Important World War One events of 1917 are in focus of a new exhibition that was opened outside the Czech General Staff headquarters yesterday, consisting of large panels with century-old photos, caricatures and stories from battlefields as well as rear areas.
Prague, March 30 (CTK) – Important World War One events of 1917 are in focus of a new exhibition that was opened outside the Czech General Staff headquarters yesterday, consisting of large panels with century-old photos, caricatures and stories from battlefields as well as rear areas.
The exhibition presents all important battlefields of the time.
Chief-of-Staff Josef Becvar said during the opening ceremony that World War One profoundly changed the world map with a still persisting effect.
The year 1917 brought about the first significant diplomatic and military results of the Czech and Slovak efforts to achieve the statehood and independent existence of their own state.
Czechoslovakia was established as one of the successor states of the collapsing Austro-Hungarian monarchy on October 28, 1918.
From the Czech military’s point of view, the greatest milestones in 1917 were the establishment of an independent Czechoslovak army in France and the early July battle of Zborov, Russia, the first one with a strong contribution of the Czechoslovak legions, Becvar said.
He said the Czech military is planning to mark the legendary Zborov Battle anniversary this summer. It will prepare a special exhibition and military officers and members of the Czechoslovak legionaries’ organisation are to visit the former battlefield.
“Chamber of Deputies chairman [Jan Hamacek] has promised to take part [in the trip],” Becvar said.
The author of the exhibition, Military History Institute expert Tomas Tykal, said historians have registered a strong wave of people’s interest in the events of a century ago, who want to know more about them in connection with their ancestors.
Historians have been intensively working on digitising books, magazines and other sources of period information, Tykal said.
rtj/dr/kva