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German Bohemians (german: Deutschböhmen und Deutschmährer, i.e. German Bohemians and German
Moravia Moravia ( , also , ; cs, Morava ; german: link=yes, Mähren ; pl, Morawy ; szl, Morawa; la, Moravia) is a historical region in the east of the Czech Republic and one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The ...
ns), later known as Sudeten Germans, were
ethnic Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...
living in the
Czech lands The Czech lands or the Bohemian lands ( cs, České země ) are the three historical regions of Bohemia, Moravia, and Czech Silesia. Together the three have formed the Czech part of Czechoslovakia since 1918, the Czech Socialist Republic sin ...
of the
Bohemian Crown The Lands of the Bohemian Crown were a number of incorporated states in Central Europe during the medieval and early modern periods connected by feudal relations under the Bohemian kings. The crown lands primarily consisted of the Kingdom of B ...
, which later became an integral part of
Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...
. Before 1945, over three million German Bohemians constituted about 23% of the population of the whole country and about 29.5% of the population of Bohemia and Moravia. Ethnic Germans migrated into the
Kingdom of Bohemia The Kingdom of Bohemia ( cs, České království),; la, link=no, Regnum Bohemiae sometimes in English literature referred to as the Czech Kingdom, was a medieval and early modern monarchy in Central Europe, the predecessor of the modern Czec ...
, an electoral territory of the
Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 unt ...
, from the 11th century, mostly in the border regions of what was later called the "
Sudetenland The Sudetenland ( , ; Czech and sk, Sudety) is the historical German name for the northern, southern, and western areas of former Czechoslovakia which were inhabited primarily by Sudeten Germans. These German speakers had predominated in the ...
", which was named after the Sudeten Mountains. The process of German expansion was known as ''
Ostsiedlung (, literally "East-settling") is the term for the Early Medieval and High Medieval migration-period when ethnic Germans moved into the territories in the eastern part of Francia, East Francia, and the Holy Roman Empire (that Germans had a ...
'' ("Settling of the East"). The name "Sudeten Germans" was adopted during rising nationalism after the fall of
Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
after the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
. After the
Munich Agreement The Munich Agreement ( cs, Mnichovská dohoda; sk, Mníchovská dohoda; german: Münchner Abkommen) was an agreement concluded at Munich on 30 September 1938, by Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and Italy. It provided "cession to Germany ...
, the so-called
Sudetenland The Sudetenland ( , ; Czech and sk, Sudety) is the historical German name for the northern, southern, and western areas of former Czechoslovakia which were inhabited primarily by Sudeten Germans. These German speakers had predominated in the ...
became part of
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
. After the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
, most of the German-speaking population (mostly Roman Catholic with relatively few Protestants) was expelled from Czechoslovakia to Germany and Austria. The area that became known as the Sudetenland possessed chemical works and
lignite Lignite, often referred to as brown coal, is a soft, brown, combustible, sedimentary rock formed from naturally compressed peat. It has a carbon content around 25–35%, and is considered the lowest rank of coal due to its relatively low heat ...
mines as well as textile, china, and glass factories. The Bohemian border with
Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total l ...
was inhabited primarily by Germans. The
Upper Palatine Forest The Upper Palatine Forest (german: Oberpfälzer Wald or ''Böhmischer Wald'', cs, Český les) is a mountain range in Central Europe that is divided between Germany and the Czech Republic. It is part of the larger Bohemian Massif and the Ger ...
, which extends along the Bavarian frontier and into the agricultural areas of southern
Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...
, was an area of German settlement.
Moravia Moravia ( , also , ; cs, Morava ; german: link=yes, Mähren ; pl, Morawy ; szl, Morawa; la, Moravia) is a historical region in the east of the Czech Republic and one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The ...
contained patches of "locked" German territory to the north and south. More characteristic were the German
language island A language island (a calque of German ''Sprachinsel''; also language enclave, language pocket) is an enclave of a language that is surrounded by one or more different languages. The term was introduced in 1847. Peter Auer, Frans Hinskens, Paul Ker ...
s, which were towns inhabited by German minorities and surrounded by Czechs. Sudeten Germans were mostly
Roman Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
, a legacy of centuries of
Austrian Habsburg The term Habsburg Austria may refer to the lands ruled by the Austrian branch of the Habsburgs, or the historical Austria. Depending on the context, it may be defined as: * The Duchy of Austria, after 1453 the Archduchy of Austria * The ''Erblande'' ...
rule. Not all ethnic Germans lived in isolated and well-defined areas; for historical reasons, Czechs and Germans mixed in many places, and Czech-German bilingualism and
code-switching In linguistics, code-switching or language alternation occurs when a speaker alternates between two or more languages, or language varieties, in the context of a single conversation or situation. Code-switching is different from plurilingualis ...
was quite common. Nevertheless, during the second half of the 19th century, Czechs and Germans began to create separate cultural, educational, political and economic institutions, which kept both groups semi-isolated from each other, which continued until the end of the Second World War, when almost all the ethnic Germans were expelled.


Names

In the English language, ethnic Germans who originated in the
Kingdom of Bohemia The Kingdom of Bohemia ( cs, České království),; la, link=no, Regnum Bohemiae sometimes in English literature referred to as the Czech Kingdom, was a medieval and early modern monarchy in Central Europe, the predecessor of the modern Czec ...
were traditionally referred to as "German Bohemians". This appellation utilizes the broad definition of Bohemia, which includes all of the three Bohemian crown lands:
Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...
,
Moravia Moravia ( , also , ; cs, Morava ; german: link=yes, Mähren ; pl, Morawy ; szl, Morawa; la, Moravia) is a historical region in the east of the Czech Republic and one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The ...
and (Austrian) Silesia. In the German language, it is more common to distinguish among the three lands, hence the prominent terms ''Deutschböhmen'' (German Bohemians), ''Deutschmährer'' (German Moravians) and ''Deutschschlesier'' (German Silesians). Even in German the broader use of "Bohemian" is also found. The term "Sudeten Germans" (''Sudetendeutsche'') came about during rising
ethnic nationalism Ethnic nationalism, also known as ethnonationalism, is a form of nationalism wherein the nation and nationality are defined in terms of ethnicity, with emphasis on an ethnocentric (and in some cases an ethnocratic) approach to various politi ...
in the early 20th century, after the fall of the
Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
in the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
. It coincided with the rise of another new term, "the
Sudetenland The Sudetenland ( , ; Czech and sk, Sudety) is the historical German name for the northern, southern, and western areas of former Czechoslovakia which were inhabited primarily by Sudeten Germans. These German speakers had predominated in the ...
", which referred only to the parts of the former Kingdom of Bohemia that were inhabited predominantly by ethnic Germans. These names were derived from the Sudeten Mountains, which form the northern border of the Bohemian lands. As these terms were heavily used by the Nazi German regime to push forward the creation of a
Greater Germanic Reich The Greater Germanic Reich (german: Großgermanisches Reich), fully styled the Greater Germanic Reich of the German Nation (german: Großgermanisches Reich deutscher Nation), was the official state name of the political entity that Nazi Germany ...
, many contemporary Germans avoid them in favour of the traditional names.


Before the First World War


Middle Ages and early modern period

There have been ethnic Germans living in the
Bohemian Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Beer * National Bohemian, a brand brewed by Pabst * Bohemian, a brand of beer brewed by Molson Coors Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, origin ...
crown lands since the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
.Friedrich Prinz (Hrsg.): ''Deutsche Geschichte im Osten Europas: Böhmen und Mähren,'' Siedler, Berlin 2002, . (Teil eines zehnbändigen Gesamtwerks) In the late 12th and in the 13th century the Přemyslid rulers promoted the colonisation of certain areas of their lands by German settlers from the adjacent lands of
Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total l ...
,
Franconia Franconia (german: Franken, ; Franconian dialect: ''Franggn'' ; bar, Frankn) is a region of Germany, characterised by its culture and Franconian dialect (German: ''Fränkisch''). The three administrative regions of Lower, Middle and Upper ...
, Upper Saxony and
Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
during the ''
Ostsiedlung (, literally "East-settling") is the term for the Early Medieval and High Medieval migration-period when ethnic Germans moved into the territories in the eastern part of Francia, East Francia, and the Holy Roman Empire (that Germans had a ...
'' migration. In 1348, the
Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
king
Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...
, also
King of the Romans King of the Romans ( la, Rex Romanorum; german: König der Römer) was the title used by the king of Germany following his election by the princes from the reign of Henry II (1002–1024) onward. The title originally referred to any German k ...
and
Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans ( la, Imperator Romanorum, german: Kaiser der Römer) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period ( la, Imperat ...
(as Charles IV) from 1355, founded the
Charles University in Prague ) , image_name = Carolinum_Logo.svg , image_size = 200px , established = , type = Public, Ancient , budget = 8.9 billion CZK , rector = Milena Králíčková , faculty = 4,057 , administrative_staff = 4,026 , students = 51,438 , under ...
(''Alma Mater Carolina''), the first in
Central Europe Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the a ...
, attended by large German student nations, and its language of education was
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...
. Czechs made up about 20 percent of the students at the time of its founding, and the rest was primarily German. A culturally-significant example of German Bohemian prose from the Middle Ages is the story ''
Der Ackermann aus Böhmen ''Der Ackermann aus Böhmen'' (German for "The Ploughman from Bohemia"), also known as ''Der Ackermann und der Tod'' ("The Ploughman and Death"), is a work of prose in Early New High German by Johannes von Tepl, written around 1401. Sixteen manusc ...
'' ("The Ploughman from Bohemia"), written in
Early New High German Early New High German (ENHG) is a term for the period in the history of the German language generally defined, following Wilhelm Scherer, as the period 1350 to 1650. The term is the standard translation of the German (Fnhd., Frnhd.), introduc ...
by Johannes von Tepl (c. 1350 – 1414) in
Žatec Žatec (; german: Saaz) is a town in Louny District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 19,000 inhabitants. It lies on the Ohře river. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monumen ...
(''Saaz''), who probably had studied
liberal arts Liberal arts education (from Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as La ...
in Prague. For centuries, German Bohemians played important roles in the economy and politics of the Bohemian lands. For example, forest glass production was a common industry for German Bohemians. Though they were living beyond the medieval
Kingdom of Germany The Kingdom of Germany or German Kingdom ( la, regnum Teutonicorum "kingdom of the Germans", "German kingdom", "kingdom of Germany") was the mostly Germanic-speaking East Frankish kingdom, which was formed by the Treaty of Verdun in 843, espec ...
, an independent German Bohemian awareness, however, was not widespread, and for a long time, it played no decisive role in everyday life. Individuals were usually seen as Bohemians, Moravians or Silesians. Defining events later in German Bohemian history were the
Hussite Wars The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars or the Hussite Revolution, were a series of civil wars fought between the Hussites and the combined Catholic forces of Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor, Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, the Papacy, Eur ...
, the occupation of Bohemia by the Czech Brethren, the
Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of batt ...
, when the
Lands of the Bohemian Crown The Lands of the Bohemian Crown were a number of incorporated states in Central Europe during the medieval and early modern periods connected by feudal relations under the Bohemian kings. The crown lands primarily consisted of the Kingdom o ...
were severely affected, which caused the immigration of further German settlers. After the death of King Louis II of Hungary and Bohemia in the 1526
Battle of Mohács The Battle of Mohács (; hu, mohácsi csata, tr, Mohaç Muharebesi or Mohaç Savaşı) was fought on 29 August 1526 near Mohács, Kingdom of Hungary, between the forces of the Kingdom of Hungary and its allies, led by Louis II, and thos ...
, the
Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...
Archduke Ferdinand of Austria became King of Bohemia, which became a constituent state of the
Habsburg monarchy The Habsburg monarchy (german: Habsburgermonarchie, ), also known as the Danubian monarchy (german: Donaumonarchie, ), or Habsburg Empire (german: Habsburgerreich, ), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities ...
. With the rise of the Habsburgs in Bohemia after the 1620
Battle of White Mountain The Battle of White Mountain ( cz, Bitva na Bílé hoře; german: Schlacht am Weißen Berg) was an important battle in the early stages of the Thirty Years' War. It led to the defeat of the Bohemian Revolt and ensured Habsburg control for the n ...
, the old
Bohemian nobility Czech nobility consists of the noble families from historical Czech lands, especially in their narrow sense, i.e. nobility of Bohemia proper, Moravia and Austrian Silesia – whether these families originated from those countries or moved into them ...
became virtually meaningless. Increasingly, the Bohemian crown lands were ruled from the Austrian capital,
Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...
, which favoured the dominance of the
German language German ( ) is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Italian province of South Tyrol. It is also a ...
and
German culture The culture of Germany has been shaped by major intellectual and popular currents in Europe, both religious and secular. Historically, Germany has been called ''Das Land der Dichter und Denker'' (the country of poets and thinkers). German cult ...
. On the other hand, the 18th-century
Silesian Wars The Silesian Wars (german: Schlesische Kriege, links=no) were three wars fought in the mid-18th century between Prussia (under King Frederick the Great) and Habsburg Austria (under Archduchess Maria Theresa) for control of the Central European ...
started by Prussian King
Frederick II of Prussia Frederick II (german: Friedrich II.; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was King in Prussia from 1740 until 1772, and King of Prussia from 1772 until his death in 1786. His most significant accomplishments include his military successes in the S ...
against Austria resulted in the loss of the traditionally-Bohemian crown land and weakened Germans in the remaining parts of Bohemia. As the 19th century arrived, resistance to the German domination began to develop among the Czechs.


Austria-Hungary

After the
revolutions of 1848 The Revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the Springtime of the Peoples or the Springtime of Nations, were a series of political upheavals throughout Europe starting in 1848. It remains the most widespread revolutionary wave in Europ ...
and the rise of
ethnic nationalism Ethnic nationalism, also known as ethnonationalism, is a form of nationalism wherein the nation and nationality are defined in terms of ethnicity, with emphasis on an ethnocentric (and in some cases an ethnocratic) approach to various politi ...
, nervousness about ethnic tensions in
Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
resulted in a prevailing equality between
Czechs The Czechs ( cs, Češi, ; singular Czech, masculine: ''Čech'' , singular feminine: ''Češka'' ), or the Czech people (), are a West Slavic ethnic group and a nation native to the Czech Republic in Central Europe, who share a common ancestry, ...
and German Bohemians. Each ethnicity tried to retain, in regions in which it was the majority, sovereignty over its own affairs. Czechs and Germans generally maintained separate schools, churches and public institutions. Nevertheless, despite the separation, Germans often understood some Czech, and Czechs often spoke some German. Cities like Prague, however, saw more mixing between the ethnicities and also had large populations of
Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
; Germans living with Czechs fluently spoke Czech and code-switched between German and Czech when talking to Czechs and other Germans. Jews in Bohemia often spoke German and sometimes
Yiddish Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ve ...
. The famed writer
Franz Kafka Franz Kafka (3 July 1883 – 3 June 1924) was a German-speaking Bohemian novelist and short-story writer, widely regarded as one of the major figures of 20th-century literature. His work fuses elements of realism and the fantastic. It typ ...
exemplifies the diversity of Bohemia since he was a Prague-based German-speaking Jew, but his surname was of Czech origin. In 1867, the equality of Austrian citizens of all ethnicities was guaranteed by the
Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 The Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 (german: Ausgleich, hu, Kiegyezés) established the dual monarchy of Austria-Hungary. The Compromise only partially re-established the former pre-1848 sovereignty and status of the Kingdom of Hunga ...
, which enshrined the principles of
constitutional monarchy A constitutional monarchy, parliamentary monarchy, or democratic monarchy is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in decision making. Constitutional monarchies dif ...
. The agreement established the Dual Monarchy and gave the
Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars ( ; hu, magyarok ), are a nation and  ethnic group native to Hungary () and historical Hungarian lands who share a common culture, history, ancestry, and language. The Hungarian language belongs to the ...
sovereignty over their own affairs. The preservation of German cultural dominance throughout
Cisleithania Cisleithania, also ''Zisleithanien'' sl, Cislajtanija hu, Ciszlajtánia cs, Předlitavsko sk, Predlitavsko pl, Przedlitawia sh-Cyrl-Latn, Цислајтанија, Cislajtanija ro, Cisleithania uk, Цислейтанія, Tsysleitaniia it, Cislei ...
had proved to be difficult and now seemed to be was utterly impossible. With the agreement, the desire for an autonomous Czech subdivision was mounting. Both German Bohemians and Czechs were hoping for a constitutional solution to the demands, but Czech nationalist views remained a constant part of the Bohemian political sphere. The Czechs had feared
Germanization Germanisation, or Germanization, is the spread of the German language, people and culture. It was a central idea of German conservative thought in the 19th and the 20th centuries, when conservatism and ethnic nationalism went hand in hand. In ling ...
, but the Germans now worried about
Czechization Czechization or Czechisation ( cs, čechizace, počeštění; german: Tschechisierung) is a cultural change in which something ethnically non-Czech is made to become Czech. This concept is especially relevant in relation to the Germans of Bohemia ...
. A symbol of the rising tensions was the fate of Charles University, then called
Charles-Ferdinand University ) , image_name = Carolinum_Logo.svg , image_size = 200px , established = , type = Public, Ancient , budget = 8.9 billion CZK , rector = Milena Králíčková , faculty = 4,057 , administrative_staff = 4,026 , students = 51,438 , underg ...
. Its Czech students had become increasingly perturbed by the sole use of German for instruction. During the
1848 revolution The Revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the Springtime of the Peoples or the Springtime of Nations, were a series of political upheavals throughout Europe starting in 1848. It remains the most widespread revolutionary wave in Europe ...
, both Germans and Czechs fought to make Czech one of the university's official languages. They achieved that right, and the university became bilingual. By 1863, out of 187 lecture courses, 22 were held in Czech, the remainder being in German. In 1864, some Germans suggested the creation of a separate Czech university. Czech professors rejected that because they did not wish to lose the continuity of university traditions. The Czechs, however, were still not satisfied with bilingual status and proposed creating two separate constituent
college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offerin ...
s, one for the Germans and one for the Czechs. The Germans vetoed the proposal and called for a full division of the university. After long negotiations, it was divided into the German Charles-Ferdinand University and the Czech Charles-Ferdinand University. The Cisleithanian Imperial Council prepared an act of parliament, and the emperor granted
royal assent Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in oth ...
on 28 February 1882. In 1907, the Cisleithanian Imperial Council was for the first time elected by universal male suffrage. As part of the process, new constituency boundaries had to be drawn throughout the empire. Electoral officials were very careful to demarcate areas as clearly either German or Czech and to assure that there would be no conflict as to which ethnicity had a majority in any constituency. Nevertheless, that did not settle tensions among Czechs, who wanted to govern themselves from Prague. Archduke
Franz Ferdinand Archduke Franz Ferdinand Carl Ludwig Joseph Maria of Austria, (18 December 1863 – 28 June 1914) was the heir presumptive to the throne of Austria-Hungary. His assassination in Sarajevo was the most immediate cause of World War I. Fr ...
came up with a plan, known as the United States of Greater Austria, in 1909. German Bohemia, as it was to be called, was going to be separated from the Czech areas around it in the plan. That would create ethnically homogenous self-governing provinces that would hopefully end the ethnic conflict. However, Franz Ferdinand was assassinated, and the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
destroyed all hopes for a redrawn Cisleithania.


Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye

The end of the war in 1918 brought about the partition of the multiethnic
Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
into its historical components, one of them, the Bohemian Kingdom, forming the west of the newly created Czechoslovakia. Czech politicians insisted on the traditional boundaries of the
Bohemian Crown The Lands of the Bohemian Crown were a number of incorporated states in Central Europe during the medieval and early modern periods connected by feudal relations under the Bohemian kings. The crown lands primarily consisted of the Kingdom of B ...
according to the principle of '' uti possidetis juris''. The new Czech state would thus have defensible mountain boundaries with Germany, but the highly industrialised settlement areas of three million Germans would now be separated from Austria and come under Czech control. The Austrian head of government,
Ernst Seidler von Feuchtenegg Ernst Wilhelm Engelhardt Ritter Seidler von Feuchtenegg (5 June 1862, Schwechat, Lower Austria – 23 January 1931, Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type ...
, wanted to divide Bohemia by setting up administrative counties (''Verwaltungskreisen''), which would be based on the nationalities of the population. On 26 September 1918, his successor,
Max Hussarek von Heinlein Maximilian Hussarek von Heinlein (3 May 1865 – 6 March 1935), ennobled to the rank of Baron (''Freiherr'') in 1917, was an Austrian statesman who served as the penultimate Minister-President of Cisleithania in the last stage of World War I ...
, offered the Czechs wide-ranging autonomy within Imperial and Royal Austria. However, because exiled Czechs had already achieved the entrance of the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
in the war as an associate power of the
Triple Entente The Triple Entente (from French '' entente'' meaning "friendship, understanding, agreement") describes the informal understanding between the Russian Empire, the French Third Republic, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland as well a ...
. Also, Austria was no longer considered to be a major power by the victors of the war.


Province of German Bohemia

On 14 October, Raphael Pacher succeeded, together with the social democrat, Josef Seliger, in uniting all German parties and members of parliament in Bohemia and Moravia into a coalition. In preparation for the foundation of the Republic of German Bohemia, the coalition, chaired by Pacher, appointed a committee of twelve members. One day after the proclamation of the Republic of Czechoslovakia, on 29 October 1918, the Province of German Bohemia was formed with its capital in Reichenberg. Its first governor was Raphael Pacher, who transferred his office on 5 November to Rudolf Lodgman von Auen. The Province of German Bohemia comprised a contiguous region in North and West Bohemia stretching from the
Egerland The Egerland ( cs, Chebsko; german: Egerland; Egerland German dialect: ''Eghalånd'') is a historical region in the far north west of Bohemia in what is today the Czech Republic, at the border with Germany. It is named after the German name ''Eg ...
to the Braunau region along the border with the German Empire. In South Bohemia the administrative unit of Böhmerwaldgau emerged, which was to be part of
Upper Austria Upper Austria (german: Oberösterreich ; bar, Obaöstareich) is one of the nine states or of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, an ...
. German Bohemia in the Eagle Mountains and in the area of Landskron merged with the so-called "Province of the Sudetenland", which had radically different borders than the later understanding of the term. The Bohemian district of Neubistritz was incorporated into
Znaim Znojmo (; german: Znaim) is a town in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 33,000 inhabitants. Znojmo is the historical and cultural centre of southwestern Moravia and the second most populated town in the South Moravian ...
and was supposed to be administered by Lower Austria. The judiciary for German Bohemia was based in Reichenberg, and
Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...
was responsible for the other German regions. On 22 November 1918, the Province of German Bohemia proclaimed itself part of the state of
German Austria The Republic of German-Austria (german: Republik Deutschösterreich or ) was an unrecognised state that was created following World War I as an initial rump state for areas with a predominantly German-speaking and ethnic German population ...
. On the same day, the territory of German Austria was defined by the Act of the "Provisional National Assembly" (''Provisorische Nationalversammlung''), which included German Bohemian and German Moravian members of the former Cisleithanian Imperial Council. In addition to the establishment of the state's governmental organisation, higher authorities were also created, such as the Finance Ministry, the Department of Agriculture and the Higher Regional Court of Reichenberg as well as a general post office and railway administration. For geographical reasons, however, a territorial solution would have been impossible unless those regions, together with Austria, had been incorporated into
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
. After the Czechoslovak Republic was proclaimed on 28 October 1918, the German Bohemians, claiming the right to
self-determination The right of a people to self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international law (commonly regarded as a '' jus cogens'' rule), binding, as such, on the United Nations as authoritative interpretation of the Charter's norms. It sta ...
according to the tenth of US President
Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...
’s Fourteen Points, demanded that their homeland areas remain with Austria, which by then had been reduced to the Republic of
German Austria The Republic of German-Austria (german: Republik Deutschösterreich or ) was an unrecognised state that was created following World War I as an initial rump state for areas with a predominantly German-speaking and ethnic German population ...
. The German Bohemians relied mostly on peaceful opposition to the occupation of their homeland by the Czech military, which started on 31 October 1918 and was completed on 28 January 1919. Fighting took place sporadically, resulting in the deaths of a few dozen Germans and Czechs. On 4 March 1919, almost the entire ethnic German population peacefully demonstrated for its right to self-determination. The demonstrations were accompanied by a one-day general strike. The
German Social Democratic Workers Party in the Czechoslovak Republic The German Social Democratic Workers' Party in the Czechoslovak Republic (DSAP, ''Deutsche sozialdemokratische Arbeiterpartei in der Tschechoslowakischen Republik''; cs, Německá sociálně demokratická strana dělnická v Československé repub ...
, then the largest party, was responsible for the demonstration initiative, but it was also supported by other bourgeois German parties. The mass demonstrations were put down by the Czech military, involving 54 deaths and 84 wounded. American diplomat
Archibald Coolidge Archibald Cary Coolidge (March 6, 1866 – January 14, 1928) was an American educator and diplomat. He was a professor of history at Harvard College from 1908 and the first director of the Harvard University Library from 1910 until his death. Co ...
insisted on respecting the Germans' right to
self-determination The right of a people to self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international law (commonly regarded as a '' jus cogens'' rule), binding, as such, on the United Nations as authoritative interpretation of the Charter's norms. It sta ...
and uniting all German-speaking areas with either Germany or Austria, with the exception of northern Bohemia. However, the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, on 10 September 1919, made it clear that German Bohemia would not become part of the new Austrian Republic. Instead, it would become part of
Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...
. The new state regarded ethnic Germans as an
ethnic minority The term 'minority group' has different usages depending on the context. According to its common usage, a minority group can simply be understood in terms of demographic sizes within a population: i.e. a group in society with the least number o ...
. Nevertheless, some 90 percent lived in territories in which they represented 90 percent or more of the population.


Demography

In 1921, the population of multi-ethnic Czechoslovakia comprised 6.6 million Czechs, 3.2 million Germans, two million
Slovaks The Slovaks ( sk, Slováci, singular: ''Slovák'', feminine: ''Slovenka'', plural: ''Slovenky'') are a West Slavic ethnic group and nation native to Slovakia who share a common ancestry, culture, history and speak Slovak. In Slovakia, 4.4 mi ...
, 0.7 million
Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars ( ; hu, magyarok ), are a nation and  ethnic group native to Hungary () and historical Hungarian lands who share a common culture, history, ancestry, and language. The Hungarian language belongs to the ...
, half a million
Ruthenians Ruthenian and Ruthene are exonyms of Latin origin, formerly used in Eastern and Central Europe as common ethnonyms for East Slavs, particularly during the late medieval and early modern periods. The Latin term Rutheni was used in medieval sou ...
(Rusyns), 300,000
Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""T ...
s, and 100,000
Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, who share a common history, culture, the Polish language and are identified with the country of Poland in ...
, as well as
Gypsies The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...
,
Croats The Croats (; hr, Hrvati ) are a South Slavic ethnic group who share a common Croatian ancestry, culture, history and language. They are also a recognized minority in a number of neighboring countries, namely Austria, the Czech Republic ...
and other ethnic groups. German-speakers represented a third of the population of the Bohemian lands and about 23.4 percent of the population of the whole republic (13.6 million). The Sudetenland possessed huge chemical works and
lignite Lignite, often referred to as brown coal, is a soft, brown, combustible, sedimentary rock formed from naturally compressed peat. It has a carbon content around 25–35%, and is considered the lowest rank of coal due to its relatively low heat ...
mines as well as textile, china, and glass factories. To the west, a triangle of historic ethnic German settlement surrounding
Eger Eger ( , ; ; also known by other alternative names) is the county seat of Heves County, and the second largest city in Northern Hungary (after Miskolc). A city with county rights. Eger is best known for its castle, thermal baths, baroque bui ...
was the most active area for pan-German nationalism. The
Upper Palatinate Forest The Upper Palatine Forest (german: Oberpfälzer Wald or ''Böhmischer Wald'', cs, Český les) is a mountain range in Central Europe that is divided between Germany and the Czech Republic. It is part of the larger Bohemian Massif and the Germa ...
, an area that was primarily populated by Germans, extended along the Bavarian frontier to the poor agricultural areas of southern
Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...
.
Moravia Moravia ( , also , ; cs, Morava ; german: link=yes, Mähren ; pl, Morawy ; szl, Morawa; la, Moravia) is a historical region in the east of the Czech Republic and one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The ...
contained many patches of ethnic German settlement in the north and the south. Most typical in those areas were German "language islands", towns inhabited by ethnic Germans but surrounded by rural Czechs. Extreme German nationalism was never prevalent in those areas. German nationalism in the coal-mining region of southern
Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. S ...
, which was 40.5% German, was restrained by fear of competition from industry in the
Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic (german: link=no, Weimarer Republik ), officially named the German Reich, was the government of Germany from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a Constitutional republic, constitutional federal republic for the first time in ...
.


Gradual general acceptance of Czechoslovak citizenship

Many Germans felt that the new constitution failed to fulfil what the Czechs had promised in the
Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye (1919) The Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye (french: Traité de Saint-Germain-en-Laye) was signed on 10 September 1919 by the victorious Allies of World War I on the one hand and by the Republic of German-Austria on the other. Like the Treaty of Tri ...
because there were too few minority rights. However, they gradually accepted remaining in Czechoslovakia and took part in the first elections in 1920. In 1926, the first Germans became minister ( Robert Mayr-Harting and
Franz Spina Franz Spina (5 October 1868 in Markt Türnau, Austria-Hungary – 17 September 1938 in Prague, Czechoslovakia) was German-Czechoslovakian right-wing and activist politician of the First Republic Era. Franz Spina was chairman of Bund der Landwirt ...
), and the first German political party became part of the government ( German Christian Social People's Party and
Farmers' League Farmers' League (german: Bund der Landwirte, BdL, cs, Německý svaz zemědělců) was an ethnic German agrarian political party in Czechoslovakia. Ideologically the party was moderately conservative, having its base in the Sudetenland countr ...
).


Politics

German nationalist sentiment ran high during the early years of the republic. Sudeten representatives tried to join Austria or Germany or at least to obtain as much autonomy. The constitution of 1920 was drafted without Sudeten German representation, and Sudetens declined to participate in the election of the president. Sudeten political parties pursued an "obstructionist" (or negativist) policy in the Czechoslovak parliament. In 1926, however, German Chancellor
Gustav Stresemann Gustav Ernst Stresemann (; 10 May 1878 – 3 October 1929) was a German statesman who served as chancellor in 1923 (for 102 days) and as foreign minister from 1923 to 1929, during the Weimar Republic. His most notable achievement was the reconci ...
, adopting a policy of rapprochement with the West, advised the Sudeten Germans to co-operate actively with the Czechoslovak government. In consequence, most Sudeten German parties (including the German Agrarian Party, the German Social Democratic Party and the German Christian Socialist People's Party) changed their policy from negativism to activism, and several Sudeten politicians even accepted cabinet posts. At a party conference in
Teplitz Teplice () (until 1948 Teplice-Šanov; german: Teplitz-Schönau or ''Teplitz'') is a city in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 49,000 inhabitants. It is the second largest Czech spa town, after Karlovy Vary. The hist ...
in 1919, the provincial Social Democratic Parties of Bohemia, Moravia and Sudeten-Silesia united to form the '' Deutsche Sozialdemokratische Arbeiterpartei'' (DSAP) and elected Josef Seliger as chairman. After Seliger's untimely death in 1920, Ludwig Czech became party chairman, who was succeeded in 1938 by Wenzel Jaksch. Already in 1936, Jaksch, together with Hans Schütz of the German Christian Social People's Party (''Deutsche Christlich-Soziale Volkspartei'') and Gustav Hacker of the Farmers' Association (''Bund der Landwirte'', formed the '' Jungaktivisten'' (Young Activists). They sought agreement with the Czechoslovak government on a policy that could withstand the Nazi onslaught from within and from outside Czechoslovakia. At simultaneous mass rallies in Tetschen-Bodenbach/Děčín, Saaz/Žatec and Olešnice v Orlických horách/Gießhübl im Adlergebirge on April 26, 1936, they demanded equal opportunities in civil service for Germans, financial assistance for German businesses, official acceptance of the
German language German ( ) is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Italian province of South Tyrol. It is also a ...
for public servants in the Sudetenland and measures to reduce unemployment in the Sudetenland. (At the time, one in three was unemployed in the Sudetenland, compared to one in five in the rest of the country.) Improving the quality of life of the Sudeten Germans was not the only motivation of the Jungaktivists. For Jaksch and his social democratic compatriots, it was a question of survival after a possible Nazi takeover. Of some 80,000 social democrats in Czechoslovakia, only about 5,000 would manage to flee the Nazis. The rest were incarcerated, and many of them were executed. Many of those who survived the Nazi persecution were later expelled, together with other Sudeten Germans, on the basis of
Beneš decrees The Beneš decrees, sk, Dekréty prezidenta republiky) and the Constitutional Decrees of the President of the Republic ( cz, Ústavní dekrety presidenta republiky, sk, Ústavné dekréty prezidenta republiky) were a series of laws drafted by t ...
. By 1929, only a small number of Sudeten German deputies, most of them members of the German National Party, supported by the propertied classes, and the German National Socialist Workers' Party, remained opposed to the Czechoslovak government. Nationalist sentiment flourished, however, among Sudeten German youths, who had a variety of organizations, such as the older ''Deutsche Turnverband'' and ''Schutzvereine'', the '' Kameradschaftsbund'', the Nazi ''
Volkssport The Volkssport ( German Verband Volkssport, Nazionalsozialistischer Verband für Wandern, Radfahren, Spiel und Sport aller Art) was the paramilitary wing of the German National Socialist Workers' Party (DNSAP) in Czechoslovakia between 1929 and ...
'' (1929) and the ''Bereitschaft''.


Rise of Nazis

The Sudeten German nationalists, particularly the Nazis, expanded their activities after the Depression started. On 30 January 1933,
Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and the ...
was appointed chancellor of Germany. The Czechoslovak government prepared to suppress the Sudeten Nazi Party. In the autumn of 1933, the Sudeten Nazis dissolved their organization, and the German Nationals were pressured to do likewise. The government expelled German Nationals and Sudeten Nazis from local government positions. The Sudeten German population was indignant, especially in nationalist strongholds like
Egerland The Egerland ( cs, Chebsko; german: Egerland; Egerland German dialect: ''Eghalånd'') is a historical region in the far north west of Bohemia in what is today the Czech Republic, at the border with Germany. It is named after the German name ''Eg ...
. On 1 October 1933,
Konrad Henlein Konrad Ernst Eduard Henlein (6 May 1898 – 10 May 1945) was a leading Sudeten German politician in Czechoslovakia. Upon the German occupation in October 1938 he joined the Nazi Party as well as the '' SS'' and was appointed ''Gauleiter'' of t ...
with his deputy,
Karl Hermann Frank Karl Hermann Frank (24 January 1898 – 22 May 1946) was a prominent Sudeten German Nazi official in the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia prior to and during World War II. Attaining the rank of '' Obergruppenführer'', he was in command of th ...
, aided by other members of the '' Kameradschaftsbund'', a youth organization of mystical orientation, created a new political organisation. The Sudeten German Home Front (''Sudetendeutsche Heimatfront'') professed loyalty to Czechoslovakia but championed decentralization. It absorbed most former German Nationals and Sudeten Nazis. In 1935, the Sudeten German Home Front became the
Sudeten German Party The Sudeten German Party (german: Sudetendeutsche Partei, SdP, cs, Sudetoněmecká strana) was created by Konrad Henlein under the name ''Sudetendeutsche Heimatfront'' ("Front of the Sudeten German Homeland") on 1 October 1933, some months afte ...
(''Sudetendeutsche Partei'') (SdP) and embarked on an active propaganda campaign. In the May election, the SdP won more than 60% of the Sudeten German vote. The German Agrarians, Christian Socialists and Social Democrats each lost approximately half of their followers. The SdP became the centre of German nationalist forces. The party represented itself as striving for a just settlement of Sudeten German claims within the framework of Czechoslovak democracy. Henlein, however, maintained secret contact with
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
and received material aid from
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...
, which told him to refuse every concession offered by Czechoslovakia. The SdP endorsed the idea of a ''Führer'' and mimicked Nazi methods with banners, slogans and uniformed troops. Concessions offered by the Czechoslovak government, including the installation of exclusively Sudeten German officials in Sudeten German areas and the possible participation of the SdP in the cabinet, were rejected. By 1937, most SdP leaders supported Hitler's pan-German objectives. On 13 March 1938, the
Third Reich Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
annexed
Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
during the ''
Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the German Reich on 13 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a " Greater Germa ...
''. Immediately, many Sudeten Germans supported Henlein. On 22 March, the German Agrarian Party, led by Gustav Hacker, merged with the SdP. German Christian Socialists in Czechoslovakia suspended their activities on 24 March; their deputies and senators entered the SdP parliamentary club. Although the Social Democrats continued to champion democratic freedoms, the masses supported the SdP.


Czechoslovak Chamber of Deputies (1920–1935)

The table below shows the number of seats German parties and German–Hungarian lists gained in the Czechoslovak Chamber of Deputies between 1920 and 1935. * Hungarian Parties and Sudeten German Electoral Bloc (1935): German Democratic Liberal Party, German Industrialist Party, Party of German Nation, Sudeten German Land Union, German Workers Party, Zips German Party, Provincial Christian Social Party, Hungarian National Party


Munich Agreements

Konrad Henlein Konrad Ernst Eduard Henlein (6 May 1898 – 10 May 1945) was a leading Sudeten German politician in Czechoslovakia. Upon the German occupation in October 1938 he joined the Nazi Party as well as the '' SS'' and was appointed ''Gauleiter'' of t ...
met with Hitler in Berlin on 28 March 1938 and was told to raise demands that would be unacceptable to the Czechoslovak government. In the Carlsbad Decrees, issued on 24 April at the Carlsbad convention, the SdP demanded complete autonomy for the Sudetenland and freedom to profess Nazi ideology. If Henlein's demands had been granted, the Sudetenland would have been in a position to align itself with Nazi Germany. As the political situation worsened, the security in Sudetenland deteriorated. The region became the site of small-scale clashes between young SdP followers, equipped with arms smuggled from Germany, and police and border forces. In some places, the regular army was called in to pacify the situation. Nazi propaganda accused the Czech government and Czechs of atrocities on innocent Germans. The Czechoslovaki public started to prepare for an inevitable war, such as by training with gas masks. On 20 May, Czechoslovakia initiated a so-called "partial mobilization" (literally "special military precaution") in response to rumours of German troop movements. The army moved into position on the border. Western powers tried to calm down the situation and forced Czechoslovakia to comply with most of the Carlsbad Decrees. However the SdP, instructed to continue to push towards war, escalated the situation with more protests and violence. With the help of special Nazi forces, the ''Sudetendeutsche Freikorps'' (paramilitary groups trained in Germany by SS-instructors) took over some border areas and committed many crimes: they killed more than 110 Czechoslovaks (mostly soldiers and policemen) and kidnapped over 2,020 Czechoslovak citizens (including German antifascists), taking them to
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
.Zimmermann, Volker: ''Die Sudetendeutschen im NS-Staat. Politik und Stimmung der Bevölkerung im Reichsgau Sudetenland (1938–1945)''. Essen 1999. () In August, British Prime Minister
Neville Chamberlain Arthur Neville Chamberlain (; 18 March 18699 November 1940) was a British politician of the Conservative Party who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from May 1937 to May 1940. He is best known for his foreign policy of appeaseme ...
sent Lord Runciman, a faithful appeaser, to Czechoslovakia to see if he could obtain a settlement between the Czechoslovak government and the Sudeten Germans. His mission failed because Henlein refused all conciliating proposals under secret orders by Hitler. The
Runciman Report The Runciman Report
was published by in 2000 by the UK policing think tank the , signed September 29 by Britain, France, Germany and Italy and negotiated without Czechoslovak participation, only confirmed that decision and the negotiated details. Czechoslovakia ceded a German-defined maximalist extension of Sudetenland to Germany, including the Škoda Works; near Pilsen, they had been Czechoslovakia's primary armaments factory. As a result, Bohemia and Moravia lost about 38 percent of their combined area, and 3.65 million inhabitants (2.82 million Germans and approximately 513,000 – 750,000 Czechs to Germany).


Under Nazi rule

Some 250,000 Germans remained on the Czech side of the border, which later became part of the Reich by the establishment of the
Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia The Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia; cs, Protektorát Čechy a Morava; its territory was called by the Nazis ("the rest of Czechia"). was a partially annexed territory of Nazi Germany established on 16 March 1939 following the German oc ...
under German governors and the German Army. Almost all the Germans in these Czech territories were subsequently granted German citizenship, while most of the Germans in Slovakia obtained citizenship of the
Slovak state Slovak may refer to: * Something from, related to, or belonging to Slovakia (''Slovenská republika'') * Slovaks The Slovaks ( sk, Slováci, singular: ''Slovák'', feminine: ''Slovenka'', plural: ''Slovenky'') are a West Slavic ethnic group ...
. With the establishment of German rule, hundreds of thousands of Czechs who (under the policy of Czechification) had moved into the Sudetenland after 1919 left the area, some willingly. They were, however, permitted to take away their possessions and to legally sell their houses and land. A few, however, remained. In elections held on 4 December 1938, 97.32% of the adult population in Sudetenland voted for the
NSDAP The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported t ...
(most of the rest were Czechs who were allowed to vote as well). About half a million Sudeten Germans joined the
Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported t ...
, which amounted to 17.34% of the German population in the Sudetenland (the average in
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
was 7.85%). Because of their knowledge of the
Czech language Czech (; Czech ), historically also Bohemian (; ''lingua Bohemica'' in Latin), is a West Slavic language of the Czech–Slovak group, written in Latin script. Spoken by over 10 million people, it serves as the official language of the Czech Re ...
, many Sudeten Germans were employed in the administration of the
Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia The Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia; cs, Protektorát Čechy a Morava; its territory was called by the Nazis ("the rest of Czechia"). was a partially annexed territory of Nazi Germany established on 16 March 1939 following the German oc ...
as well as in the Nazi oppressive machinery such as the
Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one orga ...
. The most notable was
Karl Hermann Frank Karl Hermann Frank (24 January 1898 – 22 May 1946) was a prominent Sudeten German Nazi official in the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia prior to and during World War II. Attaining the rank of '' Obergruppenführer'', he was in command of th ...
, the SS and Police general and Secretary of State in the Protectorate. After the establishment of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, almost all Bohemian and Moravian Jews, many of whom were primarily German-speaking, were deported and murdered by the authorities. The Nazis evacuated about 120,000 Germans (mostly women and children) to the
Sudetenland The Sudetenland ( , ; Czech and sk, Sudety) is the historical German name for the northern, southern, and western areas of former Czechoslovakia which were inhabited primarily by Sudeten Germans. These German speakers had predominated in the ...
and the
Protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over most of its in ...
.


Expulsion and transfer

In the aftermath of World War II, when the Czechoslovak state was restored, the government expelled the majority of ethnic Germans (about 3 million altogether), in the belief that their behaviour had been a major cause of the war and subsequent destruction. In the months directly following the end of the war, "wild" expulsions happened from May until August 1945. Several Czechoslovak statesmen encouraged such expulsions with polemical speeches. Generally local authorities ordered the expulsions, which armed volunteers carried out. In some cases the regular army initiated or assisted such expulsions. Several thousand Germans were murdered during the expulsion, and many more died from hunger and illness as a consequence of becoming refugees. The regular transfer of ethnic nationals among nations, authorized according to the
Potsdam Conference The Potsdam Conference (german: Potsdamer Konferenz) was held at Potsdam in the Soviet occupation zone from July 17 to August 2, 1945, to allow the three leading Allies to plan the postwar peace, while avoiding the mistakes of the Paris P ...
, proceeded from 25 January 1946 until October 1946. An estimated 1.6 million "ethnic Germans" (most of them also had Czech ancestors; and even Czechs, who spoke mainly German over the last years), were deported from Czechoslovakia to the
American zone Germany was already de facto occupied by the Allies from the real fall of Nazi Germany in World War II on 8 May 1945 to the establishment of the East Germany on 7 October 1949. The Allies (United States, United Kingdom, Soviet Union, and Franc ...
of what would become
West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 ...
. An estimated 800,000 were deported to the Soviet zone (in what would become
East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In t ...
). Estimates of casualties related to this expulsion range between 20,000 and 200,000 people, depending on source.P. WALLACE/BERLI
"Putting The Past To Rest"
''
Time Magazine ''Time'' (stylized in all caps) is an American news magazine based in New York City. For nearly a century, it was published weekly, but starting in March 2020 it transitioned to every other week. It was first published in New York City on Ma ...
'' Monday, Mar. 11, 2002
Casualties included primarily violent deaths and suicides, rapes, deaths in
internment camp Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simp ...
s and natural causes.Z. Beneš, Rozumět dějinám. () Even the German-speaking
Charles-Ferdinand University ) , image_name = Carolinum_Logo.svg , image_size = 200px , established = , type = Public, Ancient , budget = 8.9 billion CZK , rector = Milena Králíčková , faculty = 4,057 , administrative_staff = 4,026 , students = 51,438 , underg ...
in
Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...
could not escape expulsion. The remaining faculty, students, and administrators fled to
Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and ...
in
Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total l ...
, where they established the Collegium Carolinum, a research institute for the study of the Bohemian lands. The ''
Sudetendeutsche Landsmannschaft The Sudetendeutsche Landsmannschaft ( en, Sudeten German Homeland Association) is an organization representing Sudeten German expellees and refugees from the Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia. Most of them were forcibly expelled and deported to wes ...
'' claims to represent the German refugees from the former Czechoslovak Republic, but its conservative positions were and are discussed very controversially among the refugees themselves, with many choosing not to associate with the organization. In the 2001 census, 39,106 people in the Czech Republic claimed German ethnicity. In theory, with the accession of the
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
into the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
, refugee Sudeten Germans and their descendants (or for that matter, also Germans with no previous link to the Bohemian lands) could have moved back there without needing the Czech government's permission – but in practice such a move did not materialize in any significant numbers, as they could not reclaim property and many were well established in Germany.


See also

* Occupation of Czechoslovakia *
Beneš decrees The Beneš decrees, sk, Dekréty prezidenta republiky) and the Constitutional Decrees of the President of the Republic ( cz, Ústavní dekrety presidenta republiky, sk, Ústavné dekréty prezidenta republiky) were a series of laws drafted by t ...
* Sudeten German Homeland Association *
History of Czechoslovakia (1918–1938) The First Czechoslovak Republic emerged from the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in October 1918. The new state consisted mostly of territories inhabited by Czechs and Slovaks, but also included areas containing majority populations of o ...
*
Ethnic minorities in Czechoslovakia This article describes ethnic minorities in Czechoslovakia from 1918 until 1992. Background Czechoslovakia was founded as a country in the aftermath of World War I with its borders set out in the Treaty of Trianon and Treaty of Versailles, ...


References


Further reading

* * * * * Bosl, Karl: Handbuch der Geschichte der böhmischen Länder (4 Bände). Anton Hiersemann Verlag Stuttgart, 1970. * Douglas, R.M.: Orderly and Humane. The Expulsion of the Germans after the Second World War.
Yale University Press Yale University Press is the university press of Yale University. It was founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day, and became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but it remains financially and operationally autonomous. , Yale Univers ...
, 2012. . * Franzel, Emil: Sudetendeutsche Geschichte. Adam Kraft Verlag Augsburg, 1958. * Franzel, Emil: Die Sudetendeutschen. Aufstieg Verlag München, 1980. * Kleineberg,A.; Marx, Ch.; Knobloch, E.; Lelgemann, D.: Germania und die Insel Thule. Die Entschlüsselung von Ptolemaios`"Atlas der Oikumene". WBG.2010. . * Meixner Rudolf: Geschichte der Sudetendeutschen. Helmut Preußler Verlag Nürnberg, 1988. .


External links


Facing history — The evolution of Czech-German relations in the Czech provinces, 1848–1948
historical publication sponsored by Czech government; series of
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files
Emotions prevail in relations between Germans, Czechs, Poles – poll
Czech Happenings, 21 December 2005
"A Journey into Czechoslovakia after the Munich Agreement"
– a report issued by BBC journalist
Sir Ralph Murray Sir Francis Ralph Hay Murray (3 March 1908 – 11 September 1983) was a British journalist, radio broadcaster and diplomat. He was also once the head of the Information Research Department, Information Research Department (IRD), a secret branch ...
at the time of the Czechoslovak evacuation from the Sudetenland after the
Munich Agreement The Munich Agreement ( cs, Mnichovská dohoda; sk, Mníchovská dohoda; german: Münchner Abkommen) was an agreement concluded at Munich on 30 September 1938, by Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and Italy. It provided "cession to Germany ...
. {{Authority control Sudetenland German Bohemian people German diaspora in Europe Ethnic groups in Czechoslovakia Social history of the Czech Republic Czechoslovakia–Germany relations Munich Agreement