Silver Coin 25 CZK Liberation of Czechoslovakia 20th Anniversary 1965

20th anniversary of the liberation of Czechoslovakia

Silver commemorative coin issued in Czechoslovakia in 1965 to mark the 20th anniversary of the liberation of Czechoslovakia. These coins are very rarely acquired and are therefore highly sought after by collectors and investors. The certificate of authenticity is not included with the coin.

The liberation of Czechoslovakia from Nazi Germany began spontaneously with the combined forces of the Slovak National Uprising and the Soviet Army. The first liberated village in the east of Slovakia was Kalinovo on October 6, 1944, followed by Košice in January 1945. The Red Army and Czechoslovak troops fought their way across Slovakia, liberating Liptovský Mikuláš in late March and April and Bratislava in April. Troops of the Romanian Army also joined the fighting and, together with the Russians, continued to advance north into Moravia. Troops of the 4th Ukrainian Front and the Czechoslovak Unity also took part in the Ostrava-Opava Operation. German troops put up stiff resistance here and the advance of the armies was slower than in the rest of the territory.

In the mountainous areas, guerrilla units also participated in the fighting, sabotaging the German rear and infrastructure, while also preventing many of the Germans' plans to destroy industrial buildings and mines.
The liberation of western and southwestern Bohemia began on April 18, 1945, when U.S. Army reconnaissance troops crossed the pre-war national border. They liberated Aš and Cheb, and, after the Russians agreed to further advance, also the areas along the Karlovy Vary, Pilsen, and České Budějovice routes.
On May 5, the Prague Uprising broke out and the citizens asked for military help. The Red Army was withdrawing to Prague from three sides, from the northwest with the Polish army, from the east and from the south. As they advanced, they liberated other towns and villages, and on 9 May 1945 the troops reached Prague. In the following days, there were many more clashes with hiding German soldiers.