Description

Count Lajos Batthyány de Németújvár (1807–1849) served as Hungary's first Prime Minister. Rising to prominence in Hungarian politics during the period leading up to and amid the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, Batthyány initially pursued a military career before advocating for Hungarian autonomy within the Austrian Empire. Upon his election to the Hungarian Diet in 1847, he emerged as a leading voice for reform. Appointed by Lajos Kossuth as Hungary's inaugural Prime Minister during the revolution, Batthyány spearheaded modernization initiatives, such as abolishing serfdom and establishing a national guard. However, escalating tensions with Austrian authorities led to his resignation in December 1848. Shortly thereafter, he was arrested on charges of treason, swiftly tried, and executed in March 1849, solidifying his legacy as a martyr of the revolution.

The 13 heroic Hungarian generals of the 1848-49 Revolution and War of Independence were executed in Arad on October 6, 1849. On the same day in Pest, Hungary’s first constitutional Prime Minister, count Lajos Batthyány, was also put to death. The executions, scheduled to coincide with the first anniversary of the 1848 Vienna uprising and the assassination of Imperial Minister of War Theodor Baillet von Latour, marked the peak of reprisals following the suppressed struggle for independence. Acting under the orders of Haynau, who held absolute power in Hungary, the military leaders who fought for Hungarian national independence and self-determination were sentenced to death by bullet and rope.

Engraver: István Kósa