PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Máchová, Sabina
TI  - The Symbolism of the Czechoslovak Orel Slets in Brno 1922 and Prague 1929
DP  - 2021 Jun 11
TA  - Historica Olomucensia
PG  - 117--142
VI  - 60
IP  - 1
AID - 10.5507/ho.2021.005
IS  - 18039561
AB  - After 1918 Orel as a pro-Habsburg organisation was gradually starting to find its place next to the larger Sokol. From the times of the monarchy, Orel members and board carried the burden of accusations of anti-republican thinking. Soon after the foundation of the Czechoslovak Republic, the Catholic political movement gradually identified itself with the republican ideals, which registered in the mindset of the Orel organisation. Considering the examples of the 1922 Orel slet in Brno and the 1929 slet in Prague, we can see how the Czechoslovak Orel as well as the Czechoslovak People's Party, which was loosely connected with Orel, conformed to the conditions of the newly founded republic. We can observe it most distinctly in the slet choregraphy and symbolic performances, but also in the symbolism of promotional and commemorative items.Despite the anti-Catholic oriented post-war political majority, many people still subscribed to the Roman Catholic Church. This was further amplified by the accession of Slovakia, which kept a strongly religious character and where the Catholic Church retained more power than in the Czech lands. As a result of the post-revolutionary atmosphere, the first national Orel slet took place in 1922, not in 1920 like the 7th Sokol slet. In spite of the strong anti-Catholic views, the Czechoslovak Orel became the second largest organisation of its kind in the country.