Liberty Bell - Zvon Slobody. Československo a Rusíni

Demokratická stredoeurópska únia - Zvon slobody
Tom Campbell 







Telegram: 6. máj 1940
Adresát: Pán Hitler, Berlín
„Jediná presná replika Zvonu slobody z Independence Hall vo Filadelfii bola darovaná Československu Američanmi pri príležitosti vzniku tejto republiky.
Podľa našich informácií sa všetky bronzové predmety momentálne tavia. Keďže máme pre tento vzácny zvon využitie, ponúkame vám 3 000 dolárov, ak bude zvon doručený do New Yorku v dobrom stave. Chceme ho vystaviť na Svetovej výstave.“
Podpísaný: Richard P. Brown, štátny tajomník pre obchod, Pensylvánia, USA


Text po anglicky TU


Ako sa Zvon slobody dostal do rúk nacistov? A prečo sa americký štátny úradník pokúša vyjednávať s Hitlerom sedem mesiacov pred vstupom Ameriky do druhej svetovej vojny?

Tento príbeh sa začína o dvadsaťdva rokov skôr, práve v období, keď sa končí prvá svetová vojna.

Nová deklarácia
Je 26. október 1918. V Independence Hall vo Filadelfii pod nohami mužov, žien a detí šuštia husté hnedé listy platanov, keď sa v toto chladné a zamračené jesenné ráno zhromažďujú pred budovou. O šestnásť dní podpíše Nemecko prímerie, ktoré oficiálne ukončí Veľkú vojnu. Ale proces nastolenia svetového mieru a realizácia plánu prezidenta Woodrowa Wilsona o práve národov na sebaurčenie sa už začal práve tu – v kolíske americkej slobody.

Mesto zároveň oslavuje ťažko vybojovaný svetový mier a súčasne zápasí s celosvetovou epidémiou chrípky, ktorá Filadelfiu doslova paralyzovala.

Vracajúci sa vojaci, prenášajúci extrémne nebezpečný kmeň chrípky, sú v uliciach vítaní veľkými davmi ľudí, čo vytvára ideálne podmienky na rýchle šírenie vírusu. Situáciu ešte zhoršuje fakt, že miestne nemocnice majú kritický nedostatok zdravotníkov, pretože mnohí lekári a zdravotné sestry sú stále vo Francúzsku, kde ošetrujú zranených.

Nakazí sa tretina z celkového počtu 1,6 milióna obyvateľov mesta, 12 000 Filadelfčanov zomrie a celosvetovo si pandémia vyžiada 50 až 100 miliónov životov.

Do Independence Hall vchádza dvanásť mužov, ktorí vystúpia po schodoch a usadia sa okolo veľkého stola v zasadacej miestnosti. Sú to delegáti organizácie s nádejným názvom Demokratická stredoeurópska únia, voľného združenia, ktoré zastupuje niektoré z najutláčanejších národov sveta. Mnohí ďalší sú zhromaždení pred budovou, ich osud závisí od výsledkov rokovania. Za Atlantikom sa asi 65 miliónov Slovanov, Grékov, Poliakov, Židov a Talianov, reprezentovaných týmito dvanástimi delegátmi vo Filadelfii, nádeja, že novozískaný mier prinesie slobodu od ich utláčateľov a príležitosť na lepší život.

V kresle Johna Hancocka* sedí Dr. Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk z novovznikajúcej Československej republiky. Prítomný je aj Gregory Žatkovič, americký občan a hovorca Americkej národnej rady Uhro-Rusínov, ktorý sa usiluje o autonómiu svojej vlasti, Podkarpatskej Rusi – hornatej oblasti medzi strednou a východnou Európou, susediacej s Poľskom, Rumunskom a Maďarskom/Uhorskom.
*John Hancock bol významný americký štátnik, obchodník a jeden z otcov zakladateľov Spojených štátov amerických. Narodil sa 23. januára 1737 v Braintree, Massachusetts (dnes Quincy). Je známy predovšetkým svojím veľkým a výrazným podpisom na Deklarácii nezávislosti, ktorý sa stal symbolom odvahy a vlastenectva.

Nebyť oblečenia z 20. storočia, kamery, fotoaparáty a dvaja českí legionári stojaci na stráži po oboch stranách Masaryka, mohol by to byť práve rok 1776. Delegáti sa tu zišli, aby vyhlásili nezávislosť; nezávislosť od Hohenzollernovcov, Habsburgovcov a Turkov; nezávislosť pre niektoré z najstarších národov sveta; nezávislosť pre národy, ktorých hranice ešte neboli určené.

Medzi miestnymi významnými hosťami je aj magnát obchodných domov a marketingový génius John Wanamaker.  Keď sa hodiny blížia k poludniu, Wanamaker siahne do náprsného vrecka, vytiahne slávnostné podpisové pero a podá ho Masarykovi. Práve v tom okamihu sa cez mraky prederú slnečné lúče a naplní miestnosť svetlom. Wanamaker potom rozvinie americkú vlajku, ktorú odovzdáva signatárom.



Stúpenci stredoeurópskej nezávislosti sa zhromažďujú pri Dome nezávislosti.


Sebaurčenie v americkom štýle
Hoci myšlienka sebaurčenia národov mala všeobecne podporovať vznik akéhokoľvek štátu a vlády, ktorú si ľudia slobodne zvolia, udalosti tohto dňa majú jasný americký charakter.

Ako symbol americkej podpory práva na sebaurčenie a zároveň ako trvalá pripomienka historického významu tohto dňa bol ľuďom Demokratickej stredoeurópskej únie darovaný plnohodnotný funkčný Zvon slobody – replika originálu z Independence Hall, avšak bez slávnej praskliny. Na zvone sa nachádza reliéfny nápis v angličtine, jazyku, ktorému žiaden z prítomných delegátov nerozumie:

„Proclaim LIBERTY Throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants Thereof“
(„Zvestujte SLOBODU po celej krajine všetkým jej obyvateľom“)

Zvon bol odliaty v roku 1918 v zlievarni Meneely Bell Foundry v meste West Troy, štát New York, a išlo pravdepodobne o najpresnejšiu repliku skutočného Zvonu slobody, ktorý sa nachádza v Independence Hall. Táto replika však nebola prvá ani jediná. Meneely Bell Foundry už predtým odlievala napríklad Zvon spravodlivosti (Justice Bell), známy aj ako Ženský zvon slobody, v roku 1915, či dve nadrozmerné repliky – Zvon storočnice (Centennial Bell) v roku 1876 a Kolumbov zvon (Columbian Bell) v roku 1893, pričom oba vážili symbolických 13 000 libier (takmer 6 ton).

V deň vyhlásenia nezávislosti stredoeurópskych národov pred Independence Hall bol uplne nový zvon slávnostne pokrstený deťmi, ktoré reprezentovali utláčané národy. Hoci samotný zvon mal pred sebou neuveriteľnú cestu, lano použité na jeho rozozvučanie sa nedostalo ďaleko – dodnes je vystavené v knižnici Dartmouth College v štáte New Hampshire, USA.


Deti reprezentujúce Stredoeurópsku úniu zvonia na svoj nový Zvon slobody.

Zvon bol najskôr prevezený do hlavného mesta USA, potom na kongres amerických Uhro-Rusínov pri Pittsburghu a následne putoval naprieč Spojenými štátmi. Neskôr bol zvon odoslaný loďou do Európy a nakoniec dorazil do mesta Užhorod na Podkarpatskej Rusi.

Masaryk a Žatkovič, dvaja z dvanástich signatárov stredoeurópskej Deklarácie nezávislosti, sa vydali odlišnými cestami ako vodcovia svojich národov, no obaja zohrali úlohu v osude ich spoločného Zvonu slobody.

Už menej než mesiac po slávnosti vo Filadelfii bol Masaryk zvolený za prvého prezidenta novovzniknutej Československej republiky. Od decembra 1918 vládol svojej krajine z Pražského hradu. Masaryk zastával úrad prezidenta 17 rokov, až do svojej rezignácie v roku 1935 vo veku 85 rokov. Zomrel o dva roky neskôr. V roku 1997 sa jeho podobizeň prekvapivo objavila na obálke albumu alternatívnej metalovej skupiny Faith No More – Album of the Year.

Necelý mesiac po slávnostnej ceremónii vo Filadelfii bol Masaryk zvolený za prvého prezidenta novej Československej republiky. V decembri už vládol svojmu národu z Pražského hradu. Masaryk bol prezidentom 17 rokov a v roku 1935 vo veku 85 rokov odstúpil. Zomrel o dva roky neskôr. V roku 1997 sa znovu objavil, keď sa objavil na obale albumu roka alternatívnej metalovej skupiny Faith No More. 

„George Washington“ Podkarpatskej Rusi
Hoci novovzniknutá Československá republika mala pred sebou dlhú históriu – najskôr ako samostatný štát, potom ako súčasť východného bloku pod sovietskou kontrolou, a neskôr ako dva samostatné štáty (Česká republika a Slovenská republika) – existuje však jeden dôležitý dôvod, prečo väčšina z nich nikdy nepočula o Podkarpatskej Rusi.

Gregory Žatkovič a jeho ľudia mali za hlavný cieľ vytvoriť samostatný národ po 1 000 rokoch cudzej nadvlády. Napokon však bol Žatkovič ochotný prijať aspoň autonómiu ako súčasť iného štátu. Preto bola Podkarpatská Rus začlenená ako autonómna súčasť Masarykovho Československa.

Žatkovič bol zvolený za guvernéra, no zdráhal sa presťahovať do svojej novej domoviny, pretože sa obával straty amerického občianstva. Prezident Woodrow Wilson a americké ministerstvo zahraničia ho však ubezpečili, že jeho občianstvo nebude ohrozené.

Po príchode do hlavného mesta Užhorodu sa mu komunisti vyhrážali hrozili atentátom. Žatkovič preto tajne vstúpil do mesta v jednom z dvoch existujúcich automobilov v krajine – prezlečený za šoféra. Jeho rodina pricestovala v druhom aute.

Ako líder novovzniknutej autonómnej oblasti vládol Žatkovič z námestia, ktoré nieslo jeho meno. Jeho podobizeň bola vytesaná do kameňa a zvečenená v olejomaľbe. Do Užhorodu hrdo priniesol Zvon slobody Demokratickej stredoeurópskej únie. Menej než rok po nástupe do funkcie však rezignoval pre spory s Prahou a vrátil sa späť do Pittsburghu k svojej právnickej praxi. Naďalej však menoval rytierov, obhajoval záujmy svojho ľudu a často ho bolo počuť, ako hrá na klavíri národnú hymnu Podkarpatskej Rusi, ktorej bol autorom.

Žatkovičovci sa usilovali urobiť z guvernérovho sídla dôstojný symbol hlavy štátu – či už to bolo v gréckokatolíckom seminári na zámku v Užhorode, kde bývali najprv, alebo v starej administratívnej budove župy Už, kde mali súkromný apartmánový komplex. Medzi častými hosťami boli politickí lídri z regiónu aj z Prahy, ako aj zahraniční atašé, ktorí navštevovali mesto.  Recepcie sa často konali vo veľkom štýle, sprevádzali ich koncerty a večierky, ktorých sa mohlo zúčastniť aj 200 hostí. Zvlášť pamätné boli Žatkovičove 35. narodeniny (27. novembra 1920), počas ktorých sa slávnostne odhalila replika Zvonu slobody, vytvorená už v októbri 1918 na Stredoeurópskej demokratickej únii vo Filadelfii (Mother, list z 8. decembra 1920, s. 41–42). Aj keď o tento zvon prejavilo záujem mnoho národov v Európe a na Blízkom východe, práve Žatkovičova neústupnosť ho priviedla do Užhorodu – hlavného mesta karpatskorusínskeho štátu. (P.R. Magocsi: The Fellow Who Made Himself President of a European Republic. Gregory Ignatius Zhatkovych )

Žatkovič má unikátne miesto v histórii: stal sa prvým človekom, ktorý viedol cudziu krajinu a zároveň vlastnil americké občianstvo, a zároveň jediným Američanom, ktorý vládol územiu, ktoré sa neskôr stalo súčasťou ZSSR.

Podkarpatská Rus dostala ďalšiu šancu na sebaurčenie v roku 1991 po rozpade Sovietskeho zväzu. Napriek tomu, že 78 % obyvateľov hlasovalo za autonómiu, tento cieľ sa opäť nenaplnil a územie bola začlenená do nezávislej Ukrajiny.

Stopa k zmiznutému zvonu
Hoci Richard Brown nedostal odpoveď od Hitlera, získal aspoň niekoľko vodítok. 9. mája 1940 – tri dni po zverejnení jeho ponuky – vyšlo najavo, že replika Zvonu slobody predsa len nie je celkom v Hitlerových rukách.

Informácia pochádzala práve od Gregorija Žatkoviča. Bývalý guvernér tvrdil, že zvon je stále v Užhorode, ktorý už bol v tom čase pod kontrolou Maďarska. Keď Nemecko napadlo Československo, Maďarsko nezaháľalo a okamžite obsadilo Podkarpatskú Rus.

Nie tak rýchlo... 
O týždeň neskôr tvrdenie Gregorija Žatkoviča spochybnil Edward T. Heyn, bývalý korešpondent denníka New York Times. Heyn s podporou prezidenta Masaryka priviezol zvon z Užhorodu do Prahy, kde bol vystavený na Pražskom hrade. Tam ho videli tisíce návštevníkov, predovšetkým Američanov.

Heyn mal dôveryhodný zdroj: Emanuela Voska, jedného zo zakladateľov Československa a kapitána americkej armády. Ten utiekol z Prahy do Ameriky práve v čase, keď Nemci obsadzovali jeho vlasť. Voska Heyna uistil, že keď Prahu opúšťal, zvon bol stále tam.

Zlo pred bránami Pražského hradu
15. marca 1939 Nemecko s minimálnym odporom obsadilo Československo. Adolf Hitler z Pražského hradu vyhlásil československé oblasti Čechy a Moravu za „Protektorát Čechy a Morava“, čiastočne autonómnu súčasť Tretej ríše. Führer strávil na hrade jedinú noc, potom odovzdal kontrolu nad regiónom Reinhardovi Heydrichovi, ktorého sám Hitler nazýval „muž so železným srdcom“. Krutý Heydrich bol hlavným architektom holokaustu, ktorý potláčal odpor tým, že systematicky ničil českú kultúru a popravoval členov odboja. V roku 1942 sa stal Heydrich najvyššie postaveným nacistom, ktorého počas vojny zlikvidoval odboj.

Iné záležitosti
V čase, keď Heyn prišiel so svojimi tvrdeniami, Pensylvánia oficiálne upustila od snahy odkúpiť Zvon slobody od nacistov. „Pán Hitler má príliš veľa iných záležitostí,“ povedal Brown.

Pensylvánia, rovnako ako celá krajina, bola počas nasledujúcich piatich rokov zamestnaná inými problémami. Šanca, že Zvon slobody Demokratickej stredoeurópskej únie vojnu prežije, bola veľmi malá. Počas druhej svetovej vojny Nemci roztavili 150 000 zvonov odliatych medzi 12. až 20. storočím, pričom až 14 000 pochádzalo práve z územia Československa. Keďže zvony bolo ľahké nájsť a ťažké skryť, máloktoré sa podarilo zachrániť.

Ako sa svet postupne dozvedal o zverstvách nacistov, krádež Zvonu slobody Hitlerom sa stala bezvýznamnou poznámkou pod čiarou a prípad zmiznutého zvonu upadol do zabudnutia.

Zvon menom Václav
Je 16. júla 1980, 18:00 hod. V kostole sv. Antona Paduánskeho v Prahe, v Československu, ktoré je súčasťou Sovietskeho bloku, konečne zaznie zvuk tajomného zvonu. Duchovní mu dali meno Václav. Komunistické úrady povolili farnosti zvon nainštalovať do jednej z dvoch zvoníc, ale bez verejnej slávnosti.

Zvon tam bol prevezený štátom už v roku 1966, aby nahradil jeden z dvoch zvonov ukradnutých počas vojny. Dovtedy však kostol nesmel zvon používať, a tak nečinne ležal v kostolnej sieni.

Keď sa Václav po desaťročiach mlčania konečne rozozvučal, slnečné lúče osvietili nápis na jeho boku:

„Proclaim LIBERTY Throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants Thereof“
(„Zvestujte SLOBODU po celej krajine všetkým jej obyvateľom“)

Skôr než sa skončí desaťročie, sovietske impérium sa rozpadne a pravá identita zvona Václav vyjde najavo.

Naozaj ukradol Hitler Zvon slobody?
Ak sa na to pozrieme zoširoka, vzhľadom na to, že Hitler dobyl Prahu a zvon bol v tom čase v Prahe, odpoveď znie – áno, Hitler v istom zmysle určite ukradol Zvon slobody. Vedeli však nacisti vôbec, že ukradli práve tento symbol slobody? Pravdepodobne nie.

Je nepravdepodobné, že by o existencii zvona vedeli, kým neprišiel telegram od Richarda Browna z Pensylvánie. Je však ťažké povedať, či mal Brownov pokus nejaký vplyv na ďalší osud zvona.

Prečítal si Hitler telegram a poslal komando, aby zvon našli? Určite by propaganda z roztavenia amerického Zvonu slobody bola hodnotnejšia než ponúkaných 3 000 dolárov. Prepašovala skupina členov odboja tonový zvon z jedného úkrytu do druhého? Hoci by bol takýto príbeh vzrušujúci, pravdepodobne to bolo inak.

Keby bol zvon v čase príchodu nacistov na Pražskom hrade vystavený, určite by ho roztavili ako mnoho iných zvonov a použili by kov na výrobu zbraní.

Keďže sa tak nestalo a neexistujú žiadne dôkazy o tom, že by nacisti vedome vlastnili Zvon slobody, najpravdepodobnejším scenárom je, že zvon bol ešte pred príchodom Nemcov do Prahy premiestnený do skladu.

Tu je pravdepodobná časová os osudu Zvonu slobody Demokratickej stredoeurópskej únie (za poskytnutie dodatočných informácií patrí poďakovanie milovníkovi zvonov Ondřejovi Boháčovi z Prahy):

1918: Spoločnosť Meneely odlieva zvon. Po ceremónii v Independence Hall cestuje po USA a je odoslaný do Európy za cenu 2 000 dolárov. Nie je jasné, kto to zaplatil.

1919: Zvon dorazil do Európy.

1921: Do Užhorodu na Podkarpatskej Rusi zvon privezie Gregorij Zaťkovič.

1928: Edward Heyn podľa vlastných slov našiel zvon v Užhorode zaprášený a zabudnutý. Priniesol ho do Prahy a vystavil na Pražskom hrade. Nie je isté, ako dlho tam zostal.

Edward Heyn podľa vlastných slov našiel zvon v Užhorode zaprášený a zabudnutý. Potom ho priniesol do Prahy, kde bol vystavený v stavovskej sieni na Pražskom hrade. Nie je jasné, ako dlho tam zvon bol. Heyn opustil Prahu v roku 1934, a hoci to výslovne neuvádza, možno usudzovať, že zvon bol vystavený aj v čase, keď Prahu opúšťal. Iné správy tvrdia, že zvon bol uložený v sklade od roku 1920 do polovice 50. rokov 20. storočia.

1948: Keď sa na Pražskom hrade presadí komunistický režim, nie je tu miesto pre nič, čo nie je v súlade s komunistickou ideológiou. Zvon slobody Stredoeurópskej únie sa preto presťahuje do Valdštejnského paláca, kde sídli Štátny pamiatkový ústav. Architekt Břetislav Štorm, zamestnanec Štátneho pamiatkového ústavu, umiestňuje na zvon šablónu s bustou svätého Václava (česky Václav). Zvon je premenovaný na Václav, čo je identita viac vyhovujúca štátu. Štorm pri tejto príležitosti napíše pieseň: "Svatý Václave, tvůj lid tě zve, vrať požehnání své zemi, vrať mír svým dětem..."

Katolícka cirkev je pod komunistickou vládou potlačovaná. Mnohí kňazi a mnísi sú uväznení. Ďalších presviedčajú, aby spolupracovali s režimom. Jedným z takýchto kolaborantov je Antonín Stehlík, farár z kostola svätého Antona Paduánskeho v Prahe-Holešoviciach a neskôr kanonik na Pražskom hrade.

Putovanie  zvona Václav pokračuje
1966: Zvon Václav bol premiestnený z Valdštejnského paláca do kostola sv. Antona Paduánskeho v Prahe, pravdepodobne vďaka blízkym vzťahom farára Antonína Stehlíka s komunistickým režimom. Zvon však v predsieni kostola ostal nečinný ďalších 14 rokov. Úrady dokonca zvažovali jeho roztavenie, aby z bronzu odliali úplne nový zvon. Situáciu zachránila česká rodinná zvonolejárska firma Manoušek, ktorá po odbornej obhliadke skonštatovala, že zvon je funkčný, no bude potrebovať úpravu. Bol totiž pôvodne skonštruovaný ako signálny zvon, pri ktorom sa pohybovalo len srdce zvona. Pre používanie vo zvonici ho bolo potrebné prestavať na klasický zvon, pri ktorom sa pohybuje celý zvon.

1979: Kardinál František Tomášek schválil umiestnenie Václava do zvonice. Zároveň nariadil, aby sa nekonala žiadna verejná slávnosť.

20. marca 1980: Antonína, jeho nástupca, páter Josef Kubalík požehnáva zvon. Na druhý deň je inštalovaný v severnej veži v zložitom štvorhodinovom procese.

16. júla 1980: O 18.00 hod. Václav sa prvýkrát rozozvučí zo svojho nového domova.

2012: Spoločnosť Boroko zvon Václav vybavila novým srdcom a elektromagnetickým pohonom.

Zvon Václav

Šťastie Zvonu slobody
Myslím si, že zvon bol nakoniec zachránený nie preto, že by bol uctievaný, ale preto, že bol zanedbaný. Podobne ako ostatné repliky zvona Liberty, aj zvon Stredoeurópskej únie bol odliaty bez zabezpečenia trvalého umiestnenia. Keď sa dostal do Užhorodu, ostatní speváci Deklarácie mu pravdepodobne nevenovali pozornosť. 

Predpokladám, že počas krátkeho pôsobenia Žatkoviča na Podkarpatskej Rusi bol zvon uctievaný, potom však bol odložený a zabudnutý.

Podobne sa situácia zrejme zopakovala aj po dovoze zvona do Prahy. Určitý čas bol obdivovaný, no následne uložený v sklade. Dá sa predpokladať, že Pražský hrad pravidelne menil vystavené predmety, striedali expozície.  Tisícročný hrad má predsa bohatú históriu.

V súčasnosti zvon Václav zvoní každý deň o siedmej ráno, na poludnie a večer o šiestej hodine. Spolu s replikou Zvonu slobody v meste Annecy (Francúzsko) je jednou z mála funkčných replík, ktoré sa dodnes pravidelne používajú ako zvony.

Sloboda si hľadá aj tajomné cesty. Hoci príbeh Zvonu slobody Demokratickej stredoeurópskej únie je málo známy a samotnému zvonu, dnes známemu ako Václav, sa dostáva iba skromnej pozornosti, jeho samotná existencia je dôkazom ducha tých, ktorí sa v roku 1918 zišli v Independence Hall, aby svetu ohlásili slobodu pre všetkých obyvateľov svojej zeme. 
 

preklad: jL-ai 

 

Zdroj:
https://tomlovesthelibertybell.com/that-time-hitler-stole-the-liberty-bell/

 

The Democratic Mid-European Union Liberty Bell

Cablegram: May 6, 1940, 

To: Herr Hitler, Berlin
“Only accurate replica of the Liberty Bell in Independence Hall, Philadelphia, was donated to Czechoslovakia by Americans when that country became a republic.
We understand all bronze articles are being melted down and since we have use for this valuable bell we offer $3,000 if delivered at New York in good condition for use in the World’s Fair.”
Signed: Richard P. Brown, State Secretary of Commerce, Pennsylvania, USA


 Tom Campbell 


How did a Liberty Bell fall into the hands of the Nazis? And why is a government official attempting to negotiate with Hitler seven months before America will enter the Second World War?

This story starts twenty-two years earlier, just as the first World War is drawing to a close.

A new Declaration

It’s the 26th of October, 1918, at Independence Hall in Philadelphia. Thick brown sycamore leaves crunch beneath the feet of men, women and children gathering on this brisk, overcast fall morning. Sixteen days from now, Germany will sign the armistice to officially bring the Great War to an end. But the process of instilling world peace and implementing Woodrow Wilson’s plan for self-determination has already started here in the cradle of American liberty.

The city is at the same time celebrating the hard-won world peace and grappling with a worldwide influenza epidemic that has crippled the city.

Carrying an extremely virulent strain of the flu, returning service members are welcomed in the streets by large crowds, providing the perfect conditions for the virus to spread rapidly. The problem is exacerbated as local hospitals are dangerously understaffed, their nurses and doctors still treating the wounded in France.

One-third of the city’s 1.6 million residents will become infected, 12,000 Philadelphians will die, and 50-100 million worldwide will perish.

Twelve men filter into Independence Hall and climb the stairs to be seated around a large table in Council Chambers. They are delegates of the aspirationally-named Democratic Mid-European Union, a loose affiliation representing some of the world’s most oppressed peoples. Many more are gathered outside the building, awaiting their fate. Across the Atlantic, some 65 million Slavs, Greeks, Poles, Jews and Italians, represented by the 12 delegates in Philadelphia, hope the promise of the newly-won world peace will deliver liberty from their oppressors and opportunity for a better life.

Seated in John Hancock’s straight-backed colonial chair is Dr. Tomáš G. Masaryk of the newly formed Czechoslovak Republic. Also present on this day is Gregory Zatkovich, an American citizen and spokesman for the American National Council of Uhro-Rusyns, seeking autonomy for his homeland of Carpathian Ruthenia, a rural mountainous region between Central and Eastern Europe and bordered by Poland, Romania and Hungary.

If not for the 20th-century attire, moving picture cameras and two Bohemian guards standing watch on either side of Masaryk, this could be 1776. The delegates are gathered here to declare their independence; independence from the Hohenzollern, Hapsburgs and Turks; independence for some of the world’s oldest nations; independence for nations whose borders have yet to be determined.

Among the local dignitaries gathered here today is department store magnate and marketing genius John Wanamaker. As the clock approaches noon, Wanamaker reaches into his breast pocket, pulls out the ceremonial signing pen, and hands it to Masaryk. At this moment, the sun breaks free of the clouds, filling the room with light. Wanamaker then unfurls an Americal flag, which he presents to the signers.

Self-determination, American style

While the spirit of self-determination was to encourage the establishment of any type of nation and government the people choose, so long as the people choose it, the proceedings this day have a decidedly American flavor.

As a symbol of American support for their self-determination and a lasting reminder of the historical significance of this day, the people of the Mid-European Union are given a full size, functional Liberty Bell, minus the crack. Raised letters on the side of the bell read in English, a language foreign to all the delegates, “Proclaim LIBERTY Throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants Thereof.”

Cast in 1918 by the Meneely Bell Foundry in West Troy, New York, the bell might have been the nearest proximity to the real thing, which sits silently just inside Independence Hall, but it was not the first or only Liberty Bell replica. Meneely cast the Justice Bell, also known as the Women’s Liberty Bell, in 1915. The foundry had also produced two supersized replicas; the Centennial Bell in 1876 and the Columbian Bell in 1893 — both tipping the scales at an impressively symbolic 13,000 pounds.

Outside Independence Hall on this day of Mid-European independence, the brand new bell is christened by children representing the oppressed peoples. While the bell would have an incredible journey, the rope used to toll it did not travel far. It can be seen in the library of Dartmouth College in New Hampshire.

The bell would travel to the nation’s capital, then to the American Uhro-Rusin national congress near Pittsburgh before crossing the United States. Next, the bell was shipped to Europe, ultimately arriving in the city of Uzhorod in Carpathian Ruthenia.

Masaryk and Zatkovich, two of the 12 signers of the Mid-European Declaration of Independence, would follow separate paths as leaders of their people. Still, both would play a part in the fate of their shared Liberty Bell. 

Less than a month after the ceremony in Philadelphia, Masaryk was elected as the first president of the new Czechoslovak Republic. By December, he was ruling his nation from Prague Castle. Masaryk served for 17 years before resigning in 1935 at the age of 85. He died two years later. In 1997 he resurfaced, appearing on the cover of the alternative metal band Faith No More’s Album of the Year. 

The George Washington of Carpathian Ruthenia

While the new Czechoslovak Republic would have a long history — first as a self-determined nation, next as part of the USSR, then as two self-determined nations, the Chech Republic and Slovakia — there is a reason most have never heard of Carpathian Ruthenia.

While the ultimate goal of Gregory Zatkovich and his people was to become their own nation after 1,000 years of foreign rule, he was willing to settle for autonomy as part of another nation. And so Carpathian Ruthenia came to be included as a state within Masaryk’s Czechoslovakia.

Zatkovich was elected governor but was hesitant to move to his new state for fear of losing U.S. citizenship. Woodrow Wilson and the state department assured the new governor his citizenship would not be in jeopardy.

Upon his arrival in the state capital of Uzhorod, Communists threatened to assassinate him. Zatkovich snuck in, in one of his nation’s two automobiles, disguised as the chauffeur. His family followed in the nation’s other car. 

As the leader of his newly autonomous homeland, Zatkovich ruled from Zatkovich square. He had his own likeness carved in stone and painted in oil. He proudly brought the Mid-European Liberty Bell to Uzhorod. He resigned less than a year into his tenure over a border dispute with the state of Slovakia and returned to his law practice in Pittsburgh. There he continued to appoint knights, advocate for his people, and could often be heard at the piano playing the national anthem of Carpathian Ruthenia, which he wrote.

Zatkovich holds the unique distinction of having been the first person to head a foreign state while holding American citizenship and the only American to govern a region that later became part of the USSR. 

Carpathian Ruthenia would get another shot at nationhood in 1991 when the Soviet Union collapsed. While 78% of residents voted for autonomy, self-determination eluded them once again, and the state was made part of independent Ukraine.

Self-determination, American style

While the spirit of self-determination was to encourage the establishment of any type of nation and government the people choose, so long as the people choose it, the proceedings this day have a decidedly American flavor.

As a symbol of American support for their self-determination and a lasting reminder of the historical significance of this day, the people of the Mid-European Union are given a full size, functional Liberty Bell, minus the crack. Raised letters on the side of the bell read in English, a language foreign to all the delegates, “Proclaim LIBERTY Throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants Thereof.”

Cast in 1918 by the Meneely Bell Foundry in West Troy, New York, the bell might have been the nearest proximity to the real thing, which sits silently just inside Independence Hall, but it was not the first or only Liberty Bell replica. Meneely cast the Justice Bell, also known as the Women’s Liberty Bell, in 1915. The foundry had also produced two supersized replicas; the Centennial Bell in 1876 and the Columbian Bell in 1893 — both tipping the scales at an impressively symbolic 13,000 pounds.

Outside Independence Hall on this day of Mid-European independence, the brand new bell is christened by children representing the oppressed peoples. While the bell would have an incredible journey, the rope used to toll it did not travel far. It can be seen in the library of Dartmouth College in New Hampshire.

The bell would travel to the nation’s capital, then to the American Uhro-Rusin national congress near Pittsburgh before crossing the United States. Next, the bell was shipped to Europe, ultimately arriving in the city of Uzhorod in Carpathian Ruthenia.

Masaryk and Zatkovich, two of the 12 signers of the Mid-European Declaration of Independence, would follow separate paths as leaders of their people. Still, both would play a part in the fate of their shared Liberty Bell. 

Less than a month after the ceremony in Philadelphia, Masaryk was elected as the first president of the new Czechoslovak Republic. By December, he was ruling his nation from Prague Castle. Masaryk served for 17 years before resigning in 1935 at the age of 85. He died two years later. In 1997 he resurfaced, appearing on the cover of the alternative metal band Faith No More’s Album of the Year. 

The George Washington of Carpathian Ruthenia

While the new Czechoslovak Republic would have a long history — first as a self-determined nation, next as part of the USSR, then as two self-determined nations, the Chech Republic and Slovakia — there is a reason most have never heard of Carpathian Ruthenia.

While the ultimate goal of Gregory Zatkovich and his people was to become their own nation after 1,000 years of foreign rule, he was willing to settle for autonomy as part of another nation. And so Carpathian Ruthenia came to be included as a state within Masaryk’s Czechoslovakia.

Zatkovich was elected governor but was hesitant to move to his new state for fear of losing U.S. citizenship. Woodrow Wilson and the state department assured the new governor his citizenship would not be in jeopardy.

Upon his arrival in the state capital of Uzhorod, Communists threatened to assassinate him. Zatkovich snuck in, in one of his nation’s two automobiles, disguised as the chauffeur. His family followed in the nation’s other car. 

As the leader of his newly autonomous homeland, Zatkovich ruled from Zatkovich square. He had his own likeness carved in stone and painted in oil. He proudly brought the Mid-European Liberty Bell to Uzhorod. He resigned less than a year into his tenure over a border dispute with the state of Slovakia and returned to his law practice in Pittsburgh. There he continued to appoint knights, advocate for his people, and could often be heard at the piano playing the national anthem of Carpathian Ruthenia, which he wrote.

Zatkovich holds the unique distinction of having been the first person to head a foreign state while holding American citizenship and the only American to govern a region that later became part of the USSR. 

Carpathian Ruthenia would get another shot at nationhood in 1991 when the Soviet Union collapsed. While 78% of residents voted for autonomy, self-determination eluded them once again, and the state was made part of independent Ukraine.

Self-determination, American style

While the spirit of self-determination was to encourage the establishment of any type of nation and government the people choose, so long as the people choose it, the proceedings this day have a decidedly American flavor.

As a symbol of American support for their self-determination and a lasting reminder of the historical significance of this day, the people of the Mid-European Union are given a full size, functional Liberty Bell, minus the crack. Raised letters on the side of the bell read in English, a language foreign to all the delegates, “Proclaim LIBERTY Throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants Thereof.”

Cast in 1918 by the Meneely Bell Foundry in West Troy, New York, the bell might have been the nearest proximity to the real thing, which sits silently just inside Independence Hall, but it was not the first or only Liberty Bell replica. Meneely cast the Justice Bell, also known as the Women’s Liberty Bell, in 1915. The foundry had also produced two supersized replicas; the Centennial Bell in 1876 and the Columbian Bell in 1893 — both tipping the scales at an impressively symbolic 13,000 pounds.

Outside Independence Hall on this day of Mid-European independence, the brand new bell is christened by children representing the oppressed peoples. While the bell would have an incredible journey, the rope used to toll it did not travel far. It can be seen in the library of Dartmouth College in New Hampshire.

The bell would travel to the nation’s capital, then to the American Uhro-Rusin national congress near Pittsburgh before crossing the United States. Next, the bell was shipped to Europe, ultimately arriving in the city of Uzhorod in Carpathian Ruthenia.

Masaryk and Zatkovich, two of the 12 signers of the Mid-European Declaration of Independence, would follow separate paths as leaders of their people. Still, both would play a part in the fate of their shared Liberty Bell. 

Less than a month after the ceremony in Philadelphia, Masaryk was elected as the first president of the new Czechoslovak Republic. By December, he was ruling his nation from Prague Castle. Masaryk served for 17 years before resigning in 1935 at the age of 85. He died two years later. In 1997 he resurfaced, appearing on the cover of the alternative metal band Faith No More’s Album of the Year. 

The George Washington of Carpathian Ruthenia

While the new Czechoslovak Republic would have a long history — first as a self-determined nation, next as part of the USSR, then as two self-determined nations, the Chech Republic and Slovakia — there is a reason most have never heard of Carpathian Ruthenia.

While the ultimate goal of Gregory Zatkovich and his people was to become their own nation after 1,000 years of foreign rule, he was willing to settle for autonomy as part of another nation. And so Carpathian Ruthenia came to be included as a state within Masaryk’s Czechoslovakia.

Zatkovich was elected governor but was hesitant to move to his new state for fear of losing U.S. citizenship. Woodrow Wilson and the state department assured the new governor his citizenship would not be in jeopardy.

Upon his arrival in the state capital of Uzhorod, Communists threatened to assassinate him. Zatkovich snuck in, in one of his nation’s two automobiles, disguised as the chauffeur. His family followed in the nation’s other car. 

As the leader of his newly autonomous homeland, Zatkovich ruled from Zatkovich square. He had his own likeness carved in stone and painted in oil. He proudly brought the Mid-European Liberty Bell to Uzhorod. He resigned less than a year into his tenure over a border dispute with the state of Slovakia and returned to his law practice in Pittsburgh. There he continued to appoint knights, advocate for his people, and could often be heard at the piano playing the national anthem of Carpathian Ruthenia, which he wrote.

Zatkovich holds the unique distinction of having been the first person to head a foreign state while holding American citizenship and the only American to govern a region that later became part of the USSR. 

Carpathian Ruthenia would get another shot at nationhood in 1991 when the Soviet Union collapsed. While 78% of residents voted for autonomy, self-determination eluded them once again, and the state was made part of independent Ukraine.

A break in the case

While it wasn’t a return cablegram from Hitler, Brown did get some leads on his missing Liberty Bell. On May 9 — three days after he publicly made his offer — it was revealed the Liberty Bell replica was not quite within the Führer’s grasp.

The clue came from Gregory Zatkovich. The former governor claimed the bell was still in Uzhorod, which was now under Hungarian control. When Germany invaded Czechoslovakia, Hungary wasted no time and swiftly reclaimed Carpathian Ruthenia.

Not so fast … 

A week later, Zatkovich’s claim was refuted by former New York Times correspondent Edward T. Heyn. With President Masaryk’s support, Heyn brought the bell from Uzhorod to Prague, where it was placed on display in Prague Castle. There is was seen by thousands of visitors, especially Americans. 

Heyn had a credible source. Emanuel Voska, a founding father of Czechoslovakia and a U.S. Army Captain, fled Prague for America just as the Germans invaded his homeland. He assured Heyn the bell was still in Prague when he left.

Evil at the castle gates

On March 15, 1939, Germany invaded Czechoslovakia with relatively little opposition. From Prague Castle, Hitler declared the Czechoslovakian regions of Bohemia and Moravia were now the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, a semi-autonomous part of the Third Reich. The Führer would spend one night at the castle before turning it, and control of the region, over to Reinhard Heydrich. Called “the man with the iron heart” — by Hitler — the brutal Heydrich was the chief architect of the Holocaust and sought to crush opposition by suppressing Czech culture and executing members of the resistance. In 1942 Heydrich became the highest-ranking Nazi to be assassinated by resistance forces anywhere in Europe.


Other affairs

Just as Heyn made his claim, Pennsylvania officially abandoned their effort to buy the Liberty Bell from the Nazis. “Mr. Hitler is too busy with other affairs,” said Brown.

Pennsylvania and the rest of the country would be busy with other affairs for the next five years. The Mid-European Union Liberty Bell had little chance of surviving the war. During World War II, the Germans melted down 150,000 bells, cast between the twelfth and twentieth centuries. 14,000 of those were taken from Checkoslovakian locations. As bells are easy to find and hard to hide, few were spared.

As the depths of Nazi atrocities came to full light, Hitler stealing the Liberty Bell became a trivial footnote, and the plight of the missing bell was largely forgotten.

A bell named Václav

It’s 6 p.m. on the 16th of July, 1980. At the church of Saint Anthony of Padua in Prague, Czechoslovakia, USSR, a mysterious bell finally gets its chance to ring out. The clergy have named it Václav. The Soviet state has granted the church permission to raise the bell to one of its two bell towers, so long as there is no public celebration.

The bell was sent there by the state in 1966 to replace one of the two bells that were pillaged during the war. However, the church was not permitted to call the bell into action, so it sat silently in the church hall.

As Václav swings into action and is about to peal out for the first time in decades, the inscription on its side catches the light of the sun. 

“Proclaim LIBERTY Throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants Thereof”

Before the decade is through, the Soviet empire will crumble, and Václav’s true identity will come to light.

So did Hitler really steal the Liberty Bell?

In the broader sense that Hitler took Prague and the Liberty Bell was in Prague at the time, then yes, Hitler absolutely stole the Liberty Bell. Did the Nazis know they had stolen the Liberty Bell? Not likely.

It’s doubtful they knew anything about the bell — until a cablegram arrived from Pennsylvania, that is. However, it’s hard to know what, if any, effect Richard Brown’s stunt had on the fate of the Liberty Bell replica. 

Did Hitler read the cablegram and send a squad out to find the bell? Surely the propaganda value of melting down the Liberty Bell was worth more than $3,000. Did a ragtag group of resistance members sneak a one-ton bell from one hiding place to another, staying just one step ahead of the enemy? As much as I’d love to write that story, I don’t think it happened that way.

Had the bell been sitting on display at Prague Castle when the Nazis rolled in, it certainly would have been melted down and turned into arms, as so many bells were. 

As it was not melted down and there is no evidence of the Nazis knowingly possessing the bell, the most plausible scenario is that it was placed in storage sometime before the German invasion.

Following is the likely provenance of the Mid-European Liberty Bell. Thanks to fellow bell lover Ondrej Bohac from Prague for providing additional information. 

1918: Meneely casts the bell. After the Independence Hall ceremony, it tours the country and is shipped to Europe. The cost is $2,000. It’s unclear who paid for it.

1919: The bell arrives in Europe.

1921: The bell is brought to Uzhorod, Carpathian Ruthenia, by Gregory Zatkovich.

1928: By Edward Heyn’s account, he discovered the bell in Uzhorod, lost and dust-covered. He then brought it to Prague, where it was placed on display in the hall of estates at Prague Castle. It’s unclear how long the bell was there. Heyn left Prague in 1934, and while he does not explicitly say, it can be inferred that the bell was still on display when he left Prague. Other accounts claim the bell was stored in a warehouse between 1920 and the mid-1950s.

1948: As the Communist regime takes hold, there is no room in Prague Castle for anything not in alignment with Communist ideology. So the Mid-European Union Liberty Bell moves to Wallenstein Palace, home of the State Heritage Institute. Architect Břetislav Štorm, an employee of the State Heritage Institute stencils the bust of St. Wenceslas (Václav in Czech) onto the bell. The bell is renamed Václav, an identity more in line with the state. Štorm pens a song for the occasion. Translated to English, the lyrics read, Saint Wenceslas, your people are calling you, return blessings to your country, return peace to your children.

The Catholic church is repressed under Communist rule. Many priests and monks are imprisoned. Others are persuaded to collaborate with the regime. One such collaborator is Antonin Stehlik, the parish priest from the church of St. Anthony of Padua in Prague-Holesovice and later canon at Prague Castle.

1966: Václav’s is transferred from Wallenstein Palace to the church of St. Anthony of Padua, likely aided by Father Antonin’s closeness with the regime. It sits silently in the lobby for 14 years. Officials consider scrapping the bell and using the metal to cast a new one. Manoušek, a family-owned Czech bell foundry inspects the bell and determines it’s up to the job, with some modification. The bell was made as a signal bell, where only the clapper moves to ring the bell. To work in the belfry, it would need to be converted to a classic swing bell, where the entire bell swings to ring.

1979: Cardinal František Tomášek grants approval for Václav to be installed in the bell tower. He also dictates there is to be no public ceremony.

March 20th, 1980: Father Antonin’s successor, Father Josef Kubalík blesses the bell. The next day it’s installed in the north tower in a delicate four-hour process.

July 16th, 1980: At 6 pm. Václav rings out from his new home for the first time.

2012: The Boroko company furnished Václav with a new clapper and electromagnetic engine.

I think the bell was ultimately saved, not because it was revered, but because it was neglected. Like other Liberty Bell replicas, the Mid-European Union bell was cast with no permanent location secured. Once it arrived in Uzhorod, the other Declaration singers likely paid it little mind. 

I think it was revered in Carpathian Ruthenia during Zatkivich’s brief tenure and then mothballed. 

Likewise, I think it was admired upon its arrival in Prague for some period of time, then stored away. It’s reasonable to think the castle would rotate displays. A 1,000-year-old castle has a lot of history, after all.

Václav rings daily at 7 a.m., noon, and 6 p.m. Along with the Annecy Liberty Bell, it is one of only a few replicas to be regularly used as a bell.

Liberty works in mysterious ways, and while the story of the Mid-European Union Liberty Bell is little known, and the bell now known called as Václav receives little adoration, it’s mere existence is a testament to the spirit of those who gathered at Independence Hall in 1918 to proclaim liberty throughout all the land, unto all the inhabitants thereof.

Photo:
04 Nov 1918, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA — Representatives of participating nations gather at Independence Hall in Philadelphia on October 26, 1918 to sign the Declaration of Common Aims of the Independent Mid-European Nations. Seated at the center, directly under the crack of the Liberty Bell, is Dr. Thomas G. Masaryk. This photo is from the collections of the National Archives. — Image by © Bettmann/CORBIS

source:
https://tomlovesthelibertybell.com/that-time-hitler-stole-the-liberty-bell/