Lidice

Lidice ( Czech :) , a former village in what is now the Czech Republic , 10 miles ( 16 km ) northwest of Prague . Lidice , which had a population of about 500 , was destroyed on June 10 , 1942 , by the Gestapo , the Nazi secret police, to Avenge the killing of Reinhard Heydrich , a German official . The Gestapo claimed that the people of Lidice had sheltered Heydrich 's assassins . The men and boys were killed , and most of the women and girls were sent to concentration camps .

Several Nazis were hanged after the war for participation in the massacre . The site of Lidice was made ​​a national memorial and a new town by that name was built nearby . A number of towns and villages in other countries Renamed themselves Lidice in sympathy for the townspeople .