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Police Violence During the “Belle Epoqueˮ. Formation and Activity of the Hungarian Royal Gendarmerie (1881–1914)
 
PIIS013038640018257-0-1
DOI10.31857/S013038640018257-0
Publication type Article
Status Published
Authors
Aliaksandr Piahanau 
Affiliation: Royal Institute of Technology
Address: Sweden, Stockholm
Journal nameNovaia i noveishaia istoriia
EditionIssue 1
Pages44-56
Abstract

Drawing on statistical and press data, the article analyses the dynamics and socio-political context of violence on the part of the Hungarian Royal Gendarmerie on the eve of the Great War. It attempts to establish the political context of the formation of the Gendarmerie in Hungary in 1881, to identify situations in which its officers engaged in physical violence, and to trace the dynamics of its development up to 1914. The Gendarmerie, formed in 1881 primarily from ethnic Magyars, was the largest law enforcement body at the direct disposal of the Hungarian government. Its personnel rose from 5,500 in the mid-1880s to 12,000 by 1914. During this time, its law enforcement responsibilities extended beyond the countryside to towns and cities. Gendarmes were regularly called upon by the authorities to suppress mass demonstrations and strikes, and to organise parliamentary elections and conduct political investigations. Official reports indicate that violence peaked in the late 1880s, mid-1890s, and 1905–1910. The Trans-danubian region was the most dangerous zone for the gendarmerie, but the quietest were Felvidék and Transylvania. The death toll at the hands of the gendarmes remains unknown, but the royal gendarmerie reported using weapons around hundred times a year. The article suggests that the violence and relative impunity of the gendarmes undermined public confidence in the government.

Keywordspolice violence, Austria-Hungary, era of dualism, “Belle Époque”, political repression, mass shootings, dynamics of conflicts, generalised trust
AcknowledgmentThis article was prepared with the financial support of the European Research Council within the framework of the program программы Horizon 2020. Research and Innovation programme (G.A. 677199 – ERC-StG2015 “The Dark Side of the Belle Époque. Political Violence and Armed Associations in Europe before the First World War”). The article is an abridged and updated version of the published research: Piahanau A. The Hungarian Royal Gendarmerie and Political Violence in “Happy Peaceful Times” (1881–1914) // Crime, Histoire & Sociétés. 2021. № 25 (1). P. 85–110.
Received16.08.2021
Publication date25.01.2022
Number of characters36282
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