republic · Balkans and Hungary

Hungarian Soviet Republic

1919 CE – 1919 CE · capital Budapest

Communist regime of Béla Kun that ruled Hungary for 133 days in 1919, the second Soviet-style state in the world after Russia.

Origins

When the Allies' Vix Note in March 1919 demanded further Hungarian withdrawals, Mihály Károlyi's Hungarian Democratic Republic resigned. The Social Democrats merged with the Communist Party of Béla Kun, recently released from prison, and on 21 March 1919 they proclaimed a soviet republic, governed by a Revolutionary Governing Council nominally chaired by Sándor Garbai.

Rule and society

The regime nationalised industry, banks, large estates and housing, but kept the estates as state farms rather than giving land to peasants, losing rural support. Revolutionary tribunals and Tibor Szamuely's Lenin Boys carried out a Red Terror. A Hungarian Red Army recaptured much of Slovakia in May and June, briefly creating the Slovak Soviet Republic.

Decline and legacy

Withdrawal from Slovakia under Allied pressure and an offensive by the Romanian army brought collapse; Kun fled to Austria on 1 August 1919, and Romanian troops occupied Budapest. A White Terror followed, leading to Miklós Horthy's Kingdom of Hungary (1920-1946).

Lineage

Hungarian Democratic Republic 1918 CE – 1919 CEHungarian Soviet RepublicKingdom of Hungary (1920-1946) 1920 CE – 1946 CE

Connections (3)

More states of Balkans and Hungary →

Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Hungarian Soviet Republic. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/hungarian-soviet-republic
MLA
“Hungarian Soviet Republic.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/hungarian-soviet-republic. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Hungarian Soviet Republic.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/hungarian-soviet-republic.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Hungarian Soviet Republic’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/hungarian-soviet-republic (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻