4 June
Day of National Unity (National Day of Mourning)

The Day of National Unity is a Hungarian national remembrance day, marking the anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Trianon in 1920. On 4 June 2010, the Hungarian Parliament declared this day the Day of National Unity through Act XLV of 2010, affirming Hungary’s commitment to unity and solidarity with Hungarians living beyond the country's borders.

By passing the law, the Parliament declared:
"All Hungarians and Hungarian communities living under the jurisdiction of other states are part of the unified Hungarian nation, whose unity across state borders is a reality and a defining element of personal and collective Hungarian identity.”

The law entered into force on the 90th anniversary of the treaty, on 4 June 2010.

The preamble to the Act reads as follows:

“We, Members of the Hungarian Parliament, whether we believe that God is the Lord of history, or seek to understand history from other sources, in the spirit of our responsibility for our homeland and for the Hungarian nation as enshrined in the Fundamental Law, remembering one of the greatest tragedies in Hungarian history — the peace diktat signed on 4 June 1920 which dismembered Historic Hungary and placed the Hungarian nation under the rule of several states — taking into account the unresolved political, economic, legal and psychological consequences of this diktat, while also respecting the rights of other nations to think differently about matters important to Hungarians, and guided by the aim of contributing to a peaceful future in the Carpathian Basin based on mutual understanding and cooperation among the peoples living there, and also to the reunification of Europe after the tragedies of the 20th century, hereby enact the following law:”

As a tribute, here is a poem written at the time:

Gyula Juhász: Trianon

Let it never be spoken of aloud,
Yet let us always, always remember.
For we cannot forget, no — never —
As long as there are Hungarians and memory,
Justice and truth, honour and hope.
For once we had a homeland on this earth,
Won by Hungarian valour, bravely fought for,
And kept through Hungarian heart and mind.
A thousand years of blood, of tears and toil
Secured for us this precious inheritance.

And we cannot forget, no — never —
That Pozsony was once ours, beloved city,
Where kings were crowned in solemn glory,
Where the greatest Hungarian once declared:
"There was no Hungary, but there shall be once more!"

And we cannot forget, no — never —
That the fairest garland of Europe was ours,
The jewel of the Carpathians,
And the bluest ribbon of them all —
The Adriatic’s beaded coronet.

And we cannot forget, no — never —
That Nagybánya was ours, where Ferenczy painted,
Where the dreams of great masters
Shone forth in sunlit works
And brought joy to all the world.

And we cannot forget, no — never —
That in Várad, Ady once sang,
And Hungarians spoke of tomorrow.

And we cannot forget, no — never —
The cradles and the graves that were ours,
Hungarian cradles, Hungarian graves —
Eternal nests of glory and of mourning.

For who could forget that along the Pass of Verecke
Our conquering people came to this land?
And who could forget that on the plains of Transylvania
The glory of our youth rose to the immortal sky —
That young and free Sándor Petőfi!
He alone is the triumph of life,
Our star of truth and the way forward.
Follow him, oh Hungarian, through sorrow and shadow,
Through misfortune and despair —
And you shall conquer even at the gates of hell,
And find heaven here on Earth.

Could you forget gentle Szalonta,
Where Arany János was lulled by a nurse’s song?
Would you dare forget golden Kolozsvár,
Where the cradle rocked young King Matthias Corvinus?
Could you forget Kassa and its sainted dead?

Could one forget the old garden of Arad,
Where thirteen noble dreamers rest —
All waiting for resurrection?

On the mournful day of Trianon, Hungarians,
My brothers, you who wander under cursed
And starless skies —
Oh, look into one another’s eyes,
Honestly and openly —
And above the great, great tomb
Today, take each other’s hands
And swear an oath —
Silent, marked only by the beating of your hearts
And the faith in tomorrow —
An oath that binds for all eternity,
An oath of work, of struggle,
An oath that shall lead us to a joyful resurrection.