| abstract
| - Isztvan Szolovits (b. ca. 1930) was a soldier in the Hungarian People's Army during World War III. He was a Jew, which made him something of an odd man in his unit. Szolovits and his unit were mobilized after the United States and the Soviet Union traded atomic bomb attacks between 23 January and 1 February 1951. Like many soldiers in Soviet satellite countries, Szolovits was armed with a variety of Soviet second-hand weapons and equipment. The unit made its way west. Szolovits was a frequent target of Sgt. Gergely, who'd survived World War II and the purges of the communist government of the Hungarian People's Republic. On 15 February, Szolovits's squad was positioned just outside Schmalkalden, East Germany, ready to cross the border. Word came that the U.S. had used atomic bombs against several Eastern European cities, including the Hungarian city of Szekesfehervar. It fell to Szolovits and his fellow private Tibor Nagy to calm down a soldier who'd hailed from Szekesfehrervar. The way he handled the task impressed Sgt. Gergely. His squad went into West Germany two days later. The Hungarians were used to occupy areas the Soviets had already taken. A week after the invasion, Szolovits's squad was assigned to Schweinfurt. They were warned against fraternization, and were subject to sneak attacks by the locals. The Hungarians used the tactic of seizing hostages and executing them when attacks took place. Nagy and Szolovits were both assigned to periodic firing squad duties. Nagy hated it; Szolovits hated it more, as the this was tactic used by the SS during the last war. By April, Szolovits and his squad had seen combat. As they prepared for another attack, Szolovits found himself alone with Nagy. Szolovits quietly suggested that they surrender the first the chance they got. Nagy dismissed the idea, and warned Szolovits against anymore such talk. Nagy was killed not long after. Ironically, this proved something of a benefit for Szolovits; Gergely informed him that Nagy had been next in line for a promotion to lance corporal but now it would be him. Szolovits didn't particularly trust Gergely, but he did accept the promotion. By April, the Hungarian troops were fighting side by side with Polish troops. Despite their status as "fraternal socialist allies", the situation had the potential for conflict as Poland had been overrun early in World War II, and Hungary had been a Nazi ally. Nonetheless, the Magyars and the Poles were able to communicate with the German language, and some level of comradery. In May, Szolovits was increasingly disenchanted with the war. After surviving an American mortar barrage, Szolovits had the unpleasant task of mercy-killing a Polish soldier who had been horribly mutilated by a shell. He even tried to shrive the Pole before slitting his throat. Sgt. Gergely approached Szolovits, and asked him to do the same thing for Gergely if Gergely were so injured. A few weeks later, Szolovits was fighting in the Ruhr, astonished that he was still alive, and still contemplating surrender if the opportunity arose. In June 1951, Szolovits and his unit were located in the destroyed town of Raesfeld, in the Dämmerwald, which itself had been ruined. Raesfeld was held by the Russians. American troops were able to use the Dämmerwald, ruined though it was, to pick off Russian officers. By July, the Soviet's were moving west again, and their allies were moving with them, including Szolovits, who still wanted to surrender. Unfortunately, in the heat of battle, this proved difficult. During a drive, Szolovits came across two American soldiers. He reflexively killed one, and the other immediately surrendered. Szolovits felt bad about the dead American, but had no compunction about taking any cigarettes he could find from the body, some of which he shared with Sgt. Gergely. A few days later, Szolovits was astonished when the Allies only set out rear guards to meet the Soviet advance. Gergely suggested that perhaps the Allies were finally on the run, and Szolovits agreed. That night, however, as he slept in a trench, a U.S. dropped an atomic bomb on the Soviet positions in Wesel. While the Hungarians were not caught directly in the blast, their position was hit by the shock waves and radiation. Szolovits' face was seared by the initial flash of the detonation, then he was thrown around by the overpressure, but he survived without serious injury. He then went about helping his comrades, and soon an order came for a retreat. Both Gergely and Szolovits wondered how many Russians had survived the attack. This article is a stub because the work is part of a larger, as-of-yet incomplete series.
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