A Time to Remember

Thursday 18 June marked the 73rd anniversary of Operation Anthropoid and the mission of the seven Czech soldiers to assassinate the Nazi tyrant Reinhard Heydrich.  The Friends of the Czech Memorial Fountain, including many living relatives of the 4000 soldiers billeted in and around Leamington in WW2, gathered in Jephson Gardens on Sunday 14th June to pay tribute. Led by representatives of both the Czech and Slovak Embassies in London, Cllr Amanda Stevens, Mayor of Leamington, Cllr Doody, Chairman of WDC, Michael Kalas, and Christopher Pavel laid wreaths in their memory.  Alan Griffin, founder of the Friends, gave an address, and afterwards at a reception in the Glasshouse Studio, presented a further tribute based on his research into the assassination of Heydrich and the violent aftermath.  Information about the Friends Association and the story of the fountain and the free Czech Army in Leamington in WW2,can be found at South Lodge, Jephson Gardens any Tuesday morning between 10 am and 12 noon, from the Aviary Cafe in Jephson Gardens and from the Visitor Information Centre at the Pump Rooms.