Josef Korbel
Encyclopedia
Josef Korbel was a Czechoslovakia
n diplomat
and U.S.
educator, who is now best known as the father of Bill Clinton's
Secretary of State
, Madeleine Albright
, and the mentor of George W. Bush's
Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice
.
Though he served as a diplomat in the government of Czechoslovakia
, Korbel's Jewish heritage forced him to flee after the Nazi
invasion in 1939. Prior to their flight, Körbel and his wife had converted
from Judaism
to Roman Catholicism. He served as an advisor to Edvard Beneš
, the exiled Czech president in London
, until the Nazis were defeated. He then returned to Czechoslovakia, receiving a luxurious Prague
apartment previously owned by Karl Nebrich, a Bohemian German
industrialist expropriated and expelled
under the Beneš decrees
. Korbel was asked by Beneš to serve as the country's ambassador to Yugoslavia
, but was forced to flee again during the Communist coup in 1948.
After learning that he had been tried and sentenced to death in absentia
, Korbel was granted political asylum in the United States
in 1949. He was hired to teach international politics at the University of Denver
, and became the founding Dean of the Graduate School of International Studies.
One of his students was Condoleezza Rice
, the first woman appointed National Security Advisor (January 20, 2001) and the first African-American woman appointed Secretary of State
(January 26, 2005). His daughter, Madeleine Albright
, became the first female Secretary of State
, on January 23, 1997 (Rice was the second).
After his death, the University of Denver established the Josef Korbel Humanitarian Award in 2000. Since then, 28 people have received the Josef Korbel Humanitarian Award.
The Graduate School of International Studies at the University of Denver
was named the Josef Korbel School of International Studies
on May 28, 2008.
, Nebrich and his family were expelled from the country under the postwar Beneš decrees
, and left behind artwork and furniture in an apartment subsequently given to Korbel's family, before they also were forced to flee the country.
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...
n diplomat
Diplomat
A diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...
and U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
educator, who is now best known as the father of Bill Clinton's
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
Secretary of State
United States Secretary of State
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
, Madeleine Albright
Madeleine Albright
Madeleine Korbelová Albright is the first woman to become a United States Secretary of State. She was appointed by U.S. President Bill Clinton on December 5, 1996, and was unanimously confirmed by a U.S. Senate vote of 99–0...
, and the mentor of George W. Bush's
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice is an American political scientist and diplomat. She served as the 66th United States Secretary of State, and was the second person to hold that office in the administration of President George W. Bush...
.
Though he served as a diplomat in the government of Czechoslovakia
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...
, Korbel's Jewish heritage forced him to flee after the Nazi
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
invasion in 1939. Prior to their flight, Körbel and his wife had converted
Religious conversion
Religious conversion is the adoption of a new religion that differs from the convert's previous religion. Changing from one denomination to another within the same religion is usually described as reaffiliation rather than conversion.People convert to a different religion for various reasons,...
from Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
to Roman Catholicism. He served as an advisor to Edvard Beneš
Edvard Beneš
Edvard Beneš was a leader of the Czechoslovak independence movement, Minister of Foreign Affairs and the second President of Czechoslovakia. He was known to be a skilled diplomat.- Youth :...
, the exiled Czech president in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, until the Nazis were defeated. He then returned to Czechoslovakia, receiving a luxurious Prague
Prague
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...
apartment previously owned by Karl Nebrich, a Bohemian German
Germans in Czechoslovakia (1918-1938)
From 1918 to 1938, after the breakup of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, more than 3 million ethnic Germans were living in what became the Czech lands of the newly created state of Czechoslovakia. Ethnic Germans had lived in Bohemia, a part of the Holy Roman Empire, since the 14th century , mostly in...
industrialist expropriated and expelled
Expulsion of Germans from Czechoslovakia
The expulsion of Germans from Czechoslovakia after World War II was part of a series of evacuations and expulsions of Germans from Central and Eastern Europe during and after World War II....
under the Beneš decrees
Beneš decrees
Decrees of the President of the Republic , more commonly known as the Beneš decrees, were a series of laws that were drafted by the Czechoslovak Government-in-Exile in the absence of the Czechoslovak parliament during the German occupation of Czechoslovakia in World War II and issued by President...
. Korbel was asked by Beneš to serve as the country's ambassador to Yugoslavia
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
, but was forced to flee again during the Communist coup in 1948.
After learning that he had been tried and sentenced to death in absentia
In absentia
In absentia is Latin for "in the absence". In legal use, it usually means a trial at which the defendant is not physically present. The phrase is not ordinarily a mere observation, but suggests recognition of violation to a defendant's right to be present in court proceedings in a criminal trial.In...
, Korbel was granted political asylum in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1949. He was hired to teach international politics at the University of Denver
University of Denver
The University of Denver is currently ranked 82nd among all public and private "National Universities" by U.S. News & World Report in the 2012 rankings....
, and became the founding Dean of the Graduate School of International Studies.
One of his students was Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice is an American political scientist and diplomat. She served as the 66th United States Secretary of State, and was the second person to hold that office in the administration of President George W. Bush...
, the first woman appointed National Security Advisor (January 20, 2001) and the first African-American woman appointed Secretary of State
United States Secretary of State
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
(January 26, 2005). His daughter, Madeleine Albright
Madeleine Albright
Madeleine Korbelová Albright is the first woman to become a United States Secretary of State. She was appointed by U.S. President Bill Clinton on December 5, 1996, and was unanimously confirmed by a U.S. Senate vote of 99–0...
, became the first female Secretary of State
United States Secretary of State
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
, on January 23, 1997 (Rice was the second).
After his death, the University of Denver established the Josef Korbel Humanitarian Award in 2000. Since then, 28 people have received the Josef Korbel Humanitarian Award.
The Graduate School of International Studies at the University of Denver
University of Denver
The University of Denver is currently ranked 82nd among all public and private "National Universities" by U.S. News & World Report in the 2012 rankings....
was named the Josef Korbel School of International Studies
Josef Korbel School of International Studies
The Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver is a professional school in international affairs offering undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral opportunities. It is a full member of the Association of Professional Schools of International Affairs , a grouping of...
on May 28, 2008.
Artwork ownership controversy
Philipp Harmer, an Austrian man, filed a lawsuit claiming that Josef Korbel's family is in inappropriate possession of artwork belonging to his great-grandfather, a German industrialist named Karl Nebrich. Like most other ethnic Germans living in CzechoslovakiaGermans in Czechoslovakia (1918-1938)
From 1918 to 1938, after the breakup of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, more than 3 million ethnic Germans were living in what became the Czech lands of the newly created state of Czechoslovakia. Ethnic Germans had lived in Bohemia, a part of the Holy Roman Empire, since the 14th century , mostly in...
, Nebrich and his family were expelled from the country under the postwar Beneš decrees
Beneš decrees
Decrees of the President of the Republic , more commonly known as the Beneš decrees, were a series of laws that were drafted by the Czechoslovak Government-in-Exile in the absence of the Czechoslovak parliament during the German occupation of Czechoslovakia in World War II and issued by President...
, and left behind artwork and furniture in an apartment subsequently given to Korbel's family, before they also were forced to flee the country.
External links
- Reprint: Josef Korbel's Enduring Foreign Policy Legacy, Michael Dobbs, Washington Post December 28, 2000