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Busts of Lenin
These busts of Lenin (Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov), the first leader of the Soviet Union, are but two samples of thousands of different versions of Lenin's likeness. Both are copies of the same plaster bust, approximately two feet in height. Across the Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, and other states led by Communist parties, busts, statues, reliefs, and other likenesses of Lenin were ubiquitous….
Thälmann Pioneer's Shirt
This shirt is an example of the uniforms worn by children aged 6-14 who were members of the Young Pioneers in East Germany. Founded in 1948, the Young Pioneer movement was similar to the Boy and Girl Scout movements that originated in the United Kingdom at the turn of the century and spread around the world. Like the Scouts, children involved in the Young Pioneers attended regular after school….
East German Political Cartoon
This cartoon from the East German weekly magazine Eulenspiegel (a weekly magazine of humor and satire), is poking fun at the possibility of German reunification. Once the Berlin Wall was torn down, unification became the goal of most (but not all) Germans on both sides of the border. The caption under the cartoon reads: "A common European home - but, only when I can collect the rent!"….
Spy Radio from East Germany
These images depict a small transistor radio of the type a resident of Berlin might own during the 1960s or 1970s. What is not apparent when the radio is closed is that it is actually a communications device used by agents of the East German state police, the Stasi, who crossed into (or lived in) West Berlin to communicate with their officers across the Berlin Wall in East Berlin. The use of….
Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany
At the end of World War II, Germany was divided into four zones of occupation, with each being overseen by one of the Allied powers: the U.S., Great Britain, France, and the Soviet Union. With the beginning of the Cold War shortly thereafter, this divide became permanent, with the Soviet zone in East Germany becoming a separate country (the German Democratic Republic), and the other three….
Rude Pravo, Central Committee Meeting
In 1978, one year after the creation of Charter '77, Vaclav Havel wrote his famous essay, "The Power of the Powerless." In it he argued that the countries of the East Bloc were under the rule of post-totalitarian regimes that appealed to popular desires for consumer goods, in order to secure domination over their populations. Indeed, these governments did make consumerist appeals. But they….
Samizdat, Air Pollution
Pollution from the Black Triangle was a tremendous source of water and air pollution in Eastern Europe, but it was not the only source. Heating systems that relied on coal power, and cars using leaded gas and lacking catalytic converters added to this immense problem, which especially plagued larger cities, including Prague.
Initially, the Czechoslovak Communist….
Rude Pravo, Water Pollution
Nestled in the very heart of Central Europe is a region that has come to be known as the Black Triangle. It contains land surrounding where the borders of Czechoslovakia, Poland, and East Germany meet. This large tri-state area is rich with natural resources, including lignite, iron ores, and uranium. Lignite is soft coal and is found close to the earth's surface, so it is easy to mine simply….
Prace, Health
Following World War II, the peoples of Eastern Europe not only had increased access to affordable, hygienic housing, they also had improved access to health care. Still, like the new housing opportunities, the new health care offerings were limited in quantity and quality, and other everyday life changes conspired to test their efficacy. In the first years of Communist rule, the health of East….
Rudé Pravo Alcohol and Cigarette Abuse
Alcohol and cigarette consumption were very regular parts of everyday life for great numbers of Eastern Europeans, including youth, during the Cold War era. In fact, these countries had some of the highest alcoholism rates in the world and a very large percentage of the population smoked. Recreational drug addiction was not as prevalent as it was in the West, largely due to government efforts….
Rudé Pravo, Music
The history of music, including rock, punk and heavy metal, forms a fascinating chapter in the history of everyday life in Cold War Eastern Europe. Among the many bands that formed during the three decades before 1989, perhaps none is better known than the Plastic People of the Universe of Czechoslovakia. The group's anti-Communist lyrics led it to be declared illegal. Persecution ranged from….
Rudé Pravo, Youth Discontent
In Communist Eastern Europe much propaganda was directed toward young people, who party leaders correctly viewed as forces important for the future of the state. This propaganda was filled with messages about the Communist Party's benevolent protection of workers' interests and the evils of Western capitalism. These messages were delivered in schools, where all teachers were required to write….
Samizdat, Houses of Culture and Entertainment
During the Cold War era an interesting public space called "the house of culture" (or sometimes "the palace of culture") proliferated throughout the East Bloc. Sometimes they existed as free-standing buildings, sometimes as parts of factory complexes, and very often they were buildings within the massive housing settlements were millions of Eastern Europeans awoke and retired to rest each day.….
Panelaks and Housing Estates
During the first half of the 20th century shortages of hygienic, affordable housing were common in Eastern Europe. Following World War II, Communist leaders worked to resolve this social problem—one that grew graver as collectivization of agriculture during the 1950s forced millions of people to migrate from the countryside to cities.
Their solution was the construction of massive,….
Rudé Pravo, Housing
Rudé Pravo was the Czechoslovak equivalent of the Soviet newspaper Pravda. Both were the official daily news publications of their respective Communist governments; both depicted the official version of truth about current events and conditions. Rudé Pravo had a daily circulation of over one million, a fact attributable not to its popularity but rather to the….
Samizdat, Tuzex
Tuzex, short for Tuzemský export (or domestic export), was a set of special stores in Communist Czechoslovakia. The Communist Party established Tuzex in 1957, in order to draw hard currency from citizens' pockets into the coffers of the state. Hard currency, including American dollars and West German marks, was convertible currency linked to the international gold….
Samizdat, Five Year Plan
In 1986 the Czechoslovak Communist Central Committee approved its Eighth Five Year Plan since 1948, which stayed in effect, with modifications, until 1990. The plan built upon the East Bloc practices of following the Soviet command-economy model and emphasizing heavy industry over consumer goods. For example, the plan called for industrial output to grow 15.8% for the five year period (roughly….