1968January 1968–January 1969 · Prague

Prague Spring and the Warsaw Pact invasion

Czechoslovaks carry their national flag past a burning tank in Prague during the August 1968 invasion — Archival image: The Central Intelligence Agency. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Alexander Dubček's reform communists eased censorship and promised 'socialism with a human face'. On the night of 20–21 August about 250,000 Warsaw Pact troops invaded Czechoslovakia and ended the experiment. In January 1969 the student Jan Palach set himself on fire on Wenceslas Square in protest. Two decades of 'normalisation' followed.

Revolutions & Resistance
Political History
Prague, Czech Republic

Sites

Site 1: Wenceslas Square and National MuseumMemorial to Jan Palach and Jan Zajíc, and marked shell damage on the museum.Map ↗
Site 2: Czech Radio building, VinohradskáSite of the fight for the radio station on 21 August.Map ↗