Silent shadows in the rebirth of Czech nation

Unveiling the role of rape and sexual violence in the ethnic cleansing of post‐WWII Czech lands

Bibliographic Data

ID6307296
AuthorsJaromír Mrňka (0000-0003-4131-1078, Prague Branch German Historical Institute Warsaw Praha Czech Republic, corresponding author)
Year2025
Volume31
Issue4
Pages927-945
Publication date2025-10-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueNations and Nationalism (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1345-5078 • E-ISSN: 1469-8129
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/nana.13053
OpenAlexW4403660825
LanguageEN
References cited26

The article explores the harrowing use of sexual violence as a tool in the ethnic cleansing of Germans in post‐World War II Czechoslovakia. By examining the grim realities of internment camps, prisons, and border regions, it reveals a disturbing pattern of abuse aimed primarily at German women by Czech men. This violence was not isolated but integral to the broader project of national cleansing, laying bare the patriarchal foundations of Czechoslovak society. State policies, including the differential treatment of mixed marriages, reinforced a male‐dominated ethos. By stripping Germans of their citizenship and legal protections, Czech authorities fostered a climate of impunity, allowing a wave of sexual violence to persist through the ‘German transfers’. The article sheds light on this dark chapter, exposing how rape was used to reaffirm Czech men's dominance in the nation's postwar rebirth

Criminology · Czech · Ethnic Cleansing · Ethnic group · Political science · Sexual violence · Sociology · World War II · European history and politics · Gender Studies · Gender, Security, and Conflict · Historical Gender and Feminism Studies · Law

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