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This volume is the second of a two volume project of Czech and Slovak History seen through the eyes of women. The first volume Seven Slovak Women was published in April 2015.

This volume Seven Czech Women is a study in its own right, focussing on Czech women’s life histories. Owing to the peculiar history of the Czech lands before and after the Czechoslovak Republic (1918–1992), the seven portraits explain the specific political circumstances Czech women were facing from the late 19th century to the present day. Seven Czech Women and Seven Slovak Women provide the reader with a comprehensive picture of women’s lives in Central Europe; the volumes can explain, to some extent, the disparate development and political and cultural identity of Czech and Slovak women.

My thanks. I am greatly indebted to my colleagues and friends for their interest in my research and willingness to discuss specific issues with me. My thanks, in alphabetical order, go to Zdeněk V. David, Markéta Doležalová, Blanka Hajnová, Kristina Larischová, Radka Handlová, Vladimír Handl, Thomas Hardmeier, Adis Merdzanovic, Slavomír Michálek, Miroslav Michela, Daniel E. Miller, Marta Neracher, Marie Neudorflová, Libora Oates-Indruchová, Francis D. Raška, Nikola Todorović and Martin Vadas. The ladies at the Prague National Library Clementinum were very professional and went to great lengths to help me with finding the source material crucial for this volume.

Karel Borůvka, the Ambassador of the Czech Republic to Switzerland, supported this book from the start, and I am honoured that he agreed to write the preface. Valerie Lange at ibidem publishers in Stuttgart is an exceptionally patient, effective and supportive editor. Peter Thomas Hill proofread the manuscript, perennially soldiering on with the demanding task of teaching me English that is up to his own high standards.

I would like to express my gratitude and respect to the ladies who agreed to participate in my oral history interviews, which, to some, meant going back in history to remember painful events. Nataša Lišková, Tereza Maxová, and Terezie Sverdlínová, your esprit, commitment, modesty, beauty, honesty and intellect are inspiring – you are in a league of your own. Sadly, Eva ‘Mimi’ Jiránková, my great friend, can no more witness the publication of this volume. Mimi passed away peacefully on 26 April 2015 at the age of 93 at her Devon home, surrounded by her loving family.

The errors and shortcomings in this volume are my own.

Josette Baer

Zurich, Switzerland, and Prague, Czech Republic, August 2015