Czechs in History | All stories

"All our steps must be led by a love for our nation, and taken to ensure its happiness." That was the life-long motto of Josef Kajetan Tyl, playwright, actor and writer, who was one of the most outstanding figures of the Czech National Revival Movement in the first half of the 19th century.

In this edition of Czechs in History we'll focus on the life and work of Josef Bohuslav Foerster, a Czech composer who lived a long and fruitful life. He was born in Prague in 1859 and died here at the age of 91.

Enrique Stanko Vraz is a traveler who has won a place Czech people's memory, which is proved by the fact that when his books were published in the 1980s, readers of all ages showed immense interest in them, despite the fact that they were written some 100 years ago. I spoke with associate professor Josef Kandert from the Department of Sociology at Charles University in Prague:

Today's personality in Czechs in History is Jan Kupecky, an outstanding Czech painter from the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries, often called the Master of Baroque portrait here in the Czech Republic. Kupecky influenced several subsequent generations of Czech painters, and like Jan Hollar, he was also quite famous beyond the borders of the Czech kingdom.

Jan Amos Komensky - also known as Comenius was a thinker, philosopher, writer and educator. Here in the Czech Republic all school children know him - mostly under the name 'the teacher of nations'. I spoke with the director of the Komensky Museum in Prague, Ludovit Emanuel, who told me more about the rich but rather unfortunate life of this great Czech personality of the Baroque period.

By Alice Masarykova was born on May 3 1879, the first child of the future founder and first president of Czechoslovakia, Tomas Garrigue Masaryk and his American wife Charlotte.

Today's Czechs in History focuses on the Sokol physical training and patriotic organization, and its two founders, Miroslav Tyrs and Jindrich Fugner. Sokol has always been a sports organisation but in its early history it strove to create a healthy and strong Czech nation ready to fight for their rights. In 1862 when Sokol was established the Czech Lands were part of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy.

By Today's subject in Czechs in History is Max Svabinsky, a remarkable personality in the history of Czech painting in the first half of the 20th century, who died at the age of 89 after a fruitful artistic life. He was one of just a few representatives of modern art who was positively accepted by the communist regime.

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