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A priceless Renaissance shield that was looted by the Nazis from Konopiště castle during WW2 is to return to the Czech Republic. Following months of negotiations, its current owner, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, has acknowledged Czech ownership of the artefact and agreed to return it to the Czech Republic.

Despite coming from a landlocked country, Czechs played a major role in the Austro-Hungarian fleet. And during WWI they also took a leading role in the most serious mutiny to hit the fleet towards the close of the conflict.

The town of Vyškov near Brno has announced plans for a memorial to residents who died in World War I in connection with the 100th anniversary of the end of the conflict, iDnes.cz reported. The monument will be unique in that visitors with smartphones will be able to read about the 150 people honoured by using QR codes, the news site said.

The CZK 1.3 million, two-metre high memorial will take the form of a statue of a woman embracing the empty coat of her partner.

The 100th anniversary of the revolution bringing the Bolsheviks and Vladimir Lenin to power in Russia is being marked with discussions and exhibitions in the Czech Republic. Although the events preceded the creation of a separate and independent Czechoslovakia around a year later, Czechs and Slovaks were very much caught up in what was happening.

A new exhibition looking at the First World War and its impact on the people of Prague has just been launched in the Czech capital. The exhibition is timely, coming ahead of celebrations next year of the centenary of the founding of Czechoslovakia, but suggests that opposition to the war and Austria-Hungary was far from universal throughout the period.

A Czech delegation is in Ukraine to pay homage to the Czechoslovak legionaries who fought in the Battle of Zborov in WWI a century ago. The battle, where Czechoslovak legionaries joined the Kerensky Offensive, was a minor episode in the Great War, however it was a crucial moment for the future of the Czechoslovak legionaries, the Czechoslovak resistance and the establishment of independent Czechoslovakia in 1918. The commemorative ceremony at Zborov is attended by representatives of the Czech Defense Ministry, the Union of Czechoslovak Legionaries and war veterans.

Czechs are marking the centenary of the Battle of Zborov, where Czechoslovak legionaries joined the Kerensky Offensive, the last Russian offensive in WW I. From a global point of view this battle was a minor episode in the Great War and one in which the Russian forces were beaten. However it was a crucial moment for the future of the Czechoslovak legionaries, the Czechoslovak resistance and the establishment of independent Czechoslovakia in 1918.

One rather overlooked corner of history has been the story of Czechs and Slovaks serving with the British army in World War One. In contrast, the details of Czechs and Slovaks serving with the French army and in Russia have been covered quite thoroughly.

In our last edition of Czech History we showcased the recently published book of US author Kevin J McNamara “Dreams of a Great Small Nation.” The book traces the emergence of an independent Czechoslovakia at the end of WWI and in particular the role played by the Czechoslovak legion fighting along the Siberian railway against the new and fragile Bolshevik regime. In this second part of an interview with the author, we examine how far the fighting helped to seal the creation of the new Czechoslovak nation and Mr. McNamara’s further research and involvement

‘Dreams of a Great Small Nation’ is a book by US scholar and historian Kevin J McNamara. It traces the circumstances surrounding the exploits of the Czechoslovak legion during WWI and in particular their takeover of the Trans-Siberian railway and most of Siberia in 1918. McNamara characterises the legion as “a mutinous army that Threatened a revolution, Destroyed an Empire, Founded a Republic, and Remade the Map of Europe.”