Slovak Republic (1939–1945)
The (First) Slovak Republic (Slovak: (Prvá) Slovenská republika), otherwise known as the Slovak State (Slovenský štát), was a partially-recognized client state of Nazi Germany which existed between 14 March 1939 and 4 April 1945. The Slovak part of Czechoslovakia declared independence with German support one day before the German occupation of Bohemia and Moravia. It controlled most of the territory of present day Slovakia, without its current southern parts, which were ceded by Czechoslovakia to Hungary in 1938. It was the first time in history that Slovakia had been a formally independent state.
"Slovak State" redirects here. For the modern Slovak Republic, see Slovakia.
Slovak RepublicSlovenská republika
Roman Catholicism (state religion)[4]
14 March 1939
23–31 March 1939
21 July 1939
1–16 September 1939
28 July 1940
22 June 1941
29 August 1944
4 April 1945
A one-party state governed by the far-right Hlinka's Slovak People's Party, the Slovak Republic is primarily known for its collaboration with Nazi Germany, which included sending troops to the invasion of Poland in September 1939 and the Soviet Union in 1941. In 1942, the country deported 58,000 Jews (two-thirds of the Slovak Jewish population) to German-occupied Poland, paying Germany 500 Reichsmarks each. After an increase in the activity of anti-Nazi Slovak partisans, Germany invaded Slovakia, triggering a major uprising. The Slovak Republic was abolished after the Soviet occupation in 1945 and its territory was reintegrated into the recreated Third Czechoslovak Republic.
The current Slovak Republic does not consider itself a successor state of the wartime Slovak Republic, instead a successor to the Czechoslovak Federal Republic. However, some nationalists continue to celebrate 14 March as a day of independence.
Name[edit]
The official name of the country was the Slovak State (Slovak: Slovenský štát) from 14 March to 21 July 1939 (until the adoption of the Constitution), and the Slovak Republic (Slovak: Slovenská Republika) from 21 July 1939 to its end in April 1945. The country is often referred to historically as the First Slovak Republic (Slovak: prvá Slovenská Republika) to distinguish it from the contemporary (Second) Slovak Republic, Slovakia, which is not considered its legal successor state. The name "Slovak State" was used colloquially, but the term "First Slovak Republic" was used even in encyclopedias written during the post-war Communist period.[6][7]
Legacy[edit]
Some Slovak nationalists, such as the People's Party Our Slovakia, celebrate March 14 as the anniversary of Slovak independence, although January 1 (the date of the Velvet Divorce) is the official independence day.[25][26] The issue of March 14 commemorations divided the Christian Democratic Movement in the early 1990s.[27]