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KINGDOM – WITHOUT A KING: HUNGARY'S FORM OF GOVERNMENT IN THE HORTHY ERA (1920–1944)
Abstract
There had been quite a specific situation in Hungary during the Horthy Era with regards to the form of government and exercising the power of the head of state. The form of government of country was a constitutional monarchy (Kingdom of Hungary), but there was no king. Instead of a king, an elected regent had fulfilled the function of the head of state. In Europe there was no other precedent for such a situation that the throne had not been occupied for 25 years, while the monarchy had been maintained. At the beginning of the 1920-ies, there were harsh debates about the interpretation of constitutional succession, mainly about the question: whether the Hungarian throne had vacant, or Charles IV, staying abroad, kept on being the legitimate monarch. Even the dethronement in 1921, then the king's death did not lead to a clear legal situation; political fights continued between legitimist and free king electing circles. From time to time, even endeavours to have a republican form of state governance had strengthened. It also caused a problem that the elected regent initially only had a very limited authority, why particular king functions had not been fulfilled. In the second half of this era, the regent's scope of authority was significantly expanded, which meant that it gradually covered almost each king's regale. At the end of 1930-ies, political debates concerning the form of government exercising the power of the head of state were closely related to the prevention of the constitutional parliamentary system and the sovereignty of the country. The institutional system of the monarchy and the expanding authority of the head of state fostered to suppress extreme right and keep in check the radical circles urging for the establishment of a dictatorship similar to the one in Germany. Various groups of the ruling moderate conservative political elite made mutual concessions to each other in order to ensure the stability of the system and to protect consolidated social relationships. Despite the compromise, debates concerning the form of government and exercising the power of the head of state went on even during World War II, while the political forces were seeking an option to quit the war and considering a new Hungary after the war.
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