Hedviga Rozborová, Innocent Victim of Communist Brutality
Borský Mikuláš, Western Slovakia, 1949–50: This is the story of a fabricated popular revolt, and of the regime’s designated scapegoat for it: Hedviga Rozborová.
A determined young woman
Hedviga Cintulová (this was her maiden name) was born in Borský Mikuláš on November 25, 1904, along with her twin sister Jozefina. Her father, Anton, traveled back and forth between Canada, where he worked in the mines earning enough to provide the family with a comfortable sustenance, and his native Slovakia. Upon turning seventeen, Hedviga also spent several months in Canada working as a maid.
Back home, the girl worked to help with farming and livestock, and eventually fell in love with Jozef Rozbora, a humble shoemaker. Despite the opposition of Hedviga’s family ( which eventually obtained reconciliation as well), the couple married on November 24, 1924. They would have three children-Jozef (1925), Viktor (1927), and Hedviga (1940). The young mother was an eager reader of the Slovenské Kvety (“Slovak Flowers”) magazine, to which she also contributed with a couple of articles. Hedviga was a very active young woman, always busy and ready to help others: like when she could be seen driving…
