The Role of Prime Minister István Friedrich in the History of Cinkota

Abstract

The present study demonstrates the role played by István Friedrich, Prime Minister of Hungary between August and November 1919 and later one of the leading opposition politicians of the Horthy era, played in the life of the village of Cinkota near Budapest. In addition to local historical sources and theoretical literature (minutes of the sittings of Cinkota’s Council of Representatives and Antal Lantos’s works), the research draws on by archival sources on Friedrich and articles in the daily papers reporting on the everyday life of the settlement.
Friedrich moved to Cinkota with his young wife, Margitta Asbóth, in 1908. Soon, he set up a workshop and his business developed rapidly. Showing a keen interest in public life, the “self-made man” founded a newspaper and later a sports club. He was also elected to the municipal council. In 1914, the Party of Independence asked Friedrich to be their candidate for the Cinkota electoral district. The study discusses the experience Friedrich gained in public life before his political career started, the challenges he faced in a dynamic but troubled agglomeration, and the role he played in the fifteen years he resided in the settlement.