Segment of the Český zvukový týdeník Aktualita (Czech Aktualita Sound Newsreel) 1942 No. 41 captures the funeral of Alexandr Commichau, head of the Reich Labour Service, held on 5 October 1942 in the Spanish Hall of Prague Castle, decorated with Nazi emblems for the occassion. The deceased´s military honours are on display next to a bier with the coffin. Mourners include the widow, a little girl and State Secretary Hermann Frank. Acting Reich Protector Kurt Daluege lays down a wreath from Adolf Hitler. The funeral speech is delivered by Deputy Chief General of RAD Wilhelm Decker (silent). The procession with the coffin, which will be transported to a crematorium in Prague, moves through the Matthias Gate.
The segment captures the funeral of Cardinal Karel Kašpar held in Prague on 24 April 1941. The footage begins with archival images of Karel Kašpar. This is followed by an image of the bier with a glass casket in the Chapel of St. John the Baptist in the Archbishop´s Palace. Close-ups of the late Cardinal´s face and his hands holding a rosary. Hans Hermann Völckers, the head of the Reich Protector´s office, attends the funeral ceremony on behalf of Reich Protector Konstantin von Neurath. President Emil Hácha and Prime Minister of the Protectorate Government Alois Eliáš are seen by the coffin. The funeral procession sets out from the Archbishop´s Palace, continues across Hradčany Square to the Gate of Giants and towards St. Vitus Cathedral. The procession includes the Reich Protector´s Envoy Hans Hermann Völckers talking to Alois Eliáš, members of the Protectorate Government, Apostolic Nuncio Cesare Orsenigo, Cardinal of Vienna Theodor Innitzer, clergy and members of religious orders.The funeral ceremony continues in St. Vitus Cathedral, where Cardinal of Vienna Theodor Innitzer celebrates the pontifical requiem. Prime Minister Alois Eliáš is among the people present.
Unused footage from segment of the Český zvukový týdeník Aktualita (Czech Aktualita Sound Newsreel) 1944 No. 17 captures the funeral of composer and folklorist Karel Weis on 11 April at Malvazinky Cemetery in Prague-Smíchov. The funeral ceremony is attended by a number of church dignitaries. The segment concludes with the interment of the coffin in a grave.
Segment of the Český zvukový týdeník Aktualita (Czech Aktualita Sound Newsreel) 1941 No. 5A captures the funeral of inventor František Křižík held in Prague on 27 January 1941, which became a silent yet powerful expression of Czech resistance against German occupation. The coffin with the late inventor and funeral wreaths are carried out of the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul at Vyšehrad. The solemn ceremony is concluded with the interment of the coffin in the national crypt at Slavín in Vyšehrad.
Segment from UFA Praha 1941 no. 2 depicts the enormous funeral of pro-German journalist Karel Lažnovský held in the Small Hall of the Crematorium of the City of Prague in Vinohrady on 16 October 1941. Lažnovský died on 10 October 1941 when he succumbed to poisoning after eating open sandwiches at a reception at the home of Prime Minister Alois Eliáš; the incident became known as the "open sandwich affair". His death was labelled a political murder by Nazi propaganda. Karl von Gregory, head of the Cultural and Political Department of the Reich Governor's Office, members of the Protectorate Government, and representatives of the Government Army and all Protectorate authorities are present among the mourners. Acting Reich Protector Reinhard Heydrich places a funeral wreath by the coffin. The funeral oration is delivered by Minister of Education and People´s Enlightenment Emanuel Moravec.
Segment of the Český zvukový týdeník Aktualita (Czech Aktualita Sound Newsreel) 1945 No. 13 captures the funeral of diplomat František Chvalkovský, who died on 25 February 1945 when hit by a ground-attack aircraft on a motorway near Berlin. The lavish funeral attended by prominent figures of public life was held in Strašnice Crematorium in Prague on 13 March 1945. Prime Minister of the Protectorate Government Richard Bienert and Reich Chancellor Augustin Popelka place a wreath from President Emil Hácha by the coffin. Karl Hermann Frank lays down a wreath from Adolf Hitler. The solemn ceremony is attended by Minister of Justice Jaroslav Krejčí, Minister of Education and National Enlightenment Emanuel Moravec and Chairman of the Supreme Administrative Court Josef Kliment. Funeral speeches are delivered by the parish priest of the Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren, Bedřich Jerie, and Prime Minister of the Protectorate Government Richard Bienert. A guard of honour by the coffin comprises boys from the Board of Trustees for the Education of Youth in Bohemia and Moravia.
Segment of the Český zvukový týdeník Aktualita (Czech Aktualita Sound Newsreel) 1941 No. 4B captures the funeral of painter Joža Úprka held in Kněždub on 14 January 1940. The segment opens with an archival close-up of Joža Úprka. The following image shows the late Joža Úprka displayed in an open casket surrounded by professional mourners and lit candles. Minister of Public Works Dominik Čipera and Provincial President Jaroslav Caha Syn talk with late Joža Úprka´s son, Jan. The final farewell begins in the courtyard of the family house. The funeral procession moves through the village. Úprka´s family walks behind the coffin. This is followed by a religious ceremony at the cemetery in Kněždub, attended by, among others, a number of German officers. The segment is concluded with the lowering of the coffin into the aritst´s grave.
Segment of the Český zvukový týdeník Aktualita (Czech Aktualita Sound Newsreel) 1943 No. 23B captures the funeral of poet, playwright and writer František Xaver Svoboda held in Prague on 28 May 1943. Mourners come out of the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul in Vyšehrad. Image of the inscription "Pax vobis" at Vyšehrad Cemetery. The funeral ceremony is attended by a number of church dignitaries. The coffin with the late poet´s remains is carried towards the Slavín Tomb, on the steps of which funeral speeches are delivered by literary critic Miloslav Hýsek and poet František Sekanina. Mourners include Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Adolf Hrubý. The segment is concludes with the interment of the coffin in the national crypt at Slavín, Vyšehrad.
Unedited film footage shot in the streets of Pardubice after an allied air raid on 22 July 1944. People are clearing the debris of buildings. Rescued pieces of furniture and other furnishings are loaded onto trucks. Two men carry a child´s coffin towards a hearse. A mass commemorative ceremony for the victims of the air raid is held on Pernštýn Square on 25 July. The bereaved gather by the displayed coffins at the site of the commemoration. Local official Adolf Želízko delivers a funeral speech.
Segment of the Český zvukový týdeník Aktualita (Czech Aktualita Sound Newsreel) 1945 No.10 captures the mass funeral of the victims of the air strike carried out over Prague on 14 February 1945, which was held on Peace Square in Prague-Vinohrady on 18 February 1945 and attended by members of the Protectorate Government and Reich Chancellor Augustin Popelka. 150 coffins with the victims are on display in the Church of St. Ludmila. (The air strike killed 701, and more than 80 people were missing.) A guard of honour with torches consisted of officials of the Board of Trustees for the Education of Youth. The funeral gathering is opened by the Mayor of Prague Alois Říha, who bids farewell to the victims on behalf of the City of Prague. Prime Minister of the Protectorate Government Richard Bienert speaks on behalf of President Emil Hácha. Minister of Economy and Labour Walter Bertsch lays down a wreath from Reich Protector Wilhelm Frick. Prime Minister of the Protectorate Government Richard Bienert and Reich Chancellor Augustin Popelka lay down a wreath on behalf of the Protectorate Government and President Emil Hácha. The Mayor of Prague Alois Říha and his Secretary Josef Pfitzner arrive to lay a wreath on behalf of the City of Prague.