Page 41 - LP1478

The London Philatelist

The Story behind the Cover - Number 7.

Czechoslovak-American Volunteers in France, 1917-18.

Lubor Kunc.

he Czechoslovak exile movement led by the future first President, Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk,
Thad tried to establish a state independent from Austria since 1914. To support the Allies´ struggle
with Germany and Austro-Hungary, the Czechoslovak Government in Exile provided troops in France
and Russia, later followed by the units drafted from the ranks of Czech and Slovak POWs in Italy. The
exiled forces were known as the “Czechoslovak Legion” and consisted of 80.000 soldiers, operating
mainly in Russia.
The exiled Czechoslovak authorities tried to mobilise the Czech and Slovak communities in the
United States, but until the America’s participation in WWI, in April 1917, these attempts were completely
rejected by the US politicians, who wanted to maintain their neutrality towards the war. When the USA
finally joined the Allied forces in Europe, the U.S. Army drafted tens of thousands of Czech-Americans,
including Ray Kroc (later of McDonalds fame) who was born to Czech parents in Oak Park, Illinois.
The United States became home to millions of Czech and Slovak immigrants who had not been
granted American citizenship. The men were not allowed to serve in the U.S. Army, but they wanted
to support Masaryk´s call for Czechoslovak independence. These volunteers therefore contacted the
Czechoslovak recruiting office in New York City, and applied for military service in the Czechoslovak
Legion in France. The first volunteers from the USA arrived at Darney (the location of the Czechoslovak
Legion garrison) in late 1917. Their arrival in France was used in an extensive campaign organised by
Czechoslovak exile groups in the USA, in the autumn of 1917.
The campaign attracted the attention
of Rudolf Jelínek (born 1893 in Strakonice)
and Karel ‘Charles’ Bobek (born 1894 in
Prague), who both applied for Czechoslovak
Legion service at the New York recruitment
office in October 1917. They were selected
for the 21st Rifle Regiment, based in
Cognac, and sent there in November 1917,
spending the whole of 1918 in France.
Their regiment received the highest
appreciation for its participation in the
capture of Vouziers and the battle of Terron
in the Ardennes, as a part of the French
53rd Infantry Division (October 1918).
The postcard illustrated here illustrates an item mailed by the Czechoslovak-American WWI
volunteers who were fighting in Europe as a separate combat unit, with no connection to the U.S.
Army. It was posted from Jelinek to Bobek on 28 January 1918, at the French civil post office of
Saint-Yrieix-la-Montagne, located in the French region administrated by the 12th Corps (assigned to
the 10th Army of France). The Corps operated the regional censorship of civil and military mail, as
confirmed by the circular mark “Service Postal XIIme Region.” The 12th Corps used the description
“Secteur Postal No. 88” for security purposes.
In January 1919 the majority of the 21st Rifle Regiment was moved to Čáslav, Czechoslovakia, and
participated in wars with Poland (January-February 1919) and Hungary (January-July 1919). Jelínek
and Bobek finished their military service in November 1919, having reached the rank of sergeant and
both are registered by the Czech Army Record Office under numbers 18297193 and 18263178 respectively.

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