Resistance, Rebellion and Revolution in Hungary and Central Europe: Commemorating 1956

edited by László Péter and Martyn Rady

ISBN 978-0-903425-79-7
£20.00

This collection of essays re-examines aspects of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 while seeking to place the events of that year in the larger context of resistance, rebellion and revolution in Hungary, Central Europe and, indeed, Europe as a whole.

The volume contains thirty-five individual articles, supported by an Introduction and Conclusory Essay, ranging from the Middle Ages to the events of 1989 and post-communism, and with contributions on Jacobin France, the English Great Rebellion, Czechoslovakia, Poland and Romania.

Individual articles discuss theories of resistance and the Golden Bull of 1222, the Bocskai and Rákóczi Rebellions, the Hungarian revolutions of 1848 and 1918, resistance to Stalinism in Central Europe, the security forces in Hungary, and artistic responses to the suppression of the 1956 revolution. The volume also carries five eye-witness accounts of the 1956 Revolution, including hitherto unpublished material on the background to Mátyás Rákosi's resignation in June 1956 and the operation of the Interior Ministry during the Revolution.

The volume builds on papers that were originally given at a conference held at UCL SSEES in September 2006 to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution. Both the volume and the conference on which it draws were funded by the Hungarian Cultural Centre in London and the Hungarian Ministry of Education and Culture.

László Péter was Emeritus Professor of Hungarian History at UCL SSEES; Martyn Rady is Professor of Central European History at UCL SSEES.

Order Form

Copies can be obtained from the Publications Office, Room 407, UCL-SSEES, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT Price £20.00

This page last modified Friday 26 February 2010.