Heliodor Píka
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General Heliodor Píka (3 July 1897 – 21 June 1949) was a
Czechoslovak Czechoslovak may refer to: *A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93) **First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38) **Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39) **Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60) **Fourth Czechoslovak Repub ...
army officer who was the first Victim of judicial murder of the Czechoslovak Communist show trials.


Early life

Heliodor Píka was born in a village of Štítina in
Austrian Silesia Austrian Silesia, (historically also ''Oesterreichisch-Schlesien, Oesterreichisch Schlesien, österreichisch Schlesien''); cs, Rakouské Slezsko; pl, Śląsk Austriacki officially the Duchy of Upper and Lower Silesia, (historically ''Herzogth ...
, near
Opava Opava (; german: Troppau, pl, Opawa) is a city in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 55,000 inhabitants. It lies on the river Opava. Opava is one of the historical centres of Silesia. It was a historical capital of ...
, then
Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
. During
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, Píka served as a Czechoslovak legionnaire in the Russian theatres. He was captured at
Berestechko Berestechko ( uk, Берестечко) is a town in Lutsk Raion, Volyn Oblast, Ukraine. It is located on the Styr River. Population: History Berestechko received Magdeburg rights in 1547. Around the same era, Socinian communities were activ ...
on 5 October 1916, during the Russian campaign but by 1917 he had returned to duty as a member of the
French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed Force ...
and would later serve with the Czechoslovak Legions in France. By 1920, when the Legion was disbanded, Píka had risen to the rank of lieutenant. After the war, Píka studied at a French military academy, graduating in 1920.


Service in the Czechoslovak Army

In the 1930s, Píka acted as a military attaché to
Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
and
Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...
. In 1938, in a bid to prevent the occupying German forces from using Czechoslovak Army matériel, he disposed of it by selling arms to the militant Haganah organization in Palestine. (Selling arms to
non-state actor A non-state actor (NSA) are organizations and/or individuals that are not affiliated with, directed by, or funded by any government. The interests, structure, and influence of NSAs vary widely. For example, among NSAs are non-profit organizations, ...
s was forbidden by international conventions but the Czechoslovak foreign affairs department granted its approval.) He would later travel to the
Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
, from where he arranged defections of Czechoslovaks and Hungarians from German-occupied territory. In 1941, during
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, Píka was appointed chief of the Czechoslovak Military Mission to the Soviet Union (in
Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...
). Loyal to the
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
-based
government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is ...
of exiled Czechoslovak President
Edvard Beneš Edvard Beneš (; 28 May 1884 – 3 September 1948) was a Czech politician and statesman who served as the president of Czechoslovakia from 1935 to 1938, and again from 1945 to 1948. He also led the Czechoslovak government-in-exile 1939 to 194 ...
, Píka supported their democratic policies despite Soviet opposition. Píka was under constant pressure from the Soviets to betray Beneš, but despite attempts at blackmail, Píka remained loyal throughout his tenure, which lasted until 1945. Following the war, Beneš promoted Píka to deputy chief of the general staff of the Czechoslovak Army, where he was responsible for the arms industry. He held this position until late February 1948, when he was dismissed from the Army on the orders of
Rudolf Slánský Rudolf Slánský (31 July 1901 – 3 December 1952) was a leading Czech Communist politician. Holding the post of the party's General Secretary after World War II, he was one of the leading creators and organizers of Communist rule in Czechosl ...
, with the assistance of Army Security Intelligence Office (known as ( cs, Obranné zpravodajství), (OBZ) its Czech abbreviation) chief
Bedřich Reicin Bedřich Reicin (29 September 1911, in Plzeň – 3 December 1952, in Pankrác Prison in Prague) was a Czechoslovak army officer and politician. Reicin was born into a poor Jewish family (his birth name was Friedrich Reinzinger, sometimes writt ...
(the former head of Czechoslovak military intelligence, who held a grudge against Píka from the time in which they served together in the USSR).


Charges of high treason

In early May 1948 (after the Communist coup of February 1948), Heliodor Píka was arrested without a warrant and accused of
espionage Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangib ...
and
high treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...
. The Czechoslovak authorities forged a memorandum that purported to link General Píka to British military intelligence. (Historian Edward Crankshaw noted that the document, written in broken English, was "the most appalling and most unimaginably inefficient bit of forgery
e had E, or e, is the fifth letter and the second vowel letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''e'' (pronounced ); plur ...
ever come across".) Despite the inadequacy of the memorandum, Píka was held through 1948 and interrogated by -trained officers of the OBZ. Reicin appointed Karel Vaš as chief investigator in the Píka case. Reicin would later, in a departure from standard practice, name Vaš the second prosecutor at Píka's trial. According to Reicin's secretary, Vaš told Reicin: " st tell me how much you need for Píka, fifteen years or the
gallows A gallows (or scaffold) is a frame or elevated beam, typically wooden, from which objects can be suspended (i.e., hung) or "weighed". Gallows were thus widely used to suspend public weighing scales for large and heavy objects such as sacks ...
, and the indictment can be manufactured accordingly...." From 26 to 29 January 1949, Píka was tried in secret before the Military Senate of the State Court in Prague. (This court was specially created as an instrument of political repression in mid-1948.) Charged with
high treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...
, damaging the interests of the Czechoslovak Republic and the Soviet Union, and undermining the ability of the state to defend itself, Píka was not allowed to present a defence, and no witnesses were called. Píka was sentenced to death. He unsuccessfully appealed to the Supreme Court. Píka and his lawyer asked President
Klement Gottwald Klement Gottwald (; 23 November 1896 – 14 March 1953) was a Czech communist politician, who was the leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from 1929 until his death in 1953–titled as general secretary until 1945 and as chairman fro ...
(leader of the communist government) for clemency but this effort was unsuccessful. Heliodor Píka was
hanged Hanging is the suspension of a person by a noose or ligature around the neck.Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed. Hanging as method of execution is unknown, as method of suicide from 1325. The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' states that hanging i ...
in the yard of Bory Prison ( cz, Věznice Bory) in Plzeň around 06:00 on the morning of 21 June 1949. In a farewell letter to his family, written the night before his execution, he wrote: "I am sure that this is not a judicial error but a political murder". Offered the chance to express his last wishes as he stood at the gallows, he said: "my ultimate desire is that the nation remain united, and that everyone, without regard for their differences, work toward the unity of our people". He was the first of more than 200 Czechoslovaks tried and executed for political reasons by the communist government of Czechoslovakia. His body was never found.


Aftermath

The day after Píka's conviction, Reicin, writing under a pseudonym in the Czechoslovak Army's newspaper, published a series of articles casting a politico-ideological slant upon the Píka affair. Reicin's articles were soon republished in a widely circulated pamphlet entitled "A Path That Leads to the Depths of Treason". During the Prague Spring of 1968, Píka's case was reopened at the request of Milan Píka (son of Heliodor) and the elder Píka's lawyer, and a military tribunal declared Heliodor Píka innocent of all charges. Milan Píka passed away in March 2019. He had become a general in both the Czech and Slovak armies – the only person in history ever to do so. In 2001, Karel Vaš was indicted by the Czech police's State Office of Investigation on charges of having knowingly used false evidence, falsifying a confession, exceeding his powers and using psychological violence during the Píka affair. These counts would carry a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison. In June 2001, after a trial before the Senate of the Prague City Court, the eighty-five-year-old Vaš was found guilty of introducing false documents and statements, and sentenced to seven years' imprisonment. Both Vaš and his attorney maintained Vaš's innocence, and promised to appeal.


Honours

The Czechoslovak government conferred the Milan Rastislav Stefanik Order, 3rd class upon Píka in 1991.