Josef Valčík

Josef Valčík (pronounced [ˈjozɛv ˈval̩tʃiːk]; 2 November 1914 – 18 June 1942) was a Czechoslovak British-trained soldier and member of the Resistance in German-occupied Czechoslovakia who took part in the firefight during the aftermath of the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich by Jozef Gabčík and Jan Kubiš, code named Operation Anthropoid.

Josef Valčík
Born	(1914-11-02)2 November 1914 Smolina near Valašské Klobouky, Austria-Hungary (present-day Czech Republic)
Died	18 June 1942(1942-06-18) (aged 27) Prague, Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia (present-day Czech Republic)
Allegiance	Czechoslovakia  United Kingdom
Service / branch	Czechoslovak Army Czechoslovak Army in-exile
Years of service	1936–1939 1940–1942
Rank	Podporučík (Lieutenant)
Unit	Special Operations Executive
Battles / wars	Second World War Operation Anthropoid
Awards	Czechoslovak War Cross 1939–1945

Josef Valčík wanted poster. Note that he is misidentified as "Miroslav" Valčík, his place of birth is wrongly given as Hodonín/Göding, and the date of birth is erroneous as well.

Operation Anthropoid

SS-Obergruppenführer Heydrich, a high-ranking German Nazi official, was chief of the Reich Security Main Office and one of the main architects of the Holocaust. He was also Stellvertretender Reichsprotektor of Bohemia and Moravia in 1942.

The Germans were unable to locate the attackers until Karel Čurda of the "Out Distance" sabotage group turned himself in to the Gestapo and gave them the names of the team's local contacts for the reward of one million Reichsmarks.^[1] Valčík and the others died after a six-hour firefight with Waffen-SS troops and German police in the Saints Cyril and Methodius Cathedral.^[2]

Family

14 members of Valčík's family were arrested, brought to Mauthausen concentration camp and executed.

• Parents Jan Valčík (1880-1942) and Veronika Valčík (1888-1942)
• Brother Antonín Valčík (1919-1942) and sister Ludmila Valčíková (1923-1942)
• Sister Terezia Beňová (1912-1942) with husband Jan Beňa (1908-1942)
• Sister Marii Kolaříková (1917-1942) with husband Josef Kolařík (1914-1942)
• Sister Františku Sívková (1911-1942) with husband František Sívek (1910-1942)
• Brother Aloise Valčík (1908-1942) with wife Anna Valčíková (1907-1942)
• Brother Emil Valčík (1909-1942) with wife Anna Valčíková (1911-1942)

Honours

• 1942 – – Czechoslovak War Cross 1939–1945
• 1942 – – Second Czechoslovak War Cross 1939–1945 in memoriam
• 1944 – – Commemorative Medal of the Czechoslovak Army Abroad with France and Great Britain Bars
• 1945 – – Third Czechoslovak War Cross 1939–1945 in memoriam
• 1949 – – Czechoslovak Military Order for Freedom, Gold Star
• 1968 – – Order of the Red Banner
• 2010 – – Cross of Merit of the State Defense^[3]

See also

• Operation Anthropoid
• German occupation of Czechoslovakia
• Resistance in German-occupied Czechoslovakia

References

1. Lisciotto, Carmelo (2009). "The Assassination of Reinhard Heydrich". The Holocaust Education & Archive Research Team. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
2. McDonald, Callum (1989). The Killing of Reinhard Heydrich: The SS Butcher of Prague. New York City: Da Capo. p. 239. ISBN 978-0-306-80860-9. OCLC 722860441.
3. Miroslav Šindelář (8 May 2010). "Udělení resortních vyznamenání" (in Czech). Praha: Czech Army. Archived from the original on 4 November 2013. Retrieved 27 June 2018.