Second Czechoslovak Republic
Encyclopedia
The Second Czechoslovak Republic (Československá republika) refers to the second Czechoslovak state that existed from October 1, 1938 to March 14, 1939, thus existing for only 167 days. It was composed of Bohemia
, Moravia
, Silesia
, and the autonomous regions of Slovakia
and Subcarpathian Ruthenia.
The Second Republic was the result of the events following the Munich Agreement
, where Czechoslovakia was forced to cede the German-populated Sudetenland
region to Germany on October 1, 1938, as well as southern parts of Slovakia
and Subcarpathian Ruthenia to Hungary
.
The Second Czechoslovak Republic was destroyed when Germany invaded it on March 15, 1939, and annexed the Czech region into the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
.
with the surrounding area (some 906 km², some 250,000 inhabitants, mostly Poles) and two minor border areas in northern Slovakia, more precisely in the regions Spiš and Orava. (226 km², 4,280 inhabitants, only 0.3% Poles). Moreover, the Czechoslovak government had problems in taking care of the 115,000 Czech and 30,000 German refugees, who had fled to the remaining rump of Czechoslovakia.
The political system of the country was also in chaos. Following the resignation of Edvard Beneš
on October 5, General Jan Syrový
had acted as President until Emil Hácha
was chosen as President on November 30, 1938. Hácha was chosen because of his Catholicism and conservatism and because of not being involved in any government that led to the partition of the country. He appointed Rudolf Beran
, the leader of the Agrarian Party since 1933, as prime minister on December 1, 1938. He was, unlike most Agrarians, rather rightist, and sceptical of liberalism and democracy. The Communist Party was dissolved, although its members were allowed to remain in Parliament. Tough censorship was introduced, and an Enabling Act was also introduced, which allowed the government to rule without parliament.
The Czechoslovak government accepted the Žilina Agreement stipulating the formation of an autonomous Slovak government with all Slovak parties except the Social Democrat on October 6, 1938. Jozef Tiso
was nominated as its head. The only common ministries that remained were those of National Defence, Foreign Affairs and Finances.
Similarly, the two major factions in Subcarpathian Ruthenia, the Russophiles
and Ukrainophiles, agreed on the establishment of an autonomous government, which was constituted on October 8, 1938. Reflecting the spread of modern Ukrainian national consciousness, the pro-Ukrainian faction, led by Avhustyn Voloshyn
, gained control of the local government and Subcarpathian Ruthenia was renamed Carpatho-Ukraine
.
On October 17, Ferdinand Ďurčanský
, Franz Karmasin and Alexander Mach
were received by Adolf Hitler
. On January 1, 1939 the Slovak State Assembly was opened. On January 18 the first elections of the Slovak Assembly took place, where the Slovak People's Party
received 98% of the votes. On February 12, Vojtech Tuka
and Karmazin met with Adolf Hitler
, and on February 22 Tiso proposed the formation of an autonomous Slovak state during his presentation of the Slovak Government to the assembly. On February 27 the Slovak government asked the central government for the Slovakisation of the Czecho-Slovak army units stationed in Slovakia and for Slovak ambassadors and consuls to be named as representatives of the autonomous Slovak state.
Disputes continued, and on March 1, 1939 the Ministerial Committee of the Czecho-Slovak government met, where the question of Slovak departure from the state was in focus. There were some disagreement between Tiso and other Slovak politicians, and Karol Sidor
(who had represented the Slovak government in the meeting) returned to Bratislava
to discuss the matter with Tiso. and on March 6 the Slovak government proclaimed its loyalty to the Czecho-Slovak Republic and its wish to remain a part of the state.
However, in a meeting with Hermann Göring
on March 7, Ďurčanský and Tuka were pressed to declare their autonomy from the Czecho-Slovak state. After their return two days later, the Hlinka Guard
was mobilised, which in turn forced the Czecho-Slovak President, Emil Hácha
, to react strongly and declared martial law in Slovakia.
and Moravia
for the morning of March 15. In the interim, he negotiated with the Slovak People's Party and with the Kingdom of Hungary
and its representatives for the Hungarian minority in Slovakia to prepare the dismemberment of the Second Czechoslovak Republic before the invasion. On March 13, he invited Monsignore Jozef Tiso
to Berlin, where he offered Tiso the option of proclaiming the Slovak state and seceding from Czecho-Slovakia. In such a case, Germany would be Slovakia's protector and would not allow the Hungarians to press on Slovakia any additional territorial demands. In case the Slovaks would not accept, Germany would occupy Bohemia
and Moravia
and leave Slovakia to the mercies of the Hungarians and the Poles (Poland had claimed the Slovak Spiš
territory since the Polish-Czechoslovak War). Tiso thus returned to Bratislava, and on March 14, the Slovak Diet (autonomous parliament) convened and unanimously declared the independence of Slovakia, forming the First Slovak Republic. Carpatho-Ukraine also declared independence but Hungarian troops occupied it on March 15 and southern, mostly ethnic Hungarian-populated, Slovakia on March 23.
Meanwhile, Czechoslovak president Emil Hácha
was summoned to a meeting with Adolf Hitler
and Hermann Göring
during the early hours of March 15, and informed Hácha of the imminent German invasion plan. Here Hácha was threatened with aerial bombardment of Prague unless he signed a document accepting the capitulation of the Czechoslovak Army and the foundation of a Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
under the protection and supremacy of the German Empire
. After several strokes, he was forced to sign the document even though he did not consult the parliament beforehand.
On the morning of March 15, German troops entered Bohemia and Moravia, meeting no resistance. The Hungarian invasion of Carpatho-Ukraine did encounter resistance but the Hungarian army quickly crushed it. On March 16, Hitler went to Czechoslovakia and from Prague Castle
proclaimed Bohemia and Moravia as the new Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
.
Thus, independent Czechoslovakia collapsed in the wake of foreign aggression, ethnic divisions and internal tensions. Subsequently, interwar Czechoslovakia has been idealized by its proponents as the only bastion of democracy surrounded by authoritarian and fascist regimes. It has also been condemned by its detractors as an artificial, Czech-dominated
and unworkable creation of intellectuals supported by the great victorious powers of the First World War, notable France
and the British Empire
. Interwar Czechoslovakia comprised lands and peoples that were far from being integrated into a modern nation-state. Moreover, the dominant Czechs, who had suffered political discrimination under the Habsburgs, were not able to cope with the demands of other nationalities. In fairness to the Czechs, it should be acknowledged that some of the minority demands and perceived persecution of ethnic Germans served as mere pretexts to justify intervention by Nazi Germany. Considering that Czechoslovakia was able to maintain a viable economy and a democratic political system under such circumstances was indeed a remarkable achievement during the interwar period.
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
, Moravia
Moravia
Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...
, Silesia
Czech Silesia
Czech Silesia is an unofficial name of one of the three Czech lands and a section of the Silesian historical region. It is located in the north-east of the Czech Republic, predominantly in the Moravian-Silesian Region, with a section in the northern Olomouc Region...
, and the autonomous regions of Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
and Subcarpathian Ruthenia.
The Second Republic was the result of the events following the Munich Agreement
Munich Agreement
The Munich Pact was an agreement permitting the Nazi German annexation of Czechoslovakia's Sudetenland. The Sudetenland were areas along Czech borders, mainly inhabited by ethnic Germans. The agreement was negotiated at a conference held in Munich, Germany, among the major powers of Europe without...
, where Czechoslovakia was forced to cede the German-populated Sudetenland
Sudetenland
Sudetenland is the German name used in English in the first half of the 20th century for the northern, southwest and western regions of Czechoslovakia inhabited mostly by ethnic Germans, specifically the border areas of Bohemia, Moravia, and those parts of Silesia being within Czechoslovakia.The...
region to Germany on October 1, 1938, as well as southern parts of Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
and Subcarpathian Ruthenia to Hungary
Kingdom of Hungary (1920–1946)
The Kingdom of Hungary also known as the Regency, existed from 1920 to 1946 and was a de facto country under Regent Miklós Horthy. Horthy officially represented the abdicated Hungarian monarchy of Charles IV, Apostolic King of Hungary...
.
The Second Czechoslovak Republic was destroyed when Germany invaded it on March 15, 1939, and annexed the Czech region into the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
The Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia was the majority ethnic-Czech protectorate which Nazi Germany established in the central parts of Bohemia, Moravia and Czech Silesia in what is today the Czech Republic...
.
History
The Czechoslovak Republic had become a shell of its former self and was now a greatly weakened state. The Munich Agreement had resulted in Bohemia and Moravia losing about 38% of their combined area to Germany, with some 3.2 million German and 750,000 Czech inhabitants. Lacking its natural frontier and having lost its costly system of border fortification, the new state was militarily indefensible. Hungary received 11,882 square kilometres in southern Slovakia and southern Ruthenia; according to a 1941 census, about 86.5% of the population in this territory was Hungarian. Poland acquired the town of TěšínCeský Tešín
Český Těšín is a town in the Karviná District, Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. The town is commonly known in the region as just Těšín . It lies on the west bank of the Olza River, in the heart of the historical region of Cieszyn Silesia...
with the surrounding area (some 906 km², some 250,000 inhabitants, mostly Poles) and two minor border areas in northern Slovakia, more precisely in the regions Spiš and Orava. (226 km², 4,280 inhabitants, only 0.3% Poles). Moreover, the Czechoslovak government had problems in taking care of the 115,000 Czech and 30,000 German refugees, who had fled to the remaining rump of Czechoslovakia.
The political system of the country was also in chaos. Following the resignation of 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 :...
on October 5, General Jan Syrový
Jan Syrový
Jan Syrový was a Czechoslovak Army four star general and the prime minister during the Munich Crisis.-Early life and military career:...
had acted as President until Emil Hácha
Emil Hácha
Emil Hácha was a Czech lawyer, the third President of Czecho-Slovakia from 1938 to 1939. From March 1939, he presided under the German Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia.-Judicial career:...
was chosen as President on November 30, 1938. Hácha was chosen because of his Catholicism and conservatism and because of not being involved in any government that led to the partition of the country. He appointed Rudolf Beran
Rudolf Beran
Rudolf Beran was a Czechoslovakian politician who served as prime minister of the country before its occupation by Nazi Germany and shortly thereafter, before it was declared a protectorate...
, the leader of the Agrarian Party since 1933, as prime minister on December 1, 1938. He was, unlike most Agrarians, rather rightist, and sceptical of liberalism and democracy. The Communist Party was dissolved, although its members were allowed to remain in Parliament. Tough censorship was introduced, and an Enabling Act was also introduced, which allowed the government to rule without parliament.
Ethnic tensions
The greatly weakened Czechoslovak Republic was forced to grant major concessions to the non-Czechs. Following the Munich Agreement, the Czechoslovak army transferred parts of its units, originally in the Czech lands, to Slovakia, meant to counter the obvious Hungarian attempts to revise the Slovak borders.The Czechoslovak government accepted the Žilina Agreement stipulating the formation of an autonomous Slovak government with all Slovak parties except the Social Democrat on October 6, 1938. Jozef Tiso
Jozef Tiso
Jozef Tiso was a Slovak Roman Catholic priest, politician of the Slovak People's Party, and Nazi collaborator. Between 1939 and 1945, Tiso was the head of the Slovak State, a satellite state of Nazi Germany...
was nominated as its head. The only common ministries that remained were those of National Defence, Foreign Affairs and Finances.
Similarly, the two major factions in Subcarpathian Ruthenia, the Russophiles
Ukrainian Russophiles
The focus of this article is part of a general political movement in Western Ukraine of the nineteenth and early 20th century. The movement contained several competing branches: Moscowphiles, Ukrainophiles, Rusynphiles, and others....
and Ukrainophiles, agreed on the establishment of an autonomous government, which was constituted on October 8, 1938. Reflecting the spread of modern Ukrainian national consciousness, the pro-Ukrainian faction, led by Avhustyn Voloshyn
Avhustyn Voloshyn
Avgustyn Ivanovych Voloshyn was a Ukrainian politician, teacher, and essayist. He was president of the independent Carpatho-Ukraine, which existed for one day on March 15, 1939....
, gained control of the local government and Subcarpathian Ruthenia was renamed Carpatho-Ukraine
Carpatho-Ukraine
Carpatho-Ukraine was an autonomous region within Czechoslovakia from late 1938 to March 15, 1939. It declared itself an independent republic on March 15, 1939, but was occupied by Hungary between March 15 and March 18, 1939, remaining under Hungarian control until the Nazi occupation of Hungary in...
.
On October 17, Ferdinand Ďurčanský
Ferdinand Durcanský
Doctor Ferdinand Ďurčanský was a Slovak nationalist leader who for a time served with the collaborationist government of Jozef Tiso.-Nationalism:...
, Franz Karmasin and Alexander Mach
Alexander Mach
Alexander Mach was a Slovak nationalist politician.He belonged to the non-clerical wing of the Slovak People's Party, which has been portrayed as the more pro-Nazi of the party's two factions...
were received by Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
. On January 1, 1939 the Slovak State Assembly was opened. On January 18 the first elections of the Slovak Assembly took place, where the Slovak People's Party
Slovak People's Party
The Slovak People's Party was a Slovak right-wing party and was described as a fascist and...
received 98% of the votes. On February 12, Vojtech Tuka
Vojtech Tuka
Vojtech "Béla" Tuka was the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic between 1940 and 1945. Tuka was one the main forces behind the deportation of Slovak Jews to Nazi concentration camps in Poland...
and Karmazin met with Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
, and on February 22 Tiso proposed the formation of an autonomous Slovak state during his presentation of the Slovak Government to the assembly. On February 27 the Slovak government asked the central government for the Slovakisation of the Czecho-Slovak army units stationed in Slovakia and for Slovak ambassadors and consuls to be named as representatives of the autonomous Slovak state.
Disputes continued, and on March 1, 1939 the Ministerial Committee of the Czecho-Slovak government met, where the question of Slovak departure from the state was in focus. There were some disagreement between Tiso and other Slovak politicians, and Karol Sidor
Karol Sidor
Karol Sidor was a far right Slovak nationalist politician.A devout Roman Catholic, he was born in Ružomberok and came to politics early as a low-level supporter of Andrej Hlinka. After finishing his education he joined the Slovak People's Party and became one of its leading members on the...
(who had represented the Slovak government in the meeting) returned to Bratislava
Bratislava
Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...
to discuss the matter with Tiso. and on March 6 the Slovak government proclaimed its loyalty to the Czecho-Slovak Republic and its wish to remain a part of the state.
However, in a meeting with Hermann Göring
Hermann Göring
Hermann Wilhelm Göring, was a German politician, military leader, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. He was a veteran of World War I as an ace fighter pilot, and a recipient of the coveted Pour le Mérite, also known as "The Blue Max"...
on March 7, Ďurčanský and Tuka were pressed to declare their autonomy from the Czecho-Slovak state. After their return two days later, the Hlinka Guard
Hlinka Guard
Hlinka Guard was the militia maintained by the Slovak People's Party in the period from 1938 to 1945; it was named after Andrej Hlinka.The Hlinka Guard was preceded by the Rodobrana organization, which existed from 1923 to 1927, when the Czechoslovak authorities ordered its dissolution...
was mobilised, which in turn forced the Czecho-Slovak President, Emil Hácha
Emil Hácha
Emil Hácha was a Czech lawyer, the third President of Czecho-Slovakia from 1938 to 1939. From March 1939, he presided under the German Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia.-Judicial career:...
, to react strongly and declared martial law in Slovakia.
Division of Czechoslovakia
In January 1939, negotiations between Germany and Poland broke down. Hitler scheduled a German invasion of BohemiaBohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
and Moravia
Moravia
Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...
for the morning of March 15. In the interim, he negotiated with the Slovak People's Party and with the Kingdom of Hungary
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
and its representatives for the Hungarian minority in Slovakia to prepare the dismemberment of the Second Czechoslovak Republic before the invasion. On March 13, he invited Monsignore Jozef Tiso
Jozef Tiso
Jozef Tiso was a Slovak Roman Catholic priest, politician of the Slovak People's Party, and Nazi collaborator. Between 1939 and 1945, Tiso was the head of the Slovak State, a satellite state of Nazi Germany...
to Berlin, where he offered Tiso the option of proclaiming the Slovak state and seceding from Czecho-Slovakia. In such a case, Germany would be Slovakia's protector and would not allow the Hungarians to press on Slovakia any additional territorial demands. In case the Slovaks would not accept, Germany would occupy Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
and Moravia
Moravia
Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...
and leave Slovakia to the mercies of the Hungarians and the Poles (Poland had claimed the Slovak Spiš
Spiš
Spiš is a region in north-eastern Slovakia, with a very small area in south-eastern Poland. Spiš is an informal designation of the territory , but it is also the name of one the 21 official tourism regions of Slovakia...
territory since the Polish-Czechoslovak War). Tiso thus returned to Bratislava, and on March 14, the Slovak Diet (autonomous parliament) convened and unanimously declared the independence of Slovakia, forming the First Slovak Republic. Carpatho-Ukraine also declared independence but Hungarian troops occupied it on March 15 and southern, mostly ethnic Hungarian-populated, Slovakia on March 23.
Meanwhile, Czechoslovak president Emil Hácha
Emil Hácha
Emil Hácha was a Czech lawyer, the third President of Czecho-Slovakia from 1938 to 1939. From March 1939, he presided under the German Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia.-Judicial career:...
was summoned to a meeting with Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
and Hermann Göring
Hermann Göring
Hermann Wilhelm Göring, was a German politician, military leader, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. He was a veteran of World War I as an ace fighter pilot, and a recipient of the coveted Pour le Mérite, also known as "The Blue Max"...
during the early hours of March 15, and informed Hácha of the imminent German invasion plan. Here Hácha was threatened with aerial bombardment of Prague unless he signed a document accepting the capitulation of the Czechoslovak Army and the foundation of a Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
The Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia was the majority ethnic-Czech protectorate which Nazi Germany established in the central parts of Bohemia, Moravia and Czech Silesia in what is today the Czech Republic...
under the protection and supremacy of the German Empire
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...
. After several strokes, he was forced to sign the document even though he did not consult the parliament beforehand.
On the morning of March 15, German troops entered Bohemia and Moravia, meeting no resistance. The Hungarian invasion of Carpatho-Ukraine did encounter resistance but the Hungarian army quickly crushed it. On March 16, Hitler went to Czechoslovakia and from Prague Castle
Prague Castle
Prague Castle is a castle in Prague where the Kings of Bohemia, Holy Roman Emperors and presidents of Czechoslovakia and the Czech Republic have had their offices. The Czech Crown Jewels are kept here...
proclaimed Bohemia and Moravia as the new Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
The Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia was the majority ethnic-Czech protectorate which Nazi Germany established in the central parts of Bohemia, Moravia and Czech Silesia in what is today the Czech Republic...
.
Thus, independent Czechoslovakia collapsed in the wake of foreign aggression, ethnic divisions and internal tensions. Subsequently, interwar Czechoslovakia has been idealized by its proponents as the only bastion of democracy surrounded by authoritarian and fascist regimes. It has also been condemned by its detractors as an artificial, Czech-dominated
Czech people
Czechs, or Czech people are a western Slavic people of Central Europe, living predominantly in the Czech Republic. Small populations of Czechs also live in Slovakia, Austria, the United States, the United Kingdom, Chile, Argentina, Canada, Germany, Russia and other countries...
and unworkable creation of intellectuals supported by the great victorious powers of the First World War, notable France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and the British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
. Interwar Czechoslovakia comprised lands and peoples that were far from being integrated into a modern nation-state. Moreover, the dominant Czechs, who had suffered political discrimination under the Habsburgs, were not able to cope with the demands of other nationalities. In fairness to the Czechs, it should be acknowledged that some of the minority demands and perceived persecution of ethnic Germans served as mere pretexts to justify intervention by Nazi Germany. Considering that Czechoslovakia was able to maintain a viable economy and a democratic political system under such circumstances was indeed a remarkable achievement during the interwar period.