László Piros (10 May 1917 – 13 January 2006) was a Hungarian

communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

politician and military officer, who served as

Interior Minister An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a Cabinet (government), cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and iden ...

between 1954 and 1956.

Career

Piros was born in to an impoverished peasant family. He fought in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, but he was captured by the

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

s at

Voronezh Voronezh ( ; , ) is a city and the administrative centre of Voronezh Oblast in southwestern Russia straddling the Voronezh River, located from where it flows into the Don River. The city sits on the Southeastern Railway, which connects wes ...

(January 1943). After that he took part in the antifascist movements. Piros worked as a

partisan Partisan(s) or The Partisan(s) may refer to: Military * Partisan (military), paramilitary forces engaged behind the front line ** Francs-tireurs et partisans, communist-led French anti-fascist resistance against Nazi Germany during WWII ** Ital ...

during the end of the war. He was a member of the Provisional National Assembly. From 1950 to 1953 he served as the commander of the Border Guard of Hungary. Following the arrest of

Gábor Péter Gábor Péter (born Benjámin Eisenberger; 14 May 1906 in Újfehértó – 23 January 1993 in Budapest) was a Hungarian Communism, communist politician. Between 1945 and 1952 he was chief of the State Protection Authority (''Államvédelmi Ható ...

, Piros led

State Protection Authority The State Protection Authority (, ÁVH) was the secret police of the People's Republic of Hungary from 1945 to 1956. The ÁVH was conceived as an external appendage of the Soviet Union's KGB in Hungary responsible for supporting the ruling Hu ...

(ÁVH) from 1953. As Interior Minister he reexamined the previous years'

show trial A show trial is a public trial in which the guilt (law), guilt or innocence of the defendant has already been determined. The purpose of holding a show trial is to present both accusation and verdict to the public, serving as an example and a d ...

s. During the

Hungarian Revolution of 1956 The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 (23 October – 4 November 1956; ), also known as the Hungarian Uprising, was an attempted countrywide revolution against the government of the Hungarian People's Republic (1949–1989) and the policies caused by ...

he left the country along with

Ernő Gerő Ernő Gerő (; born Ernő Singer; 8 July 1898 – 12 March 1980) was a Hungarian Communist leader in the period after World War II and briefly in 1956 the most powerful man in Hungary as the leader of its ruling communist party. Early career G ...

and

András Hegedüs András Hegedüs (; 31 October 1922 – 23 October 1999) was a Hungary, Hungarian Communist politician who served as Prime Minister of Hungary, Chairman of the Council of Ministers from 1955 to 1956. He fled to the Soviet Union on 28 October, ...

for the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

on 28 October, but returned to the country on 3 November. On 10 November, at the request of Hungarian dictator

János Kádár János József Kádár (; ; né Czermanik; 26 May 1912 – 6 July 1989) was a Hungarian Communist leader and the General Secretary of the Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party, a position he held for 32 years. Declining health led to his retireme ...

, he was sent back to the Soviet Union, and he was stripped of his parliamentary mandate on 9 May 1957. He was allowed to return again to Hungary in August 1958. From September 1958 he was chief engineer and from 1969 the director of the Pick Szeged salami factory. After his retirement in 1977 Piros served as chairman of the Csongrád County Council of Trade Unions for many years.

References

Az 1956-os Magyar Forradalom Történetének Dokumentációs és Kutatóintézete Közalapítvány
1917 births 2006 deaths People from Újkígyós People from the Kingdom of Hungary Hungarian Communist Party politicians Members of the Hungarian Working People's Party Members of the Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party Ministers of the interior of Hungary Members of the National Assembly of Hungary (1945–1947) Members of the National Assembly of Hungary (1947–1949) Members of the National Assembly of Hungary (1949–1953) Members of the National Assembly of Hungary (1953–1958) {{Hungary-politician-stub Hungarian trade unionists Political repression in Communist Hungary