Author: tomass

(1926-2014) Adriena Šimotová, one of the most important Czech visual artists ever, worked primarily with graphics and painting, increasingly transcending the borders between them. She developed a unique art technique consisting of squeezing, perforating and layering paper. In her non-figurative art she was inspired mainly by the inner life of human. Her works are contained…

(*1942) Marta Kubišová, a successful pop singer who then signed a manifesto of and became a spokesperson for Charter 77, a civic initiative that criticized the communist regime for not respecting fundamental human and civil rights. Her song Prayer for Marta became a symbol of protest against the invasion of the Warsaw Pact troops into…

(1887-1982) Maria Jeritza, a world-renowned soprano Marie Jedličková by her original name, studied violin, piano, cello and harp at the conservatory in the city of Brno. However, her talent destined her for opera singing. Her debut took place in 1910 in Olomouc, when she played the role of Elsa in Wagner’s Lohengrin. The response was…

(1830-1916) Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach, a German-writing author from Moravia, the distinct eastern part of Czechia. She came from an old Moravian noble family and at the age of eighteen, she married the Austrian officer Moritz von Ebner-Eschenbach. In her work, she drew attention to contemporary social problems. She was nominated for the Nobel Prize for…

(1914-2009) Božena Hauserová, one of the best spies of World War II, was the first Czech woman to serve in the U.S. Army. She started her career as a lawyer with Bata Company, where she met her husband Mr Lauwers, an American. Already as Barbara Lauwers, she participated in one of the most successful acts…

(1875-1942) Františka Plamínková, a politician and journalist who devoted her whole life to the women’s movement. A teacher by original profession, she joined the National Socialist Party before the end of World War I. As a politician, Františka Plamínková contributed to equal suffrage for women and the abolition of celibacy for female teachers. She advocated…

(1862-1946) Gabriela Preissová, writer and playwright, proponent of literary realism, author of theatre plays set in the rural South-East of Czechia, reflecting the morality of her time. As a woman, she established herself among predominantly male authors and became a literary manager at the National Theatre. Her plays, drawing on the experience of her youth,…

(1788-1873) Anna Náprstková, businesswoman, philanthropist and patron. She experienced a period of poverty, was widowed twice, and still did not lose her vigour and zest for life. She became a successful entrepreneur, running a family brewery and distillery. She supported Czech patriots, especially her son Vojta Náprstek, a Czech patriot, patron and supporter of progress…

(*1990) Petra Kvitová, professional tennis player, winner of 29 career singles titles, including two major titles at Wimbledon in 2011 and in 2014. She also won a bronze medal in singles while representing Czechia at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Together with other Czech female players, she won the Fed Cup six times. Her career-high ranking…

(1566-1642) Polyxena of Pernstein and Lobkowitz, a noblewoman, first the wife of Wilhelm von Rosenberg, the highest officer of the Czech Kingdom, and then Zdeněk Vojtěch Popel of Lobkowitz, a man of a similar high standing. Her mother came from the highest Spanish aristocracy. Although not married to a monarch, she occupied an extremely important…