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Żegota

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Żegota Council to Aid Jews
PredecessorProvisional Committee to Aid Jews
Formation27 September 1942;81 years ago(1942-09-27)
FounderHenryk Woliński,
TypeUnderground organization
PurposeHelp and distribution of relief funds toPolish Jewsin World War II
HeadquartersWarsaw
Location
Region
German occupied Poland
Key people
Henryk Woliński,Julian Grobelny,Ferdynand Arczyński,Zofia Kossak-Szczucka,Wanda Krahelska-Filipowicz,Adolf Berman,Leon Feiner,Władysław Bartoszewski

Żegota(pronounced[ʐɛˈɡɔta]ⓘ,fullcodename:the "Konrad Żegota Committee"[1][2]) was the PolishCouncil to Aid Jews with theGovernment Delegation for Poland(Polish:Rada Pomocy Żydom przy Delegaturze Rządu RP na Kraj), an undergroundPolish resistanceorganization, and part of thePolish Underground State,active 1942–45 inGerman-occupied Poland.[3]Żegota was the successor institution to theProvisional Committee to Aid Jewsand was established specifically to save Jews.[4][5]Poland was the only country inGerman-occupied Europewhere such a government-established and -supported underground organization existed.[6][7][8][9]

Estimates of the number of Jews that Żegota provided aid to, and eventually saved, range from several thousands to tens of thousands.[8][10]

Operatives of Żegota worked in extreme circumstances – underthreat of death by the Nazi forces.[8]

Origins

1941 German poster, in German and Polish, on death to Jews outside ghetto and to Poles who helped Jews
Polish Government-in-Exile,The Mass Extermination of Jews in German Occupied Poland,December 1942
Żegota letter toPolish Government-in-Exile,requesting funds to aid Jews, January 1943
Polish Prime MinisterWładysław Sikorski's leaflet appeal to help Jews,Warsaw,May 1943

The Council to Aid Jews, orŻegota,was the continuation of an earlier aid organization, theProvisional Committee to Aid Jews(Tymczasowy Komitet Pomocy Żydom), that was founded on 27 September 1942 by PolishCatholicactivistsZofia Kossak-SzczuckaandWanda Krahelska-Filipowicz( "Alinka" ).[8]The Provisional Committee cared for as many as 180 people, but due to political and financial reasons it was dissolved and replaced by Żegota on 4 December 1942.[2]One of the co-founders of Żegota wasHenryk Wolińskiof theHome Army(AK) who helped integrate it with thePolish Underground State.[11]Woliński is also credited with developing the idea for this organization.[8]

Kossak-Szczucka initially wanted Żegota to become an example of a "pure Christian charity", arguing that Jews had their own international charity organizations.[clarification needed]Nevertheless, Żegota was run by both Jews and non-Jews from a wide range of political movements.[8]Julian Grobelny,an activist in the prewarPolish Socialist Party,was elected as General Secretary, andFerdynand Arczyński– a member of thePolish Democratic Party– as treasurer.Adolf BermanandLeon Feinerrepresented the Jewish National Committee (an umbrella group representing theZionistparties) and theMarxistGeneral Jewish Labour Bund.Both parties operated independently, channeling funds donated by Jewish organizations abroad to Żegota and other underground operations. Other members included the Polish Socialist Party, the Democratic Party (Stronnictwo Demokratyczne) and the CatholicFront for the Rebirth of Poland(Front Odrodzenia Polski) led by Kossak-Szczucka andWitold Bieńkowski,editors of its underground publications.[12]The right-wingNational Party(Stronnictwo Narodowe) refused to take part in the organization.[citation needed]

Operations

Żegota had specialized departments for issues such as clothing, children's welfare, medical care, housing and other relevant issues.[8]It had around one hundred cells that provided food, medical care, money, and false identification documents to thousands of Polish Jews hiding in the "Aryan"side of the German occupation zone.[8]Creation and distribution of false documents has been described as one of the organization's major tasks, and it is estimated to have produced up to a hundred sets of false identities for Jewish refugees.[8]Another estimate credits Żegota with forging about 50,000 documents such as marriage certificates, baptismal records, death certificates and employment cards to help Jews pass off as Christians.[13]In forging documents, Żegota cooperated with theHome Army,which often provided facilities for forging German identification papers.[14][15]

The organization headquarters was located in Warsaw at 24Żurawia Street[pl].[8]Żegota was active chiefly in Warsaw,[citation needed]but it also provided money, food, and medicines for prisoners in several forced-labor camps, as well as to refugees inKraków,Wilno (Vilnius), and Lwów (L'viv).[8]Żegota's activities overlapped to a considerable extent with those of the other major organizations dedicated to helping Jews in Poland – namely theJewish National Committee,which cared for some 5,600 Jews; and theBund,which cared for an additional 1,500. Together, the three organizations were able to reach some 8,500 of the 28,000 Jews hiding in Warsaw, and perhaps another 1,000 hiding elsewhere in Poland.[citation needed]

Żegota's children's section in Warsaw, headed by a Polish social workerIrena Sendler,cared for 2,500 Jewish children. Many were placed with foster families, in public orphanages, church orphanages, and convents.[8]

Żegota repeatedly asked thePolish Government-in-Exileand theGovernment Delegation for Polandto appeal to the Polish people to help the persecuted Jews.[2]The Government in Exile gradually increased its funding for Żegota throughout the war.[16][17]

Richard C. Lukasestimated that 60,000, or about half of the Jews who survivedthe Holocaust in occupied Poland(such estimates vary), were aided in some shape or form by Żegota.[10]Czesław Łuczakestimates the number of aid recipients at about 30,000.[10]Paul R. Bartropestimated that Żegota helped to save about 4,000 Jews and provided assistance to about 25,000 in total.[8]

Challenges

Under the German occupation, hiding or assisting Jewish refugees was punishable by death.[8][18][19]However, it was no less dangerous due to the risk posed by fellow Poles, some of whom did not see kindly lending help for Jews.[20]Irena Sendler is quoted as saying "during [the war] it was simpler to hide a tank under the carpet than shelter a Jewish child."[21]

According toRichard C. Lukas,"The number of Poles who perished at the hands of the Germans for aiding Jews" is difficult to establish, with estimates ranging from several thousand to as high as fifty thousand.[22]Paul R. Bartropestimated that about 20,000 Żegota operatives were killed by the Nazis, and thousands of others were arrested and imprisoned.[8]

Financial situation

ThePolish Government-in-Exile,based inLondon,faced immense difficulties funding its institutions in German-occupied Poland; this affected funding for Żegota as well. Part of the funds had to be sent in via highly inefficient airdrops (only some 17% of which succeeded) and some could only be delivered late in the war.[23]

Despite these difficulties, throughout the war, the Polish Government-in-Exile continually increased its funding for Żegota: the Polish Government's monthly support was increased from 30,000zlotysto zl 338,000 in May 1944, and to zl 1,000,000 by war's end. The Polish Government's overall financial contribution to Żegota and Jewish organizations came to zl 37,400,000, US$1,000,000, andSFr200,000 (see financial details below).[24][25][26]According toMarcin Urynowicz,the percentage of the funds allocated by the Polish Government-in-Exile to help Jews, including through Żegota, was based on their percentage in Poland's prewar general population.[27]

Antony Polonskywrites that "Zegota's successes—it was able to forge false documents for some 50,000 persons—suggest that, had it been given a higher priority by the Delegatura and the government in London, it could have done much more." Polonsky quotesWładysław Bartoszewskias saying that the organization was considered a "stepchild" of the underground; andEmanuel Ringelblum,who wrote that "a Council for Aid to the Jews was formed, consisting of people of good will, but its activity was limited by lack of funds and lack of help from the government."[28]A similar description is given by historianMartin Winstone,who writes that Żegota fought an uphill battle for funding and received more support from Jewish organizations than from the Polish Government-in-Exile. He also notes that thePolish right-wing partiescompletely refused to support it.[20]Shmuel Krakowskidescribed the funding as "modest", and writes that the Polish government could have allocated more to funding the organization. He writes that "[the funding] was indeed very little considering not only the needs of the council and the immensity of the Jewish tragedy but also the resources at the Polish underground's disposal... they could have been much more generous in allocating resources needed to save human lives."[29]

Joseph Kermishdescribes the relationship between Żegota and theGovernment Delegation for Polandas strained, with frequent disagreements about funding and the extent of the humanitarian crisis Żegota was trying to address.[30]

It has been estimated that the cost of saving one Jewish life was around 6,000–15,000 Polish zloties.[8]

Funds allocated by the Government Delegation for Poland[25][26][29][31][32]
Allocated to Date Sum Type Notes
Żegota May 1943 – Feb. 1944 6,250,000 zł total [31]
Jan. 1943 – May 1944 11,250,000 zł total According toWitold Bieńkowski[31]
Before May 1944 30,000 zł monthly
After May 1944 338,000 zł monthly
Nov. 1944 – Dec. 1944 14,000,00 zł total Allotted to help 1,500–1,800 Jews hiding on Warsaw's left bank[31]
Nov. 1944 – Dec. 1944 $32,000 n/a [31]
March 1945 – April 1945 $65,000 n/a [31]
By Sept. 1945 1,000,000 zł monthly
1939–1945 $250,000 total Sum of all funds allocated to Żegota expressed in USD[29]
All Jewish organizations 1939–1945 37,400,000 zł

$1,000,000

200,000 CHF

total Combined total, including the funds allocated to Żegota
All organizations 1939–1945 $35,000,000

DM 20,000,000

total Based on partial data – actual figure probably higher[29]

Prominent activists

In a letter from 26 February 1977Adolf Bermanmentions the following activists as especially meritorious:[33]

Postwar recognition

Żegota plaque,Yad Vashem,Jerusalem,Israel

In 1963 Żegota was commemorated inIsraelwith the planting of a tree in theAvenue of the RighteousatYad Vashem,withWładysław Bartoszewskipresent.[34]In 1995 amonument to the organizationwas unveiled in Warsaw.[35]Another monument was unveiled in 2009 in theSurvivors' Park in Łódź.[36][37]Żegota is also commemorated in plaques at places of its regional offices in Warsaw and Kraków.[38]In 2009 a commemorative series of coins was issued by theNational Bank of Poland.[38]

See also

Notes and references

Part ofa serieson the
Polska WalczyPolish
Underground State
Parasol Regiment, Warsaw, 1944
History of Poland 1939–1945
Authorities
Political organizations
Major parties
Minor parties
Opposition
Military organizations
Home Army (AK)
Mostly integrated
withArmed ResistanceandHome Army
Partially integrated
withArmed ResistanceandHome Army
Non-integrated but recognizing
authority ofArmed ResistanceandHome Army
Opposition
Related topics

Specific

  1. ^Gunnar S. Paulsson (2002).Secret City: The Hidden Jews of Warsaw, 1940–1945.Yale University Press. p.xviii.ISBN978-0-300-09546-3.
  2. ^abcYad VashemShoa Resource Center,Zegota
  3. ^Władysław Bartoszewski: środowisko naturalne korzenie Michal Komar, Wladyslaw Bartoszewski Świat Ksia̜żki, page 238, 210
  4. ^"The Council to Aid Jews" Żegota "| Polscy Sprawiedliwi".sprawiedliwi.org.pl(POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews). Warsaw.Retrieved22 June2018.The Council to Aid Jews, Żegota, was the only state-sponsored organization in occupied Europe which was set up with the aim of saving Jews.
  5. ^Golarz, Raymond J.; Golarz, Marion J. (25 April 2011).Sweet Land of Liberty.AuthorHouse. p. 95.ISBN9781456746605.This was the only organization in German-occupied countries established specifically to save Jews.
  6. ^Pogonowski, Iwo (1 September 1997).Jews in Poland: A Documentary History.Hippocrene Books.ISBN9780781806046.
  7. ^Winstone, Martin (30 October 2014).Dark Heart of Hitler's Europe: Nazi Rule in Poland under the General Government.I.B.Tauris. p. 181.ISBN9780857735003.Żegota was the only organization of its kind in Europe
  8. ^abcdefghijklmnopBartrop, Paul R. (15 September 2017). Bartrop, Paul R.; Dickerman, Michael (eds.).The Holocaust: An Encyclopedia and Document Collection [4 volumes].ABC-CLIO. pp. 737–738.ISBN9781440840845.Poland was the only country in Nazi-occupied Europe where such an organization, run jointly by Jews and non-Jews from a wide range of political movements, existed... Żegota was a truly unique phenomenon within the horror of the Holocaust
  9. ^"The History of" Żegota "| Polscy Sprawiedliwi".sprawiedliwi.org.pl(POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews). 2018.Retrieved22 June2018.By the spring of 1943, the Council had branches in Kraków, Lwów, and the Lublin area. In all of occupied Europe, it was the only institution officially established and supported by a government, with the aim of saving Jews.
  10. ^abcTadeusz Piotrowski(1997)."Assistance to Jews".Poland's Holocaust.McFarland & Company. p. 118.ISBN0-7864-0371-3.
  11. ^Marek Ney-Krwawicz (1999).Armia Krajowa: szkic historyczny.Wydawn. Ars Print Production. p. 88.ISBN9788387224172.Kierujący referatem żydowskim Henryk Woliński był też współinicjatorem utworzenia w 1942 r. Rady Pomocy Żydom „Żegota
  12. ^Robert Alvis (2016).White Eagle, Black Madonna: One Thousand Years of the Polish Catholic Tradition.Oxford University Press. pp. 212, 214.ISBN978-0823271733.
  13. ^Kirk, Heather (2004).A Drop of Rain.Dundurn. p. 117.ISBN9781894917100.
  14. ^Żydzi w Polsce: dzieje i kultura: leksykon Jerzy Tomaszewski, Andrzej Żbikowski Wydawnictwo Cyklady, 2001, page 552
  15. ^Encyclopedia of the Holocaust, volumes 3–4 Israel Gutman Macmillan Library Reference USA, page 1730
  16. ^Zagłada Drugiej Rzeczypospolitej: 1945–1947 – page 129 Aleksander Gella – 1998
  17. ^https://sprawiedliwi.org.pl/pl/aktualnosci/75-lat-temu-powstala-krakowska-zegota"Żegota" in Kraków Established 75 Years Ago Mateusz Szczepaniak / English translation: Andrew Rajcher, 14 March 2018 POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews
  18. ^Segel, Harold B. (1996).Stranger in Our Midst: Images of the Jew in Polish Literature.Cornell University Press.ISBN080148104X.
  19. ^"Death Penalty for Aiding Jews — United States Holocaust Memorial Museum".ushmm.org.Retrieved1 June2018.
  20. ^abWinstone, Martin (2014).The Dark Heart of Hitler's Europe: Nazi rule in Poland under the General Government.London: Tauris. pp. 181–182.ISBN978-1-78076-477-1.
  21. ^Michman, Dan; Dreifuss, Havi; Silberklang, David (5 July 2018)."תגובת ההיסטוריונים של יד ושם להצהרה המשותפת של ממשלות פולין וישראל בנוגע לתיקון מיום 26 בינואר 2018 לחוק" המכון לזיכרון לאומי "של פולין"[Reply by the historians of Yad Vashem to the joint statement by the governments of Poland and Israel on the 26 January 2018 amendment to the law of the "Institute of National Remembrance" of Poland] (Press release) (in Hebrew). Jerusalem:Yad Vashem.Retrieved19 July2020.[Some] Polish resistance fighters, that were willing to fight bravely and faithfully against the German conqueror, contributed on their end to a certain aspect of Nazi policy in occupied Poland to its broad success: the murder of Jews. These trends are also expressed in the words of Righteous Among the Nations and member of the Żegota organization Irena Sendler, that during the Second World War it was simpler to hid a tank under the carpet than shelter a Jewish child. "
  22. ^Richard C. Lukas,Out of the Inferno: Poles Remember the HolocaustUniversity Press of Kentucky, 1989; 201 pp.; p. 13; also inRichard C. Lukas,The Forgotten Holocaust: The Poles under German Occupation, 1939–1944,University Press of Kentucky, 1986; 300 pp.
  23. ^Waldemar Grabowski,"Rada Pomocy Żydom »Żegota« w strukturach Polskiego Państwa Podziemnego"( "Żegota within the Structures of the Polish Underground State" ),Biuletyn Instytutu Pamięci Narodowej(Bulletin of theInstitute of National Remembrance), no. 11 (120), November 2010, IPN, pp 50–51.
  24. ^Aleksander Gella,Zagłada Drugiej Rzeczypospolitej: 1945–1947(The Demise of the Polish Second Republic: 1945–1947), 1998, p. 129.
  25. ^abhttps://sprawiedliwi.org.pl/pl/aktualnosci/75-lat-temu-powstala-krakowska-zegota( "Żegota Was Established in Kraków 75 Years Ago" ).
  26. ^abStefan Korboński,Polacy, Żydzi i Holocaust(The Poles, the Jews, and the Holocaust), 1999, p. 58.
  27. ^Marcin Urynowicz,“Zorganizowana i indywidualna pomoc Polaków dla ludności żydowskiej eksterminowanej przez okupanta niemieckiego w okresie drugiej wojny światowej”( "Poles' Organized and Individual Help to the Jewish Population Being Exterminated by the Occupying Germans during World War II" ), inAndrzej Żbikowski,ed.,Polacy i Żydzi pod okupacją niemiecką 1939–1945(Poles and Jews under the German Occupation, 1939–1945), Warsaw, IPN, 2006, p. 225–26.
  28. ^Antony Polonsky (2004). David Cesarani (ed.).Holocaust: Responses to the persecution and mass murder of the Jews.Holocaust: critical concepts in historical studies. Vol. 5. London; New York:Routledge.p. 64.ISBN978-0-415-27509-5.
  29. ^abcdShmuel Krakowski (2003). Joshua D. Zimmerman (ed.).Contested memories: Poles and Jews during the Holocaust and its aftermath.New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press. p. 99.ISBN978-0-8135-3158-8.
  30. ^Kermish, Joseph."The Activities of the Council for Aid to Jews (" Żegota ") In Occupied Poland".yadvashem.org.Retrieved20 June2018.
  31. ^abcdefWaldemar Grabowski,"Rada Pomocy Żydom »Żegota« w strukturach Polskiego Państwa Podziemnego"( "Żegota within the Structures of the Polish Underground State" ),Biuletyn Instytutu Pamięci Narodowej(Bulletin of theInstitute of National Remembrance), no. 11 (120), November 2010, IPN
  32. ^Aleksander Gella,Zagłada Drugiej Rzeczypospolitej: 1945–1947(The Demise of the Polish Second Republic: 1945–1947), 1998, p. 129
  33. ^"The Żegota".jewishvirtuallibrary.org.Retrieved9 September2022.
  34. ^Andrzej Krzysztof Kunert (2002)."Żegota": The Council for Aid to Jews 1942–1945: Selected Documents: Preceded by an Interview with Władysław Bartoszewski by Andrzej Friszke.Rada Ochrony Pamięci Walk i Męczeństwa. p. 155.
  35. ^"17th Anniversary of the" Żegota "Monument Unveiling | Polscy Sprawiedliwi".sprawiedliwi.org.pl.Retrieved27 July2020.
  36. ^"W Łodzi uczczono pamięć Polaków ratujących Żydów".dzieje.pl(in Polish).Retrieved27 July2020.
  37. ^"W Łodzi uczczono pamięć Polaków ratujących Żydów".gazetaprawna.pl.24 March 2019.Retrieved27 July2020.
  38. ^ab"Upamiętnienia" Żegoty "| Polscy Sprawiedliwi".sprawiedliwi.org.pl.Retrieved27 July2020.

General

External links

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