The First World War Baize Fraud Case

Abstract

In the first year of the First World War, several cases of war transport abuse came to light in Hungary, which were of great social interest and caused extremely significant material and moral damage. One of the largest of these was the so-called baize fraud case. The special feature of these cases was that some of the defendants were military personnel, while others had civilian status. In Hungary, the practice has developed that both categories of persons are tried by military courts. This study aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the historical facts of the case, the legal context of the case, and the decisions of the courts of first and second instance.