Ilona Krylová

* 1936

  • “And I remember as well that they once came… came to us and wanted to arrest my mom and me, took us away. Somewhere behind the borders as well because we were Böhmish and our dad was German. That was the worst when one was German and the second one Czech. No matter which one was which… We were perhaps not even humans. I do not know. Well and so he came and wanted to arrest my mom and my mom cried and he was rather decent guy, I do not know… He perhaps was not even some… He did not have a uniform, they had only some, I do not know, they had something here, I do not remember, I do not even know what was it. And he then said: ‘Do not be afraid, they will not arrest you, they will not do you any harm. I will stand here and when someone comes, I will drive him out of here.’ And he did it. He stood near the door and when someone came, usually someone who sticked around, he always drove him out of here.”

  • “Well and in the night, we had to quickly get up because the sirens started to wail and it meant they are already at the position. The siren was almost crying, it was not normal… Several times I cried because it had terrible effect on you. And many times, we did not make it, so we stayed outside. And now they shouted: ‘Lie down, lie down!’ And so, we had to, and if there was mud or something we had to lie down on the mess… Well, it just went like this… Once we ran with my mom and it was in the night. There was no light, so we ran right in the direction, as I said that there was the playground, to hide there. And it was in the winter and because there was snow and there were the holes caused by the bombs and the hole was not visible because it was covered with the snow and as we ran together, my mom was holding my hand and we ran together and my leg slid this way quite a bit into the hole. Oh, and my mom was nervy, she was almost ill, so she pulled me out and moreover she scolded me. But not that she was… just… nerves. Well and we ran there and many times we did not even make it.”

  • “Prisoners went there and they went under our windows, some of the poor people were barefoot. They had nothing to eat, they were hungry and there, little bit further, from that side, there were such piles, people brought garbage there. You know? And they had to clean it… Well, but those poor people rummaged through it and eat it because they were hungry. And when they were passing by our house, on the pavement, they were for instance completely barefoot and some half naked and they made these signs. Because they were hungry, they wanted… Well, but it would be disaster if those… saw you… those who watched them, who went with them. One walked on one side, another one on the other so they probably would have a good view on them, they would shoot them immediately, on the spot. Well, and my mom always cried and said: ‘Poor people, they have to go through such things… hungry and everything…’ And I remember, I once, as a girl, went to look there with one girl who lived near us. So, we went to take a look there. We did not know what they do there. Once we understood that they looked for… you know? For example, some garbage that someone did not eat, somewhere, or just some of those… Because they always checked that no one saw them and they made signs. So, I remember we once brough there about two potatoes as well…”

  • Full recordings
  • 1

    Ústí nad Labem, 14.07.2021

    (audio)
    duration: 01:36:59
    media recorded in project Příběhy regionu - Ústecký kraj
Full recordings are available only for logged users.

Father defended the Republic. After the Munich Agreement he stayed in Most and died fighting for Hitler

Ilona Krylová, née Doležalová
Ilona Krylová, née Doležalová
photo: archív pamětnice

Ilona Krylová, née Doležalová, was born on 17 June 1936 in Most. She was born into a mixed Czech-German marriage, her father with a Czech surname Antonín Doležal was of German nationality and her mother Božena was of Czech nationality. After Germany took up Czechoslovak borderland, the family stayed in Most which became their home for a long time. Ilona’s mother refused to register to German nationality and she became “second-class” citizen of Reich which brough her all possible consequences during the war. She had no right to social security benefits although her husband had to join the German army and eventually, he did not come home from the front line. She scratched a living by working in a factory and both she and her daughter lived in a very plain conditions during the whole war. The end of the war was the worst for them. Because of a strategically important factory, Most was massively bombed for few months. Ilona has traumatic memories of this period and of May 1945. The end of the war was often a fight for survival rather than liberation for the city inhabitants. Ilona and her mother hid in the cellar during these days, while people were looting and killing others on the streets of the city. The violence was ended only after the expulsion of German inhabitants of Most. After finishing primary school, Ilona was apprenticed as a confectioner and she got married and moved to Chomutov. She raised two children with her husband. The recording of the witness was supported by the statutory city of Most.