Bohemia

Bohemia Have you ever wondered where you or your ancestors came from? Well I have and one day I took the initiative, and looked it up. I have found out that my family came from the country of Bohemia. In this essay I will reveal a lot of the torn and twisted past of one part of one of the most interesting populations on the planet, the Czechs. Bohemia has gone through 4 types of government. First being an absolute monarchy, like that of the USSR, second being a state of communism, third was a good old dictatorship led by none other than Adolf Hitler, and finally settling under Democracy run by the mother country of Czechoslovakia.

First up on the agenda to talk about will be the coming to be of this small country now turned province. In 1158 Bohemia was declared its own country although remaining close to its Czech parents. It was declared a country just after Frederick I declared a Duke of Bohemia. It is a small saucer shaped land full of mountains and hills (bohemia 1). Bohemia is an agricultural power at this time. Unlike most countries in this area they have the ability to grow produce and other such necessities to live. Although people in bohemian decent have lived there since 300 B.C. they have not quite been civilized until this time, now under the rule of the Holy Roman Empire it is becoming a fine young country.

In the early 1400’s bohemia was subject to a number of civil wars, mostly due to the execution of John Hus (bohemia 1).This period of rough time lasted almost 100 years. It was saved from this chaos by coming under rule of the Hapsburg family in 1526. The country then entered a very successful period of textile manufacturing. Its main products were glass and crystal wear, also a lot of beer, and clothing, also some iron and steel and machinery but that was to come later. As far as farming goes they were successful in growing barley, oats, and potatoes. They were also very successful cattle herders and pig raisers.

Bohemia was also very affected by the world wars, World War 2 more than previous wars, mainly due to the fact that the country in so close to the Sudetenland, so it was quite easy for Hitler to enter the country. This also led to a period of poverty and relentless fear, the country was largely occupied by Jews. The country was then run by a communist leader so it never had time to recover from the tyrannous rule of Hitler. But communism was quite helpful to the economy and helped it gain some stability. Perhaps one of the biggest mistakes as far the Slavic economy was concerned was the move away from communism. It left many without jobs and shoved many into poverty and anger. Bohemia then decided it was best for the country to become part of Czechoslovakia, this transition occurred in mid- 1992. Since then bohemia has flourished just being a province of the mother country.

By, Anthony Soulek

Mastny, Vojtech. "Bohemia." //World Book Advanced//. World Book, 2011. Web. 11 Feb. 2011 [] "Bohemia." //Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online//. Encyclopædia Britannica, 2011. Web. 11 Feb. 2011. < [] >.

"Czech Republic." //World Book Discover.// World Book, 2011. Web. 11 Feb. 2011. []

Once the pinnacle of tehcnology and fashion now only talked about in whispers.