If you know me you may be surprised by the fact that I went to a place called House of Terror. I hate horror movies and scary things. But I do think it is important to understand some of the tougher parts of history so that, hopefully, it can be avoided in the future. Taking a look around our world today it is unfortunate that much of what is in the House of Terror is still taking place in other parts of the world.
The museum is located at 60 Andrassy Boulevard. In 1937 the Hungarian National Socialist movement’s Szalasi branch rented the space and it became the home of the Arrow Cross Party. They called it the “House of Loyalty”. It 1944 it was home to the Hungarian Nazis which included the Hungarian Arrow Cross Party. In the cellar of the House of Loyalty members of the Arrow Cross tortured and killed hundreds of people.
In 1945, under Soviet occupation the Hungarian communists took over 60 Andrassy Boulevard . First it was the Department for Political Police which later became the State Security office an then the State Security Authority. They killed without hesitation, extorted confessions during brutal interrogations and sent their victims to the gallows and labor camps. One way they were able to this was by replacing real judges with puppet ones who wouldn’t question their tactics or false confessions.
The museum offers testimony and oral histories from survivors and family members who lost people to to these terrors. It also walks you through the history of these time periods. One thing I had not seen before were the walls of shame. Many of the people who took part in these atrocities were able to continue life afterwards with no repercussions. The walls of shame has their names and pictures so that everyone will know who they are. They also have an area with images and names of the victims. I was surprised to see that Hungary didn’t truly gain independence from the Soviet Union until the 1990s.
On a more inspiring note the museum’s temporary exhibit was on Margit Slachta. She was an very inspiring woman who lived from 1884 – 1974. She was Hungary’s first female member of Parliament. She devoted her life to her Christian faith and let that guide her to fighting hate. Her many activities centered around; feeding the needy, helping women and children. She fought against the holocaust and communism. She was a very inspiring woman. Unfortunately, after learning a bit about her I have been unable to find further reading material on her life. Considering the different roles she had in life and her positive influence on those around her it is a shame that there is not more information about her.
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