"Operation Anthropoid"

Heydrich: Nazi assassination attempt straight out of a Hollywood thriller

Re-enacted scene: May 27 marks the 81st anniversary of the assassination of Nazi functionary Reinhard Heydrich in Prague.

(Bild: Roman Vondrous / CTK / picturedesk.com)

It was the only successful attempt on the life of a leading Nazi functionary: the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich on May 27, 1942 in Prague. Courageous agents, a Nazi butcher with no scruples, betrayal within his own ranks, a bloody showdown in a church - the story of "Operation Anthropoid" sounds like something straight out of a Hollywood movie. The "Krone" went in search of clues in the Czech capital.

May 27, 1942, shortly after half past nine in the morning. The location for the attack is ideally chosen, a hairpin bend in the Liben district. The Mercedes-Benz Type 320 convertible heading towards Prague Castle with the high Nazi dignitary on board has to brake sharply to turn right. For the exiled soldiers Jozef Gabcik and Jan Kubis, who were standing near the local streetcar stop, this was the signal to strike.