Preceden

Prague Spring Timeline

(January 5, 1968 – August 21, 1968)

The Prague Spring was a period of political liberalization and popular reform in Czechoslovakia during 1968, led by Alexander Dubček and ended by a Soviet-led invasion. Less

Go to: Event List | Key Facts | Directory

Political reform

Reformist leadership takes shape

Jan 1968

Under Dubček’s leadership, reformers pursued political and economic changes that sought to create what became known as “socialism with a human face.”

Image source: Prague Spring

Reformist leadership takes shape

Dubček becomes party leader

Jan 5, 1968

Alexander Dubček replaced Antonín Novotný as First Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. His election marked the beginning of the reform period known as the Prague Spring.

Image source: Alexander Dubček

Dubček becomes party leader

Political reform debates intensify

Apr 1968

The reform movement increasingly connected cultural liberalization with demands to change the political system and address the legacy of Stalinism.

Economic reform fuels political demands

May 1968

The economic restructuring associated with Novotný’s 1965 New Economic Model contributed to increased demands for political reform during the Prague Spring.

Radical socialists gain influence

Jun 1968

A radical socialist fraction associated with figures including Ludvík Vaculík, Milan Kundera, Jan Procházka, Antonín Liehm, Pavel Kohout, and Ivan Klíma became more prominent.

Unaffiliated political clubs emerge

Jun 26, 1968

New political clubs outside the established party structures were created as the reform movement widened its social and political base.

Public criticism of Soviet influence expands

Jun 26, 1968

The appearance of anti-Soviet polemics reflected growing criticism of external control over Czechoslovakia and resistance to restrictions on the reform program.

Reform clubs challenge political conformity

Jun 26, 1968

The creation of unaffiliated political clubs challenged the traditional monopoly of organized communist political life during the Prague Spring.

Media freedom

Foreign newspapers become more accessible

Mar 1968

The Journalists’ Union persuaded the Central Publication Board to allow editors to receive uncensored subscriptions to foreign newspapers. This encouraged a more international and open discussion of current affairs.

Uncensored foreign press enters editorial offices

Mar 1968

The authorization of uncensored foreign newspaper subscriptions gave Czechoslovak editors access to information beyond the official communist press system.

Press reform supports public debate

Apr 1968

Greater access to foreign information and a less restrictive domestic press helped create the open public atmosphere associated with the Prague Spring.

Anti-Soviet polemics appear in the press

Jun 26, 1968

Anti-Soviet arguments appeared openly in the press, demonstrating how far public expression had moved beyond the earlier limits of Czechoslovak communist censorship.

Press freedom reaches a high point

Jun 26, 1968

Open anti-Soviet polemics and independent political organization marked one of the most liberal phases of the Prague Spring before the invasion.

Cultural liberalization

Writers’ Union investigates persecution

Apr 1968

The Writers’ Union formed a committee headed by poet Jaroslav Seifert to investigate the persecution of writers after the February 1948 Communist takeover.

Literary rehabilitation committee is formed

Apr 1968

The Writers’ Union committee sought to restore persecuted literary figures to the Union, bookstores, libraries, and the broader literary world.

Rehabilitation of literary figures advances

Apr 1968

The Writers’ Union’s work formed part of the broader cultural liberalization of the Prague Spring by challenging earlier political repression of writers.

Cultural emancipation broadens

Apr 1968

The Czech cultural sphere continued emancipating itself from existing political constraints, a process that the source describes as a prelude to the upheavals of 1968.

Jaroslav Seifert heads writers’ committee

Apr 1968

Poet Jaroslav Seifert headed the Writers’ Union committee charged with examining post-1948 persecution and restoring excluded writers to public literary life.

Marxist intellectuals debate Kafka

May 1968

The Liblice Conference’s discussion of Franz Kafka was part of the intellectual movement that began the cultural democratization eventually leading to the Prague Spring.

Tomáš G. Masaryk’s ideas regain attention

May 1968

The success of Milan Machovec’s book Tomáš G. Masaryk (1968) illustrated the renewed interest in previously restricted intellectual and political traditions.

Image source: Tomáš Masaryk

Tomáš G. Masaryk’s ideas regain attention

Invasion and resistance

Warsaw Pact invasion begins

Aug 21, 1968

The Soviet Union and four other Warsaw Pact members—Bulgaria, East Germany, Hungary, and Poland—invaded Czechoslovakia to suppress the reforms of the Prague Spring.

Soviet forces enter Prague

Aug 21, 1968

Warsaw Pact troops and tanks entered Prague as part of the military operation that ended the reform period.

Bulgaria joins the invasion

Aug 21, 1968

Bulgaria was one of the four Warsaw Pact states, alongside the Soviet Union, that participated in the invasion to suppress Czechoslovak reforms.

East Germany participates in the invasion

Aug 21, 1968

East Germany was listed among the Warsaw Pact members involved in the military intervention, although Soviet command avoided drawing on East German troops because of memories of the Nazi invasion of 1938.

Hungary joins the military intervention

Aug 21, 1968

Hungary participated in the Warsaw Pact invasion that sought to end the reform movement in Czechoslovakia.

Image source: Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia

Hungary joins the military intervention

Poland joins the military intervention

Aug 21, 1968

Poland contributed forces to the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia on 21 August 1968.

Radio Prague comes under attack

Aug 21, 1968

Warsaw Pact forces attacked media establishments, including Radio Prague, almost immediately after the first tanks entered Prague.

Czechoslovak Television is attacked

Aug 21, 1968

Czechoslovak Television was among the media institutions attacked during the initial phase of the invasion, limiting the reform movement’s ability to communicate with the public.

Media resistance begins during the invasion

Aug 21, 1968

The immediate attacks on Radio Prague and Czechoslovak Television demonstrated that controlling communications was a central objective of the intervention.

Key Facts

  1. Alexander Dubček became First Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia on January 5, 1968.
  2. His reform program promoted “socialism with a human face,” including greater freedom of speech and a less restrictive economy.
  3. Censorship was relaxed, encouraging public debate, independent journalism, and cultural expression.
  4. Warsaw Pact forces led by the Soviet Union invaded Czechoslovakia on August 20–21, 1968, to end the reforms.
  5. The Prague Spring was suppressed, and the subsequent policy of “normalization” restored strict Communist control.

Source

This Prague Spring timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

We work hard to keep these timelines accurate, but mistakes do get through. If you spot one, email us at [email protected] and we'll fix it for future visitors.

Want a timeline like this one?

Generate yours with AI or build it from scratch, for free.

Try It for Free