Gustáv Husák
E-book, Czech
Gustáv Husák
Gustáv Husák (1913–1991) is a name most strongly associated with the 'normalisation' period of the 1970s and 80s, which saw the birth of the so-called 'Husák's children' generation. This new biography of Husák, penned by historian Michal Macháček, follows the long career of communist Czechoslovakia's last president from its very beginnings. It focuses on Husák's origins and family background, his youth, studies, and entry into the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, his activities during the war and the Slovak National Uprising, his post-war political career, his conviction in the trial of Slovak 'bourgeois nationalists', and his successful efforts for rehabilitation and gradual return to the pinnacle of power. The book does not neglect Husák's personal life, offering new findings in this area too. The figure who symbolised the rigidity and stagnation of the normalisation era emerges from Macháček's book as a more multifaceted personality than is commonly perceived. The book is based on research into previously unknown sources from Czech, Slovak, and Russian archives, as well as materials from the private archive of Gustáv Husák's family. It is the first comprehensive monograph on Husák, not only in Czech historiography.
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