Mátyás Rákosi
| Mátyás Rákosi | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| General Secretary of the Hungarian Working People's Party | |
|
In office 1948 – 18 July 1956 |
|
| Succeeded by | Ernő Gerő |
| Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the People's Republic of Hungary | |
|
In office 14 August 1952 – 4 July 1953 |
|
| Preceded by | István Dobi |
| Succeeded by | Imre Nagy |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
9 March 1892 Ada, Kingdom of Hungary, Austria-Hungary |
| Died | 5 February 1971 (aged 78) Gorky, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union |
| Nationality | Hungarian |
| Political party |
Hungarian Communist Party (1918-1948) Hungarian Working People's Party (1948-1956) |
| Spouse(s) | Fenia Kornilova |
| Signature |  |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |
 Austria-Hungary
|
| Service/branch | Austro-Hungarian Army |
| Battles/wars | |
Mátyás Rákosi [ˈmaːcaːʃ ˈraːkoʃi] (9 March 1892 – 5 February 1971) was a Jewish Hungarian communist politician. He was born Mátyás Rosenfeld in Ada, present-day Serbia. He was the leader of Hungary's Communist Party from 1945 to 1956 — first as General Secretary of the Hungarian Communist Party (1945–1948) and later holding the same post with the Hungarian Working People's Party (1948–1956). As such, from 1949 to 1956, he was the de facto ruler of Communist Hungary. An ardent Stalinist, his government was a satellite of the Soviet Union.American journalist John Gunther described Rákosi as "the most malevolent character I ever met in political life."
Rákosi was born in Ada, then a village in Bács-Bodrog County in Austria-Hungary, now a town in Vojvodina, Serbia. Born to Jewish parents, the fourth son of a grocer, his mother would give birth to seven more children. Of his younger siblings the most notable was Ferenc Rákosi an administrator, who also became active in Communist politics and was, for a time, General Manager of the Mátyás Rákosi Steel and Metal Works during his brother's rule. Rákosi's paternal grandfather participated in the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, as a result he had to flee the village following the defeat. Rákosi's father, József Rosenfeld was called "Kossuth's Jew" by the villagers, because he had been a member and avid supporter of the oppositionist Party of Independence and '48. He changed his surname Rosenfeld to Rákosi in 1903. He later repudiated religion and in common with most other Marxists described himself as an Atheist and opponent of organised religion.
...
Wikipedia