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The Jan Palach Square street sign

Streets – Jan Palach Square

Jan Palach Square – Namesti Jana Palacha If ever there was a place in the city that highlights why names of locations change over the years it’s the current Jan Palach Square. The names used here include it’s location, its function, a prince, an empress, two composers, a communist name and a memorial. It’s a … Read More

opening paragraphs of the czech declaration of charter 77

Charter 77

Politics and History – Charter 77 You don’t have to spend too much time watching Czech news to learn that famous people have died. Sometimes however the name is followed by a simple phrase “Charter 77 signatory”. In our current time of being able to say pretty much whatever we like and not have to … Read More

main prague uprising memorial on the old town hall

WW2 Prague Uprising

The WW2 Prague Uprising A frequent question on my walking tours is whether the centre of Prague was bombed during World War Two because it looks so old. I answer this question more fully on my World War Two Walking Tour but in summary, yes it was bombed but no the majority of any damage … Read More

Memorial to the Victims of Collectivisation in Czechoslovakia consisting of metal shards in the form of a cereal crop encased in barbed wire

Victims of Collectivisation

Memorial to the Victims of Collectivisation When you take individual private companies and bring them under State control that’s called Nationalisation. When you take an entire sector of production under State control that’s called Collectivisation. In post-1948 Czechoslovakia the theory for agriculture was that as the State now owned the company or the land it … Read More

a representation of jan zajic on a czech national flag

Famous Czechs – Jan Zajic

Famous Czechs – Jan Zajic To set the scene you have to understand that the August 1968 invasion of Prague by Warsaw Pact countries extinguished the Prague Spring freedoms. Any political or social reforms were cancelled and Czechoslovakia regressed to its 1950’s state. As was increasingly common in the late 1960s, the method of the … Read More

czech president benes and the benes decrees

The Beneš Decrees

The Beneš Decrees As I write this, Ukraine is being invaded by Russia, some towns are being occupied and Russian supporting people are being put in public administrative positions. It made me think of events in Czech in 1945 when the occupying power was kicked out and retribution swiftly followed against those considered, rightly or … Read More

klement gottwald addresses a crowd of people on the old town square in prague

1948 Communist Coup

1948 Communist Coup All over this website on the historical and political posts as well as many of the attractions you’ll see me refer to the “Communist takeover” or the “Communist coup d’etat” which is still referred to historically as “Victorious February” by our local communist party. It’s worth taking some time to see where … Read More

entropa modern art located at techmania in plze

David Cerny – Entropa

Modern Art – Entropa I was reading this month that France had just taken over the rotating Presidency of the European Union Council which means Czech will be next and it reminded me of what happened this week in January 2009 when France was handing over to Czech. It’s a tradition that the country taking … Read More

President Emil Hacha of Czechoslovakia seated at a table speaking into a microphone

Emil Hacha

Czech Presidents, Emil Hacha and the Poison Chalice When you take a look at Czech history especially in the 20th Century you’ll find lots of references to Tomas Garrigue Masaryk (the first President of Czechoslovakia) or Edvard Beneš (longest serving Foreign Minister and second President of Czechoslovakia). Then we have a third President called Emil … Read More

pre-ww2 czech roma id card used during ww2 roma internment

WW2 Roma Internment

WW2 Roma Internment In World War Two a group of people were racially profiled, segregated, interned, transported, tattooed and executed. But this isn’t a story about Jewish people. In England we might know them as travellers, some people call them gypsies but in Czech they are called Roma. As far back as 1933, Adolf Hitler … Read More