Uniform of the Czechoslovakian Legion of the French Army from 1918 on display at the Heeresgeschichtliches Museum in Vienna
The demands of the war required France to accept foreign nationals from other countries such as Poland, America and Czechoslovakia. In March 1916, Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, later the first president of Czechoslovakia, secured a promise from the French government to expand the participation of Czechoslovaks on the Western Front.
The Adrian helmet bears the arms of Bohemia, Moravia and Slovakia. The Lion of Bohemia was emblazoned upon the flag the foreign legion formed in 1914.
Uniform of the Czechoslovakian Legion of the French Army from 1918 on display at the Heeresgeschichtliches Museum in Vienna
The demands of the war required France to accept foreign nationals from other countries such as Poland, America and Czechoslovakia. In March 1916, Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, later the first president of Czechoslovakia, secured a promise from the French government to expand the participation of Czechoslovaks on the Western Front.
The Adrian helmet bears the arms of Bohemia, Moravia and Slovakia. The Lion of Bohemia was emblazoned upon the flag the foreign legion formed in 1914.
August 15, 1918 – Czechoslovakia Declared an Allied Power
Pictured – Rallying to the flag.
Britian formerly recognized Czechoslovakia as an independent Allied power in August 1918, followed by the US and France later in the war. Although there was no existing Czechoslovakian state – the Austro-Hungarian Empire continued to rule from Bohemia to the Carpathians – there was a Czech National Council that existed as a shadow government, and the Czech Legion was seen as a regular army fighting against the Central Powers in Russia. The Allies hoped that recognizing Czech independence would foment revolution in Austria and speed the Dual Monarchy’s collapse.
August 15, 1918 – Czechoslovakia Declared an Allied Power
Pictured – Rallying to the flag.
Britian formerly recognized Czechoslovakia as an independent Allied power in August 1918, followed by the US and France later in the war. Although there was no existing Czechoslovakian state – the Austro-Hungarian Empire continued to rule from Bohemia to the Carpathians – there was a Czech National Council that existed as a shadow government, and the Czech Legion was seen as a regular army fighting against the Central Powers in Russia. The Allies hoped that recognizing Czech independence would foment revolution in Austria and speed the Dual Monarchy’s collapse.
