A Jézus Mária huszárok (Egy szólás nyomában) = Jesus Maria hussars (Tracing an idiomatic phrase)

Gelencsér, József (2024) A Jézus Mária huszárok (Egy szólás nyomában) = Jesus Maria hussars (Tracing an idiomatic phrase). ACTA PAPENSIA, 24 (1-2). pp. 1-16. ISSN 1587-6292

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Abstract

One of the biggest breaches in the many-century-long partnership between Hungary and Croatia came in 1848–1849 when the two states conflicted. In the autumn of 1848, there was an attack against the constitutional order of the Hungarian Kingdom by lieutenant general Josip Jelačić. The Croatian cavalry was part of Jelacic’s army, which was mocked with several nicknames (e.g. Jelačić’s hussars, Jesus Maria hussars) by the Hungarian soldiers. Jelacic’s hussar regiment was not made up from professional soldiers therefore its fighting value was much lower than that of the Hungarian one. Their war material was out-of-date, and they had no military experience. Present folklore study looks at the phrase: Jesus Maria hussars from the point of view of its arising date, the circumstances of its origin and the method of its use. This phrase as a regular idiomatic expression originated from the time of the Hungarian War of Independence and as a phrase remained in use after 1849 as well. It was used approximately until World War 1. After a while it became a comic label for not only the Croatian hussars but also for any other unit wearing military uniform. The usage for such profane aims of the names of Jesus and Maria in this form lasted for a little bit longer than half a century.

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