Countries outside the Eurozone - Czech Republic

The heart of the Czech Republic is Bohemia. The region of Moravia has shared a common destiny with Bohemia since the 13th century. The third region of the country is a part of Silesia retained by the Habsburgs. The Czechs object to the use of the name Czechia for their country, as it evokes the name of the "Protectorate of Bohemia-Moravia" of sinister memory.

The history of Bohemia is very ancient: Prince Borivoj (Premyslid dynasty) is said to have been baptised by Method in 880, as was his wife Ludmilla.

When Otto I was crowned emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, Bohemia immediately fell into his orbit, right up to the end (1806).

The Premyslids obtained the title of king from Otakar I, who annexed Moravia in 1222. Almost master of Austria by the end of the century, his grandson Otakar II was defeated by Rodolphe of Habsburg, an obscure minor prince. The pre-Myslid dynasty came to an end in 1306 with the death of Wenceslas III. He was succeeded by John and then Charles of Luxembourg, who was elected emperor in 1355 under the name of Charles IV. His reign marked the apogee of Bohemia and its capital, Prague.

Between 1412 and 1420, Bohemia was in the throes of serious unrest. On the religious front, the reformist preaching of John Hus met with great success, unabated by his condemnation to the stake in 1415. This movement was accompanied by social unrest: on 30 July 1419, angry Hussites threw Catholic notables out of the windows of Prague Castle. A war of succession to the throne broke out that same year, leading to Bohemia's independence until 1433, when Emperor Sigismund, having accepted all the conditions laid down by the Czechs, regained his throne.

After his death, a new war of succession broke out to decide between the contenders. In the end, Ferdinand of Habsburg, brother of Charles V, became King of Bohemia and also of Hungary. Until 1918, Bohemia became part of the "Danube Monarchy".
The Reformation rekindled religious quarrels and reached its climax on 23 May 1618 when the Catholic governors of the kingdom were... thrown out of the castle!
The Catholic victory in Bohemia led to terrible repression after 1620.

In addition to executions, the transfer of the administration to Vienna and the control of the local Diet by the great Catholic lords, unconverted noble families were forced into exile.
This terrible period has been given the name "darkness" by the Czechs.

Austria eventually showed greater flexibility in terms of religion and language, and an intellectual revival began in the early 19th century.

The elections of 1848 and the reign of Franz Joseph did not bring Bohemia the same advantages as Hungary: the country was given no real autonomy, only the appearance of it.

The Czech exiles, Masaryk and Benes, were joined by the Slovak Stefanik: although the two peoples had no common history, they shared - almost - the same language: the idea of a union with Czechs and Slovaks was gaining ground.

Loyal to Austria-Hungary during the First World War, the Czechs and Slovaks hoped to see their ideas of union triumph.

But the Allies (as declared by President Wilson) were uncertain about the fate of the nations of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. After the failure of Charles I, who wanted to create a confederal state with Bohemia and Slovakia as components - which Hungary refused - Masaryk proclaimed the new republic on 14 October 1918, which the Slovaks joined on 31 October. As the Slovakian borders could not be determined on the basis of historical notions, they reflected ethnic notions. In the south, however, it includes a large Hungarian minority, as well as a Ukrainian minority in Ruthenia.
Slovakian particularism quickly grew out of the administrative frustrations generated by the Czechs.

In 1938, Hitler used the Sudetenland's large German minority as a pretext to secure its outright annexation at Munich.

The carve-up of 1938/1939 led to the autonomy of Slovakia, led by the pronazi Bishop Tiso, while Hungary obtained the south of the country. On 15 March 1939, at Prague Castle, Hitler founded the Protectorate of Bohemia-Moravia, which was incorporated into the Reich. The occupation was terrible, especially when Heydrich arrived in September 1941. His assassination on 27 May 1942 was followed by the Lidice massacre, the "Czech Oradour".
Benes, who had taken refuge in London, returned to power after the liberation by the Soviets in March/April 1945. The country returned to its 1937 borders.

Moscow was now to make its move: the death of minister Jan Masaryk in March 1948 led to Benes's resignation and the installation of the Communist regime.
The history of the Czech Republic during the Communist period after the "Prague coup" consisted of purges and repressions: the Prague Spring in 1969, the progress of dissent ("Charter 1977") and finally the "Velvet Revolution" in November 1989. On 29 December, Vaclav Havel was elected President.

In June 1992, the Slovak nationalists won the elections, and negotiations began with a view to separation, which became effective on 1 January 1993.