Richard Tesařík

Richard Tesařík
Born	3 December 1915 Prague
Died	27 March 1967 (aged 51) Ústí nad Labem
Rank	Major-General
Battles / wars	World War II
Awards	Hero of the Soviet Union Czechoslovak War Cross

Richard Tesařík (3 December 1915 – 27 March 1967) was a Czechoslovak officer (Major General in 1956) and World War II hero.

Career

Tesařík first emigrated to Poland after the occupation of Czechoslovakia and then, at the outbreak of World War II, fled to the USSR.

He became commander of an infantry platoon in the Battle of Sokolovo (1943) and later a commander of a tank battalion, during which time he fought in the Battle of Kiev (1943), Battle of Dukla Pass (1944) and in the Ostrava Offensive (1945). He also became a Hero of the Soviet Union.

Awards

Soviet state awards

• Hero of the Soviet Union (December 21, 1943)
• Order of Lenin (December 21, 1943)
• Order of the Red Star (1945)

Czechoslovak State Awards

• five Military Crosses
• Order of the White Lion "For Victory"
• Order of the Slovak National Uprising, I degree
• two Orders of the Red Banner of the Czechoslovak Republic
• medal "For Bravery in front of the enemy" (November 08, 1945)
• Medal of Merit of the first degree (1945)
• medal "For Service to the Motherland"
• medal "For Merits in the fight against fascism"
• Sokolov Memorial Medal (1948)
• Dukla Memorial Medal (1959)

Awards from other countries

• Order of Virtuti Militari (Poland)
• Order of the Crown of Romania (Romania)

Memory

He died on March 27, 1967. He was buried at the city cemetery in the city of Příbram, Czech Republic.

Busts have been installed in the city of Pribram and on the Alley of Heroes on the Dukla Pass:

• 
  Bust in Pribram (Czech Republic)
• 
  Bust on the Alley of Heroes on the Dukla Pass (Slovakia)