History

In 1945, Hungary finished WWII on the losing side. Backed by the Soviet Red Army, communist politicians grabbed the power to implement the Soviet-type totalitarian dictatorship. In the following decades, thousands of public statues got inaugurated countrywide praising the communist ideal and its delegates: the oppressing Soviets and the collaborative leaders. 

The Eastern European dictatorships collapsed by 1989-90. Due to this political turn, also Budapest put the case and future fate of the public artworks with a communistic character on the agenda. 

Some people insisted on the most radical solution: the immediate destruction and meltdown of the statues. The Municipality of Budapest rejected this idea and, with consent, ordered the establishment of a theme statue park.

Finally, Ákos Eleőd architect introduced his abstracted architectural plan. The constructions of the award-winning ‘One Sentence About Tyranny’ Statue Park concept had begun. The opening ceremony took place on the 27th June 1993, two years after the last soldier of the oppressing Soviet Red Army left Hungary.

The fate of the countryside propaganda statues of this kind has also been resolved. The majority of the artworks stand today in local collections, above soviet soldiers’ graves, or in storages.

Since its opening, Memento Park has been a unique cultural and tourist attraction, a popular destination for local and foreign visitors, integrated into the array of other museums and sites in Budapest.