Budapest pays tribute to Winston Churchill

A statue of Britain's wartime Prime Minister, Sir Winston Churchill, has been unveiled in Budapest's city Park. The statue stands on a promenade also named for the statesman. Why is Budapest is honouring the man who first forged the term Iron Curtain?

Winston Churchill

The idea came from the noted Hungarian born American historian John Lukacs, and both the Municipality of Budapest, and the Foreign Ministry happily endorsed it. The ceremony took place in a very solemn way. In his address, John Lukács called Sir Winston Churchill the saviour of Britain, and of the whole of Europe. Although Hungary was not an element of great importance for Churchill's statesmanship, nevertheless, we have a lot to thank him for. John Lukacs:

"What is astonishing is that his knowledge of Hungary was so extraordinary. He had written about Hungary very often in his histories. But apart from historian-ship, his career - his pubic career - is full of sparkling little remarks and consideration about Hungary and understanding of the situation of Hungary, even when the country found itself by geographical and other necessities in the opposite camp during the brutal second world war."

"This is why we are meeting now: that generations of Hungarians must pay their respects to a great statesman who probably in the thousands of years of Hungarian history is the only one, the only statesman west of the Rhine who has shown such sympathy and demonstrated such understanding for a small country."

The unveiling ceremony was honoured with the presence of Lady Mary Soames, the 81 years old daughter of Sir Winston Churchill, who felt deeply moved and proud to be there.

" This occasion also demonstrates to the world that Hungary is once more returned to the mainstream of history and is looking west to the great family of Europe. This event reminds me of the words from one of the thousands of letter my mother received after the death of my father in 1965: 'that he died is unimportant for we must all die. That he lived is momentous to the destiny of decent men and women. He is not gone, he lives wherever men are free, he lives in Budapest' "