Gyula Cseszneky

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The young Baron Gyula Cseszneky
The young Baron Gyula Cseszneky
The native form of this personal name is csesznegi és milványi báró Cseszneky Gyula István. This article uses the Western name order.

Baron Gyula István Cseszneky de Milvány et Cseszneg (Csorvás, 1914— Brazil, after 1956) was a Hungarian poet, translator, adventurer, and, as Julius I, Macedonian voivode.

Originally he was studying to be a Catholic priest, but changed his mind and as a holder of the Boncompagni family's grant he went to Italy to a military school. As a lover of the Italian language and culture he translated into Hungarian several poems of Gabriele D'Annunzio. Cseszneky admired the Italian poet, and probably his subsequent adventure in the Balkans was inspired by D'Annunzio's Regency of Carnaro in Fiume.

In 1940 after the Second Vienna Arbitration as a Hungarian reserve officer he took part in the reannexation of Northern Transylvania. For his braveness showed during the marching, Regent Miklós Horthy bestowed upon him the title Vitéz de Milvány which village, according to the tradition, was donated by Sigismund Báthory to the Cseszneky family, and awarded him the Commemorative Medal for the Liberation of Transylvania and the Medal For Bravery.

In 1941, during World War II, he became a counselor for Aimone of Spoleto, who was at the time King Tomislav II of the Independent State of Croatia. In Croatia Cseszneky's title of baron was recognized and confirmed. Since the King actually did not occupied his throne in Zagreb, Cseszneky left the service.

In August of 1943, due to his influential Italian friends and relatives in the Balkans, Baron Cseszneky was proclaimed voivode of the autonomous state, the Principality of Pindus and Voivodship of Macedonia. His adventure was supported, but at least tolerated by Badoglio's antifascist government, because they needed any help in the evacuation of the Italian troops when the armistice between Italy and Allied armed forces would be declared. Nevertheless, Voivode Julius was only a nominal ruler, and he himself also sought contact with the Allied governments. His intention was to assure territorial autonomy for Aromanians and Macedonians. In September of 1943, as Nazi Germany's presence took over from the Italian troops, he was forced to resign due to his Jewish relatives, and was even pursued by the Gestapo. Then he lived in Hungary where took part in the rescue of Jews.

After the war, he went with Aimone of Aosta to Argentina and later died in Brazil.

[edit] References

  • Szilágyi, Aladár: - Operettállam (in Erdélyi Riport)
  • Andreanu, José: - Los secretos del Balkan
  • Sankó, L.: - A csallóközi nemesi közbirtokosság
  • Toso, Fiorenzo: - Frammenti d'Europa
  • Kalimniou, Dean: - Alkiviadis Diammandi di Samarina (in Neos Kosmos English Edition, Melbourne, 2006)
  • Thornberry, Patrick und Miranda Bruce-Mitford: - World Directory of Minorities. St. James Press 1990
  • Koliopoulos, Giannēs S. und John S. Koliopoulos: - Plundered Loyalties: Axis Occupation and Civil Strife in Greek West Macedonia. C. Hurst & Co, 1990.

[edit] External links