Michal Dudák

* 1914  †︎ Neznámý

  • “It all began when yet before the Uprising, a group consisting of about thirty soldiers from Martin and Žilina came to Domaniža. At first they took over of the post office and shot wires to pieces. We hosted them, as it was beseemed. We killed a ram and made goulash. The soldiers left and app. two days later the partisans´ commander Popov came to the village. He had a speech on the stairs in front of the shop and said that the partisan headquarters was formed in Kunerad. A mobilization was declared in Domaniža and I was assigned a report-keeper, being in charge of mobilization papers and all the documents. The partisans came over for about a month, however; then there were great battles near Prečín. We had a report that Domaniža was supposed to be taken by Germans. As a striking platoon in power of ten – twelve men, we went down to Prečín, where the battles started. My cousin Jožko Dudák died there. The Germans were shooting from the church´s tower, so we had to retreat, but we defended well and the Germans didn´t get further to Domaniža.”

  • Celé nahrávky
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    neznáme, 20.09.1998

    (audio)
    délka: 38:24
    nahrávka pořízena v rámci projektu Stories of the 20th century
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There was a strong pressure of combat from different sides. Prečín and Domaniža were crushed, and in the end, we also had to give up.

Michal Dudák was born in 1914. He worked in a munition factory in Považská Bystrica. After the outbreak of the Slovak National Uprising in August 1944 he became actively involved in the resistance and joined the western part of the insurgent territory. He was primarily in charge of the written records during the mobilization in Domaniža and surrounding villages. In 1944 he took part in battles near Prečín, where his cousin Jozef Dudák died. Since Michal owned a motorcycle, he was able to work as a mediator contacting the partisans‘ commander Popov in the village Kunerad. After the war and the communist takeover in 1948, despite of his participation in the Uprising, he was negatively treated due to his father´s involvement in the First World War, who enlisted in the Czechoslovak Legion in Russia.