From the Hungarian Wikipedia page [1]
János Szabó (Zaguzsén, Romania, November 17, 1897 - Budapest, 19 January 1957) was the legendary commander of the Széna Square Resistance Group in Budapest, who was known as Uncle Szabo during the 1956 Revolution. He was executed during the reprisals following the Revolution.
His father was a teacher, but he died when János was three years old. His mother left the child, who was raised initially in shelters, and was taken by a family until he was 15 years old. He completed two civic schools in Timisoara and obtained his qualification at Géplakato.
"He was a humble little man," remembers Péter Gosztonyi, who met him on November 3, 1956, when Uncle Szabó searched for Pál Maléter in vain at the Kilián Barracks. According to Gosztonyi's memoirs, the art university students called Uncle Szabó "Bem's father of '56".
The resistance came on October 26th. Standing in the crowd, he watched as a truck loaded with guns arrived. The insurgents talked to the people there to help build. Uncle Szabo in his own story told himself he had taken some rifles and when he started watching one, someone told him. "Well, my brother, if you are in your hands, keep it and stay with us with that big mustache, let's get to know it." He blushed with the "young children" and after he saw the same thing he wanted, he decided to it really stays. Uncle Szabo was still very popular among the Pest boys fighting in the Széna Square, and partly because of that he had been through the rest of the commander-in-chief. (The Corvin was replaced by Corvin, and the leadership changed rapidly in other groups as well.)
László Eörsi, historian, describes Uncle Szabo as a hesitant, cautious leader who is inclined to seek compromise solutions instead of conflicts, but he was also able to firmly and firmly represent the interests of his people and the revolution.
According to Lieutenant-Colonel Lieutenant Colonel Kővágó Sándor, who came to the meeting the following night, on the 25th of October, he was led by an unidentified university student, who was definitely not refusing to give up arms until the Soviet withdrawal and the dissolution of the ÁVH.
The lieutenant colonel met with Uncle Szabo the next day as the leader of the group who was willing to negotiate not to shoot the Soviets and send home under the age of sixteen. Some of them actually went home, but most of them refused.
Even the same evening, Ferenc Deák, Major of the Revolutionary Alliance leaders, Emanuel Butkovszky and Dénes Kovács visited Széna square again, where they discussed again with the rebels, including Uncle Szabo, and Róbert Bán and Ekrem Kemal. The insurgents roared when the soldiers called on them to lay down their arms by seven o'clock in the morning in exchange for a free retreat.
The trial took place in a heated atmosphere - at one point, Dénes Kovács, who demanded to lay down his arms, was also held at gunpoint, and Major Deák was reportedly shot back with a machine gun when he tried to run away - and László Eörsi said Uncle Szabo was inclined to meet the demands of the soldiers (and his bid to insurgents older than 18 years old could remain in armed guards at the Klement Gottwald Factory) but ultimately stood by their firm rejectionists. Deak threatened to destroy the group with flame-retardant and chemical shielded armored personnel. The decision was made by Uncle Szabo that they would not send home, but the next morning the group did not undertake the unequal struggle against the attack of Hungarian soldiers and police with Soviet tankers. Uncle Szabo issued the command to leave the base because the tanks would shoot him as a scumbag, but the next day they would return (later after the negotiations, the rebels actually recovered).
Insurgents, especially industrial students who were displaced from their home, did not rest on the developments. During the armistice negotiations, Ekrem Kemal had the lead role. On 29 October the agreement was reached, the insurgents could patrol the armed forces.
Uncle Szabo then showed his "other" conflicting face. He had a serious dispute with Ekrem, who signed the agreement, for not demanding that the confiscated weapons be returned to the rebels. He accused Ekrem Kemal of joining the "Fire Extinguish!" Agreement with his avoidance. ("A rage was born, and he had the automatic rifle on me with the statement that he was more killing, but he did not allow himself to run", Kemrem Ekrem remembered.
Then he went into the Bem barracks that morning and threatened to force the soldiers to terminate the agreement. After the police were dissatisfied, new negotiations began with the news of the Battle of the Republic Square: Uncle Szabo hurriedly left the barracks with the messenger.
After the revolution[]
His wife hid him in the basement of the nursery of the Technical University, despite asking him to leave abroad, he wanted to stay. Szabó trusted that the ÁVH men who were sent home on his orders would be saved from the worst during the fighting. He was betrayed by the university janitor and arrested on November 19, 1956. Together with József Dudás, the delegation of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union]] Presidium designated the two of them as those to be brought before a court-martial immediately.
The special council of the Military College of the Supreme Court, chaired by the military judge Colonel Ferenc Lędzii, sentenced him to death on January 14, 1957, although during the proceedings it became clear that he treated the prisoners of the ÁVH and party functionaries humanely. None of the members of the clemency council meeting in four days spoke in favor of him. Since there was no possibility of an appeal, the sentence was executed the next day, January 19.
When his grave was exhumed in 1989, it was found that his bones were broken in 35 places. Presumably beaten to death.
János Szabó is one of the two well-known Hungarians who are referred to by his uncle's words as his family name, and he is also commonly known who he is. (The other "Uncle Öcsi" or "Puskás Öcsi" Ferenc Puskás.)