Battle of Opava | |||||||
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Part of the Invasion of Czechoslovakia | |||||||
![]() German soldiers inspects the cleared-out bunker OP-S 9 Na lukách near Opava. |
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Belligerents | |||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Units involved | |||||||
II Army Corps:
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In reserve:
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Strength | |||||||
64,900 men 324 tanks 51 armoured cars 202 howitzers 489 mortars aerial support | ~20,000 men 263 heavy machine guns 1,037 light machine guns 42 anti-tank cannons In reserve: |
Invasion of Czechoslovakia |
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Battle of the Border Opava • Bruntál • Šatov • Znojmo • Křelovice • České Budějovice Bohemian front Moravian front Polish front Hungarian invasion of Czechoslovakia |
The Battle of Opava was fought between 1 and 5 October 1938, between the forces of Czechoslovakia and Germany. It was one of the first battles of the during the initial stages of the Invasion of Czechoslovakia. Around 20,000 Czechoslovak soldiers defended a fortified line of border fortifications for five days against more than 60,000 German troops. Although defeat was inevitable, the Czech defence stalled the attacking forces for five days and postponed the encirclement of the Czechoslovak First Army as they withdrawing from Bohemia towards Slovakia. Eventually the tanks broke through the Czech lines and eliminated all the bunkers one by one. The last bunker surrendered around midday on 5 October.

German storming Czech fortifications near Opava.

German sappers with satchel charges prepare to storm a Czech bunker near Opava.