Communist coup in Czechoslovakia
- Date
- February 1948
- Category
- Politics & governance
- Region
- Central Europe (Czechoslovakia)
- Era
- Contemporary
- Significance
In late February 1948 the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, backed by the Soviet Union, seized full control of the government. A cabinet crisis triggered by the resignation of non-communist ministers allowed the communists to mobilise armed workers' militias, police and mass demonstrations.
On 25 February 1948 President Edvard Benes, under intense pressure, accepted a communist-dominated cabinet led by Klement Gottwald. The death of Foreign Minister Jan Masaryk weeks later deepened the shock abroad. The coup extinguished the last functioning parliamentary democracy in Central and Eastern Europe and brought Czechoslovakia firmly into the Soviet bloc, where it remained for four decades. Its impact on Western opinion was profound: coming amid the unfolding Cold War, it appeared to confirm fears of Soviet expansionism, helped unify Western governments, accelerated negotiations for a West European defensive alliance (the Treaty of Brussels was signed in March 1948), and strengthened support for the Marshall Plan and, ultimately, NATO.
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Empires active in February 1948
- Soviet Union1922 CE – 1991 CE
- French Colonial Empire (Second)1830 CE – 1962 CE
- British Empire1583 CE – 1997 CE
- Spanish Empire1492 CE – 1976 CE
- Portuguese Empire1415 CE – 1999 CE
- Solomonic dynasty1270 CE – 1974 CE
Related politics & governance events
- Establishment of Apartheid in South Africa1948
- Founding of the People's Republic of China1 October 1949
- Independence and Partition of British India14–15 August 1947
- Construction of the Berlin Wall13 August 1961
- Iranian RevolutionJanuary–February 1979
- Gorbachev's glasnost and perestroika1985–1991 (from 11 March 1985)
Further reading
The wider story
Conquerors: How Portugal Forged the First Global Empire
Fast-paced narrative of Portugal's seaborne empire.
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