Betraying the Allies? Italy, Hungary and the Béla Kun Intrigue

This chapter addresses the opportunities and dangers of the international scenario for Italy in the face of the rise of the Hungarian ‘Red Republic’ in 1919. Based on a wide range of sources from the archives of the Italian Foreign Ministry and the Carabinieri, this work argues that Rome sought to redefine its possible area of influence in the changed system of international relations, promoting a realpolitik which did not differ greatly from the Allies’ decision to establish relationships with the Bolshevik Republic of Russia. However, Rome’s attitude towards Hungary seemed to betray the Allies for several reasons, the most important of which was the prejudice deriving from Italy’s belated entry into the Great War, which continued to affect the perceptions of Italy’s Entente partners.