A 133-day experiment: How Hungary briefly became a Soviet republic in 1919

Countries & Cities · Published 29 September 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: In the chaotic aftermath of World War I, Hungary transformed into a short-lived communist state. Led by Béla Kun, the regime promised to restore lost territories and empower the working class. Yet, internal purges, economic isolation, and military failure led to its collapse in just over four months.

The Hungarian Soviet Republic emerged on 21 March 1919, following the resignation of President Mihály Károlyi. Károlyi, who had previously ordered the unilateral disarmament of the Hungarian Army, found himself unable to navigate the demands of the Triple Entente. The new government, a coalition of communists and social democrats, was dominated by Béla Kun, who maintained direct contact with Vladimir Lenin via radio. While the regime officially aimed to establish a dictatorship of the proletariat, it struggled to maintain control over more than 23% of Hungary's historic territory at its inception.

The republic's downfall was driven by a combination of foreign and domestic failures. Internationally, the Triple Entente maintained an economic blockade, and the regime’s attempt to reclaim lost lands led to military conflict with Romania and Czechoslovakia. Although the Hungarian Red Army initially saw success in the north, the government’s decision to prioritize the establishment of a Slovak Soviet Republic over Hungarian national interests alienated patriotic officers and the public. By July 1919, the government had lost the support of the majority of the population, exacerbated by the Red Terror—a campaign of violence carried out by groups like the Lenin Boys.

The collapse arrived on 1 August 1919, when Kun and other leaders fled to Vienna, taking national gold reserves with them. A brief social democratic government followed before Romanian forces occupied Budapest on 6 August. This power vacuum ushered in the White Terror, a violent backlash against leftists and Jews. Many former commissars were later imprisoned, though some, like Mátyás Rákosi, survived to lead Hungary's later communist regime. Kun himself eventually perished during Stalin's Great Purge in the late 1930s, marking the end of a tumultuous chapter in Central European history.

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