MFD: Military Car Club Plzeň was at the birth of the Liberation Festival, became famous thanks to jeeps

In 1990, members of the Military Car Club Plzeň were at the birth of the Liberation Festival. Since then, it has been one of the most important events in Europe commemorating the anniversary of the end of World War II. The club became famous primarily thanks to the legendary jeeps that arrived in Western and Southern Bohemia in 1945 during the liberation by the American army. On Sunday, they will be present in the Convoy of Liberty.

The Military Car Club Pilsen (MCCP) established the tradition of convoys of historic vehicles that passed not only through Pilsen on the anniversary of the end of the war.

The Military Car Club Pilsen has been headed by Milan Dlouhý since its beginnings, and today it is led by his son Martin. “My father had been saying long before 1990 that he would bring jeeps to Pilsen one day. In the end, he did it,” recalls Martin Dlouhý.

He is now fifty years old and vividly remembers the first Liberation Festival in 1990, when the liberation of Pilsen by the Americans was officially and on a large scale for the first time. Witnesses still consider it exceptional, and Martin Dlouhý agrees: “It was immediate, there was joy everywhere at that time from the newly acquired freedom.”

According to the MCCP chief, the atmosphere of the festivities has gradually changed over the years and the initial euphoria has subsided. “I have the feeling that today they are more like a pilgrimage,” he noted.

The organizers have prepared a richer program for the festivities this year. Martin Dlouhý recalls that the anniversary of the liberation was always more magnificent. For example, he remembers that in 1995 so many American veterans came that buses had to bring them to watch the fireworks on the English Embankment.

This year, MCCP members will already participate in a convoy today, which will lead from the courtyard of Plzeňský Prazdroj through Americká třída to náměstí Republiky. “We will have 30 cars there and the Third Army Club of Plzeň will add another 20. Of course, we will also participate in the big convoy on Sunday,” he specified.

In the past, there have been thoughts about significantly limiting the Liberation Festival and focusing it more on the anniversaries of the end of World War II. Martin Dlouhý confirmed that he is aware of these considerations, but does not agree with them. “I think it would not be good,” he says.

After years of existence, the number of members of the Military Car Club is said to be increasing. “New members are also signing up, but they are mostly older men. We have relatively few younger members. Similar clubs abroad are doing better,” he stated.

author: Jaroslav Nedvěd

The exhibition 35 years of the Military Car Club Plzeň on the establishment and history of the largest and practically the first club of American historic vehicles in the Czech Republic will be on display in Smetana Gardens until May 29