Czechoslovak government-in-exileThe Czechoslovak government-in-exile, sometimes styled officially as the Provisional Government of Czechoslovakia (Prozatímní vláda Československa, Dočasná vláda Československa), was an informal title conferred upon the Czechoslovak National Liberation Committee (Výbor Československého Národního Osvobození, Československý Výbor Národného Oslobodenia), initially by British diplomatic recognition. The name came to be used by other Allied governments during the Second World War as they subsequently recognised it.
BratislavaBratislava (ˌbrætɪˈslɑːvə , USalsoˌbrɑːt- , ˈbracislaʋa; Pozsony ˈpoʒoɲ), historically known as Preßburg (Presburg), is the capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000—approximately 140% of the official figures. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia at the foot of the Little Carpathians, occupying both banks of the River Danube and the left bank of the River Morava.
Hungarians in SlovakiaHungarians are the largest ethnic minority in Slovakia. According to the 2021 Slovak census, 456,154 people (or 8.37% of the population) declared themselves Hungarian, while 462,175 (8.48% of the population) stated that Hungarian was their mother tongue. Hungarians in Slovakia are concentrated mostly in the southern part of the country, near the border with Hungary. They form the majority in two districts, Komárno and Dunajská Streda.
SudetesThe Sudetes (suːˈdiːtiːz ), commonly known as the Sudeten Mountains, is a geomorphological subprovince in Central Europe, shared by Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic. They consist mainly of mountain ranges and are the highest part of Bohemian Massif. They stretch from the Saxon capital of Dresden in the northwest across to the region of Lower Silesia in Poland and to the Moravian Gate in the Czech Republic in the east. Geographically the Sudetes are a Mittelgebirge with some characteristics typical of high mountains.
Occupation of Czechoslovakia (1938–1945)The military occupation of Czechoslovakia by Nazi Germany began with the German annexation of the Sudetenland in 1938, continued with the creation of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, and by the end of 1944 extended to all parts of Czechoslovakia. Following the Anschluss of Austria in March 1938 and the Munich Agreement in September of that same year, Adolf Hitler annexed the Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia. The loss of the Sudetenland was detrimental to the defense of Czechoslovakia, as the extensive Czechoslovak border fortifications were also located in the same area.
KošiceKošice (UKˈkɒʃɪtsə , ˈkɔʂitse) is the largest city in eastern Slovakia. It is situated on the river Hornád at the eastern reaches of the Slovak Ore Mountains, near the border with Hungary. With a population of approximately 230,000, Košice is the second-largest city in Slovakia, after the capital Bratislava. Being the economic and cultural centre of eastern Slovakia, Košice is the seat of the Košice Region and Košice Self-governing Region, and is home to the Slovak Constitutional Court, three universities, various dioceses, and many museums, galleries, and theatres.
SudetenlandThe Sudetenland (suːˈdeɪtənlænd , zuˈdeːtn̩ˌlant; Czech and 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 border districts of Bohemia, Moravia, and Czech Silesia since the Middle Ages. Since the 9th century Sudetenland had been an integral part of the Czech state (first within the Duchy of Bohemia and later the Kingdom of Bohemia) both geographically and politically.
Communist Party of CzechoslovakiaThe 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 Comintern. Between 1929 and 1953, it was led by Klement Gottwald. The KSČ was the sole governing party in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic though it was a leading party along with the Slovak branch and four other legally permitted non-communist parties.
Allies of World War IIThe Allies, formally referred to as the United Nations from 1942, were an international military coalition formed during the Second World War (1939–1945) to oppose the Axis powers, led by Nazi Germany, the Empire of Japan, and the Kingdom of Italy. Its principal members by the end of 1941 were the United Kingdom, United States, Soviet Union, and China. Membership in the Allies varied during the course of the war. When the conflict broke out on 1 September 1939, the Allied coalition consisted of the United Kingdom, France, and Poland, as well as their respective dependencies, such as British India.
AppeasementAppeasement, in an international context, is a diplomatic policy of making political, material, or territorial concessions to an aggressive power to avoid conflict. The term is most often applied to the foreign policy of the British governments of Prime Ministers Ramsay MacDonald (in office 1929–1935), Stanley Baldwin (in office 1935–1937) and (most notably) Neville Chamberlain (in office 1937–1940) towards Nazi Germany (from 1933) and Fascist Italy (from 1922) between 1935 and 1939.
