The Slovaks of Bratislava 1918- 1948

Martina Fiamová

The Slovaks of Bratislava 1918- 1948 Martina Fiamová tI was already the geographic position that had deemed Bratislava to have acquired the status of a cultural and economic centre, whereas it had held this post far earlier than it had acquired the status of the capital of Hungary in the 16 century, remaining as such until the end of the 18 century and, in fact, remaining the Hungarian coronation centre up until 1830. The population of Bratislava was mainly constituted of Slovaks, Hungarians and Germans, as indicated by statistical evidence from the first half of the 18 century. In 1850 and 1851, ti had more than 42 000 inhabitants, of which almost 18% were Slovak (74.6% German and 7.4% Hungarian). 50 years later, the proportion of the Slovak population decreased by nearly 2%, whereas that of the German population fell to 50%; on the other hand, the Hungarian inhabitants formed 30% of the overall population. The German decreasing and Hungarian increasing trend was also acknowledged by acensus in 1910.’ Bratislava thus acquired, as a result of a firm pressure for Hungarisation after the Austro-Hungarian Compromise, a gradually more distinctive Hungarian character, not only within the administration, but the entire public, cultural, and social life. On the verge of the centuries, Hungarian became the sole language for Roman-Catholic and Jewish schools, gradually finding its place in Protestant schools as well. At the same time, there was not to be found a single grade being taught in Slovak, nor a German school (the most proximate to which were only three private German-Hungarian elementary schools).? The Hungarisation was supported by the theatre, the city’s casino, and, apart from prominent industrial and commercial companies, the press. The Slovak segment of the time was made up of socially weaker groups; the Slovak immigrants were primarily workers, journeymen, small tradesmen, peddlers, and household assistance. As an example, almost 90% of the overall number of Slovaks employed in industry fell within the category of auxiliary personnel in 1910. Cases of Slovaks being employed in the administrative and free professions that presupposed high-school or university 3 education were very rare. 229

Integration of Bratislava into a new state

The history of the city was radically marked by the First World War and its cor- responding consequences for the nations of Austria-Hungary. For Bratislava, the formation of Czechoslovakia meant a political and real struggle for this industrial centre and an important transport junction. The attempts for an annexation of Bratislava to Czechoslovakia were strongly opposed, as by the Hungarian government, so, for example, by the professorate of the St. Elisabeth University, and by a proportion of the population in the form of protests.’ In November of 1918, Bratislava was visited by several Hungarian mili- tary units, with the intention of deflecting aCzechoslovak occupation.’ Already in December of 1918, the Hungarian Prime Minister Károlyi overtly announced that the Hungarian government would never give up Bratislava.* The variety of propositions for a solution of Bratislava’s situation included requirements of a part of Austrian Germans for the annexation of the city to Austria, as well as an idea of its transformation into an autonomous republic.’ Ultimately, Bratislava was captured by the Czechoslovak army on January 1$ 1919. The present atmosphere was described by the District Administrator of Bratislava – Samuel Zoch°- in a letter to the Minister Plenipotentiary for the Administration of Slovakia, Vavro Srobár: “There si silence in Pressburg; great joy si there that the seizure si over. The Germansrejoice in the fal of the Hungarian domi- n i o n . » The Czechoslovak State Administration took control over Bratislava and the wholeDistrict, whereas the government has sworn abidance to the rights and the support of the language and culture of all of its non-Slovak citizens.’ The name of the city itself underwent an interesting development in the ini- tial months of Czechoslovakia’s existence. Until ti was officially established, the old names had been used: Pressburg, Poszony, Presporok. The city was called “Wilsonov” during the Hungarian administration of the city in December of 1918 by the National Assembly in Bratislava, however this did not last. In February of 1919, the Cabinet of the Czechoslovak Republic ( C S ) announced its decision of using the name “Bratislav”, after objections by .V Srobár adjusted to “Bratislava”. The remaining uncertainties were cleared by the Office of the Minister Plenipotentiary, when it handed a resolution to the District Office in Bratislava in March 1919, containing the new name of “Bratislava”, 10 Since 1919, Bratislava has become the administrative, political, economic and cultural centre fo Slovakia, comprising not only political, but as well financial and military authorities, industrial enterprises, public and private institutions. 230 In between 1919 and 1928, Bratislava was the site of the Office of the Minister Plenipotentiary for the Administration of Slovakia and the District Office, later on, the site of the Provincial Office and the seat of the Provincial President. Bratislava was the birthplace of the foremost Slovak cultural institutions, such as the Slovak National Theatre (SND); the Radio began broadcasting in the twen- ties; stands were suddenly filled with Slovak magazines. Significant development was also noted by the local economy, services and public transportation. Concurrently with this development, Bratislava saw a sharp growth of the population, and its significant national rearrangement – its new composition from the outset of the new political body, embracing the Czechs and the Slovaks, can be best observed from the results of the census from 1919. Of the total of 83 200 people living in Bratislava, one third was Czech and Slovak, 36% were German, and only 29% were Hungarian.” Two years later, Bratislava was inhabited by more than 39 0 people, caused chiefly by the arrival of larger number of Czechs and Slovaks, whose rate rose close to 40%; the amount of German inhabitants rema- ined in a rising trend to 28%, and a decrease was noted within the Hungarian segment of the inhabitants (22%).12 Similar trends in the development of the national composition of the city are supported also by the census from 1930. Bratislava has become a city of near- yl 124 000 people; the Czechoslovak citizens were composed as follows: 30% Slovak, 21.5% Czech, 28% German, and 16% Hungarian.’ T’he reversal of the Hungarisational trendhas mainly been executed through a “re-Slovakisation” of apart of the original population, and the immigration of Slovaks from other parts of Slovakia, as well as the immigration of Czechs.14 As aforesaid, Bratislava had not had a single Slovak-teaching school until 1919. After the attachment of Bratislava to Czechoslovakia, Hungarian – also used at schools that had not yet been taken over by the competences of Czechoslovak authorities, had, for certain duration, even become the lecturing language of the S.t Elisabeth University. It was after the arrival of Minister Srobár that the state had begun taking over schools and introducing Slovak as the main language tau- ght in. On May I”, the state took over the Girls’ Gymnasium at Dunajská ulica (Street), a while later also the Gymnasium at Grösslingová ulica (Street)- later called the Masaryk State Gymnasium – including only 28 Slovaks out of a to- tal of 757 students in 1918/1919, and the Hungarian Teachers’ Institute (as the Czechoslovak Teachers’ Institute) in September. In May of 1919, tuition in Slovak was commenced at the primary school at Karpatská ulica (Street). A celebration commemorating the foundation of Bratislava’s Slovak secondary schools followed 231 several weeks later. For the sake of increasing the amount of Slovak students, the press agitated and appealed to the parents, and encouraged their children’s place- ment in Slovak schools. T’ he Ministry of Education and National Enlightenment, in order to support the Slovak-taught education, organized reading, writing, and mathematics courses, as well as courses of homeland studies and civics. 15 Bratislava’s second-tier education was, in the second half of the twenties, composed of two rapidly growing Czechoslovak Gymnasia (one of which was a girls’ school), a Czechoslovak Secondary School, the Teacher’s Institute, and the Technical and Commercial School with the characteristics of secondary education (apart from Slovak, also taught in Hungarian and German). For instance, in the school year of 1929/1930, 56% of the total of more than3000 students in secondary education in Bratislava were enlisted in Czechoslovak schools.’ In addition, two Slovak monastic schools formed in the mid-thirties – aboys’ (Jesuit) and a girls’ (Ursuline) gymnasium. Within the lower-tier system, education in Slovak was provided for by three burgess schools (as well as one that was Czechoslovak-German), and, until the end of the twenties, 5 elementary schools (along with 7 ‘multilingual’ schools), one vocational school, and later on 12 trade schools (including one Czechoslovak- German).’ Individual Slovak apprenticehoods were created in 1922, yet, four years later, al of these (Slovak, German and Hungarian) were united into asingle re-organized apprentice school.18 An essential role in the development of Bratislava’s educational system after the creation of the Czechoslovak Republic was played by Czech teachers and pro- fessors. Despite this, the system often struggled due to a shortage of teachers, as well as an excessive amount of students in individual classes. ‘The parents of the Slovak and Czech children arranged a manifestation march through the city in September of 1922, thus drawing attention to the difficult situation of the Slovak educational system. Elementary schools were visited by thousands of children, in spite of disposing with barely 10 classes; hundreds of children remained unable to be placed at al. Problems were, however, encountered by nearly all of the educa- t i o n a l institutions.19 With regard to higher education, the Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession took over the Hungarian Theological Academy in September of 1919, and re-opened it in October as the ‘Theological University of the Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession, taught in Slovak. The same year, the Catholic Theological Faculty was established on a statutory basis, though its actual establis- hment was long to come.20 232 In the time of the formation of the Czechoslovak Republic, the S.t Elisabeth University in Bratislava was yet to be fuly built. Along with the Faculty of Medicine, the University had functioning Faculties of Law and Philosophy, the Faculty of Natural Sciences was not present at al. In June of 1919, statute estab- lished the Czechoslovak State University, mandatorily to be taught in Slovak or Czech. tI acquired the name of “Comenius University” in the same year. 14 scho- lars registered for the academic year of 1919/1920,2′ ten years later, the University was home to 1761 students, 72% of which were Slovak and Czech, followed by students of Hungarian and Jewish nationality? While Slovaks had a clear repre- sentation within the ranks of students, it was only in the thirties when they estab- lished major presence within the professorate. Distinctive development has also been undergone in the field of societal acti- vities. 616 societies were registered in Bratislava in 1922; ten years later ti was 712. While in the times of Austria-Hungary, socio-medical societies (the number of charitable, supporting and funeral societies ranged from 20 to 30) and social societies were prevalent in Bratislava, the period of the CSR saw a predominan- c e o f p r o f e s s i o n a l – o r i e n t e d s o c i e t i e s ( 1 7 8 i n 1 9 3 1 ) . O v e r a 1 2 0 c o m m u n a l , 70 humanistic, almost ahundred sport-oriented and many other societies enabled not merely the satisfaction of the citizens’ cultural needs, but also had an educa- tional and auxiliary function. Of the most popular was, for example, the Physical Education Unit “Sokol”, comprising more than two thousand people; hundreds of members were involved in the Workers’ Physical Education Unit, the First Czechoslovak Sport Club Bratislava, Urban Society of Physical Education “PTE’, and others. Hiking enjoyed great popularity (the Club of Czechoslovak Hikers, the Small-Carpathian Society of Hikers), a solid base was formed around the Beauty Society. Tens of members were present within singers’ (for example, the “Magnet” Society of Steelworkers), theatrical and educational societies.23 Lower social classes of the population were typically involved in supportive, enlightenment-educational, singers’ and sports societies. Social societies (theat- rical, musical and singers’), professional, commercial, industrial and agricultural, as well as religious, sports, and firemen’s societies were usually composed of the middle classes, while the higher classes of the population engaged with scientific, artistic, commercial and selective societies (such as the Rotary Club). Other societies were divided according to nationality, for instance, the tea- chers’ societies of the thirties, where, apart from the Slovak, two German, one Hungarian, and one Jewish society were in operation. Analogous divisions can be seen amongst artistic, theatrical and singers’ associations.” Specific data from 1932 233 denotes that, of the total of 712 societies, 572 were Czechoslovak, 72 German, 15 Hungarian, and 72 Jewish.25 The press was not to fall behind either. In the beginning of the thirties, 158 newspapers and magazines were printed in Bratislava, of which 30 were politi- cal (19 Slovak) and 128 non-political (64 Slovak). According to the information given yb the Mayor’s Office in 1926, the most-read newspaper within the Slovak circles in Bratislava was the daily “Slovák”, the press department of Hlinka’s Slovak People’s Party (HSI’S) 26 The first step towards the creation of the Slovak National Theatre (SND) came in September of 1919 in Prague, following a decision that, by April 1″ 1920, Bratislava will have its own theatre.27 After its establishment in 1920, ti disposed with a stable Czechoslovak ensemble, sporadically with a Hungarian or German. T’he Slovak Drama, however, began its existence as late as in 1932. T’he SND con- stantly struggled with financial problems as wel sa poor visitors’ rates, which si why its management chose to conduct special events designated for students and soldiers. Performances were in Czech. However, this was not a solitary problem of Bratislava’s theatrical circles. Reasons of loss, for example, were the cause of the end of the People’s Theatre in Zivnodom in 1931.28 The musical drama was evolved by the opera division of the SND, orchestral compositions were presen- ted by the Bratislava Symphonic Orchestra (founded in 1920), later on the radio’s orchestra.? The year of 1918 brought a significant opportunity for numerous Slovak figu- res to accede to the cultural and economic life of the country and the city. One of those was the leading pioneer and the organizer of Slovakia’s electrification, a promoter of scientific and technical progress and innovations in Slovakia, Karol Matej Ambroz. Born in 1877 in Sucany into the family of a railroad guard, he graduated from universities in Darmstadt and Karlsruhe. Accompanied by two of his friends that he met during his studies, he attempted to create a Society of Slovak Engineers in Bratislava at the beginning of the 20′ century. According to its prepared bylaws, each membermust have, apart from German and Hungarian, also spokenSlovak. His suggestionswere gradually implemented in Budapest, later in Brno and Romania. He returned to Budapest once again in 1912 to work as the main engineer of the city’s power station. After the establishment of the CSR, Ing. K. M. Ambroz instantly offered his services ot the Czechoslovak Republic. From February of 1919, he began working in the Podbrezovske Zeleziarne (ironworks), from which he later moved to the Department of Public Works under Srobár’s Office of the Minister Plenipotentiary 234 for the Administration of Slovakia in Bratislava, taking on responsibility for electro- technical affairs. He was promoted to a supreme adviser already in 1921. After the Ministry’s abolishment and the creation of the Provincial Office, he continued in his position comprising identical tasks, he also retained his prominent position in the era of the Slovak Republic. He was the superintendent for the areas of machi- nery, electrical engineering and automobiles at the Ministry of Transport and Public Works in Bratislava. Following the transfer of the Technology University of M. R. Stefánik (subsequently the SVST) from Kosice to Bratislava, he immediately joined the effort in its building, and was given the title of na Honorary Associate Professor in 1942. He thus lectured at this University, founded the first Slovak professional magazine on electrical engineering entitled “Elektrotechnika”, built and led the Institute for the Construction of Electrical Machinery and Devices, of which he was head until his sudden death in 1943.0

Political life of the city

With the exception of the general elections in 1920 and 1938, the city’s dominant political party was the Hungarian Christian-Social Party; the town hall was, however, ruled by a coalition of Czechoslovak parties in theinter-war period. The most prominent post was held by the social democracy the second most power- ful was the Czechoslovak National Socialist Party. The second half of the thirties showed the rise of Hlinka’s Slovak People’s Party and the Karpathendeutsche Partei.³¹

‘The early period of 1919 to 1923 was an era of large-span crisis within the city administration itself, the District Administrator appointed 9 new members of the City Council in January of 1920, as a replacement for those that had left. In June, the City Council representative body was disbanded’, and a provisional council was appointed, carrying out its function until the elections in 1923. As a matter of fact, this short period was sparked by frequent national clashes within the City Council, especially with members of the Hungarian minority. Struggles have even appeared, for example, with regard to the arrangement of the summer season in the City ‘Theatre- what ultimately lead to its division into the German Drama Ensemble and the Hungarian Operetta during a tour of the SND to Kosice.” In 1922, within a general reorganisation, Bratislava was recognised as a city disposing with a local administration and released of its title as a municipality – yet, official changes were seen in the next year. After Mayor Dr. Viktor Dusek, 235 Dr. Imrich Zimmermann became the last mayor of the municipality, while the first elected mayor (in 1923) was Dr. Ludovit Okáink, the main vicar of the city, becoming head of the town until 1929. He was followed by Dr. Vladimir KrnoTM. In 1923, a new administrative organ with competences over city matters was established in Bratislava – the City Notary Office, the function of which, besides others, was the review of the resolutions of the City Council, and their conformity with valid laws and regulations.35 Elections to the council in 1923 were won by the Provincial Christian Social Party (14 mandates), followed by the KSC – Communist Party (7), a Union of the Czechoslovak Legionnaire Party, the Czechoslovak Socialist Party and the Republican Party (7), and the Slovak People’s Party (5). Four years later, during the elections of 1927 (referred to as a” national defeat” by the daily Slovák), the first two parties retained their position (with a gain of 1 and 8 mandates), the third post was held by the Czechoslovak Social-Democratic Party (6), followed by the National Economic Union (3) and the HSLS 3(.6) The 1931 elections resonated in a notion of a recurring victory of the Provincial Christian Social Party (8); lowers positions were occupied by the Czechoslovak Social-Democratic Party (6) and the KSC (6)³⁷

Bratislava a Slovak city?

Within the first decade of the existence of the Czechoslovak Republic, four distinctive concepts of the national character of Bratislava can be identified. The first of these was a vision of a Hungarian city, originating in the era of the pre-war Hungary. With the establishment of a new state and the progress of Czechoslovak military units across Slovakia, Hungarians have declared their desires to retain Pozsony as internal to a post-war Hungary. After a military occupation of the city in January of 1919, they have articulated that they do indeed find the state of affairs temporary, and have required a re-connection of the city to Hungary after the peace conference, while retaining hopes of a border revision even after signing of the peace treaties.38

The second vision of the national essence of the city in the inter-war era was one of a tri-national Pressburg.Certainly, it might have been an attempt to converse the pre-war identity of the city, promoting an overlap of identities and local-patriotism of the citizens as an opposition to an increasing Hungarian nationalist pressure. In acertain respect, it was an idea of a “tri-cultural” city, with all 236 three nationalities receiving equal rights. The “traditional Pressburgers” have thus argued against their own degradation to anational minority in terms of the law of the Czechoslovak Republic, demanding a stronger status based on their local majority.39

An idea of a Czechoslovak Bratislava was the third, state-supported, of these visions. Formulated as a single-nation concept, ti related to the contemporary ideology of a uinfied Czechoslovak nation. This vision did not exclude the local Germans and Hungarians, but did assign them the position of a national minority. T’ he idea of a Czechoslovak Bratislava remained ambiguous, to an extent, with respect to the balance of the Czech, Slovak and “Czechoslovak” element. Cohere with this is a fourth inter-war concept avision of aSlovak Bratislava, supported yb Slovak nationalists orgainzed in Hlinka’s Slovak People’s Party, which, though ti had kept room for the German and Hungarian minority, ti had sought agradual dismantle of the Czech influence in the city, and had also shown initial signs of anti-Jewish attitude.1° Accordingly, the Slovakisation of Bratislava was not alinear process, but rather a result of competing successive national claims, supported by variousgroups. The first degree of the transition to a Slovak Bratislava wound up in the first half of the twenties of the 20ht century, characterized by astruggle of the Slovaks and Czechs against theHungarian concept, as well as against a tri-national form of Pressburg.” It could be convenient to express the opinion of some writers that the inter-war era should, perhaps, more appropriately be called a”Czechoslovakisation” rather than just a “Slovakisation”. The beginning of the twenties of the 20* century was voiced by the first Slovak national demands, and the Czechoslovak-Slovak conflict has become the primary topic of the second half of the 20″ century. During the period between the wars,however, Slovak demands could not have been pushed through against a Czechoslovak template, resting on the support of state movers. The Czechoslovak-Slovak conflict was resolved as late as during the power re-distributions in 1938 and 19391.2 237

The period of 1938- 1945

On a way towards independence

A progressively restless foreign and domestic situation at the end of the thirties reflected in the elections to the Bratislava City Council in 1938, marked by extraordinary attendance of the voters, and an already turbulent political environment. T’he parties’ preparation for the elections was equally extraordinarily intensive. A few days before their taking place, in June of 1938, the HSES organized a manifestation of its followers at the event of the 2h0t anniversary of the Pittsburgh Treaty (at the presence of a delegation of the Slovak League from America); the Republican Agrarian Party had prepared a Peasants’ DTMay. Mandates were distributed amongst 6 elected parties, the strongest one being the Slovak Unity for a Czechoslovak Republic and Democracy (with the acquisition of 12 105 votes, 19 mandates), established just in May of 1938 as a pre-election bloc of 7Czechoslovak parties.* It has thus overturned the influence of the predominant party and the victor of the previous elections – the Christian-Social Party. The second post was occupied by the Karpathendeutsche Partei in its premiere (10 mandates), followed by the local group of the Provincial Christian-Social and the Hungarian National Parties (8 mandates), the HSLS, the Jewish Party in Czechoslovakia and the united Jewish election groups and the Communist Party. 16 Slovaks, 10 Czechs, 1 Germans, 9 Hungarians, and 2Jews were elected into the City Council. The City Council tried to react to a destabilized internal political situation, and sent a telegraph to the President of the Republic in September, expressing its determination to “fulfil responsibilities, preserve peace and order, and bring sacrifices for their preservation” The events in Munich have, however, made a proper functioning of the council impossible, and its disbandment in the end of October, along with the transfer of its powers to theGovernment Commissioner Dr. Belo Kovác, finalized its existence. The Government Commissioner should have had the aid of a proper council while making resolutions, yet this advisory body had no significant privileges. The influence of the City Notary Office also became markedly limited.” After the acceptance of the Munich Agreement, things took a fast turn. Despite the effort of several German and Hungarian-speaking groups, Bratislava remained part of the Slovak territory. The ht6 of October, 1938, observed the seizure of power by the HSES; Dr. Jozef Tiso was appointed the head of the autonomous 238 government. Substantial changes that followed touched the life of the Republic, as well as the city itself. Security authorities, for example, issued a curfew after 9.30 pm, a prohibition of association at the bank of river Danube (from the bridge up until the student halls ‘Lafranconi’), wear and exposure of national minority flags was prohibited; on the 10th of October, German troops entered Petrzalka and a few days later the Devin castle, and a flag with a large swastika soon flew over the bank of the river,1 Movement of the contemporary development of the society was also characterized by the appointment of Government Commissioners into printing companies in Bratislava, as well as into the editorial offices of several new- spapers and magazines (such as the Slovak dailySlovensky dennik, the workers’ newspaperRobotnicke noviny). In the end of 1938, Bratislava still had nearly 124 000 citizens, of which about 42% were Slovak, 16.8% were Czech, 2% German, and 13% Hungarian.” The development after 1938 had an interesting impact on the size of the population, when ti rose to more than 138 000 people in the next two years, while the pro- portion of the Slovak people grew more than 8%, and, adversely, the proportion of Czechs dramatically decreased as a consequence of Slovak governmental policy (to 3.59%). German people constituted 22%, Hungarian more than 11% of the city’s population, the amount of Jewish people was also approaching 11%.3 The inhabitants of the city were primarily employed in the industry, or occupied in sole trade (more than a third), a quarter was employed in trade and finance, 30% were in state and public services and free occupation.” With respect to religious identity, three quarters of the population were Roman Catholic, followed by about 13% Protestant.32

The capital of the Slovak Republic

As of the Public AdministrationAct of July 1939, Bratislava became the capital city of the Slovak Republic*, its cultural-political and economic centre, the seat of the President, the Assembly, the Government, as well as of the newly established representative bodies. The period was bold in its reorganization of the city administration. The Government Commissioner was replaced by the Mayor after 1941, and so was the City Council substituted by a City Board, made up of nominees of the HSES’ and the German and Hungarian parties.34 239 Amore notable change was seen in higher education, hit weightily by the departure of the Czech teachers. The Comenius University was re-named to “Slovak University”, at whicha newFaculty of Natural Sciences was founded. The highest number of students (over 3000) attended the University in 1939 and 1940; in the school year of 1943/1944, ti was approximately 2700 students. In 1939, Slovak University of Technology, originally residing in Kosice, was relocated to Bratislava as well. A year later, Bratislava saw the establishment of the Business University and the Military University, teaching merely two subjects and having around 20 students. The Academy of Music and Drama became a State Conservatory in 1941. Bratislava’s second-tier education disposed of 8 gymnasia (6 Slovak, one teaching in Hungarian, another in German), two Slovak Teachers Academies (along with one German), aState Institute for Household Skills, three Commercial Academies (Slovak, Hungarian, German) and a State Vocational School. The category of lower-tier vocational schools of the city constituted of 53 state apprentice, trade and commercial schools, and 18 other vocational schools aiming at particular industries.S In the first half of the 40s, several scientific and cultural institutions were estab- lished, for example the Slovak Academy of Arts and Sciences, apart from others, including an Institute ofHistory and Linguistics, the Slovak Catholic Academy, the Slovak Museum, the State Veterinary Institute, the Scientific Society for Overseas Slovaks, as well as an Institute for the Research of Conjunctures at the Slovak National Bank.56 The authoritarian regime of the HSIS, however, substantially altered societal life by either disbanding most of the societies, or merging them with associations regulated by the Slovak Working Association. The total number of societies in Bratislava fell ot 276 in 1944. Anew developmental phase of Bratislava’s stagecraft took place, primarily because of the departure of the Czech artists. An important shift was acomplete”Slovakisation” of the stage language.58 Severe implications of the new governmental policies were changes reflected in the multi-ethnic nature of the town. A turnover in the relative powers in 1938 and 1939 – the seizure of power by the HSLS, the solitary governing party of Slovakia solved Bratislava’s Czech- Slovak conflict. From the perspective of their own position, Slovak nationalists were leading a zealous “Slovakisational” campaign ti acquired a distinctively anti-Czech character during the autonomy, and did not aim solely against the Czech political influence, but against the presence of the Czechs itself, and, after declaring independence, against the Jewish citizens. The rise of HSES meant that 240 the Slovak national vision became one that was an official paradigm of the new autonomous government. Just after Slovakia declared independence in 1939, ti was officially appended a religious element, thus aiming for a “Slovak and Christian” Bratislava. Such a concept did not create space for the Czechs, not at al for the Jewish citizens of the cyti. tI may wel be said that, in the period of 1938 to 1945, Bratislava’s “Slovakisational” process did not only consist of reinforcing Slovak institutions, but mainly aimed for an elimination of the non-Slovak elements from the city, despite the fact that the Slovak demands conflicted strongly with the requirements and interests of the German minority. The Germans demanded a position above a national minority, and insisted on a vision of a bi-national German-Slovak city of Bratislava Pressburg.

Bratislava in the years post-World War I I

Immediately after the liberation, Bratislava saw an establishment of the National Assembly, assuming the powers of the former Mayor, abolishing the City Office, as well as the City Notary Office. Subsequently, on a public election meeting in Reduta in April 1945, elections for the temporary National Assembly took place. Amajority was taken by the Communist Party of Slovakia, sharing seats with the Democratic Party. Aproper National Assembly was established as late as May 1946based on the result of the elections for the Constitutional National Assembly won by the Democratic Party in Bratislava with 64.62% of the votes.° Notwithstanding the fact that the number of citizens of Bratislava fell to around 143 000 people in the end of 1945 as aresult of the war events, the Slovak population saw an increasing trend in the following period both, because of the incorporation of the surrounding, predominantly Slovak villages into the city, and an increased immigration ratio.° Bratislava began to live, production started to recover, education and science saw development, societal activities grew,° the New Stage of the Slovak National Theatre was opened in 1946. T’ he population ascended to 154 000 already in 1946. In the course of 1946, Bratislava began dealing with the problem of the ejection of the German and Hungarian population, a vast number of Germans and Hungarians, however, had left the city as the battlefront approached. After 1945, the post-war Czechoslovakia spread the idea of a “Slovak and Slavic” Bratislava. As opposed to the previous Czechoslovak concept, what became dominant was a post-war Slovak concept stripped of its anti-Czech and anti-Jewish elements. 241 Characteristic for this stage was areorientation from the non-Slavic culture of Western Europe, and literal expelling of the non-Slavic minorities residing in the city the Germans and the Hungarians, collectively accused of collaboration.* Conclusively, it can be summarized that a route from a non-Slovak city in 1918 to a Slovak Bratislava in 1948 transited through two distinctive steps. The first step was finalized in the half of the twenties of the 2h0t century, characterized by the effort of the Slovaks and Czechs for enforcing a Czechoslovak model as against a previously dominant Hungarian concept, as well as opposed to a tri-national vision of the city. Ultimately, this meant a “Czechoslovakisation” of Bratislava, rather than a “Slovakisation” which took shape as the second stage during the war and the post-war era. Until February 1948, a date that represented another crucial moment in the history of the Czech and Slovak nations, the process hadalmost been completed Bratislava has become a Slovak city6.5 242

ENDNOTES 

In 1910, the German segment constituted nearly 42% of the overall population, whereas the number of Hungarians grew to 40%. Slovaks formed less than 15%. SAVOISKY. :A. Obyvatelstvo hlavného mesta Bratislavy. In: Bratislava. Hlavné mesto Slovenska. Bazilej : 1943, .s 1; ZEMKO, M.: Obcan, spolocnost, národ vpohybe slovenskych dejin. Bratislava :2010, p. 170. 2 Archive of Bratislava (AMB), f. MB, .$ 2357, 152026/dan. – 1933. 3 SVETON, J:. Od madarizácie k reslovakizácii Bratislavy. In: FIALA, A.: Slovanska Bratislava .I Bratislava: 1948, p. 275-276. + The Hungarian and German population also strongly expressed its discontent with the Czechoslovak government in February of 1919, after the arrival of Minister Srobár ni Bratislava. HORVATH, .V – RAKOS, .E – WATZKA, :.J Bratislava, Hlavné mesto Slovenska. Pripojenie Bratislavy k Ceskoslovenskej republike roku 1918 – 1919. Dokumenty. Bratislava: 1977, p. 120-122, 26. 5 HORVATH, .V- RÁKOS, .E – WATZKA, J.:Bratislava, Hlavné mesto Slovenska, .p 84. • Ibid, p. 139. ” The proposal was given in November of 1918 by Dr. M. Fejér on a meeting of the Radical Party in Bratislava. HORVATH, .V- RAKOS, .E- WATZKA, J.: Bratislava, Hlavné mesto Slovenska, .s 122. § The District Administrator of Bratislava, S. Zoch, turned in his resignation in August of 1919; the post was subsequently taken by Dr. M. Oslla. ” HORVATH, .V- RAKOS, .E- WATZKA, J:. Bratislava, Hlavné mesto Slovenska, 164-169, 327. 1 0 Ibid, p. 26. 11 SAVOISKY. :A. Obyvatelstvo hlavného mesta Bratislavy, .s 111. 12With respectsto their religion, nearly 75% of the citizens were of Roman Catholic, 11.4% of Protestant, 0.1% of Greek-Catholic, and 11.8% of Jewish faith, 0.4% were of the Czechoslovak Church, 0.3% others, and 1.5% were atheist.T h e city’s inhabitantsmainly 243 lived off employment in the industry (63.3%), trade and financial services (15%). About 14% carried out public or private services and free employment, 8.5% were emploved in transportation, 6%5. in construction, and 5.% in the military. AMB, .f MB, $.2357, 152026/dan. – 1933. SAVOJSKY. A:. Obyvatelstvo hlavného mesta Bratislavy, p. 1. 13 SAVOJSKY, A:. Obyvatelstvo hlavného mesta Bratislavy, s. 1. 1 ZEMKO, M:. Obcan, spolo‹nost, národ vpohybe slovenskych dejin, p. 174 I S HANCIN, V.: Zo ¿ivota mesta v roku 1919. Bratislava: 1989, p. 76.- 1 6 OKALYI, V:. Stredné a odborné $kolstvo v Bratislave v rokoch 1925/26 %a 1928/29. In: Zprávy mesta Bratislavy, roc. 8, 1931, ¿. 2, p. 1-4. ” OKALYI, V:. Skoly národné, odborné Skoyl nizieho druhu atd. v Bratislave v rokoch 1925/26a% 1928/29. In: Zprávy mesta Bratislavy, roc. 8, 1931, c. 23, .p 4-6. 18 Slovaks and Czechs comprised with nearly 40% the second most numerous groups of students. OKALYI, V.: Ucnovské $koly a uchovsky útulok v Bratislave. In: Zprávy mesta Bratislavy, roc. ,8 1931, ¿. 24, p. 5-7. “Statistics for 1933/1934 present from the pure “Czechoslovak’schoolsalready 41 natio- nal, burgess, 5secondary and 12 vocational schools. AMB, .f MB, s. 2357, 152026/dan. – 1933. HANCIN, V.: Zo Zivota mesta vroku 1922. Bratislava: 1993, p. 10-11. 20HANCIN, V.: Zo Zivota mesta vroku 1919, p. 7-8. a HANCIN, V.: Zo Zivota mesta v roku 1919, p. 10-11. 22 OKALYI, V.: Niekolko dát o posluchácoch univerzity Komenského v Bratislave za rok 1929/1930. In: Zprávy mesta Bratislavy, roc. 8, 1931, c. 19, p. 4-5. 23 MANNOVA, E.: Spolky v Bratislave koncom 19. a v prvej polovici 20. storocia. In: Slovensky národopis, roc. 35, 1987, c. 2-3, p. 365. 24Ibid,p. 367. 25 Further divisions were according to their scope: religious (26), charitable and humani- tarian (69), agricultural and horticultural (40), commercial, industrial and trade (61), museum and scientific (22), student (30), physical education (23), sports (76), veterans’ and shooting (9), firemen’s (4), vocational workers’ organizations (57), funeral (35), vocational constructors’ organizations (130), societal (129), political (1) and others (9). AMB, .f MB, $. 2357, 152026/dan. – 1933. 26AMB, f. MB, $. 2357, 152026/dan. – 1933. 2 7 HANCIN, V.: Zo zivota mesta v roku 1919, p. 4-5. 28HANCIN, :V. ZoZivota mesta vroku 1931. Bratislava: 1992, s. 16. 2 KROPILAK, M. a kol.: Vlastivedny slovnik obci na Slovensku. Bratislava: 1977, s. 209 30 TIBENSY, .J- POSS, O. a kol.:Priekopnici vedy a techniky na Slovensku. Bratislava : 1999, .s 340-343. 13KROPILAK, M. a kol.: Vlastivedny slovnik obci na Slovensku, p. 199. 244 32 The results of the elections to the National Assembly in 1920 were such that, thanks to acommon approach, nearly half of the votes were distributed amongst five social-de- mocratic parties, whereas the following Hungarian Provincial Christian-Social Party received only 29%. DVORÁK, :P. Zlatá kniha Bratislavy. Bratislava: 1993, p. 499-500. 33 HANCIN, V.: Zo Zivota mesta v roku 1922, p. 6-7. #HANCIN, V:. Zo Zivota mesta v roku 1938. Bratislava : 1988, p. 25-26. 3HSORVATH, .V- LEHOTSKA, D. – PLEVA, J:. Dejiny Bratislavy. Bratislava: 1979, .p 219 36SAVOISKY, A:. Obecné volby. In: Zprávy mesta Bratislavy, roc. ,8 1931, .n 26, .p .9 37 Neues Preßburger Tagblatt, .y ,2 1931, .n 265, p. 1. 3E8NGEMANN, I.: Slovakizácia Bratislavy v rokoch 1918 – 1948. Uvahy na priklade mestskej rimskokatolickej obce. (Press.) 39Ibid. 1 Ibid. 4 1 Ibid. 4 2Ibid. 43HANCIN, V.: Zo Zivota mesta vroku 1938, p. 11-12. # the Republicans, the Czechoslovak Social-Democratic Party, the Czechoslovak National- Socialistic Party, the Czechoslovak People’s Party, the Czechoslovak Trade Party, the Slovak National Party, and the National Unity 1 5 KLINOVSKY, K:. Po volbách v Bratislave. In: Zprávy mesta Bratislavy, .y 15, 1938, n. 24; HANCIN, V:. Zo zivota mesta vroku 1938, p. 33-38. 61 HANCIN, V.: Zo zivota mesta v roku 1938, p. 13. 47HORVATH, V. – LEHOTSKA, D. – PLEVA, :J. Dejiny Bratislavy, p. 249. 48Ibid,p. 18. 49 SAVOJSKŸ, :A. Obyvatelstvo hlavného mesta Bratislavy, p. 112. 50 Adecrease of the Czech and Hungarian minorities was also given by the fact that, unlike in the former censuses, in 1940, the Jewish people could have only reported a Jewish nationality. § Ibid, p. 15. 3Ib2id, .p 112-114. On the basis of a census from 1940, Bratislava was compound of 70.6% Roman Catholics, 11.3% Protestant, and 12% of people of Israelite faith. AMB, f.MB, §. 2357, 152026/dan. – 1933. 53KOVÁC, B:. Úvodom. In: Bratislava. Hlavné mesto Slovenska. Bazilej 1943, p. 9. 5HAORVATH, V. – LEHOTSKA, D. – PLEVA, J:. Dejiny Bratislavy, p. 249. 55AMB,f.MB,.s2357, 152026/dan.- 1933. 56KROPILÁK, M. a kol.: Vlastivedny slovnik obci na Slovensku, .s 216-228. 5 7 MANNOVA, E.: Spolky v Bratislave, p. 363-365. 245 3 8 HORVATH, V. – LEHOTSKA, D. – PLEVA, J:. Dejiny Bratislavy, p. 273-275. 59Ibid. ∞ENGEMANN, :.I Slovakizácia Bratislavy v rokoch 1918 – 1948. Uvahy n a priklade mestskej rimskokatolickej obce. (In press.) ” HORVATH, .V- LEHOTSKA, D. – PLEVA, J.: Dejiny Bratislavy, p. 282-299. 6 2 ZEMKO, M.: Obcan, spolocnost, národ v pohybe slovenskych dejin, p. 174. ° MANNOVA, E.: Spolky vBratislave, .p 365. § ENGEMANN, I.: Slovakizácia Bratislavy vrokoch 1918- 1948. Uvahy na priklade mestskej rimskokatolickej obce. (In press.) 65 Ibid. 246