DAMJANICH, JANOS (18041849)

This article appears in Volume V07, Page 789 of the Encyclopedia Britannica.

Encyclopedia Britannica - Main :: DAH-DEM

DAMJANICH, JANOS (18041849) , Hungarian soldier, was born at Stasa in the Banat. He entered the army as an officer in the 61st regiment of foot, and on the outbreak of the Hungarian war of independence was promoted to be a major in the third Honved regiment at Szeged. Although an orthodox Serb, he was from the first a devoted adherent of the Magyar liberals. He won his colonelcy by his ability and valour at the battles of Alibunar and Lagerdorf in 1848. At the beginning of 1849 he was appointed

commander

COMMANDER

of the 3rd army corps in the middle Theiss, and quickly gained the reputation of being the bravest man in the Magyar army, winning engagement after engagement by sheer dash and daring. At the beginning of

March

1849 he annihilated a brigade at Szoln6k, perhaps his greatest exploit. He was elected

deputy

DEPUTY (through the Fr. from a Late Lat. use of deputare, to cut off, allot; putare having the original sense of to trim, prune)

for Szolnok to the Hungarian diet, but declined the honour.

Damjanich

DAMJANICH, JANOS (1804–1849)

played a leading part in the general advance upon the Hungarian

capital

CAPITAL (i.e. capital stock or fund)
CAPITAL (Lat. caput, head)

under Gorgei. He was present at the engagements of

Hort

HORT, FENTON JOHN ANTHONY (1828–1892)

and Hatvan, converted the doubtful fight of Tapib-Bicsk into a victory, and fought with irresistible elan at the bloody battle of Isaszeg. At the ensuing

review

REVIEW (Fr. revue, from revoir, to see again, Lat. re and videre)

at Godollo, Kossuth expressed the sentiments of the whole nation when he doffed his hat as

Damjanich

DAMJANICH, JANOS (1804–1849)

's battalions passed by. Always a fiery democrat, Damjanich uncompromisingly supported the extremist views of Kossuth, and was appointed

commander

COMMANDER

of one of the three divisions which, under Gorgei, entered Vacz in April 1849. His fame reached its

culmination

CULMINATION (from Lat. culmen, summit)

when, on the 19th of April, he won the battle of Nagysarlo, which led to the relief of the hardly-pressed fortress of Komarom. At this juncture Damjanich broke his leg, an accident which prevented him from taking part in field operations at the most

critical

CRITICAL (in alphabetical order of authors)

period of the war, when the

Magyars

MAGYARS

had to abandon the

capital

CAPITAL (i.e. capital stock or fund)
CAPITAL (Lat. caput, head)

for the second time. He recovered sufficiently, however, to accept the post of commandant of the fortress of Arad. After the Vilagos catastrophe, Damjanich, on being summoned to surrender, declared he would give up the fortress to a single company of Cossacks, but would defend it to the last drop of his blood against the whole Austrian army. He accordingly surrendered to the Russian general Demitrius Buturlin (1790-1849), by whom he was handed over to the Austrians, who shot him in the market-place of Arad a few days later.
See Odon Hamvay, Life of Janos Damjanich (Hung.), (Budapest,
1904). (R. N. B.)

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