Voorheesville man lived history

Growing up in Hungary, Andrew Barothy-Langer, 86, rubbed elbows with kings, princes, cardinals and dictators -- all before he turned 20.

He will add "saint's son" to his list of notable acquaintances after Pope John Paul II beatifies King Charles IV next week in Rome. He was introduced to the emperor's son, Royal Prince Otto Von Hapsburg, several times.

"We met once when we both attended a Boy Scout jamboree in Holland in 1937," said Mr. Barothy-Langer, a member of St. Matthew's parish in Voorheesville, "and then during World War II when the Prince visited soldiers at a hospital."

Emperor

Mr. Barothy-Langer, along with many of his countrymen and -women, loved the prince's father, King Charles IV of Austria-Hungary, who was forced to abdicate his throne in 1918. Hungarians knew him as Karl.

As emperor of Austria-Hungary, King Charles was credited with trying to stop the war from escalating, but his efforts were unsuccessful. Last year, the Vatican recognized a miracle credited to him.

"In 1937, when I met Prince Otto, Hungary was in alliance with Germany, and we had no monarch," Mr. Barothy-Langer recalled. "Our king was living on the island of Madeira, in Portugal."

Mr. Barothy-Langer comes from a long line of families that were political advisors to the Hungarian parliament and the Crown.

Into the army

As a youth, Mr. Barothy-Langer was forced to become a soldier in the occupying German army. He never met Hitler, but he saw him at the Jamboree in Holland, where he also was introduced to Queen Wilhelmina of Holland and Lord Baden-Powell, founder of the Boy Scouts.

"I served for six-and-a-half years. We had no choice. Every able-bodied man had to serve in the military. It was either that or be killed," he said. "People glorify war quite a bit. Actually, [being a soldier] is miserable. There is nothing like crouching in a foxhole with ammunition going off all around you and lice crawling all over your body to make you appreciate peace, your family and home.

"The war ended for me on April 26, 1945, in Ingolstadt, Germany. I stood on the banks of the Danube River, looking at all the tanks lined up on the riverbank. Germany was defeated. I took my gun out of my holster and threw it into the Danube. I then crossed the river and walked into a hospital."

Why Charles?

Asked why he thought King Charles is being beatified, Mr. Barothy-Langer replied, "He was a good man. We all loved him. Karl tried to stop [World War I].

"In the history of Europe, of all the countries that existed, Hungary and Poland were the only two that never raised arms against each other in all the thousands of years they have existed. The two countries were a brotherhood.

"Interestingly, the first king of Hungary was a saint, Stephen. The last king of Hungary will also be a saint. Maybe there is an answer there, somewhere. Now, I can pray to St. Charles of Hungary."

(After WWII, Andrew Barothy-Langer made his way to America, eventually drawing maps for the New York State Public Works Department in Albany. When its name was changed to the Department of Transportation, he was called upon to design a program to remap the entire state. Before he retired in 1980, he worked with the governor's office to design the layout of the Adirondack Northway.)

(9/30/04)