The Martyr city of Nemecka, Slovakia
Nemecká is a village and municipality in Brezno County, Banská Bystrica Region of central Slovakia.
The village was the site of German atrocities during World War II aimed at suppressing the Slovak National Uprising. About 900 people were executed and their bodies burned in a local lime kiln. The executions lasted 7 days (January 4–11, 1945).
The first mass executions took place on January 5, 1945. The execution was ordered by the commander of Einsatzkommando 14, SS-Obersturmführer Dr. K. H. Deffner, the victims were brought to the place of execution directly from the prison of the Regional Court in Banská Bystrica. Members of Einsatzkommando 14, Sicherheitspolizei, Sicherheitsdienst, Gestapo and also members of the Hlinka Guard Emergency Units from Považská Bystrica, commanded by armourer Vojtech Hora with his deputies Le Bunt and Mikuláš Spiš, participated in the executions.
The last execution was carried out by the Katans on January 11, 1945. According to the records in the Prisoners' Key Book, of those who were imprisoned by the Gestapo at the Regional Court in Banska Bystrica, 26 members of the SNP (Slovak Resistance) died in a lime kiln in Germany.
These were Slovaks, Russians, Frenchmen, members of the US military mission, one Romanian and 205 racially persecuted.
The total number of victims cannot be determined precisely because not all victims have been recorded. It is estimated that up to 900 people were executed.
The total number of victims cannot be determined precisely because not all victims have been recorded. It is estimated that up to 900 people were executed.
A memorial (Pamätník Nemecká) commemorating the massacre was built after World War II and a small exhibition is open to visitors all year round.
According to the work of architects A. Bélla, E. Stančík, M. Belluš and academic sculptors K. Patakyová and A. Vik, the monument built next to the limestone symbolizes the flame of the furnace and the woman kneeling.
On June 8, 2022, the Martyr City of Nemecka was twinned with the Municipality of the Martyr City of Kalavryta by the two mayors of the cities, Mr. Athanasios Papadopoulos and Mr. Branislav Čižmárik, at an event held in Nemecka.
