Faith and Patriotic Instinct for Life. Excerpts from the History of the Premonstratensian Order in Jászóvár (1918–1923)

After its restoration in 1802, the Premonstratensian Order of Canons of Jászóvár (today Jasov, Slovakia) flourished in the mid-1900s. On 30 October 1918, the seat of the Order, Jászóvár, became de facto part of the new state of Czechoslovakia. In 1919, the secondary educational institutions and colleges of the Premonstratensians in Rozsnyó (Rožňava) and Kassa (Košice), were forcibly nationalised. As a result of the Treaty of Trianon, the property of the Order was geographically divided among three countries—Czechoslovakia, Romania, and Hungary. From the headquarters in Jászóvár, Provost Ferenc Menyhért Takács O.Praem. led the Nagyvárad (Oradea) and Budapest branches with the interposition of vicars. The Czechoslovak and Romanian authorities did their utmost to make the life of the Premonstratensians of Jászóvár unviable. On 7 June 1922, the Holy See elevated the provostship of Jászóvár to the rank of abbatia nullius, but the practical implementation of this was prevented by diplomatic backroom dealings and lawsuits in state and church politics.

Between 1919 and 1923, several Premonstratensian monks were expelled from Czechoslovakia.