Czech Killing & Atrocity Centers

The charge for the destruction of the small town of Lidice that the Nazis used, was that they had harbored the assassins of Rheinhold Heydrich, the Butcher of Prague. Shortly after the death of Heydrich, the entire village of Lidice was looted, ransacked, burned, bombed and its citizens, including children were brutally murdered or deported for execution. A few Czech children were kept for 'germanization': it was determined that their physical characteristics were sufficient enough to transform them into aryans.

Lidice, a small township outside of Prague in the countryside, was the site of one of the greatest atrocities and killings of innocents during the war, and is noted by the killings being mostly non-Jews.

On the morning of June 9,1942 10 trucks filled with Security Police rolled into the small town of Lidice outside Kladno. The sleepy town had been targeted because the Gestapo in Kladno had intercepted a letter belonging to the Horak family, who had a son in the Czech army in Britain, which they found 'suspicious'. Although a search of the house turned up no evidence, K.H Frank gave the order to destroy the town, and 173-190 men were herded into a barn and the next day shot in Horak's garden in groups of ten, from dawn till 4pm. A woman and child were shot in an escape attempt. This followed a time in which over 5000 anti-fascists had been imprisoned in the area. The women were arrested and sent mostly to Ravensbruck. The children were sent to Chelmno where all but 17 met their fate in the monoxide-poisoning vans. The town was completely decimated, including the desecration and destruction of the cemetary.

The rest of the world was so outraged at this killing of the innocents, that towns and babies were named 'lidice' in its honor. In all, 340 were killed, 143 women survived and teturned and rebuilt Lidice. After 2 years, 17 of the children were located and returned. In 1947, the site was re-established nearby and new homes were built: the town is now home to a memorial,museum and commemorative rose garden, and the "Park of Peace & Friendship". Lidice is reknown worldwide as a symbol of unjust victimization. ²