Hungary Medal For The Liberation Of Upper Hungary 1938

Bronze, 34.2 mm, original triangular ribbon with hook and eye; The medal was instituted on November 4, 1938. At the end of the First World War, Hungary lost almost three-quarters of its territory, among them many areas with large Hungarian populations, including areas of southern Slovakia and southern Carpathian Rus. The Munich Agreement between Germany, Britain, France and Italy dealt not only with the question of the Sudeten Germans but also called for a settlement of Hungarian claims on this Czechoslovak territory. German and Italian arbitration in Vienna led to an imposed settlement on November 2, 1938, with almost 12,000 square kilometers of territory and over a million people being transferred to Hungary. The award was annulled after the Second World War and the territory divided between Slovakia and the Ukraine. The obverse displays the bust of Francis II Rakoczi (1676-1735), who led the Hungarian Uprising of 1703 to 1711 against Hapsburg rule. He is revered in Hungary as a national hero.