The Rumburk rebellion was a mutiny by Czech soldiers in the

Austro-Hungarian Army The Austro-Hungarian Army, also known as the Imperial and Royal Army,; was the principal ground force of Austria-Hungary from 1867 to 1918. It consisted of three organisations: the Common Army (, recruited from all parts of Austria-Hungary), ...

during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. It took place on 21 May 1918 in the town of

Rumburk Rumburk (; ) is a town in Děčín District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 11,000 inhabitants. It lies on the border with Germany. Administrative division Rumburk consists of three municipal parts (in brackets ...

North Bohemia North Bohemia (, ) is a region in the north of the Czech Republic. Location North Bohemia roughly covers the present-day NUTS regional unit of ''CZ04 Severozápad'' and the western part of ''CZ05 Severovýchod''. From an administrative perspec ...

The revolt

The Czech soldiers were former prisoners of the

Imperial Russian Army The Imperial Russian Army () was the army of the Russian Empire, active from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was organized into a standing army and a state militia. The standing army consisted of Regular army, regular troops and ...

. The revolt began on 21 May 1918, after 6 o'clock in the morning, when 65 men, led by František Noha, refused to obey his commanders: he armed himself with a rifle. Several soldiers were added to the rebellion, the total number was about 700. Although the revolt broke out spontaneously, its leaders quickly established contact with Czech soldiers from the 18th Infantry Regiment of

Hradec Králové Hradec Králové (; ) is a city of the Czech Republic. It has about 94,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Hradec Králové Region. The historic centre of Hradec Králové is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech R ...

, who were stationed in

Česká Lípa Česká Lípa (; ) is a town in the Liberec Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 37,000 inhabitants, making it the most populated Czech town without city status. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an urban monume ...

. Only this could translate the revolt into other areas, which could have grown into a revolution that had fallen in the Czech lands. The rebels initially captured the town of Rumburk and then marched on

Nový Bor Nový Bor (; ) is a town in Česká Lípa District in the Liberec Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 11,000 inhabitants. The town is known for its glass industry. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural mo ...

. Here they were surrounded by troops of the Austro-Hungarian army, including the 18th Infantry Regiment of Hradec Králové. Around 1,000 – 1,200 mutineers were defeated and most of them were captures.

The consequences

Ten mutineers were sentenced to death and executed: František Noha, Stanko Vodička, and Vojtěch Kovář were shot on the morning of 29 May 1918, with Jakub Bernard, Jiří Kovářík, Jakub Nejdl, František Pour, Jan Pelnář, Antonín Šťastný and Jindřich Švehla being executed that evening. A further fourteen mutineers were given long prison sentences. The prisoners were incarcerated in the Small Fortress at

Terezín Terezín (; ) is a town in Litoměřice District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,900 inhabitants. It is a former military fortress composed of the citadel and adjacent walled garrison town. The town centre i ...

, a prison used by the Austro-Hungarian authorities for political prisoners.

Memorials

File:Memorial of Stanko Vodicka in Lobzy.JPG, Memorial to Stanko Vodička, Lobzy,

Plzeň Plzeň (), also known in English and German as Pilsen (), is a city in the Czech Republic. It is the Statutory city (Czech Republic), fourth most populous city in the Czech Republic with about 188,000 inhabitants. It is located about west of P ...

File:Hrob Františka Nohy (jednoho z vůdců Rumburské vzpoury) na plzeňském Ústředním hřbitově.JPG, Gravestone of František Noha, Plzeň File:Pomnik_Rumburskych_hrdinu_Plzen.jpg, Monument to the mutineers, Plzeň File:Pomnik vzbourencum.jpg, Monument to the mutineers, Rumburk File:Rumburk 1 - pamatnik Rumburske vzpoury.jpg, Monument to the mutineers, Rumburk There is also a street named after Vojtěch Kovář in Rumburk.

References

{{Authority control Mutinies in World War I Austro-Hungarian Army 1918 in Austria-Hungary Děčín District Rebellions in the Czech Republic