Gyor-Moson-Sopron

Győr-Moson-Sopron exists because Sopron chose to exist in Hungary. The Treaty of Trianon in 1920 awarded the western districts of Moson and Sopron counties to Austria, creating the northern half of Burgenland province. The logic was linguistic—these were German-speaking territories—but it enraged Hungarians who watched their former imperial partner Austria receive Hungarian land as compensation for losing a war Austria had started. In August 1921, Hungarian irregulars launched the West Hungarian Uprising and proclaimed the autonomous state of Lajtabánság. Negotiations in Venice produced a compromise: Sopron and eight surrounding municipalities would hold a referendum. On December 14, 1921, 65% of voters chose Hungary over Austria. The city received the title "Civitas Fidelissima" (Most Loyal Town)—the only amendment to the Treaty of Trianon achieved through popular vote. December 14 became Loyalty Day in Hungarian commemoration.

The 1950 communist administrative reform merged what remained of Győr, Moson, and Sopron counties into Győr-Sopron county (renamed Győr-Moson-Sopron in 1990 to acknowledge all three fragments). The hyphenated name admits territorial surgery—these were three counties that had their western portions amputated to Austria, stitched together from the remnants that stayed Hungarian. The county stretches along the Austrian and Slovak borders, from the Danube to the foothills of the Alps, containing both Győr (the industrial powerhouse) and Sopron (the loyal border town). Geography made it Hungary's westernmost county, closest to Vienna, most integrated with Austrian economic networks despite—or because of—the 1921 rupture.

That proximity proved decisive after 1989. When the Iron Curtain fell, Győr-Moson-Sopron was the first Hungarian county Western manufacturers could reach by truck from Munich and Vienna. Audi Hungaria opened in Győr in 1993, initially assembling vehicles, then expanding to engine production. By 2024, the Győr plant employed 11,930 people and produced 1,580,991 powertrains—making it Europe's largest engine manufacturing facility. The plant supplies Audi, Skoda, Seat, and VW factories across the continent. Audi has invested €12.9 billion in the site since 1993, the largest single investment in Hungarian automotive history. In 2024, the plant produced 151,899 electric axle drives, pivoting from combustion to electrification as the industry transforms. The next generation of small electric cars for VW Group (MEBeco drives) will be built here starting 2025.

In 2025, Győr-Moson-Sopron demonstrates what border position plus industrial policy can achieve. The county's population stands at 465,000, growing slightly—one of the few Hungarian counties not depopulating. Győr is Hungary's third-richest city by GDP per capita. Sopron attracts Austrian tourists who cross the border for cheaper dental work, wine, and thermal baths. The unemployment rate sits below 2%. Young engineers graduate from Széchenyi István University in Győr directly into Audi's engineering departments. The county that Trianon tried to split between Austria and Hungary now serves both: building German cars with Hungarian labor, serving Austrian consumers with Hungarian services, inhabiting the border zone as competitive advantage rather than peripheral disadvantage.

By 2026, the county confronts the question of what loyalty means in an integrated Europe. Sopron voted to stay Hungarian in 1921 when borders were barriers. Now Austrians shop in Sopron without passports, and Győr builds engines for Ingolstadt's specifications. The county's success derives from geographic proximity to markets that Trianon tried to separate. Loyalty in 1921 meant choosing Hungary over Austria. Loyalty in 2026 means building components that make German automotive engineering function. The border remains, but its meaning inverted: once a barrier to cross, now a gradient to exploit. Győr-Moson-Sopron exists in the profitable overlap between Hungarian wages and German quality standards, between Central European location and Western European markets. The most loyal town stayed Hungarian, and Germany rewarded that loyalty with Europe's largest engine plant.