Which Czechoslovakia? The states over its history were quite different.

• First Czechoslovak Republic (1918-1938)
  • Declared as Austria-Hungary fell apart at the end of WWI. Industrial powerhouse dismantling Austro-Hungarian power structures, investment in modernizing rural Slovakia" nationality
• Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938-1939)
  • Beaten into submission by superpowers signing the Munich agreement that was supposed to appease Nazi Germany but nobody believed that would hold
• Protectorate of Bohemia & Moravia + Slovak Staat (1939-1945)
  • Two Nazi puppet states, not actually called Czechoslovakia. The democratic government fled to London and helped organize dissent via radio + sent elite paratroopers to sabotage the arms industry and assasinate the Protector
• Third Czechoslovak Republic (1945-1948)
  • Struggling to restore democracy with the Soviet-puppeted Communist Party’s influence; controversial expulsion of Germans that was a humanitarian disaster and a massive brain drain
• Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (1948-1989)
  • After Communists gained majority vote, they did a coup d’etat and Czechoslovakia became a Soviet puppet state. Collectivization and Stalinist purges in the 50s, hopes of democratization in 1968 crushed by Soviet invasion (the only success was that Slovaks gained more independence and it became a federation because the Soviets didn’t care), largely passive submission but moderate living standards increase in the 70s and 80s
• Czech and Slovak Federative Republic (1990-1992)
  • After the Berlin Wall fell, it was obvious the Soviet sphere of influence wouldn’t hold so on the next protest opportunity (legal marches on 1989-11-17, 50th anniversary of protests for a Nazi-assasinated student), dissent members spoke out and a general strike announced; police beat some protesters but nobody died, hence "Velvet Revolution"
  • Wild privatization started, people could get rich or poor overnight as the economy turned inside out
• Czech Republic & Slovakia
  • Created after Slovak politicians wanted more independence and everybody was just trying to comprehend the market changes so nobody really complained and a no-fault divorce was scheduled on 1993-01-01
  • The countries went their own ways and it’s clear there will most likely never be a Czechoslovakia again