It is given to few people to change the course of history. Václav Havel, who died yesterday aged 75, was one of them. Along with Lech Walesa, co-founder of Solidarity, he played a decisive role in the most momentous event of this generation, the collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe. An intellectual from a wealthy background, he was in striking contrast to his Polish brother-in-arms, an electrician who rose to prominence through the trade union movement. Both men were imprisoned by the Communists and both went on to become presidents of their liberated countries.
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