#witold pilecki

[totallyhussein-blog]

How do we know, what we know? Meet Witold Pilecki!

Witold Pilecki is a celebrated hero in Poland. His story and sacrifice remained buried for over 40 years! Have you ever read 'The Volunteer' by Jack Fairweather or seen the film 'Pilecki's Report' over on Netflix?

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Now Playing: Sabaton - Heroes (2014)

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Witold Pilecki

The Brave Spirit that Defied the Holocaust

Michael Schudrich, the Chief Rabbi of Poland, wrote: "When G-d created the human being, G-d had in mind that we should all be like Captain Witold Pilecki, of blessed memory."

In the annals of human history, there are remarkable individuals whose courage, resilience, and sacrifice continue to inspire generations. Witold Pilecki, a Polish resistance fighter, and a hero of World War II is one such figure. His daring decision to infiltrate the Auschwitz concentration camp, and the unyielding spirit with which he faced the atrocities of the Holocaust, make him a beacon of hope and an epitome of humanity's strength in the face of unimaginable adversity.

Witold Pilecki was born on May 13, 1901, in Olonets, Russia (now in Karelia, Russia). His family later moved to Wilno, Poland (present-day Vilnius, Lithuania). Pilecki's life was shaped by a strong sense of duty and patriotism. At a young age, he joined the Polish Scouting Association, which instilled in him a love for his country and a commitment to serving his fellow citizens.

In 1918, Poland regained its independence, and Pilecki enlisted in the Polish Military Organization (POW). He went on to serve in the Polish-Soviet War (1919-1921), displaying exceptional leadership and bravery. Pilecki's military career laid the foundation for his later feats of valour during World War II.

As World War II engulfed Europe, Poland fell under the brutal occupation of Nazi Germany. Witnessing the horrors of the Holocaust and the plight of his fellow countrymen, Pilecki felt compelled to act. In 1940, he made the audacious decision to become a voluntary prisoner in Auschwitz, the infamous concentration camp.

Under the alias "Tomasz Serafinski," Pilecki's mission was to gather information about the atrocities occurring within the camp and to establish an underground resistance movement. His determination to expose the truth and fight against the Nazi regime was a testament to his unwavering commitment to the values of freedom and justice.

Once inside Auschwitz, Pilecki endured unimaginable suffering, witnessing the inhumane conditions, mass executions, and systematic cruelty inflicted upon millions of innocent lives. Despite facing the constant threat of discovery and execution, he continued his clandestine operations, smuggling out crucial intelligence to the Polish resistance and Allied forces.

In his reports, Pilecki detailed the appalling conditions, the extermination of Jews and other prisoners, and the industrial scale of genocide taking place at the camp. His documentation remains a vital historical record of the Holocaust and a chilling reminder of the depths humanity can sink to.

After nearly three years in Auschwitz, Pilecki escaped in April 1943. Rather than seeking safety, he joined the Polish Home Army and continued to fight against the Nazi occupation. He took part in the Warsaw Uprising of 1944, demonstrating his unyielding spirit and devotion to his country's liberation.

The end of World War II did not bring relief to Pilecki. Despite his extraordinary bravery and service, Poland fell under Soviet domination, and Pilecki faced persecution from the new communist authorities. In 1947, he was arrested, subjected to a show trial, and falsely accused of espionage and treason.

Tragically, on May 25, 1948, Witold Pilecki was executed by the communist regime. His death marked the loss of an exceptional patriot, whose sacrifice went largely unrecognised until later years.

Witold Pilecki's legacy endured through the efforts of historians and survivors who championed his memory. With the fall of communism in Poland, Pilecki's reputation was rightfully restored, and he is now recognized as a national hero. His selfless actions continue to inspire people worldwide, reminding us of the importance of standing up against injustice and oppression.

Witold Pilecki's life stands as a testament to the power of one person's determination to make a difference. His journey of courage, from a humble beginning to the depths of human suffering, continues to inspire and remind us of the indomitable spirit that resides within each of us. Witold Pilecki's name will forever be etched in history as a symbol of hope, a reminder that even in the darkest of times, one individual can shine a light and fight for a better tomorrow.

Witolds Report from Auschwitz: https://victimsofcommunism.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Raport-Witolda_EN.pdf

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Watch "Inmate 4859 – Witold Pilecki – Sabaton History 042 [Official]" on YouTube

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Tadeusz "Teddy" Pietrzykowski - Polish boxing champion who boxed in Auschwitz to survive

One of the first prisoners taken to the camp was 23-year old Polish boxer, Tadeusz "Teddy" Pietrzykowski. Before the war, Teddy was the bantamweight vice-champion of Poland and a champion of Warsaw. ''He was a student of the legendary Polish trainer Feliks Stamm, whom Pietrzykowski credits with having made a 'gentleman' out of him, by teaching him the meaning of Poland's national motto: ''God, Honour, Homeland''.'' (''The Boxer's Encounter with a Saint'', Joseph Czarnecki). After the Nazi invasion of Poland in September 1939, Pietrzykowski had hopes of joining the Polish army that was forming in France, as a fighter pilot, but he was arrested by the Germans on the Hungaro-Yugoslav border. He was transferred to Auschwitz in the first mass transportation. His camp number was 77. Once the prison guards became aware of his boxing talents they quickly forced him to compete for their entertainment. For Pietrzykowski, it was a fight for survival.

His first boxing opponent was Walter Dünning who, before the war, was a middleweight vice-champion of Germany. Dünning was 70kg, Pietrzykowski about 40/45kg. Dünning stopped the fight when he realised that he was losing, and Pietrzykowski got a loaf of bread and a bar of margarine as a prize.

More fights were to follow. Pietrzykowski threw himself into them, knowing full well that he risked death by starvation. For his fellow inmates, every blow he struck was a source of pride and hope. "We were elated. We said to ourselves, 'As long as there's a Pole punching a German in the face, Poland's not lost.'' His most celebrated Auschwitz match was against Schally Hottenach, a 96-kilo German. Teddy won with a second-round knockout. Those fights were like a hope transfusion in a place without hope. A Pole beating up a German in the German concentration camp, in the face of unspeakable horror. We are aware of 40 to 60 boxing matches. He lost only once – to a Jewish boxer, Leu Sanders, the Dutch light-middleweight champion. Eventually, Pietrzykowski won in a rematch. ''Sanders was a very good boxer, and in the fight with him I had to make the greatest effort of my life... His wife and children were gassed in Birkenau.'' (''The Boxer's Encounter with a Saint'', Joseph Czarnecki)

Pietrzykowski was collaborating with cavalry captain Witold Pilecki, who got into the camp voluntarily under a false name to gain proof of Nazi crimes and organise resistance. In his reports, Pilecki recalled Pietrzykowski as a boxer who shared the food he won with other resistance members.

One day Pietrzykowski noticed a guard severely maltreating Fr. Maximilian Kolbe (a Polish Catholic priest). The boxer decided to give the guard a lesson. He told the SS officers to stand up to him in a fist-fight. The Germans agreed and in the next moment the guard was knocked out on the ground with one blow. The beaten Kolbe asked Teddy to leave the guard in peace. Pietrzykowski met Father Maximilian once more. He gave him a piece of bread. The next day he learned that someone stole it from Kolbe. Pietrzykowski was enraged. He seized the thief but the Franciscan did not let to hurt him. “As I had a piece of bread in a pocket, I gave it to Kolbe and he, before my very eyes, gave it to the thief saying ‘he is also hungry’”, told Pietrzykowski.

On 14th of March, 1943, he was relocated to the Neuengamme camp near Hamburg, where he fought about 20 matches, and then to the Bergen-Belsen camp, where he was eventually liberated by British soldiers. After the liberation he joined the Polish 1st Armoured Division under Major General Maczek as a sports coach. Then he returned to Poland and became a PE teacher in Bielsko-Biała. He didn't pursue a boxing career after the war – he devoted himself to working with youth. In one of the gyms he worked in, he wrote a motivational slogan on the wall for his pupils: "To be, is to be the best."

[whattolearntoday]

A bit of September 19th history...

1888 - One of the 1st known modern beauty contests was held in Spa, Belgium

1893 - New Zealand becomes 1st country to grant all women the right to vote

1896 - Beginning of the Bombay plague epidemic with 1st case detected - goes on to spread and kill 12 million in India

1940 - Witold Pilecki is voluntarily captured and sent to Auschwitz in order to smuggle out information and start a resistance

1961 - Betty and Barney Hill claim they were abducted by aliens; 1st widely publicized report in the US (pictured)

1991 - Otzi the Iceman, 3300 BCE old mummy is discovered by German tourists in Italian Alps

2019 - North America has lost 3 billion birds, 29%, since 1970

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Witold Pilecki z matką Ludwiką i siostrą Marią (1905).

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Witold Pilecki, the Heroic Polish Spy Who Volunteered to Go to Auschwitz

Pilecki’s military career started when he joined the Polish Army to fight the Polish-Soviet War of 1919-1920, twice receiving the Cross of Valor for his courage and acumen in battle. In 1931, he married Maria Pilecka and had two children, Andrzej and Zofia. When the Germans invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, Pilecki was a cavalry platoon commander and took part in heavy fighting. 

As a captain in the Polish army and a member of the Polish underground resistance, Pilecki convinced his superiors to let him go to Auschwitz. He was arrested in Warsaw during a general roundup by the Germans on September 9, 1940, and was sent to the notorious camp then thought to be just for prisoners of war.

For two and half years, he collected data and found ways to get the information to the outside via the Polish resistance. 

In order to survive his ordeal, Pilecki found a way separate the pain in his body with what he describes as a type of exhilaration of “playing” these terrible men. “When the body was continuously in anguish, spiritually you felt sometimes - not to exaggerate – wonderfully”, he explained. “Pleasure began to get nested somewhere in your brain, both due to spiritual experiences and due to the interesting game, purely intellectual, which I was playing.”

While in the camp, Pilecki was hopeful that the Polish Resistance would be able to sabotage the camp or incite some sort of uprising, but Resistence felt they didn’t have the military force to do it. Even as the Allies, the Soviets, British and Americans were made aware of the camp’s unthinkable evil, none showed the will to do anything to destroy it.

Eventually, after two and half years of back breaking work, lice, freezing conditions, pneumonia, Pilecki realized that it was getting too dangerous for him to stay. He and a few other inmates escaped one night through a poorly secured door of a bakery he had been working in. He then wrote what became Witold’s Report, a comprehensive report on what was happening at Auschwitz for the Allies.

Pilecki took part in the Warsaw Uprising in August 1944 and ultimately survived the war. Auschwitz was finally liberated on January 27, 1945.

Pilecki’s luck ran out after the Soviets took over Poland. He remained loyal to the exiled Polish government in London and gathered intelligence on the Soviet movements within Poland. While doing so, he was arrested in 1947 and after a show trial in 1948, was executed.

For decades the communists suppressed his story until Poland was free again in 1989. On October 1, 1990, Pilecki was exonerated and five years later he was awarded posthumously the Order of the Polonia Restituta. In 2006, he was given Poland’s highest decoration, the Order of the White Eagle, and on September 6, 2013, he was given the rank of Colonel. A street has been named for him in Warsaw.