Celebrating Liberation: The Commemoration and Instrumentalisation of the End of the Second World War in Contemporary Czech and Slovak Politics

This book contributes to the discussion about the instrumental use of history. It analyses two examples of public festivities related to the events and legacy of the final stage of World War II. The first of these commemoration events is the Liberation Festival in Pilsen, a public event celebrating the liberation of Pilsen in 1945. The second event is the celebration of the Slovak National Uprising anniversary, held annually in Banská Bystrica. The analysis focuses on the manner in which public