ABSTRACT
Prior to 1918, the territory of modern-day Slovakia was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. e region seceded in 1918 and became part of the democratic Czechoslovak Republic. For 6 years during the Second World War, Slovakia operated as a quasi-independent state, propped up by Nazi Germany, but then it rejoined Czechoslovakia. e Communist Party assumed power in 1946 and remained at the helm for over four decades. e ies were an era of a Stalinist rule, accompanied by the nationalization of property, forced collectivization, staged political trials, labor camps, and so on. Totalitarian rule was milder in the 1960s, when the regime, under the leadership of Alexander Dubček, attempted a series of progressive reforms. ose reforms were abruptly halted by the invasion of the Moscow-led Warsaw Pact armies in 1968. e ‘70s and ‘80s were referred to as the era of “normalization.” Communist rule was in eect until a peaceful revolution (commonly known as the Velvet Revolution) in 1989. e Communist Party of Czechoslovakia relinquished power, and democratic elections were held in 1990.
