CAPTAIN WITOLD PILECKI
|Captain Witold Pilecki – The Auschwitz Volunteer !
Author: Andrew Balcerzak
“I tried to live in such a manner that at the moment of death I may be glad rather than fearful” written by Witold Pilecki in Warsaw prison before his execution.
May 1948, Warsaw prison in Soviet occupied Poland. A middle-aged man is taken out of his prison cell and killed by a single shot to the back of his head. Swiftly, his body was secretly loaded on a truck and taken to an undisclosed place whereunmarked grave was prepared.
The memories of this man and his heroic deeds are to be obliterated for all generations to come.
But who is this man, whom the all-powerful communist authorities feared so much?
He is Captain Witold Pilecki.
An extraordinary man, who was described as one of the six bravest soldiers of WW2, by the British historian Professor Michael Foot in his book „Six Faces of Courage”. In the introduction to the book “The Auschwitz Volunteer: Beyond Bravery”, the Chief Rabbi of Poland, Michael Schudrich wrote “When God created the human being, God had in mind that we should all be like Captain Witold Pilecki, of blessed memory”.
When Pilecki was born in 1901, his country Poland had not existed for more than 100 years, after having been partitioned between its three powerful neighbours, Kingdom of Prussia, the Russian and Austrian-Hungarian Empires.
He was born in North West of Russia where his family was deported 40 years earlier for challenging the occupier. During these traumatic times Poland and its ideals continued to exist in the hearts and minds of people like Pilecki’s family.
Because speaking the Polish language was forbidden in public, mothers would teach their children to pray in Polish, at home. And so, in spite of the intense Russification and religious persecution the language, the Roman Catholic religion, the values and love for the non-existent country survived through generations.
Priorand during WW1, young Pilecki was active in Polish scout movement, an illegal activity under the occupiers. The scout movement continued the traditional values best expressed by the Polish adage „Bóg Honor, Ojczyzna” meaning God, Honour, Fatherland.
Many people of Pilecki’s generation lived by these values, which meant faith in God, self-sacrifice, sincerity, loyalty, integrity, respect for all people and patriotism.
After Poland gained independence in 1918, Pilecki joined the regular Polish Army. But the threats to his country intensified and reached a peak at the time of the Soviet invasion in 1920.
The invasion was repelled and thus saved Poland and Western Europe from communism. For his contributions in the war, Pilecki was twice awarded the Cross of Valour.
But Pilecki was not interested in professional soldiering and as soon as the war was over he went to pursue his studies in agriculture and then fine arts. He married in 1931, moved to a farm to raise a family.
Pilecki’s wife worked in the local school and he looked after their farm, home, children and carried out extensive voluntary social work. In his spare time Pilecki wrote poetry and painted for his local church and friends.He organised the local farmers to establish a milk cooperative, agricultural club, voluntary fire fighting units and contributed to his society in numerous other ways, which were recognised by the Polish Government by awarding him the Silver Cross of Merit in 1938.
This happy life did not last long.
On 1st September 1939, Germany invaded Poland from the west and two weeks later, the Soviet Union from the east. With occupied Poland firmly in the grip of its two tyrannical neighbours, open resistance by the Polish people was futile. However, Pilecki and others continued fighting in the clandestine Home Army. With the fall of Poland, the German and Soviet occupiers implemented their plan to murder millions of Polish citizens.
And so, the Wehrmacht (Gemany’s uniformed armed forces), the Gestapo and the SS undertook random street arrests (roundups) and screening of captives. Anyone declared „an enemy” was murdered or deported to an unknown location. Such events took place on a massive scale. Pilecki suspected that some of his colleagues had been taken to the Auschwitz Nazi Concentration and Extermination Camp („Auschwitz”). To confirm his suspicions, report on the state and treatment of prisoners in Auschwitz, Pilecki, arranged to be captured, under a false identity, by the Germans and imprisoned in Auschwitz.
Witold Pilecki with his nephew, not long before volunteering to enter Auschwitz as a prisoner in 1940. Photo of Pilecki family.
He arrived in Auschwitz on the night of 21st September 1940 and was tattooed with the prisoner number 4859. In Auschwitz, Pilecki organised many of the imprisoned officers into a clandestine organisation so as to gather intelligence on the state and treatment of the prisoners. During the next three years Pilecki and his organisation assisted weaker prisoners to survive, gathered intelligence and planned liberation of the camp. Pilecki’s organisation passed the intelligence to the Allies, which authoritatively described the full horror of Auschwitz and the martyrdom of the majority of Polish prisoners from 1940 to 1942. The evidence included overwhelming information about the implementation of the” Final Solution”, a massive murder of Jewish people. In 1942, the Polish Government in Exile sent a memorandum to the League of Nations entitled „The Mass Extermination of Jews in German Occupied Poland”. The memorandum was largely ignored by the League of Nations, as were subsequentapproaches by the Polish Government in Exile to Western Allied Governments.
During the night of the 26th April 1943, Pilecki, together with two other prisoners successfully escaped from Auschwitz. Three months later he reached Warsaw. There, Pilecki compiled a comprehensive report, „Report W”, for the Polish Resistance. “Report W” is an astonishing historical document: it comprehensively details the evolution and horror of the massive scale crimes against humanity committed at Auschwitz between 1940 and 1943. The report includes references to treatment of Catholic priests “Kapos line us up, and, jeering wildly and exchanging jokes. They kill off sick and weak people or those who admitted to being a priest…”
Also amongst the unspeakable horror of the camp Pilecki writes about humanity and sacrifice that this most horrible place could not purge“…the commandant selected ten inmates, from our block, to die. It was very difficult for us, yet we experienced a dignifying moment when a Catholic priest offered his life for a younger man who was selected to die. The commandant accepted the sacrifice and the young man was allowed to live” (1).After completing his Report, Pilecki continued to be active in the Polish underground and in 1944 he took part in the Warsaw Uprising.
Professor Norman Davies in his authoritative book “Rising’44: The Battle for Warsaw” notes many of Pilecki’s heroic actions against the overwhelming German forces.
After the Uprising was suppressed, Pilecki was taken to a German POW camp. Following the liberation of this camp, in April 1945, Pilecki was freed and joined the ranks of the Polish II Corps in Italy. In October 1945, Pilecki returned to the Soviet occupied Poland to collect intelligence on the Polish soldiers killed or deported to the Soviet Union by the Stalinist secret police and on the activities of the Polish puppet regime’s security units.
In May 1947 Pilecki was arrested by Public Security operatives, imprisoned andsavagely tortured. A year later, Pilecki was subjected to a show trial and then killed.
Yet, the powerful Soviet authorities and Polish communists were so afraid of him and desperate to airbrush him from history that after committing the judiciary murder, they secretly buried his body in a grave, which to this day has notbeen found. In the introduction of the book “The Auschwitz Volunteer: Beyond Bravery”, Professor Norman Davies wrote, „Pilecki’s name mirrors the tragic fate of millions whom the West forgot. Only when one grasps the true horror of his fate can one comprehend what the Second World War in Europe was really about.”
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(1) This may be a reference to Father (now Saint) Maximillian Kolbe who saved Franciszek Gajowniczak by offering himself for a horrible death by starvation.
By Andrew Balcerzak
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Good on You and thank You Mr Andrew Balcerzak!
I read this article with great interest
Regards Mark Sokola Scott
God article.
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Letter to the Editor naszepismo.pl
I’m Proud To Be Polish!
How many times did Poland keep Europe safe?
1.On September 12, 1683, the King of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Jan Sobieski, literally saved Europe when he personally led the one of the largest cavalry charges in history against the Ottoman army besieging the city of Vienna. … Europe was not in danger anyways.
2. In August 1920 Poland saved Europe from Bolshevism!
3.The citizens of Poland have the world’s highest count of individuals who have been recognized by Yad Vashem of Jerusalem as the Polish Righteous Among the Nations!
POLSKA • POLAND 5,941
To compare;
Holandia • Netherlands 4,726
Francja • France 2,646
Ukraina • Ukraine 2,139
Belgia • Belgium 1,414
Węgry • Hungary 671
Litwa • Lithuania 630
Białoruś • Belarus 564
Słowacja • Slovakia 460
Niemcy • Germany 427
Włochy • Italy 391
Grecja • Greece 265
Jugosławia •Yugoslavia (Serbia) 121
Rosja • Russia 120
Czechy • Czech Republic 115
Chorwacja • Croatia 105
Litwa • Latvia 100
Austria • Austria 85
Mołdawia • Moldovia 71
Albania • Albania 63
Rumunia • Romania 52
Szwajcaria • Switzerland 38
Bośnia • Bośnia 34
Norwegia • Norway 26
Dania • Denmark 21
Bułgaria • Bulgaria 17
Wielka Brytania • Great Britain 13 (!)
Szwecja • Sweden 10
Macedonia • Macedonia 10
Armenia • Armenia 10
Słowenia • Slovenia 6
Hiszpania • Spain 3
Estonia • Estonia 3
Chiny • China 2
USA • USA 2
Brazylia • Brazil 2 (!)
Chile • Chile 1
Japonia • Japan 1
Luxemburg • Luxembourg 1
Portugalia • Portugal 1
Turcja • Turkey 1
Gruzja • Georgia 1
SUMA • Total: 21,310
4. And nowadays one of Polish Heroes is Lukasz Koczocik – risked his own life and helped to overpower the terrorist. Stabbed five times in London Bridge terror attack, but kept on fighting.
Take NOTE!
Concentration camps and extermination centers were established and administered by the German state. Not by Poland state, and Polish People. But ignoring the truth sometimes means forgetting, and forgetting is something we cannot afford to do…! Do not confuse the murderer with the victim!
Yours faithfully
Henry – “Polish Londoner”
That’s a good idea!
English Pages are very important!
Young generation grew up surrounded by Western (eg. Australia) influences that exploded in the country during the 1990s and has no memories at all of communist Poland. To young Poles, (in Poland, specially in Australia – ‚the lucky country’) PRL times feel like ancient history. We must remind THEM Polish history. After all, almost 100% of primary and secondary students in Poland learn foreign languages!
Zyggi-Zygmunt/ Perth
On Monday 21st September will be 80th anniversary of Witold Pilecki entering Auschwitz Death Camp. On this occasion Nasze Pismo re-published my article. I hope you like it.
Regards, Andrew Balcerzak
naszepismo.pl/2020/09/18/captain-witold-pilecki/
Przy okazji polecamy kolejny artykuł związany z rocznicą:
prawy.pl/110516-80-lat-temu-rozpoczela-sie-m….. [Więcej]
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It is my great pleasure and honour to say: Thank You Mr Balcerzak and Thank You Puls Polonii for such fantastic cooperation.
Yours sincerely
Antoni J Jasinski
Editor naszepismo.pl
Very interesting facts !
Adalbert
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W Berlinie stanie muzeum „wypędzonych Niemców” ale najbliższy sąsiad nie jest w stanie zdobyć się na substytut sprawiedliwości w postaci pomnika Pileckiego – mówi w rozmowie z DGP Hanna Radziejowska, szefowa Instytutu Pileckiego w Berlinie. Mówiąc brutalnie i wprost, budowa Exilmuseum przy placu Askańskim to komunikat mówiący, że w Berlinie nie ma miejsca dla pomnika polskich ofiar.
Z tego co wiem w Australii też istnieje Instytut Pileckiego. Być może nawiązanie kontaktu z Instytutem Pileckiego w Berlinie i wzajemna współpraca wspomogłaby dążenia Polaków w tych staraniach o przypominaniu prawdy.
Przekazał Zygmunt
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Great themes and human drama!
Poland can be proud of such sons as Captain Pilecki and daughters as (eg) young heroine INKA!
Let’s not pay attention to that crap screams in the streets FUCK… THIS IS A SEWAGE! Let’s tell this vulgarist Marta Lempart – IS ENOUGH!
Let’s tell her: Take care of your life that’s in mess.
The hangmen of Poles.
Thank you for such an expressive article, the value of which has increased because it is written in English and, as I can see, has already reached readers who, due to emigration, do not read publications in Polish.
The Stalinist court sentenced Witold Pilecki – a voluntary prisoner of Auschwitz – to death only for the fact that during his lifetime he could become a model of Polish heroism for young generations. That is why Polish-speaking communists murdered him.
But the prosecutor – the extremely bloody Stalinist prosecutor Czesław Łapiński, did not live to see the sentence. He died in 2004.
But there are more to blame. They are the leaders of the communist party and the state, the leadership of the Ministry of Public Security, prosecutors, judges, and investigative „officers”. They never answered for their crimes. And still and to this day, you can hear the chuckle of history! Prosecutor Czesław Łapiński died in the hospital at Captain Pilecki Street!!!
The deputy chief military prosecutor for special matters, Lt. Col. Henryk (Hersz) Podlaski, was watching over the proper course of the investigation and trial (son of Mojżesz and Szpryncy Austern, b. March 7, 1919) According to some, he was supposed to drown the Bug River in an attempt to get illegally into the USSR. According to others, he stayed with our eastern neighbor in the house of his sister, the wife of a high officer of the NKVD.
Looking through the lives of the executioners, it is not difficult to notice that an invisible hand, for their safety, was watching over them, just as today in „free Poland” it watches over their offspring called „Resort Children”.
I extend greetings to the Editorial Board and the Author of this article
A Reader from the Antipodes
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Otrzymaliśmy
Szanowni Państwo,
Przesylamy Państwu do wglądu lub zamieszczenia , nasz nowy booklet, który jest podsumowaniem działalności Komitetu Pilecki Projekt.
Z poważaniem
Andrzej Nowak sekretarz Komitetu Pilecki Projekt
( Ze względu na objętość przesyłam files w kilku emailach)
Dziękujemy