Martin Dzúr (12 July 1919 – 15 January 1985) was a Slovak military officer and a communist politician, who served as

defense minister A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

from 1968 to 1985.

Early life and education

Dzúr was born in Ploštín (now part of

Liptovský Mikuláš Liptovský Mikuláš (; until 1952 ''Liptovský Svätý Mikuláš'', german: Liptau-Sankt-Nikolaus; hu, Liptószentmiklós) is a town in northern Slovakia, on the Váh River, about from Bratislava. It lies in the Liptov region, in Liptov Bas ...

), Slovakia, on 12 July 1919. His parents were peasants. From 1937 to 1939 he studied

woodworking Woodworking is the skill of making items from wood, and includes cabinet making (cabinetry and furniture), wood carving, woodworking joints, joinery, carpentry, and woodturning. History Along with Rock (geology), stone, clay and animal parts, ...

. In the late 1940s he graduated from a military school, a higher academic course and the General Staff Academy 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 million ...

. He also received a degree in engineering.

Career and activities

Dzúr joined the

Slovak army The Slovak Ground Forces, also known as the Slovak Army, is the land specialized service branch of the Slovak Armed Forces. Structure Ground Forces Command * Ground Forces Command, in Trenčín (Commander: 2 Star General) ** Command Suppo ...

for military draft service in 1941. However, he left the Slovak army and defected to the Soviet Union in January 1943. He joined both the Soviet forces and the illegal

Czechoslovak Communist Party The Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (Czech and Slovak: ''Komunistická strana Československa'', KSČ) was a communist and Marxist–Leninist political party in Czechoslovakia that existed between 1921 and 1992. It was a member of the Cominter ...

in 1943. Then he began to serve in the 119th brigade of

the Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...

. Following

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 opposin ...

he became a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

in the Soviet-assisted Czechoslovak independent brigade in 1946. In 1959, Dzúr was made deputy defense minister. He was appointed defense minister under President

Ludvík Svoboda Ludvík Svoboda (25 November 1895 – 20 September 1979) was a Czech general and politician. He fought in both World Wars, for which he was regarded as a national hero,

in April 1968, replacing Bohumír Lomský in the post. He was a

colonel general Colonel general is a three- or four-star military rank used in some armies. It is particularly associated with Germany, where historically general officer ranks were one grade lower than in the Commonwealth and the United States, and was a ra ...

when he was named as the minister of defense. Four months after Dzúr's appointment the Soviet Union

invaded An invasion is a military offensive in which large numbers of combatants of one geopolitical entity aggressively enter territory owned by another such entity, generally with the objective of either: conquering; liberating or re-establishing con ...

Czechoslovakia in August 1968. In the immediate aftermath of the invasion, Dzúr was arrested in his office by two Soviet military officers. Ivan Yershov, Soviet chief of staff during the invasion, stated in 1989 that Dzúr initially refused to take orders from the Soviets, arguing that only

Alexander Dubček Alexander Dubček (; 27 November 1921 – 7 November 1992) was a Slovak politician who served as the First Secretary of the Presidium of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ) (''de facto'' leader of Czechoslovak ...

, leader of the Czechoslovak communist party, could give orders to him. However,

Andrei Grechko Andrei Antonovich Grechko (, ; – 26 April 1976) was a Marshal of the Soviet Union (from 1955). He was Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union from 1967 to 1976. Early life Grechko was the thirteenth child born to a family of Ukrainian peasant ...

, the former commander of the Warsaw Pact, told Dzúr by telephone that "if a single Czechoslovak soldier fired so much as one shot, he would personally hang Dzúr from the first tree." Dzúr was allowed only to call Dubček to inform him of the invasion. On 28 September 1968 Dzúr increased the number of Czech military areas accessible to Soviet troops. Dzúr was elected to the communist party's central committee in 1971. His term as defense minister ended on 11 January 1985 when he retired from office due to ill health. Milán Václavík replaced him in the post.

Views

Dzúr was close to Alexander Dubček. The 1970

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...

report describes Dzúr as a moderate like Dubček.

Honours and awards

Dzúr was awarded the highest Soviet prize, the

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration b ...

, in 1983.

Death

Only four days after his removal from office Dzúr died of "a long and serious illness" in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

on 15 January 1985.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dzur, Martin 1919 births 1985 deaths Czechoslovak generals Czechoslovak military personnel of World War II Defectors to the Soviet Union Government ministers of Czechoslovakia Members of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia Members of the Chamber of the People of Czechoslovakia (1971–1976) Members of the Chamber of the People of Czechoslovakia (1976–1981) Members of the Chamber of the People of Czechoslovakia (1981–1986) Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union alumni People of the Cold War People from Liptovský Mikuláš District Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Cross of Valour (Poland) Recipients of the Scharnhorst Order Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner Slovak military personnel of World War II Slovak engineers 20th-century engineers