American veterans go back to Pilsen. There will be at least one

The last time he was in Bohemia was when he was nineteen. That was in '45, in General Patton's army uniform. Now he's ninety-nine and wants to go back. At least one American war veteran - Harry Humason - will arrive at the Pilsen Freedom Festival this year after a three-year hiatus.

This was reported by historian Jiří Klůc, who tracked down the old man on the Internet and is involved in organizing his trip to the Czech Republic. "He had never been to Europe after the end of the Second World War. He did not know about the Pilsen Freedom Festival at all, he was surprised, it was a pleasant shock for him," Klůc told Novosti.

The American veteran will arrive in Prague on 1 May and the Pilsen Freedom Festival will take place from Friday 2 to Tuesday 6 May. "He will take part in ceremonies, see period camps and visit battlefields in southwest Bohemia. Visitors to the celebrations will definitely see him in a convoy on one of the jeeps," Klůc stated, adding: “On May 8, he will join the commemorative events in Prague and then move on to Frankfurt, Germany, which he also helped liberate.”

Harry Humason served in General Patton's 2nd Infantry Regiment, 5th Infantry Division, 3rd Army, according to Klůc. "He participated with his unit in the liberation of southern Bohemia, specifically Volary in the Prachatice region. A unit of the 2nd Infantry Regiment also participated in the famous clash between American and German troops at the Soumarský Bridge over the Teplá Vltava River," Klůc recalled.

Humason was discovered on a web portal dedicated to veterans. "I was intrigued by his cap, his uniform. And I managed to contact him," the historian added: “He lives on the west coast of the United States, in Washington state.”

Health permitting...

American and Belgian veterans have regularly attended Pilsen celebrations in the past. Originally, there were dozens of them, but illness, old age, death took over. The last five braves from the “old guard” arrived in 2022, since then no one. Until now. And if they do, they'll probably be all new faces

"Four more war veterans are in talks, maybe five. One of them directly liberated Pilsen, another was in Písek, another in Cheb, in Prachatice. Those were some of the best days of their lives, the war was ending, they were celebrating," Klůc said. "None of them knew about the Freedom Festival until now. But it's hard to say whether any of them will actually arrive, it will depend on their health, the oldest is one hundred and one years old," the historian concluded.

By: Ivan Blažek