Varga, Bálint The Monumental Nation: Magyar Nationalism and Symbolic Politics in Fin-de-siècle Hungary (review)

Bálint Varga's 'The Monumental Nation' reveals how late 19th-century Hungarian nationalism sought to assert Magyar dominance through monumental statues across the kingdom, symbolizing the Árpád conquest and state doctrine. The study highlights the multi-ethnic tensions in Habsburg Hungary, where monuments like those at Pannonhalma Benedictine Abbey and Munkács Castle were strategically placed to reinforce nationalist narratives while facing competing local interpretations. Varga's analysis, based on multilingual sources, demonstrates that national integration efforts were most effective in monoglot Hungarian regions, offering a nuanced view of symbolic politics during the fin-de-siècle period.

Beneš, J. S. (2017). Varga, Bálint The Monumental Nation: Magyar Nationalism and Symbolic Politics in Fin-de-siècle Hungary (review). Slavonic and East European Review, 95(3), 571–572. https://doi.org/10.1353/see.2017.0054