Milada Horáková (née Králová, 25 December 1901 – 27 June 1950) was a

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places * Czech, ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

and a member of underground resistance movement during

World War II 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 opposing ...

. She was a victim of judicial murder, convicted and executed by the nation's

Communist Party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of ''The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. ...

on fabricated charges of conspiracy and treason. Many prominent figures in the West, including

Albert Einstein Albert Einstein ( ; ; 14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist, widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest and most influential physicists of all time. Einstein is best known for developing the theory ...

Vincent Auriol Vincent Jules Auriol (; 27 August 1884 – 1 January 1966) was a French politician who served as President of France from 1947 to 1954. Early life and politics Auriol was born in Revel, Haute-Garonne, as the only child of Jacques Antoine Aurio ...

Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt () (October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the first lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945, during her husband President Franklin D. Roosevelt's four ...

and

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

, petitioned for her life. She was executed at Prague's

Pankrác Prison Pankrác Prison, officially Prague Pankrác Remand Prison (''Vazební věznice Praha Pankrác'' in Czech), is a prison in Prague, Czech Republic. A part of the Czech Prison Service, it is located southeast of Prague city centre in Pankrác, not ...

using a primitive variant of execution by hanging. She died after being strangled for more than 13 minutes. Her remains were never found. Her conviction was annulled in 1968. She was fully rehabilitated in the 1990s and posthumously received the Order of Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk (1st Class) and

Order of the White Double Cross The Order of the White Double Cross ( sk, Rad Bieleho dvojkríža) is the highest state decoration of the Slovak Republic. The Order was instituted on 1 March 1994 after Slovakia became independent on 1 January 1993. It continues the Czechoslova ...

(1st Class).

Early life

Dr Horáková was born Milada Králová in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

. At the age of 17, in the last year of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, she was expelled from school for participating in an anti-war demonstration. She completed her secondary education in the newly formed

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

and studied law at Charles University, graduating in 1926. Her early political life was influenced by senator Františka Plamínková, the

Women's National Council Women's National Council ( cs, Ženská národní rada (ŽNR)), 1923–1942, was the only women's umbrella organization in Czechoslovakia and only official women's collective which existed in the country until after 1990. As such, it was the most si ...

founder. Horáková married her husband Bohuslav Horák in 1927. Their daughter, Jana, was born in 1933. From 1927 to 1940, she was employed in the social welfare department of the Prague city authority. In addition to focusing on social justice issues, Horáková became a prominent campaigner for the equal status of women. She was also active in the Czechoslovak Red Cross. In 1929 she joined the

Czechoslovak National Social Party Czech National Social Party ( Czech: ''Česká strana národně sociální'', ČSNS) is a civic nationalist political party in the Czech Republic, that once played an important role in Czechoslovakia during the interwar period. It was establishe ...

which, despite the similarity in names, was a strong opponent of German National Socialism.

Wartime resistance

After the German occupation of Czechoslovakia in 1939, Horáková became active in the underground resistance movement. Together with her husband, she was arrested and interrogated by 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 ...

in 1940, in her case because of her pre-war political activity. She was sent to the concentration camp at

Terezín Terezín (; german: Theresienstadt) is a town in Litoměřice District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,800 inhabitants. It is a former military fortress composed of the citadel and adjacent walled garrison town ...

and then to various prisons in Germany. In the summer of 1944, Horáková appeared before a court in Dresden. Although the prosecution demanded the death penalty, she was sentenced to 8 years imprisonment. She was released from detention in Bavaria in April 1945 by advancing United States forces in the closing stages of 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 ...

Political activity

Following the liberation of Czechoslovakia in 1945, Horáková returned to Prague and joined the leadership of the re-constituted

. She became a member of the Provisional National Assembly. In 1946, she won a seat in the elected National Assembly representing the region of

České Budějovice České Budějovice (; german: Budweis ) is a city in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 93,000 inhabitants. It is located in the valley of the Vltava River, at its confluence with the Malše. České Budějovice is t ...

in southern Bohemia. Her political activities again focused on enhancing the role of women in society and preserving Czechoslovakia's democratic institutions. Shortly after the Communist coup in February 1948, she resigned from the parliament in protest. Unlike many of her political associates, Horáková chose not to leave Czechoslovakia for the West, and continued to be politically active in Prague. On 27 September 1949, she was arrested and accused of being the leader of an alleged plot to overthrow the Communist regime."Milada Horáková"
Radio Praha (Accessed 14 November 2017)

Trial and execution

Before facing trial, Horáková and her co-defendants were subjected to intensive interrogation by the

StB State Security ( cs, Státní bezpečnost, sk, Štátna bezpečnosť) or StB / ŠtB, was the secret police force in communist Czechoslovakia from 1945 to its dissolution in 1990. Serving as an intelligence and counter-intelligence agency, it d ...

, the Czechoslovak state security organ, using both physical and psychological torture. She was accused of leading a conspiracy to commit treason and espionage at the behest of the United States, Great Britain, France and Yugoslavia. Evidence of the alleged conspiracy included Horáková's presence at a meeting of political figures from the National Socialist,

Social Democrat Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote soc ...

, and People's parties, in September 1948, held to discuss their response to the new political situation in Czechoslovakia. She was also accused of maintaining contacts with Czechoslovak political figures in exile in the West. The trial of Horáková and twelve of her colleagues began on 31 May 1950. It was intended to be a show trial, like those in the

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

Great Purges The Great Purge or the Great Terror (russian: Большой террор), also known as the Year of '37 (russian: 37-й год, translit=Tridtsat sedmoi god, label=none) and the Yezhovshchina ('period of Yezhov'), was Soviet General Secreta ...

of the 1930s. It was supervised by Soviet advisors and accompanied by a public campaign, organised by the Communist authorities, demanding the death penalty for the accused. The State's prosecutors were led by Dr. Josef Urválek and included Ludmila Brožová-Polednová. The trial proceedings were carefully orchestrated with confessions of guilt secured from the accused. A recording of the event, discovered in 2005, revealed Horáková's courageous defence of her political ideals. Invoking the values of Czechoslovakia's democratic presidents,

Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk Tomáš () is a Czech and Slovak given name, equivalent to the name Thomas. It may refer to: * Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk (1850–1937), first President of Czechoslovakia * Tomáš Baťa (1876–1932), Czech footwear entrepreneur * Tomáš Berdyc ...

and

Edvard Beneš Edvard Beneš (; 28 May 1884 – 3 September 1948) was a Czech politician and statesman who served as the president of Czechoslovakia from 1935 to 1938, and again from 1945 to 1948. He also led the Czechoslovak government-in-exile 1939 to 194 ...

, she declared that "no-one in this country should be put to death or be imprisoned for their beliefs." Milada Horáková was sentenced to death on 8 June 1950, along with three co-defendants (Jan Buchal, Oldřich Pecl, and

Záviš Kalandra Záviš Kalandra (10 November 1902 – 27 June 1950) was a Czechoslovak historian, theatre critic and theorist of literature. He was born in Frenštát pod Radhoštěm. He studied philosophy at the Charles University in Prague and then in Berlin ...

). Many prominent figures in the West, notably scientist

, former British Prime Minister

, French President

and former US First Lady

, petitioned for her life, but the sentences were confirmed. Horáková was hanged in Prague's

on 27 June 1950 at the age of 48. Her reported last words were (in translation): "I have lost this fight but I leave with honour. I love this country, I love this nation, strive for their wellbeing. I depart without rancour towards you. I wish you, I wish you..." Following the execution, Horáková's body was cremated at Strašnice Crematorium, but her ashes were not returned to her family. Their whereabouts are unknown.

Other defendants

*Jan Buchal (1913–1950), State Security officer (executed) *Vojtěch Dundr (1879–1957), former Secretary of the

Czech Social Democratic Party The Czech Social Democratic Party ( cs, Česká strana sociálně demokratická, ČSSD, ) is a social-democratic political party in the Czech Republic. Sitting on the centre-left of the political spectrum and holding pro-European views, it is a ...

(15 years) *Dr. Jiří Hejda (1895–1985), former factory owner (life imprisonment) *Dr. Bedřich Hostička (1914–1996), Secretary of the Czechoslovak People's Party (28 years) *

(1902–1950), Marxist journalist (executed) *Antonie Kleinerová (1901–1996), former member of Parliament for the Czechoslovak National Socialist Party (life imprisonment) *Dr. Jiří Křížek (1895–1970), lawyer (22 years) *Dr. Josef Nestával (1900–1976), administrator (life imprisonment) *Dr. Oldřich Pecl (1903–1950), former mine owner (executed) *Professor Dr. Zdeněk Peška (1900–1970), university professor (25 years) *František Přeučil (1907–1996), publisher (life imprisonment) * Fráňa Zemínová (1882–1962), editor and former member of Parliament for the Czechoslovak National Socialist Party (20 years)

Rehabilitations and honours

The trial verdict was annulled in June 1968 during the Prague Spring. The Soviet occupation of Czechoslovakia that followed, and suppression of resistance, disrupted the process of her rehabilitation. Her rehabilitation was not completed until after the

Velvet Revolution The Velvet Revolution ( cs, Sametová revoluce) or Gentle Revolution ( sk, Nežná revolúcia) was a non-violent transition of power in what was then Czechoslovakia, occurring from 17 November to 28 November 1989. Popular demonstrations agains ...

of 1989. In 1990 a major thoroughfare in Prague 7, Letná, was renamed in her honour. In 1991 she was posthumously awarded the Order of Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk (1st Class).Carey, Nick
"Milada Horakova"
Radio Praha, 7 June 2000 (Accessed 18 November 2017) 27 June, the day of her execution, was declared "Commemoration Day for the Victims of the Communist Regime" in the Czech Republic. On 11 September 2008, aged 86, Ludmila Brožová-Polednová, the sole surviving member of the prosecution in the Horáková trial, was sentenced to six years in prison for assisting in the judicial murder of Milada Horáková. Brožová-Polednová was released from detention in December 2010, due to her age and health, and died on 15 January 2015. In January 2020 she was posthumously awarded the

(1st Class) by Slovak president

Zuzana Čaputová Zuzana Čaputová, (; Strapáková; born 21 June 1973) is a Slovak politician, lawyer and environmental activist. She is the fifth president of Slovakia, a position she has held since 15 June 2019. Čaputová is the first woman to hold the presi ...

. Award was accepted by Erika Mačáková, member of Milada Horáková's Club.

Family

Milada Horáková's husband, Bohuslav Horák, avoided arrest in 1949, escaping to West Germany and later settling in the United States. Their daughter, Jana, aged 16 at the time of her mother's execution, and subsequently raised by her aunt, was not able to join her father in the US until 1968, where she proceeded to have a family with three grandchildren, Annie, Madeline, and Peter. Horáková'
last letters
including those to her husband and her daughter, have been published in English translation.

Biographical film

'' Milada'', a Czech-American feature film about the life of Milada Horáková, was released in November 2017. The role of Horáková is played by the Israeli-American actress

Ayelet Zurer Ayelet Zurer ( he, איילת זורר; born ) is an Israeli actress. She was nominated for awards at the Jerusalem Film Festival, the Israeli Academy Awards and the Israeli Television Academy Awards. She won Best Actress awards for her roles i ...

. The English-language production is directed by the Czech-born film-maker, David Mrnka, who also was one of the writers of the screenplay.Sladký, Pavel
Interview with David Mrnka, the director of Milada
Czech Film Center, 3 November 2017, published in ''Czech Film'', Fall 2017 (Accessed 7 December 2017)

Notes

References

*Tazzer, Sergio (2008). ''Praga Tragica. Milada Horáková. 27 giugno 1950.'', Editrice Goriziana,

Gorizia Gorizia (; sl, Gorica , colloquially 'old Gorizia' to distinguish it from Nova Gorica; fur, label= Standard Friulian, Gurize, fur, label= Southeastern Friulian, Guriza; vec, label= Bisiacco, Gorisia; german: Görz ; obsolete English ''Gori ...

, 2008 * *

External links

Milada Horáková – Czech in history, from archives of Czech Radio
via radio.cz with RealAudio stream version.

washingtontimes.com

, lettersofnote.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Horakova, Milada 1901 births 1950 deaths Politicians from Prague People from the Kingdom of Bohemia Czech National Social Party politicians Members of the Interim National Assembly of Czechoslovakia Members of the Constituent National Assembly of Czechoslovakia 20th-century Czech women politicians Czechoslovak women in politics Charles University alumni Recipients of the Order of Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk Executed politicians People executed for treason against Czechoslovakia People executed by the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic by hanging Executed Czech women Executed Czechoslovak women Czech resistance members anti-war activists Executed Czech people Women sentenced to death Czech feminists