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Three candidates shortlisted for the 2023 Václav Havel Prize  05/09/23

The selection panel of the Václav Havel Human Rights Prize, which rewards outstanding civil society action in defence of human rights in Europe and beyond, has today announced the shortlist for the 2023 Award. Meeting in Prague today, the panel – made up of independent figures from the world of human rights and chaired by the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) Tiny Kox – decided to shortlist the following three nominees, in alphabetical order: More

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Three candidates shortlisted for the 2022 Václav Havel Human Rights Prize  06/09/22

The discussion among the seven-member jury helmed by the president of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe centred on the importance of the issue of human rights during this tense period. The finalists include Vladimir Kara-Murza, a political prisoner and leading Russian democracy campaigner; Ukraine’s 5 AM Coalition, which gathers evidence of human rights abuses stemming from Russia’s invasion of the country; and Hungary’s Rainbow Coalition defending LGBTQIA+ rights. “This year’s selection reflects the central role that human rights play in the current European crisis,” says Michael Žantovský, jury member and executive director of the Václav Havel Library, which bestows the prize in cooperation with the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and Nadace Charty 77.

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The Other Europe  27/04/22

Dear Friends, After three years we have completed the international project The Other Europe, during which, in cooperation with partner institutions, we have processed and made public recordings of interviews shot in 1987 and 1988 behind the Iron Curtain, and in exile, with important representatives of the opposition and the arts, as well as random citizens. Over those three years we have prepared video, audio and text of 106 interviews in speakers’ native languages and English translation. Despite public health restrictions in the Covid period, we have jointly prepared 16 international conferences and public presentations in six Central and Eastern European states. More

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From Schuman to Havel – what next?  16/02/22

The Václav Havel Library is a proud partner of the project Beyond Robert Schuman’s Europe More

Program for June 2016<

entry-free

Joseph Roth: The Tale of the 1002nd Night

Joseph Roth: The Tale of the 1002nd Night

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 2, 2016, 19:00 – 21:00

The Austrian journalist and novelist Joseph Roth, whose best-known works include the novels The Radetsky March and The Capuchin Tomb, was an astute observer and perceptive witness of the decline and demise of Austria-Hungary, of the end of the “old days”, when the deep-rooted and conventional gave way to fear and uncertainty sparked by the “new order”. 

The Tale of the 1002nd Night, which is set in Vienna at the end of the 19th century, has been translated from the German by Miroslav Stuchl.

Excerpts from the novel will be read by Lukáš Jůza, an actor with the Kašpar theatre company, while Jana Dušek Pražáková will discuss Roth’s oeuvre; Szomorú Vásarnap and other songs evocative of Austria-Hungary will be performed by Zdenek Závodný (tenor saxophone, tarogato) and Michal Hrubý (clarinet, tenor saxophone).

Book Presentation: Nadezhda Tolokonnikova – How to Make a Revolution (Notes from the Penal Colony)

Book Presentation: Nadezhda Tolokonnikova – How to Make a Revolution (Notes from the Penal Colony)

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 6, 2016, 19:00 – 21:00

 “Live in such a way that you’re not ashamed of your own politics.”

How to Make a Revolution is a book by Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, the Russia philosophy student, independent artist, political activist, prisoner and former member of the street-art group Voina and political punk group Pussy Riot

It is a powerful testimony and manifesto bursting with energy: “If you want to change something, shake a leg. Don’t wait for them to bring it to you on a silver platter. Even the best, most ideal president won’t give you jack shit, never mind something on a platter. He won’t bring you anything. It’s self-service here.”

The acerbic collection will be presented by Marianna Placáková, translator Milan Dvořák, political commentator Libor Dvořák, Roman Týc and Michael Kocáb; a chain reading of excerpts by personalities from the Czech arts scene will be followed by a debate about the scandal surrounding Pussy Riot and the subsequent imprisonment of the members of a group that continue to polarise society and provoke mixed reactions. 

Visegrad Reads and Debates

Visegrad Reads and Debates

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 7, 2016, 19:00 – 21:00

Literary gathering with writers from the Visegrad states: prose author, poet, translator, critic and musician Roland Orcsik (Hungary), poet, prose author and publisher Jan Těsnohlídek Jr. (Czech Republic), journalist Joanna Szczepanik (Poland) and editor, translator and children’s books author Barbora Škovierová (Slovakia).

Chaired by Tereza Semotamová.

Organised by the Arts and Theatre Institute in cooperation with the Václav Havel Library. The gathering is part of the Visegrad literary residency programme. Partner organisations: Art and Theatre Institute, Villa Decius, Petőfi Irodalmi Múzeum and the Centre for Information on Literature.

Who’s at Home Here and Who’s a Guest

Who’s at Home Here and Who’s a Guest

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 8, 2016, 19:00 – 21:00

Now traditional poetry reading held within the festival Stranou 2016 – European Poetry Live.

Guests: Esad Babačič (SLO) / Andrej Brvar (SLO) / Jelena Čirić (SRB/CR) / Irena Dousková (CR) / Giovanni Fierro (IT) / Irena a Vojtěch Havlovi (CR) / Markéta Hejná (CR) / Petr Hejný (CR) / Hana Kniežová (SK/CR) / Urška Kramberger (SLO) / Cvetka Lipuš (SLO/A) / Michael Lorenc (CR) / Mikołaj Łoziński (PL) / Simona Racková (CR) / Marián Milčák (SK) / Josef Mlejnek (CR) / Emmanuel Moses (FR) / Tanja Petelinek Hohler (SLO) / Primož Repar (SLO) / Vladimír Václavek (CR) / Magdalena Wagnerová (CR).

Music: Vesna Cáceres & Sjarhej Šupa (HR/CR/BY)

The evening will be hosted by Lenka and Peter Kuhar. 

Inclusive Education in Relation to Democratic Principles and Values

Inclusive Education in Relation to Democratic Principles and Values

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 9, 2016, 16:30 – 18:00

The issue of inclusion in the education system has been resonating deeply and sparking emotions in Czech society for a number of months. This themed debate will place the subject in the broader societal framework and consider it in the context of declared democratic values and accepted values.

Confirmed participants: Constitutional Court judge Kateřina Šimáčková, chairwoman of the Czech Professional Association for Inclusion in Education Klára Laurenčíková, sociologist Ivan Gabal and university teacher Libor Prudký.

Veronika Sedláčková will moderate.

The event is co-organised by the Václav Havel Library and the Good Will Committee – Olga Havlová Foundation. 

Museum Night: The Nineties at Prague Castle

Museum Night: The Nineties at Prague Castle

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 11, 2016, 19:00 – June 13, 2016, 00:00

As part of this year’s Museum Night Oldřich Škácha’s photographs from Prague Castle in the 1990s will be projected with loose commentary by Michael Žantovský and Vladimír Hanzel, who at that time served as Václav Havel’s spokesman and secretary. 

The permanent exhibition on Václav Havel will also be open throughout the evening, supplemented by an exhibition taking visitors behind the scenes of Leaving that has been prepared in connection with the fifth anniversary of its premiere.

Viktoria Lomasko and Oksana Bryukhovetskaya: Feminist Art in Eastern Europe Today

Viktoria Lomasko and Oksana Bryukhovetskaya: Feminist Art in Eastern Europe Today

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 13, 2016, 19:00 – 21:00

Viktoria Lomasko and Oksana Bryukhovetskaya are artists and curators who have long been exploring the position of women in post-Soviet society. As part of their political activism they monitor and analyse not just the position of women but also other marginalised groups: the socially excluded, the homeless, migrants and homosexual couples. 

As well as presenting their own work, in this lecture they will focus in particular on issues surrounding feminist art and its activist dimension and influence on society and the political situation in Eastern Europe today.

Lecture in Russian translated into Czech. Moderated by Sofia Tocari.

The evening will take place as part of a residency programme for foreign artists run by the Prague Civil Society Centre.

Václav Havel: From Playwright and Dissident to President – a Slovenian View

Václav Havel: From Playwright and Dissident to President – a Slovenian View

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 14, 2016, 17:00 – 19:00

Prof. Denis Poniž, a Slovenian literary historian and playwright, and Prof. Katja Mihurko Poniž, a literary historian, will trace Slovenian audiences’ encounters with Havel from the first performance of The Memorandum in 1969, when the “normalisation” period had already begun. The performance and interpretation of his plays in Communist-era Slovenia was linked to Slovenia’s (and Yugoslavia’s) own political perturbations, thus creating parallels as well as differences. What does Havel as a playwright have to say to the societies of Central Europe today, in an artistic as well as in a wider political sense? Alongside his dramatic works, the discussion will focus on the reception of his essays, documents linked to his time as a dissident and all other materials touching on his connections with Slovene culture.

The lecture (in English), will be accompanied by readings (in Slovenian) of passages from Slovenian translations of Havel’s works, read by Nataša Burger, and video clips from productions of Havel’s work at Slovenian theatres. A summary in Czech will be available, courtesy of the Slovenian Lectureship at Charles University.

The evening will be introduced by Jáchym Topol.

The event is supported by the Embassy of the Republic of Slovenia in Prague in homage to the 80th anniversary of the birth of Václav Havel.  

Debate with Respekt

Debate with Respekt

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 14, 2016, 19:00 – 21:00

Panelists: Kateřina Šafaříková, Luboš Palata and Daniel Prokop. Moderated by Ondřej Kundra.

The Power of the Powerless in Ukraine

The Power of the Powerless in Ukraine

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 15, 2016, 19:00 – 21:00

Tetiana Okopna will discuss Václav Havel’s work, literature, the power and powerlessness of the written word and the ordeal of translation with Jáchym Topol.

Tetiana Okopna is in Prague within the residency programme of the project Prague City of Literature, the coordinator of Prague’s membership of the worldwide UNESCO Creative Cities Network.

Václav Havel: Ela, Hela and the Hitch

Václav Havel: Ela, Hela and the Hitch

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 16, 2016, 19:00 – 21:00

Old ladies are hitchhiking for the first time. They have their ethical principles, their flowerpots, their planter boxes, their rollmops, their crosses and habits, their social position…

Featuring: Tereza Soběslavová, Lenka Skalická and Kateřina Urbánková – Charlieho foxíci, Gymnázium Jiřího z Poděbrad grammar school, Poděbrady.

“With the repetition, variation, entanglement and disintegration of speech in the sketch Ela, Hela and the Hitch from 1961, Václav Havel revealed the stylistic devices of his dramatic trademark,” says the literary and theatre theoretician Lenka Jungmannová, who will be the evening’s second guest and will discuss Václav Havel’s earliest dramatic texts.

KineDok II: Domino Effect

KineDok II: Domino Effect

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 17, 2016, 18:00 – 20:00

Second evening at the Václav Havel Library prepared in cooperation with KineDok, which is focused on the alternative distribution of authorial documentaries in Central and Eastern Europe.

There is a place that could be a paradise on earth. But up to now there have been more minefields there than people.” Ryszard Kapuściński

On this occasion we will screen Domino Effect (Elwira Niewiera, Piotr Rosołowski, 2014, 76 min), which is about the current situation in Abkhazia, a state that does not exist according to international law. Work on the film began in 2008, shortly after the end of the war in South Ossetia, and it captures the difficult situation of a small state living in the shadow of a large neighbour.

25 Years of Post-Communist Transformations in East Central Europe: From a Success Story to the Revenge of History

25 Years of Post-Communist Transformations in East Central Europe: From a Success Story to the Revenge of History

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 17, 2016, 14:00 – 15:00

In his presentation Professor Ekiert will analyze the uneven path of political and economic transformations across countries of the former Soviet bloc during the past 25 years. He will offer some potential explanations for various fates these countries have experienced, emphasizing the role of historical legacies in shaping the outcomes of economic, social and political reforms. He will also discuss the EU crisis, unraveling of the pro-European consensus in Visegrad countries and challenges facing the region today.

Grzegorz Ekiert is professor of government, Director of CES, and Senior Scholar at the Harvard Academy for International and Area Studies. His teaching and research interests focus on comparative politics, regime change and democratization, civil society and social movements, and East European politics and societies.

He is the author of The State Against Society: Political Crises and Their Aftermath in East Central Europe (1996); Rebellious Civil Society: Popular Protest and Democratic Consolidation in Poland (with J. Kubik, 1999); Capitalism and Democracy in Central and Eastern Europe: Assessing the Legacy of Communist Rule (co-edited with S. Hanson, 2003); editor of special issues of East European Politics and Societies on the “EU Eastward Enlargement” (with J. Zielonka, 2003) and of “Democracy in the Postcommunist World” (2007) and Taiwan Journal of Democracy on “A Liberal Challenge? Civil Society and Grass-root Politics in New Democracies” (with S. Kim, 2013). He is also co-editor of Open Forum—the interactive CES working papers series.

His current projects explore civil society development in new democracies in Central Europe and East Asia and patterns of transformations in post-communist world.

The Past, Present and Future of Global Migration

The Past, Present and Future of Global Migration

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 20, 2016, 17:00 – 19:00

In light of the ongoing migration crisis, we have to discuss, evaluate and seriously revaluate many interrelated problems in a broader historical context. The 20th century has seen many traumatic instances of expulsion and forced migration in Europe and beyond. The vicious process of nation-building has led to the displacement of millions of people. The legacies of World War II, and later the Yugoslav wars, deeply traumatized those directly affected, as well as their descendants. Highly relevant conclusions that are part of the current public debate can be drawn from these historical perspectives.

Confirmed participants: Suzanne Brown-Fleming (U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum), Basil C. Gounaris (Aristotle University in Thessaloniki), Pieter Lagrou (Université libre de Bruxelles) and Harry Tzimitras (Peace Research Institute Oslo – Cyprus Centre). Moderated by Kateřina Králová (Charles University, Prague).

The event (in English) is co-organised by the Faculty of Social Sciences of Charles University and the Václav Havel Library and supported by the U. S. Embassy in the Czech Republic.

„Návraty“ (Returns) © Petr Cempírek

The Library at the Library

The Library at the Library

  • Where: Municipial Library Prague, Mariánské náměstí 1/98, 110 00 Praha 1
  • When: June 21, 2016, 17:00 – 18:00

...or Everything you always wanted to know about the Václav Havel Library but were afraid to ask. 

A late afternoon dedicated to the mission, mysteries and plans of the Václav Havel Library. Appearing alongside director Michael Žantovský will be editor Anna Freimanová, archive head Martin Vidlák, chief programme dramaturge Jáchym Topol, head of production Pavel Hájek, photographer Ondřej Němec and others. Surprises not ruled out.

The Withdrawal of Soviet Troops

The Withdrawal of Soviet Troops

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 22, 2016, 19:00 – 21:00

The turn of June and July 1991 saw the extinction once and for all of the official remnants of the former Soviet Bloc in Central Europe: On 28 June the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance was dissolved in Budapest; on 30 June Soviet troops left Czechoslovakia; and on 1 July, under the presidency of President Václav Havel, the Warsaw Pact was dissolved in Prague.

Then minister of defence Luboš Dobrovský and Federal Assembly deputy Michael Kocáb will discuss events at that time and the Kremlin’s present day efforts at a re-division of Europe and sphere of influence.

Moderated by Jakub Železný.

Brexit Vigil

Brexit Vigil

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 23, 2016, 21:00 – 23:00

At 11 PM Central European Summer Time in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ballot boxes will close in a referendum on the UK’s membership of the European Union. Its outcome will determine not just whether the UK remains part of the European project – it will also have a marked influence on the future of the whole continent. We will meet at the Library together and with good will to await the first results of the referendum.

The wait will be sped up by the relay of the most up-to-date information on the course of the referendum, an estimate of the result and a discussion of its likely impact.

Alternating on the stage will be former European commissioner Štefan Füle, director of the Civic Institute Roman Joch, Michael Žantovský, Monika MacDonagh Pajerová, Luděk Niedermayer, Martin Kovář, Běla Plechanovová, Radek Špicar and other notable guests.

Pavel Havel: Rr in Brrrno

Pavel Havel: Rr in Brrrno

  • Where: Goose on a String Theatre, Zelný Trh 9, Brno, Czech Republic
  • When: June 25, 2016, 17:00 – 19:00

Rrrobert Chrrroust (Pavel Kohout) and doctorrr Horrror (Ivan M. Havel) move to Brno to perrrforrrm, under the direction of Michael Žantovský, a rrreprise of the of the trrragicomedy on the desirrre of Rrrobert Chrrroust to become an actorrr.

The event takes place as part of the Brrrno Night of Literature, organised by publishers Větrrrné mlýny.

Entrrry frrree but by ticket only.

Greil Marcus: Lipstick Traces

Greil Marcus: Lipstick Traces

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 28, 2016, 19:00 – 21:00

With classic rock critic Greil Marcus on rebellion in music from the 1960s to the present. Moderated discussion with music journalist Pavel Klusák.

A unique opportunity to meet a genuine legend of rock and music journalism. One of the most important figures in his field, Greil Marcus was the first reviews editor at Rolling Stone and has written a host of books on the likes of Bob Dylan, The Doors and Van Morrison. We will devote particular attention to Marcus’s Lipstick Traces: A Secret History of the 20th Century (1989), which explores sedition in the (sub)cultures of the 20th century. 

Jaroslava Hercíková: Dresses

Jaroslava Hercíková: Dresses

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 29, 2016, 19:00 – 21:00

It is very difficult to characterise either the poetry collection Šaty s píčou (Dresses with a Twat) or its author. Those who attend Jaroslava Hercíková’s reading will experience a remorseless poetic maze of the soul bearing traces of absurdity, hopelessness, anger and black humour. Some might call it underground. But when they start to drown in depression and mental sludge they will, just in time, get the chance to breathe and, unharmed, reach passages seamlessly infused with cheerfulness and playfulness, even… a tribute to life.

Pavel Havel: Rr

Pavel Havel: Rr

  • Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
  • When: June 30, 2016, 19:00 – 21:00

At the close of this season at the Václav Havel Library we present, following a successful premiere in May, a reprise of the trrragicomedy on the desirrre of Rrrobert Chrrroust, who strrruggled to prrronounce his r’s, to become an actorrr.

Authorrrs Pavel Kohout and Václav Havel completed the play in 1973. It was firrrst perrrformed at a meeting of the banned wrrriterrrs at Hrrrádeček in 1974.

Doctorrr: Ivan M. Havel
Patient: Pavel Kohout
Dirrrectorrr: Michael Žantovský

Havel Channel

Havel Channel je audiovizuální projekt Knihovny Václava Havla, jehož cílem je šířit myšlenkový, literární a politický odkaz Václava Havla, bez ohledu na vzdálenost, zeměpisné hranice či nouzové stavy. Jeho páteř tvoří debaty, vzdělávací projekty a rozhovory. Velký prostor je věnován též konferencím, autorským čtením, záznamům divadelních inscenací a koncertům. Audiovizuální projekt Knihovny Václava Havla Havel Channel se uskutečňuje díky laskavé podpoře Karel Komárek Family Foundation.

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Publications / E-shop

The central focus of the Library’s publishing programme is the life and work of Václav Havel, his family and close collaborators and friends. For clarity, the programme is divided into six series: Václav Havel Library Notebooks, Václav Havel Library Editions, Student Line, Talks from Lány, Václav Havel Documents, Works of Pavel Juráček and Václav Havel Library Conferences. Titles that cannot be incorporated into any of the given series but which are nonetheless important for the Library’s publishing activities are issued independently, outside the series framework.

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Conferences & prizes

Illustration

Václav Havel European Dialogues

The Václav Havel European Dialogues is an international project that aims to initiate and stimulate a discussion about issues determining the direction of contemporary Europe while referring to the European spiritual legacy of Václav Havel. This idea takes its main inspiration from Václav Havel’s essay “Power of the Powerless”. More than other similarly focused projects, the Václav Havel European Dialogues aims to offer the “powerless” a platform to express themselves and in so doing to boost their position within Europe.

The Václav Havel European Dialogues is planned as a long-term project and involves cooperation with other organisations in various European cities. Individual meetings, which take the form of a conference, are targeted primarily at secondary and third-level students, as well as specialists and members of the public interested in European issues.

Illustration

Václav Havel Human Rights Prize

The Václav Havel Human Rights Prize is awarded each year by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) in partnership with the Václav Havel Library and the Charta 77 Foundation to reward outstanding civil society action in the defence of human rights in Europe and beyond.

Illustration

Havel - Albright Transatlantic Dialogues

Since the first Václav Havel Transatlantic Dialogues at GLOBSEC and FORUM 2000 conferences last year, we have lost another stalwart advocate of the transatlantic bond and of the need to face threats to democracy and international order together on both sides of the Atlantic, the former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. In view of the close bond between Václav Havel and Madeleine Albright and, after Havel's death, between the Secretary and the Library, the Václav Havel Library, with the approval of Madeleine Albright's family, renamed and rebranded the program as The Havel-Albright Transatlantic Dialogues (HATD), after the two major figures with roots in Central Europe who have personified the bond. Together, Václav Havel and Madeleine Albright symbolize the transatlantic relationship and the fundamental values underpinning it perhaps better than any other two people in recent history. The upcoming Dialogues “The Indispensable Woman: The Legacy of Madeleine K. Albright”, at the FORUM 2000 conference on September 1, and at the “Havel and our Crisis” conference at Colby College, ME, on September 28, will thus become venues for a well-deserved tribute to the pair we all respected and admired.

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Václav Havel

Václav Havel
* 5. 10. 1936 Praha
† 18. 12. 2011 Hrádeček u Trutnova

1936
Foto
Václav Havel grew up
in a well-known, wealthy entrepreneurial
and intellectual family.
1951
Foto
Václav Havel completed primary schooling. Because
of his "bourgeois" background, options for
higher education were limited.
1951
Foto
Václav Havel worked as a chemical laboratory technician
while attending evening classes at a high school
from which he graduated in 1954.
1955
Foto
Václav Havel studied at the
Economics Faculty of the Czech
Technical University in Prague.
1960
Foto
Václav Havel began working at Prague's Theatre on
the Balustrade, first as a stagehand and later as
an assistant director and literary manager.
1963
Foto
Havel´s first play The Garden
Party was staged at Prague's
Theatre on the Balustrade.
1964
Foto
Václav Havel
married Olga
Splichalova.
1966
Foto
VH finished studies at at the
Theatre Faculty of the Academy of
Performing Arts in Prague .
1968
Foto
Václav Havel played an active role in
democratization and renewal of culture during the
era of reforms, known as Prague Spring.
1969
Foto
Havel's work were banned in Czechoslovakia. He
moved from Prague to the country, continued
his activities against the Communist regime.
1974
Foto
Václav Havel worked as a manual laborer
at a local brewery near Hrádeček in
the north of the Czech Republic.
1975
Foto
Václav Havel wrote an open
letter to President Gustav Husak,
criticizing the government.
1977
Foto
Václav Havel co-founded the Charter 77
human rights initiative and was one
of its first spokesmen.
1978
Foto
Václav Havel co-founded The
Committee for the Defense
of the Unjustly Prosecuted.
1979
Foto
Václav Havel was imprisoned several times
for his beliefs, his longest prison
term lasting from 1979 to 1983.
1989
Foto
Václav Havel emerged as one of the
leaders of the November opposition movement, also
known as the Velvet Revolution.
1990
Foto
Václav Havel is elected
President of Czechoslovakia on
December 29.
1993
Foto
Václav Havel is elected, after the
dissolution of Czechoslovakia, the first President
of the Czech Republic.
1996
Foto
On January
27, Olga
Havlova died.
1997
Foto
Václav Havel married Dagmar Veskrnova,
a popular and acclaimed Czech theatrical,
television and movie actress.
1999
Foto
Václav Havel enabled the entry of
the Czech Republic into the North
Atlantic Treat Organisation (NATO).
2003
Foto
Václav Havel left office after
his second term as Czech
president ended on 2 February 2003.
2004
Foto
Foundation of Václav
Havel Library in
Prague.
2004
Foto
The Czech Republic became the 35th
member State of the Council of
Europe on 30 June 1993.
2010
Foto
Václav Havel directed
a film adaptation of
his play Leaving.
2011
Foto
Václav Havel died at his
summer house Hrádeček in the
north of the Czech Republic.
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Educational projects

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Archive / Documentation centre / Research projects

Dokumentační centrum

The Václav Havel Library is gradually gathering, digitizing, and making accessible written materials, photographs, sound recordings and other materials linked to the person of Václav Havel.

  • 70200 records in total
  • 27196 of events in the VH's life
  • 2831 of VH's texts
  • 2125 of photos 
  • 403of videos
  • 568of audios
  • 6604of letters
  • 15101of texts about VH
  • 8255 of books
  • 40254of bibliography records

Access to the database of the VHL’s archives is free and possible after registering as a user. Accessing archival materials that exist in an unreadable form is only possible at the reading room of the Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, 110 00 Prague 1, every Tuesday (except state holidays) from 9:00 to 17:00, or by prior appointment.

We will be glad to answer your queries at archiv@vaclavhavel-library.org.

Illustration

Havel in a nutshell

The virtual exhibition Václav Havel in a Nutshell places the life story of Václav Havel in the broader cultural and historic context in four chronologically distinct chapters with rich visual accompaniment. The exhibition is supplemented by the interactive map Flying the World with Václav Havel, which captures in physical form Havel’s global “footprint”.

Illustration

Vladimir Hanzel's revolution

Collage of recollections, images and sound recordings from Vladimír Hanzel, President Václav Havel’s personal secretary, bringing the feverish atmosphere of the Velvet Revolution to life.

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Václav Havel Interviews

A database of all accessible interviews given to print media outlets by the dramatist, writer and political activist Václav Havel between the 1960s and 1989. The resulting collection documents the extraordinary life story of an individual, as well as capturing a specific picture of modern Czechoslovak history at a time when being a free-thinker was more likely to lead to jail than an official public post.

Illustration

Pavel Juráček Archive

The Pavel Juráček Archive arose in February 2014 when his son Marek Juráček handed over six banana boxes and a typewriter case from his father’s estate to the Václav Havel Library. Thousands of pages of manuscripts, typescripts, photographs, documents and personal and official correspondence are gradually being classified and digitalised. The result of this work should be not only to map the life and work of one of the key figures of the New Wave of Czechoslovak film in the 1960s, but also to make his literary works accessible in the book series The Works of Pavel Juráček.

The aim of the Václav Havel Library is to ensure that Pavel Juráček finds a place in the broader cultural consciousness and to notionally build on the deep friendship he shared with Václav Havel. Soon after Juráček’s death in 1989 Havel said of him: “Pavel was a friend of mine whom I liked very much. He was one of the most sensitive and gentle people I have known – that’s why I cannot write more about him.”  

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All about Library

The Václav Havel Library works to preserve the legacy of Václav Havel, literary, theatrical and also political, in particular his struggle for freedom, democracy and the defence of human rights. It supports research and education on the life, values and times of Václav Havel as well as the enduring significance of his ideas for both the present and future.

The Václav Havel Library also strives to develop civil society and active civic life, serving as a platform for discussion on issues related to the support and defence of liberty and democracy, both in the Czech Republic and internationally.

The main aims of the Václav Havel Library include

  • Organizing archival, archival-research, documentary, museum and library activities focused on the work of Vaclav Havel and documents or objects related to his activities, and carries out professional analysis of their influence on the life and self-reflection of society
  • Serving, in a suitable manner, such as through exhibitions, the purpose of education and popularisation functions, thus presenting to the public the historical significance of the fight for human rights and freedoms in the totalitarian period and the formation of civil society during the establishment of democracy
  • Organizing scientific research and publication activities in its areas of interest
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Staňte se členy Klubu přátel Knihovny Václava Havla

We believe that we are succeeding in fulfilling the vision of Václav Havel, who, when he founded the Library, declared that it only makes sense as a living organism that occupies an unmissable place in the whole of public and political life. We see this as a commitment and inspiration for the future. We would like to use the footage of our hundreds of events in our own internet TV channel, expand our publication programme, develop more e-learning series, start organising workshops for teachers... But all this will require considerable financial resources. That's why we decided to turn to our visitors and supporters for support.

Pomozte nám inspirovat své okolí i Vy!
Přijdete se k nám a staňte se členem Klubu přátel Knihovny VH!

 

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Přítel

1000 KČ / měsíc
Přispět

Váš příspěvek nám pomůže s organizací pravidelných akcí pro veřejnost.

Patron

10000 KČ / měsíc
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Váš příspěvek nám pomůže rozvíjet náš ediční plán a publikační činnost

Partner

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Kontaktovat

Váš příspěvek nám pomůže s vývojem vzdělávacích miniserií, audivizuálních projektů, přípravou mezinárodních konferencí...

Support us

Financial donations

If you would like to support the work of the Václav Havel Library or its specific activities or projects by means of a financial donation you can do so via the VHL’s PayPal account

Or by bank transfer to:

ČSOB a. s., Na Poříčí 24, 115 20 Praha 1

  • Crown account number 7077 7077 / 0300 CZK
  • Euro account number 7755 7755 / 0300 EUR
  • Dollar account number 7747 7747 / 0300 USD

If an individual makes a donation of over CZK 1,000, or if a company makes a donation of over CZK 2,000, in one calendar year we will create for you a donation contract confirming the amount of the donation involved; the donor can use this to reduce their tax base in compliance with the law on taxation. For more information, contact us.

Donors with US citizenship can support us through the Vaclav Havel Library Foundation New York.

Donations and loans to the VHL archive

The Václav Havel Library administers an archive of written materials, documents, photographs, video recordings and other materials related to the life and work of Václav Havel. The archive is predominantly digital in form. If you or somebody close to you is the owner of original texts, photographs, speeches or other works produced by Václav Havel we would appreciate it greatly if you contacted us. We will oversee the digitalisation of these documents and place them in our digital archive. If you would like to keep possession of such documents or items, we will return them in perfect condition.  

If a copy or original is donated to the Václav Havel Library, the terms of donation and use will in all cases be agreed with the owner. The names of all donors or owners will be listed alongside the documentary materials in question.

Internships

We offer short and long-term internships at the Václav Havel Library to Czech and foreign students. Interns are particularly welcomed in the fields of library studies and archival science, arts management, journalism, Czech Studies and other areas of the humanities.

We welcome knowledge of English (German and French are also a plus), while knowledge of Czech is an advantage for foreign interns.

Internships range in duration from six weeks to one year, while it is possible to agree on individual duration depending on the requirements of schools. On completion of the internship, the participant receives a certificate with an appraisal. Internships take place on the basis of prior agreement with applicants and dates must be agreed around two months in advance. Václav Havel Library internships are unpaid and we do not cover transport or accommodation costs.

If you are interested in an internship at the Václav Havel Library, contact us at the email address:

Media and promotion cooperation with the VHL

The Václav Havel Library welcomes the mutual exchange of links and the publication of our banners and information about our events. For more information, contact us directly.

Volunteers

The Václav Havel Library welcomes volunteers who would like to assist in our work.  

Česká centraBakala FoundationRockefeller Brothers FundJan BartaAsiana GroupMoneta Money BankThe Vaclav Havel Library FoundationNadace Charty 77Sekyra FoudationVŠEMRicohP3chemTechsoup ČRNewton MediaHlavní město PrahaMinisterstvo kultury ČRMinisterstvo zahraničních věcí ČRUS EmbassyStátní fond kultury