50 Forint National Revolution

Issued on the fiftieth anniversary of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, which began on October 23rd when Budapest students and workers rose against Soviet-backed rule and were crushed within two weeks by Red Army tanks. An estimated 2,500 Hungarians were killed, and roughly 200,000 fled the country before the border closed. The gold-plated copper-nickel composition — a departure from the silver-struck companion piece — placed a commemorative version within reach of general circulation buyers rather than collectors alone.