- 553/2 and 554/4 Úsobská Street, Praha 4 - Krč
Úsobská Street
Because of the fierce fighting that took place in Pankrác and Krč, some frightened residents of houses in Úsobská Street sought refuge in a shared cellar. When Waffen-SS officers from the nearby school Na Zelené lišce passed by, no one could foresee the massacre that was about to unfold.
Towards the end of World War II, brutal violence against civilians occurred in many areas of Greater Prague. The aim was to weaken the resistance of the insurgents or to release frustration from the inevitable defeat of the Nazis. The massacre in Úsobská Street was most likely a response to the failed battle against the insurgents in Pankrác.
A bestial rampage of the Waffen-SS members took place in house no. 253 where they shot 37 civilians, including 10 children aged 6 to 15, 13 women, two of which were pregnant, and 14 men. In the evening, violence continued in the adjacent house no. 254, from which they dragged 22 people to the garden and shot 16 of them. Afterwards, the two houses were looted and burned. Despite all the efforts of Czechoslovak authorities, none of the perpetrators have been traced. The memory of the victims is commemorated by a plaque installed in front of tenement house no. 554/4.
Historical photograph of the victims of the massacre in Úsobská Street on 6 May 1945. Museum of Prague, photo by J. Hošek.
Commemorative plaque honouring the names of those murdered in Úsobská Street (now called Obětí 6. Května Street = 6 May Victims Street).
