Foreign Ministry Records of the Department for Attending Hungarian Citizens Abroad, 1929-1944

Collection description

Holding institution (official language):: Magyar Nemzeti Levéltár Országos Levéltára

Title:: Foreign Ministry Records of the Department for Attending Hungarian Citizens Abroad, 1929-1944

Title (official language):: Külügyminisztérium Külföldön élő magyar állampolgárok gondozását ellátó osztály iratai, 1929-1944

Scope and content:: A controversial question in the study of the Holocaust in Hungary is how the Hungarian state related to its Jewish citizens who resided in other European countries either occupied by or allied to the Nazis during the implementation of the Holocaust starting in 1941-1942 but before the mass deportations from Hungary in 1944. Two central questions concern how far the Hungarian state aimed to protect them and how it related to their property. The records of the Foreign Ministry’s Department for Attending Hungarian Citizens Abroad contain documents regarding the tackling of social and cultural issues of émigré Hungarians and issues of international social policy. These documents concern the years 1929 to 1944 and are therefore of relevance to the study of the Hungarian state’s policy towards its Jewish citizens during the time of the Holocaust.

Archival history:: The fragments of the surviving records of the departments of the Foreign Ministry were handed over to the Hungarian National Archives in 1947. The material was legally under the auspices of the Ministry until 1950. The material was rearranged at the end of the 1950s as well as in the 1960s to 1970s. The first finding aids were published in 1959 and 1964, followed by a revised second edition in 2003.

Administrative/biographical history:: Established by decree no. 4380/1-1930 of the Foreign Ministry, the Department for Attending Hungarian Citizens Abroad was responsible for socio-political issues concerning Hungarian citizens living abroad, for example the cases of work and residence permits, and other socio-political issues with international dimensions.

System of arrangement:: The papers issued by the Consulate were originally organised partly by thematic units and partly in a chronologic order. As most of the registry books have been destroyed, the material was rearranged into thematic units (tárgyi tételek). Within these groups, the items are arranged chronologically.

Finding aids:: There are 17 registry books (iktatókönyvek) and 12 indexes (mutatókönyvek) for this material, as well as other, partially contemporary finding aids.

Ferenc Nagy, ed. Külügyminisztérium levéltára. Vols 2. Budapest: MOL, 2003.