Slovak Republic (1939–1945)
1939–1945 client state of Nazi Germany / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The (First) Slovak Republic (Slovak: (Prvá) Slovenská republika), otherwise known as the Slovak State (Slovak: Slovenský štát), was a partially-recognized clerical fascist client state of Nazi Germany which existed between 14 March 1939 and 4 April 1945 in Central Europe. The Slovak part of Czechoslovakia declared independence with German support one day before the German occupation of Bohemia and Moravia. It controlled most of the territory of present-day Slovakia, without its current southern parts, which were ceded by Czechoslovakia to Hungary in 1938. The state was the first formally independent Slovak state in history. Bratislava was declared the capital city.
Slovak Republic | |||||||||
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1939–1945 | |||||||||
Motto: Verní sebe, svorne napred! (English: "Faithful to Ourselves, Together Ahead!") | |||||||||
Anthem: Hej, Slováci (English: "Hey, Slovaks") | |||||||||
National seal | |||||||||
Status | Client state of Nazi Germany and member of the Axis[lower-alpha 1] | ||||||||
Capital and largest city | Bratislava 48°09′N 17°07′E | ||||||||
Common languages | Slovak, German | ||||||||
Ethnic groups | |||||||||
Religion | Roman Catholicism (state religion)[5] | ||||||||
Demonym(s) | Slovak | ||||||||
Government | Clerical fascist one-party corporate state[6] under a totalitarian dictatorship | ||||||||
President | |||||||||
• 1939–1945 | Jozef Tiso | ||||||||
Prime Minister | |||||||||
• 1939 | Jozef Tiso | ||||||||
• 1939–1944 | Vojtech Tuka | ||||||||
• 1944–1945 | Štefan Tiso | ||||||||
Legislature | National Assembly | ||||||||
Historical era | World War II | ||||||||
14 March 1939 | |||||||||
23–31 March 1939 | |||||||||
21 July 1939 | |||||||||
1–16 September 1939 | |||||||||
28 July 1940 | |||||||||
24 November 1940 | |||||||||
22 June 1941 | |||||||||
29 August 1944 | |||||||||
4 April 1945 | |||||||||
Area | |||||||||
• Total | 38,055[7] km2 (14,693 sq mi) | ||||||||
Population | |||||||||
• Estimate | 2,655,053[8] | ||||||||
Currency | Slovak koruna (Ks) | ||||||||
Date format | d. m. yyyy | ||||||||
Driving side | right | ||||||||
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Today part of | Slovakia Poland |
A one-party state governed by the far-right Hlinka's Slovak People's Party, the Slovak Republic is primarily known for its collaboration with Nazi Germany, which included sending troops to the invasion of Poland in September 1939 and the Soviet Union in 1941. In 1940, the country joined the Axis when its leaders signed the Tripartite Pact.
In 1942, the country deported 58,000 Jews (two-thirds of the Slovak Jewish population) to German-occupied Poland, paying Germany 500 Reichsmarks each. After an increase in the activity of anti-Nazi Slovak partisans, Germany invaded Slovakia, triggering a significant uprising in 1944. The Slovak Republic was abolished after the Soviet liberation in 1945, and its territory was reintegrated into the recreated Third Czechoslovak Republic.
The current Slovak Republic does not consider itself a successor state of the wartime Slovak Republic, instead a successor to the Czechoslovak Federal Republic. However, some nationalists celebrate 14 March as a day of independence.