Battle of Buda (1849)
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Buda was a battle at Buda
, Kingdom of Hungary
during the Hungarian Revolution of 1848
. It was part of the Spring Campaign between 4 and 21 May 1849 and ended with Hungarian victory.
, and it was antiquated in 1849. It had no fortifications against direct attacks, its water defences were outdated and it was easy to fire at the castle from the nearby hills. However, the determined defenders made the attack difficult.
's army lost the Battle of Mór
against Josip Jelačić
. Because of this the Hungarians could not defend the Upper Danube
. Perczel disagreed with Antal Vetter's and György Klapka
's campaign plans. He suggested to Lajos Kossuth
that the Hungarian forces move to Buda
and Pest (now Budapest
, Hungary
). However the Hungarians didn't comply with Perczel's wishes, because the enemy looked overwhelming, and the defeat and retreat wore them out.
to lead the Austrians and also to repair the castle's walls and towers, to make the water defences stronger. Von Arthurm put at first 85 cannon on the walls, later increasing them to 92.
the battle at Buda seemed an easy victory for the revolutionaries. The Hungarians approached the castle and occupied the area. Artúr Görgey
demanded the Austrians' surrender and promised fair treatment to those captured. Görgey also promised not to attack the castle from the side facing Pest, but that if Hentzi fired at Pest than he would show no mercy. Additionally, Görgey appealed to Hentzi's supposed Magyar sympathies (Hentzi having been born in Debrecen
), but Hentzi replied that his loyalty was to the Kaiser.
Hentzi's response was not as Görgey expected: he told Görgey that if the Hungarians didn't stop firing the walls, he would fire at Pest. With this, Görgey started to coordinate the attack.
to attack the water defences and ordered to raze them, but Kmety could not achieve a definitive result. Furthermore Kmety was injured during the mission. The defeat made clear that it would not be an easy attack.
Görgey wrote a letter to Richard Guyon and ordered him to send reinforcements from Komárom. On 6 May Guyon sent 5 cannon, which arrived two days later. During that time Görgey ordered the construction of an artillery battery
on ("Sun Hill"), one of the hills in Buda. This was completed on 14 May.
During this build-up there were fights between the Hungarians and the Austrians. On 5 May Kmety was moving towards the water defences, but Hentzi started to fire at the Hungarians so they had to withdraw.
) were either unsuccessful or too long.
Since 1992, the Hungarian Government has celebrated the last day of the battle, 21 May, as National Defence Day .
Buda
For detailed information see: History of Buda CastleBuda is the western part of the Hungarian capital Budapest on the west bank of the Danube. The name Buda takes its name from the name of Bleda the Hun ruler, whose name is also Buda in Hungarian.Buda comprises about one-third of Budapest's...
, Kingdom of Hungary
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
during the Hungarian Revolution of 1848
Hungarian Revolution of 1848
The Hungarian Revolution of 1848 was one of many of the European Revolutions of 1848 and closely linked to other revolutions of 1848 in the Habsburg areas...
. It was part of the Spring Campaign between 4 and 21 May 1849 and ended with Hungarian victory.
Castle
Buda Castle was hardly modern during the Battle of Buda of 1686Battle of Buda (1686)
The Battle of Buda was fought between the Holy League and Ottoman Turkey, as part of the follow-up campaign in Hungary after the Battle of Vienna...
, and it was antiquated in 1849. It had no fortifications against direct attacks, its water defences were outdated and it was easy to fire at the castle from the nearby hills. However, the determined defenders made the attack difficult.
Defence of Buda
During the Winter Campaign Mór PerczelMór Perczel
Sir Mór Perczel de Bonyhád , was a Hungarian landholder, general, and one of the leaders of the Hungarian Revolution of 1848.- Life before 1848 :...
's army lost the Battle of Mór
Battle of Mór
The Battle of Mór was a battle in the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, fought on 30 December 1848 between Austria and Hungarian insurgents. The Austrians were led by Croatian Ban Josip Jelačić, while the Hungarians were led by Mór Perczel...
against Josip Jelačić
Josip Jelacic
Count Josip Jelačić of Bužim was the Ban of Croatia between 23 March 1848 and 19 May 1859...
. Because of this the Hungarians could not defend the Upper Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
. Perczel disagreed with Antal Vetter's and György Klapka
György Klapka
--------György Klapka , also known as , or George Klapka, was a Hungarian soldier.Klapka was born at Temesvár, Kingdom of Hungary and entered the Austrian Army in 1838...
's campaign plans. He suggested to Lajos Kossuth
Lajos Kossuth
Lajos Kossuth de Udvard et Kossuthfalva was a Hungarian lawyer, journalist, politician and Regent-President of Hungary in 1849. He was widely honored during his lifetime, including in the United Kingdom and the United States, as a freedom fighter and bellwether of democracy in Europe.-Family:Lajos...
that the Hungarian forces move to Buda
Buda
For detailed information see: History of Buda CastleBuda is the western part of the Hungarian capital Budapest on the west bank of the Danube. The name Buda takes its name from the name of Bleda the Hun ruler, whose name is also Buda in Hungarian.Buda comprises about one-third of Budapest's...
and Pest (now Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
). However the Hungarians didn't comply with Perczel's wishes, because the enemy looked overwhelming, and the defeat and retreat wore them out.
Strategy
The Hungarians could not defend the Upper Danube, but it was possible to defend the Castle. The main target of the Austrian leader Alfred I, Prince of Windisch-Grätz was Buda and Pest, but he got no reinforcements to defend the castle.Renovation of the castle
The Hungarian troops abandoned the castle after evacuating Buda and Pest. Windisch-Grätz asked Heinrich HentziHeinrich Hentzi
Heinrich Hentzi von Arthurm was a Hungarian general in the army of the Austrian Empire. He was famous for his refusal to defect to the Hungarian rebels during the Battle of Buda in 1849, defending Buda city and castle on behalf of the Austrian Habsburgs.Born in Debrecen, Hentzi's military...
to lead the Austrians and also to repair the castle's walls and towers, to make the water defences stronger. Von Arthurm put at first 85 cannon on the walls, later increasing them to 92.
Battle
After winning back KomáromKomárom
Komárom is a city in Hungary on the right bank of the Danube in Komárom-Esztergom county.The city of Komárom was formerly a separate suburban village called...
the battle at Buda seemed an easy victory for the revolutionaries. The Hungarians approached the castle and occupied the area. Artúr Görgey
Artúr Görgey
----Artúr Görgey de Görgő et Toporcz was a Hungarian military leader.He was born at Toporz in Upper Hungary of a Hungarian noble family of originally Zipser German descent who immigrated to Upper Hungary during the reign of king Géza II . During the reformation they were converted to Protestantism...
demanded the Austrians' surrender and promised fair treatment to those captured. Görgey also promised not to attack the castle from the side facing Pest, but that if Hentzi fired at Pest than he would show no mercy. Additionally, Görgey appealed to Hentzi's supposed Magyar sympathies (Hentzi having been born in Debrecen
Debrecen
Debrecen , is the second largest city in Hungary after Budapest. Debrecen is the regional centre of the Northern Great Plain region and the seat of Hajdú-Bihar county.- Name :...
), but Hentzi replied that his loyalty was to the Kaiser.
Hentzi's response was not as Görgey expected: he told Görgey that if the Hungarians didn't stop firing the walls, he would fire at Pest. With this, Görgey started to coordinate the attack.
Attack against the water defences
Görgey sent György KmetyGyörgy Kmety
György Kmety was a general in the Hungarian army, and in the Ottoman army under the name Isma'il pasha.- Career :...
to attack the water defences and ordered to raze them, but Kmety could not achieve a definitive result. Furthermore Kmety was injured during the mission. The defeat made clear that it would not be an easy attack.
Görgey wrote a letter to Richard Guyon and ordered him to send reinforcements from Komárom. On 6 May Guyon sent 5 cannon, which arrived two days later. During that time Görgey ordered the construction of an artillery battery
Artillery battery
In military organizations, an artillery battery is a unit of guns, mortars, rockets or missiles so grouped in order to facilitate better battlefield communication and command and control, as well as to provide dispersion for its constituent gunnery crews and their systems...
on ("Sun Hill"), one of the hills in Buda. This was completed on 14 May.
During this build-up there were fights between the Hungarians and the Austrians. On 5 May Kmety was moving towards the water defences, but Hentzi started to fire at the Hungarians so they had to withdraw.
First attack
On 16 May the Hungarians started to fire at the castle walls and broke through them. Görgey ordered the castle be reconnoitred to secure an advantage in the impending battle, but this was not successful as the ladders were too short and the hole broken through the walls wasn't big enough. Görgey ordered eight groups to continuously distract the enemy during the nights.Final attack
The final attack started at 3am on 21 May, when all cannon opened fire at the castle. The attack was not too easy at first, but later the Hungarians managed to enter the castle. The Hungarians occupied it by 7am and Hentzi died during the battle. In all, 368 Hungarians died and approximately 700 were injured. The Austrians lost 710 men, and 4,200 men were taken captive – the entire garrison.Aftermath
The victory was an important part of the Spring Campaign although many people thought that the battle lasted too long, and in defending the castle the victorious Hungarians could not take the attack to the Austrians. The Hungarian leaders did not think it as a waste of time because the previous battles at Buda (such as those in 1541 and in 1686Battle of Buda (1686)
The Battle of Buda was fought between the Holy League and Ottoman Turkey, as part of the follow-up campaign in Hungary after the Battle of Vienna...
) were either unsuccessful or too long.
Since 1992, the Hungarian Government has celebrated the last day of the battle, 21 May, as National Defence Day .