Jan Palach
Jan Palach | |
|---|---|
Palach's student ID photo | |
| Born | August 11, 1948 Všetaty, Czechoslovakia (now Czech Republic) |
| Died | January 19, 1969 (aged 20) Prague, Czechoslovakia |
| Cause of death | Burns from self-immolation |
| Resting place | Olšany Cemetery |
| Alma mater | Charles University |
| Occupation | student |
| Known for | self-immolation after the 1968 invasion of Czechoslovakia |
| Awards | Order of Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk (in memoriam) |
Jan Palach (Czech pronunciation: [jan ˈpalax]; 11 August 1948 – 19 January 1969) was a Czech student of history and political economics at Charles University in Prague. His self-immolation in 1969 at age 20 was a political protest against the end of the Prague Spring resulting from the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968 by the Warsaw Pact armies.