"Under Uncle Sam's Flag" - The Hungarian American Experience in World War I

Type of Abstract (select): Paper presentation

Abstract (max. 250 words):
After the United States declared war on Austria-Hungary on December 7, 1917, Hungarian immigrants were categorized as ‘enemy aliens’ under the Selective Service Act. However, roughly 3.000 of Hungarian Americans ended up serving in the American Military. The presentation will explore the way Hungarian immigrant soldiers experienced World War One. In the most part, the presentation will focus on some important figures of Hungarian-American soldiers who made significant contributions to the American war efforts, including Sergeant Alexander Arch, who fired the first American shot, and Captain Bernath Weiss, who participated in the official negotiations with the leader of the Soviet Republic of Hungary, Béla Kun. Also, the presentation will look into some of the details of the life of Hungarian-American communities during the war. The research is based on two main source groups: primary source records from American archives, and contemporary, predominantly Hungarian-American newspaper articles. Additionally, relevant works of secondary literature will be explored and utilized.


Brief Professional Bio (max. 100 words):
László AMBRUS, PhD, is a historian and senior lecturer at the Institute of History, Eszterházy Károly Catholic University, Eger, Hungary. He holds a history teacher’s degree (MA), and a PhD in Modern World History. His research is focused on the social history of Hungarian-American communities during World War One, as well as on Hungarian soldiers who served in the US Army in the World War.