The Rehabilitation of General Syrový
- Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
- When: October 19, 2022, 19:00 – 21:00
The figure of Jan Syrový, a one-time minister of defence and prime minister of the Czechoslovak government from 22 September to 30 September 1938, is linked to the period of national humiliation as a result of the Munich Agreement. The post-war era, when General Syrový was sentenced to 20 years harsh prison, stripped of his military rank and the forfeiture of his property represents one of the most problematic chapters in terms of national destinies. The contemporary Czech judiciary, which began examining his case in 2021 and this year exonerated Syrový, in so doing naturally expressed its views on his historical role and the nature of the period when he was politically active and suffered hardship.
This breakthrough “trial” of our history and the complicated story of efforts to rehabilitate the general will be discussed at the Václav Havel Library by historian Jaroslav Rokoský, the Syrový family’s lawyer Lubomír Müller and Jan Syrový, a descendant.
Chaired by David Svoboda.
The event will take place within the 16th edition of the Mene Tekel international festival against totalitarianism.
Joint evenings of the Václav Havel Library and the Museum of 20th Century Memory.