Records of the Hungarian Embassy in the Vatican, 1920-1944

Collection description

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

Scope and content:: The collection of the Hungarian Embassy in the Vatican contains information on the debate between the Vatican and the Italian state concerning racial legislation, letter reports on the Church stance on the new Italian marriage law and, more generally, on the evolution of relations between the Vatican and the Italian state after the Concordat and the re-emergence of the Papal State in 1929. The most relevant part of the collection is the political and confidential papers (series no. II), which include the private and political correspondence of the ambassadors, esp. fascicles 27-28 (1938).

The key persons in the collection are Hungarian Ambassador György Barcza (1927-1938) secretary and acting deputy Heribert Thierry (1938-1939) and Gábor Apor (1938-1944).

Archival history:: The fragments of the surviving records of the Hungarian embassies and other diplomatic corps were handed over to the Hungarian National Archives in 1950. The material was rearranged at the end of the 1950s as well as in the 1960s and 1970s. The first finding aids were published in 1959 and 1964, followed by a revised second edition in 2003.

Administrative/biographical history:: The diplomatic relations between the Hungarian Kingdom established after the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy and the Holy See were established as early as 1920. The Embassy operated until 1944. The ambassadors were not churchmen or the representatives of the Roman Catholic Church, but represented the Hungarian State just like other foreign dignitaries. The Ambassador was accredited at the Papacy (and had to be reaccredited by each new Pope) and had a canonical adviser as his aide. His main role was to represent the church policies of the Hungarian government, prepare the visits of Hungarian statesmen and pilgrims, and report back to Hungary on developments in the Vatican.

Access points: persons/families:: Apor, Gábor; Barcza, György; Thierry, Heribert

Subject terms:: Antisemitism; Antisemitism--Antisemitic legislation; Antisemitism--Racial laws; Christianity; Christianity--Churches (institution)

System of arrangement:: The records of the Embassy in the Vatican are arranged into four major thematic groups, out of which the political and confidential papers (series no. II) are organised chronologically, whereas series III-IV are arranged by countries, and by persons and topics.

Finding aids:: A detailed archival unit (fascicle) level description is available in Hungarian.

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