National flag of Czechoslovakia, which was adopted by the Czech
Republic in 1992
U.S. Recognition of Czechoslovaskian Independence,
1918
.
The tenth of President
Woodrow Wilson
’s
Fourteen Points
called for free opportunity for the “autonomous development” of the peoples
of Austria-Hungary.
On September 3, 1918, Secretary of State
Robert Lansing
announced that the United States recognized the Czecho-Slovak National
Council, which was resident in Paris, as a de facto government at war with
the German and Austro-Hungarian Empires and that it was prepared to enter
into formal relations with it. The Czecho-Slovak National Council organized
a Provisional Government on October 14 and declared its independence from
Austria-Hungary
on October 18, 1918.
Consular Presence
First U.S. Consular Post, Prague,
1869
.
The first U.S. consular post in Bohemia was in
Prague
.
A consulate was opened in 1869 and closed April 9, 1917, after
Austria-Hungary severed diplomatic relations with the United States.
The United States opened a Consulate General in Bratislava in 1947. It was
closed in 1950 after the Communist Government of Czechoslovakia alleged that
U.S. diplomatic personnel were engaged in espionage and other improper
activities, and demanded a reduction in their numbers. For the establishment
of an Embassy in Bratislava after the “Velvet Divorce,” see the entry for
Slovakia
.
Consulate in Carlsbad (Karlovy Vary),
1906-1917
, permanently closed,
1922
.
A Commercial Agency was opened in
Carlsbad
(
Karlovy Vary
) in 1887. It became a Consulate in
1906, but was closed in 1917. There is no record of any postwar consuls
being appointed before it was permanently closed in 1922.
Consulate in Reichenberg (Liberec),
1893-1917
.
A Commercial Agency was opened in
Reichenberg
(
Liberec
) in 1886. It became a Consulate in 1893,
was closed in 1917, and did not reopen after World War I.
There were also Commercial Agencies in
Haida
(
Novy Bor
) (1892-1908) and
Brunn
(
Brno
)
(1863-1907).
Diplomatic Relations
Establishment of Diplomatic Relations,
1918
.
On November 12, 1918, Assistant Secretary of State
William
Phillips
announced that the United States recognized
Charles Pergler
as the Czecho-Slovak National
Council’s Commissioner in Washington.
Establishment of American Legation in Prague,
1919
.
Richard Crane
was appointed U.S. Minister to Czechoslovakia on April 23, 1919. He
presented his credentials on June 11, and served until December 5, 1921.
Establishment of a Czechoslovak Legation in Washington,
1919
.
On October 24, 1919, Foreign Minister
Eduard Benes
announced the appointment of
Jan Masaryk
, son of
President
Thomas Masaryk
, as Chargé d’Affaires in
Washington. Masaryk was officially received by Secretary of State
Robert Lansing
on December 8, 1920. Minister
Bedrich Stepanek
presented his credentials on January 5, 1921.
U.S.-Czechoslovakian Relations During World War II
Wilbur J.
Carr
, former Assistant Secretary of State and Chief of the
Consular Bureau, was Minister to Czechoslovakia when
German forces occupied
Prague
on March 15, 1939, Carr closed the Legation on March 21,
and departed on April 6. The United States did not recognize the
establishment of a German protectorate over Bohemia and Moravia, or the
establishment of the state of
Slovakia
.
On September 4, 1941,
Anthony J. Drexel Biddle Jr.
was appointed Minister to the
Czechoslovakian Government in London. He presented his credentials on
October 28. Biddle was also commissioned to the governments-in-exile of
Belgium
,
Greece
,
Luxembourg
,
the
Netherlands
,
Norway
,
Poland
, and
Yugoslavia
.
Biddle was promoted to Ambassador on June 4, 1943, and presented his new
credentials on July 12. He left London on December 1, 1943.
Vladimir Hurban
, the Czechoslovak Minister to the
United States since 1936, was promoted to Ambassador and presented his new
credentials on June 14, 1943.
Establishment of American Legation to Embassy Status,
1945
.
Embassy Prague was established on May 29, 1945 with
Alfred W.
Klieforth
as Chargé d’Affaires
ad interim
.
Laurence A. Steinhardt
was appointed as the first U.S. Ambassador
to Czechoslovakia on December 20, 1944. He presented his credentials on July
20, 1945 and served until September 19, 1948. Steinhardt’s tour of duty
covered the
Sovietization
of Czechoslovakia
.
Dissolution of Czechoslovakia,
1992
.
On December 31, 1992, the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic ceased to
exist and was succeeded by two new states: the
Czech Republic
and
Slovakia
.
Treaties and Agreements
Commericial relations treaty, October 1923.
The first treaty between the United States and Czechoslovakia dealt
with commercial relations, and was signed at Prague on October 29,
1923. It entered into force on November 5. It was supplanted by a
reciprocal trade agreement signed in Washington on March 7, 1938. It
entered into force provisionally on April 16, 1938, but was
terminated April 22, 1939.
Air transport Services treaty, January 1946.
The first postwar agreement between the two countries dealt with air
transport services, and was signed January 3, 1946 and entered into
force on June 17, 1946.
Resources
Bevans, Charles I.
Treaties and Other
International Agreements of the United States of
America, 1776-1949. Volume 6:
Canada-Czechoslovakia
. Department of State Publication
8549 (January 1971).
Department of State Country Fact Sheet:
Czechoslovakia
Department of State Country Information:
Czechoslovakia
Langer, William L.
An Encyclopedia of
World History
. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company,
1968.
Library of Congress Country Study:
Czech
Republic
