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53-615: The provisional government of Czechoslovakia was proclaimed in Košice on 5 April 1945. The Communist Party seized a third of the national government, including the ministries of the Interior and Defence . Vengeful attitudes countenanced by the communists led to massive vigilante justice against former personnel of the German armed forces after the German capitulation. The surrendered German troops included thousands of officers and soldiers of

106-524: A workers' militia . The communist-controlled Ministry of Information refused broadcasting time to noncommunist officials. Ministries held by noncommunist parties were secured by communist "action committees." The action committees also purged all governmental and political party organs of unreliable elements. Gottwald threatened to call a general strike unless Beneš appointed a new, Communist-dominated government. On 26 February, Beneš, perhaps fearing civil war and/or Soviet intervention, capitulated. He accepted

159-679: A "gradualist" approach, that is, to a KSČ assumption of power by democratic means. The popular enthusiasm evoked by the Soviet armies of liberation benefited the KSČ. Czechs, bitterly disappointed by the West at the Munich Agreement , responded favourably to both the KSČ and the Soviet alliance. Communists secured strong representation in the popularly elected national committees, the new organs of local administration. The KSČ organised and centralised

212-428: A botched embalming , although other witnesses have disputed this. His body was cremated, the ashes returned to the Žižka Monument and placed in a sarcophagus. After the end of the communist period, Gottwald's ashes were removed from the Žižka Monument (in 1990) and placed in a common grave at Prague's Olšany Cemetery , together with the ashes of about 20 other communist leaders which had also originally been placed in

265-527: A caretaker government, which would presumably force Gottwald to either back down or resign. Beneš initially refused to accept the resignations and declared that no government could be formed without non-Communist ministers. However, in the days that followed, he shunned the non-Communist ministers to avoid accusation of collusion. The Czechoslovak Army remained neutral. In the meantime, the KSČ garnered its forces. The communist-controlled Ministry of Interior deployed police regiments to sensitive areas and equipped

318-661: A city in Kharkiv Oblast , Ukrainian SSR , was named Gotvald after him from 1976 to 1990. A major square and park in Bratislava was named Gottwaldovo námestie after him, later becoming Námestie Slobody (Freedom square) immediately following the Velvet Revolution . The original eponym persists today, the square being referred to by locals as Gottko . A bridge in Prague that is now called Nuselský Most

371-739: A pro-Moscow opposition against the anti-Moscow leadership then in power. From 1928 he was a member of the Comintern . Following a Comintern policy initiated by Stalin, he carried out the Bolshevization of the Party. In February 1929, at the Fifth Congress  [ cs ] of the KSČ, Gottwald was elected party general secretary, alongside Josef Guttmann  [ cs ] , Jan Šverma , Rudolf Slánský , Václav Kopecký and Pavel Reiman  [ cs ] , together known as

424-468: A series of purges . Perceived opponents were often jailed or condemned to forced labor. His regime conducted a number of show trials , including the trial of the non-Communist politician Milada Horakova as well as fellow comrades and Communist party leaders Rudolf Slánský and Vlado Clementis , both of whom were executed in December 1952. Many Communist leaders subjected to show trials had been part of

477-715: A tight-knit group of Communists around Gottwald in the interwar period. In a famous photograph from 21 February 1948, described also in The Book of Laughter and Forgetting by Milan Kundera , Clementis stands next to Gottwald. When Clementis was charged in 1950, he was erased from the photograph (along with the photographer Karel Hájek) by the state propaganda department. Gottwald was a long-time alcoholic and suffered from heart disease caused by syphilis that had gone untreated for several years. Shortly after attending Stalin's funeral on 9 March 1953, one of his arteries burst. He died five days later on 14 March 1953, aged 56. He

530-534: The "Karlín Boys"  [ cs ] . In the second half of 1930, the Communist Party carried out a number of reforms in accordance and response with the changes in those of the foreign policy of the Soviet Union , namely the introduction of the policy on the formation of a popular front against fascism. In September and October 1938, Gottwald was one of the main leaders of the opposition against

583-677: The Communist Party Central Committee , they merged a number of communist magazines and consolidated editors. In 1924, the editorial staff, along with Gottwald, moved to Ostrava . In 1926, Gottwald became a functionary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ), and editor of the Communist Press. From 1926 to 1929 he worked in Prague, where he aided the Secretariat of the KSČ to form

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636-728: The Communist Party . They had one daughter, Marta (1920–1998), who married Alexey Čepička. From 1915 to 1918 Gottwald was a soldier in the Austro-Hungarian Army . It is believed that he fought in the Battle of Zborov , which would mean that he fought there against future General and President Ludvík Svoboda , who fought on the side of the Czechoslovak Legion . Thomas Jakl of the Military History Institute called Gottwald's participation in

689-506: The Czechoslovak Republic ( Czech : Československá republika ; Slovak : Československá republika ), was a sovereign state from April 1945 to February 1948 following the end of World War II . After the fall of Nazi Germany, the country was reformed and reassigned coterminous borders as its pre-war predecessor state, First Czechoslovak Republic ; it likewise restored the predecessor's international recognition. Due to

742-695: The Marshall Plan . The Soviet Union responded immediately to the Czechoslovak move to continue the Western alliance: Stalin summoned Gottwald to Moscow . Upon his return to Prague, the KSČ reversed its decision. In subsequent months, the party demonstrated a significant radicalisation of its tactics. The KSČ argued that a reactionary coup was imminent, and that immediate action was necessary to prevent it. Through media and police means, they intensified their activity. Originally announced by Gottwald at

795-782: The Ninth-of-May Constitution following the 1948 coup . ČSSR; from 1969, after the Prague Spring , consisted of the Czech Socialist Republic (ČSR) and Slovak Socialist Republic (SSR). Oblast of the Ukrainian SSR . Oblast of Ukraine . 50°05′00″N 14°28′00″E  /  50.0833°N 14.4667°E  / 50.0833; 14.4667 Klement Gottwald Klement Gottwald ( Czech pronunciation: [ˈklɛmɛnt ˈɡotvalt] ; 23 November 1896 – 14 March 1953)

848-577: The Allies on 8 May 1945. President Beneš flew from his exile in London to Košice in eastern Slovakia , which had been taken by the Red Army and which became the temporary capital . In Košice the new National Front government was formed, based on discussions dating back to 1943, with Beneš remaining president, Zdeněk Fierlinger becoming prime minister with Klement Gottwald as deputy premier. In

901-691: The Battle of Zborov a legend: Gottwald was in a hospital in Vienna during the time of the battle. In the summer of 1918, Gottwald deserted from the army. After the establishment of the first Czechoslovak Republic , he served for two years in the Czechoslovak Army . From 1920 to 1921 he worked in Rousinov as a cabinetmaker. After the collapse of the Workers' Gymnastic Union  [ cs ] ,

954-694: The Communist Party seized full power in a coup d'état . Despite the country's official name remaining the Czechoslovak Republic until 1960, when it was changed to the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic , events of February 1948 are considered the end of the Third Republic. The Third Republic came into being in April 1945 with the creation of the Košice Programme . All of the remaining German armed forces also surrendered to

1007-667: The Communist Party, forcing Gottwald to emigrate to the Soviet Union in November 1938. In 1943, Gottwald agreed with representatives of the Czechoslovak-government-in-exile located in London, along with President Edvard Beneš , to unify domestic and foreign anti-fascist resistance and form the National Front . He was the 14th prime minister of Czechoslovakia from July 1946 until June 1948,

1060-695: The Communist-oriented party of the organization split off in 1921 and created the Federation of Workers' Gymnastic Unions  [ cs ] (FDTJ). Gottwald was able to unify the organization to gain considerable power in the local districts, and became the starosta of the 20th district of the FDTJ. In June 1921, he participated in the first Spartakiada in Prague . In September 1921 he moved from Rousinov to Banská Bystrica , where he became

1113-522: The Communists. This act marked the onset of out-and-out Communist rule in Czechoslovakia. ČSR; boundaries and government established by the 1920 constitution . Annexed by Nazi Germany . ČSR; included the autonomous regions of Slovakia and Subcarpathian Ruthenia. Annexed by Hungary (1939–1945). ČSR; declared a "people's democracy" (without a formal name change) under

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1166-586: The Estonian Division initially based around Hirschberg im Riesengebirge and Schönau an der Katzbach . They had been forcibly drafted into the Waffen SS and had received no special training apart from regular military drills; it is also alleged that they did not commit war crimes. The Estonian Division received orders on 7 May to retreat, assemble in Jablonec nad Nisou , move on through Prague in

1219-604: The February coup. Backed by all non-communist parties, the National Social ministers said that the communists were using the Ministry of Interior's police and security forces to suppress non-communists, and demanded a halt to this. Prime Minister Gottwald, however, repeatedly forestalled discussion of the police issue. On 21 February, National Socialists resigned from the cabinet in protest. The Catholic People's Party and

1272-426: The German forces. The number of men killed has been estimated as 500−1000, but the actual number is unknown. Soldiers who had been in the custody of Czech partisans were reportedly relieved to be handed over to the Red Army . History of Czechoslovakia (1945%E2%80%9348) The Third Czechoslovak Republic ( Czech : Třetí Československá republika ; Slovak : Tretia česko-slovenská republika ), officially

1325-644: The KSČ Central Committee meeting in November 1947, news of the "reactionary plot" was disseminated throughout the country by the communist press. From June of that year, and especially after the outbreak of the 1947–1948 civil war in Mandatory Palestine in November, Czechoslovakia began to sell arms to the Palestinian Jewish Haganah defense force. It was the only foreign state to do so. This policy, continued after

1378-664: The KSČ's popularity had significantly dwindled, particularly after the Soviets pressured Czechoslovakia to turn down Marshall Plan aid after initially accepting it. Most observers believed Gottwald would be turned out of office at the elections due in May 1948. The Communists' dwindling popularity, combined with France and Italy dropping the Communists from their coalition governments, prompted Joseph Stalin to order Gottwald to begin efforts to eliminate parliamentary opposition to Communism in Czechoslovakia. Outwardly, though, Gottwald kept up

1431-631: The National Front coalition three socialist parties—KSČ, Czechoslovak Social Democratic Party, and Czechoslovak National Social Party —predominated. The Slovak Popular Party was banned as collaborationist with the Nazis. Other conservative yet democratic parties, such as the Republican Party of Farmers and Peasants (RSZML), were prevented from resuming activities in the postwar period. Certain acceptable nonsocialist parties were included in

1484-804: The Slovak Democratic Party followed suit. The twelve noncommunist ministers resigned, in part, to induce Beneš to call for early elections. Communist losses were anticipated owing to popular disapproval of recent KSČ tactics. A January poll indicated a 10-percent decline in Communist electoral support. Yet the Czechoslovak National Socialists made their move without adequate coordination with Beneš. The democratic parties, in addition, made no effort to rally popular support. The non-Communists believed that Beneš would refuse to accept their resignations and keep them in

1537-621: The adoption of the Munich Agreement . After the banning of the Communist Party, Gottwald emigrated to the Soviet Union in November 1938. While there, he opposed the party policy of backing the Molotov–Ribbentrop pact of 1939 . After the attack on the Soviet Union in June 1941, Soviet leadership saw the front against fascism as a great opportunity to assert themselves in Czechoslovakia , promoting interest in supporting Gottwald after

1590-568: The anti-Communist Democratic Party won in Slovakia (62%). In sum, however, the KSČ won a plurality of 38 percent of the vote at the Czechoslovak level. Beneš continued as president of the republic, and Jan Masaryk , son of the revered founding father, continued as foreign minister. Gottwald became prime minister. Most important, although the communists held only a minority of portfolios, they were able to gain control over such key ministries as information, internal trade, finance and interior (including

1643-842: The appearance of working within the system, announcing that he intended to lead the Communists to an absolute majority in the upcoming election—something no Czechoslovak party had ever done. The endgame began in February 1948, when a majority of the Cabinet directed the Communist interior minister, Václav Nosek , to stop packing the police force with Communists. Nosek ignored this directive, with Gottwald's support. In response, 12 non-Communist ministers resigned. They believed that without their support, Gottwald would be unable to govern and be forced to either give way or resign. Beneš initially supported their position, and refused to accept their resignations. At that point, Gottwald dropped all pretense of liberal democracy. He not only refused to resign, but demanded

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1696-406: The appointment of a Communist-dominated government under threat of a general strike. His Communist colleagues occupied the offices of the non-Communist ministers. On 25 February, Beneš, fearing Soviet intervention, gave in. He accepted the resignations of the non-Communist ministers and appointed a new government in accordance with Gottwald's specifications. Although ostensibly still a coalition, it

1749-629: The coalition; among them were the Catholic People's Party (in Moravia) and the Slovak Democratic Party. The government moved back to Prague after its liberation on 10 May. Beneš was pressured by the Soviet Union to grant them the Carpathian Ruthenia territory as a sort of war reparation , and a treaty was signed on 29 June 1945 annexing it to the Ukrainian SSR of the Soviet Union . Industries, employing 61.2 percent of

1802-593: The declaration of the State of Israel the following year, would play an important role in the victory of the Jewish state in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War . In January 1948, the communist-controlled Ministry of Interior proceeded to purge the Czechoslovak security forces, substituting noncommunists with communists. Simultaneously, the KSČ began agitating for increased nationalisation and for a new land reform limiting landholdings to fifty hectares . A cabinet crisis precipitated

1855-641: The direction of Plzeň and eventually surrender to the United States armed forces. Its headquarters and supply train began to retreat on the same day. Its units began to retreat the day after that. Czech partisans demanded that the German units surrender their arms, which the Estonians did. Subsequently, the partisans chased down and took some of the unarmed men prisoner, then tortured and humiliated them. The partisans did not differentiate between Estonian nationals, who had been illegally conscripted , and

1908-533: The editor of the communist magazine Hlas Ľudu ("Voice of the people" in Slovak). At the same time, he was planning FDTJ events at the Banská Bystrica district. He became the local starosta of the district, and was the managing director of the 47th district of the FDTJ. Later, he moved to Žilina and became editor in chief of Spartakus magazine. In 1922 he moved to Vrútky , where by decision of

1961-514: The first Communist to hold the post. In June 1948, he was elected as Czechoslovakia's first Communist president , four months after the 1948 coup d'état in which his party seized power with the backing of the Soviet Union . He held the post until his death. Klement Gottwald was born on 23 November 1896, but it is unclear if in Dědice (today part of Vyškov ) or in Hoštice-Heroltice . His mother

2014-532: The industrial labour force, were nationalised. 14 October 1945 saw a new provisional national assembly voted in. Beneš had compromised with the KSČ to avoid a postwar coup; he naïvely hoped that the democratic process would restore a more equitable distribution of power. Beneš had negotiated the Soviet alliance, but at the same time he hoped to establish Czechoslovakia as a "bridge" between East and West, capable of maintaining contacts with both sides. The KSČ leader Klement Gottwald , however, professed commitment to

2067-533: The liberation of Czechoslovakia . In 1943, Gottwald agreed with representatives of the Czechoslovak-government-in-exile located in London, along with President Edvard Beneš , to unify domestic and foreign anti-fascist resistance and form the National Front . This proved helpful for Gottwald as it helped secure Communist influence in post-war Czechoslovakia. In 1945, Gottwald gave up the general secretary's post to Rudolf Slánský and

2120-498: The police apparatus). Through these ministries, the communists were able to suppress noncommunist opposition, place party members in positions of power, and create a solid basis for a takeover attempt. The year that followed was uneventful. The KSČ continued to proclaim its national and democratic orientation. The turning point came in the summer of 1947. In July, the Czechoslovak government, with KSČ approval, accepted an Anglo - French invitation to attend preliminary discussions of

2173-474: The resignations of the dissident ministers and appointed a new cabinet from a list submitted by Gottwald. The new cabinet was dominated by Communists and pro-Soviet Social Democrats. Members of the People's, National Socialist and Czech Democratic parties were also included, so the government was still nominally a coalition. However, the ministers using those labels were fellow travellers working hand in glove with

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2226-515: The rise of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ), Czechoslovakia fell within the Soviet sphere of influence , and this circumstance dominated any plans or strategies for post-war reconstruction. Consequently, the political and economic organisation of Czechoslovakia became largely a matter of negotiations between Edvard Beneš and the Communist Party members exiled in Moscow . In February 1948,

2279-468: The so-called Ninth-of-May Constitution . While it was not a completely Communist document, its Communist imprint was strong enough that Beneš refused to sign it. Later that month, elections were held in which voters were presented with a single list from the National Front, now a Communist-controlled patriotic organization. Beneš resigned on 2 June. In accordance with the 1920 Constitution, Gottwald took over most presidential functions until 14 June, when he

2332-574: The trades union movement; of 120 representatives to the Central Council of Trades Unions, 94 were communists. The party worked to acquire a mass membership, including peasants and the petite bourgeoisie , as well as the proletariat. Between May 1945 and May 1946, KSČ membership grew from 27,000 to over 1.1 million. In the May 1946 election , the KSČ won in the Czech part of the country (40.17%), while

2385-559: The Žižka Monument. The Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia now maintains that common grave. He was succeeded as de facto leader of Czechoslovakia by Antonín Novotný , who became First Secretary of the KSČ. Antonín Zápotocký , who had been prime minister since 1948, succeeded Gottwald as president. In tribute, Zlín , a city in Moravia, now the Czech Republic , was renamed Gottwaldov after him from 1949 to 1989. Zmiiv ,

2438-582: Was a Czech communist politician, who was the leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from 1929 until his death in 1953 – titled as general secretary until 1945 and as chairman from 1945 to 1953. He was the first leader of Communist Czechoslovakia from 1948 to 1953. Following the collapse of democratic Czechoslovakia after the Munich Agreement, the right-wing leadership of the Czechoslovak Second Republic banned

2491-412: Was a firm supporter of the expulsion of ethnic Germans from Czechoslovakia , gaining mainstream credibility with many Czechs through the use of nationalist rhetoric, exhorting the population to "prepare for the final retribution for White Mountain , for the return of the Czech lands to the Czech people. We will expel for good all descendants of the alien German nobility." By the summer of 1947, however,

2544-404: Was an unmarried maidservant. Before World War I he was trained in Vienna as a carpenter but also actively participated in the activities of the Social Democratic youth movement. Klement Gottwald was married to Marta Gottwaldová who came from a poor family and was an illegitimate child. Although his wife stood by him through his endeavours, and was his faithful companion, she never joined

2597-400: Was dominated by Communists and pro-Moscow Social Democrats. The other parties were still nominally represented, but with the exception of Foreign Minister Jan Masaryk they were fellow travellers handpicked by the Communists. From this date forward, Gottwald was effectively the most powerful man in Czechoslovakia. On 9 May, the National Assembly, now a docile tool of the Communists, approved

2650-435: Was elected to the new position of party chairman. On 10 May 1945, Gottwald returned to Prague as the deputy premier under Zdeněk Fierlinger and as the chairman of the National Front . In March 1946, he became prime minister after leading the KSČ to a 38% share of the vote. This was easily the best showing for a Czechoslovak party in a free election at the time; previously, no party had ever won more than 25 percent. Gottwald

2703-492: Was formally elected as President. Gottwald initially tried to take a semi-independent line. However, that changed shortly after a meeting with Stalin. Under Stalin's direction, Gottwald imposed the Stalinist Soviet model of government on the country. He nationalized the country's industry and initiated the collectivization of Czechoslovak farms. There was considerable resistance within the government to Soviet influence on Czechoslovak politics. In response, Gottwald instigated

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2756-423: Was once called Gottwaldův Most, and the abutting metro station now called Vyšehrad was called Gottwaldova. A Czechoslovak 100 Koruna banknote issued on 1 October 1989 as part of the 1985–89 banknote series included a portrait of Gottwald. This note was so poorly received by Czechoslovaks that it was removed from official circulation on 31 December 1990 and was promptly replaced with the previous banknote issue of

2809-402: Was the first Czechoslovak president to die in office. Gottwald's embalmed body was initially displayed in a mausoleum at the site of the Jan Žižka national monument in the district of Žižkov, Prague. In 1962, the personality cult ended and it was no longer deemed appropriate to show Gottwald's body. There are accounts that in 1962 Gottwald's body had blackened and was decomposing due to

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