In the late autumn of 1989 a wave of peaceful protest ended more than four decades of Communist rule in Czechoslovakia. It began with a student march in Prague on 17 November that riot police broke up, and within about six weeks the party had surrendered its monopoly on power and the dissident playwright Václav Havel had become president. Slovaks call it the Gentle Revolution; the name Velvet Revolution, coined by the translator Rita Klímová, reflects how little blood was shed.
A frozen regime
The Communist Party had taken power in February 1948 and tolerated no organised opposition. After the Prague Spring of 1968 was crushed, the authorities blacklisted anyone suspected of disloyalty, and dissidents such as the signatories of Charter 77 were harassed and imprisoned. The leadership paid lip service to Mikhail Gorbachev's reforms after 1985 but changed little. By 1988 and 1989 small demonstrations were appearing, discontent with living standards was growing, and thousands signed petitions on behalf of the jailed Havel.
The spark: 17 November
Events in neighbouring countries raised the pressure. From August 1989 East Germans had crowded into the West German embassy in Prague seeking to leave, and on 9 November the Berlin Wall fell. On 17 November, International Students' Day, an officially sanctioned march marked fifty years since the Nazi crackdown on Czech universities. Around 15,000 people joined, and many carried on into central Prague chanting against the regime. On Národní Street riot police hemmed them in and beat them. A false rumour that a student, named as Martin Šmíd, had been killed spread quickly, including through Radio Free Europe, and although untrue it pushed many hesitant people into action.
Strikes and the squares
Students and theatres went on strike from 18 November, and actors read out appeals instead of performing. On 19 November Havel and other dissidents founded Civic Forum in Prague, while in Bratislava artists and intellectuals formed Public Against Violence. Crowds in Prague grew rapidly; estimates for 20 November range from 100,000 to about 500,000. Alexander Dubček, the leader of 1968, reappeared in public. On 24 November the entire party leadership, including General Secretary Miloš Jakeš, resigned. The following day an estimated 800,000 people gathered at Letná in Prague.
The general strike
On 27 November a two-hour general strike, reportedly backed by three-quarters of the population, showed that the opposition spoke for the country. The next day the party announced that it would give up power, and the Federal Assembly then removed from the constitution the article guaranteeing the party's leading role. Border fences with Austria and West Germany came down in early December. On 10 December the president, Gustáv Husák, appointed the first cabinet in 41 years not dominated by Communists, and then stepped down.
A new republic
Dubček was elected speaker of the federal parliament on 28 December, and Havel was elected president the following day. Havel soon negotiated the departure of roughly 73,500 Soviet troops, and in June 1990 Czechoslovakia held its first free elections since 1946. The new government freed prices and began privatisation. Tensions between Czechs and Slovaks resurfaced, however, and on 31 December 1992 the federation peacefully dissolved into the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The revolution is remembered for the crowds jingling keys, a signal to the rulers that it was time to go home.
On our maps
Our 1985 map shows Czechoslovakia within the Soviet-led bloc on the eve of the Revolutions of 1989, and our 1994 map shows the two successor states.
From the atlas
Velvet Revolution in time and on the map
Velvet Revolution took place in 1989. The nearest maps from before and after are 1985 and 1994; compare them side by side.
Living through it, among others on this site: Augusto Pinochet (1915–2006), Deng Xiaoping (1904–1997), Desmond Tutu (1931–2021), Elizabeth II (1926–2022), Ferdinand Marcos (1917–1989), Fidel Castro (1926–2016), Hafez al-Assad (1930–2000), Hirohito (1901–1989), Idi Amin (1925–2003) and John Rawls (1921–2002).
Other events of the same years: Satsuma Rebellion (1877–2005), Nahda (1900–2000), Cold War (1945–1991), Dirty War (1955–1989), The Troubles (1960–1998), Guatemalan Civil War (1965–1996), Lebanese Civil War (1975–1990), Angolan Civil War (1975–2002), Operation Condor (1975–1989) and Nicaraguan Revolution (1978–1990).
Next to it in time on this site: before, Romanian Revolution of 1989 (1989) and Tiananmen Square protests and massacre (1989) (1989); after, End of apartheid (1990–1994) and Gulf War (1990–1991).
Velvet Revolution comes up in the guided tour 1989: The Fall of Communism in Europe.
Quick answers
- When did Velvet Revolution happen?
- In 1989.
- Where did Velvet Revolution take place?
- Czechoslovakia.
- How did the map change?
- Compare the atlas’s maps of 1985 and 1994 side by side.