Condition of decommissioned military barracks in Hungary

Abstract The reforming of the armed forces caused huge and continuous cuts to the manpower and to the finances. Which resulted of the decommission of numerous barracks throughout the country. The size and structure of these forces was not appropriate for the threats that the country faced, and country did not have the required resources to develop a new form for its armed forces. The aim of this article was to investigate opportunities in the case of decommissioned barracks, which point to the possibility of re-using abandoned buildings and sites and reducing the environmental damage that can still be found there. Due to changes in the economy and society of Hungary at the end of the 20th century, the number of barracks/garrisons and the structure of the Hungarian Defence Forces have changed substantially over the intervening years. Most of the garrisons in the countryside have been downsized by hasty decisions, leaving behind non-utilized and unsalvaged areas and in many cases a vast infrastructural heritage. Opportunities for the utilization of these abandoned facilities and the amelioration of environmental damage must be sought. Therefore, it was necessary to map and investigate the current conditions of these former garrisons. The author visited most of the closed barracks in all the counties of Hungary. The author also searched for information about Hungarian and Soviet barracks and examined the condition of decommissioned barracks at first only the possibility of their utilization was considered, later, an environmental point of view was added.