"Vzhůru hlavy" - Czechoslovak Legion March

The Czechoslovak Legion (Československé legie) was a volunteer armed force composed primarily of Czechs and Slovaks, who fought on the side of the Entente Powers during World War I and the White Army during the Russian Civil War until November 1919. Its aim was to gain the support of the Allied Powers for the independence of the lands of the Bohemian Crown from the Austrian Empire and of the Slovak territories of the Kingdom of Hungary, which were part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. With the help of emigre intellectuals and politicians such as Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk and Milan Rastislav Štefánik, they grew to over 100,000 strong. In Russia, they took part in key victories such as the battles of Zborov and Bakhmach against the Central Powers, and played a prominent role in the Russian Civil War fighting the Bolsheviks, eventually controlling the entire Trans-Siberian railway line and several major cities in Siberia. The Legion was established in 1917 after three years as a small unit in the Imperial Russian Army, with other groups fighting in France from the start of the war. Originally an all-volunteer force, it was strengthened by prisoners of war and deserters from the Austro-Hungarian army. The majority of legionaries were Czech, with Slovaks making up 7% of the force in Russia, 3% in Italy and 16% in France. The name of the Czechoslovak Legion anticipated the creation of Czechoslovakia.