Čestmír Císař (2 January 1920 – 24 March 2013) 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 *Czech (surnam ...

and

Czechoslovak Czechoslovak may refer to: *A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93) **First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38) **Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39) **Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60) ** Fourth Czechoslovak Repu ...

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

and

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

. He served as the first Chairman of the

Czech National Council The Czech National Council () was the legislative body of the Czech Republic from 1968, when it was created as a member state of Czechoslovakia, until 1992, when it was legally transformed into the Chamber of Deputies according to the Constitut ...

from 1968 to 1969 when the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

was part of

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

during the

Communist era A communist era is a sustained period of national government by a single party following the philosophy of Marxism–Leninism. Many countries have experienced such a period of communist rule. Current communist states China The Chinese Communist ...

. A leading advocate for reforms of the Communist Party, Císař introduced a series of liberal reforms to

Communist Czechoslovakia The Czechoslovak Socialist Republic, (Czech and Slovak: ''Československá socialistická republika'', ČSSR) known from 1948 to 1960 as the Czechoslovak Republic (''Československá republika)'', Fourth Czechoslovak Republic, or simply Czech ...

, becoming a major figure in the

Prague Spring The Prague Spring (; ) was a period of liberalization, political liberalization and mass protest in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. It began on 5 January 1968, when reformist Alexander Dubček was elected Secretary (title), First Secre ...

as a result. He sought to create a new form of socialism with a "human face." His reforms were repealed following the 1968

Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia On 20–21 August 1968, the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic was jointly invaded by four fellow Warsaw Pact countries: the Soviet Union, the Polish People's Republic, the People's Republic of Bulgaria, and the Hungarian People's Republic. The ...

. He was removed from office and expelled from the Communist Party until the

Velvet Revolution The Velvet Revolution () or Gentle Revolution () was a non-violent transition of power in what was then Czechoslovakia, occurring from 17 November to 28 November 1989. Popular demonstrations against the one-party government of the Communist Pa ...

of 1989. Císař was born in Hostomice nad Bílinou on 2 January 1920. He studied at Lycée Carnot in

Dijon Dijon (, ; ; in Burgundian language (Oïl), Burgundian: ''Digion'') is a city in and the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Côte-d'Or Departments of France, department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region in eas ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. He attended

Charles University in Prague Charles University (CUNI; , UK; ; ), or historically as the University of Prague (), is the largest university in the Czech Republic. It is one of the oldest universities in the world in continuous operation, the oldest university north of the ...

but was forced to leave the school following the

German occupation of Czechoslovakia German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

in 1939. He worked as an accountant during the

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

occupation and

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He joined the

Communist Party of Czechoslovakia The Communist Party of Czechoslovakia ( Czech and Slovak: ''Komunistická strana Československa'', KSČ) was a communist and Marxist–Leninist political party in Czechoslovakia that existed between 1921 and 1992. It was a member of the Com ...

(KSČ) in 1945 following the end of the war. Císař first became involved in the Communist Party's cultural programs in the western city of

Plzeň Plzeň (), also known in English and German as Pilsen (), is a city in the Czech Republic. It is the Statutory city (Czech Republic), fourth most populous city in the Czech Republic with about 188,000 inhabitants. It is located about west of P ...

. Císař served as the department head and Secretary of the KSČ regional committee in Plzeň from 1952 to 1957. He next held the post Secretary of the Central Committee of the

(KSČ) during the early 1960s. He served as the country's Minister of Culture and Education of Czechoslovakia from 1963 to 1965. However, he soon angered leaders within the Communist Party (KSČ) for openly expressing liberal viewpoints.

Antonín Novotný Antonín Josef Novotný (; 10 December 1904 – 28 January 1975) was a Czechoslovak politician who served as the President of Czechoslovakia from 1957 to 1968, and as First Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from 1953 to 1968. ...

, the President of Czechoslovakia and head of the KSČ, accused Císař of "dabbling too much with intellectuals." Novotný removed from the ministry in 1965 and sent him out of the country as the ambassador of Czechoslovakia to

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

as a punishment.

resigned as First Secretary of the Presidium of the Central Committee of the

(KSČ) in January 1968 and was replaced by

Alexander Dubček Alexander Dubček (; 27 November 1921 – 7 November 1992) was a Slovaks, Slovak statesman who served as the First Secretary of the Presidium of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ) (''de facto'' leader of Czech ...

. Císař returned to Czechoslovakia from Romania at the behest of Dubček. Císař was one of several candidates within the Communist Party who campaigned for

President of Czechoslovakia The president of Czechoslovakia (, ) was the head of state of Czechoslovakia, from the Origins of Czechoslovakia, creation of the First Czechoslovak Republic in 1918 until the Dissolution of Czechoslovakia, dissolution of the Czech and Slovak F ...

in the aftermath of Novotný's resignation from this office in March. He received widespread support from Czechoslovakian university students, as well as the support of Dubček in the KSČ election. However, Communist Party members chose General Ludvík Svoboda as the new President and head of the KSČ instead of Císař. He became the Chairman of the

in 1968, holding the office during the Prague Spring. Císař introduced a series of liberal reforms within the Communist system and he became a symbol of the Prague Spring. Císař attempted to halt the 1968 Soviet invasion which ended the Prague Spring. He was removed from office and expelled from the Communist Party (KSČ) in the aftermath of the invasion. He left politics and public life after his removal from office, taking small jobs for a living. He remained out of politics until the end of the Communist era in 1989. He briefly founded the Obroda group in 1989, a small group of reformed Communist veterans of the Prague Spring who advocated "democratic socialism" in the wake of the

. However, the group was opposed by Václav Havel and it soon disbanded. Císař returned to his former career as a

in the 1990s in an agreement with

Václav Havel Václav Havel (; 5 October 193618 December 2011) was a Czech statesman, author, poet, playwright, and dissident. Havel served as the last List of presidents of Czechoslovakia, president of Czechoslovakia from 1989 until 1992, prior to the dissol ...

. He served as the representative of Czechoslovakia to the

Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; , CdE) is an international organisation with the goal of upholding human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. Founded in 1949, it is Europe's oldest intergovernmental organisation, represe ...

from 1991 to 1992. Císař focused on his writings during the 1990s and 2000s. In 2013, he attended a victory party to celebrate the

election An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative d ...

Miloš Zeman Miloš Zeman (; born 28 September 1944) is a Czech politician who served as the third president of the Czech Republic from 2013 to 2023. He also previously served as the prime minister of the Czech Republic from 1998 to 2002. As leader of the Cze ...

President of the Czech Republic The president of the Czech Republic, constitutionally defined as the President of the Republic (), is the head of state of the Czech Republic and the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the Czech Republic. The presidency has largely bee ...

. Čestmír Císař died on 24 March 2013 in Prague, at the age of 93.

Publications

* * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cisar, Cestmir 1920 births 2013 deaths People from Teplice District Members of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia Government ministers of Czechoslovakia Members of the National Assembly of Czechoslovakia (1964–1968) Members of the Chamber of the Nations of Czechoslovakia (1969–1971) Ambassadors of Czechoslovakia to Romania Czechoslovak diplomats Prague Spring Czech communists Czech male writers Charles University alumni