Inspired by the events of the French Revolution, Lajos Kossuth, leader of the Hungarian opposition party, made a speech on 3rd March 1848 calling for an end to Hapsburg domination and the introduction of parliamentary government for Hungary.
The revolution began on 15th March 1848 and following a series of mass demonstrations forced the Hapsburg governor to agree to Hungarian terms. A new government was formed with Lajos Batthyány as Prime Minister. A series of laws called the April Laws introduced reforms to the Hungarian system. The new government also demanded that taxes collected by the Hapsburgs from Hungarians should be spent in Hungary and called for a new Hungarian army to be formed.
There were many non- ethnic Hungarians that were not in favour of Hungarian independence. In September 1848, Josip Jelacic, the anti-Hungarian Croatian leader sent an army into Hungary to crush the new government. Batthyány’s newly formed army fought back and Jelacic retreated.
Early in 1849 Hapsburg imperial troops entered Hungary. Their aim was to remove Batthyány’s government and reinstate Habsburg rule. The new government moved East and established their base in Debrecen. In June 1849 the new Austrian Emperor, Franz Joseph, called for Russian support to remove the rebel Hungarian government. The new Hungarian army was unable to withstand the ensuing Russian attack and on 13th August the Hungarians surrendered.
Lajos Kossuth fled the country and managed to escape capture but the other leaders were taken. On October 6th 1849 the thirteen generals of the Hungarian army were executed in Arad. Lajos Batthyány was executed in Pest on the same day.
