Maffia (''Maffie'' or ''Mafie'' in

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...

) was a secret organization acting during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. It was founded after the emigration of

Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk Tomáš () is a Czech name, Czech and Slovak name, Slovak given name, equivalent to the name Thomas (name), Thomas. Tomáš is also a surname (feminine: Tomášová). Notable people with the name include: Given name Sport *Tomáš Berdych (born 198 ...

in 1914 by Czech politician

Edvard Beneš Edvard Beneš (; 28 May 1884 – 3 September 1948) was a Czech politician and statesman who served as the president of Czechoslovakia from 1935 to 1938, and again from 1939 to 1948. During the first six years of his second stint, he led the Czec ...

, who later became the second president of Czechoslovakia, and other mainly anti-royalists (

Karel Kramář Karel Kramář (27 December 1860 – 26 May 1937) was a Czech politician. He was a representative of the major Czech political party, the Young Czechs, in the Austrian Imperial Council from 1891 to 1915 (where he was also known as Karl Kramar ...

Alois Rašín Alois Rašín (18 October 1867 – 18 February 1923) was a Czechs, Czech and Czechoslovak politician, economist, one of the founders of Czechoslovakia and first Ministry for Finance. He was the author of the first law of Czechoslovakia and creat ...

, Josef Scheiner and

Přemysl Šámal is a Czech masculine given name. The Polish alternative is Przemysł or Przemysław. Famous bearers Czech royals * Přemysl the Ploughman – mythical founder of the Bohemian royal dynasty of Přemyslids * Přemysl I Otakar – king of Bohe ...

). Maffia was based on the principles of the

Sicilian Mafia The Sicilian Mafia or Cosa Nostra (, ; "our thing"), also referred to as simply Mafia, is a secret society, criminal society and criminal organization originating on the island of Sicily and dates back to the mid-19th century. Emerging as a form of ...

(name "Maffia"); it was a central part of the First Czechoslovak Resistance and its main objective was to overthrow the

Emperor of Austria The emperor of Austria (, ) was the ruler of the Austrian Empire and later the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The hereditary imperial title and office was proclaimed in 1804 by Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor, a member of the House of Habsburg-Lorr ...

and to cause the disintegration of his country. The Maffia plot against

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

and the

Central Powers The Central Powers, also known as the Central Empires,; ; , ; were one of the two main coalitions that fought in World War I (1914–1918). It consisted of the German Empire, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Bulga ...

was uncovered by the police in 1915; some members of Maffia (Karel Kramář, Alois Rašín, Vincent Červinka and Josef Zamazal) were arrested and sentenced to death (they were later amnestied by emperor Charles I.); Edvard Beneš escaped from Austria-Hungary to Switzerland on 3 September 1915,Preclík, Vratislav. Masaryk a legie (Masaryk and legions), váz. kniha, 219 pages., vydalo nakladatelství Paris Karviná, Žižkova 2379 (734 01 Karviná, Czechia) ve spolupráci s Masarykovým demokratickým hnutím (Masaryk Democratic Movement, Prague), 2019, , pages 10–44, 101–102, 124–125, 128, 129, 132, 140–148, 168–169, 184–190. but the subversive activities of Maffia continued, under the leadership of

, until the end of the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Maffia had over 200 members and was supported from abroad (US, Italy etc.).

References

Czech nationalism 1910s in Austria-Hungary 20th century in Bohemia Secret societies World War I {{World-War-I-stub