Bakách-Bessenyey György iratai

Baron György Bakách-Bessenyey (1892 - 1959) was the Ambassador of Hungary in Bern, Switzerland between the summer of 1943 and March 19, 1944 and as such one of the organizers of the peace initiatives of Hungary. Upon the German occupation, he aimed to inform and advise the Allies on Hungarian questions. He would later play a prominent role in the political life of Hungarian emigrants. The most significant part of the collection consists of his extensive semi-official correspondence with prominent personalities, including Prime Minister Miklós Kállay, Otto von Habsburg and John Foster Dulles. The collection also includes the registry of the Hungarian Embassy of Bern. Bakách-Bessenyey took these materials with him in April 1944, so that details of his negotiations would not be acquired by his successor. The collection also contains information on the operation of the Ambassadorial Committee. The Committee had no regular registry and the materials in the files of Bakách-Bessenyey are partial and incomplete. Last but not least, newspaper and journal articles of Bakách-Bessenyey and other publications are also included.