Abstract
This empirical study of several Romani-origin legionnaires who acquired "legionnaire by law" status asks several questions related to such legionnaires' social status during the Czechoslovak First Republic. In the first part, the selected persons are briefly introduced, as is their involvement in the Legions and their eventual acknowledgement and appreciation.
The focus of the study is the interwar period and the Second World War. One aim was to find out how selected legionnaires of Romani origin were involved in social structures after the First World War and whether their participation in the Legions helped them in their coexistence process with the majority society.
A more detailed presentation of fragments from Josef Holomek's legionnaire file demonstrates how he was supported by his confrères from the Legion. At the same time, however, the study shows that, despite their participation in the legionnaire movement, almost all of the Romani legionnaires studied here lived on the margins during the interwar period and most of them, including their relatives, were racially murdered in concentration camps during World War II.
The research thus contributes knowledge about the social processes of disadvantaged people's marginalization and proves that even "legionnaire by law" status did not help Romani legionnaires to be more significantly accepted - even temporarily - by the majority society. Because of their ethno-social background, these people continued to exist at the very edge of society during the First Republic.