Zdeněk Novák

Zdeněk Novák

Zdeněk Novák (born April 2, 1891 in Paskov , † October 23, 1988 in Zadní Třebaň ) was a Czechoslovak soldier, legionnaire , army general in the Czechoslovak army , and as a leading member of the resistance group Obrana národa a personality of the Czechoslovak resistance 1939-1945 against the National socialism .

Life

After graduating from high school and a commercial school in Místek and Uherské Hradiště in Moravian Silesia , Zdeněk Novák was qualified to study at a university in Brno in 1908 and registered at the Agricultural University in Berlin . After two semesters, he was drafted into the Austro-Hungarian consulate in Berlin in 1910. Novák's civil profession was brewing beer.

In 1914 Novák was transferred to the Russian front , where he was captured as a first lieutenant (nadporučík) in 1916. In December 1916 he volunteered for the Czechoslovak legions , but he was only able to start service in September 1917 and was immediately sent to the officers' school in Boryspil . After this course he was assigned to the 2nd Gunner Division and then to the 2nd Gunner Brigade in Pyriatyn, where he gradually held various command posts. He was promoted to major in December 1918, and then to lieutenant colonel on May 1, 1919. Novák took part both in numerous battles with the German army, which occurred during the withdrawal of the legions from Ukraine, as well as in bitter battles with the Red Army in the area of Irkutsk , Vladivostok and on the front of Ussuriysk , which accompanied the withdrawal of the legions to Vladivostok and the defense of the Trans-Siberian highway . He also commanded the Czechoslovak garrison in Chita until November 1918 , with which he supported the army units of the Cossack ataman Semyonov in their fight against the Red Army. From February 20, 1920 to March 4, 1920 he was involved in the Czechoslovak-Russian commission in the negotiations on the gold treasure in Irkutsk. From May 27, 1920 to June 19, 1920 he represented Czechoslovakia in the negotiations of the Japanese-Chinese-Czechoslovak conflict commission in Harbin .

Novák returned to Czechoslovakia on August 15, 1920. He stayed in the army and commanded various units, including a gunner brigade in Košice. He also completed a number of courses and advanced seminars for officers, including a course at the Vysoká škola válečná (War College) in Prague and two courses for generals in France. On May 1, 1928, he gained the rank of brigadier general and served as commander of various cannon units, especially in Moravia, most recently in Olomouc .

After the occupation of the country by the Wehrmacht and the proclamation of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia , Novák immediately took up work in the Obrana národa resistance group, which consists mainly of officers from the Czechoslovak army . As a close associate of Hugo Vojta and Bedřich Homola , he moved to the group's headquarters in Prague, but kept in touch with his contacts in Moravia. His private vila in Hutisko-Solanec served for a time as a base for people, especially pilots from the Czechoslovak army, who wanted to flee to Poland. After the second big wave of Gestapo arrests, he took over the state management for Bohemia. After Bedřich Homola was arrested, he replaced him on December 31, 1941 as commander of the Obrana národa and tried to renew the structures and strengthen cooperation with other resistance groups. However, on June 22, 1944, Zdeněk Novák was arrested. On May 5, 1945 he was finally liberated during the Prague uprising and was able to get involved in the operations of General František Slunečko 's Alex resistance group .

After the liberation, Zdeněk Novák was promoted to the rank of division general (August 1, 1945) and then army general (April 1, 1946). After the communist revolution in February 1948, however, he was arrested on January 3, 1951, released from the army in October 1951 and demoted. In a show trial on April 8, 1954, Novák was sentenced to 18 years imprisonment for high treason. After an amnesty, he was released on September 12, 1956, and the charges were withdrawn on April 10, 1958. Legal rehabilitation took place in 1963 and his military ranks were returned to him.

Zdeněk Novák retired in Zadní Třebaň, where he died on October 23, 1988.

Awards

• Czechoslovak War Cross 1914–1918
• Order of the Falcon (Czechoslovakia)
• Czechoslovak Revolution Medal
• Czechoslovak victory medal
• Croix de Guerre avec palm
• Order of Saint Stanislaus
• Czechoslovak War Cross 1939

and other.

Individual evidence

1. ^ Vojtěch Bajer: Generál . In: Zpravodaj obce Hutisko-Solanec 11/2014, November 1st, 2014, report of the local Internet newspaper of the Hutisko-Solanec municipality. Online at: hutisko-solanec.eu / ... ( Memento from June 23, 2016 in the Internet Archive ), p. 9

swell

• JB: NOVÁK Zdeněk , In: Vojenské osobnosti československého odboje 1939–1945 , Publication of the Historical Military Institute of the Ministry of Defense of the Czech Republic, AVIS, Prague 2005, p. 209, online (archived) at: vojenskaakademiehranice.ic.cz / ...