Karolyi proclaiming the republic. The Frostflower Revolution, led by Mihaly Karolyi became victorious on October 30th 1918. It had its roots deeply set in the Hungarian past. World War I was seen by the rulers of the antiquated Habsburg Monarchy as a barricade against the revolutionary ideology that demanded changing Hungary from a semi-feudal state to a parliamentary democracy of the western type. Contrary to the expectations of the Hungarian leaders, the war accelerated the revolutionary process.