Lajos Csatay
{{Short description|Hungarian military officer and politician}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2024}}
{{more footnotes|date=January 2013}}
{{Infobox military person
| name = Lajos Csatay
| image = Lajos Csatay - cropped from General Staff of the Hungarian Royal Army 1944.jpg
| caption = Czatay in 1944
| birth_date = {{birth date|df=yes|1886|08|1}}
| death_date = {{Death date and age|df=yes|1944|10|16|1886|08|1}}
| birth_place = Arad, Kingdom of Hungary (now in Romania)
| death_place = Budapest, Kingdom of Hungary
| nickname =
| allegiance = {{flagicon|Austria-Hungary}} Austria-Hungary
23px Hungarian Soviet Republic
{{flagicon|Kingdom of Hungary}} Kingdom of Hungary
| serviceyears =
| rank = Colonel General
| commands = 4th Home Defence Brigade,
5th Brigade,
IV Corps
Hungarian Third Army
| unit =
| battles = World War I
World War II
| awards =
| relations =
| laterwork =
}}
{{eastern name order|vitéz csataji Csatay Lajos}}
Vitéz Lajos Csatay de Csataj (born as Lajos Tutzentaller on 1 August 1886 – 16 October 1944) was a Hungarian military officer and politician, who served as Minister of Defence between June 1943 and October 1944.
Life
=[[World War I]] and the [[Interwar period|Interwar]]=
He fought in World War I and then joined the Hungarian Red Army to fight against the rebelling Slovakian, Romanian, and other nationalists. Between 1919 and 1921 he was a teacher of the Military Academy of Budapest. From 1926 he was a commander of a mixed brigade. File:Dr. Kállay Miklós (1887-1967) miniszterelnök és Csatay Lajos honvédelmi miniszter.jpg
= [[World War II]] =
In the first year of World War II, he was Chief of Artillery Field Training, until 1 August 1941, when he became commander of the IV Army Corps.
With this Corps, he served on the battlefield in the Soviet Union until 3 December 1942, when he was recalled to Hungary, to reform and lead the Hungarian Third Army.[https://generals.dk/general/Csatay_vit%C3%A9s_Csatai/Lajos/Hungary.html Generals.dk]
Then Miklós Kállay appointed him as Minister of Defence in June 1943. Initially he supported the Nazis and the continuation of the war, but his opinion changed continuously. After the replacement of the Sztójay administration he kept his position. Géza Lakatos, the new prime minister's real aim was leaving the war.
== [[Operation Panzerfaust]] ==
The cabinet wanted to initiate peace negotiations with the Allies. Miklós Horthy moved to reconsolidate his influence and began considering strategies for surrendering to the Western Allies because he distrusted the Red Army. The attempted coup was unsuccessful. Horthy was captured by Edmund Veesenmayer and his staff later on 15 October and taken to the Waffen SS office, where he was held overnight.
Lajos Csatay was arrested by the Gestapo; as a result he committed suicide along with his wife.
Awards and decorations
| style="margin:1em auto; text-align:center;"
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=HUN Signum Laudis Grand-Gold-Medal (war) swords BAR.svg|width=106}} |{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=HUN Order of Merit of Hungary pre1945 (mil) CCross Star wreath-swords BAR.svg|width=106}} |{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=HUN Order of Merit of Hungary pre1945 (mil) CCross Star wreath BAR.svg|width=106}} |{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=HUN Order of Merit of Hungary pre1945 (civ) OCross BAR.svg|width=106px}} |
| {{ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=AUT KuK Order of the Iron Crown swords BAR.svg|width=106}}
|{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=AUT KuK Kriegsbande schwertern-gold BAR.svg|width=106px}} |{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=AUT KuK Kriegsbande schwertern-gold BAR.svg|width=106px}} |{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=AUT KuK Kriegsbande schwertern-gold BAR.svg|width=106px}} |
| {{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=HUN Signum Laudis Medal (war) Bronze swords BAR.svg|width=106px}}
|{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=HUN Signum Laudis Medal (mil) Bronze BAR.svg|width=106px}} |{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=AUT Karl-Truppenkreuz BAR.svg|width=106}} |{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=HUN Great War Commemorative Medal (combat) BAR.svg|width=106px}} |
| {{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=HUN Szolgalati Jel pre1945 (mod-2) BAR.svg|width=106px}}
|{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=HUN Szolgalati Jel pre1945 (mod-3) BAR.svg|width=106px}} |{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=AUT KuK 1908 Jubilee Cross (Military) BAR.svg|width=106px}} |{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=DEU EK 1 Klasse BAR.svg|width=106px}} |
| colspan="5"|{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=Insignia Hungary Order Vitéz.svg|width=106px}} |
| class="wikitable" style="margin:1em auto; text-align:center;"
!1st row |Golden Military Merit Medal on war ribbon with swords |Order of Merit of the Kingdom of Hungary Commander's Cross with Star on war ribbon with swords |Order of Merit of the Kingdom of Hungary Commander's Cross with Star on war ribbon |Order of Merit of the Kingdom of Hungary Officer's Cross |
| 2nd row
|Order of the Iron Crown (Austria) 3rd Class with war decoration and swords |Military Merit Cross 3rd Class with war decoration and swords |Silver Military Merit Medal on war ribbon with swords |Bronze Military Merit Medal on war ribbon with swords |
|---|
| 3rd row
|Hungarian Bronze Military Merit Medal on war ribbon with swords |
| 4th row
|Long Service Crosses for Officers 2nd class |Long Service Crosses for Officers 3rd class |Iron Cross 1st Class (1939–1945) |
| Badge
| align=center colspan="4" |Badge of the Order of Vitéz |
References
{{reflist}}
- [http://mek.niif.hu/00300/00355/html/index.html Magyar Életrajzi Lexikon]
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{{succession box|title=Minister of Defence|before=Vilmos Nagy|after=Károly Beregfy|years=12 June 1943 – 16 October 1944}}
{{s-mil}}
{{succession box|title=Commander of the Hungarian Third Army|before=Lieutenant-General Zoltán Decleva|after=Lieutenant-General Károly Beregfy|years=1 December 1942 – 12 June 1943}}
{{s-end}}
{{HungarianDefenceMinisters}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Csatay, Lajos}}
Category:People from Arad, Romania
Category:Austro-Hungarian Army officers
Category:Austro-Hungarian military personnel of World War I
Category:Ministers of defence of Hungary
Category:Hungarian politicians who died by suicide
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