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Under Soviet protection, the Hungarian communists, led by Matyas Rakosi (1892-1971) were able to seize control of the state by 'salami tactics' (picking off adversaries one by one). Once in power, Rakosi was a fierce Stalinist, even by the standards of the Soviet bloc; he was removed from office and exiled to the Soviet Union under Soviet pressure following the denouncing of Stalin by [[Nikita Krushchev]] in 1956.
Under Soviet protection, the Hungarian communists, led by Matyas Rakosi (1892-1971) were able to seize control of the state by 'salami tactics' (picking off adversaries one by one). Once in power, Rakosi was a fierce Stalinist, even by the standards of the Soviet bloc; he was removed from office and exiled to the Soviet Union under Soviet pressure following the denouncing of Stalin by [[Nikita Krushchev]] in 1956.
In October 1956 a small student demonstration exploded into a major uprising against the Communist Party which rapidly gained hold of the whole country. The new party leader, [[Imre Nagy]] (1896-1958) agreed to a number of popular demands, including the disbanding of the hated secret police, the AVH, and he further announced that Hungary would withdraw from the [[Warsaw Pact]]. This prompted a massive Soviet invasion on 4 Novemnber 1956 which, despite fierce resistance, had crushed the rebellion by 10 December. Many thousands were executed including (in 1958) Nagy himself.
Nagy was replaced as leader by Janos Kadar (1912-1989) who instituted 'Goulash Communism': strict political control coupled with more liberal economic and cultural policies. In the short term this led to improved living standards for the Hungarian people: in material terms they, and the East Germans, were the most prosperous nations in the eastern bloc. It also created a readiness to take advantage of the relaxations of ''glasnost'' and ''perstroika'' being advocated in the 1980s Soviet Union. In
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