Döme Sztójay
Encyclopedia
Döme Sztójay born Demeter Sztojakovich was a Hungarian
soldier
and diplomat
of Serb origin, who served as Prime Minister of Hungary during World War II
.
(Serbian: Vršac) in a Serb family, Sztójay joined the Austro-Hungarian Army
as a young man and served as a colonel
during World War I
. After the war, Sztójay served in Admiral
Miklós Horthy
’s counter-revolutionary army, specializing in counter-espionage
. After Horthy became Regent
of Hungary
, Sztójay was promoted to general
and served as a military attaché
in Berlin
from 1925 to 1933. He changed his name from Sztojakovich to Sztójay in 1927. From 1933 to 1935, Sztójay served in the Ministry of Defence.
In 1935, Sztójay was named Gyula Gömbös
’s Ambassador
to Germany
, a position he would hold until 1944. As ambassador, Sztójay formed strong ties with the German foreign ministry due to his pro-German views. During his tenure as ambassador, Sztójay often voiced support for German policies to his superiors in Hungary. In March 1944, the German Army occupied Hungary and forced Horthy to remove Prime Minister Miklós Kállay
from office. The Germans then gave Horthy a choice between choosing a new prime minister who would cooperate with the Germans or undisguised occupation. Knowing that the latter would likely mean a gauleiter
who would treat Hungary in the same manner as the other Nazi-occupied countries, Horthy chose the former. The German Plenipotentiary
for Hungary, Edmund Veesenmayer
, proposed that Béla Imrédy
(who had, ironically, a Jewish great-grandfather) be made prime minister. However, Horthy balked at appointing the strongly pro-German Imrédy and suggested Sztójay instead. Horthy believed that even though Sztójay had been ambassador to Berlin for a decade, he was a soldier first and would not totally give in to German demands. The Germans readily approved of Horthy’s choice, and on March 23, 1944, Sztójay was appointed Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs.
As prime minister, Sztójay legalized Ferenc Szálasi
’s Arrow Cross Party
, increased Hungarian troop levels on the Eastern Front
, dissolved the nation’s labor unions, jailed political opponents, and cracked down on left wing politicians and activists. Sztójay refused to accept Horthy's authority and carried out massive persecutions of Jews, which within two months escalated to deportations of Jews to concentration camps. Horthy quickly became appalled by Sztójay’s actions and demanded his removal as prime minister, but Adolf Hitler
sternly refused to implement any such course of action. Horthy refused to give in entirely, however, and used his influence to stop the deportations of Hungary’s Jews and to force Imrédy out of Sztójay’s cabinet. The Germans finally submitted to Horthy’s pressure in August 1944 and Sztójay resigned as prime minister in favour of Géza Lakatos
.
When Horthy was removed from power by the Germans in October 1944, Sztójay was not reappointed prime minister due his poor heath. Sztójay subsequently fled Hungary when the Germans were driven out of the country by the Soviet army
in April 1945. Sztójay was later captured by American
troops and extradited to Hungary in October 1945, after which time he was tried by a Communist People’s Tribunal in Budapest
. He was found guilty of war crimes and crimes against the Hungarian people, sentenced to death, and executed by a firing squad in Budapest in 1946.
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
soldier
Soldier
A soldier is a member of the land component of national armed forces; whereas a soldier hired for service in a foreign army would be termed a mercenary...
and diplomat
Diplomat
A diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...
of Serb origin, who served as Prime Minister of Hungary during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Biography
Born in VersecVršac
Vršac is a town and municipality located in Serbia. In 2002 the town's total population was 36,623, while Vršac municipality had 54,369 inhabitants. Vršac is located in the Banat region, in the Vojvodina province of Serbia. It is part of the South Banat District.-Name:The name Vršac is of Serbian...
(Serbian: Vršac) in a Serb family, Sztójay joined the Austro-Hungarian Army
Austro-Hungarian Army
The Austro-Hungarian Army was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint army , the Austrian Landwehr , and the Hungarian Honvédség .In the wake of fighting between the...
as a young man and served as a colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. After the war, Sztójay served in Admiral
Admiral
Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral and above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet . It is usually abbreviated to "Adm" or "ADM"...
Miklós Horthy
Miklós Horthy
Miklós Horthy de Nagybánya was the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary during the interwar years and throughout most of World War II, serving from 1 March 1920 to 15 October 1944. Horthy was styled "His Serene Highness the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary" .Admiral Horthy was an officer of the...
’s counter-revolutionary army, specializing in counter-espionage
Counter-Espionage
-Cast:* Warren William as Michael Lanyard* Eric Blore as Jamison* Hillary Brooke as Pamela Hart* Thurston Hall as Insp. Crane* Fred Kelsey as Detective Wesley Dickens* Forrest Tucker as Anton Schugg* Matthew Boulton as Inspector J...
. After Horthy became Regent
Regent
A regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...
of Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, Sztójay was promoted to general
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
and served as a military attaché
Military attaché
A military attaché is a military expert who is attached to a diplomatic mission . This post is normally filled by a high-ranking military officer who retains the commission while serving in an embassy...
in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
from 1925 to 1933. He changed his name from Sztojakovich to Sztójay in 1927. From 1933 to 1935, Sztójay served in the Ministry of Defence.
In 1935, Sztójay was named Gyula Gömbös
Gyula Gömbös
Gyula Gömbös de Jákfa was the conservative prime minister of Hungary from 1932 to 1936.-Background:Gömbös was born in the Tolna County village of Murga, Hungary, which had a mixed Hungarian and ethnic German population. His father was the village schoolmaster. The family belonged to the ...
’s Ambassador
Ambassador
An ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents a nation and is usually accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization....
to Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, a position he would hold until 1944. As ambassador, Sztójay formed strong ties with the German foreign ministry due to his pro-German views. During his tenure as ambassador, Sztójay often voiced support for German policies to his superiors in Hungary. In March 1944, the German Army occupied Hungary and forced Horthy to remove Prime Minister Miklós Kállay
Miklós Kállay
Dr. Miklós Kállay de Nagykálló was a Hungarian politician who served as Prime Minister of Hungary during World War II, from 9 March 1942 to 19 March 1944....
from office. The Germans then gave Horthy a choice between choosing a new prime minister who would cooperate with the Germans or undisguised occupation. Knowing that the latter would likely mean a gauleiter
Gauleiter
A Gauleiter was the party leader of a regional branch of the NSDAP or the head of a Gau or of a Reichsgau.-Creation and Early Usage:...
who would treat Hungary in the same manner as the other Nazi-occupied countries, Horthy chose the former. The German Plenipotentiary
Plenipotentiary
The word plenipotentiary has two meanings. As a noun, it refers to a person who has "full powers." In particular, the term commonly refers to a diplomat fully authorized to represent his government as a prerogative...
for Hungary, Edmund Veesenmayer
Edmund Veesenmayer
Edmund Veesenmayer was a German politician, officer and war criminal. He significantly contributed to The Holocaust in Hungary and Croatia...
, proposed that Béla Imrédy
Béla Imrédy
Béla vitéz Imrédy de Ómoravicza was Prime Minister of Hungary from 1938 to 1939....
(who had, ironically, a Jewish great-grandfather) be made prime minister. However, Horthy balked at appointing the strongly pro-German Imrédy and suggested Sztójay instead. Horthy believed that even though Sztójay had been ambassador to Berlin for a decade, he was a soldier first and would not totally give in to German demands. The Germans readily approved of Horthy’s choice, and on March 23, 1944, Sztójay was appointed Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs.
As prime minister, Sztójay legalized Ferenc Szálasi
Ferenc Szálasi
Ferenc Szálasi was the leader of the National Socialist Arrow Cross Party – Hungarist Movement, the "Leader of the Nation" , being both Head of State and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Hungary's "Government of National Unity" for the final three months of Hungary's participation in World War II...
’s Arrow Cross Party
Arrow Cross Party
The Arrow Cross Party was a national socialist party led by Ferenc Szálasi, which led in Hungary a government known as the Government of National Unity from October 15, 1944 to 28 March 1945...
, increased Hungarian troop levels on the Eastern Front
Eastern Front (World War II)
The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of World War II between the European Axis powers and co-belligerent Finland against the Soviet Union, Poland, and some other Allies which encompassed Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe from 22 June 1941 to 9 May 1945...
, dissolved the nation’s labor unions, jailed political opponents, and cracked down on left wing politicians and activists. Sztójay refused to accept Horthy's authority and carried out massive persecutions of Jews, which within two months escalated to deportations of Jews to concentration camps. Horthy quickly became appalled by Sztójay’s actions and demanded his removal as prime minister, but Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
sternly refused to implement any such course of action. Horthy refused to give in entirely, however, and used his influence to stop the deportations of Hungary’s Jews and to force Imrédy out of Sztójay’s cabinet. The Germans finally submitted to Horthy’s pressure in August 1944 and Sztójay resigned as prime minister in favour of Géza Lakatos
Géza Lakatos
Knight Géza Lakatos de Csíkszentsimon was a general in Hungary during World War II who served briefly as Prime Minister of Hungary, under governor Miklós Horthy from August 29, 1944, until October 15,...
.
When Horthy was removed from power by the Germans in October 1944, Sztójay was not reappointed prime minister due his poor heath. Sztójay subsequently fled Hungary when the Germans were driven out of the country by the Soviet army
Soviet Army
The Soviet Army is the name given to the main part of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union between 1946 and 1992. Previously, it had been known as the Red Army. Informally, Армия referred to all the MOD armed forces, except, in some cases, the Soviet Navy.This article covers the Soviet Ground...
in April 1945. Sztójay was later captured by American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
troops and extradited to Hungary in October 1945, after which time he was tried by a Communist People’s Tribunal in Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
. He was found guilty of war crimes and crimes against the Hungarian people, sentenced to death, and executed by a firing squad in Budapest in 1946.