For the sake of arranging the details of Hungary’s large-scale military participation in the Russian campaign, Marshall Keitel, saluting here at his official ceremonial reception on cloudy Hero’s Square, followed Ribbentrop to Budapest during January, 1942. Berlin’s original demand for Hungary’s total military participation was eventually scaled back to about fifty-percent of her military resources, upon the latter’s insistence. Keitel promised that the Reich would supply the heavy equipment necessary, like tanks and the like, for beefing up the Hungarian Second Army with sufficient modern hardware for reaching the technological fighting level of the opposing Red Army.

Marshall Keitel Visits Budapest, 1942

Bishop Saint Gerard Sagredo’s (Szent Gellért püspök) damaged statue in Buda / Gellért Hill. On the opposite bank of the river Danube lies Pest, where you can see the stump of the Franz Joseph I bridge (today it is called Liberty Bridge) which was blown up in january the 16th 1945.

The Siege of Budapest

In need of a massive manpower infusion by 1942, Berlin turned to many countries for support, among them to Hungary. Foreign Minister Ribbentrop traveled to snow-covered Budapest in January, 1942, wearing his military style uniform, in this photo being received ceremonially by Foreign and Prime Minister Bardossy. The German Foreign Minister put pressure on the reluctant Hungarians, including references of the future disposition of Northern Transylvania, until finally Bardossy and Horthy acceded to Berlin’s wishes and agreed to send a sizeable army to the Russian front, in addition to the division-sized unit already fighting there since June, 1941.
