City Square
There were 3 main cities in the Trans Carpathian region. The Trans-Carpathian town of Uzhorod is now located in Western Ukraine. This beautiful city was the central hub for the regional railways system which departed for local provinces and to neighbouring Hungary and Slovenia. Khust is now located in Western Ukraine, 3rd largest city in the county and surrounded by the Carpathian Mountains. Mukachevo-Munkács is a city in a river valley in the beautiful Zakarpattia Oblast, now in Western Ukraine. Both my mother-in-law and father-in-law were born in a small nearby town and did all their schooling & shopping in Munkács until WW2.
In 1397, Munkács was granted by King Sigismund of Hungary to his cousin, the exiled Prince Theodor of Grand Duchy of Lithuania, who used it to administer the Ruthenian region of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Theodor became a vassal of Hungary and settled many Ruthenians in the territory. Note the colourful facades of Saint Nicholas Monastery.
1604-1711 was a time of continuous struggle against the expansionist intentions of the Habsburg Empire. In 1687 the anti-Habsburg Revolution started out from Munkács and the region played an important role in the War of Independence.
The medieval Palanok Castle lay above Munkács and played an important protective role during the anti-Habsburg revolts (1604–1711). It was especially important in the anti-Habsburg Revolt of 1685-8. In 1726, the Habsburgs gave Palanok Castle to the Schönborn family who were responsible for expanding the town. They settled many Germans in the territory, creating a regional economic boom.
The city came under Austrian control in the mid-C18th as part of the Kingdom of Hungary, under the Habsburg Monarchy. So most of the city’s architecture comes from the time of Austrian-Hungarian rule The Rákóczi-Schönborn Palace, for example, used to be Mukachevo rulers' home. Built in the Baroque and Renaissance styles, its elegant building is still considered one of the loveliest in town.
Top quality railways lines (Moscow-Kiev-Budapest-Belgrad; Prague-Bratislava-Vien) were established in town, meeting at the central station. Built in 1881, the station became the terminus for beer, wine, tobacco, food, textile, timber and furniture industries. And within the decade, the station needed to be expanded.
The Town Hall started in 1901, designed by a prominent architect from Budapest and was built in three years. Its bossed central tower was supported by massive carved pillars that thickened at the bottom and formed an arched entrance to the Town Hall. The towers' facades were décorated with small balconies. Lancet windows on the first floor and elegant double windows on the second floor were lovely. Sited on the main town square's centre, it was loved by architectural historians. A chiming clock was installed on its main tower in 1904.
In 1919, the American-Rusyns agreed with Tomáš Masaryk to incorporate Carpathian Ruthenia into Czechoslovakia. In mid 1920s, Munkács officially became part of Czechoslovakia by the Treaty of Trianon.
Educated and religious, the Jews of interwar Munkacs were famous for their Hasidism, Zionism and modern education. The first Hebrew-speaking primary school in Czechoslovakia opened in 1920 and the prestigious Hebrew Gymnasium was founded five years later. The first cinema was established by a Hasidic Jew, closed on Sabbath and Jewish holidays. And until WW2 broke out in 1939, half the population was Jewish, the rest being Hungarian, Slovak and others.
In Nov 1938, a part of the former Kingdom of Hungary was re-annexed by Hungary. The new authorities immediately ordered the expulsion of all the Jews without Hungarian citizenship. So Polish and Russian Jews, long-term residents of the now Hungarian-controlled Transcarpathian region, were deported to a German Einsatzgruppe commando.
In 1939 after the Hungarians annexed Subcarpathian Rus, the 30 synagogues in town were closed. In Aug 1941 some Jews were killed by the Germans. But despite the crises, Subcarpathian Rus remained a relatively safe haven for Jews, until Nazi Germany occupied Hungary in spring 1944. Then the surviving Jewish residents of the region were deported to Auschwitz by the Nazis – the last Jewish community to die in the Holocaust. By mid 1944, the city was Juden-free. [Yet my mother in law and her younger sister survived the Holocaust by moving to Budapest and living in hiding for 1944-5].
In late 1944, the Red Army liberated Carpathian Ruthenia. The territory was first given to the re-established Czechoslovakia, then became part of the Soviet Union, by a treaty in 1945. In 1945 the area was ceded to Ukraine and an ethnic Ukrainian population was transferred to the town.
Across the Carpathian mountains were tserkvas i.e churches of horizontal wooden logs, built between the C16th-19th by the Eastern Orthodox and Greek Catholic faiths. They represented the cultural expression of both religions and the formal, decorative and technical characteristics. Note the tri-partite plan surmounted by octagonal domes and cupolas. They featured wooden bell towers, iconostasis screens, interior polychrome decorations, gatehouses & cemeteries. 
Palanok Castle
The medieval Palanok Castle lay above Munkács and played an important protective role during the anti-Habsburg revolts (1604–1711). It was especially important in the anti-Habsburg Revolt of 1685-8. In 1726, the Habsburgs gave Palanok Castle to the Schönborn family who were responsible for expanding the town. They settled many Germans in the territory, creating a regional economic boom.
The city came under Austrian control in the mid-C18th as part of the Kingdom of Hungary, under the Habsburg Monarchy. So most of the city’s architecture comes from the time of Austrian-Hungarian rule The Rákóczi-Schönborn Palace, for example, used to be Mukachevo rulers' home. Built in the Baroque and Renaissance styles, its elegant building is still considered one of the loveliest in town.
Top quality railways lines (Moscow-Kiev-Budapest-Belgrad; Prague-Bratislava-Vien) were established in town, meeting at the central station. Built in 1881, the station became the terminus for beer, wine, tobacco, food, textile, timber and furniture industries. And within the decade, the station needed to be expanded.
Railway Station
The Town Hall started in 1901, designed by a prominent architect from Budapest and was built in three years. Its bossed central tower was supported by massive carved pillars that thickened at the bottom and formed an arched entrance to the Town Hall. The towers' facades were décorated with small balconies. Lancet windows on the first floor and elegant double windows on the second floor were lovely. Sited on the main town square's centre, it was loved by architectural historians. A chiming clock was installed on its main tower in 1904.
Town Hall
Educated and religious, the Jews of interwar Munkacs were famous for their Hasidism, Zionism and modern education. The first Hebrew-speaking primary school in Czechoslovakia opened in 1920 and the prestigious Hebrew Gymnasium was founded five years later. The first cinema was established by a Hasidic Jew, closed on Sabbath and Jewish holidays. And until WW2 broke out in 1939, half the population was Jewish, the rest being Hungarian, Slovak and others.
In Nov 1938, a part of the former Kingdom of Hungary was re-annexed by Hungary. The new authorities immediately ordered the expulsion of all the Jews without Hungarian citizenship. So Polish and Russian Jews, long-term residents of the now Hungarian-controlled Transcarpathian region, were deported to a German Einsatzgruppe commando.
In 1939 after the Hungarians annexed Subcarpathian Rus, the 30 synagogues in town were closed. In Aug 1941 some Jews were killed by the Germans. But despite the crises, Subcarpathian Rus remained a relatively safe haven for Jews, until Nazi Germany occupied Hungary in spring 1944. Then the surviving Jewish residents of the region were deported to Auschwitz by the Nazis – the last Jewish community to die in the Holocaust. By mid 1944, the city was Juden-free. [Yet my mother in law and her younger sister survived the Holocaust by moving to Budapest and living in hiding for 1944-5].
In late 1944, the Red Army liberated Carpathian Ruthenia. The territory was first given to the re-established Czechoslovakia, then became part of the Soviet Union, by a treaty in 1945. In 1945 the area was ceded to Ukraine and an ethnic Ukrainian population was transferred to the town.
Wooden tserkva
Across the Carpathian mountains were tserkvas i.e churches of horizontal wooden logs, built between the C16th-19th by the Eastern Orthodox and Greek Catholic faiths. They represented the cultural expression of both religions and the formal, decorative and technical characteristics. Note the tri-partite plan surmounted by octagonal domes and cupolas. They featured wooden bell towers, iconostasis screens, interior polychrome decorations, gatehouses & cemeteries.
Map of the Trans-Carpathian region, now Ukraine
So the Trans-Carpathian region was Czech from the mid 1920s, Hungarian from 1938 and Soviet Ukrainian from 1946. When students went to school each day, they didn’t know what language their teacher would be teaching in.
At the last census, 94,000 people lived in Munkács, 77% of them ethnic Ukrainians, 9% Russians and 9% Hungarians.
At the last census, 94,000 people lived in Munkács, 77% of them ethnic Ukrainians, 9% Russians and 9% Hungarians.
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18 comments:
The tserkvas Christian churches remind me of Chinese Buddhist Temples. Unexpected in this part of the world.
Hello Hels, The regional architecture looks like those antique building block sets made with stone blocks, with the exception of the tserkvas which have a South Asian vibe to them, with more that a touch of the Russian church style thrown in. Although all of these cities have had long, checkered histories, it is always depressing and disconcerting to read of their anti-Jewish and Nazi histories.
--Jim
Boa tarde Hels. Obrigado pela aula de história. O Leste Europeu deve ser maravilhoso de se visitar.
All the Slavic languages share grammar and a lot of vocabulary. It would be relatively easy to change from Czech to Polish, Ukrainian or Slovak. But Hungarian doesn't share a single word with any other language, so the Czechs would have found themselves very lonely when the Hungarian border moved.
Anonymous
UNESCO says that the tserkvas record a distinct building tradition rooted in Orthodox ecclesiastic design interwoven with elements of local tradition and symbolic references to their communities’ cosmogony. Integral to tserkvas are iconostasis screens, interior polychrome decorations and wooden bell towers, none of the elements drawing on Chinese Buddhist Temples.
Parnassus
Even with the benefit of hindsight, I cannot understand why the Trans Carpathian region became so anti-Semitic and pro-Nazi. The architecture was attractive, the education system was good, the public transport was modern, and Christian and Jewish facilities were comprehensive.
One of the reasons I love reading your Blog is that I learn about places like this . I had no idea of its existence .Thankyou , it makes life interesting .
Luiz
parts of Eastern Europe are truly delightful to visit. Prague and St Petersburg are my favourites, Krakow was my parents' favourite, Budapest, Dubrovnik and Odessa are also much loved.
Joseph
I have no idea why the Hungarians speak a language that isolates them from almost all other societies on the planet. But perhaps Attila and his marauding Huns settled in the Carpathian Basin where the Magyars traded with Turks and Bulgars.
Even for Czechs who spoke and traded in the other Slavik languages had trouble adapting when Czech cities were annexed by Hungary in 1938.
mem
I inherited a great deal of information about and love for Russia, Lithuania, Ukraine, Belarus etc but I too would not have known anything about the Trans Carpathian region. Meeting my in-laws-to-be in 1969 opened a whole new world of history and architecture.
I'd love to be an expert in European history but alas I am not and I now rely on picking up certain things from you. After Vienna and Budapest, I expect Prague would be one of my favourite European cities. While London is ok, continual progress has changed it so much, whereas the centres of the major European cities have been kept intact. I've heard the closest language to Hungarian is Finnish.
Andrew
funny you should say that :) I never ever write about a story that I don't have tons of notes about, even if those 1990 notes have to be rapidly updated. But today, for the first time, I was writing a blog post regarding a site about which I knew nothing!
Re the languages. Quora said Finnish and Hungarian belong both to the Uralic family but they are in very distant subgroups. They had a common proto-language 5000 years ago so we can well assume that they are not very similar today. They may still share 2 words.
Hi Hels - it's an area and a history I know nothing about ... which I'd love to have time to explore: at some stage - thanks for investigating and writing up. Take care - Hilary
Hilary
although my beloved didn't get to Australia until he started primary school, he never lived in the Trans Carpathian region himself. So once his parents left Munkács and the surrounding town in 1939, I had no more modern information from them. Thank goodness for my sister in law who spoke Czech and Yiddish at home, and Hungarian at school :)
Starting from my childhood I heard a lot about Transcarpathian Ukraine and the cities of Hust, Ujgorod, Munkacs from my beloved Grandma born in 1896 (and me in 1946). She's from Volovoe or Okormezo- almost all the names are in their Hungarian version, which is my mother-language too
I lived until 1973 in a communist country-Romania, so never visited the places. The family of Grandma owned a hotel until the holocaust and I never knew what about the asset. And now, only the war is the think all of us missed it ... BTW: My name is Robert.
Robert,
Welcome aboard - you may be a close member of my husband's family :) You are both the same age, and your two families lived in the same Carpathian cities. The only difference was my in-laws' languages were Yiddish and Czech, while yours was Hungarian.
It was rather sad that the Carpathians were annexed by Hungary, then given to Czechoslovakia, then the Soviet Union, then Ukraine. Families were divided, schools struggled, businesses failed and the Holocaust wiped out entire communities.
My mother's family came from Munkacs - she was the youngest of 7 children and was born in 1918. For centuries (a millennia), the area had been an area under the tribal control by Hungarians, which then became part of the Kingdom of Hungary, but after WW1 and the Treaty of Trianon, it was carved off. Her family dispersed throughout Hungary but some remained in Munkacs. I remember asking my mother about where she came from and getting confused when she listed multiple countries (Transylvania, Czechoslovakia, Ukraine, Hungary). Hungarian is a Finno-Ugric language, though I don't really know how the vocabulary compares to other languages within the language group. Hungarian is my mother tongue, though my mother spoke other languages as well (which I didn't learn, unfortunately). My grandmother was Ruthenian (she died many years before I was even born). All this to say that no matter how the borders move, the area of the Carpathian mountains is and has been home to many migrating people, whether they were resettled there through migration, forced migration or through war or occupation, and therefore just as how people have naturalized to different areas of North America (and and intermingling of genes), if you track the genetic mixture of people today you will find that all of us are interconnected more than we would ever realize without doing a whole lot of research into our family trees. Cheers, Adriane (from Canada)
Adriane
Thank you for a great response. I have been married into my husband's Czech family for 51 years and still find the Carpathian mountains, languages, migration and marriages utterly fascinating.
You correctly noted that the area has been home to many migrating people, resettling there either voluntarily or because of war. Equally true is that local residents often left the Carpathian mountain towns for education or work in larger cities, either in surrounding countries or in Australia, USA, Canada etc. My in laws didn't learn English in Sydney for 20 years because their customers and neighbours spoke Hungarian and Czech exclusively :)
My own family, from the part of Russia that later became Ukraine, all ended up in Melbourne or Winnipeg!
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