Royal Hungarian Honvéd


The Royal Hungarian Honvéd or Royal Hungarian Landwehr, commonly known as the Honvéd, was one of the four armed forces of Austria-Hungary from 1867 to 1918, along with the Austrian Landwehr, the Common Army and the Imperial and Royal Navy. The term honvéd was used to refer to all members of the Hungarian land forces in 1848-49, but it was also used to refer to enlisted private soldiers without a rank.

History

The word honvéd in Hungarian means "defender of the homeland" and first appeared during the 1848 revolutions. At that time it was the name given to volunteers who were engaged for several weeks or a gyözelemig and sent to fight the Serbs and Croats. Subsequently, the bulk of the fighting was against the Empire of Austria, whereupon a number of regular imperial regiments went over to the Hungarian side. Some volunteers were attached to these existing regiments and some joined new regular regiments. Consequently, the term honvéd was used to refer to all members of the Hungarian land forces in 1848-49. The Honvéd was finally defeated by Austria with Russian assistance.
Around 40% of the private soldiers in the Hungarian Revolutionary Volunteer Army consisted of ethnic minorities of the country.
During the Hungarian revolution, around half of the officers and generals of the Hungarian Honvéd Army had foreign origin. There were at least as many ethnic Hungarian professional officers in the Imperial Habsburg army as in the Hungarian revolutionary Honvéd army.
Following the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867, the Royal Hungarian Honvéd was restored for Hungary, and the Imperial-Royal Landwehr was created for Austria, but both states had to continue to finance the Austro-Hungarian Common Army, much larger than both. A common Austro-Hungarian War Ministry was formed immediately for the large Common Army, but it had no right to command directly the smaller Austrian Landwehr and the Hungarian Honvéd armies, which were respectively placed under the direct control of the separate Austrian and Hungarian Ministries of Defence. The Austrian and Hungarian Ministers of Defence were not placed under the command and jurisdiction of the Common War Ministry; they were subordinated only to their own prime ministers and the respective parliaments in Vienna and Budapest. The Hungarian Honvéd army could join the imperial army only with the explicit authorization of the Hungarian government.
The monarch became the supreme warlord, holding all authority over the structure, organization, and administration of the army. He appointed the senior officials, had the right to declare war, and was the commander-in-chief of the army.
On 21 May 1893 the Honvéd Memorial was unveiled in Budapest in commemoration of the deeds of the Hungarian national army during the Hungarian Revolution of 1848-49. From 1919 to 1945, Honvédség was also a name given to the Royal Hungarian Army.

Structure

The Hungarian Landwehr consisted of territorial units from the Hungarian half of Austria-Hungary, the historical territory of the Kingdom of Hungary: These territories included what is present-day Hungary, Slovakia and parts of the present-day countries of Austria, Croatia, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia and Ukraine.
Usually the term Landwehr implies units of limited fighting power. This was not the case in the Hungarian Honvéd. Although weaker in numbers - there were only three battalions per infantry regiment instead of the usual four in the Common Army - the troops were regular combat soldiers and were highly trained.
The Royal Hungarian Honvéd was divided into the Hungarian Honvéd and the Royal Croatian Home Guard. The Croatian–Hungarian Settlement of 1868 granted the Croats the right to introduce Croatian as their working and command language within their units. In addition, the Croatian-Slavonian Honvéd units were subordinated to the Ban in Agram and not to the National Defence Minister in Budapest. However, both Ban and the Defence Minister were subordinated to the Prime Minister of Hungary.

Recruitment

In peacetime the officers of the Hungarian Honvéd either transferred from regular Hungarian regiments of the Common Army or graduated from the Ludovika Military Academy in Budapest. From 1869 onward the rank and file soldiers of the Honvéd were recruited as part of the general conscription process of the Common Army with individual Hungarian conscripts being allocated to specific K.u.K. or Honvéd regiments according to the numbers required. Entry to the Honvéd contingent or to the Common Army was decided by drawing lots. Enlisted at the age of 21 the Honvéd soldier usually undertook 24 months of active service before passing into the reserve. The commitment for compulsory service ended at the age of 36.

Landwehr districts

Formations and units of the Royal Hungarian Honvéd

The Royal Hungarian Honvéd was the standing army of Hungary. A part of the Honvéd was the Royal Croatian Home Guard, which consisted of 1 infantry division and 1 cavalry regiment. Its order of battle at the outbreak of the First World War in 1914 was as follows :
  • 6 Landwehr districts
  • 2 infantry divisions
  • 2 cavalry divisions
  • 4 infantry brigades
  • 12 independent infantry brigades
  • 4 cavalry brigades
  • 32 infantry regiments
  • 10 regiments of hussars
  • 8 field artillery regiments
  • 1 horse artillery battalion
In 1915, units of the whole Army that had nicknames or honorific titles lost them by order of the War Ministry. Thereafter units were designated only by their numerical designation, but the practice of honoric titles remained in the Honvéd.
All details relate to the year 1914:

Infantry divisions

  • 20th Honvéd Infantry Division – Nagyvárad
  • :Commander: Feldmarschalleutnant Friedrich von Csanády
  • *39th Honvéd Infantry Brigade – Nagyvárad
  • *:Commander: Major General Koloman Patzák
  • *40th Honvéd Infantry Brigade – Szatmárnémeti
  • *:Commanding Officer: Colonel Béla Tarnáky
  • 41st Honvéd Infantry Division – Budapest
  • :Commander: Feldmarschalleutnant Johann Nikić
  • *81st Honvéd Infantry Brigade – Budapest
  • *:Commander: Major General Eugen Perneczky
  • *82nd Honvéd Infantry Brigade – Veszprém
  • *:Commander: Major General Rudolf Schamschula

Independent infantry brigades

  • 45th Honvéd Infantry Brigade – Szeged
  • :Commander: Major General Rudolf Seide
  • 46th Honvéd Infantry Brigade – Lugos
  • :Commander: Major General Lehel Festl
  • 73rd Honvéd Infantry Brigade – Pozsony
  • :Commanding Officer: Colonel Paul von Nagy
  • 74th Honvéd Infantry Brigade – Nyitra
  • :Commander: Major General Franz Cvrček
  • 75th Honvéd Infantry Brigade – Kolozsvár
  • :Commander: Major General Karl Lippner von Nagyszentmiklós
  • 76th Honvéd Infantry Brigade – Nagyszeben
  • :Commanding Officer: Colonel Adalbert Benke von Tardoskedd
  • 77th Honvéd Infantry Brigade – Kassa
  • :Commanding Officer: Colonel Desiderius Molnár von Péterfalva
  • 78th Honvéd Infantry Brigade – Miskolcz
  • :Commander: Major General Josef Foglár
  • 79th Honvéd Infantry Brigade – Budapest
  • :Commander: Major General Koloman Tabajdi
  • 80th Honvéd Infantry Brigade – Pécs
  • :Commanding Officer: Colonel Johann Háber
  • 83rd Honvéd Infantry Brigade – Agram
  • :Commander: Major General Nikolaus Ištvanović von Ivanska
  • 84th Honvéd Infantry Brigade – Osijek
  • :Commanding Officer: Colonel Daniel Kolak

Cavalry divisions

  • 5th Honvéd Cavalry Division Budapest
  • :Commander: Feldmarschalleutnant Ernst Anton von Froreich-Szábo
  • *19th Honvéd Cavalry Brigade – Budapest
  • *:Commander: Major General Ferdinand Graf von Bissingen und Nippenburg
  • *23rd Honvéd Cavalry Brigade – Zalaegerszeg
  • *:Commanding Officer: Colonel Baron Colbert Zech
  • 11th Honvéd Cavalry Division – Debreczen
  • :Commander: Major General Julius Freiherr Nagy von Töbör-Éthe
  • *22nd Landwehr Cavalry Brigade – Szeged
  • *:Commanding Officer: Colonel Karl Czitó
  • *24th Landwehr Cavalry Brigade – Kassa
  • *:Commanding Officer: Colonel Ladislaus Jóny von Jamnik

Cavalry regiments

  • 1st Budapest Honvéd Hussars
  • *19th Honvád Cavalry Brigade – 5th Honvéd Cavalry Division
  • :Commanding Officer: Colonel Colbert Zech von Deybach Freiherr von Hart und Sulz – Debachi Zech Colbert italic=no
  • 2nd Debreczen Honvéd Hussars
  • *22nd Honvéd Cavalry Brigade – 11th Honvéd Cavalry Division
  • :Commanding Officer: Lieutenant Colonel Johann Flór – Flór János alezredes
  • 3rd Szeged Honvéd Hussars
  • *22nd Honvéd Cavalry Brigade – 11th Honvéd Cavalry Division
  • :Commanding Officer: Lieutenant Colonel Árpád Cserépy von Kisruszka – Kisruszkai Cserépy Árpád alezredes
  • 4th Szabadka Honvéd Hussars
  • *I and II Sqns, 23rd Honvéd Infantry Division
  • *III and IV Sqns, 20th Honvéd Infantry Division
  • *V and VI Sqns, 41st Honvéd Infantry Division
  • :Commanding Officer: Lieutenant Colonel Nikolaus Jankovich von Jeszenicze – Jeszeniczai Jankovich Miklós alezredes
  • 5th Kassa Honvéd Hussars
  • *24th Honvéd Cavalry Brigade – 11th Honvéd Cavalry Division
  • :Commanding Officer: Colonel Paul Hegedüs – Hegedüs Pál ezredes
  • 6th Zalaegerszeg Honvéd Hussars
  • *23rd Honvéd Cavalry Brigade – 5th Honvéd Cavalry Division
  • :Commanding Officer: Lieutenant Colonel Ladislaus Forster von Szenterzsébet – Szenterzsébeti Forster László alezredes
  • 7th Pápa Honvéd Hussars
  • *23rd Honvéd Cavalry Brigade – 5th Honvéd Cavalry Division
  • :Commanding Officer: Colonel Johann Graf Lubienski – Gróf Lubienski János ezredes
  • Pécs Honvéd Hussars 8
  • *19th Honvéd Cavalry Brigade – 5th Honvéd Cavalry Division
  • :Commanding Officer: Lieutenant Colonel Alexius Thege von Konkoly – Konkoly Thege Elek alezredes
  • 9th Maros-Vásárhely Honvéd Hussars
  • *24th Honvéd Cavalry Brigade -1st Honvéd Cavalry Division
  • :Commanding Officer: Colonel Koloman Géczy von Garamszeg – Garamszegi Géczy Kálmán ezredes
  • 10th Varazdin Honvéd Hussars
  • *I and II Sqns, 36th Honvéd Infantry Division
  • *III and IV Sqns, 42nd Honvéd Infantry Division
  • *V and VI Sqns, 13th Honvéd Infantrybrigade
  • :Commanding Officer: Lieutenant Colonel Alois Hauer – Hauer Alajos alezredes

Field artillery regiments

  • 1st Regiment of Artillery – 1. honvéd tábori ágyúsezred
  • :Garrison: Budapest – 4th Honvéd Infantry Division – I Landwehr District
  • :formed: 1913
  • :Commanding Officer: Colonel Anton Hellebronth von Tiszabeö – Tiszabeöi Hellebronth Antal ezredes
  • 2nd Regiment of Field Artillery – 2 honvéd tábori ágyúsezred
  • :Garrison: Nagyszeben – 23rd Honvéd Infantry Division – V Landwehr District
  • :formed: 1914
  • :Commanding Officer: Lieutenant Colonel Ladislaus Thaisz – Thaisz Lázló alezredes
  • 3rd Regiment of Field Artillery – 3 honvéd tábori ágyúsezred
  • :Garrison: Kassa – 39th Honvéd Infantry Division – III Landwehr District
  • :formed: 1914
  • :Commanding Officer: Lieutenant Colonel Heinrich Loidin – Loidin Henrik alezredes
  • 4th Regiment of Field Artillery – 4 honvéd tábori ágyúsezred
  • :Garrison: Nyitra – 37th Honvéd Infantry Division – IV Landwehr District
  • :formed: 1914
  • :Commanding Officer: Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Mattanovich – Mattanovich Sándor alezredes
  • 5th Regiment of Field Artillery – 5 honvéd tábori ágyúsezred
  • :Garrison: Maros-Vásarhely – 38th Honvéd Infantry Division – V Landwehr District
  • :formed: 1914
  • :Commanding Officer: Lieutenant Colonel Egon Stráner – Sztráner Jenő alezredes
  • 6th Regiment of Field Artillery – 6 honvéd tábori ágyúsezred
  • :Garrison: Agram – 42nd Honvéd Infantry Division – VI Landwehr District
  • :formed: 1914
  • :Commanding Officer: Lieutenant Colonel Rudolf Sekulić – Sekulić Rezső alezredes
  • 7th Regiment of Field Artillery – 7 honvéd tábori ágyúsezred
  • :Garrison: Hajmaskér – 41st Honvéd Infantry Division – VII Landwehr District
  • :formed: 1914
  • :Commanding Officer: Lieutenant Colonel Gustav Kapp – Capp Gusztáv alezredes
  • 8th Regiment of Field Artillery – 8th honvéd tábori ágyúsezred
  • :Garrison: Hajmaskér – 20th Honvéd Infantry Division – II Landwehr District
  • :formed: 1914
  • :Commanding Officer: Colonel Albert Pohl – Pohl Albert ezredes
  • 1st Honvéd Horse Artillery Division – honvéd lovastüzér osztály
  • :Garrison: Szeged – 11th Honvéd Cavalry Division – II Landwehr District
  • :formed: 1914

Museum coverage

The history of Austro-Hungarian forces is documented in detail in the Military History Museum in Vienna, which was founded by Emperor Franz Joseph I as the Imperial-Royal Court Armaments Museum. In a special display cabinet in Hall V of the museum, several uniforms of the Imperial Royal Landwehr are displayed, a relief on the rear of the cabinet shows the territories from which the Hungarian Landwehr and the Imperial Royal Landwehr recruited.

Literature and sources

  • Allmayer-Beck, Johann Christoph and Lessing, Erich. Die K.u.k. Armee. 1848–1918, Verlag Bertelsmann, Munich, 1974,.
  • k.u.k. Kriegsministerium Dislokation und Einteilung des k.u.k Heeres, der k.u.k. Kriegsmarine, der k.k. Landwehr und der k.u. Landwehr in Seidel's kleines Armeeschema – published by Seidel & Sohn, Vienna, 1914
  • Rest, Stefan, Ortner, M. Christian and Ilmig, Thomas. Des Kaisers Rock im 1. Weltkrieg. Verlag Militaria, Vienna.
  • k.u.k. Kriegsministerium. Adjustierungsvorschrift für das k.u.k. Heer, die k.k. Landwehr, die k.u. Landwehr, die verbundenen Einrichtungen und das Korps der Militärbeamten, Vienna.