Dr. József Antall de Dörgicse et Kisjene | |
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.jpg) Formal portrait by Péter Antall, 1990 | |
| Prime Minister of Hungary | |
| In office 23 May 1990 – 12 December 1993 | |
| President | Árpád Göncz |
| Preceded by | Miklós Németh |
| Succeeded by | Péter Boross |
| Leader of the Hungarian Democratic Forum | |
| In office 21 October 1989 – 12 December 1993 | |
| Preceded by | Zoltán Bíró |
| Succeeded by | Lajos Für |
| Member of the National Assembly | |
| In office 2 May 1990 – 12 December 1993 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1932-04-08)8 April 1932 |
| Died | 12 December 1993(1993-12-12) (aged 61) Budapest, Hungary |
| Party | MDF |
| Spouse | Klára Fülepp |
| Children | 2 |
| Alma mater | Eötvös Loránd University (MSc,PhD) |
József Tihamér Antall Jr. (Hungarian:ifjabb Antall József Tihamér,Hungarian pronunciation:[ˈifjɒbːˈɒntɒlˈjoːʒef]; 8 April 1932 – 12 December 1993)[1] was a Hungarian teacher, librarian, historian, and statesman who served as thefirst democratically electedprime minister of Hungary, holding office from May 1990 until his death in December 1993. He was also the leader of theHungarian Democratic Forum from 1989.
József Tihamér Antall de Dörgicse et Kisjene was born to an ancient Hungarian family from the lower nobility inBudapest on 8 April 1932.[2]His father, József Antall Sr., ajurist andcivil servant, worked for the government in several ministries. Antall Sr. coordinated the firstliving wage calculations in Hungary, and he was a founding member of theIndependent Smallholders' Party (1931). DuringWorld War II, he presided over the government committee for refugees.[2] After the German occupation of Hungary he resigned; later he was arrested by theGestapo. After the war, he became minister of reconstruction in the government ofZoltán Tildy. Later, he became president of the HungarianRed Cross, but after the communist coup he resigned and retired to his family estate. In 1991, he was posthumously honoured byYad Vashem.
His mother, Irén Szűcs hadJewish roots,[3] she was the daughter of a village teacher. Her father, István Szűcs (born Hermann Frankl), also became a political figure during theFirst World War and the interwar period. In the 1920s Szűcs became a deputySecretary of State. Antall had a sister, Edith Antall. His brother-in-law,Géza Jeszenszky later becameMinister of Foreign Affairs in the Antall cabinet.
He graduated from the BudapestPiarist High School in 1950. He was interested in politics early on, but did not pursue his political career during the communist regime of the 1950s. After graduating from high school, he studiedHungarian language andliterature at theEötvös Loránd University as well ashistory andarchival science. He wrote his thesis about the politics ofJózsef Eötvös, obtaining degrees inteaching,library science andmuseology. On 30 September 1991, Antall was awarded anhonorary doctoral degree from Central Connecticut State University.
Antall and his wife, Klára Fülepp, had two children, György Antall, a lawyer, and Péter Antall, a photojournalist, who later became director of the Antall József Knowledge Centre.
Following the graduation, Antall worked for the Hungarian State Archives and the Research Institute of Pedagogy. In 1955, he started teaching in József Eötvös Grammar School, leading the Revolutionary Committee of the school during the1956 Hungarian Uprising. During the revolution, he participated in the reorganization of the Independent Smallholders Party and in the founding of the Christian Youth Alliance. After theSoviet Union crushed the revolution, he was arrested and released several times. He continued his teaching career in Ferenc Toldy Grammar School in 1957, but in 1959 he was banned from teaching due to his former political activities.
Following this, he worked as a librarian for two years. In 1963 he wrote biographies of 80 doctors for the Lexicon of Hungarian Biographies. He became interested in thehistory of medicine, and conducted fundamental research in the area. He started working in the library and archives department of theSemmelweis Museum of Medical History, dedicated to the history of medicine. Starting as a research fellow, he was promoted to deputy director and in 1974 he became director of the institute. His research was recognised internationally, and in 1986 he was the vice president of theInternational Society for the History of Medicine.
 Formal portrait by Péter Antall, 1990 | |
| Premiership of József Antall 23 May 1990 – 12 December 1993 | |
President | |
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| Cabinet | Antall Government |
| Party | Hungarian Democratic Forum |
| Election | 1990 |
| Part ofa series on |
| Conservatism in Hungary |
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Organisations |
Antall was delegated to the National Roundtable Talks by theHungarian Democratic Forum on 22 March 1989 and worked in the committee on constitutional reform. He became well known for his activities during the negotiations.
On 21 October 1989 he was elected President of theHungarian Democratic Forum (MDF) by an overwhelming majority, thus becoming the party's official candidate for prime minister. The MDF was heavily tipped to win the1990 elections, and as expected won a sweeping victory with 164 seats, just short of a majority. On 23 May he became the first prime minister since 1948 who was not either a Communist orfellow traveler. He headed a centre-right coalition comprising the MDF, theIndependent Smallholders, Agrarian Workers and Civic Party (FKGP), and theChristian Democratic People's Party (KDNP)–the first in 44 years with no Communist participation. He also made a pact with the main opposition party, the liberalAlliance of Free Democrats (SZDSZ). This agreement laid the foundations for the parliamentary operation of Hungarian democracy. His statement that, in spirit, he wanted to be the Prime Minister of 15 million Hungarians made a great sensation. At the same time, he contributed to the Euro-Atlantic orientation of Hungary. He played a great role in the dissolution of theWarsaw Pact and the termination of theComecon as well as in the withdrawal of the occupying Russian forces in 1991. In 1991, inStrasbourg, he was awarded with theRobert Schuman Prize for his activities aimed at uniting Europe as well as extending Hungary's European relations.
As prime minister, Antall oversaw the establishment of a legal system to promote a market economy and attract foreign investment. The ruling coalition attempted to stabilize the economy while implementing privatization and other elements of a market economy, while the populist right wing of the MDF was vocal about the "national issue", the question of the Hungarian minorities in neighbouring countries—and attempted to put it at the centre of the government's platform.
However, the return to a capitalist system and all its accompanying reforms resulted in socioeconomic difficulties for the country during Antall's term.[4] Unemployment jumped from nonexistence to 14 percent. Inflation increased at an annual rate of 23–35 percent (excluding indexing of wages and pensions). Older, retired people, more than one-fifth of the population, suffered the most, and the living standards of more than one-third of the populace declined to below subsistence level. In the meantime, income disparities increased, which irritated the people.[5] Corruption became more widespread[citation needed] and visible than before. Together with the previously omnipotent police force, street security also collapsed in 1990. The crime rate, especially in Budapest, increased threefold in five years.
In the summer of 1990, Antall and the MDF supported the introduction of a Catholic religious education into the national curriculum. This led to conflict with the other coalition parties, since only three-quarters of the Hungarian population were Catholics. Antall appointedMiklós Lukáts of the KDNP as his State Secretary for Church Affairs; from this position, Lukáts oversaw religious affairs, including the return of church properties seized by the communists.[6] By 1991 Antall was receiving criticism for his authoritarian style, though this contrasted with his uncharismatic presence. Conflict over their powers erupted between him and Hungary's president,Árpád Göncz, who belonged to the opposing party, theAlliance of Free Democrats.[7]
In the realm of domestic politics, Antall had to face hardships during his career: the taxi-blockade in Budapest in 1990[8] and the withdrawal of the Independent Smallholders' Party from the coalition government forced him to restructure his cabinet in February 1992;[9] that reorganisation ultimately saved his administration from being toppled. Within MDF, Antall was continuously attacked byIstván Csurka who later on set into motion a stand-alone movement, thusHungarian Justice and Life Party (MIÉP) came into existence.
Antall became ill and was diagnosed withnon-Hodgkin lymphoma in the summer of 1990. In October, two days before the start of the taxi drivers' blockade, he underwent surgery; a famous interview with him inpajamas was recorded thereafter in the hospital so that he could respond to the heated political situation caused by the taxi blockade. Antall's cancer recurred half a year later.[10] On the day before his death, Antall was awarded Grand Cross of the Hungarian Order of Merit by President Árpád Göncz on 11 December 1993. During the last period of his premiership Antall was substituted by the Interior MinisterPéter Boross.[11]
Antall died on 12 December 1993 before the end of his 4-year term. He led the formerEastern Bloc's longest lasting and most stablepost-communist government.[12] He was succeeded by Boross as prime minister, who led the cabinet until the1994 parliamentary election, where the MDF suffered a serious defeat from the Socialist Party, while Defence MinisterLajos Für replaced him as party leader. Antall was buried on 18 December 1993, with the day of the funeral being declared a day of national mourning. His bier was erected in front of theHungarian Parliament Building, where it was bidden farewell by SpeakerGyörgy Szabad, writerAndrás Sütő and titular abbot Pál Bolberitz. The funeral procession finished atKerepesi Cemetery. His tomb was later erected by sculptor Miklós Melocco in 1999.
The announcement of Antall's death happened on a Sunday afternoon, during which the state television channelMagyar Televízió was airing aDuckTales episode called "A Whale of a Bad Time", as part ofThe Disney Afternoon; at 18:08,[13] mid-cartoon the screen abruptly went black, after which the station logo was shown andFrédéric Chopin'sFuneral March began playing.[14] The abrupt shift in tone has created aflashbulb memory for the generation of children watching,[15][16][17][13] who as adults were still able to recall specific details of the event, down to the exact dialog when the interruption in the episode occurred;[14][18] some of the same adults have expressed their distaste in politics as a direct result of the interruption.[14][19]
In recognition of his work, one of thebuildings of the European Parliament in Brussels was named after Antall in 2008. There is a bust of him on Apród Street inBudapest[20] and a bust on the road named after him inZagreb.[21]
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Prime Minister of Hungary 1990–1993 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | President of the Hungarian Democratic Forum 1989–1993 | Succeeded by |
