Autonomous Agrarian Union
Encyclopedia
The Autonomous Agrarian Union was a political party
in Czechoslovakia
, which fought for autonomy for Subcarpathia
. The party was founded as the Subcarpathian Agrarian Union . The party published Russkij vestnik. It was represented in the Czechoslovak parliament by Ivan Kurtyak.
The party was one of the more prominent Ruthenian
parties in Czechoslovakia. The party gathered support from farmers, teachers and the pro-'Greater Russian' tendency amongst Greek Catholic clergy. The supporters of the party included many landowning farmers who had been supportive of Hungarian rule and pro-Hungarian intellectuals and priests. The party functioned as a vehicle for pro-Hungarian positions in the Czechoslovak political scene, receiving financial subsidies from Hungary
.
In the 1924 and 1925 elections, the party contested on its own. In 1924 (when voters in Subcarpathia were able to elect delegates to the Czechoslovak parliament for the first time) the party got 21,161 votes, whilst in the 1925 election the party received 28,799 votes. Ahead of the 1929 Czechoslovak parliamentary election it formed an electoral bloc, the Russian National Bloc, together with the National Democrats
and two minor Ruthenian parties. The Russian National Bloc got 48,509 votes.
On November 26, 1930, Kurtyak presented a parliamentary motion for autonomy for Carpathian Ruthenia. The proposal gained support from the members of parliament of the German National Party
, German National Socialist Workers Party
and Hungarian parties.
After Kurtyak's death in 1933, his seat was taken over by the editor A. Brody. In the 1935 Czechoslovak parliamentary election, the party contested in coalition with the Slovak National Party
. The bloc did not pass the threshold to win any seats in parliament. It received 44,982 votes.
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
in Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
, which fought for autonomy for Subcarpathia
Carpathian Ruthenia
Carpathian Ruthenia is a region in Eastern Europe, mostly located in western Ukraine's Zakarpattia Oblast , with smaller parts in easternmost Slovakia , Poland's Lemkovyna and Romanian Maramureş.It is...
. The party was founded as the Subcarpathian Agrarian Union . The party published Russkij vestnik. It was represented in the Czechoslovak parliament by Ivan Kurtyak.
The party was one of the more prominent Ruthenian
Ruthenians
The name Ruthenian |Rus']]) is a culturally loaded term and has different meanings according to the context in which it is used. Initially, it was the ethnonym used for the East Slavic peoples who lived in Rus'. Later it was used predominantly for Ukrainians...
parties in Czechoslovakia. The party gathered support from farmers, teachers and the pro-'Greater Russian' tendency amongst Greek Catholic clergy. The supporters of the party included many landowning farmers who had been supportive of Hungarian rule and pro-Hungarian intellectuals and priests. The party functioned as a vehicle for pro-Hungarian positions in the Czechoslovak political scene, receiving financial subsidies from Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
.
In the 1924 and 1925 elections, the party contested on its own. In 1924 (when voters in Subcarpathia were able to elect delegates to the Czechoslovak parliament for the first time) the party got 21,161 votes, whilst in the 1925 election the party received 28,799 votes. Ahead of the 1929 Czechoslovak parliamentary election it formed an electoral bloc, the Russian National Bloc, together with the National Democrats
National Democratic Party (Czechoslovakia)
The National Democratic Party was a First Republic right-wing political party in Czechoslovakia. It was founded by Karel Kramář in 1919, after the creation of independent Czechoslovakia from the Austria-Hungary Empire...
and two minor Ruthenian parties. The Russian National Bloc got 48,509 votes.
On November 26, 1930, Kurtyak presented a parliamentary motion for autonomy for Carpathian Ruthenia. The proposal gained support from the members of parliament of the German National Party
German National Party
The German Nationalist Party was a First Republic political party in Czechoslovakia, representing German population of Sudetenland. Its chairman and political face was Rudolf Lodgman von Auen....
, German National Socialist Workers Party
German National Socialist Workers' Party (Czechoslovakia)
The German National Socialist Workers' Party was a protofascist party of Germans in Czechoslovakia, successor of the German Workers' Party from Austria-Hungary. It was founded in November 1919 in Duchcov. Most important party activists were Hans Knirsch, Hans Krebs, Adam Fahrner, Rudolf Jung and...
and Hungarian parties.
After Kurtyak's death in 1933, his seat was taken over by the editor A. Brody. In the 1935 Czechoslovak parliamentary election, the party contested in coalition with the Slovak National Party
Slovak National Party (historical party)
The Slovak National Party was a Slovak conservative and nationalist political party in the Kingdom of Hungary and then in Czechoslovakia from 1871 to 1938...
. The bloc did not pass the threshold to win any seats in parliament. It received 44,982 votes.