Museum

The opening ceremony of the Patton Memorial Pilsen – Memorial museum to the US Army 1945, was held on 5 May 2005, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Pilsen and South-Western Bohemia in 1945, and the end of WWII in Europe, as a permanent reminder of the liberators and unquestionable evidence of this event. The museum includes more than a thousand exhibits from private collections. The opening section of the museum presents the final air-raid campaigns in Western Bohemia and the bombing of the Škoda plants. Surrounded by the sound of sirens and authentic film sequences and photographs of that time, visitors are drawn into the atmosphere of the final combat operations of WWII. The exhibition documents the advancement of the US Army in what was then Czechoslovakia, and the deployment of US soldiers until November 1945. Authentic photographs depict the moments of the war´s final days , the arrival of the US troops, moments of relaxation and friendly encounters with locals, as well as some ceremonial events – e.g. recordings from a troop inspection on 15 June 1945 attended by the president Dr. Edvard Beneš. Other exhibits document the UNRRA aid thanks to which people were able to cope with the difficult situation after the war ended – food rations of all sorts, empty and unopened food cans, flour and maize bags or popular chewing gums. There is the gear and equipment of the time, medical material, eating kits, field rations, sports and relaxation equipment, craft tools, printed materials and many other objects which the US soldiers left behind as war relics. A significant part of the exhibition focuses on George S. Patton, the legendary commander of the 3rd US Army and his old friend general Ernest N. Harmon, who provided technical and material assistance for the recovery of our country and who said goodbye to the Czech population together with US troops during the last inspection in November 1945. The museum also presents documents, newspapers and magazines from the period of the totalitarian regime in 1948 – 1989, symbolically placed in a barred cage. These documents provide a statement about the efforts of the communist regime to obscure facts about the liberation of Pilsen by the US Army Local citizens have never forgotten about the US soldiers. Since 1990, these events have been remembered during the Festival of Liberty, attended by those who were directly involved in combat operations, the atmosphere of which can hardly be described. Pilsen once again wraps itself in the Stars and Stripes, convoys of veteran military jeeps pass through the streets and „Roll out the Barrel“ can be heard on every corner. The story of the liberation of Pilsen has become a true legend during the last 64 years. If you want to learn more about it, visit the city Pilsen and the Patton Memorial Pilsen!