| Ludvík Svoboda | |
|---|---|
| |
| 5th President of Czechoslovakia | |
| In office 17 September 1968 – 17 September 1978 | |
| Prime Minister | Miloslav Rechcígl Alexander Dubček Lubor Zink Alexander Dubček |
| Preceded by | Štefan Osuský |
| Succeeded by | Jiří Hájek |
| Chief of the General Staff | |
| In office 17 June 1956 – 28 July 1960 | |
| Preceded by | Karel Janoušek |
| Succeeded by | Karel Rusov |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 25 November 1895 Hroznatín, Moravia, Austria-Hungary
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| Died | 20 September 1979 (aged 83) Kroměříž, Moravia, Czechoslovakia
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| Nationality | Czech |
| Spouse(s) | Irena Svobodová (m. 1923) |
| Children | Miroslav Svoboda (1924–1942) Zoe Klusáková-Svobodová (1925–2022) |
| Profession | Military |
| Signature | 
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| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Austria-Hungary Czechoslovakia
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| Service/branch |  Austro-Hungarian Army Czechoslovak Legion Czechoslovak Army
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| Years of service | 1915 (Austria-Hungary) 1916–1960 (Czechoslovakia) |
| Rank | General of the Army |
| Commands |  Czechoslovak Legion in the USSR
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| Battles/wars | World War I (1915–1918)
Russian Civil War (1918–1920) |
Ludvík Svoboda (25 November 1895 – 20 September 1979) was a Czechoslovak military officer and statesman of Czech nationality who served as the 5th president of Czechoslovakia from 1968 to 1978. During World War II, he served as the commander of the Czechoslovak Legion in the USSR from 1942 to 1945 and achieved the four-star rank as Army General. Having fought in both world wars, he was regarded as a national hero.
was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he served as Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force in Europe and achieved the five-star rank as General of the Army. Eisenhower planned and supervised two of the most consequential military campaigns of World War II: Operation Torch in the North Africa campaign in 1942–1943 and the D-Day invasion of Normandy in 1944.
Born in Hroznatín to a peasant family, Svoboda was drafted to the Austro-Hungarian Army in 1915. A year later he deserted and joined the Czechoslovak Legion, serving in the World War I and the Russian Civil War. Following his return he served in the newly established Czechoslovak Army and participated in the defence of Czechoslovakia in 1938. After being interned in Poland, he helped form the Czechoslovak Legion in the USSR, serving as its commander from 1942 to 1945. Following the war, Svoboda continued his service in the Czechoslovak Army and served as Deputy Minister of Defence from 1946 to 1950, participating in the military crackdown of the Communist coup d'état attempt in February 1948. Svoboda continued rising through the ranks of the military to become the Chief of the General Staff of the Czechoslovak Army from 1956 to 1960. Svoboda retired from the military after 45 years and was discharged with honors after his term expired.
In 1968, a "Draft Svoboda" movement persuaded him to declare his candidacy in the 1968 presidential election; Svoboda had to be convinced that political circumstances had created a genuine duty for him to offer himself as a candidate and that there was a mandate from the public for him to be their president.
As president, Svoboda continued the "active neutrality" policy also known as the Beneš–Masaryk doctrine, under which Czechoslovakia retained its independence while maintaining good relations and extensive trade with the West and the Soviet Union and the Eastern bloc. He hosted the signing of the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT I) in Prague in 1972. In cooperation with prime minister Alexander Dubček, he was active in improving relations with the Soviet Union, Poland and East Germany. He enjoyed a very high esteem and respect among the population for his wartime service and his abilities to unify Czechs and Slovaks across the political spectrum. On the other hand, he has been criticized for his close association with Dubček in domestic politics, his re-election in 1973 marred by allegations of political deal-making, and his perceived hunger for power despite his deteriorating health during the latter part of his presidency. After Svoboda's presidency and the 1978 presidential election tainted by further allegations of political deal-making and corruption, the reform of the Constitution of Czechoslovakia was initiated by his successors to change the election of the president from an indirect election by a joint session of the Federal Assembly to a direct election.
Early life[]
Ludvík Svoboda was born on 25 November 1895 in the Moravian village of Hroznatín, in the district of Velké Meziříčí in Moravia, then a part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. He was born into the old peasant family of Jan (1862–1896) and Františka Svoboda (nee Chalupová, 1868–1959). His father died when he was barely a year old as a result of a kick by a horse. In 1898 his mother married František Nejedlý (1862–1913). Ludvík grew up with an older brother and sister from his mother's first marriage and three siblings from his mother's second marriage. After graduating from the town school, he attended the Provincial Agricultural School in Velké Meziříčí, where he obtained an agronomic education, which he completed with his practice in a winery in Austria. His older sister Marie was already married when Ludvík and his older brother Josef was drafted into the Austro-Hungarian Army in 1915, while their mother and three younger siblings remained alone on the farm in Hroznatín after her second husband's death.
Military career[]
World War I[]
After leaving school in 1915 he was drafted into the 81st Infantry Regiment of the Austro-Hungarian Army and sent to the Eastern Front, while his older brother Josef was sent to the Serbian Front. On 5 August 1916 he deserted and joined the Czechoslovak Legion. In Russia he graduated from officer school and fought in the battles of Zborov in 1917 and Bachmac in 1918, and was twice awarded the Order of St. George. From 1918 to 1920 he fought with the Czechoslovak Legion on the Trans-Siberian Railway against the Bolshevik Red Army. He was promoted to Lieutenant on 6 February 1919 and Captain on 16 August 16 1919 (effective since 1 May 1919). He completed an enlisted officer course on 26 December 1917 and graduated from officers school in the spring of 1919. He returned home with one of the last ship transports to Japan, across the Pacific Ocean, through the Panama Canal and to the USA. In September 1920, having reached the rank of captain, he finally returned to Kroměříž in newly independent Czechoslovakia along with 3rd Regiment of Jan Žižka of Trocnov.
Interwar era[]
Svoboda as an Lieutenant Colonel in the Czechoslovak Army in 1937.
The end of the Russian Civil War saw the Bolshevik regime being left intact, but the Allies had by now sanctioned Czechoslovakia's independence. The legionnaires of the Trans-Siberian Railway returned home, indelibly marked by their peculiar experience. Understandably, many of them shifted politically to the right. Svoboda, in contrast to many of his old comrades in arms, had come to the conclusion that this new Soviet Russia was not going to go away. This realization did not prevent him from at first collaborating with another legionnaire veteran who was likewise anti-Communist. General Lev Prchala was, like Svoboda, a Moravian. He distinguished himself during the Czechoslovak Legion's march across Siberia. As an army general in 1935 he commanded the Military Area of Kosice, and in September 1938 he was the commander of the Fourth Army based in Southern Moravia. Prchala was conservative, even somewhat anti-Semitic. He discouraged Jews and Gypsies from enlisting in the military under his command.
Svoboda returned to Czechoslovakia, where he commanded the 3rd Infantry Regiment in Kroměříž. He was demobilized as a captain and returned home to Hroznatín, where he worked at his father's estate. In 1921 he returned to the army. In 1923 he married Irene Stratilová. From 1931-1934 he was a professor in Hungarian at the Military Academy in Hranice in Moravia. He was also interested in other subjects, particularly in military history and tactical and command exercises. In the years 1934-1938 he again commanded the 3rd Infantry Regiment in Kroměříž. During the general mobilization in 1938 he was assigned as replacement battalion commander.
Svoboda was known as a headstrong officer, and due to his intransigence he did not advance as fast as his colleagues, and before the war he had only reached the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Svoboda had always been interested in public life and participated in it. He was interested in the development of international affairs, particularly in terms of the position of Czechoslovakia and its security. From this perspective, it was an exception among the other officers, and he was recognized and civilian public. When the Spanish Civil War broke out he expressed solidarity with the legal Spanish government of the Popular Front at a public rally. He made no secret of his opposition to the policy of intervention by Nazi Germany and fascist Italy, but also disagreed with the policy of the Czechoslovak and other European countries that refused to help Republican Spain.
World War II[]
Invasion[]
On 30 September 1938, German forces launched an invasion of Czechoslovakia. He was immediately called into action, taking command of 1st Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment of the 14th Division when its commander was killed in a German air strike. He took part in General Prchala's unsuccessful counter offensive against the flank of the German 14th Army in southern Moravia. After the collapse of the 2nd Army the division withdrew towards Slovakia, and also fought heavy battles against the Germans north of Brno in their attempt to escape German encirclement. Being wounded twice i, Svoboda and his narrowly managed to escape German encirclement and subsequently set up positions along the Western Carpathians in hopes of holding off the Germans until they could be assisted by their French and Soviet allies. However, after learning about the Hungarian invasion of Czechoslovakia, Svoboda and his unit retreated north, hoping to reach the Polish border and to continue the fight abroad. He was interned by the Polish authorities when his unit crossed the border on 2 November 1938.
The situation for the interned soldiers was difficult. Svoboda and the other Czechoslovak soldiers were interned for two months with limited food. As the Soviets had invaded Poland, their first choice of train transport Gdynia and then travel to France by sea was now impossible.
Military career in Exile[]
On 5 January 1939 his internment camp was liberated by Soviet forces. He worked with Division General Ondřej Mézl, who formed the Czechoslovak Legion in the USSR on 30 January 1939. The first combat unit, an infantry division, was formed in April 1939 in Polovets'ke (near the Ros River) in the Ukrainian SSR, thus becoming the first Allied unit fighting alongside the Red Army in Soviet territory. It was formed from former members of the Czechoslovak soldiers who had escaped or been liberated from Polish internment camps, Czechoslovak citizens (mostly refugees) living in the Soviet Union, and Volhynian Czechs (Soviet citizens of Czech origin).
Svoboda successfully negotiated with the Soviet government not only the allocation of weapons and equipment for the Legion, but also the transfer of Czechoslovak soldiers to France, and after its fall to Great Britain. In April 1939 he was promoted to colonel and appointed one of the regimental commanders of the 1st Czechoslovak Rifle Division. He first entered battle on 18 July 1939 and distinguished himself in the fighting against Polish forces near Zamość, where he was wounded twice before the division was pulled out on 2 October for regrouping. In 1941 he was promoted to Brigadier General and was given the command of the 2nd Czechoslovak Rifle Division. On 18 April 1942 he was given the command of the Legion. He lead the Legion with distinction through the Battle of Sokolovo in Ukraine in 1943, participated in the Liberation of Ukraine in 1943–1944, in the Battle of the Dukla Pass in the fall of 1944 when, after very heavy fighting, this unit succeeded in crossing the Czechoslovak state border for the first time. Svoboda's charismatic leadership and personal bravery was highly valued by his commanding officer at the time, Soviet marshal Ivan Konev.
Post-war military career[]
Presidency (1968–1978)[]
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Presidency of Ludvík Svoboda | |
|---|---|
| 17 September 1968 – 17 September 1978 | |
| President | Ludvík Svoboda |
| Party | Independent |
| Election | 1968 1973 |
| Seat | Prague Castle |
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| Presidential Standard | |
Overview[]
As a national war hero, Svoboda was immensely popular with the people and enjoyed universal respect across the political spectrum. He enjoyed a very high esteem and respect among the population for his wartime service and his abilities to unify Czechs and Slovaks across the political spectrum. Polls repeatedly indicated that he was one of Czechoslovakia's most trusted politicians.
Svoboda enjoyed a close releationship with prime minister Alexander Dubček of the Czechoslovak Social Democratic Party (ČSSD) throughout his tenure, and was criticized for his close association with Dubček in domestic politics. Svoboda and Dubček did their best to keep political adversaries in check. In 1978, in the wake of the collapse of Lubor Zink's centre-right coalition, Svoboda ignored the political balance of power in the Federal Assembly when he appointed Dubček as prime minister, and tasked him with forming a new government despite a centre-right majority. After failing losing a vote of confidence.
After Svoboda's presidency and the 1978 presidential election tainted by further allegations of political deal-making and corruption, the reform of the Constitution of Czechoslovakia was initiated by his successors to change the election of the president from an indirect election by a joint session of the Federal Assembly to a direct election.
First term (1968–1973)[]
In 1968, a "Draft Svoboda" movement persuaded him to declare his candidacy in the 1968 presidential election; Svoboda had to be convinced that political circumstances had created a genuine duty for him to offer himself as a candidate and that there was a mandate from the public for him to be their president. Enjoying political endorsement by both the left-wing ČSSD and the right-wing Republican Party (RS) and the Czechoslovak People's Party (ČSL), Svoboda
As president, Svoboda continued the Czechoslovak neutrality policy known as the Beneš–Masaryk doctrine. From the beginning, he ruled with the assumption that he enjoyed a special relation with the Soviet Union as Czechoslovak President. Strengthening Czechoslovakia's role as a bridge between East and West, Svoboda cultivated together with Dubček and foreign minister Josef Korbel Prague's role as a diplomatic hub for talks between the superpowers on limiting strategic weapons (Strategic Arms Limitation Talks, SALT), which took place in Prague in 1970, 1971 and 1972. Svoboda was also active in efforts of normalizing relations with West Germany, culminating with the peace treaty between West Germany and Czechoslovakia on 7 December 1970, along with agreements on the boundaries between the two countries, signifying the official and long-delayed end of World War II. He also used his connections with the Soviet Union to improve relations with the Soviet Union, Poland, East Germany, Hungary and other Eastern Bloc (communist) countries. As the Dubček government's adherence to the rapprochements with the Soviet Union and West Germany were controversial, Svoboda's active support provided the policy some credibility among the public.
As a political actor who always had deep and warm feelings for Slovakia, he was particularly popular among the population of Eastern Slovakia. As president he visited Slovakia often and served to strenghten ties between Czechs and Slovaks.
From June 1972 onwards, Svoboda's failing health had become evident. On 18 June 1972, he had suffered a stroke, and he delivered the New Year's speech in 1973 only with great difficulty. Rumors about his declining health had begun to circulate by 1973, but the press attempted to silence these rumors to respect the president's privacy. When he was unable to perform the functions of the presidency from March to August 1973 due to health issues, discussions arose in the Senate to trigger Article 66 of the constitution to remove Svoboda from office. Meanwhile, in the governing coalition there was discussion whether to look for other candidates or to support Svoboda. Svoboda himself, who would be 79 upon re-election, was considering retiring after one term, but instead accepted the nomination by the centre-left parties on 15 June 1973, denying speculation about his health.
Second term (1973–1978)[]
Svoboda was re-elected for a second term in 1973. Unlike in 1968, when his candidacy enjoyed bipartisan support, his nomination was now only supported by the ČSSD, the Czechoslovak National Social Party (ČSNS) and the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ). The right-wing Republican Party (RS) and the Czechoslovak People's Party (ČSL), who had supported the Svoboda candidacy in 1968, were concerned with Svoboda's advanced age and were considering nominating their own candidate. Svoboda's close association with social democratic prime minister Alexander Dubček in domestic politics and endorsement of the rapprochement with the Soviet Union were also sources of criticism by the right-wing parties.
The election was marked by controversy, partisan splits and Cold War rancor as it took two three-round elections to elect the president. The election was criticized for the heated rhetoric on both sides and the appearance of political deal-making and allegations of bribery and corruption. On the second ballot, the Republican Party's candidate Martin Hrabík initially took the lead in the first two rounds of voting, but in the third Svoboda emerged victorious when he received 153 votes, whereas Hrabík finished second with 127 votes. Twenty-four legislators, of which sixteen legislators came from the German and the Hungarian minority parties who were thought to be in favour of Hrabík, had abstained from the voting, a move which the Republicans criticized for the appearance of political deal-making and allegations of corruption by members of Dubček's governing coalition. Similarly, two Republican deputies and one Free Democratic senator were absent for the third vote.
Rumors about his declining health had begun to circulate in the mid to late 1970s, but the press attempted to silence these rumors to respect the president's privacy. Nevertheless, there were speculation that the next election might be held sooner than 1978 due to Svoboda's advanced age and health. He delivered the New Year's speech in 1973 with great difficulty, and he was unable to perform the functions of the presidency from September 1973 to May 1974, when most of the powers were taken over by the government. On 25 April 1974 he was hospitalized after having suffered a lung infarction (lung embolism) on 25 April 1974 and was subsequently hospitalized after having suffered several strokes. During hospitalizations in 1974, 1976 and 1977, discussions arose to alter the constitution constitution to remove Svoboda from office, but he was eventually discharged from hospital and resumed his duties with difficulty. However, after the hospitalisation in October 1977 it was clear he was unable to effectively exercise the duties of the presidency.
According to Czechoslovak historians and political journalists, there were at least three reasons why Svoboda clung on to the Presidency. First, he did not believe that any of his successor candidates would manage Czechoslovakia's Soviet foreign policy well enough. Second, he considered there was room for improvement in Czechoslovak-Soviet relations and that his experience was vital to the process. Third, he believed that by working for as long as possible he would remain healthy and live longer.
Retirement and death[]
For the rest of his life, Ludvík Svoboda lived with his wife Irena in a family villa in Kroměříž buily by the Svoboda family in 1933. He died on 20 September 1979 after a series of strokes. Irena Svobodová followed ten months later, on 17 July 1980.
Svoboda lay in state in the Vladislav Hall at the Prague Castle from 22 September through 25 September; Prime Minister Alexander Dubček announced a three-day mourning period from 22 to 25 September, the date announced by President Rechcígl for the state funeral. The funeral Mass was held at Saint Vitus Cathedral, celebrated by the Archbishop of Prague Dominik Duka. The funeral was attended by several foreign dignitaries, including General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Leonid Brezhnev, U.S. Vice President Walter Mondale, French President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, West German President Karl Carstens, Austrian President Rudolf Kirchschläger, Yugoslav President Josip Broz Tito, Queen Elizabeth II and British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.
During the service, a 21 gun salute was fired in the former president's honour. Afterwards his coffin was carried on a gun carriage from Prague Castle to Patton Avenue on Letná Hill with a military procession accompanied by the sound of the march song of the Czechoslovak Legion in the USSR, Směr Praha ("Direction Prague"). The procession was accompanied by thousands of citizens who came to give him a final goodbye. Finally, as per the family's request, a private ceremony followed at Prague's Strašnice Crematorium, and Svoboda's ashes were transferred to the family tomb in Kroměříž.
Honours and awards[]
See also[]
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