Czech Socialist Republic

The Czech Socialist Republic was a republic within the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. The name was used from 1 January 1969 to November 1989, when the previously unitary Czechoslovak state changed into a federation. From 1990 to 1992, the Czech Republic existed as a federal subject within the Czech and Slovak Federative Republic, and later became the independent Czech Republic.

History

Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (1969–1989)

After the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968, liberalisation reforms were stopped and reverted. The only exception was the federalization of the country. The former centralist state Czechoslovakia was divided in two parts: the Czech Socialist Republic and the Slovak Socialist Republic by the Constitutional Law of Federation of 28 October 1968, which went into effect on 1 January 1969. New national parliaments were created and the traditional parliament of Czechoslovakia was renamed the "Federal Assembly" and was divided in two chambers: the House of the People and the House of Nations. Very complicated rules of voting were put in effect.

Czech and Slovak Federative Republic (1990–1992)

After the Velvet Revolution which brought the end of socialism in Czechoslovakia, the word socialist was dropped from the names of the two republics. Thus, on 6 March 1990 the Czech Socialist Republic was renamed the Czech Republic.
The complicated system of parliamentary voting was kept after the fall of socialism, complicating and delaying political decisions during radical changes in the economy.
Later, in 1992, the Czech Republic became an independent state.