Václav Kopecký (27 August 1897 – 5 August 1961) was a Czechoslovak politician, journalist and chief ideologue of 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) during the leadership of

Klement Gottwald Klement Gottwald (; 23 November 1896 – 14 March 1953) was a Czech communist politician, who was the leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from 1929 until his death in 1953 – titled as general secretary until 1945 and as chairman f ...

. A high-ranking member of the party since the interwar period, he spent

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 ...

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

and served as Minister of Culture and Minister of Information in post-war Czechoslovakia.

Early career

Kopecký had a proletarian upbringing as the thirteenth child of a small tradesman and

Sokol Sokol, Sokół or SOKOL may refer to: Sports * Sokol movement, a Pan-Slavic physical education movement, and its various incarnations: ** Czech Sokol movement, the original one ** Polish Sokół movement ** Russian Sokol movement ** Sokol mov ...

official. After completing his studies at a gymnasium in

Kosmonosy Kosmonosy is a town in Mladá Boleslav District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 5,200 inhabitants. The town is known for its psychiatric hospital. Administrative division Kosmonosy consists of two municipal parts ...

, he moved to

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

, where he enrolled at the Faculty of Law of

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

but left without fulfilling his studies. Initially a member of the

Czechoslovak Social Democratic Party Social Democracy (, SOCDEM), known as the Czech Social Democratic Party (, ČSSD) until 10 June 2023, is a social democratic political party in the Czech Republic. Sitting on the centre-left of the political spectrum and holding pro-European ...

(ČSSD), Kopecký joined the

(KSČ) upon its founding in 1921. During the interwar period, Kopecký was a member of the underground communist cell in the

Karlín Karlín () is a cadastral area of Prague, part of Prague 8 municipal district, formerly an independent town (which became part of Prague in 1922). It is bordered by the river Vltava and Holešovice to the north, Vítkov hill and Žižkov to t ...

area of

, along with future party leaders

and

Rudolf Slánský Rudolf Slánský (31 July 1901 – 3 December 1952) was a leading Czech Communist politician. Holding the post of the party's General Secretary after World War II, he was one of the leading creators and organizers of Communist rule in Czechoslova ...

. From 1940 to 1941, Kopecký was a representative of the

Comintern The Communist International, abbreviated as Comintern and also known as the Third International, was a political international which existed from 1919 to 1943 and advocated world communism. Emerging from the collapse of the Second Internatio ...

, spending World War II in the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. In July 1944, he voiced the sentiments of the emerging Communist consensus on postwar nationality issues, which rejected

proletarian internationalism Proletarian internationalism, sometimes referred to as international socialism, is the perception of all proletarian revolutions as being part of a single global class struggle rather than separate localized events. It is based on the theory th ...

and accepted the

Czechoslovak government-in-exile The Czechoslovak government-in-exile, sometimes styled officially as the Provisional Government of Czechoslovakia (; ), was an informal title conferred upon the Czechoslovak National Liberation Committee (; ), initially by Government of the Unit ...

's plans for national homogenization via the expulsion of Sudeten Germans. Expressing hope that the

Jewish question The Jewish question was a wide-ranging debate in 19th- and 20th-century Europe that pertained to the appropriate status and treatment of Jews. The debate, which was similar to other " national questions", dealt with the civil, legal, national, ...

would "forever disappear ��as a decoy for reactionary elements", Kopecký declared:

Minister

In post-war Czechoslovakia, Kopecký served as Minister of Information (1945–1953) and Minister of Culture (1953–1954). As Minister of Information, Kopecký surrounded himself with writers and artists close to the KSČ. Czech poet

František Halas František Halas (3 October 1901 – 27 October 1949) was a Czechs, Czech poet, translator and politician. He was one of the most significant Czech lyric poets of the 20th century. His poor background influenced his work as well as his communist v ...

led the ministry's publishing department; writer

Ivan Olbracht Ivan Olbracht, born Kamil Zeman (6 January 1882 – 20 December 1952), was a Czech people, Czech writer, journalist, censor and translator of German language, German prose. Biography The son of writer Antal Stašek and his Jewish-born Catholic ...

headed the radio department; visual artist

Adolf Hoffmeister Adolf Hoffmeister (15 August 1902 – 24 July 1973) was a Czechoslovak writer, publicist, playwright, painter, draughtsman, scenographer, cartoonist, translator, diplomat, lawyer, university professor and traveller. During the war, he served as ed ...

the foreign affairs department; and a film department was headed by

Vítězslav Nezval Vítězslav Nezval (; 26 May 1900 – 6 April 1958) was a Czechs, Czech poet, writer and translator. He was one of the most prolific avant-garde Czech writers in the first half of the 20th century and a co-founder of the Surrealism, Surrealist ...

. Under Kopecký's leadership, the Ministry of Information adapted the Nazi government's management of book publication under the guise of needing to replace the books destroyed during the Nazi occupation. Publishers had to submit their books to the publishing department of the Ministry of Information half a year in advance for review. This process did not initially involve ideological censorship and was aimed at freeing writers from the demands of the free market. After the death of Jan Masaryk, Kopecký instructed the media not to mention Masaryk's name. Kopecký was noted for his antisemitic statements, criticizing Jews for Zionism and cosmopolitanism; he also stage-managed the Slánský trial. According to Jewish historian

Michal Frankl Michal Frankl (born 1974) is a Czech historian and a Senior Researcher at the Masaryk Institute and Archives of the Czech Academy of Sciences. Previously, he was the head of the Department of Jewish Studies and of the History of Antisemitism at the ...

, Kopecký "distinguished himself with antisemitic diatribes," criticizing the presence of Jews in politics and attacking

Zionism Zionism is an Ethnic nationalism, ethnocultural nationalist movement that emerged in History of Europe#From revolution to imperialism (1789–1914), Europe in the late 19th century that aimed to establish and maintain a national home for the ...

and

cosmopolitanism Cosmopolitanism is the idea that all human beings are members of a single community. Its adherents are known as cosmopolitan or cosmopolite. Cosmopolitanism is both prescriptive and aspirational, believing humans can and should be " world citizen ...

. In 1945, he accused the "Jewish super-rich like

Petschek Julius Petschek (14 March 1856 – 22 January 1932) was an industrialist of Jewish origin in Austria-Hungary and later in Czechoslovakia. Together with his brother Ignaz, he was one of the wealthiest persons of interwar Czechoslovakia. Early life ...

, Weinmann,

Rothschild Rothschild () is a name derived from the German ''zum rothen Schild'' (with the old spelling "th"), meaning "to the red shield", in reference to the houses where these family members lived or had lived. At the time, houses were designated by signs ...

, Gutman" of "blood-sucking" and argued that wealthy Jews could not live in the people's democracy. He also objected to the resettlement of Jews from

Carpathian Ruthenia Transcarpathia (, ) is a historical region on the border between Central and Eastern Europe, mostly located in western Ukraine's Zakarpattia Oblast. From the Hungarian Hungarian conquest of the Carpathian Basin, conquest of the Carpathian Basin ...

in post-war Czechoslovakia. For Rudolf Slánský's fiftieth birthday in July 1951, Kopecký lauded him in the party newspaper ''

Rudé právo ''Rudé právo'' ( Czech for ''Red Justice'' or ''The Red Right'') was the official newspaper of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. History and profile ''Rudé právo'' was founded in 1920 when the party was splitting from the social demo ...

'' and claimed that "already at home and at primary school lánskýabsorbed a full-blooded native Czechness". Despite their former association, Kopecký became a personal enemy of Slánský and was involved in the

Slánský trial The Slánský trial (officially English: "Trial of the Leadership of the Anti-State Conspiracy Centre Headed by Rudolf Slánský") was a 1952 antisemiticBlumenthal, Helaine. (2009). Communism on Trial: The Slansky Affair and Anti-Semitism in P ...

as one of the main stage managers. In December 1951, he complained that many of the alleged conspirators "come from wealthy Jewish families" and that "the great part of people with a Jewish origin" subscribe to "cosmopolitan thinking". According to Kopecký, this demonstrated that the party was not taking the anti-cosmopolitan campaign seriously enough and was underestimating the "very serious danger" posed by Zionism. Jewish historian

Karel Kaplan Karel Kaplan (28 August 1928 – 12 March 2023) was a Czech historian. He specialized in the World War II and post-World War II periods in Czechoslovakia. He wrote books about Czech political trials during the 1950s, the situation of Jews in Centra ...

described Kopecký as "the party ideologue of show trials".

Later life and career

On 31 January 1953 Václav Kopecký became deputy prime minister in

Antonín Zápotocký Antonín Zápotocký (; 19 December 1884 – 13 November 1957) was a Czech communist politician and statesman in Czechoslovakia. He served as the Prime Minister of Czechoslovakia from 1948 to 1953, and then as President of Czechoslovakia from 1 ...

's government. He kept this office on 21 March 1953 in the first government

Viliam Široký Viliam Široký (31 May 1902 – 6 October 1971) was a prominent communist politician of Czechoslovakia. He served as Prime Minister from 1953 to 1963, and was also the leader of the Communist Party of Slovakia between 1945 and 1954. Biogra ...

formed on 21 March the same year, and on 14 September 1953 he became first deputy prime minister. He was also Minister of Culture in the Široký government from 14 September 1953 to 12 December 1954. He also took over the post of Deputy Prime Minister in the second Široký government. Kopecký resigned from government positions on 12 December 1954. However, he remained a member of the Presidium of the Central Committee and retained a strong party influence. Kopecký adhered to a

Stalinist Stalinism (, ) is the totalitarian means of governing and Marxist–Leninist policies implemented in the Soviet Union (USSR) from 1927 to 1953 by dictator Joseph Stalin and in Soviet satellite states between 1944 and 1953. Stalinism in ...

line, trying to keep the party in the positions of the Gottwald period under the new conditions. Václav Kopecký died in Prague on 5 August 1961 of a

pulmonary embolism Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a blockage of an pulmonary artery, artery in the lungs by a substance that has moved from elsewhere in the body through the bloodstream (embolism). Symptoms of a PE may include dyspnea, shortness of breath, chest pain ...

. He was given a

state funeral A state funeral is a public funeral ceremony, observing the strict rules of protocol, held to honour people of national significance. State funerals usually include much pomp and ceremony as well as religious overtones and distinctive elements o ...

. After cremation, his remains were buried at the

Jan Žižka Jan Žižka z Trocnova a Kalicha (; 1360 – 11 October 1424) was a Czechs, Czech military leader and Knight who was a contemporary and follower of Jan Hus, and a prominent Radical Hussite who led the Taborites, Taborite faction during the Hu ...

National Monument at Vítkov. In 1990, his ashes were moved to

Olšany Cemetery Olšany Cemeteries (, ) is the largest graveyard in Prague, Czech Republic, once laid out for as many as two million burials. The graveyard is particularly noted for its many remarkable Art Nouveau monuments. History The Olšany Cemeteries w ...

, together with those of about 20 other communist leaders which had also originally been placed in the Jan Žižka National Monument. After Kopecký's death, Strossmayerovo náměstí (Strossmayer Square) in Prague was renamed Kopeckého náměstí (Kopecký Square) in his honor; the old name was returned in 1968, during 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 ...

Honours and awards

Order of Klement Gottwald, two times (7 May 1955; 26 August 1957)

Early career

Minister

Later life and career

Honours and awards

References

Further reading