New beginnings in the state and socio-political transformation (1945–1948)
According to indexdotcom, based on this treaty, the social democrat Z. Fierlinger formed a coalition government of democratic socialists, communists and commoners on April 5, 1945 in Košice – in the hinterland of the advancing Soviet troops; v. a. the establishment of a welfare state and the nationalization of basic industries as well as banks and insurance companies. On May 4th, 1945 was Beneš President of the Renewed Republic. With the popular uprising in Prague against the German occupation (May 4th – 9th) and the relocation of the government to Prague (May 10th, 1945), the re-establishment of Czechoslovakia as a state was completed, but without the Carpathian-Ukraine Ukrainian SSR was affiliated (treaty of June 29, 1945). Since May 1945 there has been a rapid and sometimes brutal resettlement of the Sudeten Germans (including the »Brno death march«, the Aussig massacre, July 31, 1945), the Carpathian Germans and the Hungarians. Beneš was elected president in June 1946; Thanks to its control of the key ministries and the mass media, the CP rose to become the strongest political force (elections of May 26, 1946; 37.9% of the votes) and its chairman began on July 3, 1946 K. Gottwald the Prime Minister (at the head of a cabinet of the National Front). With the nationalization of the mines, the large industrial enterprises, the banks and insurance companies as well as the confiscation of the property of the expelled Sudeten Germans and the Czech and Slovak “collaborators” (after the presidential decrees; Beneš decrees), a conversion of the Society started. In terms of foreign policy, Czechoslovakia leaned against the USSR; in the summer of 1947, Stalin forcedthe rejection of the Marshall Plan aid. The plans of Beneš and Foreign Minister J. Masaryk The attempt to make Czechoslovakia a link between East and West had thus failed. Domestically, the Communist Party forced a reorganization of the government in February 1948 with strong pressure on the non-communist members of the government (sometimes accompanied by defamation campaigns) and took over power in accordance with the constitution (“February revolution”; February 25, 1948).
Revolution, democratization, federalization (1989 / 90–92)
With mass demonstrations, which were initially brutally dispersed by the police (end of October 1989; Prague and Brno), students and the people forced a dialogue between the government and opposition groups in November 1989 and demanded far-reaching changes in society (“soft” [“velvet” ] Revolution; climax: general strike on November 27th; peaceful revolution). The center of crystallization and mouthpiece of the democracy movement, which has since grown strongly, became the Citizens’ Forum (OF). The Slovak reform communist Marián Čalfa (* 1946) formed the non-communist-dominated coalition government of national understanding on December 10, 1989 as prime minister. The speaker of the citizens’ forum, Havel After the resignation of President Husák (December 10, 1989), he was elected as his successor on December 29 (re-elected in July 1990), Dubček was President of Parliament (until June 1992).
As early as November 29, 1989, the parliament deleted the CP’s claim to leadership from the constitution. On April 20, 1990, Czechoslovakia was renamed the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic (ČSFR) in order to emphasize the aspired equality of Czechs and Slovaks in a new federal state. After the first free elections to both chambers of the Federal Parliament on 8/9 6. In 1990 the victorious Citizens’ Forum and its Slovak partner organization »Public Against Violence« (VPN) formed a coalition government with the Slovak Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) from the Czech-Slovak electoral alliance Christian Democratic Union (KDU). The new government under Čalfa (VPN since 1990) initiated a new course; Domestic policy continued to focus on economic reforms (transition to a market economy), greater federalization and the development of local self-government. In the spring of 1991 the Citizens’ Forum and VPN split into different parties.
With the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact and Comecon (1991), Czechoslovakia has been involved in the activities of the Visegrád Group since February 1991 and consciously turned to the states of Western Europe. The German-Czechoslovak Neighborhood Treaty (February 27, 1992) replaced the German-Czechoslovakian Treaty of December 11, 1973 in a more comprehensive form. – Since 1990/91 nationalist-separatist efforts have increased significantly in the Slovak Republic. After the elections on 5./6. 6. In 1992 the new Prime Ministers, V. Klaus in the Czech Republic and V. Mečiar in the Slovak Republic, could not agree on the continuation of the Federation in its current form. After the proclamation of the independence of Slovakia (17. 7. 1992) resigned Havel returned on July 20, 1992 as President of the joint state of Czechs and Slovaks; The separation of the ČSFR on January 1st, 1993 was decided without a referendum.
Czechoslovak Legion
Czechoslovak Legion, term for military units that were formed during the First World War from volunteers, prisoners and defectors of Czech and Slovak ethnicity in the allied enemy states of Austria-Hungary. The formation of a Družína (“allegiance “)decided by the Russian Council of Ministers on August 24, 1914was only followed by the establishment of a Czechoslovak Legion in Russia after the February Revolution of 1917 by the provisional government. It reached a strength of no more than 40,000 to 50,000 men and played in the Russian civil war (Soviet Union, History) play an essential role. On December 16, 1917, the French government approved the formation of four Czech regiments (12,000 men), on April 21, 1918 the Italian government approved the capture of an initial 11,500, after the surrender of the Central Powers of around 70,000 men. The Czechoslovak Legions formed autonomous military units under Allied command. Politically they were subordinate to the Czechoslovak National Council. Their existence strengthened the position of Czechoslovakia at the Paris Peace Conferences. – The Czechoslovak Legion became the basis of the Czechoslovak Army.
Czechoslovak National Socialist Party
Czechoslovak National Socialist Party, Czech Československá národní strana socialistická [ t ʃ εsk ɔ sl ɔ vεnska ː na ː r ɔ dni ː s ɔ tsialistitska ː -], abbreviation CNSS [t ʃ e ː εnεs at yield], founded in 1897 by W. Klofač as the Czech National Socialist Party, political party that called for the dissolution of Austria-Hungary before 1918 and combined Czech national with socialist ideas. After the establishment of Czechoslovakia (1918), she was involved in all governments there until 1938 (E. Beneš; represented in the National Assembly with 28 seats in 1925, 32 in 1929, and 38 in 1935). Disbanded in 1938, it was reorganized after the re-establishment of Czechoslovakia (1945) and emerged from the 1946 elections as the second largest party. After 1949 it was brought into line with the KPČ as the Czechoslovak Socialist Party as part of the communist-directed National Front.
