1918-2007 - Modern Czech History
Independent Czechoslovakia
28.10.1918 independent Czechoslovak Republic proclaimed, Tomás Garrigue MASARYK elected its first ever president (President Founder).
14.08.1920 Czechoslovak Republic signs so called "small agreement" on defence with Yugoslavia;
23.04.1921 Czechoslovak Republic signs so called "small agreement" on defence with Romania;
21.01.1924 Czechoslovak Republic signs the defence pact with France;
18.12.1935 MASARYK succeeded by Dr. Edvard BENES (President Creator);
16.05.1935 Czechoslovak Republic signs the defence pact with the USSR;
29.09.1938 Munich Conference - without Government of the Czechoslovakia being even invited the then Great Powers - Britain, France, Germany and Italy - decide that Czechoslovakia must cede its border regions to nazi Germany - president BENES resigns;
30.09.1938 border regions of Czechoslovakia annexed by majority to the Nazi German Third Reich, the minority taken also by Poland and fascist Hungary;
1938-45 Dr. Emil HÁCHA becomes president (President Supplicator);
15.03.1939 Nazi Germany invades the rest of what remained from Czechoslovakia and creates Protectorate Böhmen und Mähren - Slovakia proclaimed independent state under German protection with clerofascist leader Jozef TISO as head of puppet state;
World War II. erupts
01.09.1939 after acquiring most sophisticated military equipment of the Czechoslovak Army including modern aircraft and tank formations, Nazi Germany invades Poland;
28.10.1939 student protests against Nazi occupation - student Jan OPLETAL shot dead by police;
17.11.1939 student assembly during funeral of Jan OPLETAL lead to raid of dormitories by Nazi Secret Police, several students executed, hundreds sent to concentration camps - few survived - Czech universities closed indefinitely;
09.07.1940 Dr. BENES establishes the Czechoslovak Government in exile in London;
10.07.1940 Czech pilots take part in the "Battle of Britain" with great courage and honour;
04.04.1945 so called Kosice (the first liberated Czechoslovak City) governmental programme;
05.05.1945 Prague uprising against Nazi erupts - many Czechs killed in battles around the City;
09.05.1945 liberation of Prague by Red Army (the Czechoslovak Army Corps within) which, together with Romanian and Polish troops liberate most of the Czechoslovak territory from the North and East, while the US Army liberates part of the territory from the West (Pilsen);
Victory
01.11.1945 monetary reform;
Jun. 1945 land of traitors and collaborators with Nazi confiscated - nationalized;
Aug. 1945 property of traitors and collaborators with Nazi confiscated - nationalized;
Oct. 1945 all key and big industry, food industry, banks and joint stock insurance companies nationalized under 4 decrees;
1945 Ruthenia ceded to the USSR;
1945-46 in accordance with results of the Potsdam Conference and in full consent of Allies 3-4 mil. of Germans and Hungarians were deported under the so called BENES decrees, their properties being expropriated and nationalized;
Communist Party (CPCz) comes to power
May 1946 national general elections bring 40% victory to the Czechoslovak Communist Party - CPCz (1921) - its leader Klement GOTTWALD becomes the Prime Minister in power-sharing government - National Socialist Party (NSP) with 24% as second, Peoples Party (PP) with only 20% as third and Social Democratic Party (SDP) with only 15% the last to qualify;
25.02.1948 wave of mass protests and strikes ends in government crisis which leaves Communist Party with overall majority in the Government;
07.06.1948 president BENES resigns succeeded by GOTTWALD (President Stonecutter) - Stalinist-style rule imposed, complete with party purges;
1952 Communist Party leaders including its former Secretary-General Rudolf SLÁNSKÝ after being convicted of high treason and espionage at show trials are executed;
14.03.1953 GOTTWALD dies of pneumonia just days after Stalin's funeral;
1953-57 succeeded by trade union leader Antonín ZÁPOTOCKÝ as president and Antonín NOVOTNÝ as CPCz leader;
01.06.1953 secret monetary reform deprives masses of population of their property;
1957-68 NOVOTNÝ succeeds ZÁPOTOCKÝ after his death as president;
Victory of Socialism
11.07.1960 under the new Constitution Coutry becomes Czechoslovak Socialist Republic;
1963 SLÁNSKÝ and other victims of Stalinist purges are rehabilitated;
Prague Spring
Jan. 1968 Alexander DUBCEK succeeds NOVOTNÝ as CPCz leader - new Constitution provides for federal system of the Czech and Slovak Republics - programme of democratisation and liberalisation reforms within the Party is named "Socialism with human face";
20.08.1968 invasion of Soviet-let Warsaw Pact armies - DUBCEK and other Party leaders taken to Moscow and forced to make concessions before released and returning to Prague to make an emotional plea for cooperation in ending the reforms;
16.01.1969 student Jan PALACH burns himself to death in protest at occupation by Soviet army;
Apr. 1969 Dr. Gustáv HUSÁK (formerly convicted Slovak nationalist later rehabilitated) becomes Soviet puppet CPCz leader;
1968-75 WW II. hero, the Army General Ludvík SVOBODA becomes president;
1975 HUSÁK becomes president;
1977 a dissident group including playwright Václav HAVEL publish "Charter 77" calling for restoration of civil and political rights;
1987 Milos JAKES replaces HUSÁK as CPCz leader;
Velvet Revolution
1989 police disperse numerous protests against human and civil rights violations;
17.11.1989 peaceful mass protest crushed by police - a broad antigovernment body CIVIC FORUM created;
Nov. 1989 CPCz leadership resigns - the Federal Assembly abolishes the constitutionally based "leading role of the CPCz" in the society.
29.12.1989 Marián CALFA (Slovak lawyer and CPCz Member) becomes Prime Minister in a government where the majority of members are non-Communists - HUSÁK resigns, DUBCEK elected Chairman of the Federal Assmbly, Václav HAVEL elected president;
05.07.1990 country renamed CZECH AND SLOVAK FEDERAL REPUBLIC (CSFR) - first democratic elections since 1946 lead to establishment of a coalition government involving all major parties with the exception of the CPCz - HAVEL re-elected president;
Feb. 1991 CIVIC FORUM disbanded -G its members form two new parties - CIVIC DEMOCRATIC PARTY - CDP (conservative) and the CIVIC MOVEMENT - CM (liberal) - legalisation allowing privatisation of state-owned enterprises adopted.;
Jun. 1991 complete withdrawal of the Soviet army units from the state territory of the CSFR;
Velvet divorce
06.06.1992 election results see Czech voters backing the centre right while their Slovak counterparts support left wing parties including Slovak separatists - Vladimír MECIAR who becomes Slovak Prime Minister strongly opposes rapid privatisation of the public sector as presented by the Czech Prime Minister Václav KLAUS - negotiations end in a deadlock - the two - despite the objections of president HAVEL and general public - no referendum is called;
20.07.1992 after Slovak separatist parties block his re-election - president HAVEL resigns;
Nov. 1992 Federal Assembly adopts legislation enabling the federation to disband;
Creation of the new Czech Republic
01.01.1993 new independent Czech Republic proclaimed, Václav KLAUS (CDP) carries on as Prime Minister with the privatisation of the public sector;
17.01.1996 CZECH REPUBLIC filled in its official request to join the EUROPEAN UNION;
26.01.1993 Václav HAVEL elected president;
01.06.1996 general elections, Prof. KLAUS reappointed as Prime Minister in a minority coalition government;
Nov. 1997 government resigns following collapse of coalition amid mounting disquiet over the economic reform programme and allegations of financial corruption - caretaker administration led by Josef TOSOVSKÝ takes over;
20.01.1998 HAVEL re-elected president for further five years (in the 2 nd round of vote);
20.06.1998 general elections, Milos ZEMAN, leader of the CZECH SOCIAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY (CSDP) becomes Prime Minister - negotiations with the CDP lead to the " opposition agreement" which ensures a full term for government;
NATO membership
12.03.1999 Czech Republic becomes full member of NATO;
Jan. 2000 CDP renews agreement to support minority CSDP government;
Oct. 2000 first reactor of Temelín nuclear power plant causes outcry in neighbouring AUSTRIA which threatens to block Czech EU membership;
Jan. 2001 the biggest street protests since the fall of communism and a strike by journalists leads to the resignation of the Director-General of the state TV;
Apr. 2001 Vladimír SPIDLA elected Chairman of ruling CSDP;
Nov. 2001 Czech government and Austria's Chancellor SCHLUESSEL move to settle Temelín dispute by agreeing tough measures to improve safety and monitor impact on environment;
Apr. 2002 Parliament votes unanimously to reject calls by some neighbouring countries for the repeal of the post-war BENES decrees which led to the expulsions of over 2 and half million ethnic Germans from the then CZECHOSLOVAKIA;
Jun. 2002 CSDP led by SPIDLA tops the poll in elections but wins only 70 seats in 200 seat parliament - coalition government with centrist alliance of CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATIC PARTY - CZECHOSLOVAK PEOPLES PARTY (CDP-CPP) and FREEDOM UNION (FU) COMMUNIST PARTY OF CZECH LAND AND MORAVIA (CPCM) come third with 41 seats scoring by far the best result since the Velvet Revolution;
Aug. 2002 Prague suffers the worst flooding in 200 years as torrential rain batters central Europe - the City's historic Old Town is spared - but other towns and villages are also devastated;
EU membership
Dec. 2002 EU summit in Copenhagen formally invites the Czech Republic to join;
28.02.2003 Prof. Václav KLAUS, former Prime Minister, elected president (in the 2 nd vote);
14.06.2003 Czechs vote at referendum in favour of going ahead with EU membership in 2004.
01.05.2004 CZECH REPUBLIC joins EUROPEAN UNION as one of 10 new member Countries;
26.07.2004 Stanislav GROSS appointed Prime Minister as SPIDLA resigns;
24.08.2004 new coalition government involving the same parties formed and approved by Parliament;
24.09.2005 GROSS amid allegation about his financial affairs resigns - replaced by Jirí PAROUBEK;
Political deadlock
02.06.2006 general elections result in a hung parliament;
16.08.2006 president KLAUS appoints CDP leader Mirek TOPOLÁNEK Prime Minster;
03.10.2006 the new centre-right government loses confidence vote in the Parliament
08.11.2006 president KLAUS appoints TOPOLÁNEK as Prime Minister for second time - talks begin to forma a "grand coalition";
19.01.2007 after "no-show" of 2 CSDP deputies during the confidence vote in the Parliament the centre-right coalition government of CDP, CDP-CPP and the GREEN PARTY (GP) wins confidence vote by a narrow margin;
January 2007
