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From the ArchivesThe unresolved mystery of the death of Jan Masaryk
“We are a small country with a great tradition of freedom. We shall not
give it up.” These are the words of Jan Masaryk, the son of
Czechoslovakia’s first President Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, addressing
American servicemen in Plzeň in a tone of great optimism in November 1945.
During the wartime occupation Masaryk had served as Czechoslovak foreign
minister in exile in London, and he remained in the post after his return
home, deciding to stay on even after the communist coup of February 1948.
His immense popularity meant that the communists put up with his presence,
although his pro-Western views, reinforced by the fact that his mother had
been American, were totally at odds with the rest of the government. More
From the ArchivesNovember 1945: homeward bound
In November 1945, six months after the end of World War II, the units that
had taken part in liberating Czechoslovakia began their official
withdrawal. Various ceremonies were held, first on November 15, to say
farewell to the Red Army troops, who had fought their way in bitter
fighting through Slovakia all the way to Prague. Then a few days later, on
November 20, the withdrawal began of the American units that had liberated
Western Bohemia. More
From the ArchivesJan Masaryk and the experiment in vivisection
In 1938 at the height of the Sudeten crisis, Jan Masaryk was
Czechoslovakia’s ambassador in London. He was the son of the country’s
first President Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk and was well known as being both
articulate and entertaining. He was also completely bilingual, his mother
Charlotte being from the United States. But Jan Masaryk’s abilities as a
communicator failed to influence the politicians in Britain, when, in
September 1938, they agreed to let Hitler take over the Sudetenland.
Masaryk resigned immediately as ambassador and in the following broadcast
he makes his reasons only too clear. More
From the ArchivesThe unresolved mystery of the death of Jan Masaryk
“We are a small country with a great tradition of freedom. We shall not
give it up.” These are the words of Jan Masaryk, the son of
Czechoslovakia’s first President Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, addressing
American servicemen in Plzeň in a tone of great optimism in November 1945.
During the wartime occupation Masaryk had served as Czechoslovak foreign
minister in exile in London, and he remained in the post after his return
home, deciding to stay on even after the communist coup of February 1948.
His immense popularity meant that the communists put up with his presence,
although his pro-Western views, reinforced by the fact that his mother had
been American, were totally at odds with the rest of the government.
More
From the ArchivesNovember 1945: homeward bound
In November 1945, six months after the end of World War II, the units that
had taken part in liberating Czechoslovakia began their official
withdrawal. Various ceremonies were held, first on November 15, to say
farewell to the Red Army troops, who had fought their way in bitter
fighting through Slovakia all the way to Prague. Then a few days later, on
November 20, the withdrawal began of the American units that had liberated
Western Bohemia.
More
SpecialIva Drápalová: AP’s woman in Prague during the normalisation years
Iva Drápalová has lived through, and documented, some of the most
important moments of modern Czech history. Cut off from her family at
boarding school - and then university - in Britain throughout the Second
World War, she picked up the English that led her to the job for which she
is now best known. Having returned to her homeland, Iva Drápalová became
the Associated Press’s woman in the Czech capital following on from the
Prague Spring of 1968. Mrs Drápalová, now in her eighties, has just
finished writing her memoirs.
More
MailboxMailbox
This week in Mailbox: 60 years on, the death of Jan Masaryk remains
unresolved; problems downloading Radio Prague’s audio files; fees charged
by Czech banks; descendants of Sophie Chotek; Czech tennis legend Martina
Navrátilová. Listeners quoted: Aloisie Krasny, Colin Law, Steve Price,
Michael Fanderys, Gautam Sharma.
More
PanoramaČernín Palace: an impressive Baroque residence turned foreign policy hub
Just a few minutes’ walk from Prague Castle, the monumental Černín
Palace stands out in Hradčany’s Loreto Square. Built in the 17th and
18th centuries as the residence of the Černín aristocratic family, the
Baroque palace now houses the Foreign Ministry of the Czech Republic. But
the history of the largest of Prague’s Baroque palaces has seen more than
politics – it has witnessed ambition, corruption and even a mystery
death.
More
Current AffairsSixty years on, the mystery of Jan Masaryk’s tragic death remains unresolved
Monday marks the 60th anniversary of the mysterious death of Jan Masaryk,
foreign minister of Czechoslovakia in the 1940s and son of the country’s
founder and its first president Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk. On the morning of
March 10, Jan Masaryk’s body was found in the courtyard of Černín
Palace, the seat of the Foreign Ministry. To this day his tragic death
remains unexplained and is one of the great mysteries of modern Czech
history.
More
From the ArchivesJan Masaryk and the experiment in vivisection
In 1938 at the height of the Sudeten crisis, Jan Masaryk was
Czechoslovakia’s ambassador in London. He was the son of the country’s
first President Tomas Garrigue Masaryk and was well known as being both
articulate and entertaining. He was also completely bilingual, his mother
Charlotte being from the United States. But Jan Masaryk’s abilities as a
communicator failed to influence the politicians in Britain, when, in
September 1938, they agreed to let Hitler take over the Sudetenland.
Masaryk resigned immediately as ambassador and in the following broadcast
he makes his reasons only too clear.
More
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