Českoslovanská Beseda Svatopluk Čech v Curychu během první světové války
The Czechoslovak Beseda Club Svatopluk Čech in Zurich during the First World War

Summary/Abstract: The study deals with the compatriot club called Czechoslovak Beseda Svatopluk Čech in Zurich in connection with the so-called Masaryk Campaign Abroad, during which TG Masaryk and his team promoted the Czech Lands in WWI with the view to establishing their autonomy and, in the final year of the War, declaring an independent Czechoslovak State. The Svatopluk Čech Club was one of the eminent compatriot clubs which supported the resistance movement in Switzerland. They also participated in illegal activities against Austria-Hungary. The club management and its members were consequently monitored by authorities reporting to the general staff of the imperial army. While the registry office (an umbrella intelligence agency) in cooperation with the military attaché failed to infiltrate the club, it managed to procure valuable information about its activities and personnel. Despite its military intelligence, however, the Austro-Hungarian Empire lost in the war.The post-war period seemed to bring calm. The process of smoothing out the relationships between the countries and the inhabitants of the new countries was, however, marked by much compromise, with a great deal of fissures subsequently emerging.

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