Menyhért Lónyay, the Minister of Finance of the Andrássy government, was the joint Minister of Finance of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy between 1870 and 1871, and in 1871-1972 the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Hungary, was born on 6 January, 1822.

When the 1868 budget was drawn up, he prescribed strict austerity in all areas of public administration, emphasizing the need to balance the budget and increase public revenue, which he sought to achieve not through raising taxes but through reform. Public investment has contributed to the financial and intellectual strengthening of the country and the stabilization of public finances, Minister Mihály Varga said at the commemoration of the anniversary at the Ministry of Finance.

Minister of Finance Mihály Varga and Ferenc Offenbacher, curator of the exhibition in memory of Menyhért Lónyay at the politician's bust at the Ministry of Finance (Photo: Lajos Soós / MTI)

Mihály Varga said that now, when the growth is strong and the balance is improving in Hungary after the crisis, it is worth recalling the idea of a politician in the reform era. “Experience from the past has shown that a quarter of a century does not pass without the difficult days of tribulation for nations and states. So every forward-thinking true patriot must strive to make good use of the time of peace and quiet, so that the coming crisis will find us in a state of order, strengthened spiritually and financially, ” he quoted Menyhért Lónyay. He also said that these principles can also be recognized in the policies of the civilian government.

Attila Tilki, Member of Parliament of Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg County, emphasized at the commemoration that Menyhért Lónyay is less well known in society at the moment, but the well-known Ferenc Deák stated that he was "irreplaceable through his knowledge of the national economy and finance".

Mihály Varga wreathed his memorial plaque to Menyhért Lónyay (Photo: Lajos Soós / MTI)

It is the identity of the Minister of Finance and (for a short time) the Prime Minister to convey patriotism to the people of the 21st century, the Member of Parliament emphasized. He recalled that after the Revolution of 1848, a politician hid a Reformed bishop and a Catholic bishop, and retired to his family estate after his political career, where he engaged in a number of activities that were decisive for the lives of the locals; For example, water regulation and the legacy of apple growing.

“Let us live anywhere, let us work in any area of life, our work can only be done well with the right humility,” the MP finally summed up what a man today can learn from the life path of a 19th-century historical figure.

Source: MTI

Cover photo: the large-format politician was born 200 years ago (Source: oszk.hu)