Tibor Szamuely

Tibor Szamuely (December 27, 1890 – August 2, 1919) was a Hungarian politician and journalist who was Deputy People's Commissar of War and People's Commissar of Public Education during the Hungarian Soviet Republic.

Born in Nyíregyháza, a city in the Northeast of Hungary, Szamuely was the oldest son of five children of a Jewish family. After completing his university studies, he became a journalist. He started his political activities as a member of the Hungarian Social Democratic Party.

Szamuely was drafted and fought as a soldier during World War I; in 1915, he was captured by Russia. After the Russian October Revolution of 1917, he was released. By then Szamuely had become interested in communism. In Moscow he organised a communist group together with Béla Kun among the Hungarian prisoners of war. Many of them, including Szamuely and Kun, joined the Soviet Red Army and fought in the Russian Civil War. From January 1918 he resided in Moscow, were he worked with Béla Kun in organising Hungarian prisoners of war in support of the Russian Revolution. He was also a member of the Central Committee responsible for the management of war prisoners. On March 24, he was appointed political deputy of the Communist group of Hungarian war prisoners. Between April 14 and 18—during the sessions—he participated in the meeting of the deputies. From April 3, 1918, he published the communist newspaper titled Socialist Revolution with Béla Kun. Many Hungarian war prisoners refused to join the Russian Red Guard, despite his efforts. Several Hungarian officers were executed in the Soviet Union as a result. Szamuely later went to Germany and in December 1918 he participated in the formation of the German Communist Party with Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg. He returned to Budapest on January 3, 1919. and became a member of the Central Committee of the Hungarian Communist Party, and also joined the editing redaction of the Red Paper. On February 20 he went into exile, but continued his activities in the exiled Central Committee, such as participation in the organisation in the party's paramilitary.

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