April 12, 1945: First Czech town liberated from Nazi occupation
World War II was longer for the Czechs than for most European nations. The Czech lands were occupied by Nazi Germany from as early as March 15, 1939, and the first Czech town was liberated from the Nazis on April 12, 1945, less than a month before the German surrender. That town was Hodonín in South Moravia.
The town of Hodonín, located about 50 km from Brno, lies on the right bank of the Morava River, which forms the Czech-Slovak border in the Lower Morava Valley. Due to its location and the advance of the liberating forces from the east, it was the first town in this country to be liberated from Nazi oppression.
The battle for the town started on 11 April when, after liberating the Slovak border town of Holíč, Red Army troops crossed the Morava River and advanced towards the first Czech settlement. What helped their advance is that Soviet fighter planes had already launched an attack on the Hodonín area, shelling German defences and retreating German troops. The fight to take control of the town lasted approximately 24 hours and on 12 April, at eight o'clock in the evening, the town was liberated.
Fifty-three Soviet soldiers, 130 German soldiers and 39 civilians were killed in the liberation effort. About 150 buildings were destroyed. Historian Hana Sýkorová from the Masaryk Museum in Hodonin explains:
“Actually the battle for Hodonín was relatively short because the Red Army outwitted the Germans and took Hodonín from a direction that the Germans did not expect. They crossed the Morava River and attacked the Nazi forces from behind. Actually the evacuation of the Germans started sometime before the liberation. The Germans had already realized that they had lost the war and they started to move out of the town. First the more wealthy and influential Germans and then the lower officials. Around the 7th of April, that is, before the battle for Hodonín began, many of the German inhabitants had already been evicted and moved away with their families. Yet, of course, after the war some Germans remained, and they were then subsequently interned in two camps that were set up for them here in the town."
So going back to pre-war Hodonín. How many German inhabitants did the town have?
"The German population was not so large before the war. There were far more Czechoslovaks. In fact, the number of Germans was so small that no separate school could be built or established for them. They had only one class in the town. But with the occupation, many of the inhabitants began to declare their German affiliation. From this came various advantages. And during the war Hodonín became a transport and transit town. The number of German soldiers in the city grew. And this meant that besides the soldiers, officials and their families came here. And during the war, the Germans also occupied many buildings that had previously been in the possession of Czechs. They established a grammar school, a trade academy, a kindergarten, and various inns. Gradually, the Germans occupied more and more buildings because they had to have accommodation, warehouses and offices somewhere."
Given the high number of Germans in the town, does that mean that Hodonín was fairly sheltered during the war?
"The most tragic event for Hodonín was on November 20, 1944. On that day the town experienced a seven-minute heavy bombing, which was caused by the fact that the American bombers, who flew from their Italian bases to the north of Silesia, found that their targets were not visible and that they had to find alternative targets in order to fly back. And those alternative targets were, in addition to Zlín, Přerov, Brno and Breclav, also Hodonín, the Hodonín railway station.
The tragedy was that there was a densely populated zone around the Hodonín station, where there were many houses. 450 bombs were dropped on the town in those seven minutes. Three thousand people found themselves without cover. 180 people were killed. From then on, the inhabitants of Hodonín were afraid of any planes flying overhead."
Were any anti-German excesses recorded here after the war?
"No, no. None that were recorded or talked about in any significant way. As I said, some of the German families that remained were placed in two internment camps. One was at Rubanice, and the other was on the site of what is now the state district archives. The Germans then helped in various clearing works and, for example, they also participated in the removal of the ruins of the Jewish synagogue in Hodonín."
Coming back to the liberation, can you briefly describe the role of Romanian soldiers? Not everyone knows that Romanians also took part in the liberation of the Czech lands.
"Romania was on the side of Germany at the beginning of the war, but from August 1944 it joined the Allies. The Romanian Royal Army was integrated into the 2nd Ukrainian Front. And this 2nd Ukrainian Front played a crucial role in the Bratislava-Brno operation. There were 86,000 soldiers involved. Not directly in Hodonín, but in the Bratislava-Brno operation as such. And those who lost their lives there are buried in the central cemetery in Brno. And, of course, there are memorials in the various towns and villages.
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