Alexej Cepicka
Encyclopedia
General Alexej Čepička was a Czechoslovak
communist politician.
, and at the age of 19 joined the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia
but was not very politically active. Later, he worked in advocacy. In 1942 he was imprisoned by Gestapo
and was held in Auschwitz
and Buchenwald
concentration camps until the end of World War II
.
, the leader of the communist party, who later became prime minister and President of Czechoslovakia.
As a candidate of the communist party, Čepička was voted into parliament in the 1946 elections. In 1947, he was named into the position of minister of interior trade (ministr vnitřního obchodu).
After the communist takeover of power in 1948, he became Minister of Justice. In this position he let the law system be dominated by the will of the communist party; a law prosecuting political opponents was approved and put into full force. In 1950, he was named head of state commission dealing with churches (Státní úřad pro věci církevní). His task in this position was to suppress any sign of resistance from religious organisations, especially from the Catholic Church.
, Čepička was ordered by Joseph Stalin
personally to prepare the Czechoslovak Army for incursion into Western Europe area http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB14/index.htm. The preparations included militarisation of the society, purges of those suspected of low loyalty to the new regime, salary raises of army officers, and growth in numbers of army personnel.
Čepička was selected as a scapegoat
for the cult of personality around Gottwald, dismissed from all functions in 1956 and put into low importance position as head of state patent office (1956-59). In 1959 he suffered a heart attack and was sent into comfortable retirement.
Continuing liberalisation of political life made him a symbol of the past wrongs and in 1963 Čepička was expelled from communist party for his role in the "deformations of the 50's".
Čepička spent the rest of his life in retirement, never entered politics again, and died forgotten.
. The book and its sequels became popular and were followed by a movie and TV series. Čepička is shown as a comical character, hopelessly trying to turn dumb army officers and bored conscripts into feared warriors, and this image of him as a clown undeservedly became a stereotype of Čepička among most Czechs.
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
communist politician.
Early years
Čepička was born into a poor family. He studied law in PraguePrague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, and at the age of 19 joined the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia
Communist Party of Czechoslovakia
The Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, in Czech and in Slovak: Komunistická strana Československa was a Communist and Marxist-Leninist political party in Czechoslovakia that existed between 1921 and 1992....
but was not very politically active. Later, he worked in advocacy. In 1942 he was imprisoned by Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
and was held in Auschwitz
Auschwitz concentration camp
Concentration camp Auschwitz was a network of Nazi concentration and extermination camps built and operated by the Third Reich in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany during World War II...
and Buchenwald
Buchenwald concentration camp
Buchenwald concentration camp was a German Nazi concentration camp established on the Ettersberg near Weimar, Germany, in July 1937, one of the first and the largest of the concentration camps on German soil.Camp prisoners from all over Europe and Russia—Jews, non-Jewish Poles and Slovenes,...
concentration camps until the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Political career
After his return to Kroměříž Čepička got involved in local administration, dealing brutally, quickly, and effectively with post war chaos. He married the daughter of Klement GottwaldKlement Gottwald
Klement Gottwald was a Czechoslovakian Communist politician, longtime leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia , prime minister and president of Czechoslovakia.-Early life:...
, the leader of the communist party, who later became prime minister and President of Czechoslovakia.
As a candidate of the communist party, Čepička was voted into parliament in the 1946 elections. In 1947, he was named into the position of minister of interior trade (ministr vnitřního obchodu).
After the communist takeover of power in 1948, he became Minister of Justice. In this position he let the law system be dominated by the will of the communist party; a law prosecuting political opponents was approved and put into full force. In 1950, he was named head of state commission dealing with churches (Státní úřad pro věci církevní). His task in this position was to suppress any sign of resistance from religious organisations, especially from the Catholic Church.
Minister of defense
During 1950-56, Čepička served as Minister of Defense. According to historian Karel KaplanKarel Kaplan
Karel Kaplan is a Czech historian, who specialized in the World War II and post World War II periods in Czechoslovakia. Kaplan is regarded as one of the most noted historians of Czech communism from 1945 to 1968...
, Čepička was ordered by Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
personally to prepare the Czechoslovak Army for incursion into Western Europe area http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB14/index.htm. The preparations included militarisation of the society, purges of those suspected of low loyalty to the new regime, salary raises of army officers, and growth in numbers of army personnel.
The Fall
After the death of Stalin and Gottwald in 1953 the prospect of immediate war lessened and Čepička's position became precarious. Leaders of communist party were afraid of his political ambitions and rumors of him being homosexual didn't help his popularity.Čepička was selected as a scapegoat
Scapegoat
Scapegoating is the practice of singling out any party for unmerited negative treatment or blame. Scapegoating may be conducted by individuals against individuals , individuals against groups , groups against individuals , and groups against groups Scapegoating is the practice of singling out any...
for the cult of personality around Gottwald, dismissed from all functions in 1956 and put into low importance position as head of state patent office (1956-59). In 1959 he suffered a heart attack and was sent into comfortable retirement.
Continuing liberalisation of political life made him a symbol of the past wrongs and in 1963 Čepička was expelled from communist party for his role in the "deformations of the 50's".
Čepička spent the rest of his life in retirement, never entered politics again, and died forgotten.
In fiction
Alexej Čepička is one of the characters in a satirical book written by Miroslav Švandrlík in 1969, published in 1990, after the fall of communist party from powerVelvet Revolution
The Velvet Revolution or Gentle Revolution was a non-violent revolution in Czechoslovakia that took place from November 17 – December 29, 1989...
. The book and its sequels became popular and were followed by a movie and TV series. Čepička is shown as a comical character, hopelessly trying to turn dumb army officers and bored conscripts into feared warriors, and this image of him as a clown undeservedly became a stereotype of Čepička among most Czechs.
Literature
- Karel KaplanKarel KaplanKarel Kaplan is a Czech historian, who specialized in the World War II and post World War II periods in Czechoslovakia. Kaplan is regarded as one of the most noted historians of Czech communism from 1945 to 1968...
, Dans les Archives du comité central: Trente ans de secrets du bloc soviétique, Paris: Michel, 1978, pp. 165-66; ISBN 22-26-0071-13 - Jiří Pernes, Jaroslav Pospíšil, Antonín Lukáš: Alexej Čepička - Šedá eminence rudého režimu (Alexej Čepička - the Grey Eminence of the Red regime), Prague, 2008, ISBN 978-80-7243-322-3.