1942 assassination in Prague
Reinhard Heydrich, the commander of the German Reich Security Main Office (RSHA), the acting governor of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia and a principal architect of the Holocaust, was assassinated during the Second World War in a coordinated operation by the Czechoslovak resistance. The assassination attempt, code-named Operation Anthropoid, was carried out by resistance operatives Jozef Gabčík and Jan Kubiš on 27 May 1942. Heydrich was wounded in the attack and died of his injuries on 4 June.
The operatives who carried out the assassination were soldiers of the Czechoslovak Army who were prepared and trained by the British Special Operations Executive (SOE) with the approval of the Czechoslovak government-in-exile, led by Edvard Beneš. The Czechoslovaks undertook the operation to help confer legitimacy on the government-in-exile, and to exact retribution for Heydrich's brutal rule. The operation was the only verified government-sponsored assassination of a senior Nazi leader during the war. Heydrich's death led to a wave of reprisals by SS troops, including the destruction of villages and mass killings of civilians, notably the Lidice massacre.
Multiple memorials have been created in different nations such as in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and in the United Kingdom as a result of both the assassination and its aftermath. The events have been the subject of various films (usually in the general context of World War II in popular culture and specifically portrayals of Heydrich).
Background.
Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia.
Reinhard Heydrich had been the chief of the Reich Security Main Office (RSHA) since September 1939 and was appointed acting Protector of Bohemia and Moravia after replacing Konstantin von Neurath in September 1941. Chancellor Adolf Hitler agreed with "Reichsführer-SS" Heinrich Himmler and Heydrich that von Neurath's relatively lenient approach to the Czechs promoted anti-German sentiment, and encouraged anti-German resistance by strikes and sabotage.
Heydrich came to Prague to "strengthen policy, carry out countermeasures against resistance", and keep up production quotas of Czech motors and arms that were "extremely important to the German war effort". During his role as "de facto" dictator of Bohemia and Moravia, Heydrich often drove with his chauffeur in a car with an open roof. This was a show of his confidence in the occupation forces and in the effectiveness of his government. Due to his brutal efficiency, Heydrich was nicknamed the "Butcher of Prague", the "Blond Beast" and the "Hangman".
Strategic context.
By late 1941, Nazi Germany controlled almost all of continental Europe, and German forces were approaching Moscow. The Allies deemed Soviet capitulation likely. The exiled government of Czechoslovakia under President Edvard Beneš was under pressure from British intelligence, as there had been very little visible resistance since the occupation of the Sudeten regions of the country in 1938. The takeover of these regions was accepted by the United Kingdom and France in the Munich Agreement. Occupation of the whole country had begun in 1939, and the initial betrayal by the United Kingdom and France, along with the subsequent terror of the Nazis, seemed to break the will of the Czechs for a period.
The German invasion of the Soviet Union had stimulated acts of sabotage by Czech communists, leading to Heydrich's appointment. As well as terrorizing the opposition and establishing the Theresienstadt ghetto/concentration camp, Heydrich had overseen a progressive policy of good wages (equivalent to those in Germany) for industrial workers and farmers, which caused acts of sabotage to drop significantly and helped cooperative production of war materials. Heydrich was thought to be scheduled to transfer to occupied northern France and Belgium, with the intent to implement similar policies there.
Resistance movements were active from the very beginning of occupation in several other countries defeated in open warfare (Poland, Yugoslavia and Greece), but the subjugated Czech lands remained relatively calm and produced significant amounts of materiel for Germany. The exiled government felt that it had to do something that would inspire the Czechoslovaks, as well as show the world that the Czechs and Slovaks were allies. In particular, Beneš felt that a dramatic action displaying a Czech contribution to the Allied cause would make it politically harder for the British to forge any possible peace agreement with Germany that would undermine Czech national interests. Heydrich was chosen over Karl Hermann Frank as an assassination target due to his status as the acting Protector of Bohemia and Moravia as well as his reputation for terrorizing local citizens. The operation was also intended to demonstrate to senior Nazis that they were not beyond the reach of Allied forces and the resistance groups they supported.
Assassination.
Planning.
The operation was initiated by František Moravec, head of the Czechoslovak intelligence services, with the knowledge and approval of Beneš, almost as soon as Heydrich was appointed Protector. Moravec personally briefed Brigadier Colin Gubbins, who at the time was the Director of Operations in the British Special Operations Executive (SOE) and who had responsibility for the Czech and Polish "country" sections of the organisation. Gubbins readily agreed to help mount the operation, although knowledge of it was restricted to a few of the headquarters and training staff of SOE. The operation was given the codename "Anthropoid", Greek for "having the form of a human", a term usually used in zoology.
Preparation began on 20 October 1941. Moravec had personally selected two dozen of the most promising personnel from among the 2,000 exiled Czechoslovak soldiers based in Britain. They were sent to one of SOE's commando training centres at Arisaig in Scotland. Warrant Officer Jozef Gabčík (Slovak) and Staff Sergeant Karel Svoboda (Czech) were chosen to carry out the operation on 28 October 1941 (Czechoslovakia's Independence Day), but after Svoboda received a head injury during training he was replaced by Jan Kubiš (Czech). This caused delays in the mission because Kubiš had not completed training. The necessary false documents had not been prepared for him, either.
Training was supervised by the nominated head of the Czech section, Major Alfgar Hesketh-Prichard, who turned to Cecil Clarke to develop the necessary weapon. It was light enough to throw but still lethal enough to destroy an armour-plated Mercedes. During extensive training, the new weapon was found to be easy to throw by Hesketh-Prichard (who had a strong cricketing background, his father having been a first-class bowler), but less so by Gabčík and Kubiš.
Insertion.
Gabčík and Kubiš, along with seven other soldiers from Czechoslovakia's army-in-exile in the United Kingdom in two other groups, "Silver A" and "Silver B" (who had different missions), were flown from RAF Tangmere by a Halifax of No. 138 Squadron RAF at 22:00 on 28 December 1941. The groups, along with some supply containers, left the plane by parachute, in drops in three separate areas. The Anthropoid pair landed near Nehvizdy east of Prague. Originally, the plane had been planned to land near Pilsen, but the aircrew had navigation problems and each of the groups landed in different places from where intended. Gabčík and Kubiš then moved to Pilsen to contact their allies, and from there on to Prague, where the attack was planned.
In Prague, the pair contacted families and Czechoslovak resistance organisations who helped them during the preparations for the assassination. Upon learning of the nature of the mission, resistance leaders begged the Czechoslovak government-in-exile to call off the attack, saying that "[a]n attempt against Heydrich's life... would be of no use to the Allies and its consequences for our people would be immeasurable". Beneš personally broadcast a message insisting that the attack go forward, although he denied any involvement after the war. Professor Vojtěch Mastný argues that he "clung to the scheme as the last resort to dramatize Czech resistance".
Gabčík and Kubiš initially planned to kill Heydrich on a train, but after examination of the practicalities they realised this was not going to be possible. A second plan was to kill Heydrich on a forest road that led from his home to Prague. They planned to pull a cable across the road that would stop Heydrich's car, but after waiting several hours their commander, Lt. Adolf Opálka (from the group Out Distance), came to bring them back to Prague. A third plan was to kill Heydrich in Prague.
Attack in Prague.
At 10:30 on Wednesday, 27 May 1942, Heydrich started his daily commute from his home in Panenské Břežany, north of central Prague, to his headquarters at Prague Castle. He was driven by SS-"Oberscharführer" Johannes Klein. Gabčík and Kubiš waited at the tram stop at the junction between the road then known as , and , in Prague 8-Libeň near Bulovka Hospital. The tight curve there would force Heydrich's car to slow down as it turned westwards into . Josef Valčík (from group "Silver A") was positioned about north of Gabčík and Kubiš to look out for the approaching car.
Heydrich's green, open-topped Mercedes 320 Cabriolet B reached the curve two minutes later. Gabčík concealed his Sten submachine gun under a raincoat. As the car slowed and rounded the corner, Gabčík dropped his raincoat and raised the gun to shoot Heydrich but the gun jammed. Heydrich stood up and drew his Luger pistol, yelling to halt instead of ordering to accelerate. As the car braked in front of him, Kubiš, who was not spotted, threw a modified anti-tank grenade (concealed in a briefcase) at the car; he misjudged his throw. Instead of landing inside the car, it landed against the rear wheel. Nonetheless, the bomb severely wounded Heydrich when it detonated, its fragments ripping through the right rear fender and embedding fragmentation and fibers from the upholstery of the car into Heydrich, causing serious injuries to his left side, with major damage to his diaphragm, spleen and lung, as well as fracturing a rib. Kubiš received a minor wound to his face from the shrapnel. The explosion shattered the windows of the tram which had stopped on the opposite side of the road, shrapnel striking passengers. Two SS jackets folded on the back seat of the car were whirled upwards by the blast and draped themselves over the trolley wire.
Heydrich and Klein leapt out of the shattered Mercedes with drawn pistols; Klein ran towards Kubiš, who had staggered against the railings, while Heydrich went to Gabčík, who stood holding the Sten. Kubiš recovered, jumped on his bicycle and pedaled away, scattering passengers spilling from the tram by firing in the air with his Colt M1903 pistol. Klein tried to shoot at him, but dazed by the explosion, pressed the magazine release catch and the gun jammed. A staggering Heydrich came towards Gabčík, who dropped his Sten and tried to reach his bicycle but was forced to abandon the attempt and took cover behind a telegraph pole, firing at Heydrich with his pistol. Heydrich returned fire and ducked behind the stalled tram, when he suddenly doubled over and staggered to the side of the road in pain. He then collapsed against the railings, holding himself up with one hand. As Gabčík took the opportunity to run, Klein rushed to help his superior. Heydrich, his face pale and contorted in pain, pointed toward the fleeing Gabčík, saying, "Get that bastard!" As Klein gave pursuit, Heydrich stumbled along the pavement before collapsing against the bonnet of his wrecked car. Gabčík fled into a butcher shop, where the owner, a man named Brauer, who was a Nazi sympathiser and had a brother who worked for the Gestapo, ignored his request for help. Brauer ran out to the street and attracted Klein's attention by shouting and pointing to the shop. Klein, whose gun was still jammed, ran into the shop and collided with Gabčík in the doorway. In the confusion, Gabčík shot him twice, severely wounding him in the leg. Gabčík then escaped in a tram, reaching a local safe house. At this point, Gabčík and Kubiš did not know that Heydrich was wounded and thought the attack had failed.
Medical treatment and death.
A Czech woman and an off-duty policeman went to Heydrich's aid and flagged down a delivery van. Heydrich was first placed in the driver's cab but complained that the truck's movement was causing him pain. He was then transferred to the back of the truck on his stomach and taken to the emergency room at Bulovka Hospital. A Dr. Slanina packed the chest wound, while Dr. Walter Diek, the Sudeten German chief of surgery at the hospital, tried to remove the shrapnel splinters.
Professor Hollbaum (a Silesian German who