On August 1st, 1944, the Warsaw Uprising broke out in Poland. Just weeks later, on August 19th, Parisians rose up against the German occupiers. And on August 29th, the Slovak town of Banská Bystrica became the center of an armed uprising against fascism.
Eighty-one years ago, Slovaks made a powerful statement: a stand against totalitarianism and a call for their own freedom.
In this special program, Martina Greňová Šimkovičová explores personal and historical stories connected to the Slovak National Uprising.
Historian Martin Posch begins by setting the scene—explaining the World War II context behind the Slovak resistance movement. Though the uprising was ultimately suppressed, Slovakia, as part of Czechoslovakia, ended the war on the side of the victors.
You'll also hear about guided tours in English at the Slovak National Uprising Museum in Banská Bystrica. While temporarily on pause, the museum still offers visitors access to its multimedia exhibition and the Open Depository—a behind-the-scenes look at rarely seen items from the collection.
The museum also features photographs by Anton Ivan Székely, the only official Slovak photographer of the Uprising. His daughter, Lívia Barutová, shared with Kerstin Plaschke Jakubik from the RSI German section the moving story of how her father fought to have his name restored to pictures long labeled “author unknown”.
Throughout the program, you’ll hear archival recordings of partisan songs, bringing the atmosphere of the era to life through sound.
Slovak National Uprising 81st Anniversary
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