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DÉNES A. JÁNOSSY GREAT BRITAIN AND KOSSUTH. I. Kossuth influenced by Count Széchenyi s literary propaganda for British institutions. — Kossuth’s progress in English during his imprisonment in Buda. — His advocacy of Bentham s humanitarian theories. — His endeavours to create industrial enterprises, credit, free trade and a free press. — Blackwell’s plan to increase Hun­ garian agricultural exports. —Kossuth opposes Blackwell’s plan. Britain always attracted Continental Europe, where feudalism still prevailed. Her splendid principles of government were indeed deeply rooted. After much bloodshed, at the end of the seven­ teenth century Britain could boast of equality of rights and a constitution, having reached the zenith of a development which served the welfare of her own people as well as those of Continental Europe.* France was the first to follow Britain’s lead, the France * SOURCES AND ABBREVIATIONS. I. Official Records. Public Record Office, London P. R. 0 . London Foreign Office Records F. 0 . Archives du ministère des affaires étrangères, Paris A. d. M. A. E. Paris L'Angleterre, Rapports, Dépêches La Turquie, Rapports, Dépêches La Turquie, Mémoires et documents, 1838— 1855. Provinces Slaves Preussisches Geheimes Staatsarchiv, Berlin-Dahlem P. G. St. A. Berlin-Dahlem Bunsen’s Immediatberichte aus London Geheime Präsidialregistratur d. kgl. Polizei- Präsidiums, Berlin 54 where the abuses of feudalism had by this time deprived her people of political, social and moral sense. The ideals of the French revolution spread rapidly all over the Continent; neverthe­ less, it was only very slowly that they penetrated into Hungary, where, until 1848, feudalism prevailed. This is easily accounted for. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, Napoleon's campaigns had engaged the nation's attention, and the repercus­ sions of the French revolution awoke no echo in Hungary. France had no constitution, but feudal Hungary enjoyed a very ancient one similar to that of old feudal Britain. Consequently, this ancient constitution only needed to be reformed, like that of Britain, and not, as in France, to be created a fresh. There is no doubt that the British example seemed the proper one to follow Haus-, Hof- und Staatsarchiv, Wien H. H. St. A. Wien Archiv d. k. u. k. Ministeriums des Äussern Kabinettsarchiv, Nachlass Schwarzenberg Actes de Haute Police R. Archivio di Stato, Torino A. St. Torino Lettere ministri, Gran Bretagna Lettere ministri, Porta Ottomana M. kir. Országos Levéltár (Public Record Office), Budapest P. R. O. Bpest Ministry for Foreign Affairs M. F. A. Ministry of Finance M. F. Committee on National Defence C. N. D. II. Private Letters and Collections. 1. In Public Record Office, Budapest: Kossuth Papers. Kossuth’s literary legacy. Official and Private Correspondence Ko. Pp. Vörös Papers. Official and Private Cor­ respondence collected by Kossuth's secretary Anthony Vörös Vö. Pp. Miscellaneous Papers ex 1848/49. Collection of papers dealing with history of the struggle for independence. (Purchases and Donations) Miscell. Pp. Tanárky's MSS. Diary (the manager of Pulszky's real estate) 2. National Museum, Budapest N. M. Bpest, Manuscript Department, Private Letters MSS Dpt. 55 in the judgment of those who advocated a reformed constitution in Hungary. A young rich and spirited member of the Hungarian aristo­ cracy, Count Stephen Széchenyi made great propaganda at home in support of this conviction. Between 1815 and 1830 he spent much time in Britain and brought back to his own country an unbounded admiration for British constitutional liberty.1 2 During his first visit, on November 1, 1815, he wrote to his father: ". Even the humblest servant here has the same right and claim to prosperity as the richest people have. This equality, the like of which I never dreamed of, but which now I see exists, is a tremendous boon for this country. The peculiar relationship be­ tween squire and servant, on which every man's rights are based, is not to be found in any other country. The island, the character of its people, and many other circumstances facilitate their existence . .”2 Széchenyi seized upon every idea that was likely to lift Hungary out of her state of backwardness. In order to awaken national consciousness he began to write. He searched for means to improve the situation of his country. All his efforts were con­ centrated on the hope that Hungary, once awakened, would force the chauvinist absolutistic government of Vienna to revise on the ancient Hungarian constitution on liberal lines. Hungary at that time was an agricultural country, as Britain had been in the eighteenth century. Britain’s example should go to prove that, even in an agricultural country, all classes of society could be­ come prosperous by the application of a system of intensive production coupled with manufacturing industries, an organized credit-system and free trade, all of which were the motive power behind the prosperity of the human race. Deeply imbued with these principles of national economy, he first published in 1828 a pamphlet on "Horses", which was followed in 1830 by his work on "Credit"3 which created a great sensation all over the country. In conservative circles he was sneered at as an Anglomaniac. But this had no effect, for his popularity was growing rapidly and 1 Angyal Dávid, Gróf Széchenyi István történeti eszméi (Count Stephen Széchenyi's historical ideas). Bpest, 1923 p. 75. 2 Viszota, Julius, Gróf Széchenyi István írói és hírlapi vitája Kossuth Lajossal (Polemics between Count Stephen Széchényi and Lewis Kossuth in Letters and in the Press). Bpest, 1927, vol. I, p. IV. 3 Iványi-Grünwald, Adalbert, Gróf Széchenyi István, Hitel (Count Stephen Széchenyi, “Credit”). 56 he became the centre of interest during the reform-session of the Hungarian Diet, which was held in Pressburg from 1832 to 1836. As against the criticism he had to face, however, he gained much satisfaction from the enthusiasm of his admirers. Among the latter was a young lawyer, Lewis Kossuth, who was living at that time in the county of Zemplén and who, after reading Szé­ chenyit ‘‘Credit” with eager interest, believed that he recognized in British institutions the lines along which the Hungarian constitu­ tion ought to be reformed. Kossuth also attended the reform- session of the Lower House (1832—36) as the deputy of the absent Baron Samuel Vecsey, and he insistently demanded a free press, in order to inform the public of what was going on in Pressburg. When the Vienna Government vetoed his intention to print a report of the debates, he had handwritten copies of his manuscripts prepared by friends, and these were distributed among the magistrates of the counties. As a result of this defiance he was arrested in 1837 and charged with high treason. Kossuth presumably began his English studies during the session of the Diet.4 He had plenty of time in prison to acquire a fair knowledge of the language. He spent his time in reading. His interest was particularly concentrated on the works of British economists, which he read partly in English, and partly in French or in German translations. He made precise notes from Me Culloch and Whateley and studied very carefully the books of Jeremiah Bentham.5 * He followed with eager enthusiasm the polemics initiated by the German economist Frederik List against the theories of Me Culloch and Whateley. Contrary to List's opinions, Kossuth took the side of the British economists and pleaded for free trade, from which he hoped for the prosperity created by the reconciliation of the interests of British agriculture and manu­ facturing industry. Strongly advocating Bentham's theory® of the duty of society to make as many people as possible happy, he decided, once he was free, to leave no stone unturned in his efforts to create a reformed Hungary. 4 Cf. his letter from prison to his mother ",,. Should I receive French books, would you please let me have a dictionary. During the last three years I have been reading much English. It is possible that I am out of practice in French..." Buda, Dec. 24, 1837, Vo. Pp. no. 233. Public Record Office, Budapest. 5 Cf. Kossuth's fragmentary notes. Vő. Pp. no. 234. P. R. O. Bpest. 8 Cf. Angyal's op. cit. concerning Bentham's influence on Széchenyi p, 103. 57 But apart from this specialized interest in national economy, he also studied very carefully the causes of British industrial prosperity, as well as British social and educational institutions. Even before his imprisonment he made propaganda for British Kindergartens and in his solitude translated Wilderspin's work dealing with the system into Hungarian7 thus making the Hun­ garian public acquainted with the benefits of that British institution. But in addition all this he also found time to educate himself in history and literature. He read Thomas Moore, Gibbon, Hume, Ferguson, Washington Irving, Cooper and Bulwer8 9 and the entire works of Shakespeare.® His metrical translation of Macbeth is a masterly piece of work, but was never finished, because while still in prison he heard that it had been translated and published by another.10 On May 13, 1841, he was set free under an amnesty. He then displayed a quite extraordinary activity, which showed the in­ fluence of the British economists. Chance permitted him to spread his ideas through the medium of the press and the public was stirred up in favour of the reforms to come. The owner of the daily paper "Pesti Hírlap"11 offered him an editorship, and from that time on he wrote a series of fiery editorials full of quotations from British authors. The headings alone were enough to interest the public. "Want of Money", "Banking", "The Whip for ever” 12 were parallels to Bentham’s theories.13 The "Pesti Hírlap” rapidly became the most popular paper in Hungary.

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