Slovak Republic (1939–1945)

1939–1945 client state of Nazi Germany

The (First) Slovak Republic (Slovak: [Prvá] Slovenská republika), also known as the Slovak State (Slovenský štát), was a partially-recognised client state of Nazi Germany which existed in Central Europe between 14 March 1939 and 4 April 1945.

Slovak Republic
Slovenská republika
1939–1945
Motto: Verní sebe, svorne napred!
"Faithful to Ourselves, Together Ahead!"
Anthem: Hej, Slováci
English: "Hey, Slovaks"
The Slovak Republic in 1942
The Slovak Republic in 1942
StatusClient state of Germany[a]
CapitalBratislava
Common languagesSlovak, Hungarian
Religion
Christianity[4]
GovernmentClerical fascist one-party republic under a totalitarian dictatorship
President 
• 1939–1945
Jozef Tiso
Prime Minister 
• 1939
Jozef Tiso
• 1939–1944
Vojtech Tuka
• 1944–1945
Štefan Tiso
Historical eraWorld War II
14 March 1939
23 March 1939
21 July 1939
1 September 1939
22 June 1941
29 August 1944
4 April 1945
CurrencySlovak koruna
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Second Czechoslovak Republic
Third Czechoslovak Republic
Today part ofSlovakia
Poland

One day before the Nazi German occupation of Bohemia and Moravia, they declared independence from Czechoslovakia. [5]

It has mostly the same borders as the modern-day Slovak Republic except for the regions which were ceded to Hungary in 1938.

The Capital city was declared Bratislava, As it was the first independent Slovak nation.

  1. Views differ on Slovakia's relation to Germany. István Deák writes, "Despite the claims of some historians, [Slovakia] functioned not as a puppet state but as Nazi Germany’s first but not last Slavic-speaking military ally".[1] Tatjana Tönsmeyer, who maintains that the puppet-state narrative overstates German influence and understates Slovakia's autonomy, notes that Slovak authorities frequently avoided implementing measures pushed by the Germans when such measures did not suit Slovak priorities. According to German historian Barbara Hutzelmann, "Although the country was not independent, in the full sense of the word, it would be too simplistic to see this German-protected state (Schutzstaat) simply as a 'puppet regime'."[2] Ivan Kamenec, however, emphasizes German influence on Slovak internal and external politics and describes it as a "German satellite".[3]

References

change
  1. Deák 2015, pp. 35–36.
  2. Hutzelmann 2016, p. 168.
  3. Kamenec 2011a, pp. 180–182.
  4. Doe, Norman (4 August 2011). Law and Religion in Europe: A Comparative Introduction. OUP Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-960401-2 – via Google Books.
  5. Kamenec, Ivan (2011), Kováč, Dušan; Brown, Martin D.; Teich, Mikuláš (eds.), "The Slovak state, 1939–1945", Slovakia in History, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 175–192, ISBN 978-0-511-78014-1, retrieved 2024-10-09