The website www.janpalach.cz presents the life story of Jan Palach, a student at the Charles University Faculty of Arts who set himself on fire in Wenceslas Square on 16 January 1969. Through this shocking act he wanted to rouse the Czech public from the lethargy into which it had begun to sink six months after the August 1968 occupation of Czechoslovakia by Warsaw Pact forces. Palach’s protest evoked extraordinary reactions both at home and abroad. To this day, Jan Palach’s name is remembered worldwide.

The site presents the events with the help of different media. Besides historical texts, period photographs and archival documents, we are reminded of the legacy of the events through film, television and radio. The site has English, German, French and Polish language versions and also contains the stories of other “living torches”.

The project was initiated by the Student Council of the Charles Faculty of Arts. In 2009, the 40th anniversary of Palach’s self-immolation was commemorated with the publication of an extensive anthology - “Jan Palach ´69” - and an exhibition and conference. One of the outcomes of the project is this website. It was designed by a team of authors: Petr Blažek, Patrik Eichler, Michal Ježek, Eva Nachmilnerová, Jáchym Šerých and Ivo Šulc. Besides the main project partner, Charles University, the project was sponsored by the Charles University Faculty of Arts, the Security Services Archive, Czech Television, Czech Radio, the Polish Institute of National Remembrance, Krátký film Praha (Documentary Film Prague), the National Film Archive, the National Museum, the Slovak Film Institute, Totalita.cz and the Institute for the Study of Totalitarian Regimes.