Vaclav Havel, former Czech leader, dies at 75

Elected president following the nonviolent “Velvet Revolution,” Havel oversaw his country’s bumpy transition to democracy.

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Vaclav Havel became Czechoslovakia's first democratically elected president after leading the peaceful "Velvet Revolution" that toppled communism there. "Work for something because it is good, not just because it stands a chance to succeed," Havel said.

Kevin Harvey / AP

Dissident playwright Vaclav Havel, center, Slovak Alexander Dubcek, left, and Czech singer Marta Kubisova join hands ahead of a rally calling for the resignation of the communist government in November 1989.

Lubomir Kotek / Getty Images

As a leading member of the Czechoslovak opposition Civic Forum, Havel drafted large parts of Charter 77, the declaration which helped attract international attention to the civil rights abuses in Czechoslovakia.

Joel Robine / Getty Images

Vaclav Havel flashes a victory sign after he is elected President of Czechoslovakia on Dec. 29, 1989.

Diether Endlicher / AP

Shortly after taking the oath as president of Czechoslovakia, Vaclav Havel, his wife Olga and his brother Ivan, attend a religious ceremony at Prague's Saint Guy Cathedral.

Lubomir Kotek / Getty Images

In February 1990, Havel delivers a speech before a joint session of the U.S. Congress, in which he said, "the salvation of this human world lies nowhere else than in the human heart, in the human power to reflect, in human meekness and in human responsibility.”

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Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and former President Vaclav Havel toast before lunch in Prague in this Sept. 17, 1990 photo.

Pavel Horejsi / AP

In January 1994, former U.S. President Bill Clinton speaks at the U.S. Ambassador's residence in Praque as Eastern European leaders look on. From left: Slovakian President Michal Kovac, Polish President Lech Walesa, Czech President Vaclav Havel and Hungarian President Arpad Goencz.

/ Associated Press

Former Czech President Vaclav Havel and former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev exchange documents in Moscow on the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Czechoslovakia.

Vitaly Armand / Getty Images

A former chain-smoker, Havel had a history of chronic respiratory problems dating back to his years in communist jails.

Tomas Turek / AP

Following their private wedding ceremony in Prague, the former Czech leader enters his private villa with actress Dagmar Veskrnova. Havel's first wife, Olga, died of cancer in January 1996 after 32 years of marriage.

Stanislav Peska / AP

Vaclav Havel accompanies Britain's Queen Elizabeth to a state banquet in the Spanish Hall of Prague Castle in 1996. He wears the Knight Grand and Cross of the Order of the Bath he received from the queen during her visit.

Tomas Turek / AP

During a private audience at the Vatican in Rome, Vaclav Havel meets with Pope John Paul II and presents the pontiff with a gift.

Massimo Sambucetti / AP

Former President Vaclav Havel held an honorary doctorate of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, conferred to him on Oct. 4, 1996. The dissident playwright who wove theater into revolution once said, "I think theater should always be somewhat suspect."

Michal Dolezal / AP

Vaclav Havel and his wife Dagmar wave to a crowd of well-wishers from the balcony of Prague Castle after Havel is sworn in for a second term as president.

Tomas Turek / AP

In a 2003 White House ceremony, former U.S. President George Bush embraces Vaclav Havel after presenting him with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Charles Dharapak / AP

Former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and Havel in October 2007.

Petr David Josek / AP

Former Czech president Vaclav Havel presents the German media prize "Die Goldene Henne" (the golden hen) during the 2009 awards ceremony in Berlin.

/ Reuters

U.S. President Barack Obama greets former Czech President Vaclav Havel during a 2009 summit between the United States and the 27-member European Union in Prague.

Bela Szandelszky / AP

On Dec. 10, 2011, Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama hands a present to the former Czech president during a Prague meeting.

Katerina Sulova / AP

Czech freedom icon and former President Vaclav Havel died in his sleep on December 18, 2011. His words and deeds continue to resonate far beyond the borders of the former Czechoslovakia.

Petr Davis Josek / Reuters

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