- 19 Fibichova Street – 20 Kubelíkova Street, Prague 3 – Žižkov
City Telephone Exchange at Žižkov
Securing strategically significant buildings to ensure logistics, communication, and overall coordination of the fighting was of primary importance for the insurgents during the Prague Uprising. These buildings included the city telephone exchange at Žižkov, located in Fibichova, Křížkovského, and Kubelíkova Streets.
Featuring two corner towers, this iconic structure represents one of the architectural highlights of Prague-Žižkov. The insurgents occupied the building following an order from the headquarters of the Alex and Bartoš resistance groups, issued at noon on 5 May 1945. (House of the stone table).
In addition to the telephone exchange, the radio building (Czech radio), some railway stations (Masaryk station, Dejvice station), and the main post office buildings were supposed to come under the control of the insurgents. By securing the telecommunication building, the insurgents gained a fully operational telephone exchange and a radio amplification station with distribution equipment for transmitting Prague modulation to all Czech transmitters. This communication headquarters enabled the shutdown of the Reich transmitter in Karlín, replacing its transmission to out-of-Prague transmitters with the Vinohrady radio programme.
Barricade in Fibichova Street in Žižkov shortly after the May Uprising. In the background on the left is the tower of the Municipal Telephone Exchange No. 1500-XI, photo by Josef Hezoučký, May 1945, Museum of Prague.
Operators in the Municipal Telephone Exchange No. 1500-XI, photograph from 1937, author unknown, Museum of Prague.
