The changeover was so low-key at first that there was very little celebration. Caught in the middle of a hard winter, the Czechs were skeptical that significant change was possible. Dubcek was still relatively unknown, and the new regime was slow in instituting purges of the old guard. The Kremlin remained unalarmed, for Dubcek was unassuming and a committed communist.

As new political alliances began to form and other men such as Josef Smrkovsky began to express public support for change, a new feeling of potential began to emerge. The writers and journalists began to notice that they were allowed greater freedom of expression. The Writers Union, which had experienced a crackdown in September, began to publish a renamed weekly magazine that promoted the progressive ideas. The reformers, with new access to Party records, discovered more information about the persecutions and injustices of the past twenty years. Many vowed to avoid adopting these harsh measures as they moved toward "socialism with a human face." Seeking to blend social and economic justice with the freedoms enjoyed in the West, this new regime proceeded with caution. This left many of the old guard Party members in place, which inhibited the progress of the reformers. One event that accelerated the final fall of Novotny was the flight of Major General Jan Sejna. Although only 41, he had enjoyed the favor of the old regime and the good life that went with it. For the members of the old guard, such as Sejna, the changing of the status quo was a major threat. Late in February, when an article appeared exposing the attempted coup in December, General Sejna decided not to stick around to see what would happen next. He borrowed money from his friends without disclosing his plans and crossed the border into Hungary. Accompanied by his son and a young woman alternately described as hisdaughter, his son's girlfriend, or his mistress, he drove on to Yugoslavia and then to Italy, where he requested asylum in the United States.

Although he was a pro-Soviet General, he had more to offer the West. He liked the good life, and he had taken with him military secrets and a wealth of information that was of value to U. S. intelligence. General Janko, who had also been involved in the attempted coup on behalf of Novotny, shot himself on March 14. Novotny's efforts at damage control became increasingly futile, and he resigned as President on March 22. He was only the third President of Czechoslovakia since the 1948 Communist takeover, and his resignation as President truly marked the end of his political career.

April and May saw a wave of journalists and tourists coming to Czechoslovakia. This was the "Prague Spring," and the beautiful weather combined with the new freedoms to give a sense of joy to the citizens. With the final fall of Novotny, and the removal of many of his supporters from power, the progressives should have been enjoying their success. Overshadowing these events, however, was the fact that Brezhnev and the Warsaw Pact leadership were beginning to be alarmed by the changes. Dubcek and his colleagues were asked to defend their policies at a meeting with other Warsaw Pact leaders soon after Novotny's resignation as President, and this was only the beginning of the Soviet skepticism. Fear of the Soviets' attitude hung like a black cloud over the entire "Prague spring," for no one in Czechoslovakia had forgotten what the Soviets had done to Hungary in 1956. In fact, the brutality of the Kremlin towards the Hungarians in 1956 almost seemed to provide a shield; many Czechs felt that the Russians would not risk a similar bloody confrontation with one of their satellites again.

The Plenum of the Central Committee met March 28 to name a new president of Czechoslovakia. Instead of choosing one of the younger men from the progressive group and risking the wrath of the Soviet Union, they chose General Ludvik Svoboda. He was in his early seventies, and had been named a "Hero of the Soviet Union" in 1965 for his service in World War II. The new President asked Oldrich Cernik to form a new cabinet, which was to implement the "Action Program" crafted by Dubcek and his associates. This 40,000-word document was the most liberal program adopted by a communist country and was a blueprint for progressive reform.

As the weather improved and the press enjoyed greater freedom due to the new political climate, the Czechs alternated between the joys of their new-found freedom and fear of invasion. The political bureaucracy was still full of Novotnyans in spite of the changes in leadership, and the Warsaw Pact countries were planning military "exercises" near Czechoslovakia's border. These leaders feared uprisings in their own countries, and the Soviets wanted to maintain dominance over the whole region. They had their own "domino effect" to worry about, and as their most stable ally began to experiment with "democratic socialism," the Soviets wanted to prevent any changes that could lead to a significant change in the communist balance of power.

As the spring progressed, many old Stalinists in Czechoslovakia apologized for past repressions, hid from public life, or committed suicide. Liberal political and cultural groups formed and cautiously waited to see what would happen as they published opinions in the press, presented plays criticizing the old regime, and talked openly of change in the workplace. The Warsaw Pact neighbors countered by criticizing the changes in Czechoslovakia in their own state-controlled newspapers. The Czechs alternately relaxed and worried as the happy days in May were followed by a tug-of-war between the old-liners and the new leaders. The reforms were difficult to implement because of the political rivalries, and the tensions heightened as the Soviet military units began to gather along Czechoslovakia's borders for the scheduled "maneuvers" in June.

The Czech leadership was walking a fine line in trying to maintain the goals and programs that they and most of the citizens wanted without incurring the active wrath of the Soviets. Dubcek was weakened by the ongoing political struggle within the government, but he and his leadership team were widely supported by the Czech people. Hopes were constantly raised and dashed as the reforms were threatened by the conservative forces. At this crucial time Ludvik Vaculic wrote the Two Thousand Words that was signed by 70 people; a cross-section of Czech citizens. This document was a ringing endorsement of the progressive ideas. Newspapers were flooded with thousands of letters approving the text; Moscow was getting more restless at what appeared to be growing into a popular revolution.

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