Károly Szabó

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Károly Szabó in 1944 (1916-1964)
Károly Szabó in 1944 (1916-1964)
The native form of this personal name is Szabó Károly. This article uses the Western name order.

Károly Szabó (November 17, 1916 – October 28, 1964) was an employee on the Swedish Embassy in Budapest from 1944 to 1945. He was a supporter of Raoul Wallenberg and had a significant role in making contact with the representatives of the Hungarian police and other state officials. He was arrested without legal proceedings 1953 in Budapest in a Raoul Wallenberg Secret trial.

Contents

[edit] Friendship with Pál Szalai 1929

In the Hungarian Boy Scouts in 1929 he (13 years old) became friends with Pál Szalai. This friendship continued in the critical months of 1944–1945 while Pál Szalai, high ranking member of the police force supported Raoul Wallenberg.

[edit] 1944–1945

Between 1944 and 1945 Károly Szabó was one of the typewriter mechanics of the Swedish Embassy. Dr. Ottó Fleischmann, a Doctor of Medicine and psychologist, employee of the Swedish Embassy, motivated Károly Szabó to play an active role in the rescue actions of Raoul Wallenberg. Pál Szalai supported his friend with important personal documents, signed from the German command in the Battle of Budapest. Karoly Szabó's intuitive purchase decision for a leather coat was another key factor. Black leather trench coat, as a means of inspiring fear and respect, and the subsequent Hollywood image of the black-clad, trench-coated Gestapo officer has entered popular culture. In Budapest's Jewish community he was known as "the mysterious man in the leather coat".[1]

Historic frontpage 1947, the "man in the leather coat", Károly Szabó: [2]
Historic frontpage 1947, the "man in the leather coat", Károly Szabó: [2]

Károly Szabó attracted exceptional attention on December 24, 1944 as Hungarian Arrow Cross Party members occupied the Embassy building in the Gyopár street. He rescued 36 kidnapped employees[2]from the Budapest ghetto. This action called Raoul Wallenberg's interest. He agreed Szabó to meet his influential friend, the high ranking member of the police force Pál Szalai in the night of December 26. This meeting was the preparation to save the Budapest ghetto in January 1945.

The last meeting between Wallenberg and Szalai, together with Dr. Ottó Fleischmann and Károly Szabó was on the evening of January 12, 1945 in the Gyopár street Swedish Embassy. This was Wallenberg's "last supper" invitation.[3] The next day, on January 13 Wallenberg contacted the Russians to secure food and supplies for the people under his protection. He was detained by the Soviet Red Army on January 17, 1945.

[edit] Prevented crime in January 1945

During World War II Lars Ernster and Jacob Steiner lived in the office of the Swedish Embassy in Budapest, Üllői Street 2-4. In the night of January 8, 1945 all inhabitants were dragged away by an Arrow Cross Party executing brigade of the city commander near to the Danube banks. At midnight, 20 policemen with drawn bayonets broke into the Arrow Cross house and rescued everyone.[4] Ernster and Steiner were among the rescued. Ernster fled to Sweden, where later he was member of the Board of Nobel Foundation (1977–88), and Steiner fled to Israel, where he is now a professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

[edit] 1947–1964

  • At the invitation from the Wallenberg family Károly Szabó visited Stockholm in summer 1947. He was one of the last three persons who had seen Raoul Wallenberg in Budapest.
  • In the autumn of 1947 he visited the rescued family Jakobovics in Amsterdam. His visit made headlines in Dutch newspapers nl:Het Vrije Volk.

[edit] Show trial preparations 1953 in Hungary

In 1953 preparations for a show trial started in Budapest to prove that Wallenberg had never been in the Soviet Union, nobody had dragged off Wallenberg in 1945, least of all the Soviet Army. Three leaders of the Jewish communitiy of Budapest – Dr. László Benedek, Lajos Stöckler, Miksa Domonkos –, and two additional eyewitnesses – Pál Szalai and Károly Szabó – were arrested, accused and tortured. Everything was ready for a trial designed to prove that Wallenberg had been the victim of cosmopolitan Zionists.

Documents, prison inventory: preparations for Wallenberg show trial in Budapest 1953

Károly Szabó arrested without legal proceedings on April 8 1953 (inventory in prison)

TAG Heuer sports watch (on prison inventory)

Slide rule (on prison inventory)

After six months, Károly Szabó was released on October 6. 1953 (Highest Prosecutor)

On April 8, 1953 Károly Szabó was captured on the street, arrested without legal proceedings, and sent to prison. His family did not hear from him for six months. A secret trial was held, no official record of the case or the judge's verdict is made available. After six months of interrogation, the defendants were driven to despair and exhaustion.

The show trial initiated in Moscow, following Stalin's anti-Zionist campaign. After Stalin's death and Lavrentiy Beria's murder, the preparations for the trial ended, the arrested persons were released. Miksa Domonkos died shortly after the tortures in hospital (Book: Mária Ember, They Wanted to Blame Us, 1992 [3]).

[edit] Timeline

  • 1916 Born on November 17, 1916 in Budapest.
  • 1932–1940 Works for the Remington US typewriter company in Budapest
  • 1940–1945 Works for Brunsviga German calculators company in Budapest (Gelpke, Nádor tér) and mechanican for bureau equipment on the Swedish Embassy Budapest 1944–1945
  • 1945–1949 owner of the "Universal" bureau equipment company with Plachy and Wagner representatives for Brunsviga (German), Precisa (Swiss), Odhner (Swedish) calculating machines in Hungary. see also: Plachy and Szabo about 1940
  • 1950 His business was expropriated without compensation
  • 1953 Arrested, secret show trial preparations
  • 1955–1964 independent mechanican for bureau equipment
  • 1964 Death by stroke October 28, 1964 in Budapest.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ "The mysterious man in the leather coat". Faklya, Budapest, December 29, 1946 (Hungarian)
  2. ^ József Szekeres: Saving the Ghettos of Budapest in January 1945, Pál Szalai "the Hungarian Schindler" ISBN 9637323147X, Budapest 1997, Publisher: Budapest Archives, Page 41
  3. ^ József Szekeres: Saving the Ghettos of Budapest in January 1945, Pál Szalai "the Hungarian Schindler" ISBN 9637323147X, Budapest 1997, Publisher: Budapest Archives, Page 74
  4. ^ [1]

[edit] Books, newspaper

  • A Man for All Connections, The Wallenberg-Szalai connection, Andrew Handler, Praeger/Greenwood, 30 January 1996; ISBN 0275952142 Handler focuses on explaining the Hungarian political context that made the rescue possible.... Less well known is the fact that Wallenbergs misson was supported by various representatives of the Hungarian state apparatus.
  • József Szekeres: Saving the Ghettos of Budapest in January 1945, Pál Szalai "the Hungarian Schindler" ISBN 9637323147X, Budapest 1997, Publisher: Budapest Archives
  • "The mystery man with the leather coat". Faklya - Budapest, December 29 1946 - Februar 9 1947, interviews wit Károly Szabó (Hungarian).

[edit] External links

  • Homepage Raoul Wallenberg Asso.fr
  • Forgács Gábor, The history of the Üllői út 2-4, Wallenberg office hired by the Swedish Embassy [4]
  • Wallenberg: More Twists to the Tale, Mária Ember, They Wanted to Blame Us [5]
  • Interview with István Domonkos, son of Miksa Domonkos who died after the show trial preparations (Hungarian)[6]
  • Wallenberg Seminar in Budapest, March 1-2nd 2007 "We have to emphasize the deeds of Károly Szabó, Pál Szalai, Dr István Parádi, who were risking their life everyday" Gábor Forgács
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