Lázár Mészáros

General Lázár Mészáros "(English: Lazarus Mészáros)" (Baja, February 20, 1796 – Eywood, November 16, 1858), was the Minister of War during 1848's Hungarian Revolution.

He was born in a noble holder family. His parents died when he was four - he moved from one relative to another. Learned at Baja, Szabadka (today Subotica), Pest and Pécs. Mészáros stopped his law studies and began his military career. In 1813, he became the Lieutenant of one cavalry formation in Bács County. He took part in the war against Napoleon. He was an officer of the 7th regiment of hussars from 1816 to 1837; then he was placed on the edge of the 5th regiment of hussars. He spent 18 years in Italy with his regiment. Field marshal Radetzky discovered the talented hussar officer, and - based on Radetzky's suggestion - he was elevated to be a colonel (1845) (he also became his regiment's commandant.)

Lázár Mészáros was a very cultured officer. He spoke seven languages. Mészáros was highly educated in military, but he had knowledge in society and economy, too. He started mailing with István Széchenyi in 1837. Mészáros was elected to be a mailing member of the Magyar Tudós Társaság (English: Hungarian Erudite Association, today: Hungarian Academy of Sciences). He chose the "Armed forces of the modern bourgeois societies" as the theme of his inaugural.

On the grounds of the suggestion of Lajos Kossuth Lajos Batthyány elected him to be the Minister of War in the first responsible Hungarian government. (22 March 1848.) He occupied his office after he returned from the Italian theatre of war. (23 May). A few time later he became the Imperial and Royal major general and the superior of the Imperial troops staging in the territory of Hungary.
Lázár Mészáros - as the Minister of War - was the intellectual originator of Hungary's defensive army. In the same year's July he became the parliamentary delegate of his hometown, Baja, too.

From the end of August, Mészáros decided to control the southern armies with his personal participation, so travelled to "Vajdaság" (Serbian Vojvodina). On 30 September, he returned to the capital. Mészáros was the only member of Batthyány's government who did not resign - so he became the member of the Territorial Defence Committee as the Minister of War. On 13 December, he received the Northern Hungarian legion with 10,000 warriors. On 19 January, he was discharged from his command, but he remained the Minister until the establishment of the Independence Statement. On 26 July, Mészáros resigned from all his remaining military functions, because Mór Perczel did not leave any of his previous exposed control. After the Battle of Temesvár (Romanian Timişoara) - and the failure of the revolution -, on 14 August, he left to Turkey.

Afterwards, he lived for a while in France and in the United Kingdom. He moved to the United States. He tried farming in Iowa. In October 1858 - briefly before his death - Mészáros returned to England.

In his will, he requested that his remains not be returned to Hungary "until the last outside soldier has left". He was reburied in Baja after 133 years since his death, on 15 March 1991. (The last Soviet soldiers - always seen by Hungarians as the successors of the Imperial Russian Army that crushed the Revolution 1848 - had left Hungary just months before.)

The caption of his grave in Titley, England

To the memory of General Lázár Mészáros Minister of war And Commander in Chief Of the Hungarian Army in 1848-1849. Who was born at Baja in the county of Bács 1796 and died at Eywood 6-th November 1858 in the 63 year of his age and 10-th of his exile. This stone is inscribed by his sorrowing friend J. E. H. Lady Langdale Mészáros Lázár Tábornoknak, A jó Hazafinak, A vitéz Katonának A nemes Barátnak

"(The last sentence is in Hungarian. It means: To General Lázár Mészáros, the good Patriot, the valiant Soldier, the noble Friend.)"

Preceded by: "(First Minister of War)"

Ministers of War in Hungary

Succeeded by: Lajos Aulich