1945- 1960 Imperialisté, naší mírovou ocelí zalijeme vaše válečné chřtány! Jedno z propagandistických hesel 50. let A gift for K. Gottwald from KSČ Blansko, Campaign posters from the 1950s A commemorative paperweight in the shape of a hand holding a hammer from the Brno foundries A campaign poster from the 1950s A gift for K. Gottwald from Technolen Svitavy Bust of J. V. Stalin K. Gottwald’s honorary citizenship of Nové Město na Moravě 1 May celebrations 1951 in Brno. Photo by K. O. Hrubý A campaign poster from the 1950s A commemorative item given to F. Píšek from ZKL Brno A commemorative paperweight in the shape of an anvil A plaster copy of the statue called Brotherhood, by Karel Pokorný, 1947 A propagandist motto from the 1950s A statue of a founder by F. Hořava A statue of a solider with an artillery shell An agricultural campaign poster from the 1950s Antonín Zápotocký on náměstí Svobody in Brno, 1950s Commemorative item in the shape of a miner’s pneumatic drill Election communist poster from 1946 Flag of the local Communist Party of Czechoslovakia organisation in Bosonohy Harvest supper in Šlapanice u Brna, In 1953. Photo by K. O. Hrubý Personal obligation of a female employee of the Rostex Company Propagandist communist poster from the 1950s The unveiling of the monument to the liberation in Brno 28 April 1955 Volunteers of the Czechoslovak Youth Association in Ostrava, 1951. Photo by K. O. Hrubý K. Gottwald’s honorary citizenship of the town of Hodonín In 1945, Moravia and the whole of Czechoslovakia entered a new world. Germany and much of Europe lay in ruins, the old superpowers lost their meaning. Some historians still believe that the following fate of the country and its residents were pre-destined by the division of the spheres of influence between the Soviet Union and the West. In fact, the future was, as in any other historical situation, an open blank book. Maybe Czechoslovakia was indeed destined to become the estate of the Communists, but the then society decided on the specific form of the process that led up to it, leaving a unique story and legacy to the following generations, including us, that we can examine and where we can find answers to current questions. Even the society, its values, thoughts and expectations changed after the experiences of the Munich Agreement, the occupation and the war. The attitudes and actions of politicians as well as nameless residents were as important for further development as the strategic plans of superpowers. Those fifteen years between the end of the war and the proclamation of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic in 1960 fundamentally changed the political, social, economic and cultural life. These changes started immediately after the war, yet the whole period can be divided into the period of the so-called Third Republic (1945-1948) and the subsequent period of the onset and consolidation of the open Communist dictatorship. Already the first three postwar years full of hope for a better arrangement of the liberated country, however, took place under conditions of limited political pluralism and deformation of democracy and a state with the rule of law. The number and depth of the changes that took place during these years can be compared with those that occurred after the coup in February and were equally important for the future of the country. Historically, the first phase was referred to as the national and social revolution. It was the time when the value systems were shaken up and changed. It was the time where the difficulties and dilemmas in the processing of the communist past after 1989 are embedded. This period traditionally perceived as an epilogue of Czechoslovak democracy was rather a prelude to the communist dictatorship. Some historians and political scientists refer to the three post-war years as limited democracy or pre-totalitarian regime. The perception of this period is still full of contradictions. Despite the apparent deviation from the ideals of the Masarykian Czechoslovakia, or because of them, the Czech or Czechoslovak statehood was restored and legally anchored in the period of the Third Republic. The postwar society itself expected a far-reaching change to the system after 1945 with positive hopes and high levels of commitment. A political fight for how far this change will go and what all can be sacrificed to it flared up soon. The first part of the fight was won by the Communist Party in 1946 in post-war elections. After another year and a half, this fight resulted in a far-reaching political crisis which formed the scenery for the planned taking of the power by coup. In February 1948, the Communist Party gained monopoly on power. The era of the late Stalinism and its Czechoslovak epigones sent the country into decades of unscrupulous and brutal violations of human and civil rights and created an atmosphere of fear in society. Opponents of the Communist Party were persecuted. Numerous Moravian, mainly People’s Party’s politicians emigrated after February and became important personalities of the Czechoslovak political exile. However, the escape of the long-time party leader Msgr. Jan Šrámek and his loyal Minister of Posts František Hála was unsuccessful and they were placed on house arrest in Brno. Persecution also focused on whole specific groups of population such as representatives of the church or private farmers and entrepreneurs. There were also many people, who refused to accept the new situation, however, often became victims of provocations of the state security forces. Although most of the key political decisions in Czechoslovakia took place in Prague, major historical events also sometimes took place on the Moravian soil. The attempted assassination of three government ministers using boxes sent by mail was organised in the Olomouc region. It went down in history as the so-called Krčmaň Affair. A fight for the fate of the Social Democratic Party took place in November 1947 at a meeting in Brno. Both events are among the immediate preludes to the February coup. The path to the political process of Rudolf Slánský and his artificial conspiratorial centre, in which the Communist executed eleven prominent representatives of their own party and which became the symbol of Czechoslovak Stalinist purges, began in Brno by the arrest of the regional secretary of the Communist Party Otto Šling. Even in this atmosphere of terror and fear, the support for the system established by the Communists in the society remained considerably high. In the eyes of the public, the alliance with the Soviet Union was a guarantee for the results of World War II, independence and integrity of the state. Intimidating propaganda helped conceal serious economic problems of the Two Year Plan and the first Five Year Plan. Despite some signs of resistance, the society survived a monetary reform which robbed the residents of all savings in 1953. In the rest of the 1950s, the standard of living was stabilised and improved and the rationing system that had worked continuously since 1939 was abandoned. A picture of Klement Gottwald in his General’s uniform Pledge by a shock worker - letter Years of Hope and the Rise of Totalitarianism Model of an agricultural machine