The Czechoslovak Government in Exile in Bucks during WW2

When the wartime blitz hit London in 1940, Czechoslovak President in exile Edvard Benes was urged to seek refuge in the English countryside. For the next five years, Benes and his wife lived in The Abbey, a country estate owned by friends of the Rothschild family, in Aston Abbots. His cabinet, formed with Jan Masaryk and others, was located at Wingrave Manor in a nearby village.

Local historian Neil Rees will tell the story of these people and how they lived and interacted with ‘the English’. The talk is illustrated with period photographs and based on interviews with local villagers and the Czechoslovak soldiers and officials billeted there.

Doors open at 7.30pm and the talk will start at 8.00pm. No booking necessary. Guests and new members welcome.