figure is the official figure of 1930) and 23,000 Romanians (in 1920). The percentage of all non-Magyar nationalities very quickly decreased in the new Hungary (there are e.g. only some 17,000 Slovaks in Hungary today, compared with the previous number of 450,000).
Political consequences
Generally speaking, the treaty was a confirmation of the concept of the right for self-determination of nations and of the concept of nation-states replacing old structures of power. New governments appeared in most successor states mostly deriving their legitimacy from the idea of national identity (in many cases a relatively new concept). In some traditionally multi-ethnic areas the application of this idea proved difficult. Existing ethnic divisions usually increased, and new ones were created. Many cities and regions that were ethnically diverse in the 19th century became for the most part mono-lingual, or dominated by a single language and culture. Some 70 years later, in 1993, the successor state Czechoslovakia peacefully split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia, while the successor state Yugoslavia disintegrated through ethnic warfare.
From the point of view of the new states, after centuries of foreign rule, most of the nations of former Austria-Hungary (also called a 'dungeon of nations' by them) finally achieved a right for self-determination and independence or united with the other members of their nation.
The main controversy about the Treaty of Trianon are the borders of Hungary. While the majority of the areas that had been part of the Kingdom of Hungary but were not part of independent Hungary after the Treaty were inhabited by non-Hungarian nationalities, there were also some areas, inhabited mainly by Hungarians, which were not located within the borders of Hungary after the Treaty. These Hungarian-inhabited areas include some north-eastern parts of Transylvania (see: Székelyföld), southern parts of Slovakia (see: Komárno), northern parts of Vojvodina (see: Ethnic groups of Vojvodina), etc.
Other consequences
Economically, 61.4% of the arable land, 88% of the timber, 62.2% of the railroads, 64.5% of the hard surface roads, 83.1% of the pig iron output, 55.7% of the industrial plants and 67% of the credit and banking institutions of the former Kingdom of Hungary became part of other countries. Romania, Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia had to assume part of the financial obligations of the former Kingdom of Hungary on account of the territory placed under their sovereignty.
The military conditions were similar to those imposed on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles; the Hungarian army was to be restricted to 35,000 men and there was to be no conscription. Further provisions stated that in Hungary, no railway would be built with more than one track.
Hungary also renounced all privileges in territory outside Europe that belonged to the former Austro-Hungarian monarchy.
Articles 54–60 of the Treaty required Hungary to observe various rights of national minorities within its borders. Hungary has been accused of violating these provisions.
See also
External links
- Text of the Treaty
- Hungarian Railroad (in Hungarian)
- Hungarian Government Office for Hungarians Abroad
- Map of Hungarian borders in November-December 1918
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