Václav Havel
First president of the Czech Republic (1936–2011) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about V%C3%A1clav Havel?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
Václav Havel (Czech pronunciation: [ˈvaːtslav ˈɦavɛl] ⓘ; 5 October 1936 – 18 December 2011) was a Czech statesman, author, poet, playwright and dissident.[1][2] Havel served as the last president of Czechoslovakia from 1989 until 1992, prior to the dissolution of Czechoslovakia on 31 December, before he became the first president of the Czech Republic from 1993 to 2003. He was the first democratically elected president of either country after the fall of communism. As a writer of Czech literature, he is known for his plays, essays and memoirs.
Václav Havel | |
---|---|
President of the Czech Republic | |
In office 2 February 1993 – 2 February 2003 | |
Prime Minister | Václav Klaus Josef Tošovský Miloš Zeman Vladimír Špidla |
Preceded by | Office established |
Succeeded by | Václav Klaus |
President of Czechoslovakia | |
In office 29 December 1989 – 20 July 1992 | |
Prime Minister | Marián Čalfa Jan Stráský |
Preceded by | Gustáv Husák |
Succeeded by | Office abolished |
Personal details | |
Born | (1936-10-05)5 October 1936 Prague, Czechoslovakia (present-day Czech Republic) |
Died | 18 December 2011(2011-12-18) (aged 75) Vlčice, Czech Republic |
Resting place | Vinohrady Cemetery |
Political party | OF (1989–1991) |
Spouses | |
Alma mater | Czech Technical University Academy of Performing Arts |
Signature | |
His educational opportunities having been limited by his bourgeois background, when freedoms were limited by the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic, Havel first rose to prominence as a playwright. In works such as The Garden Party and The Memorandum, Havel used an absurdist style to criticize the Communist system. After participating in the Prague Spring and being blacklisted after the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia, he became more politically active and helped found several dissident initiatives, including Charter 77 and the Committee for the Defense of the Unjustly Prosecuted. His political activities brought him under the surveillance of the StB secret police, and he spent multiple periods as a political prisoner,[3] the longest of his imprisoned terms being nearly four years, between 1979 and 1983.
Havel's Civic Forum party played a major role in the Velvet Revolution that toppled the Communist system in Czechoslovakia in 1989. He assumed the presidency shortly thereafter, and was re-elected in a landslide the following year and after Slovak independence in 1993. Havel was instrumental in dismantling the Warsaw Pact and enlargement of NATO membership eastward. Many of his stances and policies, such as his opposition to Slovak independence, condemnation of the treatment of Sudeten Germans and their mass expulsion from Czechoslovakia after World War II, as well as granting of general amnesty to all those imprisoned under the Communist era, were very controversial domestically. By the end of his presidency, he enjoyed greater popularity abroad than at home. Havel continued his life as a public intellectual after his presidency, launching several initiatives including the Prague Declaration on European Conscience and Communism,[4][5] the VIZE 97 Foundation, and the Forum 2000 annual conference.
Havel's political philosophy was one of anti-consumerism, humanitarianism, environmentalism, civil activism, and direct democracy.[2] He supported the Czech Green Party from 2004 until his death. He received numerous accolades during his lifetime, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Gandhi Peace Prize, the Philadelphia Liberty Medal, the Order of Canada, the Four Freedoms Award, the Ambassador of Conscience Award, and the Hanno R. Ellenbogen Citizenship Award. The 2012–2013 academic year at the College of Europe was named in his honour.[6] He is considered by some to be one of the most important intellectuals of the 20th century.[7] The international airport in Prague was renamed Václav Havel Airport Prague in 2012.