A leader of the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, Lajos Kossuth was never able to see his homeland independent from Austria. In 1832 he emerged as one of the leaders of the liberal opposition to Austrian rule. His principal goal was to establish a liberal, ultimately independent Hungarian nation. After a brief period as minister of finance in Hungary's first constitutional government, he took over full control of the revolution. While there were victories, Russian intervention in April 1849 led to Hungary's defeat. He spent the next decades attempting to stimulate international interest in efforts, to no avail. He died in exile in Italy.