Perseverance, steadfastness and courage characterized the Don heroes

Speaking at the central commemorative event of the Hungarian Defence Forces, the Chief of Defence recalled that the offensive of the Soviet Red Army began 82 years ago at the bridgehead of Uryv-Storozhevoye. The Soviet attack struck an annihilating blow at the soldiers of the Royal Hungarian 2nd Honvéd Army deployed to the area of River Don in 1942.

“Some formations and subunits held their ground and took part in the fighting. Although they were weakly organized, undersupplied with weapons, and short of anti-tank capability, they did hold their ground” – pointed out General Böröndi, who went on saying that for the most part, the successful subunits and units were the ones with strong camaraderie and respect for each other.

The general recalled that the Royal Hungarian Armed Forces had not been prepared for fighting the Soviet Union or the Anglo-Saxon powers. “After the Peace of Trianon, a 35,000-strong peacetime army tried to set up a system of training and preparation to form a combat-ready military force. The Győr Programme began in 1938, but we already know that it was too late” – this was how the general assessed the one-billion-pengő armed forces development programme announced by then Prime Minister Kálmán Darányi in Győr on 5 March 1938.

Dr. Gábor Böröndi called the procurement of weaponry and equipment belated, and expressed his opinion that theoretical education, too had been pushed to the background, and to top it all, there were problems with the organization of the military as well. He summed it up by saying that the number of soldiers who were wounded, killed, missing in action or captured during the one-year operation of the 2nd Army in the eastern theatre of war is estimated to be at 125,000.

After the withdrawal, this catastrophe was little talked about in Hungary, and not at all in the period after 1945. “It was not commemorated at all, as if it had been shameful for someone to have served there. Still, the service of a soldier is never a shame. Soldiers try to do their best under the available circumstances with the equipment and training available to them” – he stated.

Speaking about the historical lessons, General Böröndi recalled that a war has been going on along Hungary’s borders for three years now. “The Hungarian Defence Forces launched a military development program already in 2016-17, which has resulted in the continuous arrival of new technical assets, and our soldiers have new equipment and weaponry” – said the Chief of Defence, adding that “well-trained and prepared soldiers aren’t worth anything without the most important thing, which is perseverance, the moral power that must characterize all Hungarian soldiers.”

He emphasized that the objectives are to create a strong, committed, combat-ready military force that is capable of defending the country if needed, and to ensure that Hungarian soldiers never again lose their lives because of insufficient training and preparation. “We have learnt a lot of lessons from the Don heroes: perseverance, steadfastness and courage. These features must characterize the Hungarian soldiers, the Hungarian Defence Forces in the next period as well” – he stated.

Following his speech, General Dr. Gábor Böröndi handed over a marching order permitting the start of the Don Heroes Memorial March to Military Historical Re-enactor First Lieutenant Balázs Jásdi, the chief desk officer of the HDF vitéz Szurmay Sándor Budapest Garrison Brigade 32nd Life Guard Regiment. The chief organizer and coordinator of the march receives the document permitting the march from the incumbent chief of defence on 12 January every year.

After funerary prayers said by Chief Field Rabbi Péter Joel Totha and Protestant Military Bishop Colonel László Mészáros, a Holy Mass was offered in Matthias church, Buda Castle, in memory of the victims of the Don disaster.

In his sermon delivered in the former coronation church, Catholic Military Bishop Brigadier General Tibor Berta said that “this day has been a memorial day of special significance for more than 30 years in the history of the Hungarian Defence Forces. “On 12 January, our sacred duty is to commemorate our soldier forebears, who died in the bloody battles in the battlefields beside the River Don in 1942-43, who lost their lives after the fighting, who died as forced laborers or prisoners of war” – said he during a liturgy of atonement and commemoration celebrated on the occasion of the anniversary of the Don breakthrough.

He pointed out that we must keep alive the memory of soldiers who had fallen at the Don. “When remembering our deceased soldier forebears, we must contemplate the sacred and untouchable dignity of man, which forms the basis of every ethical and moral order and is flawless, and we must be aware again that we must see the image of God in every human being, even if we aren’t sympathetic to the other” – he stated.

He recalled that although US President Woodrow Wilson had already formulated a statement during the First World War that it was a “war to end war” and it became and adage, several wars broke out and armed conflicts flared up after the Second World War, too, that ended on 2 September 1945. “For this reason, when we remember the heroes, we cannot forget about atonement, because this is the only way to create the peace that can provide us with true healing in forgiving mercy through preserving justice” – he added.

Among others, the commemorations were attended by HDF Command Sergeant Major CSM Zoltán Kaszab; Colonel Dr. László Töll, Ministerial Commissioner of the Ministry of Defence for Military Identity; Brigadier General Dr. László Drót, Commander, HDF Territorial Defence and Military Augmentation Command; Lieutenant General (Ret.) Tibor Bozó, Presidential Counselor of the Defence Sports Association; and Gábor Móczár, Director General of the National Heritage Institute.

The leaders and representatives of organizations supporting the objectives of the Ministry of Defence and the Hungarian Defence Forces and dealing with military historical re-enactment also paid tribute to the memory of Hungarian soldiers and forced laborers who were killed, wounded or missing in action.