19 January
Day of Deportation of Hungarians of German Descent

“Farewell, our homeland” (inscription on the side of the freight wagon transporting the deportees)

The history of the Day of Remembrance:

In 2012, the Hungarian National Assembly declared January 19 as the Day of Remembrance for the Deportation and Expulsion of Hungarians of German Descent. On this day in 1946, the first train departed from Budaörs, carrying our fellow citizens of German nationality to Germany.

Following World War II, the victorious powers discussed the expulsions at the Potsdam Conference. According to Agreement XIII, the Hungarian government was authorised to organise the “orderly and humane” relocation of the German population to Germany.

The Hungarian government issued the deportation decree based on the principle of collective guilt. According to this, everyone was obliged to relocate to Germany if they declared themselves German-speaking or of German nationality at the last census and/or were members of the Volksbund or other German armed organisations.

They were stripped of their Hungarian citizenship, all their movable and immovable property—the fruits of a lifetime’s work. The government viewed the deportations as a solution to its economic, ethnic, foreign policy, and domestic problems, while simultaneously intending to resettle Hungarian refugees arriving en masse from Czechoslovakia, Romania, and Yugoslavia into the vacated German properties.

German-speaking residents had lived in the territory of Hungary since the time of Saint Stephen. They arrived as part of Queen Gisella of Bavaria’s court and settled here, engaging in crafts and trade, playing an important role in boosting industry and forming the bourgeoisie of free royal towns. Later, in the 16th–17th centuries, the Turkish invasions led to depopulation in the occupied territories.

In the 18th century, the Habsburg rulers and landowners pursued a policy of resettlement, as it was vital to restart agricultural production and life in the vast empty areas. This task fell to the then-settled ethnic groups, including the German speakers, who created value through diligent and skilled work: flourishing villages and towns were rebuilt after the destruction caused by the Turks. Centuries of devoted work were disregarded as Hungarian citizens of German nationality were expelled.

Between 19 January 1946 and 30 June 1948, 220,000 ethnic Germans were deported from Hungarian territory.

Three-quarters of the German-speaking population were sent to the United States, while one quarter ended up in areas occupied by the Soviet Union.