On October 28, 1918, the signing of the Armistice ended World War I and liberated the Czech Republic from foreign domination. Wishing to express the event in musical terms, the socially conscious Leos Janacek composed Czech Legion, completing it in just 20 days after the historic signing. The legion to which the composer referred was the Czech force in France that fought gallantly and suffered untold cruelties. As part of the allied resistance, the Czech fighters were awarded citations from the French government. The text was written by Antonin Horak, and while it it is not considered great, it functioned effectively as a vehicle for Janacek's political ardor.

Czech Legion is one of many works for male chorus that came from Janacek's pen. The work was conceived around the time the composer was putting the finishing touches on Taras Bulba; he was also revising an older work for male chorus, Kantor Halfar. Along with The Wandering Madman, the Glagolithic Mass, and The Makropulos Affair, this is a work from the composer's most mature and creative period. It lasts about seven and a half minutes.

In the work, one can detect a faint echo of the Czech National Anthem. The work ends softly, with a slow meditative section showing off the solo capabilities of the flute. This is in place of the expected and overblown patriotic bombast.

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