Four Generals in Budapest. The Inter-Allied Military Mission in Hungary (1919-1920)

In March 1919, in the midst of a terrible internal and international crisis, Hungary became a Soviet republic and was involved in a struggle to defend its borders by neighbouring countries. This situation resulted in the Hungarian-Romanian war that lasted until August 1919 and led to the occupation of the country, that in eastern Hungary lasted until 28 March 1920. The Allied council disapproved Romania’s conduct during military operations in Hungary. In fact, Bucharest did not follow the Supreme Allied Council’s instructions, by moving its forces west of the Tisza River and by demanding large reparations. Thus, the Council forced Romania to accept the supervision of an Inter-Allied Military Mission to oversee the disarmament of the Hungarian army and the disengagement of Romanian troops from the country. The Inter-Allied Military Mission included four generals, representing each of the Great Powers. This paper will focus on the activity of the Military Mission and its uneasily relations with Romanian authorities, that contributed to a short-lived but extremely serious crisis between the Allied Powers and the Romanian government. The Inter-Allied Military Mission played a role in the definition of Allied position towards Romania and partly influenced diplomatic talks between the Allies and Romania. Furthermore, the arrival of the Allied generals in Budapest somehow initiated the transition from the Romanian occupation to Horthy’s regime.