Gyula Andrássy
Encyclopedia
Gyula Count Andrássy de Csíkszentkirály et Krasznahorka (3 March 1823 – 18 February 1890) was a Hungarian statesman, who served as Prime Minister of Hungary (1867–1871) and subsequently as Foreign Minister of Austria-Hungary
(1871–1879). He was sometimes called Count Julius Andrassy in English.
(now in Rožňava District
, Slovakia
) in the then Kingdom of Hungary
. The son of a liberal
father who belonged to the political opposition, at a time when to be in oppose the government was very dangerous, Andrássy at a very early age threw himself into the political struggles of the day, adopting at the outset the patriotic side.
Count István Széchenyi
was the first adequately to appreciate his capacity, when in 1845 the young man first began his public career as president of the society for the regulation of the waters of the Upper Tisza
river.
In 1846, he attracted attention by his bitter articles against the government in Lajos Kossuth
's paper, the Pesti Hírlap, and was returned as one of the Radical candidates to the diet of 1848, where his generous, impulsive nature made him one of the most thorough-going of the patriot
s.
When the Croats under Josip Jelačić
attempted to return Međimurje, which was then part of Hungary, to Croatia, Andrássy placed himself at the head of the gentry
of his county, and served with distinction at the battles of Pákozd
and Schwechat
, as Arthur Görgey's adjutant (1848).
Towards the end of the war Andrássy was sent to Constantinople
by the revolutionary government to obtain at least the neutrality of Ottoman Empire
during the struggle.
After the catastrophe of Világos
he migrated first to London and then to Paris. On 21 September 1851 he was hanged in effigy
by the Austrian government for his share in the Hungarian revolt.
He employed his ten years of exile in studying politics in what was then the centre of European diplomacy, and it is memorable that his keen eye detected the inherent weakness of the second French empire beneath its imposing exterior.
Andrássy returned home from exile in 1858, but his position was very difficult. He had never petitioned for an amnesty
, steadily rejected all the overtures both of the Austrian government and of the Magyar Conservatives (who would have accepted something short of full autonomy), and clung enthusiastically to Ferenc Deák
's party.
On 21 December 1865 he was chosen vice-president of the diet, and in March 1866 became president of the sub-committee appointed by the parliamentary commission to draw up the Composition (commonly known as the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867) between Austria and Hungary, of which the central idea, that of the "Delegations," originated with him.
It was said at that time that he was the only member of the commission who could persuade the court of the justice of the national claims.
After the Battle of Königgrätz
he was formally consulted by Emperor Franz Joseph for the first time.
He advised the re-establishment of the constitution and the appointment of a responsible ministry.
On 17 February 1867 the king appointed him the first constitutional Hungarian premier. It was on this occasion that Ferenc Deák
called him "the providential statesman given to Hungary by the grace of God."
As premier, Andrássy by his firmness, amiability and dexterity as a debater, soon won for himself a commanding position. Yet his position continued to be difficult, inasmuch as the authority of Deák dwarfed that of all the party leaders, however eminent.
Andrássy chose for himself the departments of war and foreign affairs. It was he who reorganized the Honvéd
system (state army), and he used often to say that the regulation of the military border districts was the most difficult labour of his life.
On the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War
of 1870, Andrássy resolutely defended the neutrality of the Austrian monarchy, and in his speech on 28 July 1870 warmly protested against the assumption that it was in the interests of Austria to seek to recover the position she had held in Germany before 1863. On the fall of Beust (6 November 1871), Andrássy stepped into his place. His tenure of the chancellorship was epoch-making.
Hitherto the empire of the Habsburgs had never been able to dissociate itself from its Holy Roman
traditions. But its loss of influence in Italy
and Germany, and the consequent formation of the Dual State, had at length indicated the proper, and, indeed, the only field for its diplomacy in the future – the Near East
, where the process of the crystallization of the Balkan peoples into nationalities was still incomplete. The question was whether these nationalities were to be allowed to become independent or were only to exchange the tyranny of the sultan
for the tyranny of the tsar
or the Habsburg emperor.
Hitherto Austria had been content either to keep out the Russians
or share the booty with them. She was now, moreover, in consequence of her misfortunes deprived of most of her influence in the councils of Europe.
It was Andrassy who recovered for her proper place in the European concert. First he approached the German emperor; then more friendly relations were established with the courts of Italy
and Russia
by means of conferences at Berlin, Vienna
, St Petersburg and Venice
.
The three courts of Vienna, Berlin and St Petersburg had come to an understanding as to their attitude in the Eastern question, and their views were embodied in the dispatch, known as the "Andrássy Note", sent on 30 December 1875 by Andrássy to Count Beust, the Austrian ambassador to the Court of St James.
In it he pointed out that the efforts of the powers to localize the revolt seemed in danger of failure, that the rebels were still holding their own, and that the Ottoman
promises of reform, embodied in various firman
s, were no more than vague statements of principle which had never had, and were probably not intended to have, any local application. In order to avert the risk of a general conflagration, therefore, he urged that the time had come for concerted action of the powers for the purpose of pressing the Porte to fulfil its promises.
A sketch of the more essential reforms followed: the recognition rather than the toleration of the Christian religion
; the abolition of the system of farming the taxes; and, in Bosnia and Herzegovina
, where the religious was complicated by an agrarian question, the conversion of the Christian peasants into free proprietors, to rescue them from their double subjection to the Muslim Ottoman landowners.
In Bosnia and Herzegovina
elected provincial councils were to be established, life-term judges appointed and individual liberties guaranteed.
Finally, a mixed commission of Muslims and Christians was to be empowered to watch over the carrying out of these reforms.
The fact that the sultan would be responsible to Europe for the realization of his promises would serve to allay the natural suspicions of the insurgents. To this plan both Britain
and France gave a general assent, and the Andrássy Note was adopted as the basis of negotiations.
When war became inevitable between Russia
and the Porte, Andrássy arranged with the Russian court that, in case Russia
prevailed, the status quo should not be changed to the detriment of the Austrian monarchy. When, however, the Treaty of San Stefano
threatened a Russian hegemony in the Near East, Andrássy concurred with the German and British courts that the final adjustment of matters must be submitted to a European congress.
At the Congress of Berlin
in 1878 he was the principal Austrian plenipotentiary, and directed his efforts to diminish the gains of Russia
and aggrandize the Dual Monarchy. Before the Congress opened on 13 June, negotiations between Andrássy and the British Foreign Secretary Marquess of Salisbury had already "ended on 6 June by Britain agreeing to all the Austrian proposals relative to Bosnia-Herzegovina about to come before the congress while Austria would support British demands."
In addition to the occupation and administration of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Andrássy also obtained the right to station garrisons in the Sanjak of Novi Pazar
, which remained under Ottoman administration. The Sanjak preserved the separation of Serbia and Montenegro, and the Austro-Hungarian garrisons there would open the way for a dash to Salonika that "would bring the western half of the Balkans under permanent Austrian influence." "High [Austro-Hungarian] military authorities desired [an ...] immediate major expedition with Salonika as its objective."
This occupation was most unpopular in Hungary, both for financial reasons and because of the strong philo-Turk sentiments of the Magyars.
On 10 October 1878 the French diplomat Melchior de Vogüé
described the situation as follows:
Andrássy felt constrained to bow before the storm, and he placed his resignation in the emperor's hands (8 October 1879). The day before his retirement he signed the offensive-defensive alliance with Germany, which placed the foreign relations of Austria-Hungary once more on a stable footing.
where he died (between Rijeka and Opatija in present-day Croatia
). It is located just above the restaurant Amfora.
He was the first Magyar statesman who, for centuries, had occupied a European position. It has been said that he united in himself the Magyar magnate with the modern gentleman. His motto was: "It is hard to promise, but it is easy to perform." If Deák was the architect, Andrássy certainly was the master-builder of the modern Hungarian state.
The eldest, Tivadar Andrássy (Theodore Andreas) (born 10 July 1857), was elected vice-president of the Lower House of the Hungarian parliament in 1890. The younger, Gyula
(born 30 June 1860), also had a successful political career.
According to a very common legend, Count Andrássy had a long lasting romance with Queen Elisabeth (Sissy), wife of Emperor and King Franz-Josef of Austria-Hungary, and fathered their only son, Archduke Rudolf
, although there is no evidence for this story, except for the strong sympathy and devotion of both Sissy and Rudolf towards Hungary, its culture and national customs (they were both fluent in Hungarian and regarded Hungarian poetry highly).
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
(1871–1879). He was sometimes called Count Julius Andrassy in English.
Biography
The son of Count Károly Andrássy and Etelka Szapáry, he was born in OláhpatakVlachovo
Vlachovo is a village and municipality in the Rožňava District in the Košice Region of middle-eastern Slovakia.- Geography :The village lies at an altitude of 397 metres and covers an area of 37.332 km².It has a population of about 900 people....
(now in Rožňava District
Rožnava District
Rožňava District is a district in the Košice Region of eastern Slovakia.Until 1918, the district was mostly part of the Hungarian county of Gömör és Kishont, apart from the area in the south-east around the municipalities of Silická Jablonica, Hrušov, Jablonov nad Turňou and Hrhov which formed...
, Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
) in the then Kingdom of Hungary
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
. The son of a liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
father who belonged to the political opposition, at a time when to be in oppose the government was very dangerous, Andrássy at a very early age threw himself into the political struggles of the day, adopting at the outset the patriotic side.
Count István Széchenyi
István Széchenyi
Széchenyi committed suicide by a shot to his head on April 8, 1860. All Hungary mourned his death. The Academy was in official mourning, along with the most prominent persons of the leading political and cultural associations...
was the first adequately to appreciate his capacity, when in 1845 the young man first began his public career as president of the society for the regulation of the waters of the Upper Tisza
Tisza
The Tisza or Tisa is one of the main rivers of Central Europe. It rises in Ukraine, and is formed near Rakhiv by the junction of headwaters White Tisa, whose source is in the Chornohora mountains and Black Tisa, which springs in the Gorgany range...
river.
In 1846, he attracted attention by his bitter articles against the government in Lajos Kossuth
Lajos Kossuth
Lajos Kossuth de Udvard et Kossuthfalva was a Hungarian lawyer, journalist, politician and Regent-President of Hungary in 1849. He was widely honored during his lifetime, including in the United Kingdom and the United States, as a freedom fighter and bellwether of democracy in Europe.-Family:Lajos...
's paper, the Pesti Hírlap, and was returned as one of the Radical candidates to the diet of 1848, where his generous, impulsive nature made him one of the most thorough-going of the patriot
Patriotism
Patriotism is a devotion to one's country, excluding differences caused by the dependencies of the term's meaning upon context, geography and philosophy...
s.
When the Croats under Josip Jelačić
Josip Jelacic
Count Josip Jelačić of Bužim was the Ban of Croatia between 23 March 1848 and 19 May 1859...
attempted to return Međimurje, which was then part of Hungary, to Croatia, Andrássy placed himself at the head of the gentry
Gentry
Gentry denotes "well-born and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past....
of his county, and served with distinction at the battles of Pákozd
Battle of Pákozd
The Battle of Pákozd was a battle in the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, fought on 29 September 1848. It was one of the important battles of the Revolution...
and Schwechat
Battle of Schwechat
The Battle of Schwechat was a battle in the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, fought on 30 October 1848 between the Revolutionary Hungarian Army against the army of the Austrian Empire, in Schwechat, near Vienna. This was the last battle of 1848 in the Trandanubian campaign...
, as Arthur Görgey's adjutant (1848).
Towards the end of the war Andrássy was sent to Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
by the revolutionary government to obtain at least the neutrality of Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
during the struggle.
After the catastrophe of Világos
Surrender at Világos
The Surrender at Világos took place on 13 August 1849 at Világos, and formally ended the Hungarian Revolution of 1848. After it, Julius Jacob von Haynau became the regent of Hungary and took bloody reprisals against Hungary...
he migrated first to London and then to Paris. On 21 September 1851 he was hanged in effigy
Effigy
An effigy is a representation of a person, especially in the form of sculpture or some other three-dimensional form.The term is usually associated with full-length figures of a deceased person depicted in stone or wood on church monuments. These most often lie supine with hands together in prayer,...
by the Austrian government for his share in the Hungarian revolt.
He employed his ten years of exile in studying politics in what was then the centre of European diplomacy, and it is memorable that his keen eye detected the inherent weakness of the second French empire beneath its imposing exterior.
Andrássy returned home from exile in 1858, but his position was very difficult. He had never petitioned for an amnesty
Amnesty
Amnesty is a legislative or executive act by which a state restores those who may have been guilty of an offense against it to the positions of innocent people, without changing the laws defining the offense. It includes more than pardon, in as much as it obliterates all legal remembrance of the...
, steadily rejected all the overtures both of the Austrian government and of the Magyar Conservatives (who would have accepted something short of full autonomy), and clung enthusiastically to Ferenc Deák
Ferenc Deák
Ferenc Deák de Kehida , , was a Hungarian statesman and Minister of Justice. He was known as "The Wise Man of the Nation".-Early life and law career:...
's party.
On 21 December 1865 he was chosen vice-president of the diet, and in March 1866 became president of the sub-committee appointed by the parliamentary commission to draw up the Composition (commonly known as the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867) between Austria and Hungary, of which the central idea, that of the "Delegations," originated with him.
It was said at that time that he was the only member of the commission who could persuade the court of the justice of the national claims.
After the Battle of Königgrätz
Battle of Königgrätz
The Battle of Königgrätz , also known as the Battle of Sadowa, Sadová, or Hradec Králové, was the decisive battle of the Austro-Prussian War, in which the Kingdom of Prussia defeated the Austrian Empire...
he was formally consulted by Emperor Franz Joseph for the first time.
He advised the re-establishment of the constitution and the appointment of a responsible ministry.
On 17 February 1867 the king appointed him the first constitutional Hungarian premier. It was on this occasion that Ferenc Deák
Ferenc Deák
Ferenc Deák de Kehida , , was a Hungarian statesman and Minister of Justice. He was known as "The Wise Man of the Nation".-Early life and law career:...
called him "the providential statesman given to Hungary by the grace of God."
As premier, Andrássy by his firmness, amiability and dexterity as a debater, soon won for himself a commanding position. Yet his position continued to be difficult, inasmuch as the authority of Deák dwarfed that of all the party leaders, however eminent.
Andrássy chose for himself the departments of war and foreign affairs. It was he who reorganized the Honvéd
Honved
Honvéd may refer to;* Honvédség, the Hungarian army.* Budapest Honvéd FC, a Hungarian football team....
system (state army), and he used often to say that the regulation of the military border districts was the most difficult labour of his life.
On the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War
Franco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...
of 1870, Andrássy resolutely defended the neutrality of the Austrian monarchy, and in his speech on 28 July 1870 warmly protested against the assumption that it was in the interests of Austria to seek to recover the position she had held in Germany before 1863. On the fall of Beust (6 November 1871), Andrássy stepped into his place. His tenure of the chancellorship was epoch-making.
Hitherto the empire of the Habsburgs had never been able to dissociate itself from its Holy Roman
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
traditions. But its loss of influence in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and Germany, and the consequent formation of the Dual State, had at length indicated the proper, and, indeed, the only field for its diplomacy in the future – the Near East
Near East
The Near East is a geographical term that covers different countries for geographers, archeologists, and historians, on the one hand, and for political scientists, economists, and journalists, on the other...
, where the process of the crystallization of the Balkan peoples into nationalities was still incomplete. The question was whether these nationalities were to be allowed to become independent or were only to exchange the tyranny of the sultan
Sultan
Sultan is a title with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic language abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", and "dictatorship", derived from the masdar سلطة , meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be used as the title of certain rulers who...
for the tyranny of the tsar
Tsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
or the Habsburg emperor.
Hitherto Austria had been content either to keep out the Russians
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
or share the booty with them. She was now, moreover, in consequence of her misfortunes deprived of most of her influence in the councils of Europe.
It was Andrassy who recovered for her proper place in the European concert. First he approached the German emperor; then more friendly relations were established with the courts of Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
by means of conferences at Berlin, Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, St Petersburg and Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
.
The "Andrássy Note"
The recovered influence of Austria was evident in the negotiations which followed the outbreak of serious disturbances in Bosnia in 1875.The three courts of Vienna, Berlin and St Petersburg had come to an understanding as to their attitude in the Eastern question, and their views were embodied in the dispatch, known as the "Andrássy Note", sent on 30 December 1875 by Andrássy to Count Beust, the Austrian ambassador to the Court of St James.
In it he pointed out that the efforts of the powers to localize the revolt seemed in danger of failure, that the rebels were still holding their own, and that the Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
promises of reform, embodied in various firman
Firman
A firman is a royal mandate or decree issued by a sovereign in certain historical Islamic states, including the Ottoman Empire, Mughal Empire, State of Hyderabad, and Iran under Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi. The word firman comes from the meaning "decree" or "order"...
s, were no more than vague statements of principle which had never had, and were probably not intended to have, any local application. In order to avert the risk of a general conflagration, therefore, he urged that the time had come for concerted action of the powers for the purpose of pressing the Porte to fulfil its promises.
A sketch of the more essential reforms followed: the recognition rather than the toleration of the Christian religion
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
; the abolition of the system of farming the taxes; and, in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
, where the religious was complicated by an agrarian question, the conversion of the Christian peasants into free proprietors, to rescue them from their double subjection to the Muslim Ottoman landowners.
In Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
elected provincial councils were to be established, life-term judges appointed and individual liberties guaranteed.
Finally, a mixed commission of Muslims and Christians was to be empowered to watch over the carrying out of these reforms.
The fact that the sultan would be responsible to Europe for the realization of his promises would serve to allay the natural suspicions of the insurgents. To this plan both Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and France gave a general assent, and the Andrássy Note was adopted as the basis of negotiations.
When war became inevitable between Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and the Porte, Andrássy arranged with the Russian court that, in case Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
prevailed, the status quo should not be changed to the detriment of the Austrian monarchy. When, however, the Treaty of San Stefano
Treaty of San Stefano
The Preliminary Treaty of San Stefano was a treaty between Russia and the Ottoman Empire signed at the end of the Russo-Turkish War, 1877–78...
threatened a Russian hegemony in the Near East, Andrássy concurred with the German and British courts that the final adjustment of matters must be submitted to a European congress.
Congress of Berlin
The Congress of Berlin was a meeting of the European Great Powers' and the Ottoman Empire's leading statesmen in Berlin in 1878. In the wake of the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78, the meeting's aim was to reorganize the countries of the Balkans...
in 1878 he was the principal Austrian plenipotentiary, and directed his efforts to diminish the gains of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and aggrandize the Dual Monarchy. Before the Congress opened on 13 June, negotiations between Andrássy and the British Foreign Secretary Marquess of Salisbury had already "ended on 6 June by Britain agreeing to all the Austrian proposals relative to Bosnia-Herzegovina about to come before the congress while Austria would support British demands."
In addition to the occupation and administration of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Andrássy also obtained the right to station garrisons in the Sanjak of Novi Pazar
Sanjak of Novi Pazar
The Sanjak of Novi Pazar was an Ottoman sanjak that existed until the Balkan Wars of 1912-1913 in the territory of present day Montenegro, Serbia and Kosovo.-History:It was part of the Bosnia Vilayet and later Kosovo Vilayet and included...
, which remained under Ottoman administration. The Sanjak preserved the separation of Serbia and Montenegro, and the Austro-Hungarian garrisons there would open the way for a dash to Salonika that "would bring the western half of the Balkans under permanent Austrian influence." "High [Austro-Hungarian] military authorities desired [an ...] immediate major expedition with Salonika as its objective."
This occupation was most unpopular in Hungary, both for financial reasons and because of the strong philo-Turk sentiments of the Magyars.
On 28 September 1878 the Finance Minister, Koloman von Zell, threatened to resign if the army, behind which stood the Archduke Albert, were allowed to advance to Salonika. In the session of the Hungarian Parliament of 5 November 1878 the Opposition proposed that the Foreign Minister should be impeached for violating the constitution by his policy during the Near East Crisis and by the occupation of Bosnia-Herzegovina. The motion was lost by 179 to 95. By the Opposition rank and file the gravest accusations were raised against Andrassy.
On 10 October 1878 the French diplomat Melchior de Vogüé
Melchior de Vogüé
Eugène-Melchior, vicomte de Vogüé was a French diplomat, Orientalist, travel writer, archaeologist, philanthropist and literary critic.-Biography:...
described the situation as follows:
Particularly in Hungary the dissatisfaction caused by this 'adventure' has reached the gravest proportions, prompted by that strong conservative instinct which animates the Magyar race and is the secret of its destinies. This vigorous and exclusive instinct explains the historical phenomenon of an isolated group, small in numbers yet dominating a country inhabited by a majority of peoples of different races and conflicting aspirations, and playing a role in European affairs out of all proportions to its numerical importance or intellectual culture. This instinct is to-day awakened and gives warning that it feels the occupation of Bosnia-Herzegovina to be a menace which, by introducing fresh Slav elements into the Hungarian political organism and providing a wider field and further recruitment of the Croat opposition, would upset the unstable equilibrium in which the Magyar domination is poised.
Andrássy felt constrained to bow before the storm, and he placed his resignation in the emperor's hands (8 October 1879). The day before his retirement he signed the offensive-defensive alliance with Germany, which placed the foreign relations of Austria-Hungary once more on a stable footing.
Later life
After his retirement, Andrássy continued to take an active part in public affairs both in the Delegations and in the Upper House. In 1885 he warmly supported the project for the reform of the House of Magnates, but on the other hand he jealously defended the inviolability of the Composition of 1867, and on 5 March 1889 in his place in the Upper House spoke against any particularist tampering with the common army. In the last years of his life he regained his popularity, and his death on 18 February 1890, aged 66, was mourned as a national calamity. There is a plaque dedicated to him in the town of VoloskoVolosko
Volosko is a part of the city of Opatija, located in the Kvarner Gulf in western Croatia. It is located in the north of Opatija, on the road towards Kastav and Rijeka.-People:* Amelia Milka Sablich, born there...
where he died (between Rijeka and Opatija in present-day Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
). It is located just above the restaurant Amfora.
He was the first Magyar statesman who, for centuries, had occupied a European position. It has been said that he united in himself the Magyar magnate with the modern gentleman. His motto was: "It is hard to promise, but it is easy to perform." If Deák was the architect, Andrássy certainly was the master-builder of the modern Hungarian state.
Family
By his wife, the countess Katinka Kendeffy, whom he married in Paris in 1856, Count Andrássy left two sons, and one daughter, Ilona (b. 1859). Both the sons gained distinction in Hungarian politics.The eldest, Tivadar Andrássy (Theodore Andreas) (born 10 July 1857), was elected vice-president of the Lower House of the Hungarian parliament in 1890. The younger, Gyula
Gyula Andrássy the Younger
Count Gyula Andrássy de Csíkszentkirály et Krasznahorka the Younger was a Hungarian politician.The second son of Count Gyula Andrássy, the younger Andrássy became under-secretary in the Sándor Wekerle ministry in 1892; in 1893, he became Minister of Education, and, in June 1894, he was appointed...
(born 30 June 1860), also had a successful political career.
According to a very common legend, Count Andrássy had a long lasting romance with Queen Elisabeth (Sissy), wife of Emperor and King Franz-Josef of Austria-Hungary, and fathered their only son, Archduke Rudolf
Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria
Rudolf , archduke of Austria and crown prince of Austria, Hungary and Bohemia, was the son and heir of Franz Joseph I, emperor of Austria, Hungary and Bohemia, and his wife and empress, Elisabeth...
, although there is no evidence for this story, except for the strong sympathy and devotion of both Sissy and Rudolf towards Hungary, its culture and national customs (they were both fluent in Hungarian and regarded Hungarian poetry highly).
Ancestors
External links
- Andrássy's Speeches (Hung.) edited by Béla Léderer (Budapest, 1891)
- Memoir (Hung.) by Benjamin Kállay (Budapest, 1891)
- Eulogy (Hung.) in the Akad. Értesitő, Evf. 14 (Budapest, 1891)
- Recollections of Count Andrassy (Hung.), by Manó Kónyi (Budapest, 1891)