LETKOVÁ, Alexandra: Ján Šmigovský ako zradca na povstaní

LETKOVÁ, Alexandra: Ján Šmigovský as a Traitor to the Uprising.

Autor: LETKOVÁ, Alexandra

This article focuses on analysing the activities and historical reception of the officer Ján Šmigovský during the existence of the wartime Slovak state, with particular emphasis on his retribution trial. The author rejects the portrayal of Šmigovský as a “controversial” figure in Slovak history, a depiction found primarily in ľudák (referring to Hlinka’s Slovak People’s Party) and neo-ľudák texts, which serves to relativise his activities and the regime as such. These texts depict him as a typical officer who, out of ideological conviction, adapted to and collaborated with the new order after 1939, did not betray his military honour, and is even regarded as a martyr by certain sections of opinion. The article examines three main areas: (1) the retribution trial before the National Court, in which Šmigovský was the first to be tried, convicted, and executed; (2) an assessment of his actions in light of new historical findings that were unknown at the time of the trial or established in court solely through witness testimony; and (3) an analysis of his portrayal and a deconstruction of the myths surrounding him, created by ľudák and neo-ľudák literature from the post-war period to the present.

Keywords: Ján Šmigovský, retribution, wartime Slovak state, Slovak National Uprising, betrayal of the Uprising.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.69809/vojhist.2025.29.4.5

Ročník: 29 | Číslo: 4/2025 | Stránky: 106-130