In May 1945, the city of Pilsen was liberated by U.S. forces under the command of General Patton. The troops remained in the city until the final ceremonial parade held in Republic Square (Náměstí Republiky) 20 November 1945, in which the local population bid farewell to the US soldiers.Today, this history is not forgotten. A walk around the city reveals several monuments, museums and landmarks which tell the story of Pilsen's liberation at the end of the Second World War, the role of the US troops and their famous General Patton.

Czech Republic

City of Pilsen

The historical Hotel Slovan

General Patton Monument

Memorial honouring the 18th Armored Division

16th Armored Division Memorial

Memorial in rememrance of the USA war efforts in Pilsen

Thank You America Memorial

Patton Memorial Museum Pilsen

Historical Hotel Continental

Liberation of Pilsen

Below is Ken Jones’ recollection about his time in Pilsen and participation in the liberation of the brewery complex:“My military duties with the 16th Armored Division, U.S. Army, were to serve as Division Information Officer, an important educative responsibility while in training in America, but now functioning as a sort of in-house or staff journalist. Officially, I was a part of the Headquarters Company, but no one seemed to care what I was doing. When I identified the unit which had been instructed to liberate the brewery, I thought that would be news-worthy and attached myself to that unit. This entitled me to claim for posterity that I had helped to liberate the brewery. The German soldiers we found in the brewery complex were eager to surrender so it was almost a "non event. […]My first impression of the Czech Republic was that I was gazing upon the most beautiful, believable countryside I had ever seen. The rolling hills topped by evergreen forests provided a backdrop for fields of waving grain, as men and women harvested the winter wheat and stacked it onto hay wagons drawn by horses. It was like a painting by an 18th century master. If&nbsp;that were not enough, the frequent dark gray granite outcroppings among the wheat were like after-thoughts by an artist to improve on perfection…”After the war, he graduated from American University and Yale Divinity School. Thanks to the support of the City of Pilsen, Ken returned to visit five times: 1995, 2000, 2002, 2005, and 2010.

Liberation of a Brewery – Account of Ken Jones

As the most important public space of the city, it became the location of various ceremonial military parades. On 20 November 1945 a final ceremonial parade was held to bid farewell to departing American forces with the participation of Jan Masaryk, the post-war Czechoslovakian Minister of Foreign Affairs.&nbsp;

Republic Square

From the outset of the war, some countries boycotted Pilsner Urquell as a German product, therefore exports were directed exclusively to Germany. The brewery produced “weak war beer” and survived only because it supplied beer to the workers at the Škoda Works. During the war, protective constructions called “Splitterschutzzelle” (observation towers) or “Einmannbunker” (one man bunker) were built at each of these breweries. As simple precast concrete cylinders with narrow openings, they were probably among the first prefabricated fortified structures. They did not provide adequate shelter during air raids but were used as observation towers for posted patrols. Towards the end of the war, Pilsen experienced bombing and both breweries were extensively damaged while the Gambrinus was almost completely destroyed. After the bombing was over, fire patrols used these observation towers to monitor the results of the air raid and to help to locate unexploded bombs.

Pilsen Urquell Brewery

Klatovská Street 19 was built for Hugo and Helena Semler in the early 20th century by the architect Adolf Loos. Other of his works in Pilsen included the Bummel House and 13 apartment interiors, including Klatovská Street 12, directly opposite the "Thank You, America!” Plaza. In 1939, the Semler family was forced to emigrate to Canada. In 1941, the German military headquarters was established in the house. On 5 May 1945 with the appending approach of American and Belgian forces, resistance fighters and Czech police rebelled against the German occupiers. They occupied all important buildings in the city except the German military headquarters at Klatovská Street 19. General Georg von Majewski, commander of the German garrison in Pilsen, refused to surrender to the Czechs and ordered his troops to resist until the arrival of American forces. Today the house remains an important monument of European architecture of the 20th century and the location of dramatic negotiations in the final days of World War II in Pilsen.

Klatovska Street 19

The bomb shelter of the hotel had been considered one of the safest places in the city. However, the direct hit by the bomb killed 70 people, including hotel owner Václav Ledecký, his son Emanuel, and his father-in-law Arnošt Egert.After the liberation of Pilsen by the American army in May 1945, the hotel became the temporary headquarters of the renown 2nd Infantry Division under General Hinds. Among the most distinguished guests was Marlene Dietrich – who arrived in Pilsen with the Americans to serve as a translator.

Hotel Continental

At the beginning of the occupation of Pilsen, the synagogue was used as a storehouse for confiscated Jewish property. Later it was used as a factory to produce uniforms for German soldiers. After World War II, it was returned to the Jewish community of Pilsen and used as a place of worship until 1973. In 1973 it was classified as a historic monument and was partially reconstructed. During the restoration, a bullet was discovered lodged into one of the tablets of the Ten Commandments next to “Thou shalt not kill” – a remnant of the battle to liberate the city in 1945. Behind the synagogue in the park named after Pilsen-born actor Miroslav Horníček, a mini-memorial can be found made from the parts of the original pylons of the “Thank you, America!” memorial in central Pilsen.

Great Synagogue of Pilsen

The three Stoplersteine outside of house No. 6 sady Pětatřicátníků are inscribed with the names of the Fanta family:Adolf Fanta was born in 1889, deported to Terezin 1942, murdered in 1942 in Izbica.Hana Fantová was born in 1923, deported to Terezin 1942, murdered in 1942 in Izbica.Regina Fantová was born in 1887, deported to Terezin 1942, murdered in 1942 in Izbica.These Stoplersteine are three of more than 75,000 to be installed in 26 countries across Europe. The project was started by German artist Gunter Demnig with the aim of commemorating the victims of the Holocaust and persecution by the Nazi totalitarian regime. Each stone is made out of brass and is placed in the pavement outside of the victims home or place of work. They inscribed with the name, date of birth, deportation date, and date of death.<a href="https://www.stolpersteine.eu" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">More information on the Stoplersteine Project</a>

Stolpersteine for the Fanta Family

As early as 1946, Peace Square (náměstí Míru) was chosen as the location of a memorial to the Victims of Fascism and War in Pilsen. The memorial was erected in the central part of the square only in 1967 on the basis of a&nbsp;competition. The winning design featured a travertine sculpture titled "People" created by the sculptor Slavoj Nejdel, which represents the clenched formation of figures facing violence. The sculpture rests on horizontal granite pedestal with the motto "Honor to the one who defends himself, he can give his life for liberty" and was designed by architect Hynek Gloser Sr. The memorial was reconstructed in 2010.After the closure of the Bory military airfield in 1966, a second monument was moved here dedicated to the Czechoslovak Military Pilots of the Second World War. A third monument located on the square is dedicated to the Czech Popular uprising that broke out in the early morning of 5 May 1945.

Peace Square Monuments

The two opposing slender steles (9.5 metres high slabs each weighing 10 tonnes) are made of special rusted steel (corten), which are intended to resemble the triumphal arch – a traditional symbol of victory. The rust colour itself is reminiscent of the armor of tanks, and also draws attention to the fact that the memorial was not built until 70 years after the war. The creation of the monument took about one year under the sponsorship of Vítkovice Ironworks. A monument to General Patton was intended to be erected ten years earlier in 2004 when a foundation stone was&nbsp;laid in front of the Peklo cultural centre. However, the statue’s design for a realistic depiction of General Patton created by Jaroslav Bocker was rejected by the town hall after it emerged the artist had cooperated with communist Czechoslovakian Secret Police (“StB”). The statue was later placed in the nearby village of Dýšina, the headquarters of the 22nd Corps of Patton's 3rd U.S. Army.

Zestig jaar na de bevrijding van de stad werd in mei 2005 het museum Patton Memorial Pilsen geopend. Het museum documenteert de opmars van het Amerikaanse leger onder leiding van generaal George Patton tijdens de Tweede Wereldoorlog. Er zijn meer dan duizend objecten uit privécollecties te zien, waaronder delen van de uitrusting, oorlogsmaterieel en vele relikwieën die werden achtergelaten door de Amerikaanse soldaten.

The Patton Memorial Pilsen was opened in May 2005 on the 60th anniversary of the liberation of the city of Pilsen. The museum retraces the advance of the US Army led by General Patton in WWII. More than a thousand exhibits from private collections present gear and equipment of the time and war relics left behind by U.S. soldiers.

Patton Memorial Pilsen

Het Thank You America! Memorial in het Tsjechische Pilsen werd in 1995 opgericht om dank te betuigen aan de Amerikaanse troepen die in mei 1945 de stad hebben bevrijd. Het monument, dat in mei 2018 is gerenoveerd, bestaat uit twee zuilen met Tsjechisch en Engels opschrift

The Thank You America Memorial in Pilsen, Czech Republic, was erected in honour of the U.S. forces that liberated Pilsen in May 1945. The monument was renovated in May 2018 and it consists of two columns with inscriptions in both Czech and English.

Thank you! America Memorial

Met dit monument toont de bevolking van Pilsen haar dankbaarheid aan de Amerikaanse 2e Infanteriedivisie. Deze divisie werd in 1993 door het Center of Military History van het Amerikaanse leger en het United States Holocaust Memorial Museum erkend als eenheid van bevrijders. Op 8 mei 1945 trok de divisie Pilsen binnen.

The 2nd Infantry Division Memorial pays tribute to the U.S. 2nd Infantry Division, recognised as a liberating unit by the U.S. Army's Center of Military History and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1993. The division advanced to Pilsen on 8 May 1945.

Monument voor de Amerikaanse 2e Infanteriedivisie

Dit monument is opgericht voor de Amerikaanse 16e Pantserdivisie. Onder leiding van generaal Patton hielp deze divisie op 6 mei 1945 Pilsen te bevrijden van de bezetting door nazi-Duitsland.

The Memorial commemorates the U.S. 16th Armored Division that liberated Pilsen from Nazi Germany on 6 May 1945, led by General Patton.