Great Men and Famous Women. Vol. 6: A series of pen and pencil sketches of the lives of more than 200 of the most prominent personages in History
History
Great Men and Famous Women. Vol. 6: A series of pen and pencil sketches of the lives of more than 200 of the most prominent personages in History
Biography
There was now but one course left for the Hungarians: to maintain by
force of arms the position they had assumed. We cannot detail the
events of the war which followed, but merely touch upon the most
salient points. Jellachich was speedily driven out of Hungary toward
Vienna. In October the Austrian forces were concentrated, under
command of Windischgrätz, to the number of 120,000 veterans, and
were put on the march for Hungary. To oppose them the only forces
under the command of the new government of Hungary were 20,000
regular infantry, 7,000 cavalry, and 14,000 recruits, who received
the name of Honveds, or "protectors of home." Of all the movements
that followed, Kossuth was the soul and chief. His burning and
passionate appeals stirred up the souls of the peasants, and sent
them by thousands to the camp. He kindled enthusiasm, he organized
that enthusiasm, and transformed those raw recruits into soldiers
more than a match for the veteran troops of Austria. Though himself
not a soldier, he discovered and drew about him soldiers and
generals of a high order. The result was that Windischgrätz was
driven back from Hungary, and of the 120,000 troops which he led
into that kingdom in October, one-half were killed, disabled, or
taken prisoners at the end of April. The state of the war on May 1st
may be gathered from the imperial manifesto of that date, which
announced that "the insurrection in Hungary had grown to such an
extent" that the Imperial Government "had been induced to appeal to
the assistance of his majesty the Czar of all the Russias, who
generously and readily granted it to a most satisfactory extent."
The issue of the contest could no longer be doubtful when the
immense weight of Russia was thrown into the scale. In modern
warfare there is a limit beyond which devotion and enthusiasm cannot
supply the place of numbers and material force. And that limit was
overpassed when Russia and Austria were pitted against Hungary.
On May 1st the Russian intervention was announced. On August 11th
Kossuth resigned his dictatorship into the hands of Görgey, who, two
days after, in effect closed the war by surrendering to the
Russians.
The Hungarian war thus lasted a little more than eleven months,
during which time there was but one ruling and directing spirit, and
that was Kossuth, to whose immediate career we now return.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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