Alina Skibi ska Guide to the Sources on the Holocaust in Occupied Poland (Translated, revised and updated edition of the original Polish ródła dŚ badań nad zagładą ydów na okupowanych ziemiach polskich by Aliřa Skibińska, Warsaw, 2007) With the cooperation of: Co-authŚrs: Giles Beřřett, Marta Jařczewska, Dariusz LibiŚřka, WitŚld M dykŚwski, Jacek Ařdrzej Młyřarczyk, Jakub Petelewicz, MŚřika PŚlit Translator: Jessica Taylor-Kucia Editorial board: Giles Bennett, Michał Czajka, Dieter Pohl, Pascal Trees, Veerle Vanden Daelen European Holocaust Research Infrastructure (EHRI) 2014 2 Table of contents List of abbreviations 5 Preface 11 I Archives and Institutions 15 1. Archives managed by the Naczelna Dyrekcja Archiwów Polskich (Head Office of the State Archives) 17 2. The Emanuel Ringelblum Jewish Historical Institute 57 3. Iřstytut Pami ci NarŚdŚwej – KŚmisja cigařia Zbrodni przeciwko Narodowi Polskiemu (Institute of National Remembrance – Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation) 73 4. The Archives of Memorial Museums 89 5. Other museums, libraries, institutions and organizations in Poland, private collections, and Church files 6. 107 The Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum, and the Polish Underground Movement Study Trust in London; the Hoover Institution, Stanford University, California, USA 119 7. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington D.C., USA 133 8. Archives and institutions in Israel (WitŚld M dykŚwski) 145 9. Sources for Research into the Extermination of the Jews in Poland in German Archives (Jacek Ařdrzej Młyřarczyk, uśdated by Giles Bennett) 177 II. Sources 191 1. German administrative authorities and police 191 2. Judenrat files 203 3. The Underground Archive of the Warsaw Ghetto (ARG), the Ringelblum Archive (Ring. I and Ring. II) 223 4. 235 Files of welfare and aid institutions (Jakub Petelewicz) 3 5. Documents of the Polish Underground State concerning the extermination of the Jews (Dariusz Libionka) 251 6. Investigation, prosecution and court files 259 7. Prison and camp files 267 8. The press, public announcements, posters and ephemera, telephone and address books 277 9. First-person documentary literature: journals, memoirs, diaries, letters, eye-witness accounts (with the cooperation of Marta Janczewska) 301 10. Oral History 313 11. Memorial books (with the cooperation of Monika Polit) 325 12. Other archival sources 333 13. Photography, film, material objects 347 Index of names 364 Index of places 371 Selected bibliography 383 Address information 431 4 List of abbreviations AAN – Archiwum Akt Nowych (Central Archive of Modern Records) ABW – Ageřcja Bezśieczeństwa Wewř trzřegŚ (Iřterřal Security Ageřcy) AIPN – Archiwum Iřstytutu Pami ci NarŚdŚwej (Archive Śf the Iřstitute Śf NatiŚřal Remembrance) AJDC – American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee AK – Armia Krajowa (Home Army) AMIA – Association of Moving Image Archivists ANK – Archiwum Narodowe w Krakowie (National Archive in Kraków) AP – Archiwum PaństwŚwe (State Archive) APW – Archiwum PaństwŚwe w Warszawie (State Archive iř Warsaw) ARG – Podziemne Archiwum Getta Warszawskiego / Archiwum Ringelbluma (Underground Archive of Warsaw Ghetto, Ringelblum Archive) AW – Agencja Wywiadu (Foreign Intelligence Agency) BCh – BataliŚřy ChłŚśskie (Peasařts’ BattaliŚřs) BIP – Biuro Informacji i Propagandy (Office of Information and Propaganda) [of ZWZ-AK] BIPN – Biuletyn Instytutu Pamięci NarŚdŚwej (Bulletin of the Institute of National Remembrance) BN – Biblioteka Narodowa (National Library) BRD – Bundesrepublik Deutschland (Federal Republic of Germany) BUJ – BibliŚteka JagiellŚńska w KrakŚwie (JagiellŚřiař Uřiversity Library iř Kraków) B IH – Biuletyn ydŚwskiegŚ Instytutu HistŚrycznegŚ (Bulletin of the Jewish Historical Institute) CAHS – Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies ChGK – Chrezvychaynaya Gosudarstvennaya Komissiya (Extraordinary State Commission) [for the Investigation of Nazi Crimes on Occupied Soviet Territory] CHC – Central Historical Commission [of the Central Committee of Liberated Jews in the US Zone] CK P – Ceřtralřy KŚmitet ydów w PŚlsce (Ceřtral CŚmmittee Śf the Jews iř PŚlařd) COIA – Ceřtralřy O rŚdek IřfŚrmacji Archiwalřej (Archival IřfŚrmatiŚř Ceřtre) CZA – Central Zionist Archives C KH – Ceřtralřa ydŚwska KŚmisja HistŚryczřa (Ceřtral Jewish HistŚrical CŚmmissiŚř) DDR – Deutsche Demokratische Republik (German Democratic Republic) DP – Displaced Persons 5 DR – Delegatura Rz du [řa Kraj] (GŚverřmeřt DelegatiŚř fŚr [Śccuśied] PŚlařd) FIAF – International Federation of Film Archives FPO – Fareynikte Partizaner Organizatsye (United Partisan Organization) FRG – see BRD GDR – see DDR GG – Generalgouvernement (General Government) GKBZHwP – Główřa KŚmisja Badařia ZbrŚdři HitlerŚwskich w Polsce (Main Commission for the Investigation of Hitlerite Crimes in Poland) [1949-1984] GKBZpNP IPN – Główřa KŚmisja Badařia ZbrŚdři śrzeciwkŚ NarŚdŚwi PŚlskiemu – Instytut Pami ci NarŚdŚwej (Maiř CŚmmissiŚř fŚr the IřvestigatiŚř Śf Crimes agaiřst the PŚlish Nation – Institute of National Remembrance) [1991-1999] HAOP – Hauptamt der Ordnungspolizei (Order Police headquarters) HIA – Hoover Institution Archives HIAS – Hebrew Sheltering and Immigrant Aid Society HPN – Hakirot pishe Hanatzim (Investigations into Nazi Crimes) [Haifa] HSSPF-Ost – Der Höhere SS- und Polizeiführer Ost (Senior SS and Police Leader in the East) IDO – Institut für Deutsche Ostarbeit (Institute for German Work in the East) IH PAN – Instytut Historii Polskiej Akademii Nauk (Institute of History at the Polish Academy of Sciences) IH UW – Instytut Historyczny Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego (Institute of History at the University of Warsaw) IPN – Iřstytut Pami ci NarŚdŚwej (Iřstitute Śf NatiŚřal Remembrařce) IPN-K ZśNP – Iřstytut Pami ci Narodowej – KŚmisja cigařia ZbrŚdři śrzeciwkŚ NarŚdŚwi Polskiemu (Institute of National Remembrance – Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation) [since 1999] IZL – Irgun Tzvai Leumi (Jewish Military Organization) JCIO – Jewish Central Information Office JNUL – Jewish National and University Library JUS – Jüdische Unterstützungsstelle für das Generalgouvernement (Central Office for Aid to Jews in the General Government) KC PZPR – Komitet Centralny Polskiej Zjednoczonej Partii Robotniczej (Central Committee of the PŚlish Uřited WŚrkers’ Party) 6 KL – Konzentrationslager (concentration camp) KPON – KŚmitet PŚrŚzumiewawczy Orgařizacji NieśŚdległŚ ciŚwych (CŚmmittee Śf Understanding of Independence Organizations) KRN – Krajowa Rada Narodowa (State National Council) KWC – Kierownictwo Walki Cywilnej (Directorate of Civil Resistance) MBP – MiřisterstwŚ Bezśieczeństwa PubliczřegŚ (Miřistry Śf Public Security) MO – Milicja Obywatelska (Civic Militia) MPiOS – MinisterstwŚ Pracy i Ośieki SśŚłeczřej (Miřistry Śf LabŚur ařd SŚcial Welfare) MSZ – Ministerstwo Spraw Zagranicznych (Ministry of Foreign Affairs) NDAP – Naczelřa Dyrekcja Archiwów PaństwŚwych [w PŚlsce] (Head Office Śf the State Archives [in Poland]) NLI – National Library of Israel NRO – Naczelřa Rada Ośiekuńcza (Suśreme Welfare CŚuřcil) NSDAP – NatiŚřalsŚzialistische Deutsche Arbeiter Partei (NatiŚřal SŚcialist Germař WŚrkers’ Party) [the Nazi Party] NSZ – NarŚdŚwe Siły ZbrŚjře (NatiŚřal Armed FŚrces) NTN – Najwy szy Trybuřał NarŚdŚwy (Suśreme NatiŚřal Tribuřal) NZO – New Zionist Organization NZW – NarŚdŚwy Zwi zek WŚjskŚwy (NatiŚřal Military UřiŚř) OD – Ordnungsdienst (Order Service) OKW – Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (German Army High Command) ORT – Obshchestvo Razprostranienia Truda sredi Yevreyev (Organization for Rehabilitation through Training) OT – Organisation Todt PAN – Polska Akademia Nauk (Polish Academy of Sciences) PCK – PŚlski CzerwŚřy Krzy (PŚlish Red CrŚss) PKB – PaństwŚwy KŚrśus Bezśieczeństwa (NatiŚřal Security CŚrśs) PKWN – Polski Komitet Wyzwolenia Narodowego (Polish Committee of National Liberation) PMAB – PaństwŚwe Muzeum Auschwitz-Birkenau (Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum) PMM – PaństwŚwe Muzeum řa Majdařku (State Museum at Majdanek) PPR – PŚlska Partia RŚbŚtřicza (PŚlish WŚrkers’ Party) PPS – Polska Partia Socjalistyczna (Polish Socialist Party) 7 PRL – PŚlska Reśublika LudŚwa (PŚlish PeŚśle’s Reśublic) PS – PrzełŚ Śřy Starszeństwa ydów (Head Śf the CŚuřcil Śf Jewish Elders) [Łód ghettŚ] PZPR – PŚlska ZjedřŚczŚřa Partia RŚbŚtřicza (PŚlish Uřited WŚrkers’ Party) RGO – Rada Główřa Ośiekuńcza (Ceřtral Welfare CŚuřcil) RKF – Reichskommisariat für die Festigung deutschen Volkstums (Reich Commissioner for the Strengthening of German Nationhood) RN – Rada Narodowa (National Council) ROPWiM – Rada OchrŚřy Pami ci Walki i M czeństwa (CŚuřcil fŚr the PrŚtectiŚř Śf MemŚry Śf Struggle and Martyrdom) RSHA – Reichssicherheitshauptamt (Reich Main Security Office) RuSHA – Rasse- und Siedlungshauptamt SS (SS Race and Settlement Main Office) SD – Sicherheitsdienst (Security Service) SPP – Studium Polski Podziemnej (Polish Underground Movement Study Trust) SS – Schutzstaffel (Protection Corps) SS-WVHA – SS Wirtschafts- und Verwaltungshauptamt (SS Main Economic and Administrative Department) SZP – Słu ba Zwyci stwu PŚlski (Service fŚr PŚlařd’s VictŚry) TOZ – Towarzystwo Ochrony Zdrowia (Health Care Organization) TSK – TŚwarzystwŚ SśŚłeczřŚ-Kulturalne ydów w PŚlsce, (Jewish SŚcial ařd Cultural Association in Poland) ULI – Israel Union Catalogue ULS – Union List of Serials UNWCC – United Nations War Crimes Commission USHMM – United States Holocaust Memorial Museum WSK – WŚjskŚwa Słu ba KŚbiet (WŚmeř’s Military Service) WZO – World Zionist Organization YV – Yad Vashem YVA – Yad Vashem Archives YVS – Yad Vashem Studies ZBoWiD – Zwi zek BŚjŚwřików Ś WŚlřŚ ć i DemŚkracj (SŚciety Śf Fighters fŚr FreedŚm ařd Democracy) 8 IH – ydŚwski Iřstytut HistŚryczřy im. Emanuela Ringelbluma (Emanuel Ringelblum Jewish Historical Institute) KH – ydŚwski KŚmisja HistŚryczřa (Jewish HistŚrical CŚmmissiŚř) KN – ydŚwski KŚmitet NarŚdŚwy (Jewish NatiŚřal CŚmmittee) OB – ydŚwska Orgařizacja BŚjŚwa (Jewish CŚmbat OrgařizatiŚř) ZPP – Zwi zek PatriŚtów PŚlskich [w ZSRR] (Union of Polish Patriots [in the USSR]) SS – ydŚwska SamŚśŚmŚc SśŚłeczřa (Jewish SŚcial Self-Help) ZWZ – Zwi zek Walki ZbrŚjřej (UřiŚř fŚr Armed Struggle) ZW – ydŚwski Zwi zek WŚjskŚwy (Jewish Military UřiŚř) 9 10 Preface This book is a revised and updated version of the 2007 published Guide which provided the first overview of sources on the Holocaust in the occupied Polish territories. Published in Polish in 2007, this updated version is the first such guide available in English on the topic. It describes archives and other institutions which hold source materials on the topic both inside Poland and abroad and provides the reader with information about the types of sources and their creators. Until the 2007 Guide was written, there was a dearth of basic archival and bibliographic information that would aid orientation in this vast mass of material generated in many different languages and scattered across many archives, museums and libraries throughout the world. The only prior publication of this type is one issued by the Head Office of the State Archives in Poland in 2001, ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce (Archival Sources for Jewish History in Poland)1, a part of which addresses the subject of the Holocaust. This Guide was devised as a finding aid for all Holocaust scholars, in particular those just embarking on independent research and study of this subject. It will undoubtedly help them to find their way around the holdings of archives and museums alike, offer them insight into the diversity and uniqueness of the sources, and thus contribute to furthering interdisciplinary study, and encourage people to tackle areas as yet unresearched or insufficiently examined. As the main author of this publication I would be very pleased if it inspired historians, sociologists, psychologists, lawyers, scholars of literature and specialists of other scholarly disciplines to undertake research into the Holocaust. I hope, too, that even those who have long been students of the history of World War II and the Holocaust – many of them authors of outstanding academic works – will find in this volume information that is new to them and could prove useful in their future work. It is designed to aid all those with an interest in identifying and accessing the right archive and the most appropriate sources, though it will not relieve anyone of the necessity of undertaking their own research and laborious, time-consuming archival searches. The Guide falls into two parts. Part I discusses archives and other institutions whose collections include documents relevant to Holocaust research. Most of these are Polish archives and museums, ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, cŚllective wŚrk, schŚlarly editiŚřs. BŚlesław WŚszczyński ařd ViŚletta Urbařiak, Naczelřa Dyrekcja Archiwów PaństwŚwych. Zakład NaukŚwy Archiwistyki, Warszawa 2001. 1 11 but in view of the nature of this field of study it would have been impossible to ignore the most important foreign archives with collections of fundamental significance for research into the World War II period and the Holocaust. Thus, separate chapters look, while not at all, certainly at the most important archives and other institutions in Israel, Germany, the United States of America, and Great Britain. In Part II the different types of sources are discussed, ordered by the issuer of the files, or by typological similarity. It is not within the remit of this publication to undertake criticism of these sources, though sometimes it was difficult to avoid making a brief comment on the type of documents being discussed and including information on the extent to which they have to date been exploited in the research. In the many footnotes we have attempted to direct readers to the primary literature on a given topic, as well as to source publications and studies. Nevertheless, these do not offer a full overview of the state of the research or a definitive assessment of the achievements of historiography in a given field. The information on databases (see the third part of the 2007 publication) has been included in the texts of Part I. The websites mentioned are not dated in the text or references. They were consulted by the author either in the preparation of the first edition or in the preparation of this English edition. A brief exślařatiŚř Śf the territŚrial scŚśe Śf this wŚrk, defiřed as “Śccuśied PŚlařd”, is iř Śrder. “Occuśied PŚlish territŚry” refers tŚ PŚlařd iř its śrewar bŚrders. HŚwever, this Guide discusses archival materials stored in archives in present-day Poland, as well as some archives abroad relating to the broad field of study that is the Holocaust. If we reduced the scope to Poland in its September 1939 bŚrders, we wŚuld have tŚ exclude sŚme cŚllectiŚřs frŚm the State Archives iř WrŚcław, Szczecin and the Institute of National Remembrance, and include archival holdings in Ukraine, Lithuania, Belarus and Russia. For a long time, access to these archives was either impossible or extremely difficult, and to a certain extent it still is. Among the finding aids available for archival holdings in the East are guides to these archives published in recent years, materials accessible in institutions such as The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. and Yad Vashem in Jerusalem, and extensive scholarly works based on in-depth searches in those archives that have now been published. Of course, German archives (above all the Bundesarchiv) hold many of the Holocaust-related administrative files on occupied Poland. In practice, then, the materials discussed here reference the Polish lands (in their prewar or postwar boundaries) which found 12 themselves under German occupation from September 1939 or June 1941 and for which there is archival material held in the institutions profiled in this Guide. The vast majority of these materials naturally reference the lands within the borders of the Generalgouvernement (General Government), established in October 1939, but the Guide is not restricted to these areas. We took as our guiding principle the assumption that its practical purpose had to take precedence over rigid territorial or chronological criteria. It is important to add that as well as archival institutions in Ukraine, Lithuania, Belarus and Russia, some archives in the United States and Great Britain also hold interesting, important materials for Holocaust research. Foremost among these are the National Archives and Records Administration and the YIVO Institute in the United States, and the National Archives in Britain. Both these and other institutions in Western countries have websites that are generally speaking well designed and contain the basic information about their holdings. When looking for suitable materials for a research topic, it is always important to remember that files and other sources on the Holocaust are very diverse and scattered, and finding the right ones may sometimes simply be a question of chance. The reason for this is not only the international reach and character of World War II, but also the postwar emigration of Jews who survived the Holocaust to Palestine, later Israel, and many other countries all over the world. When they left Poland, they took with them their most precious mementoes – documents, photographs, letters, albums and diaries, many of which later found their way into museum and archive collections abroad. I would like to thank my co-authors, translator and editorial board, whose knowledge and skills broadened considerably the scope of the themes discussed here. Warsaw, 23 December 2014 Aliřa Skibińska 13 14 I Archives and Institutions 15 16 1 Archives managed by the Naczelna Dyrekcja Archiwów Pa stwŚwych w Polsce (Head Office of the State Archives in Poland) This chapter will examine the holdings of selected state archives that contain the most important Holocaust-related materials. Some archives, in particular smaller ones or branch offices, do not have files generated by German administrative offices, institutions or organizations from the Second World War period, or have few such materials (isolated collections or very scattered documents), and these have been passed over (for an example of typical holdings in this kind of archives, see the ŁŚwicz case below). This does not mean that they are not worth consulting, even where documentation on the period of the occupation and history of the extermination of the Jews is scant or secondary, indirect, and generated after the war. The archives in question here are those in BiałystŚk, BŚchřia, BŚlesławiec, BydgŚszcz, Chełm, Cieszyř, Elbl g (based iř MalbŚrk), Ełk, Gdyřia, Gliwice, GřiezřŚ, GŚrzów WielkŚśŚlski, IřŚwrŚcław, Jeleřia Góra, Kalisz, Kamieřiec Z bkŚwicki, KŚřiř, KŚszaliř, Kra řik, KutřŚ, Legřica, LeszřŚ, Ł czyca, ŁŚm a, Mi dzyzdrŚje, Mława, Nidzica, NŚwy S cz, NŚwy Targ 2 , Olsztyř, O wi cim, Piła, PłŚck, Pszczyřa, Pułtusk, Racibórz, Radzyń PŚdlaski, SařŚk, Sieradz, Słuśsk, Stargard Szczeciński, Suwałki, Szczeciřek, Tarřów, TŚmaszów MazŚwiecki, TŚruń, WłŚcławek, ZielŚřa Góra, ařd ywiec. The hŚldiřgs concerning the period 1939-19ėĘ iř Śther state archives are discussed Śř the basis Śf the authŚr’s own research experience, spanning more than a decade, and the publication issued by the NDAP, ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce (Archival Sources on the History of the Jews in Poland). This book was published as a deliverable of a symposium organized in 1999 by the NDAP on the subject of archival holdings on the history of the Jews in Polish and Israeli archival collections. The various record groups are indicated and described in very general terms, using abbreviated designations of document types and themes. When planning archival research, the scholar should make use of the information on the holdings of particular archives available in published guides, the most important of which is Archiwa PaństwŚwe w PŚlsce. PrzewŚdnik śŚ zasŚbach3 (The State Archives in Poland. A Guide to Holdings, further: Guide to the State Archives). This contains an extensive This archive hŚlds Śře very iřterestiřg recŚrd grŚuś (RG ę91), Zarz d Miejski w NŚwym Targu 1919-1945 (City Administration of Nowy Targ 1919-1945), in which scholars will find a large number of documents from the period of the occupation directly concerning the fate of the Jews, including censuses, inventories of Jewish real property, lists of organizations and associations, documents on security and public order, a list of prisoners in the prison alongside the local court of first instance (Sąd GrŚdzki), posters and public announcements. 3 Ed. A. Biernat and A. Laszuk, Warszawa 1998. 2 17 bibliography of all the finding aids and studies on the holdings of each archive. This publication has in places become outdated, and for this reason the primary source of information should always be the employees of a given archive and the information on the fonds in the centralized databases accessible online (http://www.archiwa.gov.pl): • The database “ŃesśŚły archiwalne” This is an integrated database containing data from the SEZAM and ZoSiA (Zintegrowany System IřfŚrmacji Archiwalřej) databases, curreřtly uřder the jŚiřt řame “ZesśŚły archiwalře”. It is connected with the service http://www.szukajwarchiwach.pl managed by the National Digital Archives. It offers internet access to profiles of materials and scans of those materials, which may be used free of charge. The search eřgiře “ZesśŚły archiwalře” cŚřtaiřs iřfŚrmatiŚř Śř the archival fonds stored in the State Archives and in over a dozen other institutions, including Archiwum Polskiej Akademii Nauk (the Archive of the Polish Academy of Sciences) in Warsaw and its branch Śffice iř PŚzřań, BibliŚteka Uřiwersytecka w Warszawie (BUW, the University of Warsaw Library), Główřa BibliŚteka Lekarska im. Stařisława KŚřŚśki w Warszawie (the Stařisław KŚřŚśka Central Medical Library in Warsaw), ařd Iřstytut Józefa PiłsudskiegŚ (the JŚzef Pilsudski Iřstitute Śf America) and Polski Instytut Naukowy (the Polish Institute of Arts and Sciences of America) in New YŚrk. It is uśdated every year iř Ceřtralřy O rŚdek IřfŚrmacji Archiwalřej (COIA, the Archival Information Centre). The profile of every record group in the database includes the following information: number and name of the record group, originator of the files, start and end dates, size (no. of archival units and linear metres), state of processing (e.g. existing finding aids) and place of storage. The profiles of some record groups are supplemented with a history of their originators, a brief overview of their content, information on the language of the documents, and the conditions of access. If a given record group has an electronic inventory, this is included in the profile. If there are digital copies of documents in a given record group, they are presented on the internet in the form of links in the grŚuś’s śrŚfile. Archival iřveřtŚries are furřished with iřtrŚductiŚřs that cŚřtaiř iřfŚrmatiŚř Śř the history of the originator of the record group and other documentation, written by employees of the State Archives; the authŚrs’ řames are giveř at the eřd Śf each iřtrŚductiŚř. These texts are protected in law and use of them should not violate the Act of 4 February 1994 on Copyright and Related Rights. 18 • Baza o inwentarzach archiwalnych (IZA, Inventories of Archival Fonds) This system contains information on files, technical documentation and cartographic materials. In all, it includes the inventories of 19,700 fonds. The database on archival inventories incorporates: – Iřweřtarze ZesśŚłów Archiwalřych (IZA, IřveřtŚries Śf archival fŚřds) frŚm the State Archives and a number of other institutions. – Inwentarze dokumentacji technicznej (the KITA, or Computer Technical Information database). – Inwentarze dokumentacji kartograficznej (MAPY, inventories of cartographic materials) • Ewidencja ludnŚ ci w archiwaliach (ELA, archival population records) This database constitutes a register of various censuses, including lists, comparisons, records, card files, aside from birth and registry office certificates (see the PRADZIAD database). The information may be searched by criteria including place name, or using a subject classification created specially for this database. ELA does not contain a list of the names featured in the documents or information on specific individuals. • Ksi gi materykalne i stanu cywilnegŚ (PRADZIAD, registry office records and community registers) This database contains information on the community registers and registry office records held in all the State Archives and a number of other institutions, as well as the Jewish community and Roman CathŚlic śarish registers held iř Urz d Stařu CywilřegŚ m.st. Warszawy-Archiwum (the Archive of the Warsaw Registry Office, alsŚ křŚwř as Archiwum zabu ańskie, the archive fŚr the regiŚř east Śf the river Bug). The PRADZIAD database does not contain a list of the names featured in the documents or information on specific individuals. The materials are gathered in the database according to a unified model: place name, administrative status, confession/rite, confession (usually only where there were several parishes of the same confession in a single place), type of registry office document, dates, microfilms, information on accessibility of files, location of materials, record group name and number, and comments. 19 ARCHIWUM AKT NOWYCH W WARSZAWIE (AAN, THE CENTRAL ARCHIVE OF MODERN RECORDS IN WARSAW4) AAN is the largest of the Polish state archives, with some 2,700 fonds. It gathers documents generated in the twentieth century by central authorities and state administrative bodies, the judicature, autonomous central offices, and central political, society, vocational, cultural, educational, economic, and financial and credit institutions, as well as the legacies and papers of major figures, not only from the world of politics, and materials which do not fall within the remit of archives (e.g. Polish files from outside Poland but handed over to Poland). Following the systemic transformation ařd the wiřdiřg uś Śf the PŚlska ZjedřŚczŚřa Partia RŚbŚtřicza (PZPR, PŚlish Uřited WŚrkers’ Party), the extensive collections of the party archives (until 1989 gathered in the Central Archive of the śarty’s Ceřtral CŚmmittee [KC PZPR]) passed to the AAN. The holdings of this archive are śrŚfiled iř ař article by Adam GrzegŚrz D brŚwski5 which profiles the entire collection from the perspective of the history of the Jewish community in Poland; here, we shall be focusing solely on documentation relating to the World War II period. Among the most important record groups on the Holocaust and the war śeriŚd he cŚuřts the files Śf the Delegatura Rz du RP řa Kraj, 19ė0-1945 (Government Delegation for Poland, 1940-1945, RG 1325), which is furnished with useful finding aid (made by archivists): alphabetical card indexes on the concentration camps and ghettos for the Jews in the General Government.6 In terms of Holocaust research, the most important departments of the Delegation were as follows: Archiwum Akt Nowych. Informator o zasobie archiwalnym, cŚmśiled by E. KŚłŚdziej, vŚl. 1-2, Warszawa 2009; Archiwum Akt Nowych w Warszawie. Przewodnik po zasobie archiwalnym, ed. M. Motas, Warszawa 1973; Centralne Archiwum KC PZPR. Informator, compiled by A. Janowski, Z. Szczygielski, Warszawa 1978; Centralne Archiwum KC PZPR. Przewodnik po zasobie akt do 1948 r., Warszawa 1989; InfŚrmatŚr Ś zasŚbie archiwalnym Zakładu HistŚrii Partii przy KC PZPR, compiled by F. Melcer, ed. A. Janowski, Warszawa 1960. 5 A.G. D brŚwski, “ ródła dŚ dziejów sśŚłeczřŚ ci ydŚwskiej w PŚlsce w zasŚbie Archiwum Akt NŚwych”, [in:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, (ed.) B. WŚszczyński, V. Urbaniak, Warszawa 2001, pp. 57-70. 6 These card iřdexes cŚver the ghettŚs iř Bełchatów, Beł ec, Bereza Kartuska, B dziř, Biała PŚdlaska, BiałystŚk, Bli yř, BŚchřia, BŚdzeřtyř, BŚgŚria, BŚrszczów, BŚrysław, Bóbrka, BrŚdy, Brze ć, Brzeziřy, Brze ařy, Buczacz, Bukaczowce, Busk, Chabielice, Chełm PŚmŚrski, ChełmřŚ, Chmielřik, Choms [unknown location], Chrzanów, Ciechanów, Czepielin, Cz stŚchŚwa, CzŚrtków, Czy ew Szlachecki, D brŚwa Górřicza, D bie, D břŚ, D bliř, DrŚhŚbycz, Ejszyszki, Faleřica, G biř, Gł bŚkie, GŚstyřiř, GrajewŚ, GrŚchŚlice, GrŚdřŚ, Gródek JagiellŚński, Grójec, Hařcewicze, Hrubieszów, Iwaniska, Izbica, Janowo Poleskie [properly Janów Poleski], Jaremcze, Jaryczów NŚwy, JawŚrów, J drzejów, Kalisz, Kałuszyř, KamiŚřka, Kielce, Kleck, KlimŚřtów, KłŚdawa, KŚbiel [properly KŚłbiel], KŚluszki, KŚłŚ, KŚńskie, KŚńskŚwŚla, KŚśrzywřica, KŚśyczyńce, KŚsów, KŚwřŚ, KŚszedŚry, KŚwel, KŚ miřek, Kraków, Kra řik, Krzemieniec, Kutno, Lachowicze, Legionowo, Lida, Lubaczów, Lublin, Lwów, ŁagŚwŚ, Ł czřa, Ł czřŚ, Ł czyca, ŁŚchów, ŁŚm a, ŁŚsice, Łód , Łuck, Łuków, Majdan, Miedzeszyř, Mielec, Mi dzyrzec, Mińsk MazŚwiecki, Mińsk, Mir, Mława, MŚłŚdeczřŚ, Mszařa DŚlřa, Nied wiedzice, Nie wie , NŚwe MiastŚ, NŚwŚwilejka [properly Nowa Wilejka], NŚwy Dwór, Ośatów, OśŚczřŚ, OśŚle Lubelskie, OstrŚwiec, Ostrów MazŚwiecka, OtwŚck, OzŚrków, O arów, Pabiařice, Pacařów, Parczew, Piaski, Pilica, Pińczów, Pińsk, PiŚřki, PiŚtrków, PłŚńsk, Podhajce, Poniatów [properly Poniatowa], PŚřiewie , PŚzřań, Pren [unknown location], Przemy l, RadŚm, RadŚmskŚ, Radzymiř, Radzyń, Raków, Rawa Ruska, Rembertów, Rejowiec, Rohatyn, Równe, Rudka, Rzeszów, Sadowne, Sambor, Sandomierz, Sanniki, Siedlce, 4 20  Deśartameřt Sśraw Wewř trzřych (Deśartmeřt Śf Iřterřal Affairs – Security), above all files 26-28, whose content includes the personal files of Jews who collaborated with the Germans, and registration data from the Warsaw ghetto for the years 1941-1943. These are some of the most important documents for anyone researching the Polish Underground State.  Departament Informacji i Prasy (Department of Information and Press), which covers areas such as radio tapping, reviews of the underground press, and information on the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising and German propaganda.  Rada PŚmŚcy ydŚm „ egŚta” (“ egŚta” CŚuřcil tŚ Aid Jews), documents from 1942- 19ėė, iřcludiřg reśŚrts Śř the ŚrgařizatiŚř’s wŚrk, Śř the situatiŚř iř the ghettŚs ařd frŚm liquidation actions, and lists of fighters from the Warsaw Ghetto. At this point it is also worth mentioning the collections of bills and posters7, ephemera, the legal press published in various countries, and underground press (Zbiór prasy konspiracyjnej i śŚwstańczej 1939-1945, RG 1583), including 1282 titles (among them a collection of more than 100 titles that came out in Warsaw during the Warsaw city rising of 1944), published by the Armia KrajŚwa (AK, HŚme Army), Armia LudŚwa (AL, PeŚśle’s Army), PŚlska Partia SŚcjalistyczřa (PPS, Polish Socialist Party), Stronnictwo Narodowe (SN, National Party) and all other political parties and organizations. However, the second most important institution in Poland holding materials from this category is the Biblioteka Narodowa (National Library) in Warsaw.8 The AAN also holds some of the files of the Polish Government-in-Exile (Rz d RzeczyśŚsśŚlitej PŚlski řa UchŚd stwie) 19391945, among them those of its Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Ministerstwo Spraw Zagranicznych, MSZ) ařd Miřistry Śf LabŚur ařd SŚcial Welfare (MiřisterstwŚ Pracy i Ośieki SśŚłeczřej, MPiOS). 9 These have been profiled by B. Kroll in a separate article.10 Supplementary to these materials are the Sieniawa, Skałat, Skar yskŚ, Skierřiewice, SłŚřim, SŚbŚlew, SŚkal, SŚkŚłów, SŚmśŚlřŚ, SŚsřŚwiec, Stařisławów, Starachowice, Staszów, Stoczek, Stopnica, Strzemieszyce, Stryj, Suchedniów, Szawle, Szczerców, Szczewe [unknown location], SzydłŚwiec, wi ty Krzy , TarřŚgród, Tarřów, Tłuszcz, Tłuste, TŚmaszów, Trawřiki, TrembŚwla, TrŚki, Uhanie [properly Uchanie], Ulita [proper Olita], Ujazd, WadŚwice, Warszawa, W grów, Wieliczka, Wilejka, WilřŚ, WłŚdawa, WłŚdzimierz WŚłyński, WłŚszczŚwa, WŚlbrŚm, WŚłkŚwysk, WŚłŚmiř, Woronowo [properly Woronów], Zagórów, Zaklików, Zambrów, ZamŚ ć, Zawady, ZawichŚst, Zbara , Zbrów [properly Zborów], Zduńska WŚla, ZłŚczów, arki, ychliř ařd yrardów. 7 http://archiwa.gov.pl/galeria.html?catid=201&lang=pl&template=archiwa_edu. 8 Many press titles, posters, books and prints of all other types are now accessible online at www.polona.pl. 9 The most important archive materials of the Polish Government-in-Exile are held in the Archives of the Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum in London, and in the collections of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University in Stanford, CA. 10 B. KrŚll, “Akta śŚlskich władz emigracyjřych řa ZachŚdzie z Śkresu drugiej wŚjřy wiatŚwej, śrzechŚwywaře w Archiwum Akt NŚwych w Warszawie”, Archeion, 1965, R. XLII. 21 Akta Ignacego Schwarzbarta 11 1939-1940 (Ignacy Schwarzbart Files, RG 543). Schwarzbart was a member of the Rada Narodowa (National Council) of the Polish Government-in-Exile and the representative of the Jewish minority in that government. This record group comprises all Schwarzbart’s files frŚm his time iř Frařce iř 1939-1940, as well as some sets of his papers from other periods, above all correspondence, notes, press cuttings, and articles written for print; file no. 13 cŚřtaiřs Śfficial śriřted matter Śf the NatiŚřal CŚuřcil ařd tyśescriśts Śf Schwarzbart’s speeches. Two important record groups on the Polish armed forces are:  Armia Krajowa 1942-1945 (AK, the Home Army, RG 1326), files include those of its Jewish Department, which gathered information on the fate of the Jewish population in the Polish lands 12 ařd served as the basis fŚr the cŚmśilatiŚř Śf the “black bŚŚks Śf Nazi crimes”, ařd  NarŚdŚwe Siły ZbrŚjře 19ė2-1945 (NSZ, the National Armed Forces, RG 1329). This is devoted to the military formation established in September 1942 on the initiative of a number of right-wiřg uřdergrŚuřd grŚuśs (NarŚdŚwy Zwi zek WŚjskŚwy [the NatiŚřal Military Union], Zwi zek Jaszczurczy [the Lizard UřiŚř], ařd Śthers). Pursuařt tŚ ař agreemeřt sigřed iř March 1944, one faction of the NSZ merged with the AK, while another group, known as Brygada wi tŚkrzyska (the “ wi tŚkrzyska Brigade”), left PŚlish territory and, with the acquiescence of the Germans, relocated to Western Europe. Some units of the NSZ remained very active after the war, fighting the new Communist regime. It is charged with a great many anti-Jewish campaigns and provocations both during the occupation and after the war. It published many underground papers, including Szaniec (Entrenchment), Agencja (Agency) and Narodowa Agencja Prasowa (National Press Ageřcy). This archive alsŚ hŚlds the files Śf the SśŚłeczřy KŚmitet AřtykŚmuřistyczřy ANTYK 1942-1944 (ANTYK Anti-Communist Committee, RG 1346), which include registration information and reports on the situation of the Jews. As the central repository for files created after 1918, the AAN is in possession of collections of German files as crucial to study of the World War II period as Regierung des Generalgouvernements 11 The AAN has Śřly cŚśies; the mŚst imśŚrtařt, Śrigiřal materials relatiřg tŚ Igřacy Schwarzbart’s wŚrk are held in the Yad Vashem archive ařd iř Iřstytut Pami ci NarŚdŚwej (IPN, the Iřstitute Śf NatiŚřal Remembrařce). Cf. D. Stola, Nadzieja i Zagłada. Ignacy Schwarzbart – ydŚwski śrzedstawiciel w Radzie NarŚdŚwej RP (1940-1945), Warszawa 1995. 12 There are also sizeable collections of Home Army High Command documents in the archival holdings of the IPN, the Centralne Archiwum Wojskowe (Central Military Archives) in Rembertów, and the Studium Polski Podziemnej (Polish Underground Movement Study Trust) in London. Materials of local structures of the AK and other underground formations should also be sought in local state archives and branches or delegations of the IPN. 22 1939-1945 (the Government of the General Government in Krakow 1939-1945, RG 11113), Der Stadthauptmann in Lemberg 1941-1945 (the City Governor in Lwów, RG 540), Reichskommissar für die Behandlung feindlichen Vermögens im GG 1940-1944 (the Commissar for Enemy Property in the GG in Krakow 1940-1944, RG 115), and others (some of which are described in more detail in Part II of this Guide). The fŚllŚwiřg grŚuśs iř the AAN’s hŚldiřgs are also of note to Holocaust schŚlars: Dzieřřiki, krŚřiki i śami třiki 1939-1945 (Diaries, chronicles and memoirs 1939-1945, RG 13ė9), iřcludiřg thŚse Śf Aurelia Wyle yńska, Zuzařřa Rabska, Ludwik Lařdau, Haliřa Krahelska, ařd the “Ařdrzej” chrŚřicle14; Zbiór materiałów dŚtycz cych zbrŚdři hitlerŚwskich w PŚlsce 19ėė1947 (a collection of materials detailing Nazi crimes in Poland 1944-1947, RG 1348) – materials from Główřa KŚmisja Badařia ZbrŚdři HitlerŚwskich w PŚlsce (the Maiř CŚmmissiŚř fŚr the Investigation of Hitlerite Crimes in Poland, GKBZNwP); Obozy koncentracyjne – zbiór akt 19401945 (Concentration camps – a collection of files dated 1940-1945, RG 1333), concerning Majdanek, Pawiak, Auschwitz, Treblinka, Sobibór and other camps; Pomoc Polaków dla ludno ci ydŚwskiej w okresie okupacji hitlerowskiej (Assistance rendered by Poles to the Jewish population during the Nazi occupation, RG 1521) – questionnaires, accounts, memoirs and statements by individuals detailing the types of assistance given (gathered by Zwi zek BŚjŚwřików Ś WŚlřŚ ć i DemŚkracj [ZBoWiD, the Society of Fighters for Freedom and Democracy]); and Zbiór druków niemieckich z lat 1939-1944 (a collection of German printed matter from the years 1939-1944, RG 122). The AAN also holds the files of some of the ministries of the Polish Government-in-Exile in London.15 The dŚcumeřts iř the recŚrd grŚuś Zwi zek PatriŚtów PŚlskich w ZSRR (the UřiŚř Śf PŚlish PatriŚts iř the USSR, ZPP, RG 130) date from the years 1943-1946. Most important of these for the subject of iřterest here are the files Śf the KŚmitet Orgařizacyjřy ydów PŚlskich (PŚlish Jews’ OrgařizatiŚřal Committee) affiliated to the ZPP from the years 1944-1945, which include minutes of meetings and conferences, documents concerning Jewish writers, biographies and profiles of activists, and information on the situation of the Jews in the USSR. Examples of prewar and postwar documentation will be profiled in a dedicated chapter in Part II of this Guide. 13 Parts of the surviving Regierung des Generalgouvernements are also held by IPN and Bundesarchiv in Germany. By Kazimierz Andrzej Gorzkowski (bearer of the Godziemba coat of arms), who ran an underground publishing organization called Godziemba connected to the AK BIP during the war years. Cf. A. Gorzkowski, Kroniki Andrzeja. Zapiski z podziemia 1939-1941, ed. Tomasz Szarota, Warszawa 1989. 15 Informacji i Dokumentacji (Information and Documentation), Administracji Publicznej (Public Administration), Pracy i Ośieki SśŚłeczřej (LabŚur ařd SŚcial Welfare), Prac KŚřgresŚwych (CŚřgress WŚrk), Przemysłu (Iřdustry), Hařdlu i eglugi (CŚmmerce ařd NavigatiŚř), Skarbu (Treasury) ařd SśrawiedliwŚ ci (Justice). 14 23 As a central archive, the AAN also holds microfilms from foreign collections. Of significance for Holocaust research are microfilmed records from the state administrative offices of the Third Reich from the Bundesarchiv, as well as those of the German military command, the Commander-in-Chief of the SS and the Chief of the German Police, and the ministries and administrative offices of the Third Reich in the National Archives and Records Administration in the USA (the Captured German Records Microfilmed at Alexandria, cf. Part II of this Guide). ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W BIELSKU BIAŁEJ ńODDŃIAŁ AP W KATOWICACH] (STATE ARCHIVE IN BIELSKO BIAŁA, BRANCH OF THE STATE ARCHIVE IN KATOWICE) There are four record groups of note in the collection of the Bielsko archive. These are as follows:  Starosta Powiatu Bielskiego 1939-1945 (Der Landrat des Kreises Bielitz, Bielsko County Governor 1939-1945, RG 4), in which most of the materials relate to passports of labourers employed at I.G. Farben Auschwitz, and to cross-border traffic; it also holds circulars and orders regarding the Jews, correspondence connected with Jewish families leaving the country (1940-1941), permits to conduct petty trade, and inventories of the landowners and land seized for the needs of the camś iř O wi cim;  Wi zieřie S du Krajowego w Bielsku 1941-1945 (Landesgerichtsgefängnis Bielitz, Prison of the Regional Court in Bielsko 1941-1945, RG 295) – all that has been preserved are 27 criminal case files, including the files of two people sentenced for contact with KL Auschwitz internees;  Sśółka GruřtŚwa dla PrŚwiřcji GórřŚ l skiej z Ś.Ś. w KatŚwicach, Oddział w Bielsku (Grundstücksgesellschaft für die Provinz Oberschlesien m.b.H. Leitstelle Kattowitz Zweigstelle Bielitz, Real Estate Company for the Province of Upper Silesia with limited liability, Head Office in Katowice, Bielsko Branch, RG 18ę). IřstitutiŚřs called “Sśółki GruřtŚwe śrzy Główřym Urz dzie PŚwierřiczym Wschód z ŚgrařiczŚř ŚdśŚwiedzialřŚ ci ” (Grundstücksgesellschäfte m.b.H. bei der Haupttreuhandstelle-Ost, Land Companies affiliated to the Main Trustee Office for the East) were set up in 1940 to function as administrators for apartments, plots of land and other pieces of land expropriated – confiscated – by the occupying forces. One of the competences of these companies was valuation of confiscated properties. The scale on which this company operated covered the BielskŚ, ywiec, ZatŚr, O wi cim ařd WadŚwice cŚuřties. This recŚrd grŚuś cŚmśrises Śver 2,ę00 files concerning confiscations of property belonging to residents of eastern Upper Silesia, including a 24 great many Jews and inhabitants of villages in which land was requisitioned for the construction of the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp complex.  S d ObwŚdŚwy w Bielsku 1939-1945 (Amtsgericht Bielitz, Local Court in Bielsko 1939-1945, RG 80), which contains documents relating to the confiscation in 1940 of several dozen Bielsko businesses and firms whose proprietors were Jews. ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W CŃ STOCHOWIE (STATE ARCHIVE IN CŃ STOCHOWA) A brief article has been writteř Śř the cŚllectiŚřs Śf the archive iř Cz stŚchŚwa by Przemysław Snoch.16 The mŚst valuable materials frŚm the wartime śeriŚd are held iř Akta miasta Cz stŚchŚwy z lat 1304-19ėĘ (Files Śf the city Śf Cz stŚchŚwa, RG 1), ařd they iřclude variŚus statistical data ařd reports, lists of enterprises, registers of Jews resettled from other towns in the years 1940-1941, permits for relocation to Krakow, a list of passes permitting Jews to leave the ghetto in the years 1941-1942, matters related to Kennkarten (identity cards), lists of births, marriages and deaths, and payrolls for Jews for the year 1942 and the attendant correspondence regarding employment of Jews. StarŚstwŚ Miejskie w Cz stŚchŚwie 1939-1945 (Stadthauptmannschaft Tschenstochau, Office of the Cz stŚchŚwa City GŚverřŚr, RG ė) cŚřtaiřs iřfŚrmatiŚř Śř the establishmeřt Śf the ghetto, the burning of the synagogue, the devastation of the cemetery, the confiscation of the property of the Ezra wŚmeř’s sŚciety, the activities Śf the Rada Starszych (CŚuřcil Śf Elders) ařd the Słu ba PŚrz dkŚwa (Ordřuřgsdieřst, Jewish Order Service), ařd resettlemeřts. Iř Niemiecki Zakład Karřy w Cz stŚchŚwie z lat 1939-1944 (Deutscher Strafanstalt Tschenstochau, German Penitentiary in Cz stŚchŚwa, RG ė7) there are several dŚzeř śersŚřal files Śf śeŚśle Śf Jewish Śrigiř seřteřced fŚr variŚus “crimes” tŚ death, imśrisŚřmeřt Śr iřterřmeřt iř a cŚřceřtratiŚř camś. Zbiór afiszy i druków z tereřu Cz stŚchŚwy (CŚllectiŚř Śf bills ařd śriřts, RG Ę9) is a recŚrd grŚuś that has řŚt yet been processed and is therefore still inaccessible, but has very valuable content. Biuro Dewizowe w Cz stŚchŚwie 1939-1945 (Devisenauskunftsstelle Tschenstochau, Currency Office in Cz stŚchŚwa, RG 31Ę) hŚlds cŚrresśŚřdeřce cŚřcerřiřg Jewish busiřesses uřder trustee administration and requests for permission for money orders for the needy. Polski Komitet Ośiekuńczy 19ė0-1945 (Polish Welfare Committee, RG 15) has correspondence on matters relating 16 P. SřŚch, “Materiały dŚ dziejów ydów w zasŚbie Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ w Cz stŚchŚwie,” [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 109-115. 25 tŚ aid fŚr Jews. S d ObwŚdŚwy w DŚbrŚdzieřiu dŚ 19ėĘ (Amtsgericht Gutteřtag, LŚcal CŚurt iř DŚbrŚdzień tŚ 19ėĘ, RG Ę8ė) has twŚ files Śf documents on cases of resignations from confessional community organizations. The relative paucity of holdings from the war years renders postwar materials all the more important. These iřclude Zarz d Miejski i Miejska Rada NarŚdŚwa w Cz stŚchŚwie z lat 1945-1950 (Municipal BŚard ařd City NatiŚřal CŚuřcil iř Cz stŚchŚwa, RG 2), iř which hŚldiřgs iřclude situatiŚř reśŚrts, registration of associations, files on war crimes, matters relating to war graves17, and cases connected with real estate ownership; StarŚstwŚ PŚwiatŚwe Cz stŚchŚwskie 19ėĘ-19Ę0 (Cz stŚchŚwa CŚuřty GŚverřŚr’s Office) ařd RejŚřŚwy Urz d Likwidacyjřy w Cz stŚchŚwie 19ė9-1951 (Regional LiquidatiŚř Office iř Cz stŚchŚwa). ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W GDA SKU (STATE ARCHIVE IN GDA SK)18 Sources on the history of the Jews have been discussed by Aniela Przywuska and Aleksandra Skibicka in a dedicated article.19 A few record groups dating from the World War II period have been preserved, and their contents are crucial to study of the extermination of the Jews in the city of Gdańsk ařd acrŚss the Easterř PŚmerařia regiŚř.20 None of the documentation of any of the Jewish community organizations that existed in this area has survived. According to the authors of the abŚve meřtiŚřed article, “at the eřd Śf 19ė2 some 2,000 packages of files relating to the Jews were relocated to Hochwalde for protection from Allied air raids. We still do not know, however, whether Judaica from Eastern Pomerania were among them, or where the above mentioned archive materials are curreřtly stŚred.”21 The following are some of the most important record groups: Namiestnik Rzeszy Okr gu Gdańsk-Prusy Zachodnie (Reichsgau Danzig-Westpreußen, Reichsgau Danzig-West Prussia, RG 263) – matters connected with real estate and confiscated Jewish property, and orders cŚřcerřiřg treatmeřt Śf the Jews; Wy szy DŚwódca SS i PŚlicji Okr gu Gdańsk-Prusy Zachodnie1939-1945 (Der Höhere SS- und Polizeiführer Danzig-Westpreußen, Senior SS and Police Leader Danzig-West Prussia, RG 265) – documents concerning confiscation of Jewish property and 17 The PŚlish exśressiŚř “grŚbŚwřictwŚ” is used exteřsively iř dŚcumeřts created after the war ařd refers tŚ war graves situated outside designated cemeteries, and exhumations. 18 See: Archiwum PaństwŚwe w Gdańsku. PrzewŚdnik śŚ zasŚbie dŚ 1945 r., compiled by Cz. Biernat, Warszawa – Łód 1992. 19 A. Przywuska, A. Skibicka, “ ródła dŚ histŚrii ydów w zasŚbie Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ w Gdańsku”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 127-154. 20 Cf. alsŚ T. Musiał, Staatsarchive im Dritten Reich. Zur Geschichte des staatlichen Archivwesens in Deutschland 1933-1945, Potsdam 1996. 21 A. Przywuska, A. Skibicka, ródła dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., p. 135. 26 cemeteries; Główřy Urz d PŚwierřiczy Wschód, Urz d PŚwierřiczy Gdańsk-Prusy Zachodnie 19391945 (Haupttreuhandstelle-Ost, Treuhandstelle Danzig-Westpreußen; Main Trustee Office for the East, Trustee Office for Danzig-West Prussia, RG 264) – concerns confiscations of property belŚřgiřg tŚ Jewish cŚmśařies iř Gdyřia, KŚ cierzyřa, Tczew, Kartuzy, WejherŚwŚ ařd StarŚgard Gdański. The files Śf variŚus tŚwřs, iřcludiřg Elbl g, Gdańsk, Gřiew, KŚ cierzyřa, MalbŚrk, NŚwy Staw, SopŚt, StarŚgard Gdański, Sztum ařd Tczew cŚřtaiř variŚus, fŚr the mŚst śart small quařtities of materials on the fate of the Jews during the war, such as statistics, inventories, lists of residents, rescindments of their citizenship, and confiscations of property. In Kolekcja pomorskich planów i map (Collection of Pomeranian plans and maps, RG 1126), under file no. 38/382, there is a śhŚtŚgraśh album frŚm the islařd Wysśa Sśichrzów [Sśeicheriřsel] iř Gdańsk, where iř 1939 the Germans set up a ghetto for the Jewish population. There are also isolated files from the war years ařd the śŚstwar śeriŚd iř Śther recŚrd grŚuśs. Iř Wy szy S d KrajŚwy w Gdańsku 18ęę-1945 (Oberlařdesgericht Dařzig, Higher RegiŚřal CŚurt iř Gdańsk, RG 9ę), fŚr iřstařce, there is a file containing the text of the Act on the Protection of German Blood passed by the Senate of the Free City Śf Gdańsk (file řŚ. 9ę/8Ę), ařd ař iřveřtŚry Śf Jewish śrŚśerty Śř the territŚry Śf the city Śf Gdańsk frŚm the year 1939 (file řŚ. 3071). ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W GRODŃISKU MAŃOWIECKIM ńODDŃIAŁ AP W WARSZAWIE] (STATE ARCHIVE IN GRODZISK MAZOWIECKI [BRANCH OF THE STATE ARCHIVE IN WARSAW]) The Archive in Grodzisk is a branch of the State Archive in Warsaw, and among its holdings there is a wealth of documentation on the southern regions of the Mazowieckie voivodship. Recently it also came into possession of record groups from the liquidated archives in Góra Kalwaria, Nowy Dwór MazŚwiecki ařd yrardów. RecŚrd grŚuśs geřerated by muřiciśal ařd cŚmmuře authŚrities and courts have been preserved to a certain extent, but there is no documentation in this archive generated by German administrative or police authorities. The record groups of at least nine towns are worthy of research:  Akta miasta Pruszkowa (Files of the town of Pruszków, RG 87) – the partially preserved files Śf the Zarz d KŚmisaryczřy NieruchŚmŚ ci ydŚwskich miasta PruszkŚwa (Jewish Real Estate Trustee Administration Board of the town of Pruszków) dating from 1941-1944; also a list of real estate owned by Jews; summary population censuses of Pruszków; lists of abandoned real estate; and registered address ledgers for some real estate, for periods including the occupation; 27  Akta miasta Jewish śŚśulatiŚř Śf yrardŚwa (Files Śf the tŚwř Śf yrardów, RG 2) – including a census of the yrardów befŚre ařd after the war; registered address ledgers fŚr sŚme real estate;  Akta miasta Grodziska Mazowieckiego (Files of the town of Grodzisk Mazowiecki, RG 36) – a list of farms owned by Jews; German public announcements and ordinances affecting or cŚřcerřiřg Jews; dŚcumeřts Śf the Zarz d KŚmisaryczřy NieruchŚmŚ ciami ydŚwskimi (Jewish Real Estate Trustee Administration Board); a list of names of Jews assigned for forced labour; files on specific real estate owned by Jews; personal files of some people from Grodzisk, among them Bernard Kampelmacher, later a cooperator with Oneg Shabat in the Warsaw ghetto;  Akta miasta Góra Kalwaria (Files of the town of Góra Kalwaria, RG 1343) – above all postwar documentation regarding Jewish real estate;  Akta miasta Grójca 22 (Files of the town of Grójec, RG 1365) – cases of forced labour, execution of fines and other dues; files containing records and inspection reports on population movements; business, revenue and currency matters; correspondence regarding expulsion of the Jews and confiscations of their real estate; files on apartment and house searches and sanitation issues; statistics; lists of Jewish shops, industrial plants and farms; German propaganda documents;  Akta miasta Sochaczewa (Files of the town of Sochaczew, RG 90) – documents of SŚchaczew tŚwř gŚverřŚr’s Śffice, iřcludiřg lists Śf shŚśs Śwřed by Jews; Śrdiřařces frŚm the period of the occupation concerning or affecting Jews, including some concerning the establishment of a Jewish quarter in January 1941; correspondence of the Judenrat concerning forced labour and food ration cards; lists of Jews by labour details;  Akta miasta Piaseczna (Files of the town of Piaseczno, RG 1404) – German circulars and orders; files on social welfare; correspondence in connection with the establishment of the ghetto in Piaseczno; lists of real estate owned by Jews; population records; goods confiscated from Jewish shops;  Akta miasta Mogielnicy (Files of the town of Mogielnica, RG 1405) – correspondence with parties including the Judenrat; cases concerning real estate; 22 Cf. ydzi w Grójeckiem. SłŚwnik. HistŚria. Kultura. GŚsśŚdarka, ed. Z. Szel g, Grójec 2007; K. Pařz, “LŚsy ydŚwskich mieszkańców Grójca – histŚria Zagłady. Mi dzy śami ci a zaśŚmiřařiem”, Master’s thesis dated 200ę, defeřded at the University of Warsaw, Faculty of Applied Social Sciences and Resocialization, Institute of Applied Social Sciences; eadem, “Zagłada sztetl Grice”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2007, no. 3, pp. 15-41. 28  Akta miasta Skierniewice (Files of the town of Skierniewice, RG 894) – forced labour; cŚrresśŚřdeřce with the Rada ydŚwska (Judeřrat, Jewish CŚuřcil) regardiřg the establishmeřt Śf the ghetto (1940); a list of names of wealthier Jews; postwar documents on issues including property rights cases;  Akta miasta Rawy Mazowieckiej (Files of the town of Rawa Mazowiecka, RG 1022) – lists of commercial and artisan enterprises including the addresses and names of their proprietors; postwar documents on the synagogues and the cemetery. Among the record groups comprising files of commune offices, there are materials connected with the extermination of the Jews in the files of the following commune offices: Korabiewice, Zaborów, yrardów-Wiskitki, and Jeziorna – chiefly cases related to population records, property rights, forced labour, and official correspondence in connection with German ordinances. Other record groups are: Ubezśieczalřia sśŚłeczřa w yrardŚwie (The sŚcial iřsurařce iřstitutiŚř iř yrardów, RG 10Ę) – lists of employment levels in the Jewish community organizations in Grodzisk Mazowiecki, Skierniewice, Sochaczew and other towns; and Komisja Badania Zbrodni Hitlerowskich w Rawie Mazowieckiej (Commission for the Investigation of Hitlerite Crimes in Rawa Mazowiecka, RG 1029) – postwar witness statements by Polish witnesses to events connected with the extermination of the Jews iř the surrŚuřdiřg lŚcalities, abŚve all Biała Rawska ařd Rawa MazŚwiecka; alsŚ questiŚřřaires connected with the register of locations and facts about the crimes. ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W KATOWICACH (STATE ARCHIVE IN KATOWICE) The materials relating to the Jewish population in the vast holdings of this archive have been profiled by Michał M czka.23 From the period of World War II there are files generated by both the German admiřistratiŚř ařd śŚlice, ařd cities, cŚurts, cŚuřty gŚverřŚrs’ Śffices, ařd Śther bŚdies. The mŚst important and extensive is certainly Rejencja Katowicka 1939-194524 (Regierung Kattowitz, Katowice Regional Administration, RG 119) – these files contain large quantities of information on the fate of the Jews, such as statistics; public identification (oznakowanie); special transportation regulations; forced labour; the prescript to add the first names Israel and Sara; matters connected with the M. M czka, “Materiały dŚtycz ce ludřŚ ci ydŚwskiej w zbiŚrach Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ w KatŚwicach”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne do dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 163-180. 24 The territory of the Regional Administration covered the following autonomous cities: Bytom, Katowice, Gliwice, Królewska Huta (ChŚrzów), SŚsřŚwiec ařd Zabrze, ařd the cŚuřties Śf B dziř, BytŚm ařd TarřŚwskie Góry, Bielsko, Cieszyř, Chrzařów, Gliwice, KatŚwice, Pszczyřa, Rybřik, ywiec ařd Olkusz. 23 29 ghettŚs iř SŚsřŚwiec, B dziř, D brŚwa ařd Czelad ; exśrŚśriatiŚř ařd admiřistratiŚř Śf Jewish property (assets, land, businesses); Jewish cemeteries; and police documents and reports on the actiŚř tŚ “cleařse the lařds Śf the RegiŚř Śf Jews” ařd mařy Śthers. AřŚther very imśŚrtařt collection is Akta miasta Sosnowca 1902-1945 (Files of the city of Sosnowiec, RG 776), which comprises notices and orders concerning and affecting Jews and their resettlement from Sosnowiec, as well as matters such as fŚrced labŚur fŚr the Zarz d Miejski (Muřiciśal AdmiřistratiŚř), liquidation of businesses (the files of businesses closed down in various sectors), the organization of the ghetto in Sosnowiec and its expansion (including maps, plans and records), economic activity on the part of Jews in the ghetto, levies imposed on the Jewish community organization and Jewish busiřesses, lists Śf řames Śf Jews iř SŚsřŚwiec ařd B dziř, Śrders fŚllŚwiřg the liquidatiŚř Śf the ghetto (including lists of evacuated streets and houses), materials on the trustee administration board, and many other documents permitting extremely detailed research into the history of the Jews under the German occupation in this region. Analogous documents and materials supplementary to the issues discussed above are to be found in the well preserved files Akta Prezydenta Policji w Sosnowcu 1939-1945 (Der Polizeipräsident in Sosnowitz, President of the Police in Sosnowiec, RG 807) – these include extensive statistical and demographic data, and documents on religious matters such as the fate of the cemetery, as well as an accurate list of Jewish prayer houses, forced labour, the introduction of the curfew, correspondence regarding arrests and deportations of Jews to the camps, lists of the řames Śf thŚse arrested iř the SŚsřŚwiec ařd B dziř ghettŚs, a maś Śf the Czelad ghetto, documents regarding the liquidation of the ghetto in August 1943, and police situation reports. In the Katowice archive there are a large number of collections that contain documents from the period of the occupation (or concerning that period) concerning the fate of the Jews. For obvious reasons it would be impossible to profile all these collections, so only the most important are listed below:  Akta miasta B dziř (Files Śf the city Śf B dziř, RG 773) – circulars, public announcements and bill posters, and correspondence concerning Jews; lists of names of Jews; inventories of firms; matters connected with real estate under trustee administration;  Starosta Powiatu B dzińskiegŚ 1939-19ėĘ (Der Lařdrat des Kreises Beřdsburg, B dziř County Governor, RG 771) – arrest warrants for wanted people, among them Jews; applications from Jews for permission to trade and run businesses; orders restricting their economic activity; an alśhabetical list Śf the Jews iř B dziř frŚm 19ė2; 30  Starostwo w Zawierciu 1939-19ėĘ (Lařdratsamt Warteřau, Zawiercie CŚuřty GŚverřŚr’s Office, RG 881) – named passes from 1941 for Jews from various cities allowing them to travel. A large amount of documentation has been preserved concerning property owned by Jews: its registration, confiscation orders and trustee administration. These are to be found in the above collections as well as in a number of others:  Zarz d PrŚwiřcjŚřalřy GórřegŚ l ska w KatŚwicach 1942-1945 (Provinzialverwaltung Oberschlesien in Kattowitz, Provincial Authorities for Upper Silesia in Katowice, RG 118) – this administrative office covered the Katowice and Opole administrative districts, and a few files contain documents concerning confiscations of private assets of Jews;  Główřy Urz d PŚwierřiczy Wschód; Urz d PŚwierřiczy w KatŚwicach 1939-1945 25 (Haupttreuhandstelle Ost Treuhandstelle Kattowitz, Main Trustee Office for the East, Trustee Office in Katowice, RG 124);  Sśółka GruřtŚwa PrŚwiřcji GórřegŚ l ska z Ś.Ś. – Kierownictwo w Katowicach 1942-1945 (Grundstücksgesellschaft für die Provinz Oberschlesien m.b.H – Leitstelle Kattowitz, Real Estate Company for the Province of Upper Silesia with limited liability, Head Office in Katowice, RG 383);  Bařk Drezdeński. Filia w KatŚwicach 1907-1945 (Dresdner Bank. Filiale Kattowitz, Dresden Bank, Katowice Branch, RG 320) – files include information on accounts belonging to Jews, reports on liquidation of Polish and Jewish economic institutions, information on Jewish firms under German trustee administration, information on liquidation and expropriation of assets in Jewish accounts, and files of firms employing Jews, including those in the ghetto in Sosnowiec;  Naczelne Prezydium w Katowicach 1941-1945 (Oberpräsidium Kattowitz, Supreme Presidium in Katowice, RG 117) – general orders regarding confiscations and sales of assets belonging to enemies of the Reich, and files of specific firms whose assets were confiscated. A few cŚllectiŚřs Śf cŚurt ařd śublic śrŚsecutŚrs’ files have alsŚ beeř śreserved iř AP KatŚwice; Śf particular řŚte are the files Śf S d Sśecjalřy w KatŚwicach 1939-1945 (Sondergericht Kattowitz, Special Court in Katowice, RG 134) – the files of the criminal cases investigated by the court refer to common offences and those committed in violation of German war legislation, including theft, fencing, illegal slaughter (including ritual slaughter for the needs of the Jewish community), crimes 25 J. JarŚs, “Grabie mieřia ydów śrzez władze hitlerŚwskie w wietle akt Urz du PŚwierřiczegŚ w KatŚwicach”, B IH, 1961, no. 38, pp. 105-117. 31 defined as defiling the German race (Rassenschande), possession of firearms, listening to the radio, and other misdemeanours; these files include several dozen criminal cases against Jews in the Silesia region.  One fascinating collection, which is also the most important record group for study of the histŚry Śf the ghettŚs iř Uśśer Silesia ařd the D brŚwa Basiř, is that containing the partly preserved files (Ę2 items) Śf the Rada Starszych ydŚwskiej Gmiřy WyzřařiŚwej w D brŚwie Górřiczej 19391943 (Komitee der Jüdischen Kultusgemeinde in Dombrowa, Committee of the Jewish Community OrgařizatiŚř iř D brŚwa, RG 1ę00). This community fell within the remit of the headquarters of Jewish community organizations in Sosnowiec. This record group contains information about the organization of the communities, reports on the work of the financial and social welfare divisions of the organization, various compilations of statistics and budgets, lists of names of people working in the Jewish community organizations, and materials on employment and work among the Jews. ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W KIELCACH26 (STATE ARCHIVE IN KIELCE) The holdings of the Kielce archive and its branches27 have been profiled by Roman Guldon28 and agaiř by the same authŚr with Łukasz GuldŚř.29 As in other archives, most materials relating to the fate of the Jewish population during the occupation are to be found in the files of cities, communes, counties, courts, and prisons. Akta miasta Kielc (Files of the city of Kielce, held in AP w Kielcach, RG 122) and Akta miasta Sandomierz (Files of the town of Sandomierz, held in AP w Sandomierzu, RG 111) contain German orders from the years 1941-1942 (concerning resettlements and confiscation of property). There are also documents of a similar character in the files of the towns of J drzejów (RG 1ęĘ7), StarachŚwice (RG 2ę8ė) ařd RŚzwadów30, and in those of the communes of Duraczów31 ařd OdrŚw 32 . These are lists of real estate owned by Jews and documents concerning its reassigřatiŚř tŚ members Śf the “Aryař” śŚśulatiŚř. Akta miasta SařdŚmierz alsŚ cŚřtaiř “Śrders issued by the Office Śf the Ośatów CŚuřty GŚverřŚr regardiřg resettlemeřt and Archiwum PaństwŚwe w Kielcach i jegŚ Śddziały w JędrzejŚwie, PińczŚwie i StarachŚwicach. Przewodnik po zasobie archiwalnym, collective work under S. Marcinkowski, Warszawa-Łód 1993; see alsŚ the śart Śf this chaśter devŚted tŚ Archiwum PaństwŚwe w SařdŚmierzu (State Archive in Sandomierz). 27 Iř receřt years the brařches iř Pińczów, J drzejów ařd StarachŚwice have beeř clŚsed dŚwř ařd their files relŚcated to Kielce. 28 R. GuldŚř, “ ródła dŚ histŚrii ydów w zasŚbie Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ w Kielcach”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 181-192. 29 R. GuldŚř, Ł. GuldŚř, “Akta z Śkresu Śkuśacji hitlerŚwskiej w archiwach śaństwŚwych wŚjewództwa wi tŚkrzyskiegŚ”, Almanach Historyczny, 2001, vol. 3. 30 AP w Sandomierzu (State Archive in Sandomierz), RG 523. 31 AP w Kielcach, RG 524. 32 AP w Kielcach, RG 530. 26 32 registration of the Jewish population from the years 1941-1942, correspondence with the Jewish cŚmmuřity ŚrgařizatiŚř regardiřg hŚusiřg ařd Śccuśařcy Śf shŚś śremises, ařd evictiŚřs”33, as well as lists of the Jews resident there (1941) and their identity documents. Akta miasta KŚńskie (Files Śf the tŚwř Śf KŚńskie, RG Ę19) alsŚ cŚřtaiř the registers Śf 1,179 Jews resettled there iř 19ė0. These iřclude řumerŚus ařd detailed data: giveř řame, surřame, śareřts’ given names, date of birth, marital status, age, address, vocation, date of arrival, and previous address.34 In Akta miasta Stalowej Woli35 there is a list of the Jews being held in the labour camp there in 1942. Personal files of Jewish prisoners from the years 1939-1944 have also been preserved (in the collections of the prisons in Kielce36 and Sandomierz37). ARCHIWUM NARODOWE W KRAKOWIE (THE NATIONAL ARCHIVE IN KRAKOW)38 The archival holdings relating to the history of the Jews have been profiled by three authors: Magdalena Marosz, Jadwiga Szyposz and Franciszek Zacny.39 From the World War II period we have a few relatively well preserved collections which offer information for scholars of the Jewish population in the Kazimierz quarter of the city and in the ghetto in the Podgórze quarter. Foremost among these are the files Akta Starosty miasta Krakowa40 (Der Stadthauptmann der Stadt Krakau, Governor of the City of Krakow) from the years 1939-1945 – German ordinances; bill posters and public announcements; printed propaganda material; documents of trustee administrative boards and concerning Jewish property and confiscations of such property; materials concerning the liquidation of Jewish organizations and associations; documents directly concerning the history of the ghetto, including a collection of 157 original photographs taken during the resettlement of the Jews into the ghetto; population records; residence documents and records; and many others. Another very R. GuldŚř, “ ródła dŚ histŚrii ydów w zasŚbie Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ w Kielcach”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., p. 187. 34 These addresses are frŚm several differeřt cities, amŚřg them Łód , GřiezřŚ, Przedbórz, GŚwarczów, OśŚczřŚ, Kraków, Bydgoszcz and Kalisz. 35 AP w Sandomierzu, RG 524. 36 AP w Kielcach, RG 186. 37 AP w Sandomierzu, RG 141. 38Informator o zasobie archiwalnym [Archiwum PaństwŚwe w KrakŚwie], compiled by S. Mika and J. Stoksik, with A. Litewka, Z. HŚmecka ařd H. Zaj cŚwa, Kraków 1978; A. Kiełbicka, Archiwum PaństwŚwe w KrakŚwie 1951-1980, Warszawa – Łód 1989. 39 M. MarŚsz, J. SzyśŚsz, F. Zacřy, “Materiały dŚtycz ce dziejów ydów śrzechŚwywaře w Archiwum PaństwŚwym w KrakŚwie”, [in:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 197-208. 40 Part of the collection Akta miasta Krakowa 1300-1945 (Files of the city of Krakow, RG 33). 33 33 important collection kept in the Krakow archive is Izba Zdrowia w GG 1939-1945 41 (Gesundheitskammer, Chamber of Health in the General Government, RG 1578) – here there are various circulars and ordinances related to the functioning of the health service, and personal questionnaires containing very detailed personal data and photographs of people of several professions (doctors, dentists, dental technicians, midwives, nurses), including several thousand questionnaires of people of Jewish descent from the district of Galicia (their questionnaires were stamśed with a star Śf David Śr the wŚrd “Jude”), as well as lists Śf Jewish dŚctŚrs frŚm variŚus places in the GG. In the collection with the working name Akta poniemieckie 1941-1945 (Former Germař files, RG 1Ę7ę) there are hŚldiřgs iřcludiřg dŚcumeřts Śf the ydŚwska SamŚśŚmŚc SśŚłeczřa (Jewish Mutual Welfare Aid), a file cŚřtaiřiřg dŚcumeřts Śf the Rada ydŚwska w Krzeszowicach (Judenrat Kressendorf, Jewish Council in Krzeszowice)42 – including lists of people sent to perform forced labour, and personal data questionnaires of Jews resident in Krakow (Fragebogenlisten 1939-1945), containing extensive personal details. Akta miasta Wieliczki (Files of the town of Wieliczka, RG 117) contain lists of the real estate on particular streets, dating from March 1941, together with the details of owners and tenants (a very large number of them Jews); sŚme sheets bear the ařřŚtatiŚř “Jewish hŚme” iř Germař ařd iř red śeřcil. Iř additiŚř tŚ these, there are applications and permits for Jews to move into the ghetto in Wieliczka, and residence registration questionnaires for around 1,400 people. One important collection – for obvious reasons – is Urz d Dystryktu KrakŚwskiegŚ 1939-1945 (Amt des Distrikts Krakau, Krakow District Office, RG 208) – the files chiefly concern matters related to passports (including those of Jews) and confiscation of property; they also hold personal files of Jews from Nowy Targ (1940-1942) and lists of Jews from a number of locations in Nowy Targ county.43 The collection Starosta powiatowy w Krakowie 1940-1945 (Kreishauptmann Krakau-Land, Krakow County Governor, RG 219) also holds correspondence relating to property owned by Jews from Bochnia. Other little known materials44 in the Krakow archive include questionnaires filled in by Jews from the GG entitled to receive social benefits in the years 1940-1941 – in all, these questionnaires originate from 134 Jewish communities in several different counties. This collection is a part Śf the Śffice Śf the ydŚwska SamŚśŚmŚc SśŚłeczřa w KrakŚwie (Jewish SŚcial Self-Help in Krakow, RG 2125). As the majority 41 Analogous documents, almost 5,500 personal questionnaires, ca. 600 of them concerning Jews, are held in AP Warszawa, Izba Zdrowia w Warszawie (Gesundheitskammer Warschau, Chamber of Health in Warsaw, RG 497). 42 The files were hařded Śver iř 1977 by Główřa KŚmisja Badań Zbrodni Hitlerowskich w Polsce (GKBZHwP, the Main Commission for the Investigation of Hitlerite Crimes in Poland). 43 Czarřy Duřajec, CzŚrsztyř, D břŚ, KluszkŚwce, ŁŚśuszřa, MařiŚwy, SrŚmŚwce Wy ře, Szlembark. 44 Iř Oddział II (Deśartmeřt II) Śř GrŚdzka Street; the recŚrd grŚuś has řŚ řumber, ęė archival uřits. 34 of the questionnaires bear the stamps of the various Jewish community organizations, this record group is an interesting collection of stamps and signatures of the councils of Jewish community organizations from the period of the occupation. ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W LESŃNIE (STATE ARCHIVE IN LESŃNO)45 As in other smaller archives, in Leszno the most important collections for study of the history of the Holocaust are the files of towns and communes, and of these in particular:  Akta miasta Jutrosin (Files of the town of Jutrosin, RG 17) – expulsions of Poles and Jews from the Wartheland, notifications of deaths of Jewish prisoners (most of whom had come from the ghettŚ iř Łód ) iř the camś Judeřlager Paulseck frŚm the years 19ė2-1943;   Akta miasta Krzywiń (Files Śf the tŚwř Śf Krzywiń, RG 20) – a list of expropriated assets; Akta miasta Leszno (Files of the town of Leszno, RG 21) – including documentation of the large synagogue in Leszno and a list of the war losses of the Jewish community;  Akta miasta Miejska Górka (Files of the town of Miejska Górka, RG 22) – circulars and Śrders regardiřg Jews iř hidiřg, GestaśŚ arrest warrařts, ařd a list Śf “harmful ařd uřdesirable” books;  Akta miasta Rawicz (Files of the town of Rawicz, RG 27) – materials concerning resettlements and mixed marriages, confiscations of furniture belonging to Poles and Jews, lists of names of prisoner transports to various camps, the conversion of the synagogue in Rawicz into a cinema in 1940. Among the files of communes, two collections are of note:  Akta gminy Osieczna (Files of the commune of Osieczna, RG 54) – forms referring to Polish and Jewish assets confiscated or under administration;  Akta gminy Rydzyna (Files of the commune of Rydzyna, RG 55) – cases concerning forced labourers, a list of residents of Rydzyna by nationality (1941 and 1943), various statistical iřfŚrmatiŚř, lists Śf Jews frŚm the camś iř KłŚda (Judeřarbeitslager RŚdeř b. Reiseř) datiřg frŚm 1942, and copies of entries in the land register concerning the Jewish synagogue and cemetery. Archiwum PaństwŚwe w Lesznie. InfŚrmatŚr Ś zasŚbie archiwalnym, cŚmśiled by B. Ratajewska ařd M. Kaśała, Warszawa 2005. 45 35 AlsŚ Śf great iřterest is the cŚllectiŚř Sśółka Zarz dzaj ca SkŚřfiskŚwařymi Gruřtami, Oddział w Lesznie (Grundstücksgesellschaft der Haupttreuhandstelle Ost m.b.H. Zweigstelle Lissa, Land Company affiliated to the Main Trustee Office for the East with limited liability, Leszno Branch Office, RG 153) 46 – this contains files concerning confiscated land assets (with and without buildings) previously owned by Poles and Jews, as well as highly accurate lists of all real estate in Leszno, and other documents and legal files on property and property confiscations. ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W LUBLINIE (STATE ARCHIVE IN LUBLIN)47 The holdings of significance for the study of the history of the Jews in this city and region have been profiled in an article by Józef Kus and Maria Trojanowska.48 The extant documents are of German, Polish and Jewish provenance. Among them are the following:  Urz d Okr gu [Dystryktu] LubelskiegŚ (Amt des Distrikts Lubliř, Lubliř District Office, RG ė98), which hŚlds a large quařtity Śf dŚcumeřts Śf Referat dŚ sśraw ydŚwskich (Referat Judenfragen, Office for Jewish affairs, units 270-809) ařd Wydział admiřistracji i śracy (Abteiluřg Innere Verwaltung und Abteilung Arbeit, Department of Administration and Labour), including lists of transports. These reference Lublin and many other places in the district, iřcludiřg BiłgŚraj, Krasřystaw, Puławy, Radzyń ařd ZamŚ ć.  Ceřtrala Przesiedleńcza PŚlicji Bezśieczeństwa, EksśŚzytura w ZamŚ ciu 19ė2-1944 (Der Chef der Sipo und des SD – Umwandererzentralstelle Posen, Zweigstelle Zamosc, Security Police Central Resettlemeřt Office, ZamŚ ć Brařch, RG Ę13).  Ceřtralřy Zarz d BudŚwlařy Oddziałów WŚjskŚwych i PŚlicji w Lubliřie 19ė0-1944 (Zentralbauleitung der Waffen-SS und Polizei Lublin, Central Construction Board for the Waffen-SS and Police in Lublin, RG 516).  Starostwo Powiatowe Lubelskie 1939-1944 (Kreishauptmann Lublin-Land, Office of the Lublin County Governor, RG 501) – approx. 117 items directly related to the extermination of the Cf. ařalŚgŚus cŚllectiŚř iř AP BielskŚ Biała: Sśółka GruřtŚwa dla PrŚwiřcji GórřŚ l skiej z Ś.Ś. w KatŚwicach Oddział w Bielsku. 47Archiwum PaństwŚwe w Lublinie. InfŚrmatŚr-sśis zesśŚłów, cŚmśiled by W. PŚdřiesińska with S. Jařicki ařd J. Kus, Lubliř 1992; Archiwum PaństwŚwe w Lublinie i jegŚ Oddziały w Chełmie, Kra niku i Radzyniu PŚdlaskim. PrzewŚdnik śŚ zasŚbie archiwalnym, cŚllective wŚrk, ed. F. Cie lak ařd M. TrŚjařŚwska, Lubliř 1997; Archiwum PaństwŚwe w Lublinie. Dzieje i zasób. Zbiór artykułów śrzygotowanych na jubileusz 85-lecia, collective work, Warszawa 2003. 48 J. Kus, M. TrŚjařŚwska, “ ródła dŚ dziejów ydów Śd XVI dŚ XX w. w zasŚbie Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ w Lubliřie”, [in:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 213-224. 46 36 Jews; information on the ghettos, resettlements, property confiscations, issue of identity documents, and a list of names of Jews condemned to death for leaving the ghetto.   Polizei-BataillŚř ZamŚ ć (ZamŚ ć PŚlice BattaliŚř, RG 515); Starostwo Miejskie w Lublinie 1939-1944 (Der Stadthauptmannschaft in Lublin, Office of the Lublin City Governor, RG 499).  KŚmeřdařt PŚlicji Bezśieczeństwa i Słu by Bezśieczeństwa w Lubliřie (Der Kommandeur der Sipo und SD, Commander of the Security Police and Security Service, RG 511).  Zbiór afiszów i druków ulotnych (Collection of German bills and printed ephemera, RG 632). Of the collections of files generated by Jewish institutions and organizations it is important to meřtiŚř the relatively well śreserved files Śf the Rada ydŚwska w Lubliřie 1939-1942 (Jewish Council in Lublin, RG 891) – here there are documents including circulars and public announcements; minutes of meetings; reports on the work of the council to the German authorities; personal materials; documents on financial and economic matters, forced labour, aid to children, the poor and the needy; and lists of populations, resettled people, those employed in the labour camp at Lipowa Street, and the deceased. These files have enabled the history of the ghetto in Lublin to be relatively well researched.49 Vestiges of the files of the Rada ydŚwska w Biskuśicach 1939-1942 (Jewish Council in Biskupice, RG 618/1) have also been preserved – a small section of the book of minutes of its meetings, lists of council members, correspondence, and a list of the population; likewise fŚr the Rada ydŚwska w ZamŚ ciu 1939-19ė2 (Jewish CŚuřcil iř ZamŚ ć, RG ę18/2) – notices and announcements, lists of population and of real estate, and other documents. The most important collections of Polish provenance are as follows: Akta miasta Lublina z lat 19391944 (RG 22) – materials cŚřcerřiřg the establishmeřt Śf the ghettŚ, “lists Śf deaths” amŚřg the Jews, and forced labour, and also large numbers of residential registration ledgers; Akta miasta Lubartowa z lat 1545-1950 (Files of the town of Lubartów, RG 43), containing a list of the Jewish population as of 25 November 1939 as well as occupation orders, and lists of movable property and real estate. 49 Cf. N. Blumental, Documents from Lublin Ghetto. Judenrat without Direction, Jerusalem 1967; T. Radzik, Lubelska dzielnica zamknięta, Lublin 1999; idem, Zagłada lubelskiegŚ getta, Lublin 2007. 37 ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W ŁODŃI (STATE ARCHIVE IN ŁÓD )50 The holdings of this archive have been profiled in detail by Julian Baranowski.51 The Łód archive is the sixth-biggest in Poland and has very extensive collections on both the history of the Jews in the PŚlish lařds ařd the histŚry Śf the Łód ghettŚ. Of greatest sigřificařce amŚřg the material datiřg from the period of the occupation are the two vast collections generated by the Jewish and German admiřistratiŚřs Śf the ghettŚ. The first is PrzełŚ Śřy Starszeństwa ydów w Getcie Łódzkim, known as Archiwum Rumkowskiego (the Rumkowski Archive) 1939-1945 (Der Älteste der Juden in GettŚ Litzmařřstadt, Head Śf the Jewish CŚuřcil iř the Łód GhettŚ, RG 278). This cŚllectiŚř, which řumbers almŚst 2,Ę00 items, dŚcumeřts all asśects Śf the fate Śf the Jews iř the Łód ghettŚ, because the administration of the Judenrat (Jewish Council) was very highly developed (it employed over 10,000 people) and generated vast quantities of documents, which, fortunately, have survived. The inventory to the Rumkowski Archive comprises an extensive preface that offers good insight into the ghetto offices, and a body of archives categorized by department and section. These materials will be described in greater detail in Part II of this Guide. Among them is a large collection of original contact sheets of photographs taken by Mordko Mendl Grossman and Henryk Ross, photographers officially employed by the Judenrat. Aside from the strictly official documentation, there is also a set of Biuletyny Kroniki Codziennej (Daily Chronicle Bulletins, 1941-1944), commissioned by the Judenrat, as well as literary reportage articles, a full set of circulars and public announcements, the texts Śf Chaim RumkŚwski’s sśeeches, the resideřce registratiŚř ledgers fŚr ghettŚ resideřts, lists of the Jews from Western Europe resettled to Litzmannstadt, around 1,500 labour record books, various graphic materials produced by the Department of Statistics, transport lists of Jews sent to the death camś iř ChełmřŚ řad Nerem, ařd mařy Śther thiřgs. Ař equally large ařd imśŚrtařt cŚllectiŚř is the Germař Zarz d Getta (GettŚverwaltung, Ghetto authorities), part of the larger cŚllectiŚř Akta miasta ŁŚdzi 177Ę-19ėĘ (Files Śf the city Śf Łód , RG 221). Takeř tŚgether, the twŚ collections (Archiwum Rumkowskiego and Gettoverwaltung) come to over 100 linear metres of files. The Gettoverwaltung documents are correspondence with the Judenrat on all manner of subjects related to the ghetto, and correspondence with German government offices and companies regardiřg the ghettŚ’s mařufacturiřg Śutśut, emślŚymeřt Śf Jews iř labŚur camśs, lŚŚtiřg of their property – on matters of this nature reports were submitted by the Kripo (the German criminal Archiwum PaństwŚwe w ŁŚdzi. PrzewŚdnik śŚ zasŚbie archiwalnym, collective work, ed. M. Bandurka, Warszawa 1998. J. BarařŚwski, “ ródła dŚ dziejów ydów w łódzkim zasŚbie Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ w ŁŚdzi”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 225-239; idem, “Materiały ródłŚwe dŚ martyrŚlŚgii i zagłady ydów z getta łódzkiegŚ w Archiwum PaństwŚwym w ŁŚdzi”, [iř:] Judaica łódzkie, ed. M. Budziarek, Łód 199ė. 50 51 38 police, which had a police station inside the ghetto). There is also a wealth of valuable material in Wydział Ogólřy Zarz du MiejskiegŚ w ŁŚdzi (Allgemeine Verwaltung Stadtverwaltung Litzmařřstadt, Geřeral AdmiřistratiŚř Śf the Łód City AuthŚrities) – above all minutes of meetiřgs Śf the Rada Miejska (City CŚuřcil) devŚted tŚ the Łód ghettŚ. These were atteřded by the highest-ranking German officials of the Warthelařd regiŚř. Iř Wydział ZdrŚwia Zarz du MiejskiegŚ w ŁŚdzi (Gesuřdheitsamt Stadtverwaltuřg Litzmařřstadt, Deśartmeřt Śf Health Śf the Łód City Authorities) statistical reports have been preserved detailing the mortality of various national groups, iřcludiřg the Jews, as well as the results Śf race research cŚřducted by the Oddział Rasy i Dziedziczenia (Rasse- und Erbe Abteilung, Section for Race and Inheritance). AřŚther extremely imśŚrtařt cŚllectiŚř is PŚlicja Krymiřalřa w ŁŚdzi, KŚmisariat w Getcie 194019ėĘ (KrimiřalkŚmmissariat GettŚ, Crimiřal PŚlice iř Łód , PŚlice StatiŚř iř the GhettŚ, RG 203); these records contain data on mortality, arrests, smuggling, shootings, confiscations of property, suicides, and moods among the Jewish populace. Other řŚtewŚrthy cŚllectiŚřs are S d Sśecjalřy w ŁŚdzi 1939-19ėĘ (SŚřdergericht, Sśecial CŚurt, RG 19ę); Zakłady Karře w ŁŚdzi 1939-1945 (Peřiteřtiaries iř Łód , RG 198) ařd Zakład Karřy w Sieradzu (Peřiteřtiary iř Sieradz, RG 200); Ceřtrala Przesiedleńcza w PŚzřařiu, Oddział Łód 1939-1945 (Chef der Sicherheitspolizei und SD Umwandererzentralstelle Posen ‒ Dienststelle Litzmannstadt, Security Police Central Resettlement Office iř PŚzřań, Łód Brařch Office, RG 20ę); Rewizyjře i PŚwierřicze BiurŚ „Ruteg” (RevisiŚřsuřd TreuhařdbürŚ „Ruteg“ iř Litzmařřstadt, “Ruteg” RevisiŚř ařd Trustee Office, RG 89Ę) – files Śř takeŚvers Śf PŚlish ařd Jewish firms by trusteeshiśs (TreuhŹřder); Szef Zarz du CywilřegŚ Okr gu WŚjskŚwegŚ śrzy 8 Armii 1939 (Chef der Zivilverwaltuřg beim Armee-Oberkommando 8, Head of the Civilian Administration of the Eighth Army High Command, RG 175). There is a need fŚr research iřtŚ the files Śf Śther tŚwřs alsŚ stŚred iř AP Łód , e.g. Pabiařice, Tuszyř, Zgierz, Łask, Aleksařdrów Łódzki, KŚřstařtyřów Łódzki. The archive iř Łód is alsŚ iř śŚssessiŚř Śf the most complete collection of the official German daily newspaper of the war years, Lodzer Zeitung, later renamed Litzmannstädter Zeitung, which contains a vast amount of information and data on the ghetto. 39 ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W ŁOWICŃU ńODDŃIAŁ AP W WARSŃAWIE] (STATE ARCHIVE IN ŁOWICŃ ńBRANCH OF THE STATE ARCHIVE IN WARSAW]) The archive iř ŁŚwicz is amŚřg the smaller brařch archives, which fŚr ŚbviŚus reasŚřs have far less extensive holdings than the large central archives in possession of the files of the highest-level institutions and offices in a given region. Nonetheless, it is worth paying attention to a few record groups in which materials concerning the fate of the Jews have been preserved. There is documentation of a similar kind in other branch archives whose holdings are not discussed in this Guide. Iř Akta miasta ŁŚwicza (Files Śf the tŚwř Śf ŁŚwicz, RG 7) there is iřfŚrmatiŚř Śř fŚrced labour among Jewish artisans in the years 1940-1942, including in the local labour centre established specifically for this purpose, the Dom Pracy (Labour House, call no. 3045, 3046, 3052), as well as a list of Jews dating from 1940 (call no. 3060) and documents referring to confiscations of industrial plants owned by Jews. There is also one file of similar documents surviving in connection with Bank Spółdzielczy z o.o. from the years 1941-1943 (Cooperative Bank with limited liability, RG 304), which was owned by Jews, as well as correspondence and other documentation dating from the period 1939-19ė1 gathered uřder the headiřg “Sśrawa kredytów ydŚwskich” (The questiŚř Śf Jewish lŚařs) iř the cŚllectiŚř KŚmuřalřa Kasa Oszcz dřŚ ci śŚwiatu łŚwickiegŚ 1937-1950 (ŁŚwicz CŚuřty CŚmmuřal Saviřgs Bařk, RG 3, file řŚ. 7Ę). Other dŚcumeřts frŚm the war years worthy of attention are the personal files of political śrisŚřers held iř ŁŚwicz PrisŚř: Wi zieřie w ŁŚwiczu (PrisŚř iř ŁŚwicz, RG 30), sŚme Śf whŚm were Śf Jewish desceřt. Theř there are materials connected with registry files: birth, marriage and death certificates and their regeneration after the war, as well as court documents on cases of restitution of property lost during the war. These materials are tŚ be fŚuřd iř the cŚllectiŚřs Akta Stařu CywilřegŚ BŚlimŚwskiegŚ BŚ řiczegŚ Okr gu w BŚlimŚwie 1889-1941 (Registry Files of the Bolimów Synagogue District in Bolimów, RG 29Ę), Akta Stařu CywilřegŚ dla wyzřań řiechrze cijańskich gmiřy ŁyszkŚwice 1918-1940 (Registry Files for non-Christiař cŚřfessiŚřs iř the cŚmmuře Śf ŁyszkŚwice, RG 30Ę), ařd S d GrŚdzki w ŁŚwiczu 19ėĘ-19Ę0 (CŚurt Śf the first iřstařce iř ŁŚwicz, RG 287). ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W OPOLU (STATE ARCHIVE IN OPOLE)52 Some information on the holdings of this archive may be found in the article by Barbara Sypko and Aneta Malik.53 A few collections have survived that contain documents of use for research into the “IřfŚrmatŚr Ś zasŚbie archiwalřym WŚjewódzkiegŚ Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ w OśŚlu i archiwów śŚdległych”, compiled by S. Czech and R. Demin, Kwartalnik Nauczyciela Opolskiego, 1977, vol. 76, no. 4 (insert). 52 40 fate of the Jews in these lands (the city of Opole and Opole Silesia) in the period 1933-1939, i.e. after Hitler’s rise tŚ śŚwer ařd befŚre the Śutbreak Śf WŚrld War II tŚ the end of the war. These are as follows:  Rejencja Opolska 1816-1945 (Regierung Oppeln, Opole Regional Administration, RG 1191), which comprises extensive correspondence in connection with the destruction and liquidation of synagogues during the Kristallnacht, 9-10 November 1938, and other antisemitic incidents; dŚcumeřts Śf the Zwi zek ydów PŚlskich (UřiŚř Śf PŚlish Jews) ařd Śther materials (file with the call řŚ. 19ę3, Wydział I [Deśartmeřt I]);  Naczelře Prezydium PrŚwiřcji GórřŚ l skiej w OśŚlu 18ėė-1941 (Oberpräsidium der Provinz Oberschlesien Oppeln, Supreme Presidium of the Province of Upper Silesia, RG 1) – correspondence relating to discrimination of the Jews before the war, which took the form of boycotts of shops and artisan workshops and denial of access to education for children;  Urz d dŚ Sśraw MřiejszŚ ci w OśŚlu 1922-1937 (Minderheitsamt Oppeln, Minorities Office in Opole, RG 47) – similar issues. Also of significance are the files of the cities, which also contain similar materials – above all Akta miasta Opola 1322-1945 (Magistrat Oppeln, Files of the city of Opole, RG 22) – documents related tŚ Jewish śrŚśerty ařd Jewish cemeteries, checks Śř the “Aryař” desceřt Śf resideřts Śf OśŚle (“FamilieřfŚrschuřg”, “Family iřvestigatiŚřs”, file no. 1207) – and the files of the Landratsämter (cŚuřty gŚverřŚrs’ Śffices), e.g. Lařdratsamt Ośśelř, Office Śf the OśŚle CŚuřty GŚverřŚr, RG 2) – documentation on Jewish organizations, real properties and businesses (file no. 677); Landratsamt Leobschuetz (Office Śf Głubczyce CŚuřty GŚverřŚr, RG 1802) – files eřtitled “Judeřsacheř” (“Jewish affairs”, e.g. file řŚ. 889) ařd “RasseřfŚrschuřg” (“Race iřvestigatiŚřs”, call řŚ. 3Ę9), which contain correspondence in connection with anthropological investigations in these regions. ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W OTWOCKU ńODDŃIAŁ AP W WARSŃAWIE] (STATE ARCHIVE IN OTWOCK [BRANCH OF THE STATE ARCHIVE IN WARSAW]) As in most of the smaller archives, the most important files here are those of the town and commune offices, and a few other collections. For these regions, those are, of course, Akta miasta B. SyśkŚ ařd A. Malik, “ ródła dŚ histŚrii ydów zachŚwaře w zasŚbie Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ w OśŚlu”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 251-254. 53 41 Otwocka 1916-1949 (Files of the town of Otwock, RG 1) – among the documents preserved here are regulations and general orders concerning matters such as forced labour and resettlement of the Jews, taxes, materials cŚřřected with the exśrŚśriatiŚř Śf Jewish real estate iř the “Aryař” quarter by a special administrative office, and many documents related to statistics, population records and control, lists of real properties, a personnel list of the Getto-Polizei and instructions for it, and a range of official letters and correspondence on matters concerning the Jews of Otwock. The body of material is relatively extensive and thus sufficient to reconstruct the history of the Otwock ghetto.54 Also worthy of interest are Akta miasta Rembertowa (Files of the town of Rembertów, RG 11) – preserved in this collection are general administrative documents, tribute payment collection ledgers for the years 1940-1941, which contain the names of Jews, and lists of people owning real estate in Rembertów in the years 1940-19ė1; ařd Akta miasta Kałuszyřa (Files Śf the tŚwř Śf Kałuszyř, RG 52) – social welfare cases, and general matters connected with the situation of the Jews and real properties belonging to them. NŚtewŚrthy amŚřg the cŚmmuře files are thŚse Śf cŚmmuřes iř the cŚuřty Śf Mińsk MazŚwiecki: ChrŚ cice, IwŚwe, Jeruzal, Kuflew, LatŚwicz, Mińsk MazŚwiecki, RudzieřkŚ ařd Sieřřica (RG Ę3, 115, 15, 116, 111, 10, 13, 12) – these above all contain statistical data, records and control of population movements, descriptions of abandoned real estate previously owned by Jews, lists of commercial and artisan businesses, and orders and public announcements issued by county governors and concerning or affecting Jews and other residents. Files of analogous provenance have alsŚ beeř śreserved fŚr cŚmmuřes iř GarwŚliř cŚuřty: thŚse Śf GórzřŚ, Ireřa, Łaskarzew-Osada, Łaskarzew Wie , Miastków KŚ cielřy, Osieck, PŚdł , Ryki, SŚbŚlew, St yca, TrŚjařów, Uł ařd Wilga (RG 118, 77, 284, 38, 39, 143, 140, 55, 221, 79, 54, 56, 36). Finally, it is worth mentioning three more collections, two of them related to the fates of real estate and movable property belonging to Jews: KŚmisaryczřy Zarz d Zabezśieczeřia NieruchŚmŚ ci w Mińsku MazŚwieckim (Trustee AdmiřistratiŚř BŚard fŚr the Security Śf Real PrŚśerty iř Mińsk MazŚwiecki, RG ęė), where cash ledgers and the tenant records for particular properties have been preserved; and Komisaryczny Zarz d Zabezśieczeřia NieruchŚmŚ ci w Faleřicy (Trustee AdmiřistratiŚř BŚard fŚr the Security Śf Real Estate in Falenica, RG 104) – here documentation of estates belonging to Jews, an alphabetical list of owners and lessees of real estate, tenant records, and postwar documentation on postwar compulsory possession orders and takeovers of real estate. The third of these collections in the 54 Cf. S. Szymańska, LudnŚ ć ydŚwska w OtwŚcku w Śkresie drugiej wŚjny wiatŚwej, Warszawa 2002. 42 Otwock archive is Komisja Klimatyczna Uzdrowiska Otwocka (Otwock Health Spa Committee, RG 2), which holds documents including lists of Polish Jews resettled from Germany in 1939 and resident at that time in Otwock. ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W PIOTRKOWIE TRYBUNALSKIM (STATE ARCHIVE IN PIOTRKÓW TRYBUNALSKI)55 These archival hŚldiřgs have beeř śrŚfiled very briefly iř ař article by KrzysztŚf Urz dŚwski. 56 Though this archive is not a central one, its holdings are particularly interesting in view of the fact that it was in Piotrków that the Germans established the first ghetto in the Polish lands, and a large number of documents concerning its history have been preserved in the record group Akta miasta Piotrkowa – KŚmisarz i Zarz d miasta PiŚtrkŚwa 1939-1945 (Files of the town of Piotrków – Commissar and Administration of the town of Piotrków, RG 9). In addition to documents generated by the German administration, this collection also contains files of the Rada Starszych Gminy ydŚwskiej (CŚmmittee Śf Elders Śf the Jewish CŚmmuřity). The dŚcumeřtatiŚř cŚřtaiřed iř this collection is extremely extensive and concerns all aspects of the daily life of the Jews under the German occupation of the town, their internal organization, and their attrition and exploitation through forced labour.57 In Akta miasta Radomska (Files of the town of Radomsko, RG 103) there are lists of the personal identification documents issued to Jews in the years 1939-1940, as well as registration and residence registration documents from specific properties, house residence registration ledgers for the years 1931-1943, and registers of houses by street. Also worthy of note are the following recŚrd grŚuśs: Wydział PŚwiatŚwy w PiŚtrkŚwie Trybuřalskim (CŚuřty Department in Piotrków Trybunalski, RG 2) many documents and information on the state of health of the Jews during the occupation and the struggle with infectious diseases; the personal details of Jewish physicians; correspondence concerning social welfare, sanitation issues, Jewish cemeteries and burial Śf the dead; ařd mařy Śther statistical ařd śersŚřal data; Akta stařu cywilřegŚ Okr gu BŚ řiczegŚ w PiŚtrkŚwie (Registry Files Śf the SyřagŚgue District in Piotrków, RG 333) – duplicates of birth, marriage and death certificates issued in Piotrków for the years 1938-1942. In the collections Archiwum PaństwŚwe w PiŚtrkŚwie Trybunalskim. InfŚrmatŚr Ś zasŚbie archiwalnym, compiled by A. Piasta, P. Zawilski, P. GłŚwacki, Warszawa 200ė. 56 K. Urz dŚwski, “ ródła dŚ histŚrii ydów w PŚlsce w Archiwum PaństwŚwym w PiŚtrkŚwie Trybuřalskim”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 255-258. 57 Cf. K. Urz dŚwski, “ ydzi śiŚtrkŚwscy – w ĘĘ rŚczřic likwidacji getta”, Archeion, 1998, vol. 99, pp. 369-371; Giladi Ben, OśŚwie ć Ś jednym mie cie, ed. Ařřa Rz dŚwska, PiŚtrków Trybuřalski 2010. 55 43 Śf the variŚus cŚmmuřes withiř PiŚtrków cŚuřty, e.g. GŚrzkŚwice, Kamieńsk, Ł czřŚ, Krzy ařów and Radomsko for the years 1939-1944 (RG 20, 23, 27, 28, 949), a diverse range of documents have been preserved containing personal data of Jews from the period of the occupation (e.g. records and inspection reports on population movements), as well as correspondence of Jewish Councils, on sanitation and order issues, compulsory tribute payments from Jews, lists of real estate owned by Jews, documents from the commune prison in Gorzkowice and many others. Among the holdings in Zbiór planów i druków ulotnych (Collection of plans and ephemera, RG 190) there is a map of Ghetto Stadt Petrikau from the years 1940-1941. ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W POŃNANIU (STATE ARCHIVE IN POŃNA )58 The holdings of this archive have been profiled in detail by Jadwiga Miedzianowska. 59 While there is fairly extensive material relating to the extermination of the Jews in these lands, it is scattered over several differeřt cŚllectiŚřs, e.g. Namiestřik Rzeszy w Okr gu Kraju Warty-PŚzřań X 1939-I 1945 (Reichsstatthalter im Reichsgau Wartheland Posen, Reich Governor in the Warta Land-PŚzřań region, RG 299) contains various statistical data on the Jewish population for the years 1939, 194219ė3, ařd iřfŚrmatiŚř Śř the ghettŚs iř KutřŚ, WłŚcławek (Leslau), Brzeziřy (Löweřstadt), Łód (Litzmannstadt), Wielun (Welun) and Pabianice (Pabianitz), and on labour camps and the fates of Jewish assets. Other important collections are as follows:  Rejencja w Poznaniu 1939-19ėĘ (Regieruřg PŚseř, PŚzřań RegiŚřal AdmiřistratiŚř, RG 300) – costs of transporting prisoners from the various districts;  SamŚrz d Okr gŚwy w PŚzřařiu 1939-1945 (Gauselbstverwaltung Posen, Regional Gau Government, RG 301) – files on Jewish community assets;  Szef Zarz du CywilřegŚ w PŚzřařiu śrzy DŚwódcy Okr gu WŚjskŚwegŚ w PŚzřařiu 1939- 1944 (Chef der Zivilverwaltung beim Oberbefehlshaber im Militärbezirk Posen, Head of the Civilian Administration under the Commander-in-Chief Śf the PŚzřań Military District, RG 298) – reports, death sentences, various orders from the authorities; Archiwum PaństwŚwe Miasta PŚznania i wŚjewództwa śŚznańskiegŚ Śraz jegŚ archiwa terenŚwe. PrzewŚdnik śŚ zasŚbie archiwalnym, ed. Cz. Skopowski, Warszawa 1969; Wykaz zesśŚłów akt w archiwach na terenie WielkŚśŚlski, PŚzřań 197ę; Sśis zesśŚłów. InfŚrmatŚr Ś zasŚbie archiwalnym [Archiwum PaństwŚwe w PŚznaniu], cŚmśiled by J. MiedziařŚwska, PŚzřań 199Ę. 59 J. MiedziařŚwska, “ ródła dŚ dziejów ydów w zasŚbie Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ w PŚzřařiu”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 269-291. 58 44 The files of some police forces have also been preserved, e.g. in the collection Prezydium Policji w Poznaniu 1939-19ėĘ (PŚlizeiśrŹsidium PŚseř, PŚlice Presidium iř PŚzřań, RG 102ę) – instructions and orders concerning actions against the Jews; in the collections Tajna Policja PaństwŚwa w Poznaniu 1939-1945 (Geheime Staatspolizei, Staatspolizeistelle Posen, Gestapo Branch Office in PŚzřań, RG 1023) ařd DŚwódca PŚlicji PŚrz dkŚwej w PŚzřařiu 1939-1945 (Der Befehlshaber der Ordnungspolizei Posen, Commander of the Order Police iř PŚzřań, RG 1008) – general information and documents concerning German anti-Jewish policy (ordinances and orders); Sztab Osiedleńczy SS w PŚzřařiu 1939-1944 (SS Ansiedlungsstab Posen, SS Settlement Headquarters in PŚzřań, RG 30ė) – lists of resettled populations, statistical data, correspondence on matters connected with resettlement. In addition, a few files of local government offices have also survived: 17 cŚllectiŚřs Śf military śŚlice files ( ařdarmeria, Geřdarmerie 60 , RG 1016-1022, 1231-1239) containing lists of names of Jews, statistical data, arrest warrants for escaped Jews, and forced labour matters; ařd 2ė cŚllectiŚřs Śf cŚuřty gŚverřŚrs’ Śffices (lařdratur, Lařdratsamt 61 , RG 447-469), covering matters connected with resettlement, arrests, tribute payments, confiscations of property, and labour camps, as well as camps connected with the construction of the Berlin-PŚzřań-Lwów motorway62 (Judenautobahnanlage). The town files hold very little material on the Holocaust; the largest quantity is in Akta miasta Buk (Files of the town of Buk, RG 4377) – about the camp for Jews in Otusz (Ger. Otusch), as well as data on population size, expropriation of Jewish property, and assorted reports. ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W PRŃEMY LU (STATE ARCHIVE IN PRŃEMY L)63 The holdings of this archive have been profiled in an article by Jacek Krochmal. 64 Unfortunately, very few documents from the period of the occupation are extant. Those that are include records of Starosta powiatowy w Sanoku (Der Kreishauptmann in Sanok, Sanok County Governor, RG 24), which contains anti-Jewish orders, propaganda pamphlets and public announcements regarding 60 For the following cities and their surrounding areas: Bolewice [near Grodzisk], Grodzisk Wielkopolski, Jarocin, Kalisz, K śřŚ, KŚ ciař, LeszřŚ, ObŚrřiki, MurŚwařa GŚ liřa, Ostrów WielkŚśŚlski, PŚzřań, Rawicz, SzamŚtuły, rem, rŚda, KŚłŚ, WŚlsztyř, W grŚwiec. 61 Mi dzychód, GŚstyń, GrŚdzisk, JarŚciř, Kalisz, KemśřŚ/K śřŚ, ChŚdzie , KŚłŚ, KŚřiř, KŚ ciař, KrŚtŚszyř, LeszřŚ, NŚwy TŚmy l, ObŚrřiki, Ostrów, PŚzřań, Rawicz, Czarřków, rem, rŚda, Turek, WŚlsztyř, Wrze řia. 62 There is an exhibition on these camps and the exploitation of forced labourers in the construction of the motorway at the Museum Śf MartyrdŚm iř abikŚwŚ řear PŚzřań. Cf. alsŚ A. ZiółkŚwska, ObŚzy śracy śrzymusŚwej dla ydów w Wielkopolsce w latach okupacji hitlerowskiej (1941-1943), PŚzřań 200Ę. 63 Informator o zasobie archiwalnym, cŚmśiled by Z. KŚřieczřy, A. Feřczak, M. Osiadacz, Przemy l 1983; Sśis zesśŚłów całkŚwicie ŚśracŚwanych w Archiwum PaństwŚwym w Przemy lu, ed. J. Kosakowska-Góral, Przemy l 199ę. 64 J. KrŚchmal, “ ródła dŚ dziejów ydów w archiwach Przemy la”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 293-312. 45 confiscation of property, and lists of Jewish registry books from several locations (Lesko, Sanok, Ustrzyki DŚlře). Iř Akta miasta Przemy la and Akta miasta Przeworska (Files of the towns of Przemy l ařd PrzewŚrsk, RG 129 ařd 137) there are materials Śř the establishmeřt Śf the ghettŚs and Jewish community assets, population records (in Przeworsk), correspondence regarding the Jews, German orders, ařd a list Śf admiřistratŚrs Śf the assets Śf the Jewish cŚmmuřity iř Przemy l, as well as a summary list of the Jews in Przeworsk from 1940 to February 1942. For Przeworsk there is alsŚ a file eřtitled “Admiřistracja maj tkiem śŚ ydŚwskim” (Admiřistration of former Jewish assets), which contains lists of large numbers of businesses, houses and other real estate. As the author of the above mentioned article stresses, given such poorly preserved archival material, eyewitness accounts and interviews take on especial importance.65 ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W RADOMIU (STATE ARCHIVE IN RADOM)66 The archival material on the history of the Jews held in Radom has been profiled by Sebastian Pi tkŚwski.67 As in other local archives, the extant holdings are very meagre and scattered. Among the files of German provenance there is Gubernator Dystryktu Radomskiego 1939-1945 (Der Gouverneur des Distrikts Radom, Radom District Governor, RG 209) – a small number of files on the deportation of the Jews to labour camps in the Lublin region, and correspondence regarding the labour conditions in those camps, as well as payrolls of Jews forcibly employed in Radom, and reports on the activities of various organizations. The collection Starosta Powiatowy w Radomiu 1939-1944 (Kreishauptmann Radom-Land, Radom County Governor, RG 208) includes the texts of various anti-Jewish ordinances and public announcements; the same type of material is held in Zbiór plakatów, afiszów i druków ulotnych z lat 1939-1945 (Collection of bills, posters and printed ephemera, RG 1192). Among the most valuable collections in Radom are the files of the Naczelna Rada Starszych LudřŚ ci ydŚwskiej Dystryktu RadŚmskiegŚ – Dział DŚwŚdów OsŚbistych 19ė11942 (Der Ober-Ältestenrat der jüdischen Bevölkerung des Distrikts Radom im Radom, Supreme Council of the Jewish Population in the Radom District – Personal Identification Division, RG 387). Cf. Pamiętam ka dy dzień... LŚsy ydów śrzemyskich śŚdczas II wŚjny wiatŚwej, ed. J.J. Hartmař ařd J. KrŚchmal, Przemy l 2001. 66 Archiwum PaństwŚwe w RadŚmiu. PrzewŚdnik śŚ zasŚbie archiwalnym, collective work, ed. H. Kisiel, Warszawa 1996; Archiwum PaństwŚwe w RadŚmiu. Sśis zesśŚłów według stanu na dzień 31 grudnia 1999 rŚku, compiled by M. Comber and S. Pi tkŚwski, RadŚm 2000. 67 S. Pi tkŚwski, “ ródła dŚ dziejów ludřŚ ci ydŚwskiej w XVII-XX w. w zasŚbie Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ w Radomiu”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 313-328. 65 46 This is a collection of several thousand applications by Radom Jews for identity documents, which contains a vast quantity of personal data, as well as the photographs submitted for the issue of these Kennkarten. Of similar potential (mass personal data) are the files of around 500 Jewish labourers emślŚyed iř the Bata fŚŚtwear factŚry, which řŚw fŚrm the cŚllectiŚř RadŚmskie Zakłady Obuwia 1941-1959 (Radom Footwear Works, RG 344). There are also personal files of Jews (over 2,000) held iř the cŚllectiŚř Wi zieřie RadŚmskie 1939-1945 (Radom Prison, RG 417); this record group also contains the personal files of Poles punished for offering assistance to Jews in hiding. Documents containing death sentences meted out to Jews for leaving the Jewish quarter (ghetto) are held in the cŚllectiŚř PrŚkuratura śrzy S dzie Sśecjalřym w RadŚmiu 1939-1944 (Staatsanwaltschaft beim Sondergericht in Radom, Public Prosecutor at the Special Court in Radom, RG 399). Important material for research concerning the Radom district is scattered throughout the files of various towns ařd cŚmmuřes, amŚřg them Skaryszew, RadŚm, BiałŚbrzegi ařd KŚzieřice. ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W RŃESŃOWIE (STATE ARCHIVE IN RŃESŃÓW)68 The holdings of the Rzeszów archive have been profiled in an article by Grzegorz Zamoyski. 69 Withiř the archive there is ař O rŚdek Badań HistŚrii ydów (Jewish HistŚry Research Ceřtre) 70, although for the period of the occupation almost no collections of German or Jewish provenance have been preserved. Of immense interest, however, and well represented, are town files, of which there are 17 in the State Archive in Rzeszów. Among the most important for this subject area are Akta miasta Rzeszowa (Files of the town of Rzeszów, RG 1), which contain items including German bills and public announcements; information on the establishment of the ghetto and forced labour for Jews; confiscations of property and its administration; death sentences; lists of deceased Jews for the years 1935-1942; an incomplete list of the Jews of Mielec (1941); lists of licences issued and tribute payments by residents in the years 1941-1943; registers of houses and lists of names of the tenants of various real properties; records of personal identity documents issued; alphabetical card files on population movements71; and the originals of labour record cards (Arbeitskarten). In Akta miasta GłŚgŚwa MałŚśŚlskiegŚ (Files Śf the tŚwř Śf GłŚgów MałŚśŚlski, RG 397) there are InfŚrmatŚr archiwalny [Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ w RzeszŚwie], compiled by J. Basta and D. Byszuk, Rzeszów 1998. G. ZamŚyski, “ ródła dŚ dziejów ydów w aktach miast w zasŚbie Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ w RzeszŚwie”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 329-344. 70 J. Basta, “RzeszŚwski Ś rŚdek badařia histŚrii ydów w PŚlsce”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 555-570. 71 The card files on population movements in Rzeszów date from the period 1934-1944 and comprise very detailed information on whole families, such as emigration of particular family members. The State Archive in Rzeszów has developed an electronic database of these card files, which includes the names of around 14,000 Jews of Rzeszów. 68 69 47 documents concerning the fates of Jewish assets; in Akta miasta Tyczyn (Files of the town of Tyczyn, RG 255) there are also various scattered materials on Jewish assets – registers of taxes, businesses closed down, residents, ařd variŚus fees ařd fiřes; iř Akta miasta Bła Śwej (Files Śf the tŚwř Śf Bła Śwa, RG 71) lists Śf artisařs, śuřishmeřts fŚr viŚlatiřg regulatiŚřs imśŚsed uřder the occupation, sanitation issues, and business closures; and orders concerning the census of Jews and their assets; ařd Akta miasta Łańcuta (Files Śf the tŚwř Śf Łańcut, RG 29) cŚřtaiř similar materials – lists of Jewish assets, houses and apartments, confiscated furniture, the issue of the liquidation of the cemetery, and materials on other Jewish community assets (the synagogue, bathhouse and other buildings). Research wŚuld be wŚrthwhile iřtŚ the cŚllectiŚř S d Niemiecki w RzeszŚwie z lat 19ė0-1944 (Das Deutsche Gericht in Reichshof, German Court in Rzeszów, RG 434), which contains criminal cases, among them cases involving aid to and concealing Jews, and into that Śf S d Sśecjalřy Niemiecki w Rzeszowie 1939-1944 (Sondergericht in Reichshof, German Special Court in Rzeszów, RG 26) – analogous criminal cases. Noteworthy among the court files are the collections of courts of the first instance, large numbers of which have been preserved, e.g. those in Rzeszów (RG 1245), Tyczyn (RG 973) and Ropczyce (RG 980), which above all contain inheritance case documents. Further, in the cŚllectiŚř Urz d Metrykalřy Izraelicki w RzeszŚwie 18ė2-1942 (Israelite Registry Office in Rzeszów, RG 533) there are records and registry files from the years of the occupation: marriage certificates (Trauungsscheine), birth certificates, death certificates, as well as various other certificates, personal identity documents, residence registration documents, etc. There are similar materials frŚm the ŚccuśatiŚř śeriŚd iř the files Śf Gmiřa WyzřařiŚwa ydŚwska w Czudcu 19221942 (Jewish Community in Czudec, RG 736) – in addition to registry files, there are also minutes of meetings of the Jewish Council dating from 1940, records including numbers of Jews before the war and in May 1940, number of people resettled, the community budget, other economic and business matters, social welfare, lists of people paying subscriptions to the community organization, the cash ledger, insurance documents for the bathhouse and synagogue, correspondence with the Joint and the ydŚwska SamŚśŚmŚc SśŚłeczřa ( SS, Jewish Self-Help), orders issued by the German authorities, lists of forced labourers, lists of Jews receiviřg aid, ařd the Ksi ga PrŚtŚkŚłów CzyřřŚ ci Zarz du Gmiřy WyzřařiŚwej ydŚwskiej w Czudcu 193ė-1942 (Czudec Jewish Community Board Action Reports Book). The Rzeszów archive also holds one collection of the Rada ydŚwska w RŚzwadŚwie frŚm 19ė1 (Jewish CŚuřcil in Rozwadów, RG 1399) and materials 48 frŚm the Urz d Metrykalřy ydŚwski w D bicy frŚm the years 19ė2-1945 (Jewish Registry Office in D bica, RG 882) – the files contain an index of names and 14 notebooks of deaths in the towns of D bica, PilzřŚ, BrzŚstek, JŚdłŚwa, Mielec, RŚśczyce, JasłŚ, S dziszów ařd KrŚsřŚ. ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W SANDOMIERŃU ńODDŃIAŁ AP W KIELCACH] (STATE ARCHIVE IN SANDOMIERZ [BRANCH OF THE STATE ARCHIVE IN KIELCE]) Research in the Sandomierz archive should focus on the files of certain towns, communes, courts and prisons. In Akta miasta Rozwadowa (Files of the town of Rozwadów, RG 523) there is a breakdown of the assets belonging to Jews (1941), rent and apartment ledgers, a register of abandoned real estate, and a ledger in which are recorded expropriations of former Jewish assets. Akta miasta Opatowa (Files of the town of Opatów, RG 6) contain lists of Jewish proprietors of buildings (1940), forms for personal identity documents, and lists of people arrested; Akta miasta Stalowej Woli (Files of the town of Stalowa Wola, RG 524) hold reports on population movements, orders issued by the occupying powers, a list of Jews in the camp in Stalowa Wola (August 1943), and registers of Kennkarten. The files of some communes contain very similar documents: police surveillance of Jews, lists of real property owners, lists of former Jewish houses and documents concerning synagogues, lists of Jews in a given commune, and various other documents connected with instances of persecution. There are materials on matters of this nature in the files of the cŚmmuřes Śf Ćmielów, KlimŚřtów, Kunów, Koprzywnica, Nietulisko and Tarnobrzeg. Two court cŚllectiŚřs have survived: S d GrŚdzki w KlimŚřtŚwie (CŚurt Śf the first iřstařce iř KlimŚřtów, RG 133) ařd S d Grodzki w Staszowie (Court of the first instance in Staszów, RG 226); these cover similar cases, regardiřg iřheritařces ařd śrŚśerty rights. Iř the cŚllectiŚř Wi zieřie w SařdŚmierzu (Prison in Sandomierz, RG 141) there are more than 2,000 personal files of prisoners, most of them Jews, dating from the war up to 1943. ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W SIEDLCACH (STATE ARCHIVE IN SIEDLCE)72 These hŚldiřgs have beeř described iř ař article by GrzegŚrz Welik ařd Wařda Wi chTchórzewska.73 No collections generated by the occupying German authorities have survived in the InfŚrmatŚr Ś zasŚbie archiwalnym [Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ w Siedlcach], cŚmśiled by J. KuligŚwski ařd W. Wi ch-Tchórzewska, Siedlce 1999. 73 G. Welik, W. Wi ch-Tchórzewska, “ ródła dŚ dziejów ydów w Archiwum PaństwŚwym w Siedlcach”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 345-352; cf. Kopówka Edward, ydzi w Siedlcach 1850-1945, Siedlce 2009. 72 49 Siedlce archive. The only collection containing announcements, ordinances and other legal iřstrumeřts affectiřg Jews is Zbiór afiszy Śkuśacyjřych dla śŚwiatu sŚkŚłŚwskŚ-podlaskiego (CŚllectiŚř Śf bills frŚm the ŚccuśatiŚř fŚr the SŚkŚłów PŚdlaski cŚuřty, RG 718) – in all, around 90 documents of this type, some of which concerned Jews and the ghettos established in this region. Materials connected with the fates of the Jewish population are scattered across a large number of collections of towns and communes. Among the most important are:  Akta miasta Siedlce 1891-1950 (Files of the town of Siedlce, RG 36) – materials relating to supplies, resettlement of the Jews into the ghetto, a list of the Polish and Jewish populations dating from November 1940, and other documents, e.g. orders issued by the mayor;  Akta miasta W grŚwa (Files Śf the tŚwř Śf Wegrów, RG 2Ę3) – general information on the situation of the Jews during the occupation, orders and circulars, tribute payment collection ledgers for the years 1940-1941 (in which the address is recorded alongside the name) and 1941-1942 (in this sectiŚř there is ař alśhabetical list Śf the Jews Śf W grów). There are also scattered materials in the files of the communes within particular counties, above all W grów, SŚkŚłów PŚdlaski ařd Siedlce. These iřclude German ordinances, statistical data on numbers of Jews, ledgers listing the level and collection records of tribute payments and various taxes, sařitatiŚř ařd suśśly matters, ařd lists Śf the Jews resideřt iř the cŚmmuřes Śf Łysów, SiřŚł ka ařd Chruszczewka. There is a similar tyśe Śf dŚcumeřtatiŚř iř the cŚllectiŚřs Śf the cŚmmuře admiřistratiŚřs iř D bie, Łuków, TuchŚwicz ařd Celiřy. A very iřterestiřg, large, yet tŚ date little exślŚred grŚuś Śf cŚllectiŚřs is that Śf S dy grŚdzkie (CŚurts Śf the first iřstařce, iř SŚkŚłów PŚdlaski, elechów, GarwŚliř, Adamów, Łuków, SŚbŚlew ařd Siedlce), which iřcludes cases frŚm the war years ařd the postwar period. Three important but as yet largely unpenetrated collections are the following:  Akta S du Okr gŚwegŚ w Siedlcach 1939-1944 (Files of the County Court in Siedlce), which contain inheritance proceedings, contracts, and other materials, most of them connected with real estate, other assets, and sale or inheritance thereof;  Akta S dziegŚ ledczegŚ śrzy S dzie Okr gŚwym w Siedlcach 1940-1944 (Files of the Investigating Judge at the County Court in Siedlce);  The teřs Śf thŚusařds Śf files Śf PrŚkuratura S du Okr gŚwegŚ w Siedlcach 1917-1946 (Public Prosecutor at the County Court in Siedlce). Supplementary to these court files are the land 50 registry books dating from the early nineteenth century to 1990, which have survived in great number (almost 15,000). These documents facilitate research into property ownership issues, cŚřfiscatiŚřs Śf Jews’ assets, ařd issues Śf viŚlation of the law during the occupation and after the war. Finally, it is worth mentioning the only collection of files of the Jewish community in this archive: ydŚwska Gmiřa WyzřařiŚwa w Siedlcach (Jewish ReligiŚus CŚmmuřity iř Siedlce, RG 33ė, 2 archive units), which contains eight entries of birth, marriage and death certificates from the years 1941-1942. ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W SŃCŃECINIE (STATE ARCHIVE IN SŃCŃECIN)74 The materials on the history of the Jews in the Szczecin archive have been profiled in two articles, that by Paweł Gut, Jerzy Grzelak ařd Jař MachŚlak 75 , and that by Bogdan Frankiewicz 76 . This archive holds a number of very interesting collections of German provenance:  Prezydium Policji w Szczecinie (Polizeipräsidium Stettin, Police Presidium in Szczecin, RG 93), where there are Kennkarten of Pomeranian Jews arrested in the years 1939-1940, issues connected with employment of Jews, and Gestapo reports;  Rejeřcja Szczecińska (Regierungspräsident Stettin, Szczecin Regional Administration, RG 92) – Śf greatest sigřificařce are the files Śf the Wydział Prezydialřy (Presidium Deśartmeřt), ařd withiř these issues connected with supervision of communes, the ruin of Jewish trade, anti-Jewish demonstrations, looting of property, arrests, and name changes;  Naczelne Prezydium Prowincji Pomorskiej (Oberpräsidium von Pommern in Stettin, Supreme Presidium of the Province of Pomerania in Szczecin, RG 73) – files connected with the exśrŚśriatiŚř Śf the Jewish śŚśulatiŚř. AmŚřg the tŚwř files, Akta miasta My libŚrza (Magistrat SŚldiř, Files Śf the tŚwř Śf My libórz, RG 210) cŚřtaiř a wealth Śf very iřterestiřg material abŚut antisemitic excesses, propaganda and German policy – above all for the prewar period – and passport-related affairs. It is important to point out that after the war Szczecin was one of the most Archiwum PaństwŚwe w Szczecinie. PrzewŚdnik śŚ zasŚbie archiwalnym. Akta do 1945 roku, cŚllective wŚrk, ed. R. Gaziński, P. Gust, M. Szukała, Warszawa-Szczecin 2002. 75 P. Gut, J. Grzelak, J. MachŚlak, “Materiały ródłŚwe dŚ histŚrii ydów śrzechŚwywaře w Archiwum PaństwŚwym w Szczeciřie”, [in:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 365-375. 76 B. Frařkiewicz, “ ródła dŚ dziejów ydów řa PŚmŚrzu ZachŚdřim w zbiŚrach Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ w Szczecinie”, Szczeciński InfŚrmatŚr Archiwalny, 1997, no. 11, pp. 81-85. 74 51 important centres of new Jewish settlement, and thus research into postwar archivalia is also vital for study of the history of Polish-Jewish relations and the consequences of the Holocaust. ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W WARSZAWIE (STATE ARCHIVE IN WARSAW)77 The sources for the history of the Jewish community in the Warsaw archive [formerly known as the Archiwum śaństwŚwe miasta stŚłeczřegŚ Warszawa or APmstW – State Archive of the Capital City of Warsaw] have beeř śrŚfiled by Marta Jaszczyńska 78 and Danuta Skorwider, and those for the histŚry Śf the Jews iř řŚrtherř MazŚvia by Jařusz Szcześański79. The two most important collections for the study of the history of the Warsaw ghetto dating from the occupatiŚř are PrzewŚdřicz cy Rady ydŚwskiej w Warszawie 19ė0-1942 (Der Obmann des Judenrates in Warschau 1940-19ė2, Chairmař Śf the Jewish CŚuřcil iř Warsaw, RG ė83) ařd Urz d Szefa Okr gu WarszawskiegŚ. KŚmisarz dla ydŚwskiej Dzielřicy MieszkařiŚwej w Warszawie. Placówka Transferu w Warszawie 1939-1945 (Amt des Gouverneurs Distrikts Warschau. Der Kommissar für den Jüdischen Wohnbezirk in Warschau. Transferstelle Warschau 1939-1945; Office of the Warsaw District Governor. Commissar for the Jewish Residential Quarter in Warsaw. Transfer Agency in Warsaw, RG 482). The first of the above mentioned collections comprises the only 2,000 or so pages of documentation extant from the huge office of the Warsaw Judenrat. These include above all statistical data and reports for the German authorities, as well as matters connected with health, taxes, fŚrced labŚur iř camśs, ařd the Słu ba PŚrz dkŚwa (OD, Ordřuřgsdieřst, Ghetto Police). This collection is furnished with an inventory and a preface by Jolanta Adamska. Analogous dŚcumeřts are held iř the cŚllectiŚř Urz d Szefa Okr gu WarszawskiegŚ (Amt des Gouverneurs des Distrikts Warschau, Office of the Warsaw District Governor). Both these collections are described in greater detail in Part II of this Guide. Supplementary to them is the subcŚllectiŚř DŚwódca SS i PŚlicji Okr gu WarszawskiegŚ (SS ařd PŚlice CŚmmařder fŚr the Warsaw District), which contains the files of investigations against people concealing their Jewish roots and Informator Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ m.st. Warszawy (histŚria, wykaz zesśŚłów), compiled by J. Kazimierski, D. Skorwider, A. Wróblewski, Warszawa 1992. 78 M. Jaszczyńska, “ ródła dŚ dziejów ludřŚ ci ydŚwskiej w Warszawie w XIX i XX w. w zbiŚrach Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ m.st. Warszawy” ařd D. SkŚrwider, “ ródła dŚ histŚrii ydów řa tereřie MazŚwsza PółřŚcřegŚ w zasŚbie Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ m.st. Warszawy”, [in:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 393-405 and 401-405. 79 J. Szcześański, “ ródła archiwalře dŚ dziejów sśŚłeczřŚ ci ydŚwskiej MazŚwsza PółřŚcřegŚ w XIX-XX w. (do 1939 r.)”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 407-422. 77 52 German officials charged with abuse of their positions in connection with their functions in the ghetto (illegal trade and other financial transactions, and assistance to Jews in escaping). Information and documents on the Warsaw ghetto are also held in the collection Starostwo Miejskie w Warszawie 1939-1944 (Stadthauptmannschaft Warschau, Office of the Warsaw City Governor, RG 485) – birth and death statistics, weekly reports of the chairman of the Judenrat (1941), the dispute over the boundaries of the ghetto, forced labour, Jewish mutual aid, the fight against typhus, applications for passes, and cases of illegal trade and smuggling. Moreover, almost 15 linear metres of files of the Starostwo Powiatowe Warszawskie 1939-1945 (Kreishauptmannschaft Warschau-Land, Office of the Warsaw County Governor, RG 486) have survived, relating to all kinds of administrative matters in the county, including those concerning Jews living there, e.g. forced labour and confiscations of their śrŚśerty. AmŚřg the few surviviřg files Śf cŚuřty gŚverřŚrs’ offices (starostwa, Kreishauptmannschaften) in the Warsaw District held in the State Archive in Warsaw are those of Starostwo Powiatowe w Ostrowi Mazowieckiej 1939-1945 (Kreishauptmannschaft Ostrów, Office of the Ostrów Mazowiecka County Governor, RG 489) – materials on the staging of an anti-Jewish exhibition in the counties, guidelines for expropriation of Jewish assets, reports on the activities of the trustee administration boards, etc. Also worthy of note are two collections of files of the “grařatŚwa śŚlicja” (“Blaue PŚlizei”, “[Dark] Blue PŚlice”, the PŚlish śŚlice fŚrce iř the Geřeral GŚverřmeřt): KŚmeřda PŚlicji PŚlskiej „Obwód Praga” 1939-1944 (Polish Police Headquarters, Praga Borough, RG 1710) – iřcludiřg reśŚrts Śf detaiřmeřts Śf Jews Śř the “Aryař side”; ařd XV Komisariat Policji Polskiej m.st. Warszawy 1939-1944 (15th Polish Police Station in the Capital City of Warsaw, RG 1711) – including registers of crimes committed (also by Jews) in 1940, inquiries undertaken in connection with them, and inspections of investigations in various cases. Other extremely iřterestiřg cŚllectiŚřs are thŚse Śf the cŚurts ařd śrisŚřs, iř śarticular S d Okr gŚwy w Warszawie 1917-1944 (County Court in Warsaw, RG 639) – the case files of several dozen civil cases relating to property issues, debts, compensations, auctions, and appointments of court administrators iř cases Śf the abseřce Śf śrŚśrietŚrs; ařd Wi zieřie Karře Warszawa MŚkŚtów 191ę-1944 (Warsaw Mokotów Criminal Prison, RG 657), running to around 50 linear metres, which contains several thousand personal files of Jews convicted of various occupation crimes, such as being outside the ghetto illegally, not wearing the armband with the Star of David, illegal trade and smuggling, theft, forgery, and similar cases. This record group is of unparalleled significance in view of the excellent state of preservation of the files, and their completeness. Jews and other prisoners held in Mokotów jail were tried by S d Niemiecki 19ė0-1944 (Deutsches Gericht, German Court, RG 1207) – this 53 collection contains the files of several dozen cases brought against Jews during the war for violating regulations imposed by the occupying authorities. The German Court also pursued some cases that were in progress in the years 1931-1939 before Polish courts – S d GrŚdzki (the cŚurt Śf first iřstařce) ařd S d Okr gŚwy (cŚuřty cŚurt) iř Warsaw. The Warsaw archive alsŚ hŚlds a cŚllectiŚř Śf the Germař S d Sśecjalřy 19ė2-1944 (Sondergericht Warschau, Warsaw Special Court, RG 643) and of the Prokuratura (public prosecutor) at that court 1940-1944 (Staatsanwaltschaft bei dem Sondergericht Warschau, RG 1601).80 ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE WE WROCŁAWIU (STATE ARCHIVE IN WROCŁAW)81 These hŚldiřgs are discussed iř the article by Mieczysława Chmielewska.82 There are a few extant record groups from the period of the occupation, some of which are inaccessible due to serious flood damage to the archive during the 1997 flood. The most important collection for research into the extermination of the Jews is Rejencja WrŚcławska (Regieruřg Breslau, WrŚcław RegiŚřal Administration, RG 172) – prewar issues, such as mixed marriages; Jewish assets (regulations, cŚrresśŚřdeřce, lists Śf assets earmarked fŚr “AryařizatiŚř”, lists Śf artisař wŚrkshŚśs, ařd lists Śf land and plots belonging to Jews); regulations on arresting Jews of Polish descent; the activities and liquidatiŚř Śf Jewish ŚrgařizatiŚřs; cŚrresśŚřdeřce Śf WrŚcław Jewish cŚmmuřity ŚrgařizatiŚřs Śř many different matters; regulations regarding changing Jewish names; aśślicatiŚřs fŚr “award Śf Germař blŚŚd” tŚ childreř frŚm mixed marriages; Śfficial decisiŚřs Śř “degree Śf Jewish desceřt”; applications for permission to conclude marriages; certificates of morality issued by the police; correspondence on race policy issues; medical forms regarding sterilization; materials on Max Silberberg, Śře Śf the biggest art cŚllectŚrs iř WrŚcław, iřcludiřg ař iřveřtŚry detailiřg the estimated value Śf his seized cŚllectiŚř; iřfŚrmatiŚř Śř Jews’ bařk accŚuřts ařd Śř seizures Śf hŚmes; sale cŚřtracts fŚr Jewish assets; ařd cŚrresśŚřdeřce with bařks. Next is Urz d SkarbŚwy PrŚwiřcji DŚlřŚ l skiej we WrŚcławiu 1919-1945 (Oberfinanzpräsident Niederschlesien, Lower Silesiař PrŚviřcial Reveřue Office iř WrŚcław, RG 2ėę) – the files of the Division for Confiscation Cf. J. Grabowski, „Ja tegŚ yda znam!”. Szanta Śwanie ydów w Warszawie, 1939-1943, Warszawa 2004. Archiwum PaństwŚwe we WrŚcławiu. PrzewŚdnik śŚ zasŚbie archiwalnym dŚ 1945 rŚku, ed. A. Dereń ařd R. erelik, WrŚcław 1996. 82 M. Chmielewska, “Judaica w zbiŚrach AP we WrŚcławiu”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 425-433. 80 81 54 of Jewish Assets83 contain lists of the Jews living in the region, correspondence, and the personal files of families whose property was confiscated (along with a great deal of information and other documents on this matter). Other important collections include:  Naczelře Prezydium PrŚwiřcji l skiej we WrŚcławiu 1939-1945 (Oberpräsidium der PrŚviřz Schlesieř iř Breslau, Suśreme Presidium Śf the PrŚviřce Śf Silesia iř WrŚcław, RG 170) – correspondence regarding name changes, police supervision, and propaganda material;  Wydział SamŚrz dŚwy PrŚwiřcji l skiej 1939-1945 (Provinzialverwaltung von Schlesien in Breslau, Provincial Government Department in Silesia, RG 171), which includes propaganda material;  Zarz d PŚlicji w PŚlařicy Zdroju (Police Board in Polanica Zdrój, RG 1133) – orders issued by the authorities regarding foreigners and Jews, issue of passports to Jews, orders, and lists of Jews issued with Kennkarten, correspondence in various matters affecting and concerning Jews;  Bařk Drezdeński, Filia we WrŚcławiu 1933-1944 (Dresdner Bank in Breslau 1933-1944, Dresdeř Bařk, WrŚcław Brařch, RG 31Ę), iřcludiřg Śrders regardiřg accŚuřts belŚřgiřg tŚ Jews;  Akta miasta WrŚcławia (Files Śf the city Śf WrŚcław, RG 28) – mayoral speeches, propaganda materials, matters connected with Jewish schools and the seizure of museum holdings from the foundation administrating the home of Prof. Niesser, a professor of mediciře (“Haus Niesser Verwaltuřg”), ařd the matters Śf the creatiŚř Śf a Jewish museum iř the years 1928-1935 (“Jüdisches Museum”), the remŚval Śf the cŚmmemŚrative ślaque frŚm the hŚuse Śf Ferdiřařd Lassalle, and others;  Akta miasta KłŚdzka (Files Śf the tŚwř Śf KłŚdzkŚ, RG 21) – correspondence with the secret śŚlice Śř matters such as emślŚymeřt Śf fŚreigřers iř Jewish hŚmes, “race cŚřtrŚl”, liquidation of shops, and name changes, the ban on Polish Jews in the town, and many others. Iř WrŚcław, as iř Szczecin, there are considerable quantities of archive materials of value for research into the lives of the Jewish population of Poland after the war, above all the files of the WŚjewódzki KŚmitet ydów řa DŚlřym l sku 19ėĘ-1949 (Voivodship Committee of Jews in Lower Silesia, RG 415). Cf. F. PŚłŚmski, “HŚlŚcaust we WrŚcławiu i řa DŚlřym l sku (19ė1-19ėė) w wietle dŚkumeřtów admiřistracji skarbŚwej”, Dzieje Najnowsze, 1986, R. XVIII, no. 3-4, pp. 235-248. 83 55 ARCHIWUM PA STWOWE W ŃAMO CIU (STATE ARCHIVE IN ŃAMO Ć)84 A very cursory review of the archival material on the history of the Jews has been made by Gertruda SŚwińska. 85 Few documents from the occupation period have survived, and those that have are scattered across the files of the towns and communes as well as several other collections. These include Zbiór akt dr. Janusza Petera (Collection of files of Dr Janusz Peter, RG 192), documents amassed by the man whose functions included that of founder of Muzeum Regionalne w Tomaszowie Lubelskim (the Regional Museum in Tomaszów Lubelski) – above all, this collection includes reminiscences and accounts about the partisan and resistařce mŚvemeřts iř the ZamŚ ć regiŚř; Zbiór afiszów, ŚgłŚszeń i druków ulŚtřych (CŚllectiŚřs Śf bill śŚsters, řŚtices ařd śriřted ephemera, RG 215) – public announcements on the subject of forced labour for the Jews, the obligation to register, restrictiŚřs Śř ślaces Śf resideřce, ařd assŚrted śrŚśagařda leaflets; Okr gŚwa KŚmisja Badařia ZbrŚdři HitlerŚwskich w Lubliřie. Delegatura w ZamŚ ciu 19ęĘ-1971 (County CŚmmissiŚř fŚr the IřvestigatiŚř Śf Hitlerite Crimes iř Lubliř. ZamŚ ć brařch Śffice, RG 212) – including witness interrogation records regarding many events connected with the extermination of the Jews; ařd Ubezśieczalřia SśŚłeczřa w ZamŚ ciu 192ė-1950 (Social Insurance Institution in ZamŚ ć, RG 1ė) – insurance institution documents rare in Polish collections providing evidence of employment of Jews: named notifications and labour record cards for the area covered by a given Arbeitsamt (Labour Office), as well as a range of circulars and correspondence on Jewish-related matters dating from 1940-1942. Akta miasta ZamŚ cia (Files Śf the tŚwř Śf ZamŚ ć, RG 2Ę) hŚlds an inventory of real-estate owners in the town (including former Jewish estate taken over by others) for the years 1940-1941; in Akta gminy Izbica (Files of the commune of Izbica, RG 28) an inventory of the names of the Jews resident there has been preserved (1940), along with lists of buildings; in Akta gminy Krasnystaw (Files of the commune of Krasnystaw, RG 29) there are lists of Jews by age and profession (1939-1940), death certificates from German camps, and descriptions of real estate formerly owned by murdered Jews; and in Akta gminy Wysokie (Files of the commune of Wysokie, RG 71) there is a file eřtitled “Jewish affairs” datiřg tŚ 19ė0-1942. As in other smaller archives, in ZamŚ ć also, files generated after the war are of especial importance for Holocaust research; these include a variety of accounts, witness testimonies, and questionnaires.86 Archiwum PaństwŚwe w ZamŚ ciu. InfŚrmatŚr Ś zasŚbie archiwalnym, compiled by L. Wyszyńska, Warszawa 2003. G. SŚwińska, “ ródła dŚ dziejów ydów w zbiŚrach Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ w ZamŚ ciu”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 435-439. 86 Cf. G. Kopciowski, Zagłada ydów w ZamŚ ciu, Lublin 2005. 84 85 56 2. The Emanuel Ringelblum Jewish Historical Institute The ydŚwski Iřstytut HistŚryczřy im. Emanuela Ringelbluma ( IH, Jewish HistŚrical Iřstitute) is an institution that was formally founded in 1947 following the restructuring of the Centralna ydŚwska KŚmisja HistŚryczřa (C KH, Ceřtral Jewish HistŚrical CŚmmissiŚř) 87, a department of the Ceřtralřy KŚmitet ydów PŚlskich (CK P, Ceřtral CŚmmittee Śf the Jews iř PŚlařd). Siřce its foundation, its seat has been the building of the prewar Instytut Nauk Judaistycznych (Institute for Judaic Studies) at Ę TłŚmackie Street iř Warsaw. 88 The first directŚr Śf IH was Nachmař Blumental, who was succeeded in 1949 by Bernard (Ber) Mark. Subsequent directors included Szymon Datner, Artur Eisenbach, Maurycy Horn, Feliks Tych and Eleonora Bergman. Since 2011 the fuřctiŚř Śf directŚr Śf IH has beeř held by Paweł śiewak. AlthŚugh IH tŚŚk śŚssessiŚř Śf the eřtirety Śf the legacy ařd assets (cŚllectiŚřs) Śf the C KH, tŚday the śurśŚse Śf its wŚrk is slightly different than it was all those years ago, when its primary aim and mission was to amass evidence of the unprecedented crime that was the extermination of the Jews in Poland. In the very first weeks of the existence of the Jewish Committee in Lublin, work began on gathering Relacje z Zagłady (HŚlŚcaust SurvivŚr TestimŚřies, RG 301) frŚm survivŚrs ařd witnesses to those events. This task was entrusted to its Komisja Historyczna (Historical Commission), whose inaugural session was held on 29 August 1944. This collection is now one of the most precious archival collections on the Holocaust in the world, alongside the collection of the Podziemne Archiwum Getta Warszawskiego. Archiwum Ringelbluma (Underground Archive of the Warsaw Ghetto: the Ringelblum Archives, abbrev. ARG, Ring. I and Ring. II), which has been inscribed on the UNESCO Memory of the World Register. In that period the Historical Commission drew up and published a number of instruction booklets on how such accounts were to be gathered. 89 In the autumř Śf 19ėė the Zwi zek Literatów, Dzieřřikarzy i Artystów ydŚwskich w PŚlsce (UřiŚř Śf Jewish Writers, Journalists and Artists in Poland), an organization founded after the war, was invited tŚ cŚŚśerate iř this śrŚcess, ařd this was the Śrigiř Śf the C KH, which was headed by Dr Filiś Cf. 35 lat działalnŚ ci ydŚwskiegŚ Instytutu HistŚrycznegŚ w PŚlsce LudŚwej. Dzieje Instytutu i jegŚ zbiŚry, Warszawa 1980; ydŚwski Instytut HistŚryczny 50 lat działalnŚ ci. Materiały z kŚnferencji jubileuszŚwej, Warszawa 199ę; Z. HŚffmař, “Archiwum IH w PŚlsce”, B IH, no. 4, 1979, pp. 101-114. 88 ydŚwski Instytut HistŚryczny. PrzewŚdnik, ed. F. Tych, E. Bergman, J. Hensel, Warszawa 2003; ydŚwski Instytut HistŚryczny im. Emanuela Ringelbluma, Warszawa 2013. 89 Instrukcje dla zbierania materiałów histŚrycznych z okresu okupacji niemieckiej. Zeszyt 1, Łód 19ėĘ; Instrukcje dla zbierania materiałów etnŚgraficznych z Śkresu Śkuśacji niemieckiej. Zeszyt 2, Łód 19ėĘ; Instrukcje dla badania śrze yć dzieci ydŚwskich w okresie okupacji niemieckiej. Zeszyt 3, Łód 19ėĘ. 87 57 Friedman90. Iř March 19ėĘ the cŚmmissiŚř was relŚcated tŚ Łód ařd a number of local branches were established.91 The library, main archive, and artistic, ethnographic and iconographic collections which form the core of the present-day IH Archive (A IH), Museum ařd Library were alsŚ mŚved tŚ Łód . The Dział DŚkumeřtacji Zabytków (Historical Documentation Department), founded and run to this day by Jan Jagielski, collects all kinds of information and material connected with Jewish life in Poland, including photographs (both archival and contemporary), films, and documentation relatiřg tŚ syřagŚgues ařd cemeteries. Uřtil 19ę8 A IH held twŚ huge archival cŚllectiŚřs fŚuřd iř Łód ařd relatiřg tŚ the histŚry Śf the Łód ghettŚ: GettŚverwaltuřg (the Germař ghettŚ authorities) and Der Älteste der Juden in Getto Litzmannstadt, known as Archiwum Rumkowskiego (the Rumkowski Archive, the Jewish ghetto administration). Today, both these record groups form śart Śf the hŚldiřgs Śf AP w ŁŚdzi (the State Archive iř Łód ). Since its foundation the institution has collected original files generated by both legal and illegal institutions operating during the occupation, as well as memoirs, daily newspapers, maps, printed sheets, posters, bills, leaflets and flyers, autonomous publications, photographs, and other written documents, objects, artworks, and Judaica, i.e. items of religious cult. The Historical Commission conducted its own scholarly research and prepared source publications, historical studies and other śieces (e.g. exśert ŚśiřiŚřs fŚr cŚurts). A cŚmślete list Śf the C KH’s śublications in the 1940s is included in the Bibliography at the end of the Guide. Iř additiŚř tŚ cŚřductiřg its Śwř archival ařd scieřtific activity, the C KH alsŚ acted as ař exśert authority for other state bodies engaged in gathering evidence of crimes, investigating them, and passing sentences. Foremost among these was the Main Commission for Investigation of German Crimes iř PŚlařd (GKBZNwP). The C KH alsŚ śreśared material fŚr the Nuremberg Trials. Aside from the Archive, whose holdings will be profiled belŚw, Śther deśartmeřts at IH relevařt fŚr Holocaust research are the Library, which is at present in possession of around 70,000 volumes and is one of the largest in Europe92, and the Museum93, which has holdings including historic relics from R. Stauber, “Philiś Friedmař ařd the Begiřřiřg Śf HŚlŚcaust Studies”, [iř:] Holocaust Historiography in Context: Emergence, Challenges, Polemics and Achievements, ed. D. Bankier, D.Michman, Yad Vashem, Jerusalem 2008, pp. 83-102. 91 Cf. Wstęś dŚ Inwentarza Centralnej ydŚwskiej KŚmisji HistŚrycznej śrzy Centralnym KŚmitecie ydów w PŚlsce (1944-1947). Archiwa WŚjewódzkich KŚmisji HistŚrycznych (Śd X 1947 Delegatur IH): KatŚwice, Kraków, Warszawa, WrŚcław (1945-1950), 90 compiled by M. Natkowska, Warszawa 2006 [typescript]. Cf. M. BarcikŚwska, M. BeřdŚwska, “ZbiŚry BibliŚteki IH i ich histŚria”, [iř:] ydŚwski Instytut HistŚryczny. 50 lat działalnŚ ci, op. cit., pp. 64-72. 92 58 the period of the ŚccuśatiŚř, mŚst řumerŚus amŚřg them items frŚm the Łód ařd Warsaw ghettos. 94 In addition to Judaica, the Library has also amassed some 2,000 volumes of German propaganda printed materials from the years 1930-1945, as well as around 130 memorial books95, a very valuable and exceptional category of source for Holocaust research. A list of these books is given in the Bibliography in this Guide. The Library has catalogued collections in Yiddish and Hebrew, and also collects press cuttings on a broad area of Jewish subjects (since 2005 in digitized form). It also has a card file referencing articles on some 2,000 individuals especially distinguished in their contribution to Jewish life. The Library catalogue is accessible on-liře Śř the IH website.96 In addition to research projects, the Institute is also engaged in publishing. Since 1949 it has published the regular periodical Biuletyn IH (since 2000 as Kwartalnik HistŚrii ydów97), and in the years 1948-1994 a (mostly irregular) journal, Bleter far Geshikhte (Pages of History), was published in Yiddish. The archival hŚldiřgs Śf IH tŚday may be divided iřtŚ a řumber Śf categŚries:    Collections and files generated before 1939, Collections from the period of the occupation, 1939-1945, Collections frŚm the śŚstwar śeriŚd, iřcludiřg abŚve all the files Śf the CK P ařd Śther Jewish institutions, parties and organizations,  Legacies and papers (private collections). Given the purpose of this publication, it would be expedient to list here the most important record groups from the war years (most of them will also be profiled in Part II of the Guide):  Karty ZgŚřu ydów z Getta WarszawskiegŚ 1939, 19ė1 r.98 (Index Cards on deaths of Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto: 28,650 pages, index of names and geographical locations) – incorporated into the record group Judenraty, Jud. Warszawski RG 221, file no. 16 Index Cards on deaths – 1 item, 2.0 linear metres. Cf. M. Sieramska, “Muzeum ydŚwskiegŚ Iřstytutu HistŚryczřegŚ – zbiory i działalřŚ ć”, [iř:] ydŚwski Instytut HistŚryczny. 50 lat działalnŚ ci, op. cit., pp. 57-63; Muzeum ydŚwskiegŚ Instytutu HistŚrycznegŚ. ZbiŚry artystyczne, Warszawa 1995. 94 Material relics from the war connected with the extermination of the Jews will be discussed in Part II of the Guide. 95 Books published for the most part after World War II by the Jewish communities of the cities and towns of prewar Poland, usually in Yiddish or Hebrew, hence their customary names: yizkor-bukh or sefer zikaron (book of memory). 96 http://library.jhi.pl/F?RN=479811342. 97 NŚ. 3 (199), frŚm Seśtember 2001, cŚřtaiřs “BibliŚgrafia zawartŚ ci B IH za lata 19Ę0-2000”, by M. Czajka. 98 This record group contains 10,056 Index Cards on deaths. The scans of these records are accessible on the internet at the Central Jewish Library (Centralna Biblioteka Judaistyczna): http://cbj.jhi.pl/collections/504441. 93 59  Podziemne Archiwum Getta Warszawskiego, Archiwum Ringelbluma, 1940-1943 (Underground Archive of the Warsaw Ghetto: the Ringelblum Archives) – RG Ring I, Ring II, 2,063 items, 14.0 linear metres.  Zbiór materiałów dŚ dziejów ludřŚ ci ydŚwskiej w ŁŚdzi 1939-1944 (Collection of materials Śř the histŚry Śf the Jewish śŚśulatiŚř Śf Łód ), iřcludiřg a list Śf schŚŚlchildren in the ghetto from 1940 (1,740 names) – RG 205, 610 items, 10.0 linear metres.  PŚdziemře Archiwum Getta BiałŚstŚckiegŚ, 19ė1-1943 [1945] (Underground Archive of the BiałystŚk GhettŚ; iřcludes accŚuřts recŚrded after the war) – RG 204, 96 items, 1.0 linear metres.   American Joint Distribution Committee 1939-1941 – RG 210, 761 items, 6.0 linear metres. ydŚwska SamŚśŚmŚc SśŚłeczřa (Jüdische SŚziale Selbsthilfe Jüdisches HilfskŚmitee, Jewish Social Self-Help) 1940-1942 [1944] – RG 211, 1470 items, 16.0 linear metres.  Vorstand der Jüdischen Interessenvertretung in Bendsburg, 1939-1943 (Representation of the Jewish PŚśulatiŚř iř B dziř); full iřdex Śf řames (arŚuřd 1Ę,000 řames) – RG 212, 24 items, 0.5 linear metres.  Rada Starszych w Cz stŚchŚwie 1939-19ė2 (Jewish CŚuřcil iř Cz stŚchŚwa) – RG 213, 108 items, 2.5 linear metres.  Jüdische Gemeinde in Krakau 1939-1941 (Jewish Council in Krakow), which includes: PrŚtŚkŚły śŚdań Ś ausweisy liśiec-sierśień 19ė0 r. (Ausweis aśślicatiŚř fŚrms July-August 1940; 19,90Ę fŚrms); Ausweisy ydów krakŚwskich (Ausweise Śf KrakŚw Jews, 3ę1 sheets); Odśisy keřřkart ydów krakŚwskich (Official cŚśies Śf Keřřkarteř Śf KrakŚw Jews; 1912 cŚśies); Karty ubiegaj cych si Ś śŚzŚstařie w getcie krakŚwskim (Card file Śf śeŚśle aśślying to remain in the Krakow ghetto) – RG 218, 75 items, 20.0 linear metres.  Rada ydŚwska we LwŚwie. Zbiór dŚkumeřtów dŚtycz cych Getta LwŚwskiegŚ (Teka Lwowska) 1941-1942 (Jewish Council in Lwów. Collection of documents on the Lwów Ghetto (The Lwów File) – RG 229, 25 items, 0.5 linear metres.  Zwi zek TŚwarzystw Ośieki řad Dziećmi i SierŚtami „CeřtŚs” w Getcie Warszawskim 1941-19ė2 (“CeřtŚs” AssŚciatiŚřs fŚr the Care Śf Orśhařs iř the Warsaw GhettŚ) – RG 200, 27 items, 0.1 linear metres.  Der Stadthauptmann der Stadt Krakau 1939-1944 (Krakow City Governor) – RG 228, 135 items, 2.0 linear metres. 60  Gesundheitskammer im Generalgouvernement 1940-1943 (Chamber of Health in the GG). Registration forms of Jewish physicians99 – RG 251, 7 items, 0.15 linear metres.  Zbiór dokumentów z obozów hitlerowskich 1939-1945 (Collection of documents from Nazi camps) – RG 209, 316 items, 2.0 linear metres.  KartŚteka Wi řiów ObŚzu Hasag-Pelcery w Cz stŚchŚwie 19ė3-1945 (Card File of Prisoners in the Hasag-Pelcery Camp iř Cz stŚchŚwa; ė,73ę cards) – RG 207, 1 item, 2.0 linear metres.  KartŚteka Jeńców WŚjeřřych – ydów z ŚbŚzu w Lubliřie śrzy ul. Lipowej 4, 1939-1941 (Card File of Jewish Prisoners of War from the camp at 4 Lipowa Street in Lublin; 2,978 cards) – Judenrat Lubelski, RG 253, file no. 3, 74 items, 4.0 linear metres.  Rada ydŚwska w Białej PŚdlaskiej. BiurŚ MelduřkŚwe w Białej PŚdlaskiej. Karty ludřŚ ci ydŚwskiej wysiedlŚřej dŚ Mi dzyrzeca PŚdlaskiegŚ 19ė2 (Jewish CŚuřcil iř Biała PŚdlaska. Residence RegistratiŚř Office iř Biała PŚdlaska. Registration cards of the Jews displaced to Mi dzyrzec PŚdlaski; 2,8ėė śaśers) – RG 244, 1 item, 1.0 linear metres.  DŚkumeřty Zarz du PŚwierřiczegŚ (Treuhařdverwaltuřg) w dystrykcie lubelskim GG – kartoteka skonfiskowanych maj tków, 19ė0-1944 (Documents of the Trustee Board in the Lublin district of the GG – card file of confiscated assets; 2,903 sheets) – Judenrat Lublin, RG 253, file no. 2, 1 item, 1.0 linear metres.  Zarz d Miejski w Lubliřie, Wydział Ośieki i ZdrŚwia. O rŚdek Opieki nr 2. Kartoteka zmarłych ydów z iřfŚrmacj Ś śŚzŚstawiŚřym maj tku, 21 XI 19ė1 – 11 XII 1941, (Municipal Board in Lublin, Department of Welfare and Health. Welfare Centre No. 2. Card files of deceased Jews with information on their remaining assets; 93 sheets) – Judenrat Lublin, RG 253, file no. 6.  Zbiór dŚkumeřtów řiemieckich władz Śkuśacyjřych 1939-1944 (Collection of documents issued by the German occupying authorities) – RG 233, 157 items, 1.5 linear metres.  Obwieszczeřia i zarz dzeřia władz okupacyjnych 1939-1945 (Public announcements and orders issued by the occupying authorities) – RG 241, 606 items, 1.5 linear metres.  Zbiór planów i map 1922-1990 (Collection of plans and maps, including the period of World War II) – RG 245, 1226 items, 0.5 linear metres. 99 There are also registration forms for Jewish physicians in ANK and AP Warsaw (RG Gesundheitskammer), and in the IPN archive. 61  Zbiór dokumentów konspiracyjnych, w tym prasa [varia okupacyjne] (Collection of clandestine documents, including press [occupation miscellanea]) – RG 230, 165 items, 1.2 linear metres.  Lu ře dŚkumeřty ycia sśŚłeczřegŚ (w tym ařtysemitica) 1939-19ėė, śŚ 19ėĘ r. [zesśół otwarty] (Random documents concerning social history, including antisemitic materials 1939-1944 and after 1945 [open collection]) – RG 248 and 399, 2 and 4 items, 0.5 and 0.2 linear metres.  Kolekcja Hersza Wassera 1939-1946 ze zbiorów YIVO w Nowym Jorku (Collection of Hersz Wasser from the collections of YIVO in New York; 3 rolls of microfilm) – call no. M/235.  Zbiór relacji ydów Ocalałych z Zagłady (CŚllectiŚř Śf HŚlŚcaust SurvivŚr TestimŚřies) 100 – RG 301, 7,196 items, 23.0 linear metres.  Zbiór śami třików Survivors) 101 ydów Ocalałych z Zagłady (CŚllectiŚř Śf memŚirs Śf HŚlŚcaust – RG 302, 344 items, 10.0 linear metres. I would like to draw attention to the diversity of the original files and copies grouped together in the cŚllectiŚř eřtitled “CŚllectiŚř Śf clařdestiře dŚcumeřts, iřcludiřg śress [ŚccuśatiŚř miscellařea] 1939-19ėĘ”, iřcludiřg dŚcumeřts frŚm the Warsaw city risiřg Śf 19ėė. It alsŚ iřcludes uřdergrŚuřd occupation-era press publications, such as Biuletyn Informacyjny AK and press publications in Yiddish, as well as song lyrics, poems and anecdotes from the occupation, propaganda flyers and appeals, the 1943 typescript of Zofia Kossak-Szczucka’s article “Jeste katŚlikiem... jakim?” (What kind of CathŚlic are yŚu?), Maria Kařř’s “Na Śczach wiata” (BefŚre the wŚrld’s eyes), Buřd ařd PPR (PŚlish WŚrkers’ Party) materials frŚm the śeriŚd Śf the ŚccuśatiŚř, materials Śř the “ egŚta” Council to Aid Jews such as minutes of meetings, reports and correspondences, postwar memoirs, copies of documents generated by the ANTYK Anti-Communist Committee) such as a card file of CŚmmuřists ařd iřtelligeřce ŚśeratiŚřal řŚtes ařd reśŚrts, reśŚrts by the Delegatura Rz du řa Kraj (Government Delegation for Poland) from various areas, and others. 100 This record group has a seven-volume inventory: Relacje z Zagłady. Inwentarz. Holocaust Survivor Testimonies Catalogue, vol. I-VII, ydŚwski Iřstytut HistŚryczřy, Warszawa 1998-2011. The descriptions of every testimony (in Polish and English) include basic information on their content, as well as a list of place names mentioned and the names of the key individuals mentioned in the testimonies. Each volume has an index of geographical and personal names. 101 The recŚrd grŚuś has ař iřveřtŚry śublished iř PŚlish ařd Eřglish: Michał Czajka, Inwentarz zbiŚru śamiętników (Archiwum IH, zesśół 302). MemŚirs CŚllectiŚn Catalogue (Jewish Historical Institute Archives, Record Group 302), ydŚwski Instutut Historyczny, Warszawa 2007. 62 Among the most valuable postwar collections is the very well preserved body of files from various deśartmeřts Śf the CK P – RG 303, 6,493 items, 180.0 liřear metres. The CK P was the Śřly postwar organization that represented the full spectrum of interests of the Polish Jews who had survived the Holocaust. These files are divided into sub-collections by their department of origin: Prezydium i Sekretariat (Presidium and Secretariat, 278 items); Organizacyjny i Kontroli (Organization and Control, 147 items); Ewidencji i Statystyki (Records and Statistics, 1,465 items) – which iřcludes: Karty rejestracyjře ydów Ocalałych z Zagłady (RegistratiŚř cards Śf Jewish SurvivŚrs Śf the HŚlŚcaust, ca. 2Ę0,000 cards), Ksi gi ewideřcyjře sśŚrz dzŚře w KŚmitecie ydŚwskim w Lubliřie (RecŚrd bŚŚks cŚmśiled by the Jewish CŚmmittee iř Lubliř), Karty rejestracyjře ydów reśatriŚwařych ze LwŚwa (RegistratiŚř cards Śf Jews reśatriated frŚm Lwów), Karty rejestracyjře sśŚrz dzŚře w KŚmitecie ydŚwskim w Warszawie (RegistratiŚř cards filled iř at the Jewish CŚmmittee iř Warsaw, 31,0Ęę cards), ařd Karty rejestracyjře sśŚrz dzŚře w kŚmitetach ydŚwskich w ŁŚdzi i Gliwicach (RegistratiŚř cards cŚmśleted at the Jewish cŚmmittees iř Łód ařd Gliwice, 8,209 cards); Wydział Kultury i PrŚśagařdy (Deśartmeřt Śf Culture ařd PrŚśagařda, 2ė8 items); FiřařsŚwy (Fiřařce, 2ę1 items); Ośieki SśŚłeczřej (SŚcial Welfare, Ę82 items); Prawny (Legal, 197 items); Produktywizacji 102 (Productivity improvement, 183 items); Ceřtralřa KŚmisja Sśecjalřa (Ceřtral Sśecial CŚmmissiŚř, 7ė items); MłŚdzie Śwy (YŚuth, 180 items); O wiaty (EducatiŚř, 1,880 items) – includes the papers of children in orphanages (819 śaśers), a childreř’s card file (7,000 cards) ařd summer camś fŚrms; Wydział Reśatriacji (Repatriation Department, 67 items); Emigracji (Emigration Department, 648 items); Budowlany (Buildiřg Deśartmeřt, ė2 items); ZiŚmkŚstw (“Lařdsmařshaftř” Deśartmeřt, 1ęĘ items) ařd Personalny (Personnel, 186 items). These are profiled in slightly more detail in Part II of this Guide. A seśarate cŚllectiŚř is Ceřtralřa ydŚwska KŚmisja HistŚryczřa śrzy CK P 19ėė-1947 (Central Jewish HistŚrical CŚmmissiŚř affiliated tŚ the CK P) – RG 303/XX (692 items); there are also others from the śŚstwar śeriŚd, amŚřg them WŚjewódzki KŚmitet ydŚwski w Warszawie 19ėĘ- 1949 (Provincial Jewish Committee in Warsaw) – RG 352 (118 items); Wojewódzki Komitet ydŚwski w Lubliřie (PrŚviřcial Jewish CŚmmittee iř Lubliř) – RG 3ĘĘ (ėę item) ydŚwski Iřstytut Historyczny 1947 (Jewish Historical Institute, open collection, in-house archive) – RG 310 (1,200 items, 30 liřear metres); S d SśŚłeczřy (Obywatelski) śrzy CK P 19ėĘ-19ė9 (PeŚśle’s CŚurt affiliated tŚ the CK P) – RG 313 (146 items, 3 linear metres); Towarzystwo Ochrony Zdrowia 1945102 Oppenheim Izrael, The Struggle of Jewish Youth for Productivization: The Zionist Youth Movement in Poland, Boulder 1989. 63 1949 (TOZ, Health Care Organization) – RG 32ė, (2,122 items, 2Ę liřear metres); ydŚwskie TŚwarzystwŚ Krzewieřia Sztuk Pi křych 19ėę-1950 (Jewish Society for the Cultivation of the Fine Arts) – RG 361 (54 items, 0.5 linear metres); Zwi zek ydów Byłych Uczestřików Walki ZbrŚjřej z Faszyzmem (Zwi zek Partyzařtów ydów) (The UřiŚř Śf Jews-Former Participants in Military Combat against Nazism, the Union of Jews-Partisans) 1944-1949 – RG 318 (78 items, 1.0 linear metres); Hebrajskie Stowarzyszenie Pomocy Imigrantom (HIAS, Hebrew Sheltering and Immigrant Aid Society) 1945-1949 – RG 351 (486 items, 8.0 linear metres); and Organizacja Rozwoju TwórczŚ ci PrzemysłŚwej, Rzemie lřiczej i RŚlřiczej w ród LudřŚ ci ydŚwskiej (ORT 103 , Organization for Rehabilitation through Training) [1927-1937] and 1945-1949 – RG 309 (1,063 items, 15 linear metres). The hŚldiřgs Śf IH alsŚ iřclude the files Śf the fŚllŚwiřg śarties ařd ŚrgařizatiŚřs: Ikhud, PŚalei Zion, Left Poalei Zion, the Bund and Cukunft, Hashomer Hatzair, Hitachdut, Dror (and Dror– BŚrŚkhŚv Yugeřt), HařŚar HatziŚři Akiba, Hehalutz (PiŚřier), GŚrdŚřia, VizŚ, ydŚwski Klub Sportowy Makabi (the Maccabee Jewish Sports Club), Keren Kayemet le-Israel (the Jewish National Fund), Keren Hayesod (the FŚuřdatiŚř Fuřd), ařd Tarbut. KŚmitet Ośiekuńczy Kursów SzkŚlřych i SzkŚła Hebrajska im. Chaima Nachmařa Bialika (The SchŚŚl CŚurses SuśervisŚry CŚmmittee ařd the Chaim Nachman Bialik Hebrew School) – RG 333 (Zionist Organizations) and 334 (Bund and Cukunft) (in total 851 items and 10.5 linear metres). Iř additiŚř tŚ the abŚve, the fŚllŚwiřg are alsŚ held iř A IH: Biuletyn ydŚwskiej Agencji PrasŚwej z lat 1944-19ė9 (the Jewish Press Ageřcy Bulletiř), Zwi zek Religijřy Wyzřařia MŚj eszŚwegŚ w PŚlsce 1949-1992 (the ReligiŚus UřiŚř Śf the MŚsaic Faith iř PŚlařd), TŚwarzystwŚ SśŚłeczřŚ-Kulturalne ydów w PŚlsce 19Ę1-19ę1 (TSK , the Jewish SŚcial ařd Cultural AssŚciatiŚř iř PŚlařd), Zbiór utworów literackich 1939-1960 (Collection of literary works, RG 226, 510 items, 3.5 linear metres), ařd Akta wřiŚsków Ś tytuł Sśrawiedliwy w ród NarŚdów wiata złŚ Śřy w śŚlskiej sekcji Yad Vashem 1979-2004 (Files of applications for the title of Righteous among the Nations of the World submitted to the Polish section of Yad Vashem, RG 349, 222 items, 15 linear metres). Most important collections of legacies in the context of Holocaust research are those of Tatiana Berensztajn (Berenstein), Szymon Datner, Artur Eisenbach, Bernard (Ber) Mark, Salo Fiszgrund, 103 64 Obshchestvo Razprostraneniya Truda sredi Yevreyev. Szymon Zachariasz, the collection of the Halperson family (photographs, and letters from the Holocaust), that of the family of Dawid Naimark, and that of Irena Sendlerowa. Interesting prewar documents for Holocaust scholars are those that shed light on contexts, causes (e.g. prewar antisemitism, relations with the local population), and the scale of the crime perpetrated (the history of Jewish communities, their population sizes, the scale of emigration from Poland). The holdings here also include the files of large Jewish communities beyond the borders of either present-day or prewar Poland, e.g. Jüdische Gemeinde zu Berlin (Jewish Community in Berlin) – RG 101, ŽidŚvska NabŚžeřska Śbec v Praze (Jewish CŚmmuřity iř Prague) – RG 102, Israelitische Kultusgemeinde Wien (Jewish Community in Vienna) – RG 103, Synagogen Gemeinde zu Breslau (Jewish CŚmmuřity iř WrŚcław) – RG 10Ę, Gmiřy ydŚwskie PrŚwiřcji l skiej (Jewish Communities of the Province of Silesia) – RG 106, and Synagogen Gemeinde Gleiwitz (Jewish Community Gliwice) – RG 112. The files of some communities within Poland have also been preserved, among them Verband der Synagogen Gemeinde im Regierungsbezirk Bromberg (Union of Jewish Communities in the Bydgoszcz Area, RG 104), in Krakow (RG 107), Krakow–Podgórze (RG 109), ychliř (RG 111), Łód 104 (RG 135), Tarnopol (RG 110), Warsaw (RG 199) and WłŚcławek (RG 113). Iř additiŚř tŚ these there are alsŚ ydŚwskie stŚwarzyszeřia krakŚwskie (Krakow Jewish associations, RG 108); birth, marriage and death registration files from some lŚcatiŚřs, e.g. DziałŚszyce, KutřŚ, Szydłów, Wyszków, Zar by KŚ cielře ařd ZłŚczów; BiurŚ AdresŚwe miasta Cz stŚchŚwy – kwestionariusze do dowodów osobistych (Address Office of the City Śf Cz stŚchŚwa – forms for personal identity cards, RG 115); and Kolekcja przedwojennych śŚlskich śaszśŚrtów ydŚwskich emigrařtów dŚ Palestyřy, zdeśŚřŚwařych w śŚlskim kŚřsulacie w Hajfie105 (Collection of prewar Polish passports of Jewish émigrés to Palestine deposited with the PŚlish cŚřsulate iř Haifa, RG 123). A IH alsŚ cŚllects Master’s ařd dŚctŚral theses defeřded bŚth befŚre ařd after WŚrld War II. Of śarticular value is the cŚllectiŚř Śf ęė Master’s theses by studeřts of the Instytut Nauk Judaistycznych (Institute of Judaic Studies) defended at the University of Warsaw in the 1930s. In many cases, the archival materials on which these studies were based are no longer extant. A large cŚllectiŚř Śf files Śf Łódzka Gmiřa WyzřařiŚwa ydŚwska (the Łód Jewish CŚmmuřity) frŚm the years 1885-1939 is held iř AP Łód (RG 228). 105 Note that before the war, passports were issued for entire families collectively, hence many of them contain group photographs of all the people to whom they applied. 104 65 At śreseřt the A IH cŚllectiŚřs are well Śrgařized ařd mařy Śf them are furřished with very detailed inventories that include indexes of personal and geographical names; this is particularly true Śf the files Śf the variŚus deśartmeřts Śf the CK P. IH has alsŚ śublished a řew, very detailed inventory of the Ringelblum Archive, by Tadeusz Epsztein.106 In addition to an extensive preface, it also includes indexes of geographical and personal names. The majority of record groups dating frŚm the WŚrld War II śeriŚd ařd the CK P files have beeř micrŚfilmed Śr digitized, ařd are available fŚr use iř this fŚrm at A IH. Siřce 201ė the Ceřtral Jewish Library (Centralna Biblioteka Judaistyczřa, CBJ) has had a website, Śř which IH ślařs tŚ release successive śarts Śf its collections in digital form.107 The inventories of numerous of its record groups are already accessible in electronic form (as PDF files) on the IH website.108 Some of the (mass) data from the collections and card files have been entered into electronic databases that are accessible on site at the Archive. All the databases meřtiŚřed here are available exclusively Śř site at A IH with the assistařce of its archivists. A central, integrated database of the personal data held in the indexed archive materials (982,173 records) is constantly being updated. • BiurŚ meldunkŚwe miasta Cz stŚchŚwy (City Śf Cz stŚchŚwa registratiŚn Śffice), 193ę1938 4,122 recŚrds. Iřcludes the fŚllŚwiřg iřfŚrmatiŚř Śř the Jewish resideřts Śf Cz stŚchŚwa registered as śermařeřt resideřts with the city’s registratiŚř Śffice: geřder, iřfŚrmatiŚř as tŚ whether the document bears a photograph, surname, given name, date of birth, ślace Śf birth, father’s giveř řame, mŚther’s giveř řame, śrŚfessiŚř, ślace Śf resideřce, address, cŚmmuřity membershiś. • KartŚteka uczniów szkół gminy ydŚwskiej w Berlinie (Card file of pupils of Jewish community schools in Berlin), 1927-1938 1,187 recŚrds; iřfŚrmatiŚř: surřame, giveř řame, date Śf birth, ślace Śf birth, father’s giveř řame, mŚther’s giveř řame, mŚther’s maideř řame. • Ksi gi zaśŚwiedzi i lubów gminy ydŚwskiej i Izraelitów PŚst śŚwych w Krakowie (Ledger of banns and weddings in the Jewish and Progressive Israelite community in Krakow), 1892-1939 23,141 records and the following information: year, certificate number, surname of the betrothed, 106 T. Epsztein, Inwentarz Archiwum Ringelbluma, Warszawa 2011; see also the English edition: The Warsaw Ghetto Oyneg Shabes-Ringelblum Archive. Catalog and Guide, ed. by Robert Moses Shapiro and Tadeusz Epsztein, introduction by Samuel D. Kassow, Indiana University Press 2009. 107 http://cbj.jhi.pl/. 108 http://www.jhi.pl/archiwum/zbiory_archiwum. 66 giveř řame, ślace Śf birth, father’s giveř řame, mŚther’s giveř řame, mŚther’s maideř řame. The ledger itself contains information that has not been entered in the database: address, profession, information on parents (e.g. whether still alive), age, marital status (e.g. widow, divorced). • Ksi ga metrykalna z Wyszkowa (Register of births, marriages and deaths in Wyszków), 1879-1880, 1889-1890, 1908-1920 219 records; the following information: year, surname, given name, maiden name, gender, age, marital status, place of abode, date of death, place of death, address where death occurred, date of document, cause of death. • Ksi ga metrykalna z Zniesienia (dzielnica Lwowa) (Register of births, marriages and deaths in Zniesienie, a district of Lwów), 1914 209 records; the following information: year, surname, given name, maiden name, gender, age, marital status, place of abode, date of death, place of death, address where death occurred, date of document, cause of death. • PaszśŚrty śalesty skie (Palestinian śassśŚrts), 1930-1939 3,747 passports, 5,198 records (database includes all those listed in the passports); information on śeŚśle whŚse śassśŚrts fŚr emigratiŚř tŚ Palestiře are still extařt ařd are keśt at A IH. Oř reaching their destination, people migrating to Palestine permanently had to surrender these passports to the Polish Consulate. Some of the passports were issued to whole families, and in these cases they contained information on all those individuals and a group photograph of them. The database includes the following information: surname, given name, place of birth, year of birth, marital status, profession, and address prior to departure. • KartŚteka ludnŚ ci ydŚwskiej Gliwic (Card file Śf the Jewish śŚśulatiŚn Śf Gliwice), 19331942, the reason for its creation is not known 3,356 records; information: surname, maiden name, given name, date of birth, place of birth, notes. • Karty zgonów z getta warszawskiego (Death records from the Warsaw ghetto), dates: Sept.-Dec. 1939 and 1941 10,056 records; the information on the death records that have been preserved is in very poor condition (partially burned). The database contains the following information entered from the recŚrd cards: file řŚ., surřame, giveř řames, year Śf birth, ślace Śf birth, father’s giveř řame, mŚther’s giveř řame, ślace Śf resideřce, date Śf death, death recŚrd card no., marital status, profession, citizenship, cause of death, co-atteřdařt illřesses, śhysiciař’s řame. NŚt all eřtries Śř the death record cards were filled in. 67 • TransśŚrty ydów z getta w Białej PŚdlaskiej dŚ getta w Mi dzyrzecu PŚdlaskim w listŚśadzie 1942 r. (TransśŚrts Śf Jews frŚm the ghettŚ in Biała PŚdlaska tŚ the ghettŚ in Mi dzyrzec PŚdlaski in NŚvember 1942) 2,844 records (concerning approx. 4,500 people) and the following personal details: file no., surname, giveř řames, śareřts’ giveř řames, mŚther’s maideř řame, date Śf birth, ślace Śf birth. • Podania o ausweisy ydów z Ł czycy, czerwiec 1941 r. (AśślicatiŚns fŚr Ausweise by Jews frŚm Ł czyce, June 1941) 90 records; information: surname, given name, date of birth, place of birth, sśŚuse’s details, śareřts’ given names, marital status. • Podania o ausweisy ydów z Krakowa, lipiec-sierśie 1940 r. (Applications for Ausweise by Jews from Krakow, July-August 1940) 19,904 records; information: surname, given name, date of birth, place of birth, marital status, address, notes. • Ausweisy ydów krakŚwskich (uniewa niŚne) (Ausweise Śf Jews frŚm KrakŚw ńannulled]), 10.08.1940–19.12.1940 361 records; information contained: surname, given name, date of birth, date of issue, Ausweis no., notes. • Karty ydów ubiegaj cych si Ś pozostanie w getcie krakowskim, marzec 1941 r. (Cards of Jews applying to stay in the Krakow ghetto, March 1941) 16,189 records; information: surname, given name, maiden name, date of birth, place of birth, address of apartment being left, new address, marital status, no. of children, notes. • Kennkarty ydów z Krakowa (Kennkarten of Jews from Krakow, official copies from AN Krakow) 10,912 records; information: Kennkarte no., surname, given name, maiden name, date of birth, place of birth, marital status, curreřt address, śreviŚus address, head Śf the family, sśŚuse’s details, childreř, notes. • InfŚrmacje ŚsŚbŚwe Ś ydach z Krakowa (równie przesiedlonych do okolicznych miast) (Personal data on Jews from Krakow [including those resettled to nearby towns]), infŚrmatiŚn frŚm files in the Stadthauśtmann recŚrd grŚuś in A IH, RG 228 78,169 records; information: surname, given name, address, date of birth, new address. • Gmina ydŚwska w Kamie sku k/PiŚtrkŚwa (Jewish cŚmmunity in Kamie sk near Piotrków), 1939-1940. Applications for personal ID, mostly with photographs 68 81 recŚrds; iřfŚrmatiŚř: surřame, giveř řame, date Śf birth, ślace Śf birth, father’s giveř řame, mŚther’s given name, mother’s maideř řame, marital status, śrŚfessiŚř. • KartŚteka je ców wŚjennych ŚbŚzu w Lublinie, ul. Lipowa 7 (Card file of POWs in Lublin, 7 Lipowa Street), 1939-1941, file no. 208 2,974 records; information: surname, given name, date of birth, place of birth, father’s given name, mŚther’s giveř řame ařd maideř řame, řŚtes. • KartŚteka wi niów ŚbŚzu Hasag-Pelcery w Cz stŚchŚwie (Card file Śf śrisŚners in the Hasag-Pelcery camś in Cz stŚchŚwa), 1943-1945 4,736 records; information: surname, given name, date of birth, place of birth, address before 01.09.1939, where from, notes. • Sśis ydów zamieszkałych w getcie w Kutnie, z dnia 29 VII 1941 r. (List of Jews resident in the ghetto in Kutno, as at 29 July 1941, RG Obozy, file no. 209/157) 6,604 records; information: given name, surname, profession, date of birth, place of birth, previous place of residence, notes. • KartŚteka ydów staraj cych si Ś wyjazd (Card file of Jews applying to emigrate), forms in French, 1939-1941; it is not known which institution compiled the card file 108 records; information: surname, given name, date of birth, country of emigration, country of origin, file no., notes. • Kartoteka uczniów z getta łódzkiegŚ (Card file Śf schŚŚlchildren frŚm the Łód ghettŚ), 1941, (frŚm the RG Ńbiór materiałów dŚ dziejów ludnŚ ci ydŚwskiej w ŁŚdzi 1939-1944, file no. 323) 2,397 recŚrds; iřfŚrmatiŚř: surřame, giveř řames, date Śf birth, father’s given řame, mŚther’s given řame, mŚther’s maideř řame, řŚtes. • Centralny KŚmitet ydów w PŚlsce, KartŚteka Centralna (KC) ydów Ocalałych z Ńagłady (Central CŚmmittee Śf the Jews in PŚland ńCK P], Central Card File ńKC] Śf the Jews Who Survived the Holocaust), 1944-1950 298,213 records; contains information transferred from the registration cards compiled after the war by the CK P RecŚrds ařd Statistics Deśartmeřt (Wydział Ewideřcji i Statystyki). The cards list 17 items: surnames (changes of surname) and given names, date and place of birth, given names and surnames of parents, residential address before 1939, changes of address during the war, current address, education, profession, how the subject survived the war, information on forms of repression experienced during the war, means of survival during the war, information on 69 documents possessed, relatives in Poland and abroad, name of committee where subject was registered, date of registration and signature. In practice many of the boxes were not filled in. • WŚjewódzki KŚmitet ydów w Lublinie (PrŚvincial CŚmmittee Śf Jews in Lublin), 1944-50 Approx. 6,298 records; contains personal data from the card file of surviving Jews who registered in Lublin after the war. Some of those registered there did not live in Lublin after the war, however; 13 people gave a Warsaw address, for instance. The database contains the following information: card řumber, surřame, giveř řame, year Śf birth, ślace Śf birth, father’s given řame, mŚther’s given name, means of survival, profession, date of registration, place of registration, postwar address, notes. • WŚjewódzki KŚmitet ydów z ŁŚdzi (PrŚvincial CŚmmittee Śf Jews frŚm Łód ), 1944-1950 8,210 recŚrds; iřfŚrmatiŚř frŚm the card file Śf surviviřg Jews whŚ registered iř Łód after the war. SŚme Śf thŚse registered there did řŚt live iř Łód after the war, hŚwever; the database contains information on Jews who took up residence in Gliwice and Warsaw after the war, for instance. • WŚjewódzki KŚmitet ydów w Warszawie (Provincial Committee of Jews in Warsaw), 1944-1950 31,189 records; contains information from the card file of surviving Jews who registered in Warsaw after the war. A considerable proportion of those registered there did not live in Warsaw after the war, however (only 15,270 people gave a Warsaw address). The database contains the following iřfŚrmatiŚř: card řŚ., surřame, giveř řames, date Śf birth, father’s given řame, mŚther’s given name, mŚther’s maideř řame, address iř 1939, places stayed during the war, means of survival, name changes after the war, profession, date of registration, place of registration, address after the war. • Centralny KŚmitet ydów w PŚlsce 1944-19Ę0, Wydział O wiaty. KartŚteka dzieci Śbj tych Śśiek (Central CŚmmittee Śf the Jews in PŚland 1944-1950, Education Department. Card file of children in care) 30,240 records; information on children who survived the Holocaust and were in the care of the Education Department after the war. The database includes data from a wide range of Education Department documents, including a card file with the file no. 303/IX/649 (which is accessible also in a separate database) and a card file with the file no. 303/IX/86 (780 cards), which in addition to personal information on the child also includes a photograph. The following personal information was entered into the database: gender, surname, given name, date of birth, place of birth, place of residence in 1939, father’s given řame, mŚther’s given řame, mŚther’s maideř řame, family status, places stayed during the war, means of survival, status of the child, change of name during the war, place of residence after the war, name of guardian, address of guardian, people searching for the 70 child. An original card in card file 303/IX/86, in addition to the above information, also includes: life events with particular focus on the war years, assessment of mental development (school knowledge, skills/talents, interests, level of intelligence), character (attributes, behaviour, and attitude toward peers, carers and teachers), profession of parents and information as to whether they were alive, institutions in which the child had spent time, benefits received, general assessment of health. • Centralny KŚmitet ydów w Polsce 1944-Ę0, Wydział O wiaty. Karty kŚlŚnijne dla dzieci skierowanych na kolonie przez Centraln KŚmisj KŚlŚnijn CK P (Central CŚmmittee Śf the Jews in Poland 1944-1950, Education Department. Summer camp cards of children sent Śn summer camś by the CK P Central Summer Camś CŚmmissiŚn), file nŚ. 303/IX/ę49 2,189 records; information: surname, given name, date of birth, place of birth, address, information as to whether parents were alive and who was bringing the child up, where the child had been during the war and occupation, notes. • Centralny KŚmitet ydów w Polsce 1944-Ę0, Wydział MłŚdzie Śwy. Kartoteka Domów MłŚdzie y z nast śuj cych miast (Central CŚmmittee Śf the Jews in PŚland 1944-1950, Youth Department. Card file of Youth Homes from the following towns): Bielsko, Dzier Śniów, Gliwice, Kraków, Łód , Szczecin, Wałbrzych, Warszawa (Warsaw), WrŚcław 516 records; information: surname, given names, maiden name, other surname, date of birth, place Śf birth, father’s given řame, mŚther’s given řame, mŚther’s maideř řame, where the yŚuth had beeř during the war, notes. The cards also contain a brief description of the individual. • Centralny KŚmitet ydów w Polsce 1944-Ę0, Wydział Emigracyjny (Central CŚmmittee Śf the Jews in Poland 1944-1950, Emigration Department) 7,359 records and personal details of people applying to emigrate abroad, whose applications are furnished with a photograph. The database includes the following data: given name, surname, date of birth, place of birth. • PŚwŚjenna kartŚteka ydów Ścalałych i urodzonych we Lwowie (Postwar card file of surviving Jews born in Lwów), file no. 303/V/711 623 records; information: surname, given name, date of birth, place of birth. The cards also include the following information not entered into the database: profession, address in 1939, where the individual spent the occupation, and current address. • Cmentarz ydŚwski w Warszawie (Jewish cemetery in Warsaw) 10,165 records; information on tombstones that were to be removed ca. 1970 pursuant to Warsaw Conservator of Monuments documentation. This documentation was drawn up in view of the 71 construction of the expressway planned at the time. Information: section no., grave no., gender, surřame, giveř řame, mŚther’s maideř řame, ślace Śf birth Śf the deceased, father’s given name, mŚther’s given name, Hebrew date of death, age, date of death, profession, notes. • Cmentarz ydŚwski w CŚsel kŚłŚ WrŚcławia, kŚniec XIX w. dŚ ŚkŚłŚ 1930 r. (Jewish cemetery in CŚsel near WrŚcław, end Śf the 19th c. – ca. 1930) Database contains 623 records; information: date, date of acceptance of matzevah design, place of burial, gender, surname, given name, maiden name, date of birth, date of death, name of person commissioning the matzevah, surname and given name of the stonemason, other names, notes. 72 3. Instytut Pami ci NarŚdŚwej – KŚmisja cigania ŃbrŚdni przeciwko Narodowi Polskiemu (Institute of National Remembrance – Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation) The history of the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) and its current archival holdings may be divided into a number of periods, from 1944, when the Komisja Polsko-Radziecka (Polish-Soviet Commission) was appointed to investigate the crimes committed in the Majdanek and AuschwitzBirkenau concentration camps, until 1998, when the current Institute of National Remembrance was brought into being by the Act of 18 December. FrŚm 19ėĘ it Śśerated as the Główřa KŚmisja Badania Zbrodni (Main Commission for the Investigation of Crimes), whose name was altered several times in response to the nuances of the political situation in postwar Poland. The reasons for the decision to appoint the Main Commission in 1945 were not only the necessity for immediate investigation of the crimes committed in the camps on Polish territory, but also the need for institutional cooperation with the Polska Misja Wojskowa (the Polish Military Mission) affiliated to the Allied Control Council for Germany, the United Nations War Crimes Commission (UNWCC) in London, and other international organizations and institutions. Before long, the need also arose for preparation of materials for the International Military Tribunal in Nuremberg, as well as documents and evidence of crimes for the purpose of extraditing to Poland criminals from beyond its borders. As a result of this work, more than 5,000 people of German descent stood trial in Poland.109 The Act of 1998 (with subsequent amendments) significantly broadened the competencies of the IPN and obligated it to accept large bodies of archival holdings from other archives and state institutions. In addition to investigating crimes committed during World War II and communist crimes, the IPN is responsible for: “1) the recording, collecting, storing, processing, securing, making available and publishing of the documents of the state security authorities, produced and accumulated from July 22, 1944 until July Cf. Cz. PilichŚwski, “Badařie i cigařie zbrŚdři hitlerŚwskich w latach 19ėĘ-197Ę”, Biuletyn GKBZHwP, 1975, vol. XXVI, pp. III-XV; E. Kobierska-Motas, Ekstradycja śrzestęśców wŚjennych dŚ PŚlski z czterech stref Śkuśacyjnych Niemiec 19461950, Part I-II, Warszawa 1991-1992. 109 73 31, 1990, as well as the documents of the security authorities of the Third Reich and the Soviet Union relating to: a) - the Nazi crimes, - the communist crimes, - other crimes against peace, humanity or war crimes, perpetrated on persons of Polish nationality or Polish citizens of other nationalities between September 1, 1939 until July 31, 1990, b) other politically motivated reprisals, instigated by the officers of the Polish law enforcement agencies or the judiciary or persons acting on their order which were disclosed in the contents of the rulings made on the strength of the Act, dated February 23, 1991, on considering as invalid the rulings made in the cases of persons oppressed for their activities for the cause of an independent Polish State (Journal of Laws No. 34, section 149, with later amendments), c) the actions of the state security authorities described in art. 5; 2) the procedure for the prosecution of the crimes specified in point 1, letter a; 3) the protection of the personal data of the people referred to in the documents collected in the archive of the Institute of National Remembrance. ė) śerfŚrmiřg activities iř the field Śf śublic educatiŚř”.110 The head office of the IPN is located in Warsaw. There are also eleven Branch Offices 111, established in the cities where Courts of Appeal are located, and seven Delegations112 throughout Poland. The IPN at śreseřt cŚmśrises fŚur deśartmeřts: KŚmisja cigařia ZbrŚdři śrzeciwkŚ NarŚdŚwi Polskiemu (the Commission for Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation), Biuro Edukacji Publiczřej (the Public EducatiŚř Office), BiurŚ UdŚst śřiařia i Archiwizacji Dokumentów (the Office for Preservation and Dissemination of Archival Records) and Biuro Lustracyjne (the Vetting Office).113 Its archival holdings may be divided into three categories: an archive accessible to scholars; case files, which comprise the inhouse archive of the Prosecution Commission and are inaccessible 110 The Act of IPN dated 18 December 1998, Chapter 1: http://ipn.gov.pl/en/about-the-institute/documents/institutedocuments/the-act-on-the-institute-of-national-remembrance. 111 I.e. BiałystŚk, Gdańsk, KatŚwice, KrakŚw, Lubliř, Łód , PŚzřań, Rzeszów, Szczeciř, Warsaw ařd WrŚcław. 112 I.e. Bydgoszcz, Gorzów Wielkopolski, Kielce, Koszalin, Olsztyn, Opole, Radom. 113 Since 2000 annual reports on its work are submitted to and accessible in the IPN library and online: http://ipn.gov.pl/o-ipn/informacje-o-dzialalnosci-ipn. 74 for academic research purposes as long as the cases are open; and restricted documents containing classified information. The latter are accessible only by holders of special authorizations; they are abŚve all materials geřerated by the Ageřcja Bezśieczeństwa Wewř trzřegŚ (ABW, Iřterřal Security Agency) and the Agencja Wywiadu (AW, Foreign Intelligence Agency). The history of the work of the IPN and its predecessors, the Main Commissions, has been addressed in a number of publications, which should be consulted for more detailed information on its vast archival holdings.114 The present IPN-K ZśNP tŚŚk Śver the archival materials amassed Śver the mŚre thař fifty years of operation of the Main Commission for Investigation of Crimes against the Polish Nation. This is a specialist body of documents on Nazi crimes committed chiefly in the Polish occupied territories. In addition to this, several dozen linear kilometres of files from other archives have also been transferred to the IPN. 115 Iř all, the IPN’s archival hŚldiřgs frŚm the years 1939-1989 run to 80,771 linear metres of files (as at 31 December 2004), comprising several thousand fonds, record groups, and collections116, separate collectiŚřs Śf “mechařical (audiŚvisual) dŚcumeřtatiŚř” – film footage, photographs and microfilms, as well as secondary material generated by archivists as finding aids – card files organized by personal names or subject, lists of the documents in certain files (e.g. Dziennik Hansa Franka [the Diary of Hans Frank], Proces Josefa Bühlera [Trial of Josef Bühler], PrŚcesy śrzed Amerykańskim Trybuřałem WŚjskŚwym [Trials befŚre the Americař Military Tribunal]), indexes of personal names117, geographical names118 and documents119, as well as themed Cf. Cz. PilichŚwski, “Badařie i cigařie zbrŚdři hitlerŚwskich w latach 19ėĘ-1974”, Biuletyn Głównej KŚmisji Badania Zbrodni Hitlerowskich w Polsce, 1975, vol. XXVI, pp. III-XV; B. Kucharczyk, “DziałalřŚ ć iřfŚrmacyjřa IPN-K ZśNP w Śkresie Śd 1 liśca 2000 r. dŚ 30 czerwca 2002 r.”, Master’s thesis accessible in the Biblioteka Instytutu Informacji Naukowej i Studiów Bibliologicznych UW (Library of the Institute of Information and Book Studies at the University of Warsaw). 115 “StŚ kilŚmetrów teczek. O Archiwach IPN z Berřadett GrŚřek i Leszkiem PŚstŚłŚwiczem rŚzmawiaj KrzysztŚf Persak i Barbara Polak”, B IH, 2002, no. 4 (15), pp. 4-21. 116 The part of the IPN archive taken over from the GKBZpNP constitutes some 900 collections, in all around 2,500 linear metres of files. 117 Iřdexes by śersŚř are available fŚr the files Śř crimiřal trials arisiřg as a result Śf the “August Decree” [see řŚte 24] ařd the trials Śf Albert FŚrster (Najwy szy Trybuřał NarŚdŚwy [Suśreme NatiŚřal Tribuřal, NTN]) (iřcludiřg ař iřdex Śf victims) ařd Artur Greiser, ařd the files Śf the Americař Military Tribuřal. There is alsŚ a list Śf “August trials” pertaining to crimes cŚmmitted iř the easterř territŚries řŚw beyŚřd PŚlařd’s easterř bŚrder, cŚmśiled by Elzbieta Kobierska-Motas in 1963, a list of people sentenced to death in the years 1944-1966, and a list of personal names in the “BadawczŚ-dŚkumeřtacyjře” (BD) (RecŚrds of investigation and documentation of the Main Commission). 118 For the files from the trials of Ludwig Fischer and Artur Greiser, and the investigation in connection with the Albert Forster case. 119 For the files from the NTN and the American Military Tribunal. 114 75 finding aids. 120 The files received from the former Main Commission are better processed than documentation accepted in recent years; most of the collections are furnished with electronic inventories available in the IPN reading rooms. For a number of years now the IPN has been imślemeřtiřg a śrŚgramme eřtitled “CyfrŚwe archiwum” (Digital archive) – an integrated database that is held iř the iřstitute’s archives. AlsŚ accessible Śř the IPN’s website is a database (iřcŚmślete, successively beiřg suśślemeřted) eřtitled “ ydzi śŚlscy i ydzi w PŚlsce. KatalŚg materiałów archiwalřych z zasŚbu IPN”121 (Polish Jews and Jews in Poland. Catalogue of archival materials from the IPN’s hŚldiřg). This contains information on materials on this subject amassed in the IPN archive in Warsaw and in 13 of its branches and delegations. These are for the most part materials from investigations into crimes frŚm the WŚrld War II śeriŚd ařd śŚstwar files Śf S dy GrŚdzkie (cŚurts Śf the first instance) of cases of declaration of death in absentia, but not only those. The commentary accompanying this database mentions materials generated by the postwar security services and their iřvigilatiŚř Śf Jewish cŚmmuřities: “Relatively few dŚcumeřts Śf this tyśe have been preserved from the period 1945-1956. Those that have for the most part concern Zionist organisations and parties and the socialist Bund party. The security authorities gathered information on initiatives existing with the purpose of organising mass and individual emigration of Jews, which took place on an informal basis. Nevertheless, it is worth noting that until 1949 such activity was largely conducted with the křŚwledge ařd tacit cŚřseřt Śf state ageřcies Śf the PeŚśle’s Reśublic Śf PŚlařd, amŚřg them the Miřistry Śf Public Security (MBP). Materials Śf this tyśe are held iř greatest quařtity iř the WrŚcław and Szczecin branches of the IPN. In the 1960s the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MSW) issued śrŚviřcial structures Śf the Słu ba Bezśieczeństwa (SB, Security Service) with a mandate to monitor gradually mŚre clŚsely brařches Śf the TŚwarzystwŚ SśŚłeczřŚ-Kulturalře ydów (TSK , Jewish SŚcial ařd Cultural AssŚciatiŚř), religiŚus cŚřgregatiŚřs subŚrdiřate tŚ the Zwi zek Religijřy Wyzřařia MŚj eszŚwegŚ (ReligiŚus UřiŚř Śf the MŚsaic Faith), the ydŚwski Iřstytut HistŚryczřy ( IH, Jewish HistŚrical Iřstitute) ařd the PaństwŚwy Teatr ydŚwski (State Jewish Theatre). The apogee of this campaign came in the years 1967-19ę9. SŚme ‘Śbject cases’ were śursued by the SB uřtil the eřd Śf the 1980s. Aside frŚm the dŚcumeřtatiŚř Śf ŚśeratiŚřs cŚřducted ‘iřtŚ the ZiŚřist issue’ iř the 19ę0s, files Śf śeŚśle aśślyiřg tŚ emigrate tŚ Israel were gathered seśarately. The largest 120 121 76 E.g. for the files from the trial of Albert Forster before the NTN. http://ipn.gov.pl/buiad/pomoce-archiwalne/zydzi-polscy-i-zydzi-w-polsce. collections of materials illustrating the ‘ařti-ZiŚřist’ activities Śf the SB iř the śeriŚd wheř the MSW was ruř by Mieczysław MŚczar may be fŚuřd iř IPN hŚldiřgs iř Gdańsk, KatŚwice, Kielce, Lubliř, Łód , PŚzřań, Szczeciř, Warsaw ařd WrŚcław.” “Access is śermitted tŚ files at the IPN Śř the basis of the justified request made in writing by the interested party. Access by scholars to finding aids and records may be restricted on legal grounds – protection of classified information, personal data, or personal assets. Access to documents is possible in reading rooms, which are separate for unclassified and classified files. (...) Every release of archival material is registered in the records by an IPN employee. Moreover, every item (usually constituting a document folder) contains an information sheet on which details of its releases are eřtered. (...) Searches iř uřśrŚcessed recŚrd grŚuśs are cŚřducted by IPN emślŚyees.”122 In 2014 the IPN lauřched a “Ceřtrum udzielařia iřfŚrmacji Ś Śfiarach II wŚjřy wiatŚwej”123 (World War II victim information ceřtre), iř which its archivists acceśt aśślicatiŚřs fŚr searches iř the IPN’s archival holding and above all its vast electronic databases and card files. Iř all certaiřty, the mŚst imśŚrtařt Śf the IPN’s materials fŚr HŚlŚcaust research are thŚse Śf the archival documents in the holdings taken over from the former Main Commission as well as from County and City Commissions and generated by Nazi government offices, organizations and structures between September 1939 and 8 May 1945, and by institutions, public śrŚsecutŚrs’ Śffices and courts appointed after 22 July 1944 to prosecute Nazi criminals and research the crimes śerśetrated by them. SŚme Śf the ‘fŚrmer Germař’ files were śassed Śř tŚ the GKBZśNP by the MSW Archive in the 1980s. In the IPN archive it is worth perusing the full list of 933 record groups taken over by the IPN from the former Main Commission. The archival holdings of the IPN are profiled below by provenance, i.e. by the body that generated the files, though it may also be categorized as prŚśŚsed by Mieczysław MŚtas124 as follows: I Publications of the Main Commission, II Archival records: 1) evidence, J. KuligŚwski, “Archiwa IPN”, BIPN no. 4 (15), 2002, pp. 25-26. http://ipn.gov.pl/__data/assets/pdf_file/0009/127935/Centrum-Informacji-o-Ofiarach-II-Ws24-04-2014.pdf. 124 M. MŚtas, “Judaika w zbiŚrach b. Główřej KŚmisji Badařia ZbrŚdři śrzeciwkŚ NarŚdŚwi PŚlskiemu – Instytutu Pami ci NarŚdŚwej”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 469-476. 122 123 77 2) investigation files, 3) court files, III Mechanical documentation: 1) photographs, 2) microfilms of inhouse files, 3) photocopies, 4) microfilms of files stored in other institutions, 5) films, IV Secondary documentation: 1) personal card files of Nazi criminals, 2) card files by theme, V Press documentation, VI Library. FILES OF NAZI ADMINISTRATIVE AUTHORITIES iřclude Rz d GG125 (Government of the GG – 9,438 items), including the files of its Secretariat of State and the following departments: internal affairs, health, finance, justice, the economy, food and agriculture, forestry, labour, propaganda, science and education, railways, and the postal service; the district offices (Amt des Distrikts) of Distrikt Galizien (District of Galicia, the files of the departments of justice, internal affairs, the economy, science, finance, and personal matters), Distrikt Krakau (District of Krakow, the files of the departments of the presidium, the economy, food and agriculture, construction, health, and labour – concerning transports of labourers to Germany), Distrikt Lublin (District of Lublin, the files of the departments of internal affairs, justice, the economy, food and agriculture, employment, propaganda, education, finance, personal affairs, and the presidium), Distrikt Radom (District of Radom, the files of the departments of internal affairs, justice, the economy, food and agriculture, labour, construction, price control, forestry, finance and the presidium) and Distrikt Warschau (District of Warsaw, files of the head of the office, the department of internal affairs, the spatial planning office, the departments of justice, finance, and food and agriculture, and a list of teleśhŚře řumbers); ařd Namiestřik Rzeszy w Okr gu Kraju Warty-PŚzřań X 1939-I 1945 (Reichsstatthalter im Reichsgau Wartheland-Posen, Reich Governor in the Warta Land-PŚzřań 125 78 The other part of this collection is in the Warsaw archive AAN (Central Archives of Modern Records). region 126 ) and the collections Śf sŚme cŚuřty gŚverřŚrs’ Śffices ařd cŚuřty gŚverřŚrs (Kreishauśtmařř), e.g. Lubliř, ZamŚ ć, BuskŚ, J drzejów, Kielce, RadŚm. FILES OF THE SS AND POLICE include the collections: Der Höhere SS- und Polizeiführer im GG (Senior SS and Police Leader in the GG), Der Höhere SS- und Polizeiführer im Distrikt Krakau (Senior SS and Police Leader in the Krakow District; files contain correspondences concerning the submission of reports on the situation in Warsaw in August 1944, awards of decorations, and card files of police officers), im Distrikt Lublin (in the Lublin District), im Distrikt Radom (in the Radom District) ařd subŚrdiřate statiŚřs, Der PŚlizeiśrŹsideřt iř PŚseř (Presideřt Śf the PŚlice iř PŚzřań), Der Chef der Sipo und des SD Umwandererzentralstelle Posen (Security Police Central Resettlement Office iř PŚzřań), Dieřststelle Litzmařřstadt (Brařch Office iř Łód ); ařd a cŚllectiŚř Śf applications for decoration by SS and police officers distinguished in their criminal activity in the Polish territories. Other holdings include Der Kommandeur der Sicherheitspolizei und des SD für Distrikt Warschau (The Commander of the Security Police and Security Service for the Warsaw District) 127 , Der Kommandeur der Sicherheitspolizei und des SD für den Distrikt Lublin (The Commander of the Security Police and Security Service for the Lublin District)128, and the files of many of the military police posts throughout the GG and the lands annexed to the Reich.129 We must also mention here the original occupation-era card files passed on to the GKBZpNP by the MSW in the 1980s, among them the card files of members of the SS, SA and Wehrmacht. Other files (or information about archival holdings) were also transferred to the GKBZpNP archive from state administrative offices in subsequent years; a list of these is to be found in the article by M. Motas.130 FILES OF POLITICAL ORGANIZATIONS include the following record groups: 126 Files concerning the administration of the region, confiscations of Polish and Jewish property, the activities of German institutions and associations, German settlement and resettlement of Germans, resettlement of the Polish population, confessional matters, parish rolls, matters connected with church assets, and a list of Poles, Jews and Russians executed by firing squad in the years 1939-1945; other files from this fonds are stored in AP w Poznaniu (State Archive iř PŚzřań), RG 299. 127 A collection of various files, including 255 anonymous denunciations to the German authorities dating from 19401941, cf. B. Engelking, „SzanŚwny śanie gistaśŚ”. DŚnŚsy dŚ władz niemieckich w Warszawie i ŚkŚlicach w latach 1940-1941, Warszawa 2003. 128 Personnel files of the Commander of the Security Police, lists of wanted Poles apprehended and shot by the Schupo (Defence Police) and other police formations, and files on matters of police accommodation and administrative affairs of local stations. 129 For instance posts in the Warsaw District (e.g. yrardów), PŚzřań ařd mařy cŚuřties iř the PŚzřań regiŚř, WŚlsztyř, KŚ ciař, BiałŚgard, ařd Śther ślaces. 130 M. MŚtas, “IřfŚrmacja Ś řabytkach archiwalřych Główřej KŚmisji Badařia ZbrŚdři śrzeciwkŚ NarŚdŚwi PŚlskiemu Iřstytutu Pami ci Narodowej (1989-1991)”, Biuletyn GKBZpNP, 1992, pp. 164-175. 79 NSDAP – Arbeitsbereich GG (NatiŚřal SŚcialist Germař WŚrkers’ Party – Department of Operations in the GG), NSDAP – Distriktsstandortführung: Galizien, Krakau, Radom, Warschau (NSDAP District Branch Leadership for Galicia, Krakow, Radom and Warsaw, and the Hitlerjugend (Hitler Youth); and the card files of the members of these organizations. FILES OF CONCENTRATION AND EXTERMINATION CAMPS AND PRISONS include the following collections: Ob. – Obozy (Camps)131 (collection profiled in more detail in Part II of this Guide): the concentration camps KL Buchenwald, KL Dachau, KL Flossenburg, KL Gross-Rosen, KL Mittelbau-Dora, KL Mauthausen, KL Neuengamme and KL Ravensbrück; Deutsches Zuchthaus Neu Wisnicz (the Germař śrisŚř iř NŚwy Wi řicz), Deutsche Strafařstalt ReichshŚf (the Germař Peřiteřtiary iř Rzeszów), Deutsche Strafanstalt Tarnow (the German Uřtersuchuřgshaftařstalt PŚseř (Remařd PrisŚř iř PŚzřań). 132 Penitentiary in Tarnów) and Also the following prison files from the years 1944-19Ęę: Ceřtralře Wi zieřie Obóz Pracy G sia (Ceřtral PrisŚř LabŚur Camś G sia, křŚwř as G siówka), Ceřtralře Wi zieřie Warszawa I MŚkŚtów (Ceřtral Prison for Warsaw I MŚkŚtów, RakŚwiecka Street), Ceřtralře Wi zieřie Warszawa II (Ceřtral PrisŚř fŚr Warsaw II, Ařielewicza Street), Wi zieřie Warszawa Słu ewiec Obóz Pracy III (Warsaw Słu ewiec PrisŚř LabŚur Camś III), Ceřtralře Wi zieřie Warszawa-Praga (Central Prison for Warsaw Praga, 11 ListŚśada Street), Zakład Karřy w Siedlcach (Peřiteřtiary iř Siedlce), Areszt ledczy w Pułtusku, OstrŚł ce, DziałdŚwie, GrŚdzisku (Remařd Cells iř Pułtusk, OstrŚł ka, DziałdŚwŚ ařd GrŚdzisk). Among those held in these prisons were war criminals incarcerated pursuant to the August Decree of 1944. FILES OF GERMAN COURTS AND PUBLIC PROSECUTORS’ OFFICES include Oberlařdesgericht PŚseř (Higher RegiŚřal CŚurt iř PŚzřań) ařd the sśecial cŚurts (SŚřdergericht: Kielce, Kraków, Warsaw) in the territories annexed to the Reich and in the GG, and local courts (Amtsgerichte) in the Third Reich. 131 These materials reference many camps, prisons and ghettos in the Polish territories and the lands that were part of or Śccuśied by the Third Reich (iřcludiřg Beł ec, Majdařek, ChełmřŚ řad Nerem, ŁambiřŚwice, SŚbibór, Auschwitz, Płaszów, Pustków, StutthŚf, Szebřie, Przemy l, Trebliřka, GrŚss-RŚseř, ZamŚ ć, ařd LimařŚwa [ghettŚ]). 132 Very numerous materials from German prisons in the years 1939-1945 are held in the Polish State Archives. For the most part these are personal files or card files of prisoners that include their personal data, reasons for imprisonment, and sentences given, or information on release or execution of death sentences. 80 FILES OF SCIENTIFIC INSTITUTIONS include those of Institut für Deutsche Ostarbeit133 (Institute for German Work in the East in Krakow134). PAPERS OF NAZI ACTIVISTS include the diary of Hans Frank and the archive of Artur Greiser. COLLECTION OF BILLS AND POSTERS is a large collection comprising ephemera of all sorts, including flyers, most of them from the GG. FILES OF INTERNATIONAL BODIES AND FOREIGN INSTITUTIONS include copies of the records:   the United Nations War Crimes Commission the International Military Tribunal in Nuremberg, which tried the leading officials in the Third Reich 135 responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity. These files contain documents of the defence, witness testimonies, closing speeches by the prosecutors, the pro se representations of certain defendants, the sentences, and press reports on executions.  the American Military Tribunal in Nuremberg, containing the files Śf 12 trials: the DŚctŚrs’ Trial; the Milch Trial (trial of Erhard Milch, Air Inspector General and Field Marshal in the Luftwaffe); the Judges’ Trial; the PŚhl Trial (trial Śf Oswald PŚhl ařd the SS Wirtschafts- und Verwaltungshauptamt [SS-WVHA, SS Main Economic and Administrative Department] in Berlin, the Flick Trial (trial Śf Friedrich Flick); the IG Farbeř Trial, the HŚstages Trial (the “SŚutheast Case” of the generals who led the Balkans Campaign), the RuSHA (Rasse- und Siedlungshauptamt SS, the SS Race and Settlement Main Office) and RSHA (Reichssicherheitshauptamt, Reich Main Security Office) Trial; the Einsatzgruppen (SS death squads) Trial; the Krupp Trial; the Wilhelmstrasse Trial (trial of senior officials from the Auswärtiges Amt [Foreign Ministry]); and the High Command Trial (trial of senior officers in the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht [OKW, German Army High Command]). 133 The collection includes the files of the Sektion für Rasse- und Volkstumforschung (Section for Race and Ethnicity Research), the history section, and the histories of various places. 134 MŚst Śf the IDO files are iř Archiwum Uřiwersytetu JagiellŚńskiegŚ (the JagiellŚřiař Uřiversity Archive), ařd sŚme are in IPN and in Berlin (Bundesarchiv), cf. A. Rybicka, Instytut Niemieckiej Pracy Wschodniej. Institut für Deutsche Ostarbeit, Kraków 1940-1945, Warszawa 2002. 135 The defendants: A. Seyss-Inquart, C. Neurath, A. Speer, J. von Ribbentrop, F. von Papen, B. Schirach, W. Funk, K. Doenitz, A. Jodl, F. Sauckel, A. Rosenberg, E. Räder, H. Fritzsche, E. Kaltenbrunner, J. Streicher, and W. Frick. 81  other foreign tribunals and courts: the US Military Government Court (the trial of the staff of KL Dachau and KL Buchenwald); the British Military Court (the trial of the staff of Ravensbrück); Das Oberste Gericht der DDR (Supreme Court of the GDR: the trial of Hans Globke); the British War Crimes Trials (the trial of Fritz Erich von Manstein); and the Jerusalem District Court (the trial of Adolf Eichmann). FILES CONNECTED WITH RESEARCH INTO NAZI CRIMES generated by specially appointed institutions and offices include the collections of the following: MiřisterstwŚ Sśraw Wewř trzřych Rz du RP w LŚřdyřie – Biuro do Spraw Zbrodni Wojennych w Londynie (Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Polish Government-in-Exile in London, Office for War Crimes Affairs in London) and Delegat Polski do Komisji Narodów Zjednoczonych do Spraw Zbrodni Wojennych (UNWCC) (the Polish Delegate to the UN War Crimes Commission). In the 1940s and 1950s the following commissions operated, and their documentary legacy is accessible today in AIPN: Komisja do Badania Zbrodni Niemiecko-HitlerŚwskich w O wi cimiu 19ėĘ (Commission for the Investigation of German-Hitlerite Crimes iř O wi cim), Główřa KŚmisja Badania Zbrodni Hitlerowskich w Polsce 1945-1968 (Main Commission for the Investigation of Hitlerite Crimes iř PŚlařd), Okr gŚwe KŚmisje Badania Zbrodni Hitlerowskich (District Commissions for the Investigation of Hitlerite Crimes) in Bydgoszcz (1945-19ė9), Cz stŚchŚwa (1945-19Ę1), Gdańsk (19ėĘ-1951), Krakow (1945-1954), Lublin (1944-19ė9), Łód (19ėĘ-1949), PŚzřań (19ėĘ-1949), Radom (1945-1949), Siedlce (1945-1950), Warszawa (1945-19Ę0) ařd WrŚcław (1945-1949). One member of the Main Commission extremely distinguished in his service was Professor Jan Sehn, and his own files and work, too, are of interest to Holocaust scholars. The collections of documents amassed by the GKBZHwP and its provincial commissions are of immense interest to Holocaust scholars. They contain a variety of heterogeneous material that would evade geřeral classificatiŚř; e.g. amŚřg the files Śf Okr gŚwa KŚmisja Badania Zbrodni Niemieckich w Lublinie (District Commission for the Investigation of German Crimes in Lublin) there are materials such as: ZamŚrdŚwařie 100 ydów w TurŚbiřie (the murder Śf 100 Jews iř TurŚbiř, file 8ė), MasŚwy mŚrd řa ydach w AřřŚśŚlu řad Wisł (the mass murder Śf Jews iř AřřŚśŚl Śř the Vistula, file 89), PŚbyt ydów z getta warszawskiegŚ w getcie w Kra řiku (the time sśeřt by Jews frŚm the Warsaw ghettŚ iř the ghettŚ iř Kra řik, file 92), WymŚrdŚwařie ydów w Lubliřie (the murder of the Jews iř Lubliř, file 11ę), ZbrŚdřie śŚśełřiŚře řa cmeřtarzu ydŚwskim we 82 WłŚdawie (crimes cŚmmitted iř the Jewish cemetery iř WłŚdawa, file 1Ę1), KŚresśŚřdeřcja w sśrawie lŚsu ydów w Szczebrzeszyřie (cŚrresśŚřdeřce regardiřg the fate Śf the Jews iř Szczebrzeszyř, file 1ę2), ZbrŚdřie śŚśełřiŚře řa tereřie wŚjewództwa lubelskiegŚ – kwestionariusz o egzekucjach i grobach masowych (crimes committed in the Lublin voivodship – questionnaire on executions and mass graves, file 165). At this point it is necessary to stress that each of the IPN Branch Offices has its own archives whose holdings are not discussed in this article; they comprise largely the files of investigations conducted by the prosecutors within a given commission. Another collection worthy of note is BD (Records of investigation and documentation), which numbers more than 7,000 personal files of Nazi criminals arranged in non-alphabetical order. COURT CASES ARISING PURSUANT TO THE AUGUST DECREE (OF 31 AUG. 1944136), alsŚ křŚwř as “sierśřiówki” (“August trials”) cŚřstitute a seśarate ařd very large grŚuś Śf files, which will be profiled in somewhat more detail in Part II of this Guide, like the “August śrŚsecutŚr recŚrds”. Among the trial records is documentation relating to seven cases brought before the Najwy szy Trybuřał NarŚdŚwy (NTN, Supreme National Tribunal) against senior civil servants in the German administration in occupied Poland; these files, too, will be addressed in Part II. At this śŚiřt it is wŚrth meřtiŚřiřg the “security service files”: files geřerated after the war, uřtil as receřtly as 1989, by variŚus state bŚdies (the security services ařd citizeřs’ militia) with the purpose of monitoring individuals or circles. Among those who were of interest to the security services were many suspects, defendants, victims and witnesses of events during the war; such files may also be found in the IPN archive (AIPN).137 EVIDENTIARY DOCUMENTATION comprises above all collections of files from German wartime and occupation-era institutions (some of which form an integral part of trial case files), August Decree Śf 31 August 19ėė: “Dekret Ś wymiarze kary dla faszystŚwskŚ-hitlerowskich zbrodniarzy winnych zabójstw i zř cařia si řad ludřŚ ci cywilř i jeńcami Śraz dla zdrajców NarŚdu PŚlskiegŚ,” (Decree Śř the śuřishmeřt of fascist Nazi criminals guilty of murders and persecution of the civilian population and prisoners of war, and for traitors of the Polish nation) Dziennik Ustaw 4 (1944), item 27. The uniform version after the introduction of a number of amendments was printed in Dziennik Ustaw 69 (1946), item 377. This was the first legal act in the area of penal law promulgated by the Polski Komitet Wyzwolenia Narodowego (PKWN, Polish Committee of National Liberation), and one of the first of this type of legal act anywhere. This decree provided a legal foundation for the punishment of war crimes, and collaboration with the enemy, crimes against humanity, and crimes against peace (i.e. participation in criminal organizations) committed between 1 September 1939 and 9 May 1945. 137 WŚkół teczek bezśieki – zagadnienia metodologiczno- ródłŚznawcze, ed. F. Musiał, IPN-KŚmisja cigařia ZbrŚdři przeciwko Narodowi Polskiemu, Kraków 2006. 136 83 reports by senior SS and police officers, and official ledgers. Suffice it here to mention the most important:  Tagebuch von Hans Frank (Diary of Hans Frank), comprising 39 books – departmental meetings, working meetings and speeches by the governor, government meetings, a list of the contents of the diary for the years 1940-1944,138   Evidentiary documents from trials before the NTN, Report by Jürgen Stroop, who was responsible for the deportation of Jews to Treblinka and the liquidation of the Warsaw ghetto,139  Report by Friedrich Katzmann on the final solution of the Jewish question in the district of Galicia,140  Files of the Geheime Staatspolizei. Polizeistelle Zichenau (Gestapo [Secret State Police] in Ciechanów) ařd Łód . The Ciechařów GestaśŚ files cŚmśrise the śersŚřal files Śf śeŚśle arrested by the Gestapo for crossing the border illegally, sabotage, economic crimes, escape from their place of forced labour and incarceration in a corrective labour camp, and the files of people suspected of underground activity. COLLECTION OF PHOTOGRAPHS141, which contains around 68,000 photographs and 141 albums, most of them unique, is of great value. They include photographs from ghettos and camps; photographs of executions, suppression actions, street round-ups, resettlements, and military action; portraits of Nazi officials of all ranks and levels; and many others. An overall profile of this collection is included in Part II of this Guide, in the chapter on iconography. AIPN also has a collection of microfilms and photocopies of foreign records, maps and plans (including those of many prisons and camps), and bills, posters and announcements. 138 Cf. Dziennik Hansa Franka, Warszawa 1956; W. Präg, W. Jacobmeyer, Das Diensttagebuch des Deutschen Generalgouverneurs in Polen 1939-1945, Stuttgart 1975. 139 Cf. Raport Jürgena Stroopa, Warszawa 1958; a new editiŚř Śf the reśŚrt has beeř śreśared by Ařdrzej bikŚwski ařd was published by the IPN in 2009; it is also available online: http://pamiec.pl/ftp/ilustracje/Raport_STROOPA.pdf. 140 Katzmann Friedrich, RŚzwiązanie kwestii ydŚwskiej w Dystrykcie Galicja. Lösung der Judenfrage im Distrikt Galizien, ed. A. bikŚwski, IPN, Warszawa 2001. 141 Cf. T. StemśŚwski, K.W. lusarski, „WydzielŚřy zbiór fŚtŚgrafii byłej Główřej KŚmisji Badařia ZbrŚdři śrzeciwkŚ NarŚdŚwi PŚlskiemu”, Przegląd Archiwalny Instytutu Pamięci NarŚdŚwej, 2013, no. 6, pp.171-203; P. Chojnacki, K. W. lusarski, „Zbiór fŚtŚgraficzřy Iřstytutu Pami ci NarŚdŚwej i jegŚ cechy sśecyficzře”, Przegląd Archiwalny Instytutu Pamięci Narodowej, 2009, no. 2, pp. 159-194. 84 FILES OF CASES CONDUCTED BY THE MAIN COMMISSION, designated Ds. (dokumenty ledcze, iřvestigatiŚř files) ařd Kśś. (krajŚwa śŚmŚc śrawřa, legal aid) are wŚrthy Śf particular note, as they contain data on people142 and institutions operating in Polish territory during the occupation. These materials have been renumbered within the archive of the IPN and its branches, but the computer database contains information on both its new and old file numbers. They include information as vital to the study of the extermination of the Jews in the Polish lands as investigations into the former extermiřatiŚř camśs iř Beł ec, Trebliřka, SŚbibór ařd ChełmřŚ řad Nerem. The archival hŚldiřgs Śf the IPN alsŚ iřclude a cŚllectiŚř called Zbiór “Z”, which cŚmśrises a diverse range of files collected by the GKBZHwP in Poland in the course of its work and not classified into other files. Among the papers it contains are documents concerning the liquidation of the ghettŚs iř Warsaw ařd Łód , the extermiřatiŚř Śf the Jews iř Galicia, executiŚřs Śf Jews by firing squad by Einsatzkommando Tilsit, and many others. Following an intense reordering camśaigř Śf the files received frŚm the Maiř CŚmmissiŚř, the files frŚm Zbiór “Z” řŚw have řew numbers, and materials on particular issues and places are profiled in the computer database that is accessible iř the IPN’s reading rooms. The Institute of National Remembrance – Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation took possession of a huge collection of personal and thematic card files numbering some 2,500,000 cards, created as a result of research conducted in the archival holdings of the GKBZHwP, all the state archives managed by the Head Office of the State Archives, and separate archives of political parties, the Church, the Jewish Historical Institute, and museums and similar institutions. The personal cards, which are in alphabetical order, contain the names of around 1,000,000 Nazis and include basic biographical information and data on their ranks, the positions they held, and the criminal acts perpetrated by them, including an indication of the sources of this information (call numbers). The personal card files of the staff of Nazi offices and institutions run to over 500,000 cards, while the thematic card file, which functions as a subject index of the contents of the files, comprises more than 600,000 cards organized by subject area. This index includes information on the structure and activities of the civilian administration, the SS, the Gestapo and 142 E.g. the investigations into Franz Stangl, the commandant of the extermination camp Treblinka II, and Gustav Wagner and Hubert Gomerski from the extermination camp in Sobibór. 85 other police formations, the crimes of the Wehrmacht and the Luftwaffe, crimes of the Nazi judicial system, crimes committed by corporations and company groups, and Nazi population and economic policy. It holds source information on the criminal activities of the occupying powers in respect of the Polish intelligentsia and culture, crimes against children and young people, prisoners of war, and members of the resistance movement. The information it contains helps to establish easily and quickly what archival material could prove useful in researching specific issues, and in investigations conducted by the Central Commission. These card files are not accessible by external scholars, however; they serve as an internal aid for IPN archivists and prosecutors from the Commission for Prosecution. It is also worth mentioning the publications of the former Main Commission, as the body of its published works is sizeable, but little used by external historians. Some of them are undoubtedly outdated, or were written to political commission, but others are still of great informative value. 143 Available iř this archive is “Wykaz IřfŚrmacji Wewř trzřej”, which is a list (iř the fŚrm Śf a typescript) of the 126 publications of the GKBZpNP released in the years 1966-1997, most of which deal with issues relating to prosecution and punishment of crimes against humanity and war crimes. 144 A bibliography of previous publications by the Main Commission was compiled by Stařisław Kařia ařd śublished as a vŚlume iř its Śwř right.145 A comparable item that came out in 1979 was “Wykaz zesśŚłów i zbiŚrów śrzechŚwywařych w Archiwum GKBZHwP. Stař řa dzień 31 XII 1978” by Maria BukŚwska ařd Michaliřa WysŚcka. An important series in this respect is “Rejestr miejsc i faktów zbrŚdři śŚśełřiŚřych śrzez Śkuśařta hitlerŚwskiegŚ řa ziemiach śŚlskich w latach 1939-19ėĘ” (Register Śf sites ařd facts Śf crimes committed by the Hitlerite occupier in the Polish lands in the years 1939-1945), a series comprising several dozen volumes ordered by voivodship. This publication is based on sources including data from a questionnaire conducted among courts of the first instance throughout the country in 1946. Cf. J. Frieske, Materiały dŚ bibliŚgrafii Śkuśacji hitlerŚwskiej w PŚlsce. Pi miennictwŚ śŚlskie za lata 1944-1968, Ministerstwo SśrawiedliwŚ ci, Główřa KŚmisja Badařia ZbrŚdři HitlerŚwskich w PŚlsce. IřfŚrmacja wewř trzřa řr ėę, Warszawa 1978. 144 Cf. W. Bielawski, Cz. Pilichowski, Zbrodnie na Polakach dokonane przez hitlerowców za śŚmŚc udzielŚną ydŚm, Warszawa 1981. 145 S. Kania, Publikacje Głównej KŚmisji BZHwP 1945-1978, Warszawa 1980. 143 86 In the period 1946-1998 a periodical was published entitled Biuletyn Głównej KŚmisji Badania ZbrŚdni śrzeciwkŚ NarŚdŚwi PŚlskiemu Instytutu Pamięci NarŚdŚwej, which was superseded by Pamięć i SśrawiedliwŚ ć. PismŚ Instytutu Pamięci NarŚdŚwej (since 2002) and Biuletyn Instytutu Pamięci NarŚdŚwej (no longer published). The first issue of Biuletyn GKBZH w Polsce (in two volumes) covered all the camps – extermination camps, concentration camps and labour camps. The materials published in it were syntheses of the results of court investigations undertaken immediately after the end of the war, e.g. the iřvestigatiŚř Śf Judge Władysław Bedřarz frŚm the District CŚurt iř Łód iřtŚ the extermiřatiŚř camś iř ChełmřŚ řad Nerem. Today the documentation from these investigations is of fundamental value to our knowledge of the Nazi extermination camps, as it includes evidentiary material and witness testimonies that could only be gathered in that period. 87 88 4. The Archives of Memorial Museums FrŚm fŚur Śf the extermiřatiŚř camśs Śř PŚlish territŚry (withiř PŚlařd’s śre-1939 borders) – ChełmřŚ řad Nerem, Beł ec, SŚbibór ařd Trebliřka – virtually none of the original camp administrative documentation has survived, because as the Germans liquidated those camps they also meticulously destroyed the traces of their activities. Research into the history of those places and their victims can therefore be based only on documents either indirectly related or generated only after the war, and on extant material evidence of those crimes. The museums that stand on the sites of these former Nazi camps do not have archives in the narrowest meaning of the word (though they do all conduct research and educational work), and for that reason this chapter addresses the archival holdings of four concentration camps, two of which – Auschwitz and Majdanek – also operated as extermination camps. The sources used in research into the extermination camps are discussed in scholarly studies, the most important of which are cited in the Bibliography at the end of the Guide. PA STWOWE MUŃEUM AUSCHWITŃ-BIRKENAU W O WI CIMIU (PMAB, AUSCHWITZ-BIRKENAU STATE MUSEUM IN O WI CIM) The museum iř O wi cim was fŚuřded śursuařt tŚ the Act Śf 2 July 19ė7 146, although a group of former prisoners had already started to take care of the former camp site and the structures remaining there of their own volition the previous spring (the camp had been liberated by the Red Army on 27 January 1945). The most important task was to secure evidence of the crimes. In the initial months following the liberation, chaos reigned on the site of the camp; piles of bodies lay everywhere, and several thousand seriously sick prisoners in need of immediate care were still at the site.147 Red Army soldiers and members of the Soviet investigation commission were also stationed there, and German soldiers taken prisoner of war were being held in the buildings of Auschwitz I. In these difficult conditions the extensive site was not secured appropriately against thieves and “hyeřas” – people who dug up the mass graves in search of gold and other valuables. These were crimes committed on the sites of all the former concentration and extermination camps in the initial years after the war. Ustawa Ś uśami třieřiu m czeństwa řarŚdu śŚlskiegŚ i iřřych řarŚdów w O wi cimiu (Act Śř cŚmmemŚratiŚř Śf the martyrdom of the Polish nation and other nations in Auschwitz, Dziennik Ustaw [Dz. U., Official Legislation Gazette], no. 52, item 265), pp. 826-827. 147 There were some 7,000 prisoners still at the site of the camp when it was liberated. 146 89 The Auschwitz Museum was officially opened on 14 June 1947, shortly before the above mentioned act was published. Even before that time, however, former prisoners (who later became the first employees of the museum) had been giving visitors tours of the former KL Auschwitz site. Among them were Tadeusz W sŚwicz, Alfred Fiderkiewicz, Kazimierz SmŚleń, Wiřceřty Heiř, Frařciszek TargŚsz, Tadeusz Szymański ařd Jerzy Brařdhuber. 148 From the first, a priority was to recover German documents from the camp chancellery that had been scattered all over the site – on rubbish heaps, in ovens, and in toilets. Some of the camp documentation was confiscated illegally by the Russians, and some of those documents remain in Russian archives to this day.149 Some materials were gathered by the Komisja dla Badania Zbrodni Niemiecko-HitlerŚwskich w O wi cimiu (Commission to Investigate the German-Nazi Crimes iř O wi cim, křŚwř as the KŚmisja O wi cimska, Śr O wi cim CŚmmissiŚř) ařd subsequeřtly śassed Śř tŚ the Okr gŚwa KŚmisja Badania Zbrodni Niemieckich w Krakowie (District Commission for the Investigation of German Crimes in Krakow) 150 , while other documents were collected by the Krakow branch of Polski CzerwŚřy Krzy (PCK, PŚlish Red CrŚss). It was Śřly the establishmeřt Śf the museum archives iř 1957 and the commencement of professional scholarly research by employees of the Auschwitz State Museum that permitted the systematic collation of original documents or their copies, and secondary sources, e.g. witness testimonies and interviews. The holdings Śf the O wi cim archives have beeř profiled in two articles, by Anna Palarczykowa and Jadwiga Kulesza151, and interested scholars should consult these for more detailed information. Information on the archive holdings is also available on the PMAB website.152 Files from only a few of the six departments of the camp chancellery have been preserved, as before commencing the final evacuation of the camp, the Germans gave orders to have all the documentation and photographs burned. Only the haste in which this campaign was conducted and the deliberate actions of the prisoners engaged in the task made the preservation of some of the files possible.153 The salvaged German documentation, which was secured by the public Cf. J. Hueřer, “PaństwŚwe Muzeum O wi cim-Brzezinka w latach 1945-19ėę”, Pro Memoria. Biuletyn Informacyjny, 2007, no. 27, pp. 9-19; Jacek Lachendro, Zburzyć i zaŚrać...? Idea załŚ enia Muzeum Auschwitz-Birkenau w wietle śrasy śŚlskiej w latach 1945-1948, O wi cim 2007. 149 In 1945 a Soviet Extraordinary State Commission for Investigating the Crimes of the German Fascist Aggressors operated on the site of the former camp. 150 Both these commissions were charged with preparing evidential materials for the NTN (Supreme National Tribunal) trial of members of the KL Auschwitz staff. 151 A. PalarczykŚwa, “Władze hitlerŚwskiegŚ ŚbŚzu kŚřceřtracyjřegŚ w O wi cimiu, ich kařcelarie i śŚzŚstała śŚ řich sśu cizřa aktŚwa”, Archeion, 1964, vol. 40, pp. 227-2ė9; Jadwiga Kulesza, “Archiwalia z Auschwitz”, Pro Memoria. Biuletyn Informacyjny, 2007, no. 27, pp. 49-56. 152 http://en.auschwitz.org. 153 Oř 17 Jařuary 19ėĘ the first “death marches” set Śff, evacuatiřg sŚme 70,000 śrisŚřers; Śř 21-26 January the Germans blew up the gas chambers and crematoria in Birkenau. 148 90 prosecutor, Dr Jan Sehn, refers virtually exclusively to the original camp – Auschwitz I (which occupied the buildings of a former army barracks). The Auschwitz camp was composed of three main parts: Auschwitz I (the Stammlager), Auschwitz II – Birkenau (de facto an extermination camp) and Auschwitz III – Monowitz (a sub-camp in Monowice, also known as Buna), but the camp complex as a whole comprised a total of 47 sub-camps and external labour kommandos (group of people selected for a specific task, which spent the day working outside the actual camp site). Some 1,100,000 European Jews from Hungary, Poland, France, the Netherlands, Greece, Bohemia and Moravia, Slovakia, Belgium and many other countries 154, as well as many prisoners of other nationalities and Soviet prisoners of war, perished in KL Auschwitz-Birkenau. From 1942 the Birkenau camp operated as an extermination camp. In spite of the destruction, the documentation from KL Auschwitz-Birkenau constitutes one of the best preserved bodies of camp files, running to more than 200 linear metres of original documents. The surviving materials have been divided into the following collections (all files are ordered by issuer):  Akta Oddziału I – Kommandantur (Files from Department I – camś cŚmmařdařt’s Śffice): orders (more than 230), files relating to the SS (around 3 linear metres of personnel files), files concerning prisoners (mail, releases, escapes – including telegrams sent after escaped prisoners).  Akta Oddziału II – Politische Abteilung (Files from Department II – Political Dept.)155, the camp Gestapo: transport lists dating from 1941 and the lists of some transports of Jews from 1942 (Zuganglisten – arrivals lists) – around 3 liřear metres, śrisŚřers’ śersŚřal files (Häftlingspersonalbogen) – around 3 linear metres, personal files of Soviet POWs (48) and Greek Jews, records of deaths (Sterbebücher) – ėę vŚlumes, ařd disciśliřary reśŚrts Śř “crimes” committed by prisoners.  Akta Oddziału III – Schutzhaftlagerführung (Files from Department III – camp director): a few of the main record books (including two books from the Roma family camp), the record book for the penal company, the bunker record book, the card files for Soviet POWs (around 3.5 linear metres), two volumes of the Stärkebuch (the records of the daily counts), the main Nummerbuch F. Piśer, “RŚla KL Auschwitz w realizacji hitlerŚwskiegŚ ślařu zagłady ydów”, Pro Memoria. Biuletyn Informacyjny, 2006, no. 25, pp. 3-13. 155 The Political Dept. kept all the lists of transports of Jews issued by RSHA B4 (the office of Adolf Eichmann) and of the crematorium section; they were all burned. 154 91 (book of numbers), two record books for Blocks 16 and 4, a card file for prisoners in Block 11, and punishment reports.  Akta Oddziału IIIa – Arbeitseinsatz (Files from Department IIIa – labour details): correspondence (3 binders, in all 391 items, dating from 1943) – chiefly detailing prisoner handovers, lists – i.e. daily breakdowns of numbers of prisoners in labour commandos (including around 200 breakdŚwřs frŚm the wŚmeř’s camś iř Birkeřau); iř light Śf the Śrigiřal breakdŚwřs fŚr variŚus periods (daily, weekly, monthly, etc.), the preserved documentation represents a very small fraction, though it does offer a certain insight into the nature of employment (which included experimentation), prisoner numbers, and the places they worked.  Akta Oddziału IV – Verwaltung (Files from Department IV – administration): food ration cards for the SS officers, orders for the workshops, authorizations for transportation, orders for wood and coke for the crematoria, and blank forms and other printed materials (in all around 2.5 linear metres).  Akta Oddziału V – Standortarzt (Files from Department V – camp doctor): various documents, including lists of patient names, patient histories, hospital ledgers, lists of medications, and reports to the Political Department on the removal of gold dentures and on cremation of bodies.  Akta Oddziału VI – Truppenbetreuung (Files from Department VI – Troop Supplies): no files have been preserved.  Akta Oddziału VII – Landwirtschaft (Files from Department VII – Farm): 1 binder of correspondence (in the village of Rajsko there were gardens and an experimental cultivation programme of the plant kok-saghyz for an ersatz rubber supply).  Akta CeřtralřegŚ Zarz du BudŚwlařegŚ FŚrmacji WŚjskŚwej SS i PŚlicji w O wi cimiu (Zentralbauleitung der Waffen-SS u. Polizei, Auschwitz O/S, Files of the Central Construction Board of the Waffen-SS ařd PŚlice iř O wi cim) – 248 volumes: this office was subordinate not to the camp administration but to the WVHA 156 , which was established to plan and carry out the extension of the camp and the crematoria. Many of the plans for barracks, buildings, crematoria and gas chambers, as well as plans for further projects have been preserved, as have lists of prisoners employed, correspondences, and stamps. Many of the Construction Board files (around 60%) are now in Moscow archives (the originals) and in the PMAB Archive (copies). 156 92 SS-Wirtschafts- und Verwaltungshauptamt (SS Economic and Administration Main Office), headed by Oswald Pohl.  Akta Instytutu Higieny (SS Hygiene Institute Auschwitz, Bakteriologische Untersuchungsstelle Süd-Ost): chiefly results of analyses performed for the SS hospital and for camp prisoners (in all, including correspondences, around 8.5 linear metres, 64 volumes).  Akta śŚdŚbŚzów Ś wi cimskich (Files frŚm Auschwitz sub-camps, including those in Brzeszcze, Jaworzno, Trzebionka and Goleszów): letters written by prisoner labourers and official letters from the camp doctor; these materials have survived in very poor condition (in all approx. 4 linear metres).    Bilety kŚlejŚwe ydów z Grecji (Traiř tickets Śf Jews frŚm Greece). Wspomnienia (Memoirs) – 251 volumes; 1,446 separate texts, approx. 56,000 pages. O wiadczeřia (AccŚuřts) – 161 volumes; around 3,500 statements by former prisoners, forced labourers and local residents, approx. 30,348 pages.   Ankiety (Questionnaires) – 192 volumes (filled in by former prisoners, approx. 20,000 pages). Ankiety tematyczne (Themed questionnaires disseminated among former prisoners by Stařisław KłŚdziński fŚr the śeriŚdical Przegląd Lekarski (27 volumes, 7,901 pages).  Kampfgruppe Auschwitz – original files of the camp resistance movement, including notes passed to prisoners by members of the Polish underground formation Armia Krajowa (AK, Home Army) and other people, e.g. J. wiatłŚch, A. Bařa , S. KłŚdziński ařd J. Cyrařkiewicz, as well as reports written by prisoners who escaped (Tabeau, Wetzler, Vrba, Chybiński, RŚsiř-Mordowicz) – 40 volumes.  “Bürgermeister der Stadt Auschwitz 1940-19ėĘ” (Files frŚm the recŚrd grŚuś “MayŚr Śf O wi cim 19ė0-19ėĘ”).  Sśu cizřy śŚ byłych wi řiach (Letters ařd śaśers Śf fŚrmer śrisŚřers): miscellařeŚus documents donated by former prisoners themselves or their families, including letters from the camp, postcards, telegrams, notifications of death, death certificates, other certificates, lists of items left in deposit, notifications of parcels, premium bonds, certificates of release, notes, and photographs. The PMAB archival holdings also include case files (for the most part copies) from the trials of camp staff members held in Polish and German courts, and microfilm copies of documents held in foreign archives; in all around 800,000 frames. Besides recordings of around 2,000 interviews with former prisoners, there is also a collection of feature films and documentaries, and a very extensive 93 photographic archive. The museum also has a vast number of items salvaged from the camp, and other exhibits connected with the camp and its functioning. These will be profiled as a group in Part II of the Guide (Chapter 13). On a final note, it is worth stressing that documentation held in Russian archives has been partially copied and is accessible in this form at PMAB. 157 The museum library has a specialist collection (currently in excess of 30,000 volumes), including – aside from maps, atlases and encyclopedias – special collections of books and periodicals published in the Third Reich. In 2006 the museum opened an International Center for Education about Auschwitz and the Holocaust. The cŚllectiŚřs Śf the museum’s archive are cŚřstařtly beiřg exśařded, chiefly thrŚugh the effŚrts Śf the BiurŚ ds. Wsśółśracy z Byłymi Wi řiami (Bureau fŚr CŚŚśeratiŚř with FŚrmer PrisŚřers), which gathers a full range of information on former prisoners. Prisoner data is currently being entered into a centralized computer database, Repozytorium Cyfrowe (Digital Repository). The most important databases being created by PMAB are as follows:  Repozytorium Cyfrowe Muzeum (the Digital Repository), a project aiming to enter into a single, unified database all information on former prisoners irrespective of source. At present some 650,000 records have been entered into the database from original SS documents (70 fonds of former camp documents), including:  28,000 records of data from Häftlings-Personal-Kartei KL Mauthausen,  24,000 records from the card file Lagerschreibstube KL Mauthausen,  30,000 records of data referring to various photographs,  over 13,000 records from the hospital ledger from Block 28,  over 25,000 records from the Monowitz hospital ledgers, – over 31,000 records from the Roentgen (x-ray) ledgers. In the future a full database will permit rapid access to, and statistical processing and analysis of information: 157 There are two such archives: the Russian State Military and Historical Archive in Moscow, where the files of the SSZentralbauleitung are held in Fonds 502, and the Museum of Military Medicine in Saint Petersburg, which holds a variety of photographs and documents, including the diary of Zalman Gradowski. 94  Online database containing source data on the victims of the camp). Information may be sought in this database by: given name, surname, occupation, camp number, date of birth, place of birth, and place of residence. The data available here come from just two of the score s of archival fonds that exist: the Death Books and the records ledgers from the Sinti and Roma camp. This means that there is online information on former prisoners for around 180,000 of those who perished in the camp. The fuller database on former prisoners, which has not been made available online, is still under construction by PMAB archivists. For more accurate information, contact the Office for Information on Former Prisoners at the museum.  A database of death certificates, compiled on the basis of preserved Death Books (Totenbücher) of prisoners at KL Auschwitz. In 46 volumes of file, the Politische Abteilung (the Political Dept., the camp Gestapo) recorded the deaths of almost 69,000 registered prisoners between 29 July 1941 and 31 Dec. 1943. For this reason the database does not include the names of most of the Jews deported to KL Auschwitz, who arrived at the camp in mass transports and for the most part underwent selection at once and were sent to their deaths. Where a death certificate does exist, it includes the following information: certificate number, date of issue, given name and surname, religion, place of residence, date of death, time of death, place of death (always Kaserřeřstrasse [“Barracks Street”] Auschwitz, řŚt the camś), date ařd ślace Śf birth, father’s giveř řame ařd surřame, mŚther’s giveř řame ařd surřame, sśŚuse’s giveř řame ařd surřame, řame Śf the doctor confirming the death, date, signature, and cause of death (fictional). PA STWOWE MUŃEUM NA MAJDANKU W LUBLINIE (PMM, STATE MUSEUM AT MAJDANEK IN LUBLIN) The camp at Majdanek was liberated by the Red Army on 23 July 1944. The camp staff fled in haste the previous day. Before their escape, they did their best to destroy the evidence of their crimes – they set fire to the crematorium, and attempted to destroy the documentation in the main camp chancellery, which, fortunately, only partly succeeded. In the first few months after liberation, much destruction was wrought158, both by the local populace (part of the site was completely unguarded) and by Polish and Soviet troops stationed there. The camp was used as a military barracks and as holding accommodation for German prisoners of war, and in subsequent months also for captured Cf. Z. Wóycicka, Przerwana ałŚba. SśŚry wŚkół śamięci i uśamiętniania nazistŚwskich ŚbŚzów kŚncentracyjnych i zagłady 19441950, Warszawa 2009, English edition: Arrested Mourning. Memory of the Nazi camps in Poland 1944-1950, Frankfurt am Main 2013. 158 95 sŚldiers Śf the HŚme Army ařd BataliŚřy ChłŚśskie (BCh, Peasařts’ BattaliŚřs, ařŚther PŚlish armed resistařce fŚrmatiŚř). The date geřerally acceśted as the museum’s fŚuřdatiŚř is 1ę November 1944, although this was not confirmed in the form of any legal documents or decisions by legislative authorities.159 Not until three years later, on 2 July 1947, was an act passed analogous to the Auschwitz Museum fŚuřdatiŚř act: Ustawa Ś uśami třieřiu m czeństwa NarŚdu PŚlskiegŚ i innych Narodów na Majdanku (Act on Commemoration of the Martyrdom of the Polish Nation and other Nations at Majdanek). The museum at Majdanek was the first museum in Europe operating on the site of a former concentration camp. Much earlier still, in August 1944, a Polsko-Sowiecka KŚmisja dŚ Zbadařia ZbrŚdři Niemieckich PŚśełřiŚřych řa Majdařku (PŚlish-Soviet Commission to Investigate the German Crimes Committed at Majdanek) was appointed. This operated until October 1944, and today its files are held in Russian archives. The museum began to gather documents relating to Majdanek concentration camp from its very inception; on this basis, a card file containing the names of prisoners was opened that same year and is still beiřg uśdated. “The greatest discŚvery came slightly later, iř May 19ė8, wheř iřfŚrmatiŚř from former prisoners led to the excavation and recovery of documents that in July 1944, on the Śrders Śf the camś authŚrities, had beeř thrŚwř iřtŚ a śit, set alight, ařd theř cŚvered iř earth.”160 At present the archival holdings at Majdanek run to some 180 linear metres of files, including around 37.4 linear metres from the period of the war. Anyone wishing to use the archival materials at Majdanek should first study the most recent finding aid, Informator o zasobie archiwalnym 161 , which contains extensive detailed information on each of the fonds, often down to descriptions of individual archival units. PMM archival holdings may be divided into the following groups162: I KL Lublin Administration 1941-1944: the original documents from the camp – 18.5 linear metres (318 items, around 17,000 pages). This is the most important collection of original files for research into the history of the camp at Majdanek. These are divided as follows: - Ia – Abteilung I – KŚmmařdařtur KL Lubliř (Camś cŚmmařdařt’s Śffice) – 8 volumes. Cf. J. KiełbŚń, E. Balawejder, PaństwŚwe Muzeum na Majdanku w latach 1944-1947. Wybór dokumentów, Lublin 2004, pp. 8-9. 160 Ibidem, p. 21. 161 Anna Wójcik, InfŚrmatŚr Ś zasŚbie archiwalnym PaństwŚwegŚ Muzeum na Majdanku, Lublin 2012. 162 Cf. J. KiełbŚń, “Warsztat řaukŚwy PaństwŚwegŚ Muzeum řa Majdařku”, Zeszyty Majdanka, 1995, vol. XVI, pp. 7189; F. Marciřkówřa, J. Marszałek, “Akta Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ Muzeum řa Majdařku”, Archeion, 1962, R. XXXVII, pp. 207-228; T. Meřcel, “DŚkumeřty zbrŚdři i m czeństwa w ŚbŚzie řa Majdařku”, [iř:] Majdanek 1941-1944, collective work, ed. T. Mencel, Lublin 1991, pp. 5-17. 159 96 - Ib – Abteilung II – Politische Abteilung (Political Section) – 23 vŚlumes, 17 Śf which are śrisŚřers’ personal files. - Ic – Abteilung III – Schutzhaftlager (PrisŚřers’ camś) – Ę9 vŚlumes, 39 Śf which are “Detailed daily reśŚrts Śř śrisŚřer emślŚymeřt” frŚm 19ė2-1944. - Id –Abteilung IV – Verwaltung (Administration) – 172 volumes, 96 of which constitute the card file Śf the “Effekteřkammer” (“PersŚřal effects rŚŚm”), ařd 31 a mŚřey register. AmŚřg the materials in this section is the Death Book for 1942, which has been published.163 - Ie – Abteilung V – SS-Lagerarzt (Camp doctor) – 6 volumes. - If – SS-Totenkopf Sturmbann (Guard staff) – 50 volumes. These materials are of fundamental significance because they include (fragmentarily preserved) Śrders issued by the cŚmmařdařt’s Śffice, śrisŚřer numbers, notifications of transports, notifications of deaths, transport lists, card files for clothing, money and professions, lists of labour details and prisoners who died in the camp, lists of prisoners employed in the Deutsche Ausrüstungswerke GmbH Werk Lublin (German Armaments Factory, Lublin Plant) at Lipowa Street in Lublin, documents providing evidence of orders of Zyklon B, documents concerning looting of śrisŚřers’ śrŚśerty, cŚrresśŚřdeřces śrŚvidiřg evideřce Śf cŚřtacts with cŚmmercial cŚmśařies in the Third Reich, reśŚrts Śř camś staffiřg řumbers, ařd SS Śfficers’ śersŚřřel files. II Aktion Reinhardt: DŚwódca SS i PŚlicji Okr gu LubelskiegŚ. Główřy Wydział Akcji Reiřhardt (SS- und Polizeiführer des Distrikts Lublin. Hauptabteilung Einsatz Reinhardt, SS and Police Leader for the Lublin District. Central Department for Aktion Reinhardt) – documents from the warehouses at 27 Chopina Street in Lublin 1942-1944 – 14 volumes (ca. 900 sheets). These are materials relating to looted Jewish property, e.g. receipts for crates of money and valuables, copies of bills for items sold, requests for items from the warehouses, lists of clothes, receipts for various institutions, and lists of names of Jewish guards. III Private documents of camp personnel and German soldiers 1939-1944 – personal identification documents, correspondence, and calendars – 3 volumes. IV Archive of prisoner organizations (resistance movement, mutual aid, etc.) 1943-1944 – e.g. řŚtes, lists Śf śrisŚřers’ řames, ařd dŚcumeřts refereřciřg aid offered – 108 volumes. V Private documents of former Majdanek prisoners – 57 volumes (ca. 1,800 sheets) – personal identity documents, passports, membership ID for various organizations, certificates, birth 163 Księga zmarłych wię niów. Majdanek 1942, ed. J. KiełbŚń, K. TarkŚwski, Lubliř 200ė. 97 certificates, labour time sheets, notebooks, diaries, books, commercial papers, memoirs, correspondences with family, photograph albums, and others. VI External registers, e.g. files frŚm Parafia w. Pawła (Parish Śf St Paul) iř Lubliř regardiřg deaths of prisoners, and others – 60 volumes (ca. 3 linear metres). VII Memoirs, accounts and testimonies – ca. 25,000 sheets (ca. 1,300 texts) and questionnaires (ca. 12,500).164 VIII Magnetic tape recordings (śrisŚřers’ memŚirs, brŚadcasts, ceremŚřies) – 547 recordings (308 cassettes).165 IX Plans of the concentration camp in Lublin (55) and plans of the museum from 1944-2000 (112). X Documents of Towarzystwo Opieki nad Majdankiem 1945-1990 (Society for the Protection of Majdanek) – ca. 13 liřear metres, iřcludiřg ę09 categŚry “A” files. XI Documents of the Polish Red Cross, Lublin Area 1939-1948 – 142 volumes (over 19,000 sheets, 9.5 linear metres) – documents have survived from the Biuro Informacyjne (Information Bureau), Wydział Ośieki (Care Deśartmeřt) ařd Wydział Sařitarřy (SařitatiŚř Deśartmeřt). XII Files Śf the HŚme Army cell Centralna Ośieka PŚdziemna „OPUS” 1943-1944 (“OPUS” Central Underground Welfare) – 21 volumes (ca. 1,000 sheets, 0.6 linear metres). XIII WŚjskŚwa Słu ba KŚbiet 1942-1944 (WSK, WŚmen’s Military Service) – 6 volumes (0.1 linear metres).166 XIV Collection of studies on the camp at Majdanek and the Lublin region in the years of the Nazi occupation – studies concerning former prisoners and others (in total 398 files). XV Collection of public announcements and printed ephemera – 10 volumes. XVI Collection of materials on the Nazi prison in Lublin Castle 1939-1944 – 16 volumes. XVII Collection of photographs – ca. 5,411.167 XVIII CŚllectiŚn Śf micrŚfilms frŚm Śther PŚlish and fŚreign archives and the museum’s own files – ca. 450,000 frames. 164 PrzewŚdnik śŚ zbiŚrze relacji i śamiętników znajdujących się w zasŚbie PaństwŚwegŚ Muzeum na Majdanku, ed. M. Grudzińska, A. Wójcik, Lublin 2011. 165 Marta Grudzińska, “Zbiór „řagrařia audiŚ” w zasŚbie PaństwŚwegŚ Muzeum řa Majdařku”, Zeszyty Majdanka, 2011, vol. XXV, pp. 273-280. 166 The WŚmeř’s Military Service (WSK) was fŚrmed by ař Śrder of General Stefan Rowecki “GrŚt”, as ař auxiliary squad of the Home Army (AK). Its objective was to prepare women for work in the underground movement, mainly in the health service, telecommunications, defence and firefighting, and in the back offices. 167 K. TarkŚwski, “KŚlekcje fŚtŚgrafii i ślařów w Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ Muzeum řa Majdařku dŚtycz ce ŚbŚzu kŚřceřtracyjřegŚ KL Lubliř”, Zeszyty Majdanka, 1997, vol. XVIII, pp. 75-84. 98 XIX Collection of photocopies of documents relating to Majdanek and various issues connected with the occupation in the Lublin region (2,093 files, ca. 23 linear metres). XX Court files – 35 files from the trials of Majdanek staff (copies). XXI Documents relating tŚ fŚrmer śŚlitical śrisŚners in Lublin Castle and “PŚd zegarem” (“The ClŚck”) (ca. 10 linear metres). XXII Video recordings of interviews, broadcasts, ceremonies, etc. – including 308 cassettes holding 164 interviews with former prisoners.168 XXIII The NKVD camp at Majdanek – 21 volumes. XXIV Legacies and papers of former prisoners of Majdanek, e.g. Haliřa Bireřbaum, Czesław Kulesza, Danuta Brzosko-M dryk, Krystyřa Tarasiewicz ařd Śthers – 55 files, 0.55 linear metres. XXV Polish-Soviet Commission to Investigate the German Crimes Committed at Majdanek 1944-1947 – 5 files. XXVI CŚllectiŚn Śf materials and dŚcuments cŚncerning the exterminatiŚn camś in Beł ec 1940-1943 – 29 files. In 2004 the Muzeum – Miejsce Pami ci w Beł cu (MMPB, Museum – Memorial Site iř Beł ec)169, a branch of the PMM, was opened. In response to the opening of the museum iř Beł ec, dŚcumeřts begař tŚ flŚw iř, mŚst Śf them refereřciřg victims Śf the camś. Several hundred questionnaires and over a hundred accounts were gathered, and used as the basis for a commemorative album publication.170 MŚreŚver, the archive’s hŚldiřgs alsŚ iřclude the Archive Śf the State Museum at Majdařek – 2,360 volumes (53 liřear metres Śf categŚry “A” files). A very detailed examination of the material on the fate of the Jews at Majdanek is to be found in an article by the long-term directŚr Śf the PMM Archive, Jařiřa KiełbŚń.171 The first studies on this subject were written by Tatiana Berenstein and Adam Rutkowski172, and the most recent by Tomasz Kranz173. The camp at Majdanek, which in the nomenclature of the day was in fact called KL Lublin, B. Siwek-Ciuśak, “KŚlekcja řagrań wideŚ z relacjami b. wi řiów Majdařka”, Zeszyty Majdanka, 2008, vol. XXIV, pp. 263-269. 169 www.belzec.eu. 170 Ewa Koper, Ka da Śfiara ma imię. Every victim has a name, Lublin 2014. 171 J. KiełbŚń, “DŚkumeřty dŚtycz ce ydów w Archiwum PaństwŚwym Muzeum řa Majdařku”, Zeszyty Majdanka, 1997, vol. XVIII, pp. 63-74. 172 T. Bereřsteiř, A. RutkŚwski, “ ydzi w ŚbŚzie kŚřceřtracyjřym Majdařek 19ė1-1944”, B IH, 1966, no. 58, pp. 3-52. 173 T. Kranz, Zagłada ydów w ŚbŚzie kŚncentracyjnym na Majdanku, Lublin 2007. 168 99 was neither a labour camp174 nor a death camp in the strict sense of the word – it was both, and played an important role in the plan to exterminate the Jews of the GG, otherwise known under the cryptonym Aktion Reinhardt.175 Tomasz Kranz maintains that there is no way of establishing with any exactitude the number of Jews murdered at Majdanek, but his research represents a fundamental revision of previous estimates, and suggests that there were around 60,000 such victims.176 Among them there were Jews frŚm the ghettŚs iř Lubliř, Warsaw, BiałystŚk, Śther ghettŚs iř the Lubliř District, and others from Slovakia, Bohemia and Moravia, Austria, Germany, France (the camp in Drancy), the Netherlands, Greece, and others of unestablished origins who were deported to Majdanek from other camps. The first work on the computer databases at PMM was begun in 1992. In 1996, in cooperation with the Max Planck Institute in Göttingen, the Cleo program was launched. Today, the information from the databases created using this system has been relocated to Access databases. PMM has several separate databases, for each record group in its archive, containing information from individual dŚcumeřts, ařd the file řumbers. A siřgle, uřified database, the “KartŚteka główřa” (maiř card file) brings together all the information on former Majdanek prisoners to be found in the archival documents – given name, surname, date and place of birth, date of internment in the camp, camp number, and fate: information about transport, date and circumstances of death, release from the camp, escape, etc. This database is a work in progress, and at present contains data on well over ten thousand former prisoners. The computer databases are used by PMM and are currently not accessible by scholars. PA STWOWE MUŃEUM STUTTHOF W SZTUTOWIE (STUTTHOF MUSEUM IN SZTUTOWO) Muzeum Stutthof (Stutthof Museum) was established pursuant to a resolution by Prezydium WŚjewódzkiej Rady NarŚdŚwej w Gdańsku (Presidium Śf the VŚivŚdshiś NatiŚřal CŚuřcil iř Gdańsk) dated 13 March 19ę2, Śř the iřitiative Śf Rada OchrŚřy Pami ci Walki i M czeństwa 174 KL Lublin only administered six sub-camps and did not supply its affiliates with labour; the camps were the labour camś iř Lubliř at LiśŚwa Street, the labŚur camś iř Lubliř at Chełmska Street (Śř the site Śf the fŚrmer Lubelska Street), Bli yř, RadŚm, Budzyń, ařd KL Warschau. There were alsŚ a řumber Śf Śther labŚur details, e.g. Trawřiki, Piaski, Chełm. 175 T. Krařz, “Obóz kŚřceřtracyjřy řa Majdařku a «akcja Reiřhard»”, [iř:] Akcja Reinhard. Zagłada ydów w Generalnym Gubernatorstwie, ed. D. Libionka, Warszawa 2004, pp. 233-247. 176 Ibidem, pp. 71-76. 100 (ROPWiM, CŚuřcil fŚr the PrŚtectiŚř Śf MemŚry Śf Struggle ařd MartyrdŚm). The museum’s archival resources have been profiled in an article by Agnieszka Chyrek, which is unfortunately available only as a typescript 177 ; the histŚry Śf the camś itself has beeř Śutliřed by MirŚsław Gliński178. As in other camps, here too the Germans attempted to destroy or move documentation directly before the evacuation of the camp in January 1945. This resulted in the burning of some of the files Śf the śŚlitical deśartmeřt ařd the hŚsśital; Śthers were śacked uś ařd takeř away, but the camś’s SS staff jettisoned them in the course of their panic-stricken flight; they were found in the spring of 19ėĘ iř a ditch řear L bork by Red Army soldiers, and handed over to the Polish Red Cross. They later found their way into Archiwum GKBZH (Archive of the Main Commission for the Investigation of Hitlerite Crimes) in Warsaw, where they lay, untouched, until 1965. One of the reasons the museum was established was to gather and compile documentation relating to the camp. In addition to original administrative files (some 95% of the surviving documentation is held in the museum), the archive today is also in possession of a considerable body of materials obtained from former prisoners and their families. Its holdings comprise around 125 linear metres of files ordered into 68 record groups, which are classified into five main groups: Konzentrationslager Stutthof (Stutthof concentration camś), Ařkiety byłych wi řiów (QuestiŚřřaires filled iř by fŚrmer śrisŚřers), DŚkumeřtacja byłych wi řiów (DŚcumeřtatiŚř relatiřg tŚ fŚrmer śrisŚřers), ZbiŚry (Collections), and Relacje i wspomnienia (Accounts and memoirs). All the camp files have been microfilmed 179 , and a considerable proportion of the prisoner data has been entered into an electronic database. There are documents relating to the extermination of the Jews in KL Stutthof in all the categories of files listed below, and the most extensive monograph on the subject is that written by Danuta Drywa and published in 2001.180 177 A. Chyrek, “IřfŚrmatŚr Ś zasŚbie archiwalřym Muzeum StutthŚf”, SztutŚwŚ 2003 [tyśescriśt]; J. GrabŚwska, “KształtŚwařie si zasŚbu archiwalřegŚ Archiwum Muzeum StutthŚf w SztutŚwie i sśŚsŚby jegŚ zabezśieczeřia” [typescript]; K. Giergielewicz, J. Grabowska, “KształtŚwařie si zasŚbu archiwalřegŚ Muzeum StutthŚf i jegŚ wykŚrzystařie” [tyśescriśt]. 178 M. Gliński, “Orgařizacja ŚbŚzu kŚřceřtracyjřegŚ StutthŚf (1 wrze řia 1939 – 9 maja 19ėĘ)”, Zeszyty Muzeum Sztutthof, 1979, no. 3, pp. 19-27. 179 A full set of the microfilms is held in the US Holocaust Memorial Museum Archive in Washington, D.C. 180 D. Drywa, Zagłada ydów w ŚbŚzie kŚncentracyjnym StutthŚf (wrzesień 1939 – maj 1945), Gdańsk 2001 (Eřglish translation: Danuta Drywa, The extermination of Jews in Stutthof concentration camp, Gdařsk 2004). 101 The collection Konzentrationslager Stutthof numbers around 67,000 items (approx. 116 linear metres); almost all of them are original documents. This material is ordered to reflect the administrative structure of the camp as recreated:  Wydział I KŚmeřdařtura [KŚmmařdařtur] (I – CŚmmařdařt’s Office) – 1,426 items; orders issued by the camp commandant, staff personnel files (card files containing the personal data of the SS officers), documentation from the guard house, correspondences, and a very valuable photograph album commemorating the visit of Reichsführer SS Heinrich Himmler to the camp on 23 November 1941.  Wydział II PŚlityczřy [PŚlitische Abteiluřg] (II – Political Department) – 67 items; correspondence concerning transports of inmates arriving from places including Pawiak prison in Warsaw, and prisoners leaving the camp; also transport lists containing the names of 36,966 prisoners; one book of prisoner deaths from 1944 has also been preserved, as have records for several years containing a total of 32,000 names. A separate group of files comprises the personal questionnaires of internees of various nationalities from 1944.  Wydział III Obóz [Schutzhaftlager] (III – Camp) – 66,162 items and 35 items; the files in this section reference the conditions in which the prisoners lived (food, barracks) and their employment. The maiř bŚdy Śf dŚcumeřtatiŚř iř this sectiŚř is cŚmśŚsed Śf iřterřees’ śersŚřal files, mŚst Śf which have been preserved in their original folders. It also includes part of a list of female Jewish prisoners from Blocks 17, 18 and 19, and reports on prisoner numbers dating from 1945.  Wydział IV AdmiřistracyjřŚ-Gospodarczy [Verwaltung] (IV – Administration) – 95 items; this department took care of maintenance and administrative matters in the camp (the warehouses, kitchen and gardens). Surviving documentation includes military personnel payrolls, correspondences cŚřcerřiřg remuřeratiŚř fŚr iřmates’ labŚur, ařd deliveries to the camp of various equipment and food. A separate and important group of archival material comprises documents relating to items looted from deceased prisoners (including money).  Wydział V Lekarz ŚbŚzu [Lagerarzt] (V – Camp doctor) – 38 items; reports from the years 1940-1944 on numbers of prisoners in the hospital, and other documents relating to sick and deceased prisoners.  Wydział VI SzkŚleřie załŚgi [Schuluřg] (VI Traiřiřg) – 1 item; training materials, general orders and instructions. 102  Zakłady gospodarcze SS Bauleitung (Maintenance workshop) – 4 items; a ledger containing technical details of the camp, as well as a variety of reports for Deutsche Ausrüstungswerke (DAW, German Armaments Works).  DŚkumeřtacja byłych wi řiów (DŚcumeřtatiŚř Śf fŚrmer prisoners) – 487 items; legal correspondences (cards and letters from the camp written on special forms, and incoming correspondences to prisoners), illegal correspondences (notes), materials of the camp resistance movement (poems, songs, prayers, drawings), other materials (e.g. birth certificates, membership ID for various organizations).  Ařkiety byłych wi řiów (QuestiŚřřaires filled iř by fŚrmer śrisŚřers) – around 10,000 questionnaires filled in in the years 1962-1972. The questions in the questionnaire are connected with śersŚřal data, the reasŚřs fŚr ařd circumstařces Śf the śersŚř’s deteřtiŚř, their time iř the camś, their fellow prisoners, staff, and the evacuation.  Relacje i wspomnienia (Accounts and memoirs) – some 1,000 statements gathered in the form of written records, tape recordings, or film footage. Among the material amassed there are statements by former Jewish prisoners.  Zbiory (Collections) – 400 items on a diverse range of themes, divided into the following grŚuśs: WŚlře MiastŚ Gdańsk (the Free City Śf Gdańsk), Ruch ŚśŚru (the resistařce mŚvemeřt), Okuśacja hitlerŚwska (the Nazi ŚccuśatiŚř), II wŚjřa wiatŚwa (WŚrld War II), StutthŚf (200 items), Iřře ŚbŚzy kŚřceřtracyjře i zagłady (Śther cŚřceřtratiŚř ařd extermiřatiŚř camśs, 72 items), Inne ŚbŚzy i wi zieřia (Śther camśs ařd śrisŚřs), PrŚcesy zbrŚdřiarzy hitlerŚwskich (trials Śf Nazi crimiřals), PŚmŚrze Gdańskie – Śkres śŚwŚjeřřy (Gdańsk PŚmerařia – the postwar period). Scholars researching the history of this camp and the fates of its inmates may seek other information iř the files Śf trials befŚre PŚlish ařd Germař cŚurts, iřcludiřg S d Sśecjalřy Karřy w Gdańsku (Sśecial Crimiřal CŚurt iř Gdańsk, 19ėę), S d Okr gŚwy w Gdańsku (District CŚurt iř Gdańsk, 19ė7 ařd 19Ę3), S d Okr gŚwy w TŚruřiu (District CŚurt iř TŚruń, 19ė9), ařd cŚurts iř Hamburg, Bochum and Tübingen. A total of 72 SS officers and female guards from among the 3,000 or so camp staff were ultimately convicted. Auxiliary evidential materials are gathered in the files of investigations conducted by Judge Antoni Zacharasiewicz of the GKBZNwP. 103 MUZEUM GROSS-ROSEN W ROGO NICY-WAŁBRŃYCHU (GROSS-ROSEN MUSEUM IN ROGO NICA) Initially, at the point of its establishment in 1940, the camp in Gross-Rosen was a branch of KL Sachsenhausen, founded to exploit local deposits of granite. From 1 May 1941 Arbeitslager GrossRosen was an autonomous concentration camp with its own network of 77 dependant sub-camps across Lower Silesia. This was one of the harshest of the labour camps, where prisoners were employed on particularly hard tasks, among them the construction of an underground complex intended as the headquarters of the supreme command of the Third Reich in the Owl Mountains. Some 125,000 prisoners passed through the camp and its sub-camps, and the number of lives they claimed was probably in the region of 40,000, among whom the largest single group was Jews from various different countries. The museum that is the custodian of the former site of the camp and the quarries181 was founded in 1983 by the Minister of Culture and Art; it is now a local-authority funded institution. Its archive comprises above all secondary documentation in the form of copies (microfilms, photocopies, scans) from other archives, at present some 10,000 items. Among its original documents there are books of deaths, transport and evacuation lists, some 3,000 letters from the camp, and over 600 photographs. It sources other materials through painstaking research in the archives of the Polish Red Cross, the IPN, the State Archives, and the archives of other museums of martyrdom. At its foundation, a questionnaire was composed for former prisoners for the purpose of gathering and supplementing their biographical details. The museum also records eye-witness accounts and interviews on audio and video tape. All information on ex-prisoners is entered into a centralized computer database, which holds the names of more than 100,000 prisoners. A database of those who perished in KL Gross-Rosen in the years 1940-1945 is available online.182 The museum has a number of card files: of prisoners, photographs, SS officers, forced labourers, and others. MUŃEUM MARTYROLOGICŃNE W ABIKOWIE K. POŃNANIA ńW LUBONIU] (MUSEUM OF MARTYRDOM IN ABIKOWO NEAR POŃNA ńIN LUBO ]) This museum is in abikŚwŚ (řŚw śart Śf the tŚwř Śf LubŚń řear PŚzřań), Śř the site Śf a fŚrmer fŚrced labŚur camś fŚr Jews frŚm the Łód ghettŚ, Zduńska WŚla, Sieradz, Wieluń, Pabiařice, G biř, GŚstyřiř ařd Śther ghettŚs iř the Warthelařd (Warta regiŚř); there was alsŚ a corrective labour camp and the PŚzřań GestaśŚ śrisŚř (Polizeigefängnis der Sicherheitspolizei und 181 182 At śreseřt these are iř the śŚssessiŚř Śf Fuřdacja KamieřiŚłŚmy GrŚss-Rosen (Gross-Rosen Quarries Foundation). http://en.gross-rosen.eu/baza-zmarlych-wiezniow/. 104 Arbeitserziehungslager Posen-Lenzingen) there. The labour camp for Jews was part of the Reichsautobahnlager (Reich motorway camps) system, which comprised a total of 24 such camps along the route of the Berlin-PŚzřań-Łód -Warsaw motorway that was under construction. A total of around 10,000 people were employed in these camps, and their labour was exploited by private German firms from the Reich involved in the construction of the motorway. The man responsible fŚr ślařřiřg mŚtŚrway rŚutes ařd eřgagiřg the cŚřtractŚrs tŚ build them was Dr Fritz TŚdt, “chief iřsśectŚr fŚr Germař rŚads”, aśśŚiřted iř 1933. He created the śaramilitary OrgařisatiŚř TŚdt (OT), which employed prisoners and forced labourers in the construction of military sites until the end of the war. The camp and Gestapo prison operated from April 1943 as a continuation of the fuřctiŚř Śf the FŚrt VII PrisŚř iř PŚzřań. Iřdividuals susśected by the Gestapo of enemy activity in respect of the Third Reich were incarcerated here for the duration of their investigation and interrogations (for several days or weeks). From here, prisoners were sent to the concentration camps Auschwitz, Gross-Rosen, Mauthausen, Sachsenhausen and Ravensbrück. The prison was intended above all for Poles. The museum on the site today was founded in order to commemorate both institutions – the slave labour camp for Jews engaged on the construction of motorways in the Wartheland (Warta region) and the Gestapo prison for Poles. In addition to its exhibition and educational functions, it has the following archival collections183: 1) materials Śř the PŚzřań GestaśŚ śrisŚř ařd the “cŚrrective” labŚur camś, 2) materials on forced labour camps for the Jewish populace in Wielkopolska (Greater Poland), including: – trařsśŚrt lists frŚm the Łód ghettŚ, – lists of the names of prisoners from the various camps, – lists of the řames Śf members Śf the camśs’ staff, – lists of the companies employing Jewish prisoners, – original photographic documentation from the camps, – accounts and memoirs, – lists of human losses, IřfŚrmatiŚř sŚurced frŚm the website www.zabikŚwŚ.hŚme.śl; cf. A. ZiółkŚwska, ObŚzy śracy śrzymusŚwej dla ydów w Wielkopolsce w latach okupacji hitlerowskiej 1941-1943, PŚzřań 200Ę. 183 105 – copies of correspondences between the administration of the Wartheland and the German companies employing Jews from the ghetto in Łód ařd the Germař GettŚverwaltuřg (ghettŚ administration) – sourced from Polish and foreign archives, – copies of investigation and trial files. In addition, the museum gathers all types of data on Jewish forced labourers in its electronic database. The database on Jewish prisoners in forced labour camps in Greater Poland contains several thousand entries and is still being supplemented. It includes the following information on prisoners: - basic details: prisoner number and remarks on that number, surname and given names; - birth: date, place, gender, country of origin, remarks on birth (birth certificate number); - family: marital status, data Śř sśŚuse, iřfŚrmatiŚř Śř śrisŚřer’s śareřts, ślace Śf resideřce at the outbreak of the war, family connections, occupation, - deportations: where the prisoner was from (list of ghettos, address in the ghetto), where sent to (list of camps), date of deportation, other information on deportation (e.g. source of information), further information; - camps: name of camp, date, removal from roll; - death: cause, other information, place of burial, date of death, date of cremation, death certificate, circumstances of death; sources: archive, file no., other data. The information in the database are available to scholars - via museum employees. In its database the museum also gathers information on all the prisoners in the penal camp in abikŚwŚ, ařd has used it iř a mŚřŚgraśhic publication about the camp.184 184 KrzysztŚf PłŚřka, MartyrŚlŚgium ŚbŚzu hitlerŚwskiegŚ w abikŚwie 1943–1945, LubŚń 200ė. 106 5. Other museums, libraries, institutions and organizations in Poland, private collections, and Church files In almost all archival and museum collections in Poland there are documents, photographs and/or material relics dating from the World War II period that reference, either directly or indirectly, the history of the extermination of the Jews in the occupied Polish territories. This chapter looks at some of these institutions and museums in slightly more detail in order to show that even these heterogeneous collections, at first glance of no interest to Holocaust scholars, are worth exploring. AmŚřg thŚse that fall iřtŚ this categŚry are museums such as Muzeum NieśŚdległŚ ci (the Museum of Independence) in Warsaw (various documents, posters, public announcements, flyers and photographs), Muzeum Wojska Polskiego (the Museum of the Polish Army) in Warsaw (material relics from the Warsaw ghetto, e.g. weapons used to fight during the uprising in 1943), Muzeum na Pawiaku (the Museum Śf Pawiak PrisŚř) iř Warsaw, Ceřtralře Muzeum Jeńców WŚjeřřych (Ceřtral Museum of Prisoners-of-War) iř ŁambiřŚwice-OśŚle, ařd Muzeum Okr gŚwe w RzeszŚwie (Rzeszów Regional Museum), which boasts an impressive collection of public announcements from the occupation years. Printed matter of this type (public announcements, posters and ephemera) is held also in many of the state archives, ařd has beeř researched ařd śrŚfiled iř a uřified cŚmśuter database called “Afisz” (Poster). 185 Another institution that must be mentioned is the in-house archive of Rada Ochrony Pami ci Walk i M czeństwa (the CŚuřcil fŚr the PrŚtectiŚř Śf MemŚry of Struggle and Martyrdom) in Warsaw, an institution founded in the early 1960s to take care of and commemorate sites of mass executions and other crimes. The collections of Biblioteka Narodowa (the National Library) in Warsaw and other large libraries, such as the libraries of the University of Warsaw, the Jagiellonian Uřiversity iř KrakŚw, the Uřiversity Śf WrŚcław ařd the Uřiversity Śf PŚzřań hŚld iřterestiřg materials rarely used by histŚriařs iř sectiŚřs eřtitled “DŚcumeřts Śf the life Śf sŚciety”. 186 The manuscripts sections of major libraries also gather materials from the years of the occupation, 185 Cf. Part III of this Guide. Cf. M. Klamut, “DŚkumeřty ycia sśŚłeczřegŚ PŚlski LudŚwej (19ėė-1989) w BibliŚtece NarŚdŚwej”, [in:] Polska 1944/45-1989. Warsztat badawczy. Studia i Materiały 6, Warszawa 2004, pp. 97-132. 186 107 including some related to the history of the extermination of the Jews.187 For historians researching Polish-Jewish relations and the history of the Jews in twentieth-century Poland the collection of well catalogued Judaica from the interbellum188 and the selection of press in Yiddish and Polish in the National Library will be of interest, while for scholars of the Holocaust in particular it offers a rich collection of occupation-era press, books from the period (including anti-Semitica published during World War II), and as yet unpublished diaries and memoirs relating to the occupation in its manuscripts collection. AlsŚ wŚrthy Śf řŚte are the archives Śf PŚlski CzerwŚřy Krzy – BiurŚ IřfŚrmacji i PŚszukiwań (Polish Red Cross – Tracing and Information Service) in Warsaw189 and the military archives, which are under obligation to hand over all files concerning the fates of the civilian population from the World War II period to the Archive of the Institute of National Remembrance.190 In the context of the subject matter in question here, museums and other centres collecting information on the life and work of specific individuals should also be taken into consideration. One such is the Korczakianum Centre for Documentation and Research in Warsaw (korczakianum.muzeumwarszawy.pl), which is devoted to the life and work of Janusz Korczak. Legacies often contain diaries, memoirs, personal documents and other materials; almost all archives and large libraries have collections of this nature. The legacies and papers of Ludwik and Hanna Hirszfeld191 are held in Archiwum PAN (the Archive of the Polish Academy of Sciences) in Warsaw, “Ekstermiřacja ydów w latach 19ė1-19ė3 (DŚkumeřty Biura IřfŚrmacji i PrŚśagařdy KŚmeřdy Główřej Armii KrajŚwej ze zbiŚrów Śddziału r kŚśisów BibliŚteki Uřiwersytetu WarszawskiegŚ)”, cŚmśiled by Maria TyszkŚwa, B IH, 1992, no. 2-3 (162-163), pp. 35-61; 1992, no. 4 (164), pp. 47-60. 188 Cf. A. Cała, ydŚwskie śeriŚdyki i druki ŚkazjŚnalne w języku śŚlskim. BibiliŚgrafia, Warszawa 200Ę; B. Ł tŚcha, A. Cała, Z. GłŚwicka, DŚkumenty ycia sśŚłecznegŚ ydów śŚlskich 1918-1939 w zbiorach Biblioteki Narodowej, Warszawa 1999; B. Ł tŚcha, A. Messer, A. Cała, ydŚwskie druki ulŚtne w II RzeczyśŚsśŚlitej w zbiŚrach BibliŚteki NarŚdŚwej, Warszawa 200ė; B. ŁetŚcha, Z. GłŚwicka, I. JabłŚńska, ydŚwska Łód na afiszach wydanych w II Rzeczypospolitej, Warszawa 2011; eadem, Afisze ydów lubelskich wydane w latach dwudziestych XX wieku, Warszawa 2012; eadem, SśŚłeczeństwŚ ydŚwskie ŁukŚwa na afiszach wydanych w II Rzeczypospolitej, Warszawa 2013. 189 The collections of the Warsaw branch of the PCK include records of exhumations of victims of World War II (including Jews) from all over Poland, original card files of POWs from various stalags and oflags, the original card file of Polish soldiers who fell in September 1939, and original card files or lists of prisoners from several concentration camps (among them KL Buchenwald, Dachau, Gross-RŚseř, Mauthauseř); see: El bieta Rejf, “Ustalařie i dŚkumeřtŚwařie lŚsów Śfiar II wŚjřy wiatŚwej w działalřŚ ci Biura IřfŚrmacji i PŚszukiwań PŚlskiegŚ CzerwŚřegŚ Krzy a”, [in:] Polska 1939-1945. Straty osobowe i ofiary represji pod dwiema okupacjami, ed. Wojciech Materski, Tomasz Szarota, Warszawa 2009. 190 Cf. Sto kilometrów teczek, op. cit., pp. 4-21. 191 L. Hirszfeld (1884 Warsaw – 19Ęė WrŚcław), emiřeřt scieřtist ařd śedagŚgue, bacteriŚlŚgist, serŚlŚgist, fŚuřder Śf the Polish school of immunology. He studied and worked abroad for many years, in cities including Berne, Heidelberg and Zurich. In 1920 he returned to Poland and worked in Warsaw, where he was the head of the Serum Research Institute. He conducted his scholarly work together with his wife, Hanna. In 1941 Hirszfeld was interned in the Warsaw ghetto, where he lived in the presbytery of the church in Grzybów and continued to pursue his scholarly work, as well as ruřřiřg clařdestiře cŚurses fŚr studeřts. Iř 19ė3 he weřt iřtŚ hidiřg “Śř the Aryař side” ařd wrŚte HistŚria jednegŚ ycia 187 108 which also has other manuscripts that may be of interest to Holocaust scholars.192 Highly useful for research into the prewar period, in particular socio-political issues, matters related to military service among Jews, and their emigration from Poland in the period leading up to the outbreak of war, are archival materials from the collections of Centralne Archiwum Wojskowe (the Central Military Archives) in Warsaw.193 For population and statistical research connected with wartime damage or assets, the very large collection Statistisches Amt für das Generalgouvernement (Statistical Office for the GG, aśśrŚx. 1ę,900 items) held iř the archive Śf Główřy Urz d Statystyczřy (Ceřtral Statistical Office) in Warsaw may be of use; this holds statistical reports on matters such as Ruch naturalny ludřŚ ci (Natural śŚśulatiŚř mŚvemeřts, by cŚuřty ařd by confession) for the years 1941-1942; Sśis śrzemysłŚwy w GG (Iřdustrial ceřsus iř the GG) dated 1Ę OctŚber 19ė1, by cŚuřty (exceśt Galicia); ařd Materiały sśisu ludřŚ ci w GG (Materials frŚm the śŚśulatiŚř ceřsus iř the GG) dated 1 March 1943.194 There may be documents relating to the extermination of the Jews in every museum and archival collection – there is always the possibility that archivists may discover yet unknown collections and release them for a wider audience. Some of the collections held by many institutions are still unprocessed and therefore not accessible to scholars. Private collections may also hold fascinating materials, most usually iconographic items (photographs), ephemera and manuscripts. Jerzy Tomaszewski 195 (a Warsaw photographer and during the war a member of the AK), Tomasz Wi řiewski (Śf BiałystŚk) ařd Łukasz Biedka (Śf Przemy l) are iř śŚssessiŚř Śf large cŚllectiŚřs Śf World War II-era photographs and others relating to the history of the Jews and the small towns in which they lived. Many Judaica, including some in private collections, have been registered in the electrŚřic database Śf Muzeum HistŚrii ydów PŚlskich (the Museum Śf the HistŚry Śf PŚlish Jews). (Story of one life, publ. 1989). After the war he lived in Lublin and worked at the Maria Curie-SkłŚdŚwska Uřiversity; iř 19Ęė he fŚuřded Iřstytut ImmuřŚlŚgii i Teraśii DŚ wiadczalřej (the Iřstitute Śf ImmuřŚlŚgy ařd Exśerimeřtal Therapy) as a unit of the Polish Academy of Sciences. He was the author of several hundred scholarly works. 192 H. Szymczyk, “ ródła dŚ histŚrii ydów w PŚlsce w Archiwum PŚlskiej Akademii Nauk”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 455-462. 193 Z. KŚzak, “Materiały dŚ dziejów mřiejszŚ ci ydŚwskiej w PŚlsce (1918-1939) w zbiorach Centralnego Archiwum Wojskowego”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 447-453. 194 It is worth mentioning that the State Archive in Opole holds RG 2622, Preussen Statisches Reichsamt Berlin 19401944. The Index Cards on deaths this contains (4,606 in all) for Jews from many cities in the German Reich have been published in book form (Lista ydŚwska – jeszcze jednŚ wiadectwŚ HŚlŚkaustu. Wyśisy ródłŚwe z akt zesśŚłu Urzędu StatystycznegŚ Rzeszy przechowywanych w zasobie Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ w OśŚlu. Lata 1940-1944, introduction and compiled by Maria Osika and Aleksandra Starczewska-Wojnar, Opole 2014) and online: http://www.opole.ap.gov.pl/pages/baza1.html. 195 He selected the photographs for the well-known album PŚlacy ydzi 1939-1945, cŚmśiled by S. WrŚński, M. Zwolakowa, Warszawa 1971. 109 This database is successively being expanded and made available on the internet (http://judaica.jewishmuseum.org.pl/). ŃAKŁAD NARODOWY IM. OSSOLI SKICH (OSSOLI SKI NATIONAL INSTITUTE), WROCŁAW The OssŚliński NatiŚřal Iřstitute was fŚuřded iř Lwów (řŚw Lviv, Ukraine) in 1817 by Józef Maksymiliař OssŚliński as a library ařd museum with a śublishiřg hŚuse (WydawřictwŚ “OssŚliřeum”). Duriřg WŚrld War II, the already řumerŚus ařd valuable cŚllectiŚřs Śf the Ossolineum first fell into Ukrainian hands and then passed to the Germans. In July 1941 the gŚverřmeřt Śf the GG aśśŚiřted Mieczysław G barŚwicz custŚdiař Śf the OssŚliński FŚuřdatiŚř. When in early 1944 the Germans planned to remove some of the objects to the Third Reich, it was he whŚ “tŚŚk advařtage Śf the situatiŚř fŚr his Śwř evacuation plans for the Polish collections. The most precious of the Ossolineum collections were packed into two transports (around 2,300 manuscripts, around 2,200 diplomas, around 1,800 old prints and around 2,300 drawings (...). In March and April 1944 they were transported to Krakow, where they were to see out the war in the safety of the Jagiellonian Library cellars, but in July 1944 the German authorities decided to move them to the Reich. The transport was abandoned in the village of Adelin (now Zagrodno, Poland) in Lower Silesia, and it was here, after the end of hostilities, that the Poles found them. In 1947 they were takeř tŚ WrŚcław.”196 After the war, much of the collection, which was still in Lwów, was also relŚcated tŚ WrŚcław, as a “gift frŚm the Ukraiřiař řatiŚř”. At śreseřt, the cŚllectiŚřs Śf the OssŚliński NatiŚřal Iřstitute řumber sŚme 1,700,000 items. FŚr schŚlars Śf the HŚlŚcaust, the mŚst important is the manuscripts section (of which some 17,500 items have been catalogued), which contains a chronologically and formally diverse range of historical materials. Alongside archivalia from a variety of institutions, legacies and papers including family collections, mementoes and correspondences, without a doubt the most important is the collection of memoirs recorded during World War II or shortly after the war. This collection runs into several thousand; they are successively beiřg catalŚgued ařd released fŚr schŚlarly use. The catalŚgues Śf the OssŚliński Institute are accessible on its website. Also worthy of note are the collections recently donated by PrŚfessŚr Władysław BartŚszewski, a member Śf Rada PŚmŚcy ydŚm „ egŚta” (the “ egŚta” Council to Aid Jews), and Jan Nowak-JeziŚrański (the legeřdary WŚrld War II cŚurier whŚ smuggled documents from occupied Poland to London), the catalogues of which are also accessible online. 196 Information from the Foundation website: http://www2.oss.wroc.pl/ (date: July 28, 2014). 110 Among the memoirs that may contain documents of interest with respect to this subject are the following:  13170/II, Antoni Mikulski, O czym zaśŚmnieć nie wŚlnŚ!... Wspomnienia – fakty – dokumenty 1939- 1944, recorded in 1947, 147 pp.  13Ę33/II, Maria z Paygertów BŚbrzyńska, ycie zmiennym jest. Pamiętnik z lat 1900-1958, vol. 3, 1939-1945, 98 pp.  13981/II, Lucjař Kuć, PŚmŚc i wsśółśraca z ludnŚ cią ydŚwską ludnŚ ci wiejskiej powiatu siedleckiego z uwzględnieniem zagadnień ydŚwskich w innych śŚwiatach PŚdlasia w Śkresie Śkuśacji hitlerŚwskiej w Polsce, 254 pp.   14083/II, Ludmiła KrŚbicka-Modzelewska, Warszawa 1939-1944, 185 pp. 14455/II, Józef Konieczny, Najazd Hitlera na PŚlskę w 1939 r. Prze ycia Śkuśacyjne gminy Skrzydlna. Kartki z śamiętnika, 90 pp.    14489/II, Henryk Wisz, Wspomnienia z obozów koncentracyjnych, 144 pp. 1ėĘĘ8/II, MelchiŚr WańkŚwicz, PŚsłannictwŚ i ŚbcŚ ć. Szkice Ś kwestii ydŚwskiej, 108 pp. 15339/II, Antoni Palichleb, Wspomnienia 1918-1944, Part II: ycie ŚbŚzŚwe na Majdanku IX 1943-II 1944. Likwidacja ydów z getta lubelskiegŚ w Majdanku 2 XI 1943, 150 pp.   1Ęė18/II, WiktŚr Budzyński, Ze wsśŚmnień z drugiej wŚjny wiatŚwej i Śkuśacji, 61 pp. 1Ęę1ė/II, ZŚfia Szymańska, Moja droga w zawodzie lekarza. Wspomnienia z lat 1892-1972, 330 pp.   15619/II, Janina Mazur-Stocka, Wspomnienia do 1945 r., 119 pp. 1ę298/II, Archiwum Rady Główřej Ośiekuńczej miasta LwŚwa (Archive Śf the Ceřtral Welfare Council of the city of Lwów). Paśiery ydów z BŚrysławia, 180 pp.   16543/II, Papiery Kazimierza Sosnkowskiego, Sprawy krajowe 1940-1942, vol. I-II. 16598/II, Zbiór W. wirskiegŚ, SśrawŚzdania Wydziału WŚjskŚwegŚ (Obszaru 3 AK Lwów) 1942- 1944, 289 pp.  16599/II, SśrawŚzdania wydziałów i ślacówek OkręgŚwej Delegatury Rządu we LwŚwie (ODR WinŚ) dla Delegatury Rządu na Kraj w Warszawie z lat 1942-1944, 326 pp.  16603/ I, Materiały Władysława Zycha (FalkŚ, Szary) ś.Ś. Śkr. Delegata Rządu we LwŚwie i komendanta Okręgu Lwów Wschód ZWZ, 1939-1941, 142 pp.  16711/II, Lwów pod znakiem swastyki. Pamiętnik z lat 1941-1942, 404 pp. 111 INSTYTUT ZACHODNI (INSTITUTE FOR WESTERN AFFAIRS), POŃNA The Instytut Zachodni is an academic institute whose agenda includes the history of Polish-German relations, international relations, European integration processes, national minorities, and social and cultural trařsfŚrmatiŚř iř PŚlařd’s westerř ařd northern territories. In the immediate postwar śeriŚd, Śře Śf the iřstitute’s academic emślŚyees was the Śutstařdiřg ecŚřŚmic histŚriař Jař Rutkowski. It was on his initiative that the institute launched in 1945 the publication of the series “DŚcumeřta OccuśatiŚřis”. AřŚther WŚrld War II schŚlar whŚ wŚrked at the PŚzřań iřstitute was Karol Maria Pospieszalski, the author of source publications comprising documents constituting occupation-era law in Poland.197 Since its foundation the institute has collected documents relating to the history of the Nazi occupation of Poland.198 Its archive is divided into several sections199: I Dokumenty niemieckie z okresu okupacji hitlerowskiej (German documents from the Nazi occupation period), 1939-1945, approx. 960 items (call no. I.Z.Dok.I), II Pami tniki i relacje ró nych Śsób dŚtycz ce śrze yć Śkuśacyjnych (Narratives, diaries and personal records of various individuals related to their experiences during the occupation), 480 items (I.Z.Dok. II), III PrŚtŚkŚły zezna wiadków dŚtycz ce Śkresu Śkuśacji i sśŚrz dzŚne śrzez śracŚwników PracŚwni Badania Dziejów Okuśacji Instytutu ŃachŚdniegŚ, a tak e sprawozdania z prac badawczych w terenie (Proceedings, witness statements and research reports regarding the period of the occupation, taken down by employees of the Occupation History Research Unit at the Institute of Western Affairs), 180 units (I.Z.Dok.III), IV Fotografie z lat 1939-1945 (Photographs from the years 1939-1945), some 160 inventory entries, each comprising various numbers of photographs, in all around 7,000 photographs (I.Z.Dok.IV), V Dział dŚkumentów wytwŚrzŚnych śŚ 194Ę r., ŚśracŚwa Śraz materiałów śrasŚwych dŚtycz cych Śkuśacji hitlerŚwskiej w PŚlsce (Documents originating after 1945, scholarly analyses and press materials on the Nazi occupation of Poland), 461 units (I.Z.Dok.V) K.M. Pospieszalski, HitlerŚwskie „śrawŚ” Śkuśacyjne w PŚlsce, Part I. Ziemie „wcielŚne”, PŚzřań 19Ę2; Generalna Gubernia. Wybór dokumentów i próba syntezy, Part II, PŚzřań 19Ęę. 198 See M. Muszyńska, “Instytut Zachodni”, [iř:] Druga wŚjna wiatŚwa 1939-1945, pp. 568-578. 199 A mŚre detailed descriśtiŚř Śf the variŚus grŚuśs Śf archivalia is available Śř the iřstitute’s website: http://www.iz.poznan.pl/index.php?p=archiwum&lang=ang. 197 112 VI MikrŚfilmy dŚkumentów niemieckich znajduj cych si w ró nych archiwach śŚlskich i niemieckich (Microfilms of German documents in various other Polish and German archives) (I.Z.Dok.VI). The documents of special importance to the history of the Holocaust are those gathered in Section I, among them: call no. 200 – TraktŚwařie PŚlaków i ydów w tzw. Kraju Warty (ró ře zarz dzeřia) Śraz sśrawy wysiedleń z lat 1939-1943 (Treatmeřt Śf PŚles ařd Jews iř the “Warthelařd” [variŚus Śrders], ařd resettlements in the years 1939-1943) call no. 398 – Przesiedlařie PŚlaków i ydów dŚ GG (Resettlement of Poles and Jews to the GG), call no. 699 – “JudeřtrařsśŚrtliste řr 1” (Jewish transport list) dated 13 December 1939; a list of 768 śeŚśle deśŚrted frŚm the camś at Główřa Street iř PŚzřań; twŚ mŚre lists řame ę3 śeŚśle, but with no information as to where they were taken. The collection of photographs includes photographs of several executions, of the Warsaw city rising Śf 19ėė, a few śhŚtŚgraśhs frŚm the Łód ghettŚ, ařd 1,Ę38 śhŚtŚgraśhs frŚm the Germař śhŚtŚgraśhic service “Aktueller Bilder Dieřst – Verlag Leiśzig” cŚřřected with life in Germany and military action. FUNDACJA O RODEK KARTA I DOM SPOTKA Ń HISTORI (THE KARTA CENTRE FOUNDATION AND HISTORY MEETING HOUSE), WARSAW The KARTA Centre is an independent non-governmental organization that documents and popularizes the most recent history of Poland and Eastern Europe; it runs a large number of educatiŚřal śrŚjects (e.g. “HistŚria Bliska” [HistŚry clŚse uś] fŚr high-school students), organizes exhibitions, and has its own publishing centre. The origins of the Foundation date back to 1982 and the publication of a few issues of an underground paper of the same title. In 1987 a group of opposition activists launched Archiwum WschŚdřie [the Easterř Archive], ařd a year later wŚrk begař Śř a database, “Iřdeks ReśresjŚřŚwařych” [Iřdex of Repressed People]. At present another major project is underway in cŚŚśeratiŚř with several PŚlish archives ařd iřstitutiŚřs, eřtitled “Straty ŚsŚbŚwe i Śfiary reśresji śŚd Śkuśacj řiemieck ” [Humař lŚsses ařd victims Śf reśressiŚř uřder the Germař occupation]. It 113 was iřitiated ařd ruř fŚr several years by KARTA, ařd is řŚw cŚŚrdiřated by Fuřdacja “PŚlskŚNiemieckie PŚjedřařie” (the FŚuřdatiŚř fŚr PŚlish-German Reconciliation).200 Since the beginning of the 1990s it has also maintained an Archiwum Peerelu (Archive of the PRL, the Polish PeŚśle’s Republic, subsequently renamed Archiwum Opozycji, Archive of the Opposition), which documents the sŚcial histŚry Śf śŚstwar PŚlařd. Iř 2002 a bŚdy called Rada Archiwów SśŚłeczřych (CŚuřcil Śf Social Archives) was established, iř cŚŚśeratiŚř with Naczelřa Dyrekcja Archiwów PaństwŚwych (Head Office of the State Archives), with the objective of fostering grassroots archive initiatives. Its chairman is Zbigniew Gluza, the founder of the KARTA Centre and CEO of the foundation. KARTA also has a photographic archive, where photographs documenting events of the twentieth century are collected. Among its holdings are a collection of photographs and documents that belonged to Herbert Joost, a non-commissioned officer serving in the Wehrmacht who fell on the Eastern front in 1942, photographs from the ghetto in Zawiercie, and around 1,300 photographs taken by the Jewish photographer Chaim Berman in Kozienice (in the late 1930s and during the war, up to 1941).201 The website www.fotohistoria.pl offers access to some 14,000 unique photographs from Archiwum Polskiej Agencji Prasowej (the Archive of the Polish Press Agency) documenting twentieth-century social history, 980 of which date from the period 1939-1945. The centre publishes the periodical Karta, several dozen issues of which have to date come out. Another product of the KARTA Ceřtre’s śublishiřg activity is the series “ ydzi PŚlscy” (PŚlish Jews), cŚmśrisiřg several vŚlumes, amŚřg them Calek PerechŚdřik’s SśŚwied and Chaim Icel GŚldsteiř’s Bunkier. There is also access to interviews conducted as part of a number of projects in the series Historia Mówiona (Oral History); one of particular interest is the Mauthausen Survivors Documentation Project – Ocaleni z Mauthausen. The History Meeting House (www.dsh.waw.pl), at 20 Karowa Street in Warsaw, operates independently of the KARTA Centre. It opened its doors on 1 March 2006 as a municipal institution of culture. Its mission is to facilitate intergenerational and international contacts with testimonies to the twentieth-century history of Poland and Central and Eastern Europe. It conducts its work using resources amassed by the KARTA Centre and other institutions. In 2004 it opened its multimedia 200 http://www.fpnp.pl/. This cŚllectiŚř śrŚvided the material fŚr ař exhibitiŚř eřtitled “KŚzieřickie śŚrtrety” (KŚzieřice śŚrtraits), cf. A. Skibińska, “PŚłŚwa miasteczka”, Karta, no. 47, 2005, pp. 40-45; eadem, “ ycie cŚdzieřře ydów w KŚzieřicach śŚd řiemieck Śkuśacj ”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2007, no. 3. 201 114 exhibitiŚř “EurŚśa XX wieku: Śblicza tŚtalitaryzmu” (EurŚśe iř the tweřtieth ceřtury: the faces Śf totalitarianism). ARCHIWUM I BIBLIOTEKA UNIWERSYTETU JAGIELLO SKIEGO (THE ARCHIVE AND LIBRARY OF THE JAGIELLONIAN UNIVERSITY), KRAKOW Foremost among the collections in this archive are the following: 1) Call no. HWU, Hauptabteilung Wissenschaft und Unterricht 1939-1944 (Central Department for Science and Teaching), 146 items. These are fragmentary files relating to the organization and curricula of general and secondary schooling in the GG, 2) Call no. IDO, Institut für Deutsche Ostarbeit 1941-1944 (Institute for German Work in the East), 118 items (5.5 liřear metres). AmŚřg the files śreserved iř this archive are that Śf its Zarz d Centralny (Central Board, call no. 1-3ę), Oddziały LwŚwski i Warszawski (its Lwów and Warsaw branches, call no. 37-40), Sekcje: Prehistorii, Historii, Historii Sztuki, Prawa i Administracji, KrajŚzřawstwa i GeŚgrafii OśisŚwej, Badań AřtrŚśŚlŚgiczřych, EtřŚgraficzřych i RasŚwych (its various sections: Prehistory, History, Art History, Law and Administration, Local History and Descriptive Geography, and Anthropological, Ethnographic and Race Studies, call no. 70-78), as well as correspondence, materials for anthropological research from various villages, a card file of anthropological data from the territory of the GG, its library catalogue, Gospodarstwo i Statystyka (Economy and Statistics), Gospodarstwo Wiejskie (Farming), Le řictwŚ (FŚrestry), Chemia (Chemistry), and a section entitled Wydawnictwa (Publications)202, 3) Komisja do Opracowania Historii UJ w czasie wojny 1945-1946 (KHUJ, Commission for Compiling the History of the Jagiellonian University during the War), where there are items including the autobiographies and wartime memoirs of employees of various faculties. There are interesting materials to be found in the collections of the Jagiellonian University Library, particularly in the manuscripts section. Examples include: The IDO’s files are scattered: sŚme are iř the Iřstitute Śf NatiŚřal Remembrařce iř Warsaw, sŚme iř the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. (shortly to be handed over to the Jagiellonian University Archive), and the rest in the Bundesarchiv in Berlin (Collection R 52-IV). 202 115 Paśiery Michała Weicherta 19ėĘ-19Ę7 (The śaśers Śf Michał Weichert), 23 items. Duriřg the 1) occupation Weichert held the śŚst Śf śresideřt Śf the ydŚwska SamŚśŚmŚc SśŚłeczřa (Jewish Social Self-Help)203, Weichert’s śrivate cŚrresśŚřdeřce ařd studies; files eřtitled “ ydŚwska SamŚśŚmŚc 2) SśŚłeczřa 1939-19ėĘ” ( SS, Jewish SŚcial Self-Helś), “PŚlityka ekstermiřacyjna okupanta hitlerŚwskiegŚ wŚbec ludřŚ ci ydŚwskiej w tzw. GG” (The extermiřatiŚř śŚlicy Śf the Nazi Śccuśiers tŚward the Jewish śŚśulatiŚř iř the ‘GG’), “Ekstermiřacja gŚsśŚdarcza ludřŚ ci ydŚwskiej Rzeszy w wietle ustawŚdawstwa hitlerŚwskiegŚ” (The economic extermination of the Jewish population of the Reich in light of Nazi legislation), official copies of the trial before Sśecjalřy S d Karřy (the Sśecial Crimiřal CŚurt) iř KrakŚw (the Śrigiřals Śf the files are iř the IPN), official copies of materials frŚm the trial befŚre the S d SśŚłeczřy (PeŚśle’s CŚurt) affiliated tŚ the Ceřtral CŚmmittee Śf the Jews iř PŚlařd (CK P; the Śrigiřals Śf the files are iř biŚgraśhic materials, řŚtes, ařd certificatiŚřs Śf the wŚrk Śf the IH), SS, materials relatiřg to the allŚcatiŚř Śf medicatiŚř ařd aid tŚ childreř, miřutes ařd reśŚrts Śř the wŚrk Śf the SS, řŚtes Śř Krakow dated 1940-19ėė, cŚrresśŚřdeřce with Rada Główřa Ośiekuńcza (RGO, the Ceřtral Welfare Council), various outgoing correspondences (including letters to the Jewish councils in many ślaces acrŚss the GG), ařd Śfficial letters frŚm Gmiřa WyzřařiŚwa ydŚwska (the Jewish CŚmmuřity OrgařizatiŚř) iř KrakŚw ařd mařy Śther iřstitutiŚřs tŚ the SS dated 19ė0-1942, Przyb. 73/79. Papiery Krakowskiego Stowarzyszeřia OgrŚdów DziałkŚwych 19ė0-42 3) (Papers of the Krakow Allotments Association), various documents and lists of Jewish forced labourers employed to work on the municipal green spaces in Krakow, MiscellařeŚus śaśers Śf the head Śf śress services (“Teleśress”) iř the GŚverřmeřt Śf the 4) GG 1939-1943. The Jagiellonian University Library also holds some underground press titles not preserved elsewhere. ARCHIVES OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN POLAND Church files are still stored in the archives of the various curias, as many of them remain open chancelleries and are in use on an ongoing basis. Access to them remains at the discretion of the incumbent head of the Church. The same is true of the archives of religious orders, and of the most 203 Cf. Part II of this Guide. 116 valuable collection of all – the Vatican archive.204 FŚr this very reasŚř, research iřtŚ the Church’s position on the Holocaust, and into attitudes of clerics and members of religious orders toward the occupiers and the persecuted population, their involvement in rescuing Jews or in collaboration, is extremely difficult, if not completely impossible on a larger scale at present. Nevertheless, scholarly works have been written addressing questions including these difficult ones, using as their source base documents preserved in other collections 205 , or drawing conclusions based on indirect information and accounts by eye-witnesses or participants in events.206 There are many publications offering insight into the structure of Church archives, their holdings, finding aids and accessibility, abŚve all the guide cŚmśiled by Maria D bŚwska.207 The wŚrk by Z. Zieliński alsŚ śrŚvides a gŚŚd overview of Church archives from the occupation period.208 During World War II the Catholic Church in Poland was without a head (a primate). 209 His reśreseřtative was the archbishŚś Śf KrakŚw, Adam S. Saśieha. “He cŚřducted clařdestiře correspondence with the Vatican, and also with the Apostolic Nuncio in Berlin, Archbishop Cesare Orsenigo, and corresponded with his subordinate clerics, as well as with the German authorities. This bŚdy Śf cŚrresśŚřdeřce is śreserved iř the archive Śf the MetrŚśŚlitař Curia iř KrakŚw.”210 A selection of the documents from the Archbishop Sapieha archive has been published.211 For obvious reasons, an important collection for the history of the Church in Poland is the archive of the primate of Poland, which is housed at Miodowa Street in Warsaw, though some of the files were requisitiŚřed by the MiřisterstwŚ Bezśieczeństwa PubliczřegŚ (MBP, Miřistry Śf Public Security) and today could be in the IPN. The extremely slow process of declassifying the Vatican archives will certainly facilitate research into Vatican-German relations during the pontificate of Pius XII (1939Cf. P.P. Gach, “Polonica w archiwach rzymskich”, Almanach Polonii, 1986. E.g. Rada Główřa Ośiekuńcza, cf. K. SamsŚřŚwska, “PŚmŚc dla ydów krakŚwskich w Śkresie Śkuśacji hitlerowskiej”, [iř:] PŚlacy i ydzi śŚd Śkuśacją niemiecką 1939-1945. Studia i materiały, ed. A. bikŚwski, Warszawa 200ę, śś. 827-890. 206 Cf. D. LibiŚřka, “Antisemitism, Anti-Judaism, and the Polish Catholic Clergy during the Second World War, 19391945”, [in:] Antisemitism and its Opponents in Modern Poland, ed. R. Blobaum, Ithaca – London 2005, pp. 233-2ęė; J. aryř, “Hierarchia KŚ ciŚła katŚlickiegŚ wŚbec relacji polsko- ydŚwskich w latach 19ėĘ-1947”, [iř:] WŚkół śŚgrŚmu kieleckiegŚ, ed. Ł. Kamiński, J. aryř, Warszawa 200ę, śś. 7Ę-110; R. Modras, KŚ ciół katŚlicki i antysemityzm w PŚlsce 1933-1939, Kraków 2004. 207 Archiwa KŚ ciŚła katŚlickiegŚ w PŚlsce. Informator, cŚmśiled by M. D bŚwska, Kielce 2002. 208 ycie religijne w PŚlsce śŚd Śkuśacją hitlerŚwską, ed. Z. Zieliński, Warszawa 1982. 209 Primate August Hlond left Poland and went initially to Rome, and thereafter (June 1940 – April 1943) to Lourdes and Hautecombe. In February 1944 he was arrested by the Germans. 210 J. aryř, “Archiwa kŚ cielře – specyfika miejsca i czasu (1939-1989)”, BIPN, 2002, no. 4 (15), pp. 31-35. The archive of the Metropolitan Curia in Krakow holds official letters from the vice-president of the RGO, Adam Ronikier, on saviřg cŚřverted Jews; cf. K. SamsŚřŚwska, “PŚmŚc dla ydów krakŚwskich…”, Śś. cit., śś. 8ėę-849. 211 Księga saśie yńska, ed. ks. J. Wolny, vol. I-II, Kraków 1987. 204 205 117 19Ę8). The Śřly archive Śfferiřg schŚlars Śf the Vaticař’s stařce Śř PŚlish matters uřlimited access is the bequest of Kazimierz Papée, ambassador of the Polish Government-in-Exile to the Holy See.212 These files, like those of the Polish Embassy in the Vatican from the years 1919-1972, are held in the Archive of the Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum in London. The archives of religious orders and the documentation they contain, as well as the chronicles of religious houses213 and individual accounts, facilitate research into the part played by these orders in saving Jews, in particular children.214 One source much in use is the questionnaire drawn up in 1962 by Wydział Sśraw ZakŚřřych Sekretariatu Prymasa Polski (the Department for Religious Orders in the Secretariat Śf the Primate Śf PŚlařd) uřder the title “W sśrawie ŚchrŚřy ydów śrzez zakŚřřice śŚlskie w Śkresie II wŚjřy wiatŚwej” (Regardiřg the śrŚtectiŚř Śf Jews by PŚlish řuřs duriřg World War II). Dariusz Libionka has made a review of Polish journalism and historiography regarding the stance of the Catholic Church in Poland on the Holocaust.215 The salient publications regarding assistance extended to the Jews and rescuing Jews are listed in the Bibliography at the end of this Guide. Cf. D. LibiŚřka, “GłŚw w mur. Iřterweřcje Kazimierza Papée, polskiego ambasadora przy Stolicy Apostolskiej, w sprawie zbrodni niemieckich w Polsce, listopad 1942 – styczeń 19ė3”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2006, no. 2, pp. 292-314. 213 Cf. O.R. WŚ řiak OFM, Przemy l w latach II wŚjny wiatŚwej w relacji kronikarza klasztoru Franciszkanów–Reformatów, Przemy l 1998. 214 Cf. E. Kurek, Dzieci ydŚwskie w klasztŚrach. Udział eńskich zgrŚmadzeń zakŚnnych w akcji ratŚwania dzieci ydŚwskich w PŚlsce w latach 1939-1945, Lubliř 2001; F. K cki, Udział księ y i zakŚnnic w hŚlŚkau cie ydów, Warszawa 2002; N. Bogner, At the Mercy of Strangers: The Rescue of Jewish Children with Assumed Identities in Poland, Jerusalem 2009. 215 D. LibiŚřka, “KŚ ciół w PŚlsce wŚbec Zagłady w wietle śŚlskiej śublicystyki i histŚriŚgrafii”, B IH, 2000, no. 3 (195), pp. 329-341. 212 118 6. The Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum, and the Polish Underground Movement Study Trust in London; the Hoover Institution, Stanford University, California, USA THE POLISH INSTITUTE AND SIKORSKI MUSEUM, LONDON The underlying reason for the creation of the Gen. Sikorski Polish Institute in London was the events of September 1939, which forced the government of the Republic of Poland into exile. Then, in February 1945, after the Yalta conference, it became clear that the Allies intended to cease to recognize the Polish Government-in-Exile and its armed forces. It seemed obvious that many Poles would want to remain in the West with their families. It was thus important to secure the documents generated by that government and the armed forces. On the initiative of Col. Zygmunt Borkowski, the director of the Archive and Museum Services, a plan was established to appoint an institution modelled on the Polish Library in Paris and the Museum in Rapperswil. This plan was accepted by Presideřt Władysław Raczkiewicz ařd Prime Miřister TŚmasz Arciszewski, ařd iř this way, iř 19ėĘ, the Geř. SikŚrski HistŚrical Iřstitute was fŚuřded, with, at its cŚre, Deśartmeřt “S” 216 under director Dr Edmund Oppman and his wife Regina. The Institute issued an appeal to civilians, military personnel and organizations for donations of documents for its collections. Some people made bequests eřsuriřg that their valuable cŚllectiŚřs wŚuld later śass tŚ the Iřstitute’s archive. This archive is now generally regarded as holding the most important Polish émigré collections in the world. Together with the museum and the two libraries it is an integral part of the Institute. As an academic institution, the archive releases its collections for access by scholars in accordance with British law, i.e. a certain period after their creation. The archival holding today is the product of the fusion of several different archival collections from the period of the occupation, the prewar period, and the postwar period; it runs to some 700 linear metres of files and covers the period 1918-1990.217 These materials are of fundamental significance to the study of Polish history in the years 1939-1945, though they do not constitute all of the archival material generated in this period by Polish authorities and institutions – research should also extend to the collections of the Central Archive of The cŚre Śf the hŚldiřg, cŚmśrisiřg memeřtŚes Śf Geř. brŚři [WeaśŚř Geřeral] Władysław SikŚrski, Prime Miřister and Supreme Leader in the years 1939-1943. 217 Cf. Guide to the Archives of the Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum, vol. I, ed. W. Milewski, A. Suchcitz, A. Gorczycki, London 1985; PŚlskie instytucje za granicą. PrzewŚdnik śŚ zbiŚrach archiwalnych, compiled by A. Krochmal, Warszawa 2004, pp. 220-22ė; B. BŚkszczařiř, “Instytut Polski i Muzeum im. gen. Sikorskiego”, [iř:] Muzea, biblioteki i archiwa polskie na Zachodzie, Londyn 1991. 216 119 Modern Records (AAN) in Warsaw, the archive of the Hoover Institution, Stanford University, CalifŚrřia, ařd the Józef Piłsudski Institute of America in New York. The majority of these materials have now been processed and are inventoried. A card file referencing some 40,000 people is also keśt. Iř 1988 the iřstitute’s mařagemeřt bŚard ařd archive service merged with thŚse Śf the Polish Underground Movement Study Trust, though it remains an autonomous institution. The Iřstitute’s holding is divided into the following sections: 1) The diary Śf Geř. Władysław SikŚrski, 2) Documents relating to the 1939 September Campaign, 3) Records of particular government and state administrative offices relating to the president, government, ministries, embassies, consulates and missions, and other official state bodies, 4) CŚllectiŚřs relatiřg tŚ PŚlskie Siły ZbrŚjře (PSZ, the PŚlish Armed FŚrces), frŚm Sztab Naczelnego Wodza (Commander-in-Chief) to materials from the various military units, 5) Over 5,000 eye-witness accounts by Poles who ended up in Russia or were deported there after 1939, 6) Around 300 private collections (legacies and papers). The museum’s cŚllectiŚřs alsŚ iřclude śhŚtŚgraśhs, bills, śŚsters ařd eśhemera, ślařs ařd maśs, films, audio tapes, records, video recordings, philatelic and numismatic collections, and a separate Personnel Archive. The library holds more than 20,000 volumes. Materials relating to the extermination of the Jews are held above all in the following record groups (which does not preclude the possibility of finding valuable documents and information in other collections not mentioned here): PRM. PREZYDIUM RADY MINISTRÓW (Presidium of the Council of Ministers)218 In Part I (Personal documents of the prime minister) there are a great many materials of all sorts (telegrams, dispatches, reports, operational reports, official letters, official notes, announcements) on the subject of the situation in Poland and in the East (e.g. reports from the Embassy in Kuybyshev 1941-1943), contacts with the Soviets, the case of Henryk Ehrlich and Wiktor Alter, the mission of Jan Karski219, and files no. 88, 114, 142, relating to ethnic minorities and the Jews. 218 The institute is successively digitalizing its archival materials and releasing them online; some of the documents of the PRM mentioned here are already accessible: http://www.pism.co.uk/index_pl.htm. 219 Jan Karski, real name Jan Kozielewski (24 June 1914 – 13 July 2000), liaison officer and emissary of the Polish gŚverřmeřt duriřg WŚrld War II, śseud. “WitŚld”. He visited the Warsaw ghetto twice, and also went into the transit 120 Part II (Secretariat) includes reports from Moscow and Kuybyshev (files 84, 88) and a report from Poland (files 85, 86). In Part III (the Lieberman Archive) – various materials including the mission of Jan Karski (file 24) and Jewish affairs (file 57). Iř Part IV (the Zarański Archive) there are materials Śř matters iřcludiřg Stařisław MikŚłajczyk’s visit to Moscow. A.5 RADA NARODOWA 1939-1945 (The National Council in Exile): Minutes of the meetings of various commissions and the plenary sessions of the National Council in Exile (including all the speeches by Ignacy Schwarzbart 220 and Szmul Zygielbojm 221), the texts of śarliameřtary questiŚřs, gŚverřmeřt reśŚrts, e.g. the reśŚrt Śf the Miřister Sśraw Wewř trzřych (Minister of Internal Affairs) on the situation in Poland (call no. 2/32, dated 7 July 1942), the speeches of Schwarzbart and Zygielbojm regarding aid for the Polish Jews (call no. 3/64), the cŚmmuřiqué iřfŚrmiřg Śf ZygielbŚjm’s suicide, materials Śř desertiŚř Śf Jews frŚm the Polish army and on the special commission appointed to investigate this issue, applications for aid for Jews in Poland, and general correspondences, including many official letters concerning Jewish issues; also the personal files of members of the National CŚuřcil iř Exile ařd the file cŚřcerřiřg ZygielbŚjm’s suicide and his funeral (call no. 77). camp for Jews in Izbica. In 1942, as an eye-witness to the extermination of the Jews, he embarked on a mission to Great Britain and the USA to appeal for assistance – in vain. The information he submitted in writing to Gen. Sikorski is křŚwř as “the Karski ReśŚrt”. Iř 19ėė his bŚŚk Story of a Secret State (Tajne śaństwŚ) was published. After the war he emigrated to the USA, where he lived and worked as a university lecturer. He died in Washington, D.C. To the end of his life he remained faithful to his mission of informing the world about the tragedy of the Jews. 220 Ignacy Izaak Schwarzbart (1888 Chrzanów – 1961 New York), lawyer and Zionist politician, journalist, before World War II a city councillor in Krakow for many years, and from 1938 a deputy to the Sejm of the Republic of Poland. Attended virtually all of the World Zionist Congresses. In 1939 he managed to reach France, and then England. In the years 1940-1945 he was a member of the National Council in Exile as the representative of the Polish Jews on behalf of the Zionist movement. He sought ways in which to rescue Jews and to reach them with aid. After the war he emigrated to the USA, where he was the director of the Organizational Department of the World Jewish Congress. 221 Szmul MŚrdechaj ZygielbŚjm, śseud. “Artur” (189Ę BŚrŚwica, Chełm cŚuřty – 1943 London), politician and trade union activist, by trade an artisan (a glover). A member of the Bund from 1918, and later of the Centralna Komisja Zwi zków ZawŚdŚwych (Ceřtral CŚmmissiŚř Śf Trade UřiŚřs). Betweeř the wars a city cŚuřcillŚr iř Warsaw ařd Łód . He alsŚ wrŚte articles fŚr Buřd śublicatiŚřs. Duriřg the Seśtember camśaigř he Śrgařized vŚluřtary defeřce battalions in Warsaw. In January 1940 he managed to reach France, and from there the USA. In February 1942 he was appointed to the National Council in Exile in London as the representative of the Bund. He made tireless appeals for aid for the Jews in Poland, and for retaliatory action to be taken. Faced with the lack of response to his appeals, on learning of the defeat of the uprising in the Warsaw ghetto, on 12 May 1943 he committed suicide as a sign of protest against the whole world. He left a note justifying his action. 121 A. 7 AMBASADA RZECZYPOSPOLITEJ W MOSKWIE I KUJBYSZEWIE (Embassy of the Polish Republic in Moscow and Kuybyshev) 1941-1943: Fragmentary documentation, as the bulk of this archival material is held in the Hoover Institution; amŚřg the items wŚrthy Śf řŚte is a study by Zygmuřt SrŚczyński Śř aid tŚ ařd śrŚtectiŚř Śf the Jewish population in the USSR, dated August 1943 (call no. 307/40). A. 9 MINISTERSTWO SPRAW WEWN TRZNYCH (Miřistry Śf Iřterřal Affairs) 19ė0-1949: Includes Government Delegate Report no. 6/42 for the period July-September 1942 – Jewish affairs (call no. III.1/11), report no. 1/43 for the period November 1942 – January 1943 (call no. 1/12), report no. III.1a/43 – Jewish affairs (call no. III.1/13), report no. 5/43 – Jewish affairs (call no. III.1/18), report no. 14/44 – prisons and concentration camps (call no. III.1/44), situational reports from Poland 1942-1943 (call no. III.2a/4), eye-witness accounts regarding the Lwów voivodship under Soviet occupation (call no. III.2a/19), Jewish affairs – OB ( ydŚwska Orgařizacja BŚjŚwa, Jewish Combat Organization) and the ghetto uprising (call no. III.2a/27), Jewish affairs (call no. V/2, 17, 36, and E/6 and E/125). A. 10 MINISTERSTWO INFORMACJI I DOKUMENTACJI (Ministry of Information and Documentation): Review of the Jewish press (call no. 2.25), Jewish affairs 1940-1944 (call no. 3.2), eye-witness testimonies regarding the Soviet occupation of the Eastern voivodships of the Republic of Poland (call no. 4.29). A. 11 MINISTERSTWO SPRAW ZAGRANICZNYCH (Ministry of Foreign Affairs): Matters relating to Jews in Palestine, the Soviet Republics, Asia and America (call no. E.87, 88, 89, 142), war crimes (call no. E.124), Jews in the Polish Armed Forces (call no. E. 149), Jewish refugees (call no. E.380, 381, 382), Jews in 1945 (call no. E.681, 932, 942, 943). A. 12 AMBASADA RP W LONDYNIE (Embassy of the Republic of Poland in London) 19191945: Includes texts of speeches and encoded telegrams (call no. A.12.53), a report from Poland that includes information on the situation of the Jews (call no. 73/2A, 3 and 5), the issue of Jews 122 deserting from the Polish army (call no. 752/1), and a range of information on Jewish affairs and contacts with Jewish organizations in Britain (call no. 85/E/3). A. 16 KONSULAT GENERALNY RZECZYPOSPOLITEJ W JEROZOLIMIE (Polish Consulate General in Jerusalem): Approx. 3,500 applications for revocation of Polish citizenship submitted by Komeřda Uzuśełřień nr 3 Armii Polskiej na Wschodzie (Recruiting Command no. 3 of the Polish Army in the East) owing tŚ “wilful desertiŚř frŚm the uřit ařd řŚt returřiřg tŚ it” (call řŚ. 1-4). A. 18 MINISTERSTWO PRACY I OPIEKI SPOŁECZNEJ (Miřistry Śf LabŚur ařd Social Welfare): correspondence relating to aid and care in Russia (call no. 1), evacuation and distribution of the population – extensive information on the situation of the Jews (call no. 5), various general files and official letters, including some on Jewish affairs (call no. 42-45). A. 20 MINISTERSTWO SPRAWIEDLIWO CI (Miřistry Śf Justice): variŚus materials ařd Śfficial letters on the situation in Poland and the judiciary system (call no. 2 and 5), investigation commissions in Bucharest and Jerusalem (call no. 35, 53, 103, 125), deserters (call no. 54, 127), excerpts from various military reports regarding crimes and persecution of the Jewish populace, etc. (call řŚ. Ę/31), ařd files eřtitled “Prawřicy śŚlscy w wiecie” (PŚlish lawyers arŚuřd the wŚrld) – which include many people of Jewish origin (call no. 7/12). A. 42 KONSULAT GENERALNY RZECZYPOSPOLITEJ W LONDYNIE (Polish ConsulateGeneral in London): Various Polish passport- and citizenship-related matters (call no. 142-1ėę), army recruits’ recŚrds (call no. 161, 163, 170), rabbis exempt from military service (call no. 186), Jewish affairs in the years 1935-1938 (call no. 237-238), Jewish affairs in the years 1939-1944 (call no. 239-240), refugees (call no. 364, 365, 368, 382), various personal files – matters relating to citizenship and passports for Jews (call no. 463, 468-470, 473, 478, 490, 498, 500 et al.), the file of Jan Karski (Jan Kozielewski, call no. 493). A. 48 KANCELARIA CYWILNA PREZYDENTA I GABINET WOJSKOWY PREZYDENTA (Civil and Military Chancelleries of the President of the Polish Republic): 123 Above all telegrams and reports from Poland, the Jan Karski report (call no. 4.Kraj/E1), refugee and expellee affairs (call no. 9/A, parts I, II and III), Jews 1942-19ė3 (call řŚ. 10/MřiejszŚ ci narodowe/A). A. 49 KONSULAT GENERALNY RZECZYPOSPOLITEJ W TEL AWIWIE (Polish ConsulateGeneral in Tel Aviv, Palestine): Matters relating to deserters from the Polish Army and correspondences relating thereto (call no. 174). A. XII AKTA WŁADZ NACZELNYCH POLSKIEJ ARMII (Files Śf the Geřeral Staff Śf the Polish Army): Jewish affairs (call no. 1.Gabinet NW.65), materials connected with desertions from the Polish army (call no. 3.Biuro MON.33), Jewish affairs 1940-1945 (call no. 3.Biuro MON.40), Jewish affairs – evacuatiŚř frŚm the USSR ařd Jews iř the PŚlish Army (call řŚ. 3.Wydział PŚlityczřy.21, 22, 23, 33, 40), various matters concerning people of the Jewish faith 1942-19ėę (call řŚ. 3.Referat Wyzřań niekatolickich.16). 11. KOLEKCJA GENERAŁA WŁADYSŁAWA ANDERSA (The Geř. Władysław Ařders Collection)222: All kinds of matters relating to Jews serving in the Polish army and evacuation of civilians from the USSR to the Middle East with the Polish army. 2Ę. KOLEKCJA STANISŁAWA KOTA (The Stařisław KŚt CŚllectiŚř)223: Including photocopies of the clandestine press and other underground publications from occupied Poland Władysław Ařders (11 Aug. 1892 – 12 May 1970), general and politician. In 1939 he was taken into Soviet captivity; imprisoned first in Lwów and later in Moscow. Released pursuant to the Sikorski-Majski Agreement, from August 1941 he was the commander-in-chief of Polskie Siły ZbrŚjře w ZSRR (the PŚlish Armed FŚrces iř the USSR); ař ardeřt advocate of taking the Polish army out of Soviet territory. From September 1942 he commanded Armia Polska na Wschodzie (the Polish Army in the East); later, until 1946, also II Korpus Polski (II Polish Corps; in the Italian Campaign he saw action in battles including Monte Cassino). After the war he settled in London. 223 Stařisław KŚt (22 OctŚber 188Ę – 26 December 1975), political activist, historian, lecturer, in the years 1941-1942 Polish ambassador to the USSR, subsequently remained in the East as minister of state; until 1944 minister of information in the London government. In August 1945 he returned to Poland, and then moved to Rome as an ambassador of the Republic of Poland; he never returned to Poland and he died in London. 222 124 1940-1944, Jewish affairs 1940-1944 (call no. 24); the series Śf dŚcumeřts marked “A” iřcludes papers relating to the affairs of Jews in Kuybyshev (call no. 1A), the affairs of Jews in the Middle East (call no. 23A), matters relating to the evacuation from Russia (call no. 25A), and many other materials.224 68. KOLEKCJA JÓZEFA RETINGERA (The Józef Retinger Collection)225: Jewish affairs (call no. 29 and 30). 82. KOLEKCJA JANA CIECHANOWSKIEGO (The Collection of Jan Ciechanowski, Polish Ambassador in Washington, D.C.) 1941-1945: Ambassadorial reports (call no. 30-36), Jewish affairs (call no. 54). 138. KOLEKCJA WINCENTEGO B KIEWICZA (The CŚllectiŚř Śf Wiřceřty B kiewicz): Jewish affairs 1941-1944 (call no. 237) and evacuation of Jews from Russia (call no. 237a), Jews in the USSR – studies and materials (call no. 254), 1,700 testimonies by deportees to Russia (call no. 288-292). STUDIUM POLSKI PODZIEMNEJ (SPP, The Polish Underground Movement [1939-1945] Study Trust), LONDON The Polish Underground Movement Study Trust was established in 1947 on the initiative of Gen. Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski with the primary objective of securing, processing and publishing documents on the Polish Underground State and the Home Army, chiefly files of the VI Division of the Staff of the Commander in Chief. A major role was played by Halina Czarnocka, who for 37 years, until 1988, was the director of the SPP archive. In that year, financial difficulties forced the merger of the SPP with the Gen. Sikorski Polish Institute. Its archival holdings have been discussed in relatively extensive detail by the incumbent head of the SPP archive, Andrzej Suchcitz. 226 A seminal achievement of the SPP employees is the publication of the six-volume work Armia Krajowa w dokumentach 1939-1945 (The Home Army in documents), released in London over the period 1970There are alsŚ materials belŚřgiřg tŚ PrŚf. Stařisław KŚt (ė78 files) iř the archive Śf Zakład HistŚrii Ruchu Ludowego (Research Institute of the History of the Peasant Movement) in Warsaw. 225 Józef Hieronim Retinger (17 April 1888 – 12 June 1960), politician and journalist. Participated in the preparations and travels Śf Geř. SikŚrski tŚ Cařada, the USA, the USSR ařd MexicŚ (19ė1 ařd 19ė2). Ař “emiřeřce grise” iř Geř. SikŚrski’s eřtŚurage. He died iř LŚřdŚř. 226 A. Suchcitz, Informator Studium Polski Podziemnej 1947-1997, London 1997. 224 125 1989 under an editorial board headed by Brig.-Geř. Tadeusz Pełczyński. Iř all, the SPP’s archival collections run to some 160 linear metres of files, chiefly dating from the years 1939-1947. In addition to these document files, the SPP has amassed a large collection of photographs (approx. 3,000 prints, including photographs documenting persecution of Jews), bills, flyers and pamphlets issued by the underground movement, maps and plans, films and video cassettes (including material on persecution of Jews), as well as some 700 museum artefacts, underground press and a library of books numbering around 6,000 volumes. The archive also collects the results of thematic surveys in its sectiŚř eřtitled “ ródła” (SŚurces), as well as śersŚřal card files (e.g. K.19 – Pseudonimy kurierów i kryśtŚřimy baz i ślacówek ł czřŚ ci z Krajem [PseudŚřyms Śf cŚuriers ařd cryśtŚřyms of bases and establishments used for communication with Poland]). The materials gathered by the SPP are crucial to research into the attitudes of the AK, NSZ and other underground organizations toward the extermination of the Jews and into cooperation (or the lack thereof) between Jewish and Polish underground circles. The contents of the various sections of the archive are as follows227: AKTA ODDZIAŁU VI SZTABU NACZELNEGO WODZA (Files Śf the VI DivisiŚř Śf the Staff of the Commander-in-Chief): EřcŚded cŚrresśŚřdeřce, reśŚrts, řŚtes ařd recŚrds Śf KŚmeřda Główřa AK (the AK Headquarters); materials on communications and couriers, the intelligence and counter-intelligence services, the uřdergrŚuřd mŚvemeřts iř the camśs, Śśeracja “Burza” (OśeratiŚř Temśest) ařd the Warsaw city rising of 1944, sabotage and diversion, training; files of the Government Delegation for Poland and Krajowa Rada Ministrów (the Council of Ministers at Home). Among these materials are items concerning the question of Jews in the Polish Army, various matters connected with national minorities, reports by emissaries and couriers (among them Jan Karski), and AK court verdicts and their execution. ZESPÓŁ TZW. SKRZYNIE (The “Crates” CŚllectiŚř)228: Divided into 41 sub-collections (crates), in all 1,038 files containing documents of the communication hubs and radio monitoring. 227 228 PŚlskie instytucje za granicą, op. cit., pp. 238-242. These documents, stored in 41 metal crates, were not processed or accessible to scholars until the mid-1980s. 126 WYDZIAŁ SPOŁECZNY MINISTERSTWA SPRAW WEWN TRZNYCH (Social Dept. of the Ministry of Internal Affairs): Documents divided into 94 files including: reports, registers, telegram correspondence, ciphers, codes, reviews of the underground press, Jewish affairs, and materials on the liquidation of the Warsaw ghetto. This is a very important set of documentation on the political and civilian life of the Polish underground state, including communication between the Government-in-Exile and the Delegation in Poland. PERSONAL FILES OF AK SOLDIERS (14 DRAWERS), INDIVIDUALS’ PERSONAL AND THEMATIC COLLECTIONS (LEGACIES & PAPERS): ėę recŚrd grŚuśs ařd Śver 10,000 śersŚřal files. The cŚllectiŚřs Śf iřdividuals iřcludiřg Władysław BartŚszewski (cŚllectiŚř Śf articles), Michał BŚrwicz (cŚśies Śf cŚrresśŚřdeřce), ařd Kazimierz Iranek-Osmecki. TESTIMONIES: Over 800 items; the testimonies reference the underground struggle against the German occupiers, the Warsaw city rising of 1944, and the situation in Poland in the years 1945-1946. STUDIES: 805 items, for the most part typescripts on various matters including Jewish affairs. CLANDESTINE PAMPHLETS, FLYERS AND PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENTS: Photocopies and originals of 170 clandestine pamphlets chiefly concerning Warsaw; underground and collaborative press titles, approx. 3.2 linear metres. THE HOOVER INSTITUTION AT STANFORD UNIVERSITY, CALIFORNIA, USA The private university of Stanford in California is one of the largest and best known institutions of higher education in the USA, with an annual student roll of over 14,000. One of those students was Herbert Hoover, later president of the United States of America in the years 1929-1932. As a recent alumnus of Stanford (in 1919) he founded the think-tank devoted to matters of war and peace that was to lay the foundations of the present-day Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace, one Śf the wŚrld’s leading academic research institutions with archival and library collections in this field. 127 Ař Śverview Śf the iřstitutiŚř’s cŚllectiŚřs is giveř iř the řŚw rather Śutdated guide by Charles G. Palm and Dale Reed229, which is nevertheless to date the only publication of its kind; the Polish cŚllectiŚřs have beeř śrŚfiled by Władysław St śřiak 230, and his publication is the basis for the information in this very brief overview. Today, much of this information is also published on the Hoover Institution website, including inventories of the collections where such have been compiled – all the basic information is accessible and up to date online. Most of the Poland-related materials are gathered iř the “East EurŚśe” sectiŚř; the cŚllectiŚř “Judaica” – part 3: The Holocaust is also important for our subject area. Detailed inventories of three other large collections have also been śublished, cŚmśiled by MirŚsław Filiśiak231 ařd Z.L. Stańczyk232. The core of the Polish collections is composed of the three largest deposits, now the property of the Hoover Institution Archives (HIA): thŚse Śf Jař CiechařŚwski (PŚlish ambassadŚr iř WashiřgtŚř, D.C.), Geř. Władysław Anders, and Minister Aleksander Zawisza, who decided to take this step following the withdrawal of recognition of the Polish Government-in-Exile by the USA and Great Britain in 1945; they were seeking a safe place in which to store these valuable archival materials, on matters including relations with the USSR. 233 The śrivate status Śf the HŚŚver IřstitutiŚř’s cŚllectiŚns and its geographic location were the primary arguments in favour of their decision. The publication of the extremely detailed archive surveys by St śřiak ařd Filiśiak facilitates the ideřtificatiŚř Śf the mŚst imśŚrtařt materials relating to the Jews and their vicissitudes during World War II. The key record groups have been microfilmed (in all, around a million frames) and were passed on to the AAN. Scans of the microfilms (unfortunately of mediocre quality) are now accessible on the website of the State Archives in Poland (http://szukajwarchiwach.pl). The archival materials in the HIA do not constitute the complete body of files of a given institution; they are merely part of it, though in some cases the most important part. More extensive research work is still to be done on the archival resources of the Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum in London and the AAN. The selection of materials listed below is based on existing studies and finding aids234: 229 Ch. G. Palm, D. Reed, Guide to the Hoover Institution Archives, Stanford 1980; the library collections are discussed [in:] The Library of the Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace, ed. P. Duignan, Stanford 1985. 230 Archiwalia polskie w zbiorach Instytutu Hoovera Uniwersytetu Stanforda, Warszawa 1997. 231 M. Filipiak, Archiwalia Ambasady RP w Moskwie-Kujbyszewie (1941-1943) i Ministerstwa Informacji i Dokumentacji (1939-1945) w zbiorach Instytutu Hoovera Uniwersytetu Stanforda, Warszawa 2002. 232 Z.L. Stańczyk, Poland. Ministerstwo Spraw Zagranicznych. Register in the Hoover Institution Archives, Stanford 1994. 233 Cf. M. Siekierski, “HŚŚver IřstitutiŚř’s PŚlish CŚllectiŚřs: ař Overview ařd a Survey Śf Selected Materials Śř PŚlishSoviet Relations”, The Polish Review, 1988, vol. XXXIII, no. 3, pp. 325-332. 234 Some of the box numbers given in these publications may not correspond to the numbering currently used at the HIA, as these materials have beeř giveř řew call řumbers iř the years siřce St śřiak ařd Filipiak performed their research. Nonetheless, these materials are still in the same collections, and it should not be difficult to locate them. 128 PRELIMINARY INVENTORY OF RADA NARODOWA (National Council of Poland). RECORDS, 1940-1945: Miřutes Śf meetiřgs Śf KŚmisja Sśecjalřa dŚ Zbadařia SśŚsŚbu TraktŚwařia ydów w WŚjsku Polskim (Special Commission for Investigation of the Treatment of Jews in the Polish Army, Box 8). MINISTERSTWO SPRAW WEWN TRZNYCH (Ministry of Internal Affairs of Poland) ISSUANCES: Materials from the Social Department: situational reports regarding the German occupation 19401942 and political and nationality issues 1941-1943 (Box 1), report by the Government Delegate for QI 1942 (Box 3). MINISTERSTWO INFORMACJI I DOKUMENTACJI (Ministry of Information and 235 Documentation of Poland) RECORDS, 1939-1945 : Reports on persecution of Jews by the German occupiers of Poland. Komitet Organizacyjny dla sśraw Reśrezeřtacji ydŚstwa PŚlskiegŚ (Organizational Committee for Affairs of the Representation of Polish Jewry, Box 72), national minorities: Belarusians, Lithuanians, Jews – reśŚrts, testimŚřies ařd studies, iřcludiřg items frŚm Oddział II Sztabu GłówřegŚ (SectiŚř II Śf the Headquarters, BŚx 88), deśŚsitiŚřs Śf PŚlish citizeřs Śf Jewish Śrigiř, the “PrŚtŚkŚły śalestyńskie” (Palestiřiař śrŚtŚcŚls), řŚ. 27-251236, lists of Jewish activists in the USSR, the memoirs Śf Rabbi J. Lařdau Śf Le ajsk: MŚja trzyiśółletnia wędrówka z Le ajska dŚ Palestyny (My three-and-a-halfyear Śdyssey frŚm Le ajsk tŚ Palestiře), the case of H. Ehrlich and W. Alter (Box 197), memoirs and diaries of deportees (Boxes 198-201), materials from the Consulate-General of the Republic of Poland in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv (Box 202), and a collection of materials relating to Polish-Jewish relations (Boxes 213-214). POLSKIE RZ DOWE CENTRUM INFORMACYJNE W NOWYM JORKU (PŚlish Government Information Center in New York): 235 A digital copy of this entire collection is available at http://szukajwarchiwach.pl/800/41/0/-/. Widziałem aniŚła mierci. LŚsy deśŚrtŚwanych ydów śŚlskich w ZSRR w latach II wŚjny wiatŚwej. wiadectwa zebrane śrzez MinisterstwŚ InfŚrmacji i DŚkumentacji Rządu PŚlskiegŚ na UchŚd stwie w latach 1942-1943, compiled and with forewords by M. Siekierski, F. Tych, with M. Prokopowicz, A. Rok, Warszawa 2006. 236 129 Jewish press, including the Jewish Journal from 1942-1944 (Boxes 2-4), American press, including Jewish press 1942-1945 (Boxes 11-35), press cuttings from Jewish dailies (Boxes 62, 70). MINISTERSTWO PRAC KONGRESOWYCH (Ministry of Preparatory Work Concerning the Peace Conference): compiled by J. Wagner, Sśrawa ydŚwska w PŚlsce na tle międzynarŚdŚwym, London 1943, 57 pp. (Box 14). MINISTERSTWO SPRAW ZAGRANICZNYCH (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Poland) RECORDS,1919-1947 237 : materials on Polish national minorities abroad. There is a considerable quantity of materials connected with desertion of Jews from the Polish army, antisemitism in army ranks, and work to save Jews in Poland (Boxes 610-617). AMBASADA (Embassy). GREAT BRITAIN RECORDS, 1918-1945238: documents and materials relating to Jews who were Polish citizens and Jewish organizations, in particular issues relating to emigration, the press, and the Holocaust in the Polish lands (Box 58, folders 2-8 and Box 62, folders 1-2), Polish Jews and Jewish organizations in Great Britain 1934 (Box 96, folder 10), Polish Jews in Great Britain and Palestine 1935-1941 (Box 97). AMBASADA (Embassy) SOVIET UNION RECORDS, 1941-1944: diplomatic correspondence regarding minority issues (Box 15), Affairs of Polish Jewish citizens in the USSR (Boxes 16 and 20). AMBASADA (Embassy) UNITED STATES RECORDS (1918-1956)239: a collection of materials on Polish Jews in other countries, diplomatic reports on anti-Semitism, press and bulletins from 1937 (Box 63), materials of the Emergency Committee to Save the Jewish People in Europe (Box 64), materials regarding emigration of Jews, their situation in Germany before the war, information from the press, the American Jewish Congress (Box 65), the situation of the Jews in Poland 1920-1945 and protection of Polish Jewish fugitives (Box 66), the situation of the Jews in the United States of America 1934-1942 (Box 67). 237 A digital copy of this entire collection is available at http://szukajwarchiwach.pl/800/42/0/-/. A digital copy of this entire collection is available at http://szukajwarchiwach.pl/800/33/0/-/. 239 A digital copy of this entire collection is available at http://szukajwarchiwach.pl/800/36/0/-/. 238 130 PORTUGAL. LISBON. LEGATION: materials from the World Jewish Congress and other Jewish organizations regarding the fates of Jews in territories occupied by Germany and of Polish citizens in the USSR (Box 8). UNITED STATES. NEW YORK. CONSULATE GENERAL: Organization of aid for Polish citizens of Jewish descent, correspondence with the MSZ, 1943 (Box 4). Polish Armed Forces (PSZ) in the USSR, the Near and Middle East: Jews in the PSZ October 1941 – March 1942 (Box 8), THE WŁADYSŁAW ANDERS PAPERS240: questionnaires and accounts of deported Poles. The cŚllectiŚř is divided iřtŚ “Statemeřts, DeśŚsitiŚřs” (BŚxes 35-45 and 65-ę8) ařd “ReśŚrts” (ėę-64); they are easily navigated with the aid of a name card file for all those interviewed (Boxes 1-35). One of the questionnaires, compiled by M. Buchwajc, Anti-Semitism and the Jewish Question (Box 68), concerned the fate of the Polish Jews in the USSR (it contains 33 detailed questions); others are: Struktura śŚlityczna sśŚłeczeństwa ydŚwskiegŚ Palestyny, Dzieje śŚsła ydŚwskiegŚ miasta LwŚwa, Emila Sommersteina (Box 69), T. Lipkowska, Wsśółśraca śŚlskŚ- ydŚwska na terenie Palestyny, Zagadnienie dezercji Śłnierzy ydów z Armii PŚlskiej, RŚla ydów niemieckich w Palestynie i ich stŚsunek dŚ PŚlski (Box 70), J. Ben-Arje, RŚsja a kwestia ydŚwska, M. Buchwajc, ydzi śŚlscy śŚd władzą sŚwiecką (Box 72), and a study on issues including Jewish settlement in Palestine and the political life of the Jews. THE MICHAŁ GLAZER PAPERS: a cŚllectiŚř Śf materials Śř the situatiŚř Śf the Jews iř EurŚśe and their work towards creating a state of their own, 1937-1939 (1 box). THE JAN KARSKI PAPERS: in part original documents, some copies, press materials concerning Karski’s missiŚř duriřg the war, mařuscriśts Śf his Śwř wŚrks ařd PŚlish studies ařd śublicatiŚřs from the period of the war, and the reports.241 240 R.M. Bulatoff, Wladyslaw Anders. A register of his Papers in the Hoover Institution Archives, Stanford 1980. Cf. WŚjtek Raśśak, “RaśŚrt KarskiegŚ – kŚřtrŚwersje i iřterśretacje”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2014, no. 10, pp. 96-130. 241 131 132 7. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington D.C., USA The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) was founded on the initiative of a number of groups of American Jews who had come from Europe as Holocaust survivors. The first administrative step was the aśśŚiřtmeřt iř 1978 by US Presideřt Jimmy Carter Śf a Presideřt’s Commission on the Holocaust, chaired by Elie Wiesel 242 , which was renamed the United States Holocaust Memorial Council two years later. Its mandate was to run a campaign to explore ways to observe Days of Remembrance 243 and to build a new museum as an institution dedicated to knowledge, study, education and memory of the Holocaust.244 The Congress decision to found the new museum followed shortly. Its first director, in 1989, was Jeshajahu Weinberg, the originator of the cŚřceśt fŚr a řarrative ařd multimedia museum. The buildiřg’s Śrigiřal, symbŚlic architecture was designed by James Ingo Freed.245 USHMM enjoys federal institution status, and its objectives are defined in its mission statement, which reads: “The Uřited States HŚlŚcaust MemŚrial Museum is America’s řatiŚřal iřstitutiŚř fŚr the dŚcumeřtatiŚř, study ařd iřterśretatiŚř Śf HŚlŚcaust histŚry.”246 USHMM was officially opened on 22 April 1993 in the presence of President Bill Clinton.247 The site chosen as the location for the museum is in the heart of Washington, D.C., in the immediate vicinity of the Capitol, the White House and other government administration buildings, and national monuments and museums including the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, the Jefferson Memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the Smithsonian Institutions. The museum’s maiř buildiřg hŚuses exhibitiŚř sśace248, the archive (including a photographic archive), 242 Elie (Eliezer) Wiesel (b. 30 September 1928 in Romania), Hungarian Jewish writer and journalist. Brought up in a large Hassidic family, during the war Wiesel was interned in the concentration camps of Auschwitz-Birkenau and Buchenwald, where the whole of his immediate family was murdered. After the war he spent many years in France, where he studied at the Sorbonne and worked as a writer and journalist. In 1956 he emigrated to the USA. He has written more than 40 works, including novels, plays, short stories and essays. In 1986 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. He was the chairman of the Presidential Commission on the Holocaust, and later the first chairman of the US Holocaust Memorial Council. Now a professor of humanities at Boston University. 243 A movable event celebrated on the 27th day of the month of nisan according to the Jewish calendar (usually in April). In Hebrew the Day of Remembrance is called Yom ha-Shoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day). 244 Cf. B. Berenbaum, The World Must Know, Boston 1993. 245 Cf. J. KŚzłŚwska, Architektura i funkcje Muzeum Holocaustu w Waszyngtonie, diploma dissertation on the Post-Graduate Museum Studies cŚurse at the Uřiversity Śf Warsaw’s Iřstitute Śf HistŚry (IH UW), Warszawa 200Ę [tyśescriśt]. 246 See http://www.ushmm.org/information/about-the-museum/mission-statement (date: 19.02.2014). 247 M. MŚtas, “Otwarcie Muzeum Holocaustu w Waszyngtonie”, Biuletyn GKBZpNP, 1993, vol. XXXVI, pp. 185-186. 248 Iř additiŚř tŚ the maiř śermařeřt exhibitiŚř there is alsŚ a śermařeřt exhibitiŚř fŚr childreř, “Dařiel’s StŚry”, ařd a temporary exhibition. 133 an academic study facility and reading room, a library, an auditorium, a projection and theatre room, a museum shop, and a state-of-the-art interactive IT centre for in-depth study (the Wexner Learning Center). The architecture and interior design of the building, the artworks on display both inside and Śutside the facility, ařd the theme ařd fŚrm Śf the exhibitiŚř all cŚřtribute tŚ the USHMM’s dual role as a museum and memorial. Aside from its educational function, its other fundamental role is to gather, provide access to and study materials relating to the extermination of the Jews and the persecution of other ethnic groups during World War II. Even before the museum itself was śhysically cŚřstructed, the Presideřt’s CŚmmissiŚř issued ař aśśeal fŚr the creatiŚř Śf ař archive that would amass materials on the Holocaust in order to enable both scholars and the wider public to study ařd research dŚcumeřts related tŚ the extermiřatiŚř Śf the Jews. Part Śf the museum’s mission is also to study the history of racism and genocide, and to teach and demonstrate the consequences of failure to act on social discrimination and exclusion of various population groups. The USHMM was founded by the United States Congress to showcase the history of the persecution and extermination of six million Jews and the many millions of other victims of the Nazi tyranny, to disseminate knowledge of the tragedy of the Holocaust among the citizens of the United States, to preserve the memory of those who suffered, and to promote reflection on the moral and spiritual dilemmas generated by the HŚlŚcaust. Like Śther museums, the USHMM’s tasks iřclude gatheriřg, conserving and exhibiting artefacts249 and conducting scholarly research. This latter function is the domain of its academic Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies (CAHS). In addition to the team of scholars permanently employed at the CAHS, the museum also accepts many scholars every year from all over the world on special grant programmes. The CAHS organizes academic seminars and conferences, and publishes its own journal, Holocaust and Genocide Studies 250 , in association with Oxford University Press, as well as scholarly works, source publications251, encyclopaedias252 ařd albums. A majŚr feature Śf the museum’s śublishiřg sectiŚř is its extensive, excellently documented and illustrated exhibition catalogues. The museum’s cŚllectiŚřs are vast, cŚmśrisiřg teřs Śf thŚusařds Śf Śbjects, chiefly dŚřations from institutions and individuals. Some of its Judaica were donated by the American national museum, the Smithsonian Institution, and a small řumber were śurchased iř ařtiques shŚśs Śr at auctiŚř. All the exhibits are frŚm the museum’s Śwř cŚllectiŚřs or lŚařed frŚm Śther iřstitutiŚřs. Mařy artefacts cŚme frŚm PŚlařd, lŚařed frŚm PMAB, PMM, IH Śr Śther iřstitutiŚřs. 250 Available online: http://hgs.oxfordjournals.org/ 251 See the series Documenting Life and Destruction: Holocaust Sources in Context: http://www.ushmm.org/research/publications/documenting-life-and-destruction. 252 See the vast publication Encyclopedia of Camps and Ghettos, 1933-1945: http://www.ushmm.org/research/publications/encyclopedia-camps-ghettos. 249 134 A seminal role is also played by its website, http://www.ushmm.org, which is visited annually by millions of internet users across the globe. Its showcase features include online versions of the museum’s temśŚrary exhibitiŚřs, the USHMM HŚlŚcaust EřcyclŚśedia iř 1ė lařguages – including English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Russian and Chinese – and tens of thousands of features on the museum’s śrŚgrammes, śrŚjects ařd collections – documents, objects, mementoes, photographs, films and interviews. Its dedicated operating system facilitates high-speed searches of many iřtegrated databases. The website is alsŚ a sŚurce Śf iřfŚrmatiŚř Śř the wŚrk Śf all the museum’s departments and divisions, of which its education department is one of the most important (not least for the approximately two million visitors who come to the museum every year). The education area of the website offers downloadable textbooks and other teaching materials for both pupils and teachers, as well as information tailored to a wide range of age and professional groups. 253 Online access is alsŚ available tŚ the museum library’s catalŚgue, which is cŚřstařtly beiřg augmeřted with publications in dozens of languages; Polish publications are among those systematically being collected and catalogued. Since 1993 USHMM has gathered information on Jewish survivors of the Holocaust in its “HŚlŚcaust SurvivŚrs ařd Victims Database” 254 . This database was launched even before the museum was built, by the American Gathering of Jewish Holocaust Survivors, on the initiative and under the leadership of Benjamin and Vladka Meed, who were originally from Poland. 255 It is open for additions; a registration form is available to download, and may be returned to the museum either in electronic form or by traditional mail. It is a source designed to serve both scholars and individuals seeking family members, friends and acquaintances all over the world. Of greatest importance to Holocaust histŚriařs are the USHMM’s archival, library, śhŚtŚgraśhic, film ařd Śral testimŚřy collections. The CAHS runs a unique programme manned by the staff of its International Archival Programs Division (IAPD). Its objective is to search archival holdings across the world and copy materials relatiřg tŚ the HŚlŚcaust fŚr the USHMM’s archives. The maiř task is tŚ briřg tŚgether iř Śře ślace, 253 The education department also runs special programmes for visitors who are deaf, partially sighted or blind. http://www.ushmm.org/remember/the-holocaust-survivors-and-victims-resource-center 255 Initially, the registry only stored data for people resident in the United States, but over a decade ago it was expanded to include people living all over the world. 254 135 as microfilms (or scans), materials currently scattered over many archives, which has to date greatly hampered, and in some circumstances even prevented their study, owing to factors including the time and costs of conducting international archive searches. Another aim of the project is to identify and make a systematic study of materials hitherto unknown, inaccessible and thus unused. The IAPD is thus opening up archives, informing archivists and scholars of existing documentation, and so inspiring new research. This undertaking is ensuring that valuable collections will be kept safe: materials copied (onto the reasonably permanent medium of microfilm or digitalized) will most likely never be irretrievably lost as a result of natural disasters, wars, or other catastrophic events. Now, collections committed to microfilm or as digital copy have back-up copies in both their original archives and the USHMM; collections available in digital form may be viewed on computers in the reading room, and sometimes on its webpage. A third objective of the IAPD project is to conduct the extensive work that must be carried out on the collections selected for copying. The principle that has been adopted is that materials are not reproduced until they have been processed, and so the museum is cooperating with archival institutions to this end also. Another rule is that documents in poor condition and in need of conservation are not reproduced (except for the purpose of making back-up copies and documenting their pre-conservation state). This has forced conservation work in many cases, in order for files to be archived and copied. The IAPD śrŚject Śśerates Śř all five cŚřtiřeřts; the materials reśrŚduced fŚr the USHMM’s collections so far have come from over 40 countries and were originally written in more than 30 languages. The USHMM archive is now one of the biggest in the world in terms of the number of materials it has amassed on the subject of the extermination of the Jews. In all, it has more than 9,000 document (archival) collections, including dossiers of institutions, government offices, businesses and other organizations; personal legacies and papers; testimonies, diaries and memoirs; press; and other items. The collections also include oral history interviews, film footage, photographs, and audio material. In terms of theme, the range of subjects they reference includes anti-Jewish policy in Europe under the Nazis, confiscation and looting of Jewish property, the fates of refugees, Nazi policy in its occupied territories, the history of the ghettos, resettlements, forced labour, deportations and mass executions, the extermination of the Jews, the history of the labour camps, concentration camps and extermination camps, the resistance movement, rescue, settling of accounts after the war, court cases and material evidence, restitution of property, and compensation. Iř 2007 the USHMM’s archival collections were augmented by copies of more than 100 million 136 documents (digitalized) from the archive of the International Tracing Service (ITS, Internationaler Suchdienst, Service International de Recherches) in Bad Arolsen in Germany. More information on this archive is to be found on the USHMM website.256 The Śřliře USHMM archive catalŚgue searches the library, the archive ařd the museum’s Śther collections, both published and unpublished materials, photographs, interviews, film and historical moving images, as well as many of the finding aids of collections in the archive. The online guide to the USHMM’s archival cŚllectiŚřs (excludiřg its library hŚldiřgs) is frequeřtly uśdated (http://www.ushmm.org/online/archival-guide/). Every year, however, the archives accumulate so much new material that up-to-date information on specific record groups or materials should be sought from archive employees, who may be contacted at archives@ushmm.org. Many of the collections reproduced for the USHMM are furnished with accurate inventories that are far more detailed than those in their original archives, because they are profiled in detail as part of the process of the survey and selection of materials to be copied, and this provides the basis for compiling the archival information and inventory at the USHMM. All the materials in the archive (whether original, microfilmed or digitalized) are divided into record groups (RG) by theme and by provenance – i.e. the country where the USHMM copy was made. The whole USHMM archival holding is at present divided into 70 RG, and the collections within a given RG are profiled in order of their receipt (accession date). The letter “M” iř the call řumber iřdicates that they are held Śř microfilm. The guide to the archive also includes information on collections that had not been fully catalŚgued; these are categŚrised as “accessiŚřs” – Acc. The call number of accessions includes the year in which a given collection was passed to the USHMM (e.g. 1996.A.0349). The RGs within the USHMM archive that contain materials for study of the extermination of the Jews in the Polish lands are as follows: RG – 02 Survivor Testimonies257 RG – 03 Jewish Communities258 256 http://www.ushmm.org/information/press/press-kits/20th-anniversary/international-tracing-service. The depositary of the copies of the Bad Arolsen archive materials in Poland is the IPN. 257 E.g. RG-02.012 “RecŚllectiŚřs frŚm my Life’s Exśerieřces by SŚśhie Machtiřger”, abŚut the Łód ghettŚ ařd Auschwitz; RG-02.01ė “Liřda ařd Friedrich Breder TestimŚřy”, abŚut KL Auschwitz-Birkenau; RG-02.021 “Stařley Osiřski Paśers”, abŚut the Warsaw GhettŚ Uśrisiřg; RG-02.028 “Remember NŚt tŚ FŚrget: Memoirs of a Survivor of the HŚlŚcaust by Clara (Chaje) HŚrŚwitz”, abŚut the life Śf the Jews iř CzŚrtków; RG-02.0ę7 “MŚjsze Kisielřicki Memoir Relating to the Judenrat iř Kaluszyř”. 137 RG – 04 Concentration and Other Camps259 RG – 05 Ghettos260 RG – 06 War Crimes Investigations and Prosecutions261 RG – 09 Liberation of the Camps and Ghettos RG – 10 Small Collections (this group comprises several hundred small collections, ranging in size from a single page to a few boxes of archival files; these are chiefly personal legacies and papers) RG – 11 Selected Records from Former Special (Osobyi) State Archive in the Russian State Military Archive (RGVA) RG – 14 Federal Republic of Germany (archive materials reproduced in archives and other institutions in Germany) RG – 15 Poland (archive materials reproduced in archives and other institutions in Poland) RG – 19 Rescue, Refugees, and Displaced Persons RG – 20 Righteous Among the Nations (The decoration awarded by Yad Vashem) RG – 23 Resistance RG – 24 The Holocaust as Reflected in the Fine Arts RG – 26 Lithuania RG – 27 Julius Kühl Collection262 RG – 30 Records from National Archives (NARA) and Records Administration263 RG – 31 Ukraine264 RG – 50 Oral History Collection265 RG – 53 Belarus266 RG – 55 The Aleksander Kulisiewicz Collection267 Iřcludiřg thŚse iř OstrŚwiec ( wi tŚkrzyski), PiŚtrków Trybuřalski, MŚgielřica ařd KlimŚřtów. Including KL Auschwitz-Birkenau and KL Majdanek. 260 Materials Śř ghettŚs iřcludiřg thŚse iř Łód , Warsaw, Lubliř, Wiszřice ařd WilřŚ. 261 Including RG-0ę.02Ę “Selected Central Records of the Federal Security Service (FSB, formerly KGB) of the Russian FederatiŚř Relatiřg tŚ War Crimes IřvestigatiŚřs ařd Trials iř the SŚviet UřiŚř”; RG-0ę.027 “Selected Latviař KGB Records Relating to War Crime Investigations and Trials iř Latvia”. 262 Dr Julius Kühl, born in Galicia, moved to Switzerland in 1929, where he studied at the University of Berne. On the eve of the war he was appointed to a position in the Polish legation with responsibility for refugees, Polish soldiers in internment camps in Switzerland, and Jews. He provided aid to several hundred Polish Jews in the form of passports and visas enabling them to emigrate. 263 This group includes the collection 1998.A.0137, Records of the United States Mission to the Polish Government in Exile in London, 20 reels of microfilm. 264 Selected collections from archives in Odessa, Kiev [current name in English Kyiv], Ivano-Frankivsk, Kharkiv, Lviv, Vinnytsia, Rivne, Zhytomyr and Ternopil, amongst others. 265 This cŚllectiŚř iřcludes Śver 7,000 iřterviews recŚrded by the USHMM’s Oral HistŚry deśartmeřt ařd arŚuřd ę0 Śther iřstitutiŚřs ařd ŚrgařizatiŚřs. SŚme Śf these iřterviews are accessible Śř the museum’s website. 266 Selected collections from archives in Minsk, Grodno (Hrodna) and Mogilev (Mahilou). 258 259 138 RG – 58 Switzerland268 RG – 59 Great Britain269 RG – 60 The Steven Spielberg Film and Video Archives270 RG – 63 Dominican Republic271 RG – 67 United States of America272 RG – 68 Israel273 The microfilming programme in Poland was launched in 1990. In the course of the first nine years of the project, almost 1.7 million microfilm frames were sent to the USHMM; in 2014 this figure stands at well over eight million. The śrŚject is still uřderway iř the State Archives, the IPN, IH, PMAB, and other institutions, including libraries. In order to select suitable documents for reproduction, all collections containing materials on the following subjects are being researched: 1. The fates of Polish and European Jews in the period 1939-1945 (all aspects) 2. The history of Polish and European Jews before 1939 and in the years 1945-1950 (the history of Jewish communities, Polish-Jewish relations, antisemitism, emigration, research into the causes and aftermath of the Holocaust) 3. The fates Śf Śther religiŚus ařd ethřic grŚuśs (e.g. RŚma, PŚles, JehŚvah’s Witřesses, Christiař clergy) persecuted and murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators 4. The fates of other groups persecuted and murdered by the Nazis (e.g. Soviet POWs, the mentally ill, the frail and disabled, homosexuals) 5. The resistance movement in the occupied Polish territories and the attempt to eradicate it; the partisan movement, intellectual activity, and religious resistance 6. The fates of exiles and émigrés 7. Germanization campaigns motivated by Nazism, and crimes committed against children 267 Aleksander Kulisiewicz (1918-1982) was interned in KL Sachsenhausen, where he composed 54 songs. After liberation he continued to compose, and to publish works by other prisoners. The Kulisiewicz collection, which was given to the USHMM by his son, contains song lyrics, music, and poetry composed in the camps, as well as photographs, visual art, and recordings. All the materials relate to art made in the camps. 268 RG-58.001M comprises 10,962 personal files of escapees who found asylum in Switzerland. 269 Selected collections from the Public Records Office, Kew, London. 270 For information on the films in this collection, contact the USHMM at filmvideo@ushmm.org. In the years 19941999 the Steven Spielberg Foundation recorded some 1,500 interviews with Holocaust survivors living in Poland; see Part II of this Guide: Oral History. 271 Documents on Jewish refugees from European countries. 272 Including RG-67.002M Holocaust-Era Records of the Jewish Labor Committee. Child Adoption Case Files, which holds the personal dossiers of adopted children, including children from Poland. 273 Including copies of record groups from German, Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Lithuanian and other archives. 139 8. Nazi persecution of the Polish intelligentsia 9. Forced labour among Jews, Poles and people of other nationalities 10. Race policy in the Third Reich; pseudo-scieřtific research iřtŚ race, the activities Śf “race iřstitutes”, medical exśerimeřts, related śublicatiŚřs, etc. 11. Attitudes in the Polish populace toward the Jews and their extermination 12. Issues related to moveable and immoveable property of Jews (looting and confiscation of property, forced tribute payments, trustee administration of real property, etc.) 13. The activities of the German administration, police and other institutions. In copying projects, USHMM gives first priority to documents generated by Jews and other groups listed in points 3-6 above and German administration, police and military papers from the years 1939-1945. Second in order are documents by Polish institutions and organizations in Poland and abroad from the years 1939-1945, and after these come documents from before 1939 and from the period 1945-1950. The materials selected for reproducing are profiled in detail using forms specially compiled for the purpose and containing all the most important information on the collection and the archive files selected. These are used by USHMM to compile accurate descriptions of the materials it receives, and are the most fundamental of the finding aids. The archive search takes in collections on far wider-ranging themes than the need to study the history of the extermination of the Jews in the years 1939-1945 might suggest, for the museum does not confine its work strictly to this field, its range of interests also encompasses the broader issue of genocide and crimes against humanity committed during World War II on the grounds of race, nationality, ideology; and the causes and effects of the war and of the extermination of certain groups of people. The reason for this is the wording of the resolution passed by the US Congress calling the museum into being, and of its mission statement. Nevertheless, the largest proportion of the collections of the museum and its archive are connected with the extermination of the Jews and the history of Jewish communities and centres in the twentieth century. The USHMM is already in possession of numerous archive materials reproduced in Poland – in all, about 450 archival collections. From the AIPN it has copies of trials before the Supreme National Tribunal (NTN) (those of J. Bühler, L. Fischer, A. Forster, A. Greiser, A. Goeth, R. Höss, and the staff of KL Auschwitz) and others including the trials of J. Stroop and H. Biebow; the whole record group BD (Akta Badawczo-Dokumentacyjne, Records of Investigation and Documentation), and the 140 majority of the files generated by the German Administration and Police. The microfilms of the files of the County and City Commissions for the Investigation of Crimes (i.e. Lublin, Katowice, Cz stŚchŚwa, O wi cim) frŚm the 19ė0s ařd 19Ę0s are alsŚ cŚmślete. At śreseřt the files Śf the postwar trials before various courts across Poland arising from the August Decree (see: Part II of this Guide: Investigation and Court Files) are systematically being copied. While the AIPN holds above all German documentation and investigative, court and prison materials, the IH archive śrimarily cŚřtaiřs dŚcumeřts geřerated by Jewish iřstitutiŚřs, organizations and individuals. From this archive virtually all of the collections generated during the war have now been microfilmed or scanned, above all the Ringelblum Archive, the files of the JudeřrŹte, the “Teka LwŚwska” (the Lwów File), Varia Śkuśacyjře (OccuśatiŚř Miscellařea), the JŚiřt, the SS ařd mařy Śthers – for detailed information on the collections dating from the war years, see the chapter Śř IH. MŚst Śf the imśŚrtařt śŚstwar dŚcumeřtatiŚř – that generated by the variŚus deśartmeřts Śf the CK P, its PeŚśle’s CŚurt ařd its Sśecial CŚmmissiŚř, ařd by TOZ ařd the Joint, as well as testimonies, memoirs and other items, such as the Legacies & Papers of Bernard Mark – have řŚw beeř micrŚfilmed. Certaiř Śf the śrewar cŚllectiŚřs at IH are řŚw alsŚ available in Washington, D.C., such as the Collection of passports of émigrés to Palestine and that of the Address Office Śf the City Śf Cz stŚchŚwa. Another very important institution with which the USHMM has cooperated since its inception is the NDAP. To date, selected collections have been reproduced from the Polish State Archives including the AAN, ařd the State Archives iř BiałystŚk, Gdańsk, GrŚdzisk Mazowiecki, Kalisz, Katowice, Lubliř, ŁŚwicz, Łód , OtwŚck, PŚzřań, RadŚm, Siedlce, Szczeciř, Warsaw, WrŚcław, Siedlce ařd Otwock, and the National Archive in Krakow. Important collections already available on microfilm or as digital copy include the Head Śf the Jewish CŚuřcil iř the Łód GhettŚ ařd Germař GhettŚverwaltuřg (AP Łód ), the GŚverřŚr Śf the City Śf KrakŚw (NatiŚřal Archive iř KrakŚw, ANK), Gesundheitskammer (Health Chamber) of the GG (ANK), Judenrat Lublin (AP Lublin), various departments of the Government Delegation for Poland, the files of the AK and ZWZ and a collection of diaries (AAN), documents by the German authorities of the various districts and regiŚřs ařřexed tŚ the Reich (AP PŚzřań, Gdańsk, KatŚwice), śrisŚř files, iřcludiřg RadŚm Prison (AP Radom) and the prison in Warsaw on Rakowiecka Street (APW), many files of cities and communities from across the country, and many other archival materials. Archival research and 141 reproduction continues in the state archives, as in other Polish institutions, archives and museums. The documentation from the Stutthof Museum in Sztutowo has been microfilmed in its entirety, the microfilming of all the most important files from the PMM is completed, and many important collections from the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum archive are already accessible at USHMM, among them almŚst all the files Śf the camś’s Germař admiřistratiŚř, the cŚllectiŚř “WsśŚmřieřia”, (“MemŚries”), ařd dŚcumeřtatiŚř Śf the “Hygieře Iřstitut”. A few years ago detailed archival research was undertaken in the wartime, prewar and postwar press cŚllectiŚřs, ařd řŚw all the clařdestiře ařd uřdergrŚuřd (PŚlish ařd Jewish) śress held by IH, AAN, ANK, BN, the Jagiellonian Library and the Tatra Museum in Zakopane is accessible to study in Washington, D.C.. The underground press collection has been furnished with a very accurate inventory that includes information on matters such as the organizations that published the various titles. There are also microfilms of the leading legal and collaborative press titles from the war years, both those in Polish and those in German (see Part II of this Guide), and Jewish press from the iřterbellum (iř PŚlish, Yiddish ařd Hebrew) frŚm the hŚldiřgs Śf the BN ařd IH – in all, several hundred titles. 142 8. Archives and institutions in Israel YAD VASHEM. THE HOLOCAUST MARTYRS’ AND HEROES’ REMEMBRANCE AUTHORITY The Yad Vashem Institute was formally founded in 1953, but its beginnings date back to 1942, when news reached Palestine of the major deportation action in the Warsaw ghetto. Mordechai Shenhavi, then a member of the Beit Alfa kibbutz, resolved to commemorate those who had dreamed of a return to Zion but had never reached the Promised Land because they had been brutally murdered by the Nazis. A śreseřtatiŚř Śf the first draft Śf the śrŚject, uřder the řame “Ař idea tŚ cŚmmemŚrate all the victims Śf the Jewish catastrŚśhe caused by the Nazi hŚrrŚr ařd the war”, was made to the Jewish National Fund (JNF) on 10 September 1942. At a later point, in the summer of 1945, an amended version of this project was proposed. Even as negotiations on appointment of such an institution were underway, in February 1946, a Yad Vashem office was opened in Jerusalem, along with a branch office in Tel Aviv. The War of Independence hampered further developments, however, and only after it was over and ceasefire agreements were signed were efforts recommenced to create Yad Vashem. On 18 May 1953 the Knesset unanimously passed the Yad Vashem Law, whose objectives were defined as follows in paragraph 2: “The task of Yad Vashem is to gather in to the homeland material regarding all those members of the Jewish people who laid down their lives, who fought and rebelled against the Nazi enemy and his collaborators, and to perpetuate their memory and that of the communities, organizations and institutions which were destroyed because they were Jewish […]”. The law alsŚ iřcludes a resŚlutiŚř tŚ cŚmmemŚrate “the high-minded Gentiles who risked their lives to save Jews.” 274 The first chairman of the Yad Vashem directorate was Professor Ben-Zion Dinur; the incumbent chairman is Avner Shalev. THE YAD VASHEM ARCHIVE The rŚle Śf the archive is defiřed iř the Yad Vashem Law, śaragraśh 2 (2), as: “tŚ cŚllect, examiře and publish testimony of the disaster and the heroism it called forth, and to bring home its lesson to the śeŚśle”. Beř-ZiŚř Diřur, iř ař article eřtitled “Problems Confronting Yad Washem [sic.] in its 274 Yad Vashem Law (1953), translation sourced from: http://www.yadvashem.org/yv/en/about/pdf/YV_law.pdf (access: 03.03.2014). 143 WŚrk Śf Research”, made the fŚllŚwiřg assessmeřt: “It is the immediate duty of Yad Washem [sic.] to acquire for its archives as much of the widely dispersed documentary material as it is able to secure. Its aim must be to convert its archives into a central institution of its kind for research into the European catastrophe.”275 The founder and first director of the Yad Vashem Archives (YVA) was Dr Józef Kermisz 276 , śreviŚusly Śře Śf the fŚuřder members Śf the Ceřtral Jewish HistŚrical CŚmmissiŚř (C KH) iř Poland. Kermisz spent the years he worked in the YVA gathering as many materials as possible, both in Israel and abroad, and transforming his institution into one of the leading archives of its type in the world. The next director of the YVA, in the years 1978-1993, was Dr Shmuel (Stefan) Krakowski, who added many new collections of documents to the archives. In the late 1980s and early 1990s KrakŚwski greatly brŚadeřed the YVA’s activities tŚ iřclude sŚurciřg ařd cŚśyiřg materials on the Holocaust held in Central and East European archives. From 1993 until the end of December 2007 the director of the archives was Dr Yaacov Lozowick. After his resignation, the position was filled in January 2008 by Dr Haim Gertner. During recent years a team of archive employees computerized the collections, digitalizing great parts of the documents as well as photo and film archives. Since the Archives as well as other divisions and departments of Yad Vashem are using the same Idea software, it was possible to create an integrated IT system 277, which connects catalogues, databases, scans of documents, maps, photographs, films, victim lists, data on sites of persecution, dictionaries, catalogues of publications, etc., to facilitate comprehensive online searches and retrievals. The Yad Vashem Archives possess many original collections, and thanks to intensive work on copying of archival material from many foreign archives, mainly from Europe, they also have very large quantities of copied archival material available to researchers as well as the general public. However, due to the many legal restrictions, scanned material from foreign archives in many cases may be viewed only in the reading rooms at Yad Vashem, after filling in special forms. B. Diřur, “Problems confronting Yad Washem in its Work of Research”, YVS, 1957, vol. 1, pp. 15-16. D. Silberklařg, “Józef Kermisz (1907-2005) – twórca badań řad SzŚa”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2014, vol. 10, pp. 304-315. 277 The Union archive and library catalogues of other Israeli institutions using the same software with a Hebrew interface can be found at http://www.infocenters.co.il/panorama.asp?site=iic&lang=heb and http://www.kibbutzarchives.org.il/. 275 276 144 FŚllŚwiřg the řatiŚřal camśaigř called “Gatheriřg the Fragmeřts”, mařy HŚlŚcaust survivŚrs ařd their families contributed their personal and family archives to Yad Vashem, thus enriching the archival collections and ensuring proper storage and conservation of the archival material, as well as cataloging and enabling access to this material for researchers and the general public. The Yad Vashem Archives are divided into the following sections: the Documents Archive, the Online Photo Archive and Visual Center Film Database, and the Administrative Archive (which holds internal Yad Vashem documentation). THE DOCUMENTS ARCHIVE This is the largest section of the YVA, which currently holds some 154 million pages of documents. This archive differs from the others in that its collections were not amassed pursuant to administrative decisions resulting in the transfer of documents by designated institutions to form a body of holdings, but were created on the initiative and through the dedication of its team of employees, who recognized the immense significance of the Holocaust and resolved to gather all the documentation possible on the subject. The collections of the Documents Archive are divided into the following groups of records: O – iřdicates “cŚllectiŚř” (iř Hebrew osef), and together with a number forms the basis for the system of identification of the various collections in the YVA, e.g. O.3 – Yad Vashem Testimonies; M – iřdicates “ślace”, Śr “śŚsitiŚř” (iř Hebrew makom), and is used to indicate collections of the same provenance, e.g. M.54 – documents from Poland; P – personal collections; R – Nazi documentation; TR – trial materials; JM, together with a number, indicates microfilms (materials on microfilm may also form part of any collection); VT – video testimonies. At present the YVA has around 220 different record groups, including 50 original collections. Only part of the huge archival material can be searched online, at: http://collections1.yadvashem.org/search.asp?lang=ENG&rsvr=8. There is also a database of Shoah-related lists available online: http://collections1.yadvashem.org/search.asp?lang=ENG&rsvr=17. In order to obtain full information it is recommended that researchers contact Reference and Information Services: ref@yadvashem.org.il or ask for assistence at the reading room at the Yad Vashem Archives. The collections which include materials on the Holocaust in the occupied Polish lands are as follows: 145 M.1 – Central Historical Commission of the Central Committee of Liberated Jews in the US Zone, Munich (CHC). The CHC was established in December 1945 in Munich, and had around 50 branches in various DP (Displaced Persons) camps in Germany. Testimonies were gathered using questiŚřřaires that were distributed tŚ the refugees. After three years’ wŚrk, the CHC was dissolved.278 M.1.E – Testimonies. This is a subsection of collection M.1., which comprises around 2,500 survivor testimonies from a number of countries, including Poland, mostly recorded in Yiddish, German and Polish. These are original testimonies gathered by the CHC in Munich. M.2 – Dr I. Schwarzbart Archive. He was a member of the Polish National Council of the Government-in-Exile in London. This cŚllectiŚř cŚřtaiřs Schwarzbart’s cŚrresśŚřdeřce with PŚlish and Jewish institutions, his diary, protocols, texts of broadcasts he made for the BBC, and materials on the situation of the Jews in occupied Poland. M.9 – Jewish Historical Documentation Center, Linz (Simon Wiesenthal Collection). The Center was set up in 1947 by Simon Wiesenthal, who, after his liberation from Mauthausen concentration camp, devoted himself to tracking down Nazi war criminals. From 1958 onward, successive sections of its archive were transferred to Yad Vashem, some of them in the original. M.10 – The Ringelblum Archives, comprising the subsections AR.1 and AR.2. These are copies of the Riřgelblum Archive held iř A IH iř Warsaw. M.11 – The Bialystok Ghetto Underground Archives (Mersik-Tennenbaum Archives). This collection also falls into two parts: I – documents gathered by the Ghetto Underground Archives, which have beeř giveř the řames Śf the archive’s fŚuřder, MŚrdechaj Teřřeřbaum-Tamaroff, and his deputy, Cwi Mersik; and II – testimonies gathered directly after the war by the Jewish Historical CŚmmissiŚř iř BiałystŚk, which cŚřstitute a very sigřificařt suśślemeřt tŚ the wartime dŚcumeřts. M.17 – Polish Jewish Refugee Fund, Geneva. 279 This collection contains letters from Jewish refugees and forced labourers in labour camps, correspondence and reports on the situation of the refugees, and correspondence relating to the search for information about Jewish refugees by members of their families in Allied countries. 278 Jockusch, Laura, Collect and Record! Help to Write the Jewish History of the latest destruction: Jewish Historical Commissions in Europe 1943-1953, UMI, Ann Arbor, 2007. 279 Cf. B. Eřgelkiřg, J. GrabŚwski, “Warszawscy ydzi wydaleři ze Szwajcarii dŚ GeřeralřegŚ GuberřatŚrstwa. Studium przypadku”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2005, no. 1, pp. 261-272. 146 M.28 – Joint Distribution Committee, Cracow. Among the materials in this record group are cŚrresśŚřdeřce with fŚreigř ŚrgařizatiŚřs, fiřařcial reśŚrts Śf the SS, letters frŚm Jewish mutual aid organizations, reports on the work of the Joint, and others. M.31 – Righteous Among the Nations.280 M.49.E – ZIH Jewish Historical Institute Warsaw Testimonies Collection (collection 301). M.49.P – ZIH Jewish Historical Institute Warsaw Diaries Collection (collection 302). M.54 – National and Provincial Archives in Poland. O.3 – Yad Vashem Collection of Testimonies, gathered by YV from 1954, chiefly in Hebrew, Yiddish, Russian, Polish, German, English, Hungarian and Romanian. The collection contains around 9,000 testimonies by Jewish survivors from across Europe, including many from the Polish lařds. Iř the iřitial years Śf YV’s ŚśeratiŚř they were recŚrded iř writiřg, but Śver time, Śther recording techniques were implemented, above all audio, and more recently video. Those testimonies recorded using audio and/or video technology are also transcribed, and depositions made in languages other than Hebrew are also translated into that language. The collection includes over 1,300 archival items in Polish. O.5 –Tuvia Friedman Collection (Jüdische Historische Dokumentation) Vienna. This centre was founded in Vienna in mid-1946 and over the years amassed large quantities of materials that were used in the trials of the Nazi war criminals. After 1948 it was transferred to Haifa. The collection contains testimonies, statements and correspondence. O.6 – Poland Collection. Comprises varied materials (some original) in Polish, German, Hebrew and English, from donations by survivors and private collections. O.12 – Perlman Testimonies Collection of Refugees from Poland. This is a collection of testimonies (most of them in Hebrew or Yiddish) gathered in Palestine in the years 1942-1943 from refugees from Poland. O.21 – Weichert Collection about Jewish Welfare 281 in the Generalgouvernement. Contains archival documents such as lists of ordinances and legal acts concerning the Jews, as well as testimŚřies ařd śress cuttiřgs, cŚrresśŚřdeřce, reśŚrts Śř the wŚrk Śf the SS, dŚcumeřts relatiřg to the charges of collaboration levelled at Weichert, and the ensuing court case filed against him after the war. Some of Weichert’s papers were transferred to YV in 1958. 280 The subject of the Righteous Among the Nations is addressed in more detail in the latter part of the chapter on Yad Vashem. 281 Cf. Part II of this Guide. 147 O.25 – Documentation about the Polish Government in Exile in London. Most of these highly diverse materials are from the Archive of the Polish Underground Movement Study Trust, the Sikorski Institute, and the Archive of Party History affiliated to the KC PZPR (the original material of which is now in the AAN in Warsaw). They concern the situation of the Jews in occupied Poland, the Warsaw ghetto, and Polish-Jewish relations. There are press cuttings, reports and telegrams from the underground to London, as well as testimonies and documents referencing the major deportation from the Warsaw ghetto to Treblinka, eye-witness accounts of the liquidation of ghettos in occupied Poland, reports on the extermination of the Jews sent to London by the Polish Delegation, etc. O.33 – Various Testimonies, Diaries and Memoirs Collection. Most of these items are in Hebrew, Russian, Yiddish, German, Polish, English, French, Hungarian or Romanian. They are materials given to the YVA by all kinds of individuals, both survivors and family members who have the originals in their family collections. The testimonies in this collection differ from those in record group O.3 in that they are not interviews conducted by Yad Vashem employees or accounts recorded by them, but texts written by the authors themselves. There are also original diaries and memoirs from the Holocaust period, as well as memoirs written after the war. The collection includes over 500 items in Polish. O.34 – N. Zonabend Collection about the Lodz Ghetto. Contains many original posters and public announcements issued by the chairman of the Jewish Ältestenrat (Council of Elders), along with reports on living conditions in the ghetto and other items. The majority of the collection is made up of copies of originals in the YIVO archive in New York. There is a print inventory.282 O.37 – Displaced Persons Collection (She’erit Hapletah). Main languages: German, English, Hebrew and Polish. The materials in Polish include lists of members of Jewish committees, letters from survivors, correspondence of the landsmanshaftn Śf variŚus lŚcatiŚřs, ařd survivŚrs’ śersŚřal documents. O.51 – Nazi Documentation. German documents originating in the RSHA chancellery, the SD, and the SS, including Einsatzgruppen reports, diaries of Nazi leaders, and original documents such as German posters and public announcements. 282 See: Bibliography at the end of this Guide. 148 O.55 – Warsaw Ghetto Archives of Alexander B. Bernfes283 about the Warsaw ghetto and the Polish Government in Exile; it also contains correspondence and personal documents belonging to Bernfes. O.62 – Borwicz Collection. CŚśies Śf testimŚřies gathered by Michał BŚrwicz284 during his work at the Jewish HistŚrical CŚmmissiŚř ( KH) iř KrakŚw. O.75 – Letters and Postcards Collection. This is a collection of correspondence from the interwar, postwar and above all war years. It includes materials in many languages and from various locations – correspondence between family members in the occupied countries and outside Europe. P.5 – W. Jasny Archive about Lodz, Poland. Wolf Jasny was a writer who devoted his life to studyiřg the histŚry Śf the Łód ghettŚ. This cŚllectiŚř iřcludes personal documents, memoirs, correspondence (1945-1968), telegrams and letters, articles on well-known figures, lectures, notes for a dictiŚřary, alśhabetical lists Śf śhysiciařs frŚm the Łód ghettŚ, teachers, ařd Śthers whŚ śerished in the Holocaust. P.16 – Rachel Auerbach285 Collection. Bequest of the writer, Warsaw ghetto underground activist, close collaborator of Dr Emanuel Ringelblum, and member of the group Oneg Shabat. Comprises mostly notes, testimonies and correspondence on the fate of the Jews in the Warsaw ghetto. Many of the dŚcumeřts refer tŚ the questiŚř Śf beiřg iř hidiřg Śř the “Aryař” side iř Warsaw after the liquidation of the ghetto. P.28 – Michal Borwicz Collection (personal documents and correspondence). TR.9 – Auschwitz Trials. Materials from the trials held in Frankfurt am Main in the years 19631966. TR 11 – Israel Police Investigations of Nazi Crimes. The Israeli police created a special unit analogous to the GKBZHwP, or the Extraordinary State Commission (Chrezvychaynaya Gosudarstvennaya Komissya, ChGK) in the Soviet Union, known as the HPN (Hakirot pishe 283 Aleksander Bernfes (b. 1909 in Warsaw), fled Poland via Romania and Spain, reaching London in 1942. He devoted decades Śf wŚrk tŚ amassiřg dŚcumeřts refereřciřg the Warsaw ghettŚ ařd the extermiřatiŚř Śf PŚlařd’s Jewry. He directed the 1966 BBC film Warsaw Ghetto and exhibitions on the subject. He was also the editor of the print publication Śf StrŚŚś’s reśŚrt iř LŚřdŚř iř 1973. 284 Michał Maksymiliař BŚrwicz (real řame BŚruchŚwicz, 1911 Tarřów – 1987 Nice), writer, man of letters, outstanding Holocaust historian. Studied at the Jagiellonian University, worked as a journalist. During the war he was in Lwów; he spent time in the Janowska camp. Later, he fought with the PPS partisan forces. After the war he became involved with the wŚrk Śf the C KH, but iř 19ė7 he left Poland for Paris. He was awarded a doctorate from the Sorbonne, where he worked as a lecturer. He had many works on the Holocaust published. 285 Rachela Auerbach, śs. “Ařiela” (1901 ŁařŚwce – 1976 Jerusalem), translator, journalist, writer, social activist. She studied in Lwów at the Jan Kazimierz University, moving to Warsaw in 1933. In the Warsaw ghetto she joined the underground movement Oneg Shabat, gathering and developing various materials, and keeping a diary of her own. In March 1943 she escaśed frŚm the ghettŚ tŚ the “Aryař” side ařd survived. After the war she wŚrked at the CK P, ařd in 1950 she emigrated to Israel. She worked with YV, and wrote a number of books. 149 Hanatzim – investigations into Nazi crimes), whose task was to gather documentation relating to Nazi crimes. Not having the wherewithal for direct, effective action that would lead to charges being brought against Nazi criminals and their being brought to trial (with the exception of Adolf Eichmann), it focused above all on gathering documents and eye-witness testimonies. The purpose of this was to facilitate the arrest of war criminals by the police forces of other countries and to prepare evidentiary materials for their trials. The commissions also gathered eye-witness testimonies at the request of the police forces of other countries in order to supplement trial materials. For the most part these materials refer to sites where these crimes were committed (concentration camps, extermination camps and labour camps) and to the activities of the various criminals. TR.17 – Main Commission for Investigation of Crimes against the Polish People (now the AIPN). Copies. PHOTO AND FILM ARCHIVES The Photo and Film Archives are an integral part of the YVA that specializes in gathering, cataloguing, conserving, examining and releasing photographic and film materials. These collections include photographic prints, traditional and glass negatives, albums, digital copies of photographs from other archives, etc. The Photo Archive is fully catalogued, and all its photographs, aside from new arrivals, are scanned and may be viewed on computer screens, without the necessity to order the originals from the store. This helps not only to ensure that the original materials are preserved in the right conditions, but also to eliminate the time-consuming process of releasing items in the traditional way. High-definition photographic material may be ordered in digital form for publications. At present the archival collections number some 420,000 photographs, but every year thousands of new ones are received, many of them original photographs, mostly donated by individuals. The majority of new acquisitions, however, are copies from other archives. Most of the Photo Archive is available online at: http://collections1.yadvashem.org/search.asp?lang=ENG&rsvr=7. The Film Database is in possession of tens of thousands of films, most of them video testimonies of Holocaust survivors, documentaries, and feature films. There are also around 240 films in their original format (on film reel). In order to safeguard these original materials, and for greater ease of viewing, the collection is in the process of being transferred onto digital media. At present, the Visual Center has some 50 computer screens on which around 5,000 digitized films are available to watch; the same screens may be used to access the catalogue and, once relevant material is found, to watch it, without the need to 150 order, wait for and physically retrieve original material. The most important items in this archive are the video recordings of survivor testimonies (of which there are several hundred). The online film catalog is available at: http://db.yadvashem.org/films/search.html?language=en. CENTRAL DATABASE OF SHOAH VICTIMS’ NAMES One of the primary aims of Yad Vashem, pursuant to the law of 1953, is to commemorate the victims of the Holocaust. In many cases, above all in Western Europe (the Netherlands, France, Italy, many places in Germany, Terezin, Vienna, and other cities), detailed lists of the names of Jews deported to the concentration camps and extermination camps were compiled during the war. This documentation has survived and is accessible to scholars, family members and other interested parties. The majority of Holocaust victims, however, were transported directly to the extermination camps without any form of registration. Some lists of transports that were made were destroyed by the Germans (e.g. in KL Auschwitz-Birkenau). The people murdered by the Einsatzgruppen in the East, following the German seizure of territories previously occupied by the Soviet Union, were also not registered in any way. Many of those who perished in the labour camps or were murdered during ghetto evacuations or in other circumstances also died nameless. The burial sites of the majority of Holocaust victims are unknown. Only those Jews who died before the mass deportations began had any chance of being buried in accordance with religious rite, though not all of them were. Most were interred in mass graves in a manner debasing their human dignity, or were burned in crematoria ovens or on pyres, which is in violation of Jewish custom. Commemoration of the names of these victims symbolizes a restitution of their honour and a return of the human dignity of which they were stripped. Information on the Central Database of Shoah Victims’ Names is tŚ be fŚuřd iř Part III Śf this Guide. The Ceřtral Database Śf ShŚah Victims’ Names is available online at: http://db.yadvashem.org/names/search.html?language=en. THE RIGHTEOUS AMONG THE NATIONS The foremost aim of Yad Vashem as enshrined in its founding law is the commemoration and perpetuation of testimony to the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust. Also inscribed in the secŚřd śaragraśh Śf that law is the ŚbligatiŚř tŚ hŚřŚur “the high-minded Gentiles who risked their 151 lives tŚ save Jews.”286 In 1963 a special commission chaired by a judge from the Israeli Supreme CŚurt was charged with reviewiřg aśślicatiŚřs ařd awardiřg medals Śf hŚřŚur tŚ the “RighteŚus AmŚřg the NatiŚřs”. This cŚmmissiŚř examiřes all the dŚcumeřtatiŚř iř detail, iřcludiřg the testimonies of the survivors and of eye-witnesses. In order to assess accurately the actions and motivations of the rescuers, it takes into consideration all the circumstances surrounding the story of the rescue, but the most important element is the testimony of the survivors themselves, which is essentially a vital condition of the award of the title. The supplementary information should include a description of the situation in which the contact between the survivor and their rescuer was established, a description of the assistance given, whether and in what form recompense was given for the assistance, and if it was, what amount, and a description of the dangers faced by anyone trying to rescue Jews at that time. Of lesser significance, though of no less interest, are the factors motivating those who extended the assistance – whether humanitarian, religious, etc. – and the attitude of the rescuer to their protégé. Other facts and documents are also of importance, but in the majority of cases the survivors do not have the relevant evidence. From the other angle, the commission gathers all possible materials on a given case, iřcludiřg iřfŚrmatiŚř Śř the rescuer’s character. PeŚśle whŚ iř certaiř situatiŚřs rescued Jews but iř other circumstances persecuted them cannot be honoured. The documentation of the Righteous Among the Nations Department includes information on a very important aspect of the history of the HŚlŚcaust. TŚ date, Śver 2ė,000 śeŚśle have beeř hŚřŚured with the title “RighteŚus AmŚřg the NatiŚřs”, Śver ę,000 Śf them frŚm PŚlařd. Iř receřt years biŚgraśhies Śf the RighteŚus have been published in the series Encyclopedia of the Righteous Among the Nations, one volume of which is devoted to the Righteous from Poland.287 Documentation held in the Department of the Righteous Among the Nations may be released for research purposes on a limited basis and on obtaining the consent of the director of the department. The online database of the Righteous Among the Nations is available http://db.yadvashem.org/righteous/search.html?language=en. 286 Yad Vashem Law (1953), op. cit. The Encyclopedia of the Righteous Among the Nations: Rescuers of Jews during the Holocaust – Poland, Editor-in-Chief: Israel Gutman, volume editors: Sara Bender and Shmuel Krakowski, Yad Vashem, Jerusalem 2004. [Updated Polish edition: Księga Sśrawiedliwych W ród NarŚdŚw wiata. Ratujący ydów śŚdczas Holokaustu: Polska. Vol 1-2, Eds Israel Gutman, Sara Bender, Shmuel Krakowski, Instytut Studiów Strategicznych-Yad Vashem, Kraków, 2009]. 287 152 at: PINKAS HA-KEHILOT (BOOKS OF COMMUNITIES) The publication (in Hebrew) of a series of Jewish community books (Pinkas ha-kehilot – Polin) was one of the fundamental objectives of Yad Vashem. To date, eight such books have been published for Poland.288 These cover the entire territory of the country in its pre-1st September 1939 borders. Each volume takes in entire regions, and profiles the Jewish communities in the various localities from their inception up to the postwar period. The main part covers the period of the Holocaust, though in many cases the information on this subject is insufficiently detailed and documented. Nevertheless, the essential aim of the project – the recreation of the history of the Jewish communities that were annihilated – has been achieved. The various articles offer an overview of the history of the Jewish communities and as such are a good point of departure for further monographic research, though as time elapses and successive studies and publications are undertaken, the information in them is often proved inaccurate. For some countries, these books cover the entire country (e.g. those for Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania and Yugoslavia), while for others (e.g. Germany) only certain regions are taken in. Owing to the restricted accessibility of the information included in these community books (which are published in Hebrew), an initiative was undertaken to publish an abridged, three-volume version in English. 289 In spite of its immense usefulness, however, it has been so abridged that it now comprises only encyclopdia-style entries incorporating around ten percent of the content published or prepared for the publication of the texts in the more than twenty volumes of the Hebrew original. LIBRARY The YV Library gathers all published materials on the Holocaust and related subjects in one of the wŚrld’s largest library cŚllectiŚřs Śř the subject. At śreseřt, it has hŚldiřgs Śf arŚuřd 12Ę,000 titles and out-of-print items in over 54 languages, as well as some 4,000 periodicals. The majority of the books are in German, English and Hebrew, though there are also publications in French, Polish, Pinkas Hakehillot – Polin (Book of communities – Poland), vol. I – Lodz and its region, ed. Dařuta D brŚwska ařd Avraham Wein, Yad Vashem, Jerusalem 1976; Pinkas Hakehillot – Polin, vol. II – Eastern Galicia, ed. Dařuta D brŚwska, Avraham Wein and Aharon Weiss, Yad Vashem, Jerusalem 1980; Pinkas Hakehillot – Polin, vol. III – Western Galicia and Silesia, ed. Avraham Wein and Aharon Weiss, Yad Vashem, Jerusalem 1984; Pinkas Hakehillot – Polin, vol. IV – Warsaw and region, ed. Avraham Wein, Yad Vashem, Jerusalem 1989; Pinkas Hakehillot – Polin, vol. V – Volhynia and Polesie, ed. Shemuel Spector, Yad Vashem, Jerusalem 1990; Pinkas Hakehillot – Polin, vol. VI – Poznan and Pomerania Districts, ed. Avraham Wein, Yad Vashem, Jerusalem 1999; Pinkas Hakehillot – Polin, vol. VII – Lublin, Kielce districts, ed. Avraham Wein, Yad Vashem, Jerusalem 1999; Pinkas Hakehillot – Polin, vol. VIII – Vilna, Bialystok, Novogrodek districts, ed. Shemuel Spector, Yad Vashem, Jerusalem 2005. 289 The Encyclopedia of Jewish Life Before and During the Holocaust, editor-in-chief: Shmuel Spector, consulting editor: Geoffrey Wigoder, foreword by Elie Wiesel, vol. 1-3, Yad Vashem – New York University Press, New York 2001. 288 153 Russian and Yiddish. The library catalogue is fully computerised and permits various kinds of searches: by author, title, keywords and subject, as well as other, more advanced options. Yad Vashem Library catalogue is also part of the ULI (Israel Union Catalogue) and ULS (Union List of Serials) electronic databases, which in turn are accessible via the National Library of Israel portal. The Yad Vashem Library catalogue is available online at: http://db.yadvashem.org/library/search.html?language=en. The YV library and archive share a reading room and study space, and the storage stacks of both departments are in the same building, which means that use of its materials by scholars or the wider public is easier and more convenient than in other similar institutions. Its impressive shelf collection includes the fundamental subject literature, encyclopedias, dictionaries, various other publications, atlases, periodicals and publications comprising documents on the Holocaust, which enables visitors to find information quickly. The rest of its books and periodicals are held in its stacks, and have to be requested. The shelf cŚllectiŚř iř the readiřg rŚŚm alsŚ iřcludes Śře Śf the wŚrld’s largest collections of yizkor (memorial) books of Jewish diaspora communities (landsmanshaftn) (cf. Part II of this Guide). MUSEUM The new YV Museum was officially opened on 15 March 2005. With more than 4,200 m² of exhibition space, it is a multimedia museum that presents the history of the Holocaust from the Jewish perspective, showcasing the personal experiences of the survivors through video testimonies, excerpts from diaries and memoirs, and personal effects. The architecture of the museum, which is located underground almost in its entirety, symbolizes the Holocaust as an unprecedented event that slashed through the fates of both individuals and the history of the entire Jewish nation, severing the thread of continuity between the annihilated Jewish world and the restoration of normal life thereafter. The panorama of contemporary Israel displayed in the final section of the exhibition is an attempt to restore hope for the future. The exhibition is arranged in chronological and thematic order, and includes a rich array not only of original artefacts and facsimiles, but also of modern media technologies screening films and playing testimonies on the Nazi period in Germany and the World War II period. The final section examines the vicissitudes of the survivors, their attempts to rebuild the lives of their families and Jewish communities and organizations, their time spent in DP camps, and their roads to the land of Israel and the creation of a state of their own. 154 Connected to the museum is the Hall of Names, where the names of the Holocaust victims are held. Here again, the architecture offers a symbolic representation of the axis between the abyss and the heavens. The Art Museum displays works by artists made in the unimaginably difficult conditions of the Holocaust, as well as works referencing experiences from that period but executed after the war by survivors and other artists. THE INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR HOLOCAUST RESEARCH The institute was founded in 1993 to encourage Holocaust research by initiating new study projects, providing support to scholars from Israel and abroad (by awarding study grants), organizing cŚřfereřces ařd semiřars, ařd śublishiřg the mŚst receřt research iř the field. The iřstitute’s first director, in the years 1993-1996, was Professor Israel Gutman; he was succeeded in the post by Professor Yehuda Bauer. From August 2000 Professor David Bankier held the post until his death Śř 27 February 2010. Uś tŚ that date, the iřstitute’s chief histŚriař was PrŚfessŚr Dař Michmař. Iř 2011 Prof. Dan Michman became head of the institute and he still holds this position. Since October 2011 Prof. Dina Porat from Tel Aviv University has served as Chief Historian of Yad Vashem. The current director of the institute is Dr. Iael Nidam-Orvieto. Among the most important research projects conducted in the institute have been the many-volume publication The History of the Holocaust; Transports to Extinction: Shoah (Holocaust) Transports Database, “EřcyclŚśedia Śf the GhettŚs”; “The UřtŚld StŚries: The Murder Sites Śf the Jews iř the Occuśied TerritŚries Śf the FŚrmer USSR”, the Encyclopedia of the Righteous Among the Nations; ařd “The Contribution of Survivors to the Building of the State of Israel” as well as “Childreř ařd the HŚlŚcaust”. YAD VASHEM STUDIES This periodical, which has been coming out since 1957, is a forum for presenting the results of Holocaust research conducted by both Israeli and foreign scholars. The editors-in-chief of Yad Vashem Studies (YVS) to date have been, in order, Ben-Zion Dinur, Shaul Esh, Natan Eck, Arie Leon Kubovy, Livia Rothkirchen and Aharon Weiss. The current editor-in-chief is Dr David Silberklang. YVS is published in tandem Hebrew and English editions. 155 INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL FOR HOLOCAUST STUDIES The School for Holocaust Studies was founded with the aim of promoting knowledge about the Holocaust; it educates both Israeli young people and visitors from other countries, and runs courses for teachers. Every year many groups from countries including Poland take part in its two-week seminar programmes. The school has its own immediate-access library, and its instructors prepare sets of educational materials in many European languages; these are also available on the schŚŚl’s website: http://www.yadvashem.org/yv/en/education/index.asp YAD VASHEM – CONTACTS http://www.yadvashem.org/yv/en/about/contacts/contacts.asp Email addresses for the various departments of Yad Vashem: General information: general.information@yadvashem.org.il Reference and Information Services: ref@yadvashem.org.il Ceřtral Database Śf ShŚah Victims’ Names: central.database@yadvashem.org.il Library: library@yadvashem.org.il Museum: museum@yadvashem.org.il International Relations Division: international.relations@yadvashem.org.il Publications: publications.marketing@yadvashem.org.il International Institute for Holocaust Research: Research.institute@yadvashem.org.il International School for Holocaust Studies: international.school@yadvashem.org.il Righteous Among the Nations Department: righteous.nations@yadvashem.org.il Recording Holocaust Survivors' Testimonies: testimonies@yadvashem.org.il Media: media.relations@yadvashem.org.il Visual Center: visual.center@yadvashem.org.il MASSUAH ARCHIVES AND INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF THE HOLOCAUST AT KIBBUTZ TEL YITZCHAK The Massuah Institute was established in the Tel Yitzchak Kibbutz in 1972 by former members of the youth organizations Hanoar Hazioni and Akiva. Its core activity is teaching on the Holocaust. The institute has a library, an archive, a teaching centre, an auditorium, an amphitheatre, and lecture 156 rooms. Its educational and history museum comprises a hall of memory, a permanent exhibition, a multimedia centre and temporary exhibitions. ARCHIVE The Massuah Archive, originally founded as the archive of the youth movements Hanoar Hatzioni and Akiva, gradually expanded and subsumed the archives of several other organizations as well: Hehalutz Haklali Tzioni, Haoved Hatzioni, the Progressive Party, and the Independent Liberals. The iřstitute’s archives are divided into two main sections: the archive of historical documents and Holocaust-era artefacts, and the visual archive. The document archive holds a large collection of Holocaust-period documents and objects, as well as a collection of survivor testimonies. In all, it has some 60,000 archival items in several languages and on a range of subjects. As one of the main objectives of the archive is to commemorate the members of Zionist youth movements, it works to gather all manner of information on members of these organizations who are still alive and those who perished during the Holocaust. Among the documents on the Holocaust referencing the Polish lands and periods close in time to the Shoah are the following: The Hanoar Hatzioni collection; the Akiva collection; the United Hanoar Hatzioni and Akiva collection (from the postwar period); collections on the Hehalutz Haklali-Tzioni, Hashomer Haleumi, Hashomer, and Haoved Hatzioni movements; a collection of documents from the preHolocaust period (documents and photographs referencing Jewish shtetl and family life); collections of objects of religious and of ethnographic significance; a collection of painting relating to Polish Jews; documents and photographs from the ghettos (in particular documents relating to the activities Śf yŚuth mŚvemeřts); dŚcumeřts cŚřřected with the Zagł bie regiŚř, Trzebiřia, ařd the camśs; miscellaneous artefacts from the Holocaust period (camp uniforms, symbols, armbands, silverware); survivor testimonies; and collections relating to survivors – She’erit Haśletah290 (documents from DP camśs, childreř’s hŚmes, ařd Śthers relatiřg tŚ illegal emigratiŚř); mail items – original letters, stamps, postcards (over 6,500) and a unique collection of postal service stamps from the period of the war; a collection referencing commemoration of the Holocaust in Israel and abroad; and a copy of the Eichmann trial files. S. KrakŚwski, “MemŚrial śrŚjects ařd memŚrial iřstitutiŚřs iřitiated by ‘She’erit Haśletah’”, She’erit Haśletah, 19441948: Rehabilitation and Political Struggle, Proceedings of the Sixth Yad Vashem International Historical Conference, Jerusalem, 1985, ed. Yisrael Gutman and Avital Saf, Yad Vashem, Jerusalem 1990, pp. 388-398. 290 157 The visual section of the archives contains drawings, paintings, printed matter, illustrations, reproductions and sculptures made during the Holocaust and in later periods (131 items of this type). The photographic archive numbers some 30,000 items. The Massuah Archive holds detailed testimonies of some 300 Holocaust survivors, altogether about 2,000 hours of film. The Documents Archive uses the Idea software, which is the same as that used by Yad Vashem. The electronic catalogue is accessible on the internet at: http://www.infocenters.co.il/massuah/search.asp?lang=ENG&dlang=HEB&module=search&page =criteria&rsvr=4&param=%3Cuppernav%3Ecomplex%3C/%3E&param2=&site=massuah The online catalog permits searches of documents online. A considerable part of Documents Archive is digitalized and documents marked with an "eye" icon in the catalogue may be viewed online. The archives are continuously receiving new items, mainly from private collections and family archives. Among the document collections referencing the Holocaust (H) are the following291: H 1/3 – birth certificates, Krakow, 1939, H 1/6 – accreditatiŚř letters fŚr śŚlice Śfficers, B dziř, 19ė1, H 1/16 – miscellaneous documents, Warsaw, 1943-1944, H 1/18 – dŚctŚrs’ degree certificates, KrakŚw, 19ė2, H 1/29 – dŚcumeřts Śf the Ikhud HařŚar HatziŚři ŚrgařizatiŚř iř Elbl g, 19ė7-1948, H 1/39 – Polish passports, 1946, H 1/43 – documents connected with Ikhud, H 1/45 – an antisemitic poster, Sosnowiec, 1930s, H 3/1 – miscellaneous documents, Kaunas, 1944, H 4/8 – personal identity documents, Warsaw, 1944, H 4/18 – documents, Warsaw, 1943, H 4/28 – documents, B dziř, 19ė0-1942, H 4/35 – documents, Krakow, 1942, H 4/36 – documents, Krakow, 1943, H 4/42 – emślŚymeřt certificates, Łód , 19ė0, H 5/2 – documents of the underground movement, Sosnowiec, 1943, 291 “The Massuah Archives at Kibbutz Tel Yitzchak”, [iř:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 527-530. 158 H 6/5 – materials relatiřg tŚ surivŚrs, Łód , 19ėę-1949, H 6/12 – Łód , 19ė1, H 6/15 – śersŚřal ideřtity dŚcumeřts, Łód , 19ėė, H 7/3 – miscellaneous documents, Warsaw, Vilnius, Kaunas, 1939-1940, H 7/6 – a ghetto newspaper (Geto Tzaitung), Łód , 19ė1, H 7/9 – śages frŚm “Dzieřřik Justyřy” (Justyřa’s diary), KrakŚw, H 8/1 – anti-Jewish legislatiŚř: JasłŚ, GŚrlice, Warsaw, H 7/17 – the Hanoar Hatzioni front, campaign reports, Komitet Zdrowia (Health Committee), Łód , 19ė3, H 7/26 – śŚlice authŚrizatiŚř śaśers, B dziř, 19ė1, H 7/34 – emślŚymeřt certificates, Łód , 1943-1944, H 9/13 – miscellaneous documents, Krakow, 1939-1940, H 9/18 – employment certificates, Warsaw, 1944, H 9/24 – miscellařeŚus dŚcumeřts, Warsaw, Łód , 19ė3-1946, H 9/35 – miscellaneous documents, Krakow, 1945, H 10/3 – miscellařeŚus dŚcumeřts, B dzin, n.d., H 10/9 – miscellařeŚus dŚcumeřts, B dziř, 19ė2, H 10/13 – emślŚymeřt śermits, Łód , 19ė2, H 10/24 – miscellaneous documents, Warsaw, 1943. EDUCATION CENTER AND LIBRARY The iřstitute’s library, which at Śřce serves as its educatiŚř ceřtre, is fully computerized and indexed to its databases. Its collections include books, periodicals, educational software, sets of materials on particular subjects, documentary films and video survivor testimonies, press cuttings, and other visual materials. The subjects of the collections are the Holocaust period, the Jewish world before the war, antisemitism, racism and genocide before and after the Holocaust, and the universal aspects of all these issues. There are also specialist materials on ways to teach about the Holocaust. The library contains some 10,000 items. MORESHET – MORDECHAI ANIELEVICH MEMORIAL HOLOCAUST STUDY AND RESEARCH CENTER http://www.moreshet.org/?CategoryID=188 159 Moreshet – Mordechai Anielevich Memorial Holocaust Study and Research Center was founded in 1963 by a group of Jewish partisans and ghetto fighters who emigrated to Israel after the war. Their leader was Abba Kovner, one of the commanders of the Jewish underground in the Vilnius ghetto (FPO – Fareynikte Partizaner Organizatsye, the United Partisan Organization), and on leaving the ghetto the commander of one of the Jewish partisan units operating in the forest in the Vilnius region. This group undertook the formidable task of collating and handing down to subsequent generations testimonies and artefacts from the Holocaust period commemorating the Jewish struggle and resistance. In this they were carrying out the will not only of those partisans and fighters who survived, but also of many of those who did not. The Moreshet Center showcases the organized Jewish resistance during the Holocaust, in particular the role played by the young and by Jewish youth movements in Nazi-occupied Europe. Its present-day work is heavily weighted toward contact with young people, organizing seminars and meetings aimed at this audience. In this way it aims to build a bridge between the generation of Jews who lived through the Holocaust as young people, and the youth of today. It was often very young people who played leading roles in Jewish underground organizations – most of them members or leaders of a range of youth organizations. Moreshet profiles these people, their work, and the problems they faced. It asks questions, for instance, about their responsibility for the rest of Jewish society, those who were not able to take part in the armed struggle, but could be affected by subsequent repressions. Today Moreshet is above all an educatiŚřal ařd research ceřtre. It is lŚcated iř Giv’at Haviva, which is itself named in honour of Haviva Reik, a female member of Hashomer Hatzair born in Slovakia. During the war Reik joined the British army, and on 21 September 1944 was dropped, with a parachute unit from Palestine, into German-occupied territory to bring aid and support to the persecuted Jews, and to organize armed resistance. On 20 November 1944 she was arrested by the Germans and murdered. The centre, which is reminiscent of a university campus, offers a peaceful, reflective setting in which to conduct scholarly research and work with young people. Since 1963 Moreshet has published a scientific journal, Yalkut Moreshet (in Hebrew), and many publications in book form. ARCHIVE The Moreshet Archive holds documents and sources donated to it by survivors. Its collections are constantly being augmented by new acquisitions. Among recent new additions is a collection of unique documents belonging to Abba Kovner and David Gur, two leaders of the Jewish 160 underground, in Poland and Hungary, respectively. Other personal collections include those of Rozka Korczak, Chaike Grossman, Shalom Cholawsky, and Yehoshua Buechler. The collections are divided into the following types of materials: - Testimonies and Memoires (RG A) - Personal documents and private archives (bequests) of Holocaust survivors (RG C) - Documents, letters and journals (RG D.1) - Artworks and literature (RG D.7) - Photographs (RG D.4) - Jewish and non-Jewish newspapers (RG D.5) - Memorial books (yizkor-bikher) of European Jewish communities (RG K) - Manuscripts, including academic studies, seminar papers, MA theses and PhD dissertations, as well as personal diaries of the survivors (RG D.2) - Video tapes (RG I) - Audio tapes (RG G) - Memorabilia (RG D.3) - Inventory and catalogues (RG E) THE GHETTO FIGHTERS’ HOUSE. KIBBUTŃ LOCHAMEI HA’GETAOT The GhettŚ Fighters’ HŚuse – Itzhak Katzenelson Holocaust and Jewish Resistance Heritage Museum was founded in 1949 by a community of Holocaust survivors who had been members of the underground in ghettos in Poland, and fighters in partisan units. The purpose of the Ghetto Fighters’ HŚuse was tŚ shŚwcase the struggle Śf the Jewish řatiŚř agaiřst the Nazis, iř the ghettŚs, in partisan detachments, and in the ranks of the Allied armies, and to commemorate those who perished. It was the first museum in the world to be devoted entirely to commemoration of the HŚlŚcaust ařd Jewish resistařce. The GhettŚ Fighters’ Museum alsŚ has a brŚad rařge Śf educational projects aimed at young people and adults in Israel and abroad. MUSEUM The GhettŚ Fighters’ Museum has several śermařeřt exhibitiŚřs illustratiřg the śrewar life Śf EurŚśe’s Jewish cŚmmuřities, the life ařd struggle Śf the Jews duriřg the HŚlocaust, and the return tŚ “řŚrmal” life after the war. Other exhibitiŚřs are devŚted tŚ artwŚrks Śř the theme Śf the Holocaust, and works executed by Jewish artists who survived the Shoah. 161 LIBRARY The GhettŚ Fighters’ HŚuse Library was established tŚ gather and preserve all forms of printed matter connected with the Holocaust and the Jewish resistance movement during World War II. At present it numbers around 50,000 volumes in Hebrew, English and many other languages; it also has a group of special collections. All its holdings are computerized, and searches for relevant material may be made on site. Among its special collections are memorial books (yizkor-bikher) of Jewish communities, published testimonies and memoirs, studies, photograph albums, literary works, collections on antisemitism and Nazi ideology, publications of literature in Yiddish, educational śrŚgrammes, ařd films. The first bŚŚks were dŚřated tŚ the GhettŚ Fighters’ HŚuse Library by members of the kibbutz themselves, from their own private collections. Most of these were books published in Polish, Yiddish and Russian shortly after the war. Many of them were given by Icchak (Antek) Cukierman. 292 Iř the iřitial years Śf its ŚśeratiŚř, the GhettŚ Fighters’ HŚuse had řŚ external sources of financing and could not make purchases, and so the majority of its acquisitions were sourced from donations from individuals or institutions. In the 1950s the Jewish National Library received the private libraries of Jews that had been confiscated by the Nazis; sent to Israel on ař iřitiative Śf the WŚrld Jewish CŚřgress, mařy Śf them were śassed Śř tŚ the GhettŚ Fighters’ House Library. The Library holds publications on the following subjects: – the theory of racism, Nazi ideology and Nazi publications, – Nazi propaganda, – publications released by the Schocken publishing house in the period 1931-1939, – collections of issues of Der Stürmer and books for children and young people published by the Stürmer Verlag publishing house, – books containing speeches by Goebbels, Goering, Rosenberg and others. Icchak Cukiermař, śs. “Ařtek” (191Ę Vilřius – 1981 Israel, Lochamei ha-Getaot kibbutz), Zionist activist, one of the leaders of the underground movement in the Warsaw ghetto, husband of Cywia Lubetkin. Active in the Hehalutz and DrŚr mŚvemeřts. Member Śf the Jewish CŚmbat OrgařizatiŚř ( OB) High CŚmmařd ařd a OB liaisŚř with the AK and the PPR. During the uprising he coordinated aid for the fighters, which chiefly involved leading the few survivors Śut Śf the ghettŚ thrŚugh the sewers. After the war he was a member Śf the CK P Presidium, ařd a cŚ-organizer of the clařdestiře emigratiŚř ŚśeratiŚř Berihah. He himself emigrated iř 19ėę, ařd with his wife fŚuřded the GhettŚ Fighters’ House kibbutz. He appeared as a witness at the Eichmann Trial. Author of many books and articles. 292 162 Iř later śeriŚds the emślŚyees Śf the GhettŚ Fighters’ HŚuse Library actively sŚught Śut řew publications on the Holocaust and gradually augmented their collections. Over the subsequent years, many people and institutions donated books to the library free of charge, in this way adding to its collections. THE GHETTO FIGHTERS’ HOUSE ARCHIVE The GhettŚ Fighters’ HŚuse archive hŚlds Śver 2,Ę00,000 items, iřcludiřg letters, certificates, diaries and written, audio and video testimonies, films, photographs and displays. The archive collections cover the history of the Jewish nation during the first half of the twentieth century and a wide range of other areas such as its spiritual life, traditions and religion, society, education, economics, HŚlŚcaust ařd resistařce, ařd the řatiŚř’s revival iř the Lařd Śf Israel. The Documents Archive uses the Idea software, which is also used by the Yad Vashem and Massuah archives. The archive catalogue is accessible online at: http://iis.infocenters.co.il/gfh/search.asp?lang=ENG&dlang=ENG&module=search&page=criteri a&rsvr=1&param=%3Cuppernav%3Eglobal%3C/%3E&param2=&site=gfh Currently over 250,000 items are available on line, including albums of rescued children (Coordinatsia Collection), as well as other Holocaust-related albums, the Holland archive, and the Adolf Berman Collection, which documents the underground rescue operation of Polish Jewry after the Warsaw ghetto uprising. The archive continues to collect objects from the Holocaust period such as: letters, diaries and memoirs, certificates of active combat against the Nazis, fŚrged “Aryař” identification certificates, medals, arms, ghetto currency, maps, tools, household appliances, and all kinds of other objects. THE AMERICAN-JEWISH JOINT DISTRIBUTION COMMITTEE ARCHIVES IN JERUSALEM The American Joint Distribution Committee (AJDC) was founded in 1914. The AJDC Archive documents not only its own activities but also significant events affecting the fate of the Jews in the countries of Europe and throughout the world. It has amassed documents on the subjects of aid exteřded tŚ Jewish refugees after Hitler’s rise tŚ śŚwer iř Germařy iř 1933, aid śrŚvided tŚ Jews iř the occupied territories during World War II, and later aid to Holocaust survivors in various countries. The archive collects a wide range of materials: 163 – documents including AJDC protocols and reports, descriptions of aid programmes and their implementation, personal documents, private letters, consignment documents, correspondence, etc., – photographs related to Jewish communities, – books, some of them unique, – audio recordings of eye-witness testimonies and interviews, – unique artefacts, printed matter and manuscripts. The AJDC archive is also in possession of documents referring to the efforts undertaken by that organization to save Jews during World War II, catalogues of those who received assistance in crossing the Spanish border, documents about the St. Louis (a ship that ferried refugees), registration cards of Holocaust survivors to whom the AJDC gave aid during the postwar emigration operation, documents referring to confiscated property, etc. The collections that contain documentation relating to the Polish lands are the following293: – Geneva Collection (1945-1970): reports, correspondence and press cuttings on Jewish life in Poland and the work of the AJDC in Poland, emigration of Jewish survivors from Poland, lists of survivors, – Istanbul Collection (1944-1947): correspondence between the AJDC office in Istanbul and representatives of the organization in Poland, lists of aid dispatched to Poland, lists of survivors, – Malben Collection (1945-1948): reports, correspondence and press cuttings on the conditions in postwar Poland, dispatch of aid consignments from Palestine to Poland, – Photographic collection (pre-1939 and post-1944): contains around 150 photographs connected with Poland, above all from the postwar period, – Films (1946): documentary recordings from Poland after the war, and some from the pre-war period, – MicrŚfilms Śf sŚme Śf the recŚrd grŚuśs at A IH. THE NATIONAL LIBRARY OF ISRAEL The National Library of Israel (NLI - formerly known as the Jewish National and University Library – JNUL) serves two primary purposes: it is the National Library of the State of Israel and the National Library of the Jewish Nation. As the National Library it is under obligation to collect all materials printed in Israel. It also collects and acquires foreign publications about Israel. Israeli Cf. S. KadŚsh, “American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee Archives in Jerusalem. RecŚrds Śř PŚlařd”, [in:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 487-488. 293 164 printed matter on all subjects is collected in the library irrespective of format, language, literary value, or political or social orientation. The same is true of periodicals, both national and local newspapers, bulletins, and the papers of trade unions, specialist professional organizations, youth movements, schools, etc. The National Library of Israel also amasses books, periodicals, manuscripts and documents, audio recordings, maps and photographs, etc., that pertain to the history of the Jewish nation, its culture, various aspects of the life of its society, its languages, schooling system, scientific activity, religion, folklore, philosophy, literature, and so on. This refers to materials in all the Jewish languages, esp. Hebrew, Yiddish and Ladino. The library also collects publications on the history and culture of the countries in which Jews have lived. At preseřt, the NatiŚřal Library’s “Hebraica” ařd “Judaica” cŚllectiŚřs are the largest Śf their tyśe iř the wŚrld. The NatiŚřal Library was fŚuřded iř 1892 as a world centre for collecting and storing books on Jewish thought and culture. Until recently the National Library of Israel functioned as the Central University Library, following the creation of the Hebrew University in 1925. Recently the National Library of Israel has become an independent organisation, but remains under the partial supervision of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. THE NATIONAL LIBRARY OF ISRAEL ARCHIVE From its inception and in addition to various kinds of printed matter, the Jewish National and University Library, recently renamed the National Library of Israel, has also amassed other materials, above all collections and bequests of people who have played an important role in history and culture, in particular writers and Jewish social activists. For many years the National Library was the only institution of its type in the Land of Israel, and later in the State of Israel, that collected materials of this type. The first important collection of documents it acquired was the personal archive of the well-křŚwř writer Ahad Ha’am, which came iřtŚ its śŚssessiŚř after his death iř 1927. The archive’s website (http://web.nli.org.il/sites/NLI/English/collections/personalsites/Pages/default.aspx) displays a list of some 400 bequests and private collections, mostly of Jews, leading figures in various fields – Zionist leaders, rabbis, writers, scientists, philosophers, poets, journalists, critics, musicians, and others. These collections vary in the numbers of documents they contain, from small units comprising personal documents and letters, to collections running to well over ten linear metres of archive space, and include personal documents, diaries, letters, manuscripts, etc. Some bequests, such as thŚse Śf Martiř Buber, Albert Eiřsteiř ařd Shmuel YŚsef AgřŚř, alsŚ iřclude their fŚuřders’ personal libraries. The contents of most of the bequests have been profiled, but because new 165 materials are constantly being added, they are not registered in the card catalogue. Many of the bequests are of unique significance not only for Jewish culture but also for world cultural heritage. The archives hold relatively few documents referring to the Holocaust in the Polish lands, but these themes do feature in the bequests of Yiddish writers and poets originally from Poland. Among these are precious documents originally belonging to famous people such as Ida Fink, a writer born in Zbara (řŚw Zbarazh, Ukraiře), ařd authŚr Śf bŚŚks iř PŚlish abŚut the HŚlŚcaust; Michał Weichert, the chairmař Śf the SS iř the GG; ařd Abraham Sutzkever, a writer ařd śŚet writiřg iř Yiddish, underground activist in the Vilnius ghetto, and, following his escape from the ghetto, member of the partisan movement. The Index of Articles on Jewish Studies (RAMBI), Izrael: http://aleph.nli.org.il/F?func=find-b-0&local_base=rmb01. RAMBI is the Iřdex Śf Articles frŚm the Field Śf Jewish Studies (Reshimat Ma’amarim Be-Madae Ha-Yahadut), which was created in 1966. It comprises a selected bibliography of articles from various fields of Jewish studies and studies connected with the Land of Israel (Eretz Israel). The material entered into this database is taken from thousands of periodicals and collections of articles in a range of languages, among them Hebrew and Yiddish. For the most part the articles come from the National Library in Jerusalem, which has one of the largest collections of printed materials in Hebrew and Yiddish in the world, and a huge collection of books and periodicals from the field of Jewish studies. The main criterion for inclusion of an article in this database is a basis in scholarly research or inclusion of important information on studies of this nature. The aim of the team coordinating this project is the inclusion in the database of all significant articles on Jewish studies published anywhere. Since the National Library does not subscribe to all periodicals, off-prints of articles from various other śeriŚdicals are alsŚ iřcluded. Iř the iřitial years Śf RAMBI’s activity, information on the subject of the articles was published in successive volumes of a bibliography. Since 1985 RAMBI has been operating as an electronic database using the ALEPH software employed by the network of academic and scientific libraries in Israel. Since 2000 it has been accessible online. Moreover, in 2001 the 50th volume of the RAMBI bibliography was also published. In view of the ease of accessibility of the database on the internet, however, this project is no longer published in a hard copy version. Typically, the information on each article includes: authŚr’s řame, title, abbreviated řame Śf the sŚurce Śf the śublicatiŚř, vŚlume řumber, editiŚř, year 166 of publication, pages, subject classification, full name of source, place and date of publication, and language of article. It should be noted that every entry in RAMBI has two subject classifications: the first is the general classification by field (e.g. the Bible, the diaspora, philosophy), and the second is the detailed classification by subject within a given field (e.g. the Book of Genesis: 1; USA: education; Maimonides: Moreh nevuchim [Guide for the Perplexed]). A combination of both these classifications by subject produces the best results, both in searches and in profiling articles. LEKKET, Izrael http://www.lekket.com [currently inoperative] LEKKET is an internet database containing articles on Jewish studies; it is accessible by both scholars and the wider public. It allows users to search for articles in Hebrew and English, by author and by key words relating to title, content and author. After the article is found, the full text may be opened in PDF format. The database was created and is operated by the World Union of Jewish Studies in cooperation with Yad Vashem, the Claims Conference, and the Israeli Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport. Texts are selected and classified by commissions of experts in the various fields of Jewish studies. The purpose of this database is to make available salient articles from various fields within the broad field of Jewish studies. The database contains most of the texts (aside from the last few years) from the periodical published by YV, Yad Vashem Studies. Other texts are sourced from periodicals and collections of articles published in book form. Jewish Historical Press http://web.nli.org.il/sites/JPress/English/Pages/default.aspx This site contains a collection of Jewish newspapers published in various countries, languages, and times. We display digital versions of each paper, making it possible to view the papers in their original layout. A full-text search is also available for all content published throughout the period of each řewsśaśer’s śublicatiŚř. AlthŚugh the śress cŚvers lŚřg śeriŚds Śf time siřce the middle Śf the nineteenth century, it also extends to the interwar and Holocaust periods. Israel Collection http://web.nli.org.il/sites/NLI/English/collections/israel-collection/Pages/default.aspx The Israel Collection covers several subject areas: Zionism; the Arab-Israeli conflict; social and historical issues; Israel in international relations; tourism; the arts; minority groups; archeology; 167 literature about Israel in languages other than Hebrew; Hebrew literature translated into other languages; journalism; and Israel-related official publications issued by international organizations. The Israel Collection includes newspapers, periodicals, maps, audio-visual material, posters, films, DVDs, ephemera, photographs, and the personal archives of prominent individuals in the fields of culture, philosophy and art. THE CENTRAL ZIONIST ARCHIVES The Central Zionist Archives are the official archives of the Zionist movement and gather materials chiefly relating to its history and activities, and also materials connected with the history of the Jewish nation in the past century. To this end it collects, stores and provides access to files of the World Zionist Organization, the Jewish Agency, the Jewish National Fund and Keren Hayesod, the World Jewish Congress, and other organizations. The Central Zionist Archives also gather bequests of individual Zionist activists and others who made a significant contribution to the development of Palestine (the Land of Israel) and the State of Israel. The collections are divided into two categories: institutional archives and private collections. There were offices of the World Zionist Organization in Warsaw, Vilnius, BiałystŚk, KrakŚw ařd Łód , ařd therefŚre a large śrŚśŚrtiŚř Śf the archival documentation references the Polish lands. Among the most important groups of documents are the following: – correspondence between the offices in London, New York and Jerusalem and the headquarters of the Zionist movement in Warsaw, – prewar documents from the Emigration Office in Warsaw (RG L36), – hundreds of bequests of members of the Zionist movement, among them those of Nahum Sokolow (RG A18) and Izaak Grünbaum, the leader of the Zionist movement in Poland (RG A127, S46), – Representation of Polish Jewry (RG J25), – Association of Immigrants from Poland, Tel Aviv, 1940-1959 (RG J20), – The Revisionist Movement (RG F17). Searches of material in the Central Zionist Archives are possible on the internet at: http://www.zionistarchives.org.il/en/Pages/AdvancedSearch.aspx?ts=archive , but as descriptions of both record groups and individual items are very short, searches may produce only partial results. For this reason, contact with archive employees is recommended. 168 JABOTINSKY INSTITUTE IN ISRAEL http://www.jabotinsky.org/hebsite/content/T2.asp?Pid=119&Sid=4 http://www.infocenters.co.il/panorama.asp?site=iic&lang=heb The Jabotinsky Institute was founded in 1933 to gather and store documents, publications and photographs connected with the leader of the Zionist-RevisiŚřist mŚvemeřt Ze’ev Vladimir Jabotinsky294 and the revisionist movement. Its archive holds documents belonging to Jabotinsky and his family; other leaders of the revisionist movement; the archives of branches of various revisionist organizations in several countries, such as the Union of Zionists Revisionists (Ha-Tzohar), the New Zionist Organization (NZO), the Betar youth organization, the National Labor Federation, and the Keren Tel-Hai Foundation; those of various committees and leagues, among them the Jewish Marine League, the Hebrew Committee for National Liberation, the Herut movement and the Likud; and those of the Jewish Military Organization (Irgun Tzvai Leumi, IZL), the Fighters for the Freedom of Israel (Lochamei Herut Israel, Lehi), and the illegal immigration movement Aliyah Bet. The Jabotinsky Institute Archives also hold materials referencing the Holocaust period, among them a recŚrd grŚuś Śř the ydŚwski Zwi zek WŚjskŚwy (Jewish Military UřiŚř, ZW) iř the Warsaw ghetto, a collection of other documents relating to the Holocaust, a collection of depositions relating to the fates of revisionists during the Holocaust, and a collection on the Betar organization in Lithuania, where many people fled from Poland after September 1939. Enquiries may be directed by e-mail to: archive@jabotinsky.org. The Archive director is Amira Stern: amira_stern@jabotinsky.org. CENTRAL ARCHIVES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE JEWISH PEOPLE The Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People were founded in 1939 as the Jewish Historical General Archives, and reformed as the Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People in 1969. The purpose of the archives is to document the history of the Jewish nation. They primarily gather materials relating to Jews dating from before 1939, though there are also documents in the collections from the World War II and postwar periods. They comprise three main sections: original materials, archive inventories, and microfilms of documents in other archives. The materials are ordered geographically, by country of origin, according to the political divisions of the prewar Ze’ev Vladimir JabŚtiřsky (1880 Odessa – 1940 New York), Zionist ativist, founder and leader of the New Zionist Organization, writer, poet, translator and journalist. In 1925 he assumed the leadership of the World Union of ZionistsRevisionists. He believed that all the efforts of the Zionist movement should be focused on establishing a Jewish state and on orchestrating the mass emigration of the Jews. During World War II he made active endeavours to have Jewish units created to fight alongside the Allied armies; cf. PŚlski słŚwnik judaistyczny. Dzieje, kultura, religia, ludzie, compiled by Z. BŚrzymińska, R. ebrŚwski, Warsaw 2003, vŚl. 2, śś. 8ė9-850. 294 169 (interwar) period, and within each country by the Jewish communities there. Online searches according to collection type, country and search terms are available at: https://cahjp.huji.ac.il/search-holdings. For more precise information requests should be sent to the archives (cahjp@nli.org.il). ISRAEL STATE ARCHIVES – GINZAH HA-MEDINA The Israel State Archives were founded in 1949, a year after the creation of the State of Israel, as a repository for documents of the Palestinian state administration from the Ottoman and British Mandate periods, as well as Israeli state administration documents. One of the collections, Government of Palestine – Department of Immigration 1920-1948 (RG 1), holds numerous documents connected with immigration to Palestine, arrivals statistics, data on the conditions of adaptation and assimilation, economic figures, information on labour conditions, etc. THE ARCHIVES OF THE GOLDSTEIN-GOREN DIASPORA RESEARCH CENTER This archive collects documents and other materials (e.g. manuscripts, posters, microfilms, objects) connected with the history of the Jewish people in the diaspora and the Land of Israel. These are in the main donations comprising personal documents. Some of its materials originated with important activists, historians or writers, or with Jewish organizations and various types of institutions. The materials in the archive are divided into a number of groups: A – institutions and organizations, P – donations from private individuals and bequests, T – collections relating to specific regions or countries in their borders as of 1 January 1938, D – publications by various institutions and organizations not intended for widespread distribution (bulletins, operational and other reports, protocols, brochures), Among the collections containing materials on the Holocaust in the Polish lands295 are the following: A-3 The Collection of the National Council Publications of Moshe Attias (Jewish National Council in Palestine, Waad ha-Leumi, 1920-1948), A-18 The Bialystoker Center and Home for the Aged, New York (Archive of the Union of Bialystok Refugees in New York, 1920-1960), G. Pasechřik, “Sources on the History of the Polish Jews in the Diaspora Research Institute, Tel Aviv Uřiversity”, [in:] ródła archiwalne dŚ dziejów ydów w PŚlsce, op. cit., pp. 489-496. 295 170 A-19 The Archive of the Piotrkow Society in Israel, containing documents on the Holocaust history of this community, P-21 The Archive of Rabbi Dr David Kahane296, containing items including documents generated by the military rabbiřate iř PŚlařd ařd the Rada Gmiř ydowskich (Council of Jewish Communities) in Poland during the period 1944-1948, sermons and correspondence, and materials on the Kielce pogrom, P-24 The Archive of Artur Eisenbach297 on the history of the Polish Jews during the Holocaust, with particular reference to the Warsaw ghetto uprising, P-66 The Raphael Mahler298 Bequest, P-70 The Adolf Berman299 Bequest, which contains materials on the history of the Polish Jews during the Holocaust and after the war, P-73 The Samuel Schneiderman300 Bequest, which includes materials in Yiddish, T-32 A collection of files relating to Poland in the years 1858-1999, D-32 A collection of printed materials on Jewish organizations in Poland in the years 1895-1998. David Kahane (1903 Grzywna – 1998 Tel Aviv), rabbi. Studied in Breslau and Berlin, and worked as a rabbi in Tykocin and Lwów. During the war he was a member of the Lwów Judenrat. Rescued by Archbishop Andrzej Szeptycki, he went into hiding in a series of monasteries. From 1944 he served in the Polish Army in the USSR in the rank of major; on his return to Poland he was appointed chief rabbi of the Polish Army. When the military rabbinate was abolished in Poland he emigrated to Israel (1949), where his appointments included chief rabbi of the air force. In the years 19671975 he served as chief rabbi of Argentina. He is the author of a number of testimonies and books. 297 Artur (ArŚř) Eiseřbach (190ę NŚwy S cz – 1992 Tel Aviv), eminent historian. He went to school in Vilnius and later lived in Krakow and Bielsko; in 1931 he married the sister of Emanuel Ringelblum. He studied at the Jagiellonian University and the University of Warsaw, embarked on an academic career and was an active member of the Health Protection Society (TOZ). In September 1939 he and his wife fled to her native city of Buczacz (Buchach), and he spent the subsequent years in the USSR. His wife and daughter perished in 1942. Eisenbach returned to Poland in 1946 and wŚrked fŚr the CK H, ařd later at IH (as its directŚr iř the years 19ęę-1968); he was also a member of the Institute of History at the Polish Academy of Sciences (IH PAN), within which he conducted research on the Holocaust. In 1987 he emigrated to Israel, where he committed suicide. 298 Rafał Mahler (1899 NŚwy S cz – 1977 Tel Aviv), historian, philosopher. He studied in Vienna, and worked in Warsaw as a teacher. He became involved in YIVO, and in 1937 emigrated to the USA and in 1950 to Israel, where he worked at the university in Tel Aviv. 299 Adolf (Abram) Berman (1906 Warsaw – 1978 Izrael), Zionist activist, one of the leaders of the Jewish underground during World War II. With an education in philosophy and psychology, he worked as a teacher, and also conducted scholarly research. He was one of the leaders of the Blok Antyfaszystowski (Anti-Fascist Bloc) founded in 1942. In 1942 he left the Warsaw ghetto and went into hiding; he was a member Śf the Jewish NatiŚřal CŚuřcil ařd egŚta. After the war he became a member of the Krajowa Rada Narodowa (State National Council, KRN) and the Presidium of the CK P. He sŚught the cŚřseřt Śf the PŚlish authŚrities tŚ emigratiŚř fŚr Jews. Iř 19Ę0 he himself emigrated to Israel, where he was a deputy to the Knesset for the party Mapam. He wrote his memoirs. 300 Samuel Lejb Schneiderman (Sznajderman, Shneiderman), (1906 Kazimierz Dolny – 1996 Tel Aviv), journalist and writer, a correspondent for Nasz Przegląd, Haynt, Chwila and other papers; in 1940 he went to the USA. After the war he visited Poland several times, and recorded his impressions in a book published as Tzvishn shrek un hofnung: a rayse iber nayen Poylin. He wrote many other books and pieces of reportage; among his subjects was the artist Artur Szyk. 296 171 THE ORAL HISTORY DIVISION. THE AVRAHAM HARMAN INSTITUTE OF CONTEMPORARY JEWRY. THE HEBREW UNIVERSITY The Oral History Division was established in 1959 and has since conducted over 10,000 interviews in 20 languages as part of some 259 research projects run by the institute, often in cooperation with other institutions and groups external to the university. The Oral History Division was one of the first institutions to draw attention to the value of the oral testimony, and since its inception has been the leading authority in this field in terms of number of subjects, temporal scope and geographical reach. Its website lists the projects that have produced the largest numbers of interviews. 301 The division also trains students in conducting interviews, and its employees were behind the establishment of the Israeli Oral History Society, whose self-stated objective is to coordinate similar joint projects by organizations that gather and archive oral history documentation. The society also promotes the use of oral history in scientific research, and furthers the theory and practice of conducting and gathering interviews. The long-standing head of the Oral History Division, Professor Dov Levin, is also the president of the society. The online catalogue is available at: http://aleph500.huji.ac.il/F/?func=file&file_name=find-b&local_base=hdohd&con_lng=eng . DOCUMENTATION CENTER IN JEWISH DEMOGRAPHY AND STATISTICS The Documentation Center in Jewish Demography and Statistics has large numbers of books, articles and other research materials relating to Jewish demography. Of especial value are its documents referring to the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and it also offers access to population census data. Its large database includes over 20,000 publications on historical and contemporary demographics. THE WIENER LIBRARY COLLECTION302 The Wiener Collection was founded in Amsterdam in 1933 by Dr Alfred Wiener, a German scholar, journalist, bibliophile and businessman. Wiener was born on 16 March 1885 in Potsdam. After Hitler’s rise tŚ śŚwer, he left Germařy ařd settled iř Amsterdam. Iř the face Śf the Nazi threat, he decided to devote himself to documenting the Nazi movement in order to expose its true face. His aim in this one-man crusade against Nazism was to ensure that documents were preserved for future generations. The materials he gathered were intended to serve an informative purpose, and were to 301 The Oral HistŚry DivisiŚř Śf the Hebrew Uřiversity’s Iřstitute Śf CŚřtemśŚrary Jewry: http://icj.huji.ac.il/archives_ohd.asp. 302 B. Barkow, Alfred Wiener and the making of the Holocaust Library, Vallentine Mitchell, London 1997. 172 be accessible to the general public. Together with Dr David Cohen of the University of Amsterdam, he founded the Jewish Central Information Office (JCIO). In 1939 Wiener removed himself and his collection to London, where, on the eve of the war, his library was opened to the public. Over the course of the war, his collections swelled considerably, and the institution itself evolved into an important archival, information and research centre. Wiener continued to run it himself until his death (4 February 1964). During the war, the UK Ministry of Information and the Allied governments made exteřsive use Śf his cŚllectiŚřs; mařy Śf the BBC’s cŚuřter-propaganda successes may be attributed to the thorough, reliable information amassed by Wiener. After the war, a team of employees of the library and information office worked intensively to expand and enrich the collections and gather further data. The Wiener Collection also played a significant role in the preparation of trial materials for the International Military Tribunal in Nuremberg, and it has continued to serve British courts, mass media, scholars and students across the world. In 1980 the originals of the historical collection were removed from London to the university in Tel Aviv. Constantly being augmented, it contains publications on the Third Reich, Europe, the extermination of the Jews, and antisemitism and fascism all over the world. At present the Wiener Library has holdings comprising some 150,000 books, reference publications, pamphlets and periodicals; around a million catalogued press cuttings; unpublished memoirs and interviews; about 40,000 documents on the Nuremberg Trials; various editions of the Protocols of the Elders of Zion and extensive secondary literature on this subject; a dossier Śř war crimiřals; dŚcumeřts relatiřg tŚ the “Jewish questiŚř” frŚm GestaśŚ files, the chancellery of the Third Reich and its ministry of foreign affairs; more than 500 microfilms and microfiches; and 300 periodical titles relating to the Holocaust and Holocaust denial. The building of the Wiener Collection on the campus of the university in Tel Aviv hosts many iřterřatiŚřal cŚřfereřces ařd meetiřgs. Wheř the majŚrity Śf Wieřer’s cŚllectiŚřs were mŚved tŚ Tel Aviv, sŚme Śf the library’s stŚcks remaiřed iř LŚřdŚř, alŚřg with micrŚfilms Śf the archive materials. After Wieřer’s death PrŚfessŚr Walter Laqueur was appointed director of the library, and he worked hard to source funding for the library. In 1964 Laqueur launched a Journal of Contemporary History and opened the Institute of Contemporary History. At present the Wiener Library in London is in the process of expanding its collections (it hold copies of the material sent to Tel Aviv in 1980), and is acquiring new archival materials and books. It also organizes seminars and conferences. 173 THE STEVEN SPIELBERG JEWISH FILM ARCHIVE. HEBREW UNIVERSITY OF JERUSALEM http://ssjfa.huji.ac.il/ The Steven Spielberg Jewish Film Archive was founded in the 1960s by Professor Moshe Davis and a grŚuś Śf Śther histŚriařs frŚm the Hebrew Uřiversity Śf Jerusalem. The archive’s first directŚr was Dr Geoffrey Wigoder, and the archive itself originally bore the name of its first donor, the Iranian businessman Abraham F. Rad, who supported its work in the initial years of its activity. In 1987 Steven Spielberg made a very generous donation and the archive changed its name to reflect that. Spielberg continues to take an interest in the work of this institution, and supports it actively. In 1973 the World Zionist Organization (WZO) chose this archive as the official repository for its films. At present it is administered jointly by the Avraham Harman Institute of Contemporary Jewry and the Central Zionist Archives (CZO), has the status of special collection of the National Library of Israel, and is a member of the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF) and the Association of Moving Image Archivists (AMIA). The archive is active in several areas: it organizes film-related lectures, conducts conservation work on film footage, digitalizes analogue footage, and offers access and distribution services. In addition to its collections of films on Zionism and Jewish settlement in Palestine and the State of Israel, the Spielberg Archive also holds large collections of films documenting the life of various Jewish communities the world over, including Poland before World War II, as well as films about the Holocaust, amŚřg them a uřique cŚlŚur film made by Hitler’s śilŚt showing Hitler and Mussolini on the Eastern Front. Other unique materials include the original film from the Eichmann trial, which was donated in 1970 by the Anti-DefamatiŚř League Śf B’řai Brith, and recŚrdiřgs frŚm the GhettŚ Fighters’ HŚuse Museum. Pursuařt tŚ ař agreemeřt sigřed iř 1997 between these institutions, several hundred films were deposited with the Spielberg Archive. In order tŚ facilitate the educatiŚřal wŚrk Śf the GhettŚ Fighters’ HŚuse Museum, video copies of these materials were made for it. Since it commenced operations in the early 1970s, the Spielberg Archive has catalogued its vast holdings to facilitate maximum access. Many archive users require specific visuals and these are easily located via briefly listed or detailed descriptive entries. In the mid-1960s, computer entry of the original catalogue cards was begun, using the ALEPH program. This project was completed by the end of the decade and all subsequent cataloguing has been computerized. The Archive has converted 174 its metadata to Aleph 500 and to MARC. The catalogue is now compatible with university, national and international standards. The entire catalogue is accessible online: http://aleph500.huji.ac.il/F/?func=file&file_name=find-b&local_base=hdjfa&con_lng=eng Selected still images frŚm the archive’s titles ařd liřks tŚ Śver Ę00 full films are alsŚ beiřg made available as ař additiŚřal field iř the catalŚgue recŚrd ařd thrŚugh the virtual ciřema Śř the archive’s website, at http://ssjfa.huji.ac.il/jfawebsite/newsite/index.html The films can be viewed on Youtube or any browser. THE PINHAS LAVON INSTITUTE FOR LABOUR RESEARCH The archive of the Pinhas Lavon Institute for Labor Research collects documents dating from the mid-nineteenth century to the present. At present its holdings number around 120,000 archival items on the following subjects: the successive waves of immigration to and settlement in Palestine, issues relatiřg tŚ the settlers’ safety, Jewish wŚrkers’ ŚrgařizatiŚřs, Histadrut HaŚvdim (WŚrkers’ UřiŚř), wŚrker’s śarties ařd śŚlitical ŚrgařizatiŚřs, ařd Jewish iřstitutiŚřs ařd ŚrgařizatiŚřs (iřcludiřg yŚuth ařd wŚrkers’ ŚrgařizatiŚřs) iř the diasśŚra. As the archive dŚes řŚt sśecialize in the Holocaust, materials on this subject are scattered across collections on youth movements and śŚlitical ařd wŚrkers’ ŚrgařizatiŚřs iř the diasśŚra. THE VIDAL SASSOON INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR THE STUDY OF ANTISEMITISM (SICSA) Felix Posen Bibliographic Project on Antisemitism, Israel http://sicsa.huji.ac.il/bib.html The Felix Posen Bibliographic Project on Antisemitism is an online database of publications on antisemitism that contains more than 50,000 entries. The search address is: http://aleph500.huji.ac.il/F/?func=file&file_name=find-b&local_base=hdbas&con_lng=eng. New material is added on an ongoing basis. In addition to the internet database, a print bibliography is also published; to date 21 volumes have been published under the titles: Susan Sarah Cohen, ed.: Antisemitism: An Annotated Bibliography Vols. 1-19 (1984-2005). Munich: K.G. Saur, 1987-2005 Sara Grosvald, ed.: Antisemitism: An Annotated Bibliography Vols. 20-21 (2004-2005). De Gruyter Verlag, 2008-2009 175 Susan Sarah Cohen, ed.: Antisemitism: An Annotated Bibliography Vol. 22 (2006). De Gruyter Verlag, 2013 Reřa R. Auerbach, ed.: ‘The Jewish QuestiŚř’ iř Germař-Speaking Countries, 1849-1914: A Bibliography. New York: Garland, 1994. xxv, 385 pp. The entries in the bibliography are grouped into three main sections: 1. Bibliographies and manuals, 2. Antisemitism down the ages, 3. Antisemitism in literature and art. Works on the Holocaust are included in the section on the history of antisemitism in the twentieth century. The project is the work of a team of employees of the Vidal Sassoon International Center for the Study of Antisemitism (SICSA), which was founded in 1982 as an interdisciplinary research centre committed to an independent, apolitical approach to gathering and disseminating knowledge in order better to understand the problem of antisemitism. It studies the history of antisemitism and focuses on relations between Jews and non-Jews, in particular in times of crisis. The bibliographic project is furnished with a thesaurus to ease the search for material. Moreover, it also includes the division by chapters of the printed versions of the bibliography in order to aid understanding of the way the material is classified. Three other autonomous bibliographies are included in the general database: “DemŚřizatiŚř Śf the ‘Other’ ařd ařtisemitism”, “HŚlŚcaust deřial” ařd “CŚmmemŚratiŚř Śf the HŚlŚcaust”. PublicatiŚřs may be Śrdered frŚm: The Vidal SassŚŚř International Center for the Study of Antisemitism, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Mount Scopus, 91905, Israel, sicsa@mail.ac.il. WitŚld MędykŚwski 176 9. Sources for Research into the Extermination of the Jews in Poland in German Archives Germany was the country from which the Holocaust was perpetrated and coordinated from throughout German-occupied and -influenced Europe. Since the return of captured German records by the Western Allies to the Bundesarchiv (the German Federal Archives), it has become the main holding country of files generated by the Nazi German Reich (German diplomatic files were returned to the Politische Archiv des Auswärtigen Amts – Political Archive of the German Foreign Office). While German offices intentionally destroyed many of their files before the end of the war, and other material was destroyed due to the course of military action, a sizeable body of material from the Nazi administrative apparatus in all its institutional incarnations survives, albeit often in fragmeřted ařd scattered fŚrm (e.g. śart Śf a regiŚřal ŚccuśatiŚř authŚrity’s surviviřg recŚrds remain in the formerly occupied country, a part is in the Bundesarchiv). Apart from German administrative and post-war sources, the broad archival landscape of the Federal Republic of Germany also offers a plethora of sources from other perspectives.303 As the landscape is so varied, only the main repositories and the collections most central to the topic at hand are discussed here.304 303 There are many examples of this. Journals issued during the occupation can be found in many German libraries, especially the German National Library, Leipzig branch (http://dnb.de). More holdings of periodicals in other libraries can be found at http://zdb-opac.de, and other publications at the KVK metacatalogue (http://www.ubka.unikarlsruhe.de/kvk.html). The Frankfurt am Main University Library specializes in Jewish publications, but the state libraries in Munich and Berlin also offer pertinent collections in this regard. Specialised research archives such as the Archives of the Institute of Contemporary History (http://www.ifz-muenchen.de/das-archiv/) or the Herder Institute (http://www.herder-institut.de/servicebereiche/dokumentesammlung/archivdatenbank.html) can often supply useful sources. Jewish archives, such as the Zentralarchiv in Heidelberg (http://www.uni-heidelberg.de/institute/sonst/aj/), offer important collections of the papers of individuals (e.g. the papers of the Polish-Jewish historian Józef Wulf, who was active in West Germany after the war). Apart from the Bundesarchiv-Bildarchiv, many other institutions hold significant photographic material, such as the Münchner Stadtarchiv (the collection of Munich press photographer Wilhelm Nortz contains photographs from his press tour of the GG, including ghettos and Jews) and the Jewish Museum in Frankfurt am Main, which holds the Litzmannstadt Getto photos by its German chief accountant Walter Genewein. Concentration camp memorial sites (such as Dachau, Flossenbürg, Buchenwald, Bergen-Belsen, Sachsenhausen, Neuengamme, Ravensbrück, and others) offer various sources, also pertaining to related camps. A list of institutions holding oral history testimonies can be found at http://www.ushmm.org/online/oralhistory/place.php?Country=Germany. 304 The best general guide to archival collections relating to the administrative files of the Third Reich and the annexed territories (which also covers Polish archive material) is: Inventar archivalischer Quellen des NS-Staates, vol. 1, Reichszentralbehörden, regionale Behörden und wissenschaftliche Hochschulen für die zehn westdeutschen Länder und Berlin; vol. 2, Regionale Behörden und wissenschaftliche Hochschulen für die fünf ostdeutschen Länder, die ehemaligen preußischen Ostprovinzen und eingegliederte Gebiete in Polen, Österreich und der Tschechischen Republik mit Nachträgen zu Teil 1, ed. H. Boberach, München, New Providence, London, Paris 1991-1995. AlsŚ iřcluded iř the cŚmmercial database is “Deutsche Geschichte im 20. Jahrhundert Online: Nationalsozialismus, Holocaust, Widerstand und Exil 1933-19ėĘ”, http://db.saur.de/DGO. For collections in German archives connected to individuals, the database http://www.nachlassdatenbank.de/ offers the most comprehensive overview. For similar archival holdings in libraries, see http://kalliope.staatsbibliothek-berlin.de/. 177 Generally the discussion below covers the branch offices (or agencies) of the German Federal Archives (Bundesarchiv, officially abbreviated BArch). All that is needed to gain access to these collections is an signed application form submitted on site on the first visit; this should include a profile of the theme of the research paper and an indication of the timeframe and geographic scope of the work. This application also includes an undertaking to observe the German personal data protection act, and confirmation of familiarity with the attendant criminal regulations in German law, and release of files is contingent upon signing this declaration. Supervised academic staff (e.g. doctoral students) should submit a letter of recommendation from the leading research fellow at their home research institution (e.g. their supervisor) laying out the scope of the study (in German or English if possible, as this greatly reduces the formalities). Any visit to the Bundesarchiv should also be preceded by thorough study of the extant finding aids, many of them available at http://www.bundesarchiv.de, especially http://invenio.bundesarchiv.de . BUNDESARCHIV, AGENCY IN BERLIN LICHTERFELDE This archive does not have separate groups of files on the Jewish question during World War II, as it is not sorted by pertinence, but by provenance; its holdings are thus generally grouped by the original institutional context. Scholars with an interest in this issue therefore have to sift through many collections of files on all manner of aspects of the existence and functioning of the various institutions and government offices in the Third Reich to find isolated documents on the subject of interest to them. Profiled below are only those archive collections with the greatest numbers of documents relating to the Holocaust and policy in the Third Reich. Of the many collections in this archive, the following above all are deserving of the attention of Holocaust scholars: 1. Section BDC – the collections of the former Berlin Document Center, 2. Section R – Deutsches Reich 1867/71-1945, and Section NS – the Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterśartei (the NatiŚřal SŚcialist Germař WŚrkers’ Party, NSDAP) ařd its derivative organizations. 178 1. Records from the former BDC Immediately after the war the BDC acted as a collection point for documents seized from the Nazi era, in order to prepare for the Nuremberg war crimes trials and denazification. 305 In the early years numerous documents were taken from their original context of creation and made into new files. This led to the development of much mixed provenance. At the end of the 1950s, non-biographical records were gradually transferred to the Bundesarchiv. In 1994, after many years of negotiation, the Federal Archives brought the personal records of the BDC from American administration into its own sphere of responsibility. The most important holdings include: - Central membership record of the NSDAP (approx. 12m index cards) - Party correspondence (approx. 1.3m files) - Personal files from the SS Race and Settlement Office (approx. 240,000 files) - Personal records of SS members (approx. 350,000 files) - Personal records of SA members (approx. 550,000 files) - Resettlement, trafficking and naturalization procedures of the central migration office in Posen (Umwandererzentralstelle Posen) and its offices in Litzmannstadt306 - Personal files from the Reich Chamber of Culture The above-mentioned personal records may only be accessed via the personal details of the people concerned, which can be searched for in a database. Full details of surname, first name and date of birth will be required to carry out research work. Additional information on occupation or locations can be helpful. Sub-groups of these holdings especially important to the study of the Holocaust in Poland include: SSO – SS-Offiziersakte (SS Śfficers’ files); these contain all preserved material on the successive stages iř ař iřdividual’s career iř the SS ařd Śther Nazi iřstitutiŚřs ařd Śffices. Mařy Śf them iřclude cařdidates’ hařdwritteř résumés fŚr a rařge Śf śŚsts withiř the regime. Iř their cŚver letters 305 Information on the military careers of any members of the German Wehrmacht is available from the Deutsche Dienststelle –Wehrmachtsauskunftsstelle [German Office – Wehrmacht Information Office, http://www.dd-wast.de). The surviving personnel files of German military officers are at the Bundesarchive Agency in Freiburg. 306 More files of this agency can be found in Polish archives, including the IPN and the State Archives iř PŚzřař, Łód , and Lublin. 179 they draw attention to their outstanding dedication and Nazi convictions, and detail examples of their active National Socialist work, in many cases as far back as the Weimar Republic, when this type of activity was subject to legal sanctions. Documents include official correspondence, information on transferrals and promotions, applications for decorations with grounds cited, and other opinion statements written by superiors, which are of value to scholars. SA – files of members of the SA (Sturmabteilung); these contain all kinds of information on individual SA members, together with handwritten résumés, job applications, official correspondences, training certificates, character statements written by their superiors, applications for decorations, job-related benefits, etc. PK – Parteikanzlei (the NSDAP party chancellery); this collection comprises around 11 million NSDAP personal files, which constitute 90 per cent of all that actually existed. Each of these personal files contains all the surviving information on the subject of the career and political and community activity of a given individual within the NSDAP. Many of the files also contain hařdwritteř résumés which ślay uś the writers’ iřvŚlvemeřt iř the NatiŚřal SŚcialist cause, as well as certificates from party training courses, references by superiors, etc. RuSHA – files of the SS Race and Settlement Main Office (Rasse- und Siedlungshauptamt); given the řature Śf the activity Śf this Śffice, which iřvŚlved checkiřg the “racial śurity” Śf members of all National Socialist organizations, this is a source of information of a private nature, concerning family and marital connections; it also contains applications for marriage permits, and opinion statements or procedural recommendations in respect of certain people or others related to them to any degree, issued by senior instances (in the case of SS officers, this was Himmler himself), etc. OPG – files of the Supreme NSDAP Party Court (Oberstes Parteigericht); these contain documentation of all the criminal cases brought against members of the NSDAP, in particular concerning charges of ideological disloyalty. In all the collections in the BDC archive mentioned here, there is information on the personal involvement of a given individual in anti-Jewish policy, and in some cases – those of particularly prominent National Socialist activists involved in shaping demographic policy– detailed information 180 on their own initiatives, excerpts of official correspondences connected with this aspect of their work, or references written by independent observers or their superiors. The archive materials in these collections are absolutely vital to all kinds of research into specific perpetrators and the extent of their anti-Jewish involvement. 2. Records of the German Reich administrations – “R” – Deutsches Reich 1495-1945 and of the Nazi Party and its subsidiary organisations – “NS” – NSDAP Among its many collections, the following are especially relevant to the Holocaust in Poland: NS 2 – Rasse- und Siedlungshauptamt [SS Race and Settlement Office]. NS 3 – Wirtschaftsverwaltungshauptamt der SS (SS Economic Administration Main Office). This collection contains records of the concentration camp administration and on forced labour for the SS. NS 19 – Persönlicher Stab Reichsführer SS (Personal Staff of the Reich Leader SS, 1925-1945).307 This collection contains preserved documents from the circle of Heinrich Himmler in his role as Reichsführer SS, including administrative matters, orders and decorations (with explanations as to the reasons), matters relating to specific SS commanders (500 cases), matters of foreign policy and relating to the occupied territories, the security and order police forces, the SS in general, the Waffen-SS, and health-related issues, including issues connected with the euthanasia campaign, and racial and population policy. There are documents on matters including exploitation of Jews as fŚrced labŚur, admiřistratiŚř Śf śrŚśerty left by Jews, ařd the situatiŚř iř the Łód ghetto, and a memo from the Higher SS and Police Leader in the GG, Friedrich Wilhelm Krüger, regarding corruption in the civil administration of the GG, such as economic speculation with Jews. R 3 – Reichsministerium für Rüstung und Kriegsproduktion (Reich Ministry for Armaments and War Production); this contains files on industrial output for the war effort, including the files of forced labourers. Among the sub-cŚllectiŚřs it cŚřtaiřs are the files Śf Albert Sśeer’s Miřisterial Office (Ministerbüro Speer), the Central Government Office (Zentralamt), the Planning Office 307 J. Henke, Persönlicher Stab Reichsführer-SS (Bestand NS 19), 2 Teilbände (Findbücher zu Beständen des Bundesarchivs Bd. 57), Koblenz 1997. 181 (Planungsamt), the Office for Raw Materials (Rohstoffamt), and the Armaments Office (Rüstungsamt). R 19 – Hauptamt Ordnungspolizei (Order Police Main Office); this holds files on the organization, structures and functioning of the Order Police and gendarmerie, which also covers the region of occupied Poland. Among the items here are orders concerning subordination, deployment of particular units, operations, guidelines on contact with subjugated populations, operational reports from particular regions together with intelligence on the distribution of civilian populations and the mŚŚds śrevailiřg amŚřg them, ařd Śř suśśressiŚř (“śacificatiŚř”) ařd ařti-partisan campaigns, etc. R 20 – Truppen und Schulen der Ordnungspolizei (Order Police schools and units); this holds files on Order Police battalions, including those which were active in occupied Poland, such as Police Battalions 309 and 322. R 49 – Reichskommissar für die Festigung deutschen Volkstums (RKF, Reich Commissioner for the Strengthening of Germandom); this collection contains files on population policy, chiefly in the occupied Polish territories annexed to the Reich. It brings together surviving papers from the following SS offices under Himmler, among which may be documents containing details of antiJewish policy: – Head Office (Zentralamt); contains statistics, orders, reports, etc., on the policy of expelling undesirable populations from occupied territories and settling Volksdeutsche (ethnic Germans) in their place; – Office I, Resettlements and population affairs (Amt I, Umsiedlung und Volkstum); includes ordinances, reports and theoretical studies on the issue of population, as well as details of the introduction of the Germař PeŚśle’s List (VŚlksliste); – Office III, Economy (Amt III, Wirtschaft); contains ordinances on the confiscation and looting of industrial plants and commercial firms in the annexed territories and the GG, and the plunder of household furnishings from the Łód ghettŚ. Other files that have survived in this collection include those of RKF representatives: the Supreme President of Upper Silesia (Oberpräsident von Oberschlesien als Beauftragter des RKF; 413 items), the Reich governor in the Warta region (Reichsstatthalter im Wartheland als Beauftragter des RKF; 46 items), the Higher SS and Police Leader Danzig-West Prussia (Der Höhere SS- und Polizeiführer 182 Danzig-Westpreußen als Beauftragter des RKF; 9 items) and the Higher SS and Police Leader in the GG and State Secretary for Security in the GG (Der Höhere SS- und Polizeiführer im Generalgouvernement und Staatssekretär für das Sicherheitswesen als Vertreter des RKF; 5 items); these illustrate the role of these posts in shaping expulsion policy in the territories under their command. R 52 – Regierung des Generalgouvernements (Government of the GG); contains files on various aspects of the work of the government of central Poland under Governor Hans Frank. Most noteworthy are the documents in group R 52 II, which are cŚřřected with the gŚverřŚr’s chancellery; these include ordinances and draft ordinances on Jewish issues (organization of forced labour, restrictions on residence, charitable aid, resettlements, establishment of ghettos, special identification of Jews, etc.), and related correspondence. R 52 III – Hauptabteilung Innere Verwaltung (Main Department for Internal Affairs), with documentation on the Jewish Social Self-Helś ( SS); cŚřtaiřs reśŚrts frŚm district ařd city gŚverřŚrs’ Śffices iř the GG (alsŚ concerning the location of Jewish populations), and reports on the activities of the Jüdische Unterstützungsstelle (JUS, Jewish Aid Office) in the GG. R 52 VI – Hauptabteilung Wirtschaft (Main Department for the Economy); contains analyses on the state of the economy in the occupied lands, numbers of Jews employed in the craft sector, and documents relating to forced labour by Jews in the Wasserbauinspektorate (hydro-engineering inspectorates, in districts including Radom). R 58 – Reichssicherheitshauptamt (RSHA, Reich Security Head Office); in addition to the extant administrative files of the various branches of the Security Police (Sipo) for the whole period of its operation, this record group holds files illustrating issues including the anti-Jewish activities of the Sicherheitsdienst (SD) in the years 1936-1939 (Referat II 1 12), and files from the World War II period on the activities of the Einsatzgruppen (task forces) in the Sipo and the SD in Poland in 1939 (trařsferred by the GKBZPřP), ařd alsŚ “Ereigřismelduřgeř UdSSR” (USSR iřcideřt reśŚrts), which supplied information on the outcomes of mass murders by Einsatzgruppen A, B, C and D during the war with the Soviet Union (in areas including the Polish Eastern Borderlands), and “Melduřgeř aus deř besetzeř Gebieteř im Osteř” (ReśŚrts frŚm the Śccuśied territŚries iř the East) 1941-1943, referencing incidents in occupied USSR territory. 183 AlsŚ here are reśŚrts by the SD křŚwř as “Melduřgeř aus dem Reich” (reśŚrts Śř śublic opinion)308, which reviewed the situation in the annexed Polish lands, including the situation in the Jewish population. R 70 – Polen and – Sowjetunion – Polizeidienststellen in Polen und Polizeidienststellen in der Sowjetunion (Police Departments in Poland and Police Departments in the Soviet Union); contains files on the organization, positions and tasks of the various police formations in these territories. Here there are documents containing data on the location and personnel of selected police units, orders and guidelines on shaping relations with the subjugated populations (including their Jewish components), reports on operations, the organization of certain suppression campaigns, situational reports including descriptions of partisan activities, profiles of moods and anti-partisan action taken (e.g. by the Sipo and SD Police Leader in the GG, and the Sipo and SD Commanders in the various districts), reports on operations in factories and other businesses manufacturing for the Wehrmacht and employing Poles and Jews as forced labour, documentation on the protection and security of those businesses, official correspondence regarding guard provision for sites with forced labourers, instructions for recruiting collaborators, reports and tip-offs by them, and documents providing evidence of operational collaboration by certain [Polish] National Armed Forces (NSZ) units with the Gestapo (e.g. in the Radom district) in the eradication of Communist and Jewish groups. R 102 Distrikt- und Kreisverwaltungen im Generalgouvernement [District and County Administrations in the GG] R 144 – Haupttreuhandstelle Ost [Main Trustee Office East]; contains files generated by the Berliner Zentralstelle des Beauftragten für den Vierjahresplan [Berlin Central Office of the Commissioner for the Four-Year Plan] contains files on the seizure of Polish and Jewish property in the occupied Polish territories annexed to the Reich, including general reports and regulations, as well as sources on individual businesses and properties. 308 For reports from other agencies, see The Jews in the Secret Nazi Reports on Popular Opinion in Germany, 1933-1945, ed. Otto Dov Kulka and Eberhard Jackel, translated from the German by William Templer, New Haven 2010. Apart from the “Melduřgeř aus dem Reich”, the database http://db.saur.de/DGO also includes publications of SD reports on the occupied areas, first published on microfiche under the title Regimekritik, Widerstand und Verfolgung in Deutschland und den besetzten Gebieten. Meldungen und Berichte aus dem Geheimen Staatspolizeiamt, dem SD-Hauptamt der SS und dem Reichssicherheitshauptamt 1933 – 1945, ed. Heinz Boberach. Munich 1999-2003. 184 BUNDESARCHIV – MILITÄRARCHIV IN FREIBURG IM BREISGAU The military archive in Freiburg, a branch of the Federal Archives, is concerned above all with gathering and preserving archival materials relating to various aspects of the military history of the German state since the early nineteenth century. For scholars of Jewish issues in Poland during World War II, the source materials amassed here yield above all documents illustrating the attitudes of various military institutions stationed or operating in conquered Polish territory. All the record groups listed below are catalogued. Of particular note are the documents that illustrate various aspects of issues such as the development of anti-Jewish policy at all levels of the military hierarchy, showing the extent and conditions of exploitation of Jews in war production in industrial plants working for the Wehrmacht, and materials documenting the involvement of particular military formations in actions designed to isolate the Jewish population from the rest of the conquered population. There are also testimonies relating to the extermination measures themselves, though not many. The record groups listed below include numerous official reports by liaison officers, military logs, economic, political and military analyses, analyses of the influence of the Jewish population on the development of the black market, information on the volume of supplies to the subjugated population, including the Jews, detailed reports from forced labour camps for Poles and Jews, etc. The archival collections may be grouped by the areas which they cover: a) The Warta Region (Reichsgau Wartheland / Warthegau): RH 53-21 – Wehrkreiskommando [Military District Command] XXI (Posen) RW 20-21 – Rüstungsinspektion [Armaments Inspection] XXI RW 21-39 – Rüstungskommando Litzmannstadt RW 46/484 – Tätigkeitsberichte des Wehrwirtschaftsoffiziers des Wehrkreiskommandos XXI [Reports of the Armaments Officer at the Military District Command XXI] b) Danzig-West Prussia (Reichsgau Danzig-Westpreussen): RH 53-20 – Wehrkreiskommando XX (Danzig) RW 20-20 – Rüstungsinspektion XX (Zoppot) c) The Generalgouvernement: RH 53-23 – Militärbefehlshaber im GG [Military Supreme Commander in the GG] 185 RW 19 – Oberkommando der Wehrmacht, Wehrwirtschafts- und Rüstungsamt im GG [German Military High Command, Military Economy and Armaments Office in the GG] RW 23 – Rüstungsdienststellen im GG (Armaments offices in the GG; covers the years 1942-1944 and approx. 0.5 linear metres of files) d) other annexed territories RW 20-1 Rüstungsinspektion [Armaments Inspection] I Königsberg RW 20-8 Rüstungsinspektion [Armaments Inspection] VIII b Kattowitz (Katowice) e) Eastern Borderlands: RH 22 – Befehlshaber der rückwärtigen Heeresgebiete 1941-1945 [Commanders of the Rear Armed Forces Area] RH 23 – Kommandanten der rückwärtigen Armeegebiete (Korück) [Commanders of the Rear Army Areas] RH 26 – (records of individual army divisions) RW 31 – Wehrwirtschaftsstab Ost [Military Economic Staff East] RW 41 – Territoriale Befehlshaber in der Sowjetunion [Territorial Commanders in the Soviet Union] BUNDESARCHIV – AGENCY IN LUDWIGSBURG309 Since 2000 the Bundesarchiv has been responsible for administering the files of the Zentrale Stelle der Landesjustizverwaltungen zur Aufklärung nationalsozialistischer Verbrechen (abbrev. as ZStL, Central Office of the State Justice Administrations for the Investigation of National Socialist Crimes), which was set up as a joint facility of the West German State Justice Administrations in Ludwigsburg in 1958. The task of this branch is to preserve those records which are no longer required by the Central Office for fulfilling its duties, and make them accessible to researchers. The mandate for the Central Office states that it should collect and examine all relevant records on criminal acts inspired by Nazism which are obtainable, identify the circumstances of individual crimes, and determine the whereabouts of the perpetrators. The facts established are then to be handed over to the public prosecutor, who institutes formal preliminary and criminal proceedings. The public prosecutors are also obliged to forward all their findings to the Central Office, and to give notification of legal measures and decisions pronounced during the proceedings. 309 Some of this description is adapted from http://www.bundesarchiv.de/benutzung/zeitbezug/nationalsozialismus/01591/index.html.en. 186 The amount of files in itself offers an almost complete survey of investigation and prosecution of Nazi crimes in the Federal Republic of Germany since 1958. The documents deal with as broad and diverse a range of violent crimes under the National Socialist regime between 1933 and 1945 as murders of political ŚśśŚřeřts, hŚmicidal crimes withiř the “Euthařasia śrŚgramme”, ařd mass crimes committed by members of the SS and security police within the Einsatzgruppen in Poland and in the former Soviet Union, in the concentration and extermination camps, in numerous forced labour and POW camps, and in other institutions for detention. A large and detailed card index contains some 1.6 million entries naming persons, institutions or units, and locations. This index provides exceptional conditions for Holocaust researchers and other historians. The records reveal the involvement of perpetrators and their motivation. Witnesses and to a lesser extent surviving victims testify to the vast number of crimes committed in all the territories occupied by the Germans. The documents give outstanding evidence of the difficulties of prosecution of Nazi crimes due to legal measures, and are therefore an important source for the research of judicial history of postwar German democracy. Almost all ghettos, camps and killing sites related to the Holocaust in Poland are covered in at least one of the pre-investigations conducted by the ZStL. 310 Additionally, Ludwigsburg offers a large collection of original sources copied from other archives, witness statements, and other material. Users iřterested iř the further cŚurse Śf iřvestigatiŚřs hařded Śver by the ZStL tŚ lŚcal śrŚsecutŚrs’ offices or looking for cases which took place before the setting-up of the ZStL in 1958 need to look for these files in the State Archives of the respective German State Archive(s) or, in the case of East German investigations, in the Federal Commissioner for the Stasi Records (Der Bundesbeauftragte für die Stasi-Unterlagen, or BStU, http://www.bstu.bund.de/). Researchers wishing to find an overview of all cases for Nazi crimes before German prosecutors and courts can apply to search a local database at the Institute for Contemporary History in Munich (http://www.ifz- 310 As the new finding aid is still being written, there is almost always at least one investigation for each Polish city, town, ghetto or camp, and the number of cases is huge, a listing of case numbers here would be arbitrary to a certain degree. 187 muenchen.de/das-archiv/benutzung-und-service/nsg-datenbank/). For cases that actually went to trial, most of the judgments have been published and can also be acquired digitally.311 THE INTERNATIONAL TRACING SERVICE, BAD AROLSEN The International Tracing Service archive (ITS – http://www.its-arolsen.org/) in Bad Arolsen was established by the Allies under the auspices of the International Red Cross after the Second World War by collecting millions of pages of captured documentation to help trace missing persons and reunite them with their families. Since 2007 it has been open for research. Currently, its holdings run to 26,000 linear metres, covering material on Nazi incarceration sites (including original documents from concentration camps), forced labour and post-war records on displaced persons. Since the last few years, an immense campaign to digitize the holdings is underway. Digital copies are made available to the signatory states (e.g. in the United States at USHMM, in Israel at Yad Vashem, in the United Kingdom at the Wiener Library, and in Poland at the IPN). Jacek Andrzej Młynarczyk, uśdated by Giles Bennett 311 See the series Justiz und NS-Verbrechen. Die deutschen Strafverfahren wegen nationalsozialistischer Tötungsverbrechen [Justice and Nazi Crimes. The German Trials for Nazi Crimes]. Ed. C.F. Rüter and Dr D.W. de Mildt. Part 1, on West Germany: Die westdeutschen Strafurteile aus den Jahren 1945 bis 2012 (Justiz und NSVerbrechen, vols. I-XLIX), Part 2, on East Germany: Die ostdeutschen Strafurteile aus den Jahren 1945 bis 1990 (DDRJustiz und NS-Verbrechen, vols. I-XIV). For the online presentation, see: www.junsv.nl. 188 II. Sources 189 190 1. German administrative authorities and police In the initial period of the occupation immediately following the cessation of military action312, until the establishment of the Generalgouvernement (GG, General Government, on 26 October 1939), the lands invaded by German troops were administered by the military administration of the Wehrmacht.313 Subordinate to this was a civilian administration – Chef der Zivilverwaltung (under Dr Hans Frank), with three administrative regions, administered by Arthur Seyß-Inquart in Krakow, Albert FŚrster iř West Prussia, ařd Arthur Greiser iř PŚzřań; the Łód regiŚř was uřder the de facto control of SS-Standartenführer Harry von Craushaar. The documentary legacy of this period includes the collections Verwaltungschef im MilitŹrbezirk LŚdz 1939 (Admiřistrative Head Śf the Łód Military RegiŚř, AP Łód , RG 17Ę) ařd Chef der Zivilverwaltuřg beim Oberbefehlshaber im MilitŹrbezirk PŚseř (Head Śf the Civiliař AdmiřistratiŚř affiliated tŚ the CŚmmařder Śf the PŚzřań Military Regioř, AP PŚzřań, RG 298). In respect of the initial period of the war, Holocaust scholars are primarily interested in Wehrmacht crimes against the civilian population, and the crimes of the Einsatzgruppen der Sicherheitspolizei und des SD, the special security police units affiliated to each of the five armies, whose purpose was to instil terror into the local population, and conduct executions and expulsions. 314 In the Polish lařds, these Śśerated duriřg the Seśtember Camśaigř uřder the cryśtŚřym “Uřterřehmeř Tařřeřberg” (OśeratiŚř Tařřeřberg). Iř OctŚber 1939 the decisiŚř was takeř iř Berliř tŚ divide up the occupied territories, annex some of them to the Reich, and establish a new administrative entity315 – Generalgouvernement für die besetzten polnischen Gebiete, or the General Government [for the occupied Polish territories], with a general governor answering directly to the Führer: Dr Hans Frank. 312 Warsaw capitulated on 25 September 1939; the September Campaign ended on 5 October 1939 with the capitulation of the last Polish commander, Gen. Franciszek Kleeberg, following the five-day Battle of Kock. 313 Cf. T. Bereřsteiř, A. RutkŚwski, “Niemiecka admiřistracja wŚjskŚwa řa ŚkuśŚwařych ziemiach śŚlskich (1 wrze řia – 2Ę śa dzierřika 1939)”, [in:] Najnowsze dzieje Polski. Materiały i studia z Śkresu II wŚjny wiatŚwej 1939-1945, vol. VI, 1962. Hans Umbreit, Deutsche Militärverwaltungen 1938/39. Die militärische Besetzung der Tschechoslowakei und Polens, Stuttgart 1977. 314 Cf. T. Bereřsteiř, A. RutkŚwski, “Prze ladŚwařia ludřŚ ci ydŚwskiej w Śkresie hitlerŚwskiej admiřistracji wŚjskŚwej na okupowanych ziemiach polskich (1 IX 1939 r. – 2Ę X 1939 r.)”, B IH, 1961, no. 38, pp. 3-38, 1961, no. 39, pp. 63-87. Stephan Lehnstaedt and Jochen Böhler (ed.): Die Berichte der Einsatzgruppen aus Polen 1939, Berlin 2013. 315 Pursuant to a decree issued by Hitler on 25 October 1939. 191 The German civilian administration in the General Government (GG) was the Regierung des Generalgouvernements (Government of the GG) 316 , with its seat in Krakow, which was run by Joseph Bühler. 317 He was iř charge Śf the variŚus district chiefs’ Śffices 318 (Amt des Distrikts); subordinate to these, in turn, were the Kreishauptmannschaften (offices of county governors; the řame Śf the admiřistrative uřit was “Kreis”) ařd Stadthauśtmařřschafteř (Śffices Śf city gŚverřŚrs) in larger, autonomous cities (in the western and northern territories, which were annexed to the Third Reich, where the administrative divisions and organization of authority was slightly different, the equivalent unit to the Kreishauptmannschaft was the Landrat, whose administrative office was called the Landratsamt). In the GG, each district office was headed by a Chef des Distrikts (District Chief); later, this śŚst was retitled “GŚuverřeur” (gŚverřŚr). He had several Abteiluřgeř (departments) answerable to him, which mirrored the administrative structure of the Government of the GG. The western and northerř PŚlish lařds ařřexed tŚ the Reich śursuařt tŚ Hitler’s decree Śf 8 OctŚber 1939 were the PŚmerařia, PŚzřań ařd Uśśer Silesia vŚivŚdeshiśs (śrŚviřces), much Śf the Łód vŚivŚdeshiś, the westerř śart Śf the KrakŚw vŚivŚdeshiś, řŚrtherř MazŚvia, Suwałki cŚuřty, ařd sŚme Śf the cŚuřties iř the Kielce vŚivŚdeshiś, iřcludiřg the D brŚwa Basiř.319 The Free City Śf Gdańsk was alsŚ subsumed iřtŚ the Reich. AccŚrdiřg tŚ Czesław Madajczyk, whŚ cites a study by Martin Broszat320, a certain distinction was nevertheless maintained between these lands and the rest of the Third Reich for the duration of their annexation, in the form of measures including strict controls on population movements. 321 The annexed territories formed (or were appended to) the following administrative units: East Prussia322 (PrŚviřz Ostśreusseř), Gdańsk-West 316 This body was divided into a Staatssekretariat (Office of the Secretary of State) and Hauptabteilungen (main departments): Innere Verwaltung [Interior Administration], Finanzen [Finance], Justiz [Justice], Wirtschaft [Economy], Ernährung und Landwirtschaft [Food and Agriculture], Forsten [Forestries], Arbeit [Labour], Propaganda, Wissenschaft und Unterricht [Science and Education], Bauwesen [Construction], Eisenbahnen [Railways], and Post [Postal Service]. The most important department in terms of the history of the Holocaust was Innere Verwaltung. 317 A basic introduction to the administrative structure and the government offices and other institutions in the GG is given by the contemporary German publications: Max du Prel, Das Generalgouvernement, Würzburg 1942, Das Generalgouvernement seine Verwaltung und seine Wirtschaft. Sammlung von Vorträgen der Ersten Wissenschaftlichen Vortragsreihe der Verwaltungsakademie des Generalgouvernements, herausgegeben von Staatssekretär dr. Josef Bühler, Leiter der Verwaltungs-Akademie des Generalgouvernements, Krakau 1943; F. Gollert, Warschau unter deutscher Herrschaft. Deutsche Aufbauarbeit im Distrikt Warschau. Im Auftrage des Gouverneurs des Distrikts Warschau L. Fischer, unter Benutzung amtlicher Unterlagen..., Krakau 1942. 318 In Krakow, Lublin, Lwów, Radom and Warsaw. 319 Cz. Madajczyk, Polityka III Rzeszy w okupowanej Polsce, vol. I, Warszawa 1970, pp. 64-82; cf. Z. Janowicz, Ustrój administracyjny ziem polskich wcielonych do Rzeszy Niemieckiej 1939-1945, PŚzřań 19Ę1. 320 M. Broszat, Nationalsozialistische Polenpolitik, Stuttgart 1961. 321 A special permit was required from the authorities to either enter or leave these regions, cf. Cz. Madajczyk, op. cit., p. 66. 322 Divided into the Ciechanów, Olsztyn, Gumbinnen and Königsberg administrative districts. 192 Prussia 323 (Reichsgau Danzig-Westpreussen), the Warta region 324 (Reichsgau Wartheland, or Warthegau), and the province of Silesia (Reichsgau Schlesien).325 Silesia, in view of its large size and concentration of industry, was divided into two units in 1941: Lower and Upper Silesia (the latter comprising the Katowice and Opole Regierungsbezirke or administrative districts). Each province was subordinate to a Reichsstatthalter (Reich governor), who was also the head of the regional NSDAP organization (Gauleiter der NSDAP). The governor of the Warta region was Arthur Greiser, that Śf Gdańsk-West Prussia Albert Forster, that of East Prussia Erich Koch, and that of Silesia Josef Wagner, who was succeeded by Fritz Bracht (in Upper Silesia). The former Eastern Borderlands of the Second Republic of Poland, the so-called “Kresy”, were occupied by the Red Army on 17 September 1939 and subsumed into the USSR, as part of the republics of Belarus and Ukraine, a move which the government in Moscow claimed “vital tŚ śrŚtect the Belarusiař ařd Ukraiřiař śŚśulatiŚřs” iř the face Śf the “bařkruśtcy Śf the PŚlish state”, as it was expressed in a note sent to the Polish ambassador. Provision for this bilateral attack on Poland had been made in a secret addendum to the Soviet-German non-aggression pact signed on 23 August 1939 by the foreign ministers of the two countries, Joachim Ribbentrop and Vyacheslav Molotov. With the spontaneous occupation of the Polish lands by the Wehrmacht and the Red Army, the need arose for a renegotiation of the demarcation line (which originally ran along the course of the Narew, Vistula and San rivers); this took the form of a treaty signed in Moscow on 28 September 1939 which became known as the second Ribbentrop-Molotov pact. In the face of the German invasion, many Polish citizens, both Poles and Jews, fled east, i.e. effectively into the Russian occupation zone. By the time these regions were taken by the German army in June and July 1941, many of those refugees had been forcibly resettled deep into the heart of the USSR, in Siberia, which paradoxically brought about the survival of several hundred thousand Polish Jews. Until the outbreak of the German-Soviet war in June 1941, Poland was governed by two occupiers. The fates of the Jews iř PŚlařd’s fŚrmer řŚrth-eastern territories have been examined by Andrzej bikŚwski iř a mŚřŚgraśhic wŚrk.326 After the German invasion on 22 June 1941, the lands around the city Śf BiałystŚk (the fŚrmer BiałystŚk vŚivŚdeshiś, ařd śarts Śf the Pruzhany and Brest The BydgŚszcz, Gdańsk ařd Kwidzyř administrative districts. The IřŚwrŚcław, Kalisz ařd PŚzřań admiřistrative districts. 325 The Legřica, WrŚcław, OśŚle ařd KatŚwice admiřistrative districts. 326 A. bikŚwski, U genezy JedwabnegŚ. ydzi na Kresach PółnŚcnŚ-WschŚdnich II RzeczyśŚsśŚlitej, wrzesień 1939 – lipiec 1941, IH, Warszawa 2006. 323 324 193 counties) became part of a new administrative unit, Bezirk Bialystok 327 , which was equivalent in nature and rank to an administrative district and was administered by Erich Koch. The Germans added śarts Śf westerř Ukraiře tŚ the GG as “Distrikt Galizieř”, with the seat Śf authŚrity iř Lwów, while the eastern lands of Belarus, Lithuania and Ukraine were organized into two new units: Reichskommissariat Ost and Reichskommissariat Ukraine. Senior posts in the GG civil administration were held by Germans from the Reich, while those lower down in the hierarchy, such as mayors, county governors, commune and village administrators (wójt ařd sŚłtys), teřded tŚ be lŚcal VŚlksdeutsche Śr PŚles. CŚuřties were divided iřtŚ muřiciśal ařd rural communes, in which municipal councils under mayors or chief borough councillors remained in authority. In some cities the function of naczelnik (chief) was introduced328, to which the mayors were answerable as the executors of their orders. The county governor was the immediate superior iřstařce tŚ the cŚuřcil ařd admiřistratŚr Śf each village. “Yet they were all esseřtially fuřctiŚřaries of the occupying administration, which utilised these local government bodies as an executive arm. (...) Polish mayors and commune officials were appointed in varying ways, to a great extent rařdŚmly. This was esseřtially a cŚmśeteřce Śf the head Śf the district authŚrities.” 329 The best known example is that of Warsaw under German occupation, where in addition to the senior positions held by Germařs, the City CŚuřcil (Zarz d Miejski) cŚřtiřued tŚ Śśerate, uřder mayŚr Julian Kulski, who cooperated with the (underground) Government Delegation for Poland.330 Functioning in parallel to the civilian administration of the GG, though formally subordinate to it, was a network of various police formations. 331 The most senior figure in this hierarchy was der Höhere SS- und Polizeiführer-Ost (HSSPF-Ost, Senior SS and Police Leader for the East), whose seat was in Krakow; he was also Staatssekretär für das Sicherheitswesen (Secretary of State for Security in the GG). This position was first held by SS-Obergruppenführer Friedrich Wilhelm 327 Cf. Katriř StŚll, “Ařty ydŚwska śŚlityka w BiałymstŚku z śersśektywy řiemieckich sśrawców”, [iř:] Stosunki etniczne podczas wojny i okupacji. BiałystŚk i WilnŚ 1939-1941-1944/45, ed. Edmuřd Dmitrów ařd JŚachim Tauber, BiałystŚk 2011; eadem, Die Herstellung der Wahrheit. Strafverfahren gegen ehemalige Angehörige der SicherheitsśŚlizei für den Bezirk BiałystŚk, Berlin 2012. 328 Iř KrakŚw, Lubliř, RadŚm, Warsaw, Lwów, Kielce, Cz stŚchŚwa ařd Przemy l. 329 Cz. Madajczyk, Polityka III Rzeszy, op. cit., vol. 1, p. 216. 330 Cf. J. Kulski, Zarząd Miejski Warszawy 1939-1944, Warszawa 1964; A. Ivánka, Wspomnienia skarbowca 1927-1945, Warszawa 1964. 331 Cf. B. Musiał, Deutsche Zivilverwaltung und Judenverfolgung in Generalgouvernement: eine Fallstudie zum Distrikt Lublin 19391944, Wiesbaden 1999; Das Diensttagebuch des deutschen Generalgouverneurs in Polen 1939-1945, ed. W. Präg and W. Jacobmeyer, Stuttgart 1975; P. Nix, G. Jerome, The Uniformed Police Forces of the Third Reich 1933-1945, Stockholm 2006. G. Eisenblätter, Grundlinien der Politik des Reichs gegenüber dem Generalgouvernement, 1939-1945, Diss. Frankfurt a.M. 1969. 194 Krüger, who was succeeded on 9 November 1943 by SS-Obergruppenführer Wilhelm Koppe. Krüger was alsŚ Himmler’s Stellvertreter der Festigung deutschen Volkstums in the GG (Representative for strengthening of German nationhood). Within the various districts the SS and police leaders (SS- und Polizeiführer or SSPF) were in charge of the entire police force and SS. An infamous example is SS-Brigadenführer Jürgen Stroop, the man who put down the Warsaw ghetto uprising, who held this position – SS and Police Leader – in the Warsaw district between April and September 1943. In parallel to this, in every district there were also the commanders (Kommandeurs) of the two main police formations, the security police (Sicherheitspolizei or Sipo) and order police (Ordnungspolizei or Orpo). In order to examine the part played by the German police in the occupation of Poland and the extermination of the Jews, and to be in a position to access the relevant archive materials, one has to be familiar with its basic organizational and hierarchical structure.332 At the head of the SS333 and all the police formations in the Third Reich and the occupied territories was Heinrich Himmler – Reichsführer SS und Chef der Deutschen Polizei. The following offices were under his control and answered to him: (I) Reichssicherheitshauptamt (RSHA, Reich Main Security Office) in Berlin, (II) Hauptamt der Ordnungspolizei (HAOP, Order Police Headquarters), (III) Wirtschaftsverwaltungshauptamt der SS (SS-WVHA, the SS Main Economic and Administrative Department), and (IV) Der Höhere SS- und Polizeiführer-Ost (HSSPF-Ost, the Senior SS and Police Leader in the East), based in Krakow. Himmler was also Reichskommissar für die Festigung deutschen Volkstums (Reich Commissar for the Strengthening of German Nationhood). Wilhelm Krüger, and Koppe after him, were directly answerable to Himmler, though not to the RSHA or any other of the supreme offices in Berlin, as they in the GG, like Himmler in the Reich, held the supreme authority over the SS and police. The head of the security police and the SD, and thus also the RSHA in Berlin, was Reinhardt Heydrich, and after his death Bruno Streckenbach (June – 332 Cf. W. Borodziej, Terror i polityka, policja niemiecka a polski ruch oporu w GG 1939-1944, Warszawa 1985; M. Getter, “Zarys organizacji policji niemieckiej w Warszawie i dystrykcie Warszawa w latach 1939-1945”, Rocznik Warszawski, 1965, vol. VI; S. Biernacki, Okuśant a śŚlski ruch ŚśŚru. Władze hitlerŚwskie w walce z ruchem ŚśŚru w dystrykcie warszawskim, Warszawa 1989; W. Tuszyński, “PŚlicyjřy i wŚjskŚwy aśarat Śkuśacyjřy řa Lubelszczy řie (Orgařizacja, siły i řiektóre elemeřty działařia)”, Zeszyty Majdanka, 1970, vŚl. III; W. Zy kŚ, “Władze śŚlicyjře dystryktu lubelskiegŚ w latach 1939-1944. Struktura, zakres działařia, Śbsada”, Zeszyty Majdanka, 19ę9, řŚ. 3; J.A. Młyřarczyk, Judenmord in Zentralpolen. Der Distrikt Radom des Generalgouvernements 1939-1945, Darmstadt 2007. 333 The SS (Die Schutzstaffel der NSDAP – the Defence Corps of the NSDAP) was the elite paramilitary formation of the NSDAP. In 1936 a number of militarized units were formed, under the name Totenkopfverbände (Death’s Head Battalions) and Verfügungstruppen (Dispositional Troops), which in 1940 were reformed as the Waffen-SS. The staff of the concentration and extermination camps were recruited from among members of the SS. SS officers swore an oath of allegiance to the Führer. 195 December 1942), who was succeeded by Ernst Kaltenbrunner.334 The RSHA was the superior office to the Sipo (Sicherheitspolizei, Security Police)335, Kripo (Kriminalpolizei, Criminal Police) and SD (Sicherheitsdienst, Security Service). These played the main roles in the Reich security system. It was the RSHA in Berlin to which the office of Befehlshaber der Sicherheitspolizei 336 (BdS, Commander of the Security Police) in the GG was answerable, though it also took orders from HSSPF-Ost337 and the government of the GG. The BdS, in turn, was the superior of the Kommandeur der Sicherheitspolizei (KdS, Commanders of the Sipo and the SD) in the various districts. This structure of the civil and police authorities produced a double or even triple layer of professional subordination. In practice it caused organizational and procedural chaos, and systemic rivalry in the sphere of competencies and scope of action. The various decision-making centres often issued contradictory orders, which was to some extent inevitable in this system, and characteristic for the whole complexity of the administrative and police architecture of the Third Reich and its occupied territories. However, this apparent irrationality in authority structures enabled Hitler and other individuals in central decision-making roles to manipulate their subordinates, play one off agaiřst ařŚther, ařd emślŚy a “divide ařd rule” fŚrm Śf cŚřtrŚl. The Order Police (Orpo)338 was a uniformed force whose mandate included providing security for government offices and other official buildings by monitoring traffic and checking documents, performing executions, combatting partisan activity, conducting street round-ups to deliver forced labour to the Reich, and many other similar tasks. The central body of command in the Orpo was the Order PŚlice Headquarters (HAOP) iř Berliř, which was alsŚ uřder Himmler’s cŚřtrŚl. The head of the HAOP was Kurt Daluege, and he was succeeded by Gen. Alfred Wünneberg. Ernst Kaltenbrunner (4 October 1903 – [executed] 16 October 1946 in Nuremberg), SS-Obergruppenführer and head of the RSHA in the years 1943-1945. Born in Austria; from 1938, after the Anschluss, he was promoted rapidly and became a deputy to the Reichstag. Iř Jařuary 19ė3 he tŚŚk Śver frŚm BruřŚ Streckeřbach, fŚr a few mŚřths Heydrich’s successor as head of the RSHA. He wielded immense authority over the police formations, and was responsible for the crimes of the Einsatzgruppen and the crimes committed in the extermination and concentration camps. Tried in Nuremberg and sentenced to death. 335 The Sipo (Sicherheitspolizei, Security Police) was established in 1936 as the Third Reich police organization and included the Gestapo (Geheime Staatspolizei, Secret State Police) and the Kripo (Kriminalpolizei, Criminal Police). 336 This function was held by SS-Oberführer und Oberst der Polizei Bruno Streckenbach, Dr Karl Eberhard Schöngarth, and Dr Walter Bierkamp. 337 Independent of the RSHA, but subordinate to Himmler. 338 For a diagram explaining the complex police hierarchy, see http://www.obersalzberg.de/ss-polizei-in-besetztengebieten.html?&L=1. 334 196 The head of the Orpo in the GG was the Befehlshaber der Ordnungspolizei (BdO, Commander of the Order Police 339 ), whose seat was in Krakow; he was the immediate superior of the district Kommandeur der Ordnungspolizei (KdO, Commander of the Order Police). The district KdOs were also answerable to the SSPF in their districts and to the BdO at GG level. The BdO, in turn, like the BdS, was subordinate in office to both the central headquarters in Berlin (in this case the HAOP) and the police central headquarters in the GG, i.e. the HSSPF-Ost. They all also held functions with responsibility for security in the civilian authorities (at both GG and district levels). Another of the roles of the Orpo was supervision of the relatively small number of specialist police services, which are of lesser significance for our subject: the Wasserschutzpolizei (water police), Werkschutz (factory security), Forstschutz (forestry security), Postschutz (postal service security), Verkehrpolizei (traffic police), Bahnschutzpolizei (railway security) and other similar forces; it also cooperated with the border police and customs services, as well as an administrative police force subject to the civilian authorities in the GG – the Sonderdienst (Special Services), which comprised Germans and Volksdeutsche. The Orpo was also the senior institution to the auxiliary services – the Ukrainian police, the Polish Police 340 (PP, alsŚ křŚwř as the “[dark] blue śŚlice” due tŚ their uniforms), the Hilfspolizei (auxiliary police, abbreviated to Hipo341), and the Jewish Order Service (OD).342 The Orpo operated in cities with a population of over 5,000 as units of the Schutzpolizei (Schupo, protection police), and in rural areas as the Gendarmerie (Gen.). Every KdO had a police regiment 343 in barracks at his disposal in the district centre with which to carry out repression or extermination operations. These regiments, one in each district, varied in size – between 1 and 5 battalions; the Polizei Regiment Radom, for instance, numbered approximately 1,350 men in 1942. From February 1943 these operational units were renamed SS-Polizei Regiment, and in inside police jargon 339 This post, in the rank of SS-Brigadenführer und Generalmajor der Polizei, was held, in order, by: Herbert Becker, Karl Riege, Gerhard Winkler, Rudolf Müller-Bonigk, Hans Dietrich Grünwald and Emil Höring. 340 Cf. A. Hempel, Policja granatowa w okupacyjnym systemie administracyjnym GG 1939-1945, Warszawa 1987; idem, Pogrobowcy klęski. Rzecz Ś śŚlicji „granatŚwej” w Generalnym GubernatŚrstwie, 1939-1945, Warszawa 1990; R.A. Wójcik, “Organizacja i działalřŚ ć śŚlicji grařatŚwej w Dystrykcie Lubelskim w latach 1939-19ėė”, Master’s dissertatiŚř [tyśescriśt], UMCS Lubliř, 197ė; S. Pi tkŚwski, “PŚlicja śŚlska tzw. granatowa w Radomiu i w powiecie radomskim (1939-19ėĘ)”, Między Wisłą a Pilicą. Studia i Materiały HistŚryczne, 2001, no. 2, pp. 107-128; E. Majcher-Ociesa, ed., Z dziejów policji polskiej w latach 1919-1945, Kielce 2010. 341 The Hipo and the Gendarmerie accepted Volksdeutsche. 342 Cf. A. Podolska, Słu ba PŚrządkŚwa w getcie warszawskim w latach 1940-1943, Warszawa 1996. 343 The regiment was a tactical, independent military or police unit comprising a small number of battalions. 197 “TruśśeřśŚlizei” (regimeřted śŚlice). Iř additiŚř, there were Śř average three GeřdarmerieHauptmannschaften (GHpm, gendarmerie units) and 10 Gendarmeriezüge (GZ, gendarmerie platoons) stationed in each district, one of the latter in each county. These, in turn, set up Gendarmerie-Posten (GP, gendarmerie stations) in the field, each of which was manned by a staff of 1+12 or 1+15 (i.e. 1 officer, 12 or 15 constables). The Gendarmerie-Hauptmannschaften were the intermediate link in the command chain between the district gendarmerie commanders and the county commanders; they were also the lowest level of territorial organization with a large staff and disciplinary authorization in respect of subordinate units and individual personnel. They submitted regular periodic reports. The chain of command was strictly observed; the gendarmerie stations and platoons could only approach the KdGen. through the GHpm. The gendarmes in the provinces played the role of primary police authority. In the years 1940-1942 there were around 10,000-12,000 Orpo officers stationed in the GG, but from May 1943 their number began to rise steadily. Special units called Einsatz- and Sonderkommandos (task forces or special commandos) were formed for special tasks, and comprised members of the gendarmerie, the Schutzpolizei, the Hipo, the PP, the Ukrainian police, and the police forces of other nationalities.344 The Polish Police force numbered around 12,000 officers, was in functional terms subordinate to the Orpo, and was mainly engaged in public order and dealing with petty crimes and the black market, also taking part in anti-Jewish operations (e.g. uncovering people in hiding outside the ghettos345), either on German orders or of their Śwř vŚlitiŚř. SŚme PP Śfficers were alsŚ śarty tŚ the AK’s uřdergrŚuřd wŚrk. Service iř the PP was řŚt vŚluřtary. “Iř Śrder tŚ eřsure ař iřflŚw Śf sufficieřt manpower, on 30 October [1939] Krüger issued a proclamation in which, on pain of the severest punishments, he ordered all Polish police officers who had been in active service on 1 September 1939 to report to their nearest German police office and German county office, regardless of where they had beeř serviřg befŚre the war.” 346 The actual date on which the PP under the German occupation was created is 17 December 1939, the day on which the order to this effect was published.347 Cf. Wolfgang Curilla, Der Judenmord in Polen und die deutsche Ordnungspolizei 1939-1945, Paderborn – München – Wien – Zürich 2011; Stefan Klemp, Freisśruch für das “MŚrd-BattaliŚn”. Die NS-Ordnungspolizei und die Nachkriegsjustiz, Münster 1998; idem, „Nicht ermittelt”. PŚlizeibataillone und die Nachkriegsjustiz. Ein Handbuch, 2nd edition, Essen 2011. 345 Cf. Jař GrabŚwski, “Udział śŚlskiej Kriminalpolizei (KriśŚ) w „Śstateczřym rŚzwi zařiu kwestii ydŚwskiej”: śróba zarysowania tematu. Casus Warszawy”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2014, no. 10. 346 A. Hempel, Policja granatowa..., op. cit., p. 38. 347 Ibidem, p. 42. 344 198 A key rŚle iř the executiŚř Śf the ślař tŚ extermiřate the Jews iř the GG, cŚdeřamed “AktiŚř Reiřhardt”348, was played by SS-Gruppenführer Odilo Globocnik, in the years 1939-1943 SSPF and head of the NSDAP in the Lublin district. He also personally and directly oversaw the expulsions ařd blŚŚdy suśśressiŚřs Śf the villages iř the ZamŚ ć regiŚř, the cŚřstructiŚř ařd ŚśeratiŚř Śf Majdanek concentration camp, and the extermination of the Jews – the liquidation of the various ghettos and the murder of people in concentration camps, labour camps and extermination centres (SŚbibór, Beł ec, Trebliřka).349 Though formally subordinate to the governor of the Lublin district, Globocnik was the coordinator of operations in several districts, and was de facto immediately answerable only to Himmler. In August 1943 he was succeeded by Jacob Sporrenberg, who was personally responsible for the Erntefest (“Harvest Festival”) ŚśeratiŚř – the extermination of some 40,000 Jews in the Lublin district, in the camps of Majdanek, Trawniki and Poniatowa in November 1943. There are files generated by the German administrative system and police that have been preserved in the Polish state archives, in the IPN archive, and above all in German archives. Given the number of various police formations and offices directing them that operated during the war, the volume of files that has been preserved in Polish archives is very meagre, and much of their content is missing or incomplete. Such documents were either deliberately destroyed by the Germans, or were lost or destroyed due to military action in the campaigns of 1944-1945. Outside of Poland there is archive material on military and police units and administrative offices in German archives and archives in the Allied countries, above all Russia (now also in Ukraine, Lithuania and Belarus) and the USA. With regard to searches for relevant files in Germany, two finding aids by the Institut für Zeitgeschichte in Munich may be extremely useful: an archive guide350 and a dedicated handbook aiding navigation of the structure of German offices, functions and ranks from the period of the Third Reich.351 The most important German archives were profiled in Part I of this Guide above. A Cf. Akcja Reinhard. Zagłada ydów w Generalnym GubernatŚrstwie, ed. D. Libionka, Warszawa 2004. Cf. S. Piotrowski, Misja Odyla Globocnika. Sprawozdania z wyników finansŚwych zagłady ydów w PŚlsce, Warszawa 1949. 350 Inventar archivalischer Quellen des NS-Staates, op. cit. This publication does not, however, cover collections on the occupied areas, but only regional collections for the annexed areas. Also available iř the cŚmmercial database “20th Century German History Online – National Socialism, Holocaust, Resistance and Exile 1933-19ėĘ”, http://db.saur.de/DGO/. 351 Ämter, Abkürzungen, Aktionen des NS-Staates. Handbuch für die Benutzung von Quellen der nationalsozialistischen Zeit. Amtbezeichnungen, Ränge und Verwaltungsgliederungen, Abkürzungen und nichtmilitärische Tarnbezeichnungen. Im Auftrag des IfZ, bearbeitet von Heinz Boberach, Rolf Thommes, Hermann Weiss, München 1997. Also included in the DGO database. 348 349 199 small proportion of this archive material is accessible in Poland at the AAN352 on microfilm; this includes parts of collections such as Reichsministerium für besetzten Ostgebiete, Reichsministerium des Innern, Hauptamt Ordnungspolizei, Reichsjustizministerium, Reichskanzlei, Reichskommissar für die Festigung deutschen Volkstums, Organisation Todt, Kanzlei des Generalgouverneurs, Hauptamt Innere Volksaufklärung Verwaltung, und Institut Propaganda, für Deutsches Deutsche Ostarbeit, Ausland-Institut, Reichsministerium für Reichssicherheitshauptamt, Polizeidienststellen in eingegliederten und besetzten Gebieten, Auswärtiges Amt, and others from the Bundesarchiv.353 The AAN also holds copies of the Captured German Records Microfilmed at Alexandria, which include files generated by German government offices, institutions, and police and military formations before 1945. These are files that were removed by the Americans to Fort Alexandria (in the state of Virginia, south of Washington, D.C.) and microfilmed there, hence their name. Detailed profiles of these collections are held in the inventories published in the USA as Guides to German Records Microfilmed at Alexandria VA. 354 These finding aids are also accessible at the AAN on microfilm.355 Two finding aids to the Captured German Records Microfilmed at Alexandria have been published in Polish. 356 Documents generated by the police and German administrative offices constituted evidentiary material in the trials of those defendants tried in Poland before the Supreme National Tribunal (RG NTN at the IPN Archive), and it is in this category that they should be sought, as they are an integral part of the trial files. This principle was not adhered to in the case of the Nuremberg Trials. In this case, when a trial ended, all the files, including the evidence of the crimes in the form of the original archive materials dating from the war, were microfilmed and published, while the documents themselves were returned to the institutions and archives from which they had been taken. No list of these materials was drawn up that would enable the interested scholar today to seek AlsŚ iř the State Archives iř Gdańsk, KatŚwice, Olsztyř, PŚzřań, RadŚm, Rzeszów, Szczeciř, Warsaw ařd WrŚcław, and the National Archive in Krakow. 353 For a list of the archives, collections and files from foreign archives available on microfilm, see: Katalog mikrofilmów i fotokopii z archiwów zagranicznych, Zeszyt X, compiled by B. Kubiczek and Z. Spieralska, NDAP, Warszawa 1997. 354 Also accessible online, e.g.: www.archives.gov/research/microfilm/t84-1.pdf. 355 Guides no. 1-65 are on four reels of microfilm in RG T-733. These are supplemented by the collection T-176, entitled Data Sheets to Microfilmed Captured German Records. These are the inventories of each of the rolls of microfilm (seven in all). 356 InfŚrmatŚr Ś mikrŚfilmach akt byłej III Rzeszy (tzw. mikrŚfilmach aleksandryjskich) znajdujących się w PŚlsce, compiled by T. Kurowski, NDAP, Warszawa 1975; W. Lechnio, Wykaz tzw. mikrofilmów aleksandryjskich, NDAP, Warszawa 1995. 352 200 them out in the relevant archive and collection, however. For this reason, historians citing documents used in these trials are often forced to cite the microfilmed Nuremberg Trial files rather than the archive and record group in which the original files are held today. The Polish literature lacks a current and detailed guide to wartime archive material; there is also a need for a monographic work on the occupying administration, the SS and police forces in the GG, and the personnel in the various posts in particular offices and departments.357 All this is research that still has to be done. 357 Among the publications in German, the following should be mentioned: H. J. Neufeld and G. Tessin, Zur Geschichte der Ordnungspolizei, 1936-1945, Part 1: Entstehung und Organisation des Hauptamtes Ordnungspolizei im 2. Weltkrieg, Part 2: Die Stäbe und Truppeneinheiten der Ordnungspolizei, Koblenz 1957; A. Ramme, Der Sicherheitsdienst der SS: Zu einer Funktion im faschistischen Machtapparat und im Besatzungsregime des sogennanten Generalgouvernements Polen, Berlin 1970; B. Musial, Deutsche Zivilverwaltung und Judenverfolgung im Generalgouvernement: Eine Fallstudie zum Distrikt Lublin, 1939-1944, Wiesbaden 1999; M. Roth, Herrenmenschen. Die deutschen Kreishauptleute im besetzten Polen. Karrierewege, Herrschaftspraxis und Nachgeschichte, Göttingen 2009. 201 202 2. Judenrat files From the earliest days of their occupation of the Polish lands, the German authorities implemented entirely heterogeneous policies in respect of the Polish and Jewish populations, with the intention of isolating them from each other. This was expressed in aspects such as separate legislation and seśarate admiřistrative structures. TŚ this eřd, a system Śf JudeřrŹte (Rady ydŚwskie, Jewish Councils) was installed; in practice these were intended as the link between the German authorities and the Jewish communities (and later ghettos). Their main duty was to carry out the orders of the German authorities, above all with regard to monetary tribute payments, supply of a daily contingent of forced labourers, and organization (or assistance therein) of confiscations of movable and real estate belonging to Jews. On the other hand they also served vital functions within the Jewish cŚmmuřities: they Śrgařized mutual aid, a health service, ařd childreř’s ařd Śld śeŚśle’s hŚmes, tŚŚk care of resettled incomers, issued rulings on housing and billeting issues, distributed food, and oversaw the Ordnungsdienst (OD, Order Service – the official name of the Jewish police). These and many other functions were all the more important since the Nazi system essentially placed Jews outside the law. The JudeřrŹte (Rady ydŚwskie, Jewish cŚuřcils) were established by the Germař Śccuśyiřg authorities in place of the existing Jewish community boards. The legal grounds for this was the Śrdiřařce Śf 28 NŚvember 1939 issued by geřeral gŚverřŚr Hařs Frařk Śř “The AśśŚiřtmeřt Śf CŚuřcils Śf Jewish Elders” with 12 members (iř cŚmmuřities with a śŚśulatiŚř Śf uś tŚ 10,000) Śr 24 (in communities of over 10,000). 358 This was śreceded by Heydrich’s famous message of 21 Seśtember 1939 addressed tŚ “Die Chefs aller Eiřsatzgruśśeř der SicherheitsśŚlizei”, iř which śŚiřt 1 Śf sectiŚř II read: “Iř each Jewish cŚmmuřity, a CŚuřcil Śf Jewish Elders is tŚ be set uś, tŚ be composed, as far as possible, of the remaining influential personalities and rabbis. (...)The council is to be made fully responsible, in the literal sense of the word, for the exact, punctual execution of all directives issued Śr yet tŚ be issued.”359 In practice, the councils in small communities numbered only a few people, and were never elected by the Jews themselves (as was stipulated in one of the śŚiřts Śf Frařk’s Śrdiřařce) but aśśŚiřted by the Śccuśyiřg authŚrities. The iřteřtiŚř behiřd 358 Verordnungsblatt für das Generalgouvernement 1939, no. 9, p. 72. Quoted after: Lucy S. Dawidowicz, A Holocaust Reader, West Orange 1976, pp. 59-64, from: http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/heydrich_instructions.html (date of access: 1 April 2014). 359 203 Frařk’s Śrdiřařce (which was suśśŚrted by twŚ executive decrees) was that all ordinances issued by the German authorities were to be relayed to the Judenräte via the relevant Kreishauptmann (county governor) or Stadthauptmann (city governor). The question of how German policy in respect of management of the Jewish population through the Judenräte was implemented in practice, and to whom the latter submitted their reports and effectively answered, both in the lands annexed to the Reich and in the GG, is a matter for more detailed study. The Judenrat in Kozienice (a small town in the Radom district), for instance, submitted its fortnightly and monthly reports to the Sicherheitspolizei in Radom, the Judenrat in Piotrków Trybunalski to the Stadtkommissar von Petrikau (Piotrków), Chaim Rumkowski 360 to Hans Biebow, the head of the German Gettoverwaltung, and Adam Czerniaków 361 , Obmann (head) of the Warsaw Judenrat, to the Kommissar für den jüdischen Wohnbezirk, an integral part of the Amt des Verwaltungschefs des Distrikts Warschau (Office of the Head of the Warsaw District), and / or the Transferstelle Warschau (Commissar of the Jewish District in Warsaw and the Transfer Agency in Warsaw), and the Stadthauptmann of Warsaw. To this day no full monographic study of the history of the Judenräte and the role that fell to them in the process of the Holocaust has been published in Polish. The only monograph addressing the subject has been written, in English, by Isaiah Trunk. 362 Their activities Chaim Mordechaj Rumkowski (1897 Ilin, Ukraine – 19ėė O wi cim/KL Auschwitz-Birkenau) – before the war a textiles merchant, insurance broker, Zionist and social activist (e.g. head of the orphanage in Helenówek). Appointed Chairman of the Jüdischer Ältesteřrat iř the Łód ghettŚ Śř 13 OctŚber 1939, ařd held the śŚst uřtil August 19ėė wheř the ghetto was ultimately liquidated and its last residents deported to KL Auschwitz-Birkenau. Ruled like a dictator in the ghetto, setting himself up as the only intermediary between the Jews and the German Gettoverwaltung. Among his measures were the iřtrŚductiŚř Śf his Śwř ghettŚ curreřcy, křŚwř as “Chaims” Śr “Rums” ařd beariřg a śŚrtrait Śf him, and for a brief interval also a newspaper, Geto Tsaytung. He pursued a policy of rescuing Jews through labour and being useful to the occupiers; he believed that this was the way he would save the greatest number of lives. In September 1942 he personally helped to draw up a list of those condemned to deportation to the exterminatiŚř camś iř ChełmřŚ (this transport included virtually all the children from the ghetto). Rumkowski and his role are the subject of immense controversy and conflicting judgments, among both surviving Jews and historians. He was deported to KL AuschwitzBirkenau in August 1944. The immediate circumstances surrounding his death are not known. 361 Adam (Abraham) Czerniaków (Czerniakow) (1880 Warsaw – 1942 Warsaw) – graduate of the Warsaw and Dresden polytechnics, pedagogue, journalist, social and political activist, member of the Warsaw Jewish Community Council. AśśŚiřted head Śf the Warsaw Judeřrat Śř ė OctŚber 1939. He believed that sŚme śrŚśŚrtiŚř Śf the ghettŚ’s population would manage to save itself, which was one of the reasons for his quasi-conciliatory stance towards the German authorities, whom he attempted to persuade to mitigate the force of anti-Jewish regulations and ordinances. In certain situations he was prepared to act as a hostage, but he rarely submitted protests. He was criticized among other reasons for his poor choice of co-workers and for tolerating social inequalities. On the second day of the Grosse Aktion, the liquidation of the Warsaw ghetto (23 July 1942), he committed suicide in order not to participate in it, and also as a means of warning the ghetto population of what awaited it. He was buried in the Jewish cemetery in Warsaw. He kept a diary: Adama Czerniakowa dziennik z getta warszawskiego 6 IX 1939 – 23 VII 1942, compiled by M. Fuks, Warszawa 1983. Engl. edition: The Warsaw Diary of Adam Czerniakow – prelude to doom, New York 1979. Hebrew edition with facsimile: Yoman getto Varsha 6. 9. 1939 - 23. 7. 1942, Jerusalem 1968. 362 I. Trunk, Judenrat, The Jewish Councils in Eastern Europe under Nazi Occupation, New York-London 1972; cf. V. Wahlen, “Selected Bibliography on Judenräte Under Nazi Rule”, Yad Vashem Studies, 1974, vol. 10, pp. 277-294. 360 204 are the subject of controversy and dispute among historians who study these issues 363 , because difficult ethical and moral questions such as collaboration are implicated in them. It is not the task of historians to pass sentence; their role is to examine in detail the history of the institutions themselves and their leaders.364 For if we treat the Judenräte as institutions and elements of an administrative system of governing and exercising power, we must not forget that they had no precedent in history and cannot be compared with any other known form of office. The Judenrat files that have been preserved in largest number and that are of greatest importance are those relating to the ghettos in Łód (reřamed Litzmařřstadt duriřg the ŚccuśatiŚř ), Warsaw, Lubliř, KrakŚw, ařd thŚse iř Uśśer Silesia, with the Zentrale der jüdischen Ältestenräte in Oberschlesien (Central Office of Jewish Councils of Elders in Upper Silesia) in Sosnowiec. For the remaining ghettos, in particular the small ones, there is very little in the way of surviving documentation generated by the Judenräte.365 Only in a few isolated cases is it known how some of these materials were salvaged. In most instances they were śreserved thařks tŚ beiřg cŚřcealed by Jews themselves (e.g. iř Łód ). SŚmetimes (e.g. iř Lublin) German officers were instrumental in salvaging them, doubtless unwittingly. For the most part, the files of Judenräte are recorded in German, the mandatory language in correspondence between the Judenräte and the German authorities; sometimes there are drafts of official letters and reports written in Polish and subsequently translated into German. Some of the documentation, above all internal correspondence between the various departments of the Judenräte, cŚrresśŚřdeřce with mutual aid iřstitutiŚřs (such as the SS ařd JDC), ařd studies fŚr iřterřal use, was writteř iř PŚlish. Iř PŚlařd Judeřrat files are held iř A IH ařd iř the State Archives iř Łód , Warsaw, Lubliř, RadŚm, PiŚtrków Trybuřalski, KatŚwice, Rzeszów, SařdŚmierz, ZamŚ ć ařd Krakow. They vary widely in volume – from a single item (and in some cases even a single document, as iř ślaces iřcludiřg JasłŚ, Faleřica, SařdŚmierz, Kamieńsk, KŚńskie, Ł czyca ařd WłŚszczŚwa) tŚ Śver 2,Ę00 dŚssiers, ruřřiřg tŚ sŚme 1ė2 liřear metres Śf files (the RumkŚwski Archive, AP Łód ). The files Śf the Judeřrat iř Łód have been preserved almost in their entirety, while those of the Warsaw Judenrat constitute no more than 2-3% of the documentation generated in that period. Surviving materials, whether preserved in the Judenrat collections or in other archival holdings Cf. M. Fuks, “Judenraty – ludzie, problemy, kontrowersje”, [iř:] HŚlŚcaust z śersśektywy śółwiecza. Pięćdziesiąta rŚcznica śŚwstania w getcie warszawskim. Materiały z kŚnferencji zŚrganizŚwanej śrzez ydŚwski Instytut HistŚryczny w dniach 29-31 marca 1993, ed. D. Grinberg, P. Szapiro, Warszawa 1994. 364 Cf. M. Urynowicz, Adam Czerniaków 1880–1942. Prezes getta warszawskiego, Warszawa 2009. 365 Cf. S. Pi tkŚwski, “Judeřraty w dystrykcie radŚmskim (ze szczególřym uwzgl dřieřiem miasta RadŚmia)”, [in:] ydzi dystryktu radŚmskiegŚ w Śkresie II wŚjny wiatŚwej. Materiały sesii śŚśularnŚnaukŚwej Śdbytej w RadŚmiu 27 wrze nia 1997 rŚku, ed. S. Pi tkŚwski, Biuletyn Kwartalny Radomskiego Towarzystwa Naukowego, vol. XXXIII, 1998, issue no. 1, pp. 51-70. 363 205 (including postwar materials), are often vital to reconstructing the composition of the Judenräte and the identities of the staffs of their various departments, members of the Jewish police force, and people employed on an occasional basis. The Judenräte in large ghettŚs, abŚve all Łód ařd Warsaw, employed whole armies of people, so providing them with a source of regular income. It is a wellknown fact that the bureaucracy and administration of the Judenräte was massively overblown, and produced vast amounts of documents – correspondence, official letters, sets of statistics, graphs, plans, lists, reports and other materials – that today seem absurd in the light of what happened. It is estimated that around 80 per cent of the official documentation of the Ältestenrat der Juden in Litzmannstadt was generated for internal purposes. This work was partly a way of adapting to living conditions over which none of those affected essentially had any control. At the height of its activity the Central Office of Jewish Councils Śf Elders (Ceřtrala Rad ydŚwskich) iř Uśśer Silesia employed some 1,300 people, Rumkowski gave desk jobs to almost 10,000 people, and the situation was similar in Warsaw, where over 5,000 people were employed by the Jewish Council. Did a function in the Judeřrat Śr the Jewish śŚlice Śffer a sigřificařt imśrŚvemeřt iř its hŚlder’s chařces Śf survival? This remains an open question, although it seems unlikely to have done so. ŁÓD The cŚllectiŚř PrzełŚ Śřy Starszeństwa ydów (PS , Head Śf the CŚuřcil Śf Jewish Elders) in the Łód GhettŚ, alsŚ křŚwř as Archiwum RumkŚwskiegŚ (the RumkŚwski Archive, AP Łód , RG 278) consists of 2,478 files, some 142.5 linear metres of documents. These materials have been preserved in very good condition, virtually in their eřtirety. Very large grŚuśs Śf PS archive materials are alsŚ held iř A IH, YIVO iř New YŚrk, ařd iř Yad Vashem, as the Nachmař ZŚřabeřd CŚllectiŚř.366 The cŚllectiŚř křŚwř as the RumkŚwski Archive was held uřtil 19ę8 as a deśŚsit iř A IH, ařd it was there that it was first lent some basic semblance of order. Its present organization and inventory are the wŚrk Śf Łód archivists. The iřtrŚductiŚř iř the fiřdiřg aid cŚřtaiřs a histŚry Śf the institution, a profile of the organization of the administration and scope of its mandate, and an archive profile of the collection – the order of the files, their content, and a description of the methŚds by which it is Śrdered. The Jewish admiřistratiŚř Śf the Łód ghettŚ (the Ältesteřrat Śr Beirat) has been the subject of a number of publications, in Poland foremost among them the works 366 The Documents of the Lodz Ghetto. An Inventory of the Nachman Zonabend Collection (Record Group No. 241), compiled by Marek Web, YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, New York 1988; Nachman Zonabend Collection on the Lodz Ghetto (Record Group 0-34), compiled by Michal Unger, Yad Vashem Central Archives, Jerusalem 1992. 206 by Dařuta D brŚwska ařd Juliař BarařŚwski, ařd these are recŚmmeřded readiřg. 367 A characteristic asśect Śf the situatiŚř iř Łód was the extremely exteřsive autŚřŚmy Śf Chaim Mordechaj Rumkowski368, whŚ styled himself as the “ghettŚ kiřg” ařd acted virtually iřdeśeřdeřtly Śf Śther members Śf the Ältesteřrat. MŚj esz Meriř 369 in Sosnowiec had a similar degree of independence. On the whole, in the lands annexed to the Third Reich there were Ältestenräte (CŚuřcils Śf Elders), which existed as advisŚry bŚdies tŚ the “Älteste”, Śr chief Elder, but iř the GG there were JudeřrŹte (Jewish CŚuřcils), with chairmeř. The ŚrgařizatiŚřal structure Śf the Łód ghetto administration was probably modelled on the previously established Theresienstadt ghetto in CzechŚslŚvakia. The cŚřteřts Śf the cŚllectiŚř held iř Łód are as fŚllŚws370: I. Rada Starszych – Beirat (Council of Elders, call no. 1) – nominations for council members, II. Centralny Sekretariat – Zentralsekretariat (Central Secretariat, call no. 2-186) – correspondence with the German authorities, deportations, supplies, medical matters, procurement orders for materials for the workshops, and circulars and public announcements issued by Rumkowski, III. Sekretariat Prezydialny – Präsidialsekretariat (Secretariat of the Presidium, call no. 187-196) – daily reports from the Department of Health, IV. Sekretariat Pró b i Ńa ale – Sekretariat für Bittschriften und Beschwerden (Secretariat for Requests and Complaints, call no. 197-296) – mainly applications for work and benefits, V. Wydział InfŚrmacji i Wywiadów – Auskunftsstelle (Department of Information, call no. 297305) – correspondence regarding information on Jews interned in the ghetto, D. D brŚwska, “Admiřistracja ydŚwska w ŁŚdzi i jej ageřdy w Śkresie Śd śŚcz tków Śkuśacji dŚ zamkři cia getta (8 IX 1939 r. – 30 IV 19ė0 r.)”, B IH 1963, no. 45-46, pp. 110-137; eadem, “Struktura i fuřkcja admiřistracji ydŚwskiej w getcie łódzkim (maj-grudzień 19ė0 r.)”, B IH 1964, no. 51, pp. 41-47, no. 52, pp. 35-ė8; J. BarařŚwski, “Administracja řiemiecka i tzw. samŚrz d w getcie łódzkim 19ė0-19ėė”, [in:] Dzieje ydów w ŁŚdzi 1820-1944, Łód 1991, śś. 311-323; idem, Łódzkie gettŚ 1940-1944. Vademecum, Łód 1999. 368 Cf. M. Polit, "MŚja ydŚwska dusza nie Śbawia się dnia sądu." MŚrdechaj Chaim RumkŚwski. Prawda i zmy lenie, Warszawa 2012. 369 MŚj esz (MŚsze, MŚřiek) Meriř (190ę SŚsřŚwiec ? – 19ė3 O wi cim/KL Auschwitz-Birkenau) – before the war a commercial agent and Zionist activist. After the outbreak of war curried favour with the Germans, and in part by offering his services as an interpreter and guide, was appointed in January 1940 to the position of Leiter (Leader) of the jüdischen Ältestenräte in Oberschlesien. He pursued a policy of saving certain groups of the population at the cost of others such as the poorest and those resettled from elsewhere. He resisted attempts to save people using passports Śbtaiřed by Jewish ŚrgařizatiŚřs iř Switzerlařd, which bestŚwed Śř their hŚlders the status Śf “fŚreigřers”. He was unexpectedly arrested with a group of young people from Hanoar Hatzioni in June 1943 and deported to KL AuschwitzBirkeřau. The circumstařces surrŚuřdiřg his death iř the camś are uřkřŚwř. The liquidatiŚř Śf the ghettŚs iř Zagł bie D brŚwskie (the D brŚwa Basiř) was cŚmmeřced Śř 1 August 1943. Cf. Zagłada ydów zagłębiŚwskich, ed. A. NamysłŚ, B dziř 200ė; PŚlski słŚwnik judaistyczny, op. cit., vol. 2, pp. 136-137. 370 Owing to the size of this collection, the information given here is limited to the most basic facts. Cf. Inwentarz akt PrzełŚ ŚnegŚ Starszeństwa ydów w Getcie Łódzkim 1939-1944, Archiwum PaństwŚwe w ŁŚdzi, Łód 2009. 367 207 VI. Wydział PersŚnalny – Personalabteilung (Personnel Department, call no. 306-336) – daily reśŚrts, emślŚyees’ śersŚřal questiŚřřaires, cŚrresśŚřdeřce, VII. Bezśiecze stwŚ, Słu ba PŚrz dkŚwa, KŚmenda, Rewiry – Sicherheitswesen, Ordnungsdienst (Security and the Order Service, call no. 337-456) – daily orders, instructions, operational reports, lists of names of police officers, lists of Jews designated for deportation, confiscated items (gold, silver, watches and furs), VIII. S dŚwnictwŚ – Gerichtwesen (Judicial system, call no. 457-476) – operational reports on crimes, lists of prisoners in the Central Prison in the ghetto, IX. Centralny Urz d KŚntrŚli – Zentral-Kontrollstelle (Central Control Department, call no. 477507) – reports on living conditions, hygiene, homes, house committees, X. Najwy sza Izba KŚntrŚli – Höchste Kontroll-Kammer (Supreme Chamber of Control, call no. 508-723) – monitoring of the other departments, shops, and community kitchens), XI. KŚmisja KŚntrŚli Maj tku Niemieckiego i Polskiego w Getcie – Kontroll-Komission für im Getto gebliebenes Gut der Deutschen und Polen (Commission for Monitoring of German and Polish Property in the Ghetto, call no. 724-725) – correspondence on rents, XII. Wydział Statystyczny – Statistische Abteilung (Statistical Department, call no. 726-886) – graphs, tables and boards illustrating the work of the various departments and all manner of other information on the ghetto, in addition to lists of ghetto residents, employees of the various workshops, and extensive other statistical material, XIII. Wydział Ewidencji – Evidenzabteilung (Records Department, call no. 887-1064) – cŚrresśŚřdeřce (iřcl. with Germař authŚrities regardiřg deaths), registratiŚř matters, the Urz d Stanu Cywilnego (Registry Office, call no. 920-967) – death and marriage certificates, divorce śrŚceediřgs, Referat Kart TŚ samŚ ci (ID Cards SectiŚř, call řŚ. 9ę8-989) – witness testimonies in connection with personal data required for the issue of Kennkarten, Biuro Meldunkowe (Residential Registration Office, call no. 990-1064) – lists of names of Jews from abroad, lists of the deceased, newborn babies, and the sick, lists of the residents of each street, residential registration books, labour cards in alphabetical order (call no. 1011), XIV. Archiwum – Archiv (Archive, call no. 1065-1127) – public announcements and speeches by Rumkowski, Biuletyny Kroniki Codziennej (Daily Chronicle Bulletins)371, various studies and papers, 371 German edition: Sascha Feuchert, Erwin Leibfried, Jörg Riecke (eds.): Die Chronik des Gettos Lodz / Litzmannstadt, Göttingen 2007 (5 vols.). Polish edition: KrŚnika Getta ŁódzkiegŚ / Litzmannstadt GettŚ 1941-1944, Lód 2009. 208 27 albums (contact sheets) of photographs taken by Mendel Grossman and Henryk Ross, employees of the Statistical Department, XV. Wydział GŚsśŚdarczy – Wirtschaftsabteilung (Economics Department, call no. 1128-1153) – operational reports on rubbish collections, household committee regulations, various lists of names, lists of streets and numbers of houses in the ghetto, applications and correspondences, materials on various agriculture and Zionist groups, including the ghetto newspaper of a Zionist youth group in Marysin, XVI. Wydział PŚgrzebŚwy – Beerdigungs-Abteilung (Burials Department, call no. 1154-1157) – lists of the dead, death certificates, reports and correspondences, XVII. Urz d MieszkaniŚwy – Wohnungszuweisungsstelle (Housing Department, call no. 11581169) – applications for allocation or exchange of a dwelling, descriptions and inspections of houses, XVIII. Wydział dla Wsiedlonych – Abteilung für die Eingesiedelten (Incomers Department, call no. 1170-1226) – lists of names of Jews resettled into the ghetto from Germany (cities incl. Berlin, Cologne, Düsseldorf), Luxembourg, Prague and Vienna, various documents of incoming Jews, reports, public announcements, XIX. KŚmisja Wysiedle cza – Aussiedlungskommission (Deportation Commission, call no. 1227-1298) – lists of names of people deported (in fact these were transports to the extermination camś iř ChełmřŚ řad Nerem/KulmhŚf am Nehr), aśślicatiŚřs fŚr exemśtiŚř frŚm deśŚrtatiŚř, XX. KŚmisja Mi dzyresŚrtŚwa – Zwischen-Ressort-Komitee (Interdepartmental Committee, call no. 1299-1324) – lists of names of people delegated for deportation by the workshops, XXI. Aprowizacja – Verpflegungswesen (Procurement, call no. 1325-1568) – very detailed reports from food distribution points (shops and community kitchens), lists of personnel, XXII. Wydział ŃdrŚwia – Gesundheitsabteilung (Department of Health, call no. 1569-1582) – reports from hospitals, pharmacies and emergency medical services, lists of employees, XXIII. Wydział Ośieki SśŚłecznej – Fürsorge-Abteilung (Welfare Department, call no. 15831618) – information on benefits, interviews to establish material situation, correspondences regardiřg the Śrśhařage ařd Śld śeŚśle’s hŚme, XXIV. Komisja Opieki nad Dzieckiem – Ausschuss für Kinderfürsorge (Child Welfare Commission, call no. 1619-1626) – correspondences, personal data sheets for children in the care of relatives or other families, matters concerning homeless children, payrolls for minors employed in workshops, 209 XXV. Wydział Szkolny – Schulabteilung (Schools Department, call no. 1627-1726) – lists of schools, pupils and teachers, curricula, XXVI. Komisja Kwalifikacyjna – Umschichtungs-Kommission (Qualifications Commission, call no. 1727-1757) – files concerning employment of apprentices and apprenticeships, XXVII. Wydział Pracy – Arbeitsabteilung (Labour Department, call no. 1758-1988) – reports and correspondences in connection with employees, lists of employees, XXVIII. Centralne Biuro Resortów Pracy – Zentralbüro des Arbeits-Ressorts (Central Office for Labour Workshops, call no. 1989-2039) – reports on completion of orders, artisan registration cards, XXIX. Resorty Pracy – Arbeits-Ressort (Labour Workshops, call no. 2040-2267) – lists of the employees of particular workshops, reports, orders, XXX. Wydział Pocztowy – Postabteilung (Post Department, call no. 2268-2327) – circulars and orders, a collection of postcards to relatives in Poland and other countries (never sent by the postal service), copies of money orders and parcels sent, XXXI. Wydział TransśŚrtu – Transportabteilung (Transport Department, call no. 2328-2336) – lists of employees, correspondences, XXXII. Elektrownia – Elektrizitätabteilung (Power Department, call no. 2337-2338) – lists of electricity consumption in the ghetto, XXXIII. Dom kultury – Kulturhaus (Culture Centre, call no. 2339-2340) – matters relating to events, concerts, etc., including posters, XXXIV. Klub SśŚrtŚwy Urz dników – Beamten-Sport-Klub (Officials’ SśŚrts Club, call řŚ. 2341) – official letter regarding the creation of an Officials’ SśŚrts Club, XXXV. Bank Skupu – Bank Ankaufsstelle (Purchase Bank, call no. 2342-2346) – applications for compulsory purchase of valuables and lists of confiscated items and money, XXXVI. Centrala Zakupów – Zentral-Einkaufstelle (Central Purchasing Point, call no. 23472349) – correspondence, orders for materials, XXXVII. Buchalteria Centralna – Zentralbuchhaltung (Central Accounts, call no. 2350-2381) – financial reports, cashflow reports, XXXVIII. Kasa Główna – Hauptkasse (Main Cash Point, call no. 2382-2450) – full cashflow documentation, XXXIX. Varia (Miscellanea, call no. 2451-2467) – alphabetical lists of people, various notes, ID documents, ghetto money. 210 AmŚřg the ę10 files iř the A IH cŚllectiŚř eřtitled Zbiór materiałów dŚ dziejów ludřŚ ci ydŚwskiej w ŁŚdzi 1939-1944 (Collection of materials on the history of the Jewish population of Łód , A IH, RG 20Ę) there are 1ĘĘ dŚssiers Śf PS files (files řŚ. 217-350) – some of these are duślicates Śf dŚcumeřts keśt iř Łód . The vast majority of these materials are orders and circulars frŚm the PS fŚr the ghettŚ śŚśulatiŚř (sŚme Śf them as śŚstwar cŚśies). Origiřals Śf RumkŚwski’s śublic ařřŚuřcemeřts – 429 of which were issued between February 1940 and August 1944 – are also to be found in the collection of occupation-era posters (files no. 217-271). The other documents (correspondence, reports, daily orders for the order service, population censuses, minutes of meetings, goods inventories, instructions, employee documents, ration cards for foodstuffs and cigarettes, authorizations, etc.) relate to employment, the situation of the ghetto population, schools, distribution of foodstuffs, deportees, and those exempted from deportation. File no. 323 holds a card file for pupils of the ghetto schools (an excerpt from 1941, including 2,397 cards).372 Under call no. 329-3Ę0 there are variŚus materials ařd studies Śrigiřatiřg frŚm the Łód ghettŚ archive, including excerpts from the daily Kronika codzienna, reportage by Oskar Singer373, and materials and a card file (A to Z) of materials prepared for the ghetto encyclopedia (entries on people and miscellaneous phenomena). LUBLIN The files of the Jewish Council in Lublin (Judenrat Lublin)374 (AP Lublin, RG 891375) – 183 items dating from 1939-1942 – have been preserved in relatively good condition. The collection has been processed and includes an introduction by Józef Tomczyk which profiles its content. Among its surviving content there are public announcements376, orders, circulars, minutes of plenary meetings of the Judenrat (probably the full set377), and a list of its members, a (draft) list of regulations for the An electronic database created for this unit is accessible iř the A IH readiřg rŚŚm. O. Singer, Przemierzając szybkim krŚkiem gettŚ... ReśŚrta e i eseje z getta łódzkiegŚ, Łód 2002. 374 Prior to the establishment of the ghetto there were some 45,000 Jews in Lublin. 375 N. Blumental, Documents from Lublin Ghetto. Judenrat without Direction, Jerusalem 1967. 376 The public announcements issued by the Judenrat are connected primarily with voluntary and forced labour, deportations and resettlements, delousing campaigns, and the fight against typhus, while those issued by the German authorities enforce bans and exclusions from various spheres of life, e.g. use of public transport, leaving the ghetto (issued 24 March 1941), etc. The Judenrat was responsible to the Stadthauptmann for the execution of German instructions and orders. 377 For the period 7 January 1939 – 1 NŚvember 19ė2, a week befŚre the fiřal liquidatiŚř Śf the “rest ghettŚ” (gettŚ szcz tkŚwe) at Majdař Tatarski. 372 373 211 Judenrat, reports by its departments 378 from the years 1939-1942, reports by the Judenrat to the German authorities for the period 1 September 1939 – 1 September 1940, a few of the personal files of members of the Judenrat (among them that of its deputy chairman and later chairman Dr Marek Alter), documents relating to forced labour, registration and statistical matters, financial documents (45 units), files on registry office, social welfare and housing affairs and trustee administration of Jewish real estate, cŚřřected with the “Praca” śriřtiřg house, the Matzoh Distribution and Metal Collection Commissions, and others. Files relating to the Lublin ghetto are also held in other collections in AP Lublin: Amt des Distrikts Lublin 1939-1944 – Referat dŚ sśraw ydów (Lubliř District Office – Sectioř fŚr Jewish Affairs), Wydział GŚsśŚdarczy (EcŚřŚmic Deśartmeřt) ařd Wydział Pracy (LabŚur Deśartmeřt); StarŚstwŚ Miejskie w Lubliřie (Lubliř City GŚverřŚr’s Office); and Akta miasta Lublina (Files of the City of Lublin).379 WARSAW The collection Przewodnicz cy Rady ydŚwskiej w Warszawie 19ė0-1942 380 (Der Obmann des Judenrates in Warschau [Chairman of the Jewish Council in Warsaw], AP m.st. Warszawy, RG 483) is furnished with an inventory that includes an introduction by Jolanta Adamska, in which she profiles the history of the office and gives an overview of the content. All that has been preserved is 66 items (0.8 linear metres), which is probably around 2% of the output of the Warsaw Judenrat chařcellery. Files geřerated by the Wydział Statystyczřy (Statistics Department) have survived in greatest řumber (18 files); there are alsŚ files frŚm the deśartmeřts Śf Przemysłu i Hařdlu (Iřdustry ařd Trade, ė files), Ewideřcji i ZaŚśatrywařia Dzielřicy Jewish District, 1 file for each), ařd Admiřistracja ydŚwskiej (RecŚrds ařd Suśśly Śf the ydŚwskiej Dzielřicy MieszkařiŚwej (Administration of the Jewish Residential District, 6 files), as well as some files not attributed to the Chařcellery. The mŚst valuable Śf these materials are the full set Śf Czerřiaków’s reśŚrts for the period 7 October 1939 – 27 February 1941, and data on the size of the ghetto population and number of real properties as at 1 January 1941. The other documents relate to labour, the production potential in the ghetto, its financial situation, payments and taxes, health (e.g. causes of deaths, infectious diseases, patient traffic in the hospital in Czyste), supply (e.g. monthly breakdowns and reports on bread distribution); internal correspondence addresses the problems of Jews who 378 Rejestracyjno-Meldunkowy [Domicile Registration], Stanu Cywilnego [Registry], Finansowy [Finance], Gospodarczy [Economic], Mieszkaniowy [Housing] and Zdrowia [Health]. 379 There are alsŚ 22 files Śf the Lubliř Judeřrat iř A IH (RG 2Ę3). 380 Cf. B. Engelking, J. Leociak, GettŚ warszawskie. PrzewŚdnik śŚ nieistniejącym mie cie, Warszawa 2001, pp. 146-369. Second Expanded Edition Warsaw 2013, Eng. edition The Warsaw Ghetto – a Guide to the Perished City, New Haven 2009. 212 arrived in Warsaw in January and February 1940, and the movement of personnel within the community. Ař exteřsive study (ė2 śages) eřtitled “Die Lage der jüdischeř Bevölkeruřg”, dated 1941, has also been preserved. The weekly reports of the Chairman of the Warsaw Judenrat, Adam Czerniaków (for 1941), are held in the collection Starostwo Miejskie w Warszawie 1939-1944 (Stadthauśtmařřschaft Warschau, Warsaw City GŚverřŚr’s Office, APW, RG ė8Ę). 381 The Underground Archive of the Warsaw Ghetto – the Riřgelblum Archives (A IH, RG Ring. I and Ring. II) – was also used by the members of Oneg Shabat to preserve some of the original documentation of the Warsaw Judenrat. 382 This is call no. Ring. I 199-293 and Ring. II 42-116. Among the documents dating from the period 1941-1942 are the following: official correspondence (incoming and outgoing) on a range of matters between the Judenrat and the Verwaltungschef des Distrikts Warschau (e.g. regarding labour, combating epidemics, passes), reports, public announcements, minutes of the meetings of various commissions (e.g. the resettlement cŚmmissiŚř), iřstructiŚřs ařd daily Śrders Śf Józef Ařdrzej Szeryński (a.k.a. Szeřkmař Śr Szynkman), Leiter der Ordnungdienstes (head of the OD [Ordnungsdienst, the Jewish police in the ghetto]), various kinds of registers, memoranda, school reports, notifications of allocation of food and other rations, food ration cards, internal bulletins, circulars, materials on the Areszt Centralny (Central Remand Prison) in the ghetto, and letters from private individuals to the Judenrat containing variŚus requests. A IH hŚlds 19 archive uřits Śf the Warsaw Judeřrat iř a seśarate RG, řŚ. 221: SśrawŚzdařie Rady ydŚwskiej za Śkres Śd listŚśada 1939 dŚ 31 grudřia 19ė0 (ReśŚrts by the Jewish Council for the period from November 1939 to 31 December 1940), with a description of the Warsaw ghetto (the area it covered, population and population density, and mortality rate); and KŚresśŚřdeřcja wewř trzřa z Wydziałem Statystyczřym z 19ė1 r. (Iřterřal cŚrresśŚřdeřce with the Statistics Department from 1941), regarding mortality rates, population figures in the ghetto, and other matters. There are alsŚ Śrigiřal materials iř the IPN’s hŚldiřgs: the cŚllectiŚř GK 1ęĘ “Ob.” (ObŚzy, Camps), Getto w Warszawie (The Ghetto in Warsaw), 1942, consisting of a bound volume. These are daily reports by the head of the ghetto OD for the German Kommissar für den jüdischen Wohnbezirk in Warschau (Commissar for the Jewish Residential District in Warsaw) regarding 381 These are probably duplicates of the reports in RG 483, Der Obmann des Judenrates in Warschau, where they are filed as outgoing correspondence. 382 Cf. M. Jařczewska, “Warszawska Rada ydŚwska w wietle dŚkumeřtów urz dŚwych z Archiwum Riřgelbluma”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2014, no 10, pp. 131-167. 213 planned duties and disturbances of the order in the ghetto for the period 8 January 1942 – 20 July 1942. Much of the material of the Warsaw Judenrat has been published in recent years.383 RADOM AP RadŚm hŚlds the cŚllectiŚř Naczelřa Rada Starszych LudřŚ ci ydŚwskiej Dystryktu Radomskiego. Dział DŚwŚdów OsŚbistych 19ė1-1942 (Der Ober-Ältestenrat der Jüdischen Bevölkerung des Distrikts Radom in Radom; Supreme Council of the Jewish Population in the Radom District – Personal Identification Division, RG 387). All that remains of what was undoubtedly the extensive chancellery of the Supreme Council384 is some 14,077 applications from Radom Jews for Kennkarten (in all 143 items). The public announcement regarding the issue of personal identity documents was released on 4 February 1941. Many of the applications include photographs, and they contain personal data on Radom Jews such as given name and surname, date of birth, profession and where applicable place of employment, marital status, and address (sometimes also documents confirming this information). The collection also holds ID documents that were never collected. It is furnished with an index of personal names. A full inventory of this fonds is accessible on the internet and includes the names of the people whom the documents concern: http://baza.archiwa.gov.pl/sezam/sezam.php?l=pl&mode=show&zespoly_id=65803. PIOTRKÓW TRYBUNALSKI Numerous documents (official letters and other correspondence) of the Rada Starszych Gminy ydŚwskiej (CŚmmittee Śf the Jewish CŚmmuřity) iř PiŚtrków Trybuřalski are held iř the collection Akta miasta Piotrkowa (Files of the town of Piotrków, AP Piotrków Trybunalski, RG 9). The part of this RG that dates from the period of the occupation (1939-1945) is called Komisarz i zarz d Miasta PiŚtrkŚwa (Stadtkommissar von Petrikau, Commissar of Piotrków), and comprises a large number of documents on the ghetto and the Judenrat: a list of the Judenrat commissions (registration, housing, food, Jewish community, labour) and their members, an excerpt from the budget (1940); reports by various of the Judenrat commissions from 1939-1940 (e.g. housing, LudnŚ ć ydŚwska w Warszawie w latach 1939–1943. ycie – walka – zagłada, compiled by Józef Kazimierski, Jan GrabŚwski, Marta Jaszczyńska, Dařuta SkŚrwider, Warszawa 2012; Archiwum Ringelbluma, vol. 12, Rada ydŚwska w Warszawie (1939–1943), compiled by Marta Janczewska, Warszawa 2014. 384 Appointed as early as 26 September 1939 to represent the Jewish population of the whole of the Radom district and to coordinate the work of the other councils. It was something of an administrative curio that had no equivalent in the other districts of the GG. Cf. S. Pi tkŚwski, “Orgařizacja i działalřŚ ć Naczelřej Rady Starszych LudřŚ ci ydŚwskiej dystryktu radomskiego (1939-1942)”, B IH, no. 3 (195), 2000, pp. 342-3ĘĘ; H. Kisiel, “Mieszkańcy radŚmskiegŚ getta w wietle ródeł archiwalřych”, [iř:] ydzi dystryktu radŚmskiegŚ w Śkresie II wŚjny wiatŚwej, op. cit., pp. 71-85. 383 214 community soup kitchen, emigration), provisional budget; correspondence between the mayor (Oberbürgermeister) and the Judenrat regarding the construction of barracks for Jewish refugees, also internal Judenrat correspondence and correspondence with contractors (the buildings of the synagogue at Jerozolimska Street were given over for the purposes of this construction project); a list of ghetto residents (9,376 people) from November 1939 drawn up pursuant to a decision of the mayor; a list of refugees (35 names), a public announcement issued by the Judenrat; official letters concerning the organization of trade and supplies to the ghetto in 1940; various official letters regarding allocation of foodstuffs; regarding fuel for the bakery, a report on the bathhouse (in connection with a disinfection campaign); correspondence on quotas and exemptions from confiscations of textiles and leathers (applicable to children and resettled populations); Judenrat announcements on registration issues; ordinance of the chairman of the Judenrat regarding issue of personal identity documents (1940); statistical breakdowns of refugees from December 1939 (303 people); various official letters and public announcements by the Judenrat regarding health care, 1939-1940; an official letter from the Judenrat regarding the Jewish hospital, 1939; report by the sanitation unit on a delousing campaign, 1940; various documents regarding forced labour, including public announcements issued by the Judenrat. Many files also contain isolated official letters, public announcements and correspondences by the Judenrat on a range of issues including tribute payments, confiscation of property, and forced labour. Moreover, around a dozen files include Śfficial cŚśies Śf eřtries fŚr Urz d Stařu CywilřegŚ Wyzřařia MŚj eszŚwego (the Jewish Registry Office) for the years 1939-1942. These are birth, marriage and death certificates for Jews. UPPER SILESIA The organization of Jewish communities in what the German occupier called Eastern Upper Silesia was established in January 1940 under the name Komitee der jüdischen Kultusgemeinde (or Ältestenräte der jüdischen Kultusgemeinde) – the Central Committee of Councils of Jewish Elders in Eastern Upper Silesia.385 Its headquarters were iř SŚsřŚwiec, ařd its chairmař was MŚj esz Israel Merin. His full title was der Leiter der Ältestenräte der jüdischen Kultusgemeinde in OstOberschlesien (Chairman of the Councils of Elders of the Jewish Communities in Eastern Upper Silesia). Merin owed his office and nomination to the head of the Jewish unit in the Katowice Gestapo headquarters, Hans Dreier. NamysłŚ, “Ceřtrala ydŚwskich Rad Starszych řa WschŚdřim Górřym l sku”, [iř:] Zagłada ydów zagłębiŚwskich, (ed. A. NamysłŚ), B dziř 200ė, śś. 38-ę2; eadem, “Sprawozdanie z Śkazji dwulecia istřieřia Ceřtrali ydŚwskich Rad Starszych WschŚdřiegŚ GórřegŚ l ska”, B IH, no. 3 (215), 2005, pp. 386-402. 385 A. 215 In October 1940 the Committee was responsible for 96,283 Jews in 34 communities and its branches (a branch of a community had to number more than 230 people).386 It comprised the following departments: welfare, health, supplies, productivity, agriculture, finance and budget, forced labour, employment, administrative, housing, youth, archives and statistics, communication, resettlement and post office. For a brief period in 1940 there was also an emigration office. In 1942 the Committee and branch communities were served by some 1,300 officials in around 30 different departments and offices. Two issues of a Biuletyn Prawniczy (Legal Bulletin) were issued by the Legal Department (Zentrale Rechtsabteilung). SOSNOWIEC There is no autonomous archive collection for the Committee, but many of its official letters and documents have been preserved among the files of the offices with which it had to maintain regular contact. In the collection Akta miasta Sosnowca (Files of the City of Sosnowiec, AP Katowice, RG 776/1) there is correspondence between the Komitee der jüdischen Kultusgemeinde in Sosnowitz ařd Zarz d Miejski w SŚsřŚwcu (SŚsřŚwiec Municipal Board) regarding remuneration for work performed by Jews employed by the city (call no. 5855-5858, Apr.-Nov. 1941, May 1942, Mar.-Jul. 1943), lease of a field by the Jewish community for the purpose of planting potatoes and vegetables for its own needs (call no. 2942, 1940-1941), establishment of the ghetto, its area, population, and resettlemeřts tŚ the rŚdula quarter (call řŚ. ę3ę8, 19ė3), maiřteřařce Śf cŚmmercial establishmeřts vital for the Jewish population (call no. 6567, 1939-1943), and Jewish sales, trade and craft outlets (call no. 6858-6859, 1940-1941). There are also lists of Jews from the ghettos in Sosnowiec and B dziř (call řŚ. ę370-6372, 1943), documents connected with the work of the Jewish Community Board in Sosnowiec including detailed lists of employees (call no. 6385, 1940-1943), receipts, calculations and various payments by the Jewish Community (call no. 6581, 1942-1943), reports containing lists of Jewish businesses and craft workshops (call no. 6615, 1939-1940), and other dŚcumeřts ařd Śfficial letters drawř uś Śř headed śaśer readiřg “KŚmitee der jüdischeř Kultusgemeiřde iř SŚsřŚwitz”. 386 Cf. A. NamysłŚ, “SśrawŚzdařie ze zjazdu z Śkazji dwulecia istřieřia Ceřtrali ydŚwskich Rad Starszych WschŚdřiegŚ GórřegŚ l ska”, Kwartalnik HistŚrii ydów 2005, no. 3 (215), pp. 386-402. 216 D BROWA GÓRNICŃA The cŚllectiŚř Rada Starszych ydŚwskiej Gmiřy WyzřařiŚwej w D brŚwie Górřiczej 1939-1943 (Ältestenrat der jüdischen Kultusgemeinde in Dombrowa, Council of Elders of the Jewish CŚmmuřity iř D brŚwa Górřicza, AP KatŚwice, RG 1ę00) – contains 52 items (0.5 linear metres of files). It has not yet been processed though there is a temporary index available. The community came under the authority of the Central Committee of Jewish Communities in Sosnowiec, and its chairman was Izaak Israel Borensztajn. 387 The collection comprises documents referencing the organization of the communities, monthly reports on the work of the finance and welfare departments, numerous cash room receipts and budgets for individual months of 1941 and 1942, reports and circulars, various lists of statistics and budget documents, payroll receipts, lists of names of the members of the Council of Elders and the people employed by the Central Committee and the Jewish community organizations, documents referencing employment of Jews, named lists of Jews frŚm D brŚwa, cŚrresśŚřdeřce, files cŚřřected with the 3% tax Śř iřcŚme frŚm emślŚymeřt, and materials on variŚus welfare camśaigřs, such as “Datki dla dzieci” (DŚřatiŚřs fŚr childreř) Śr “ ydŚwska Śśieka zimŚwa” (Jewish wiřter aid). OTHER The State Archives also hold small collections of files from other Judenräte, which are sometimes (though rarely) concealed among the files in collections with other names entirely. In AP Lublin there are vestiges Śf the files Śf the JudeřrŹte Śf twŚ Śther lŚcalities: Rada ydŚwska w Biskuśicach 19391942 (Jewish Council in Biskupice, AP Lublin, RG 618) – an excerpt from a book of minutes of meetings from 1940, lists of the members of the Council, correspondence regarding forced labour, lists of the population of Biskupice and a few other localities, lists of Jewish refugees from Krakow, the budget for January 1942, property-related affairs, ařd cŚrresśŚřdeřce with the SS; ařd Rada ydŚwska w ZamŚ ciu 1939-19ė2 (Jewish CŚuřcil iř ZamŚ ć, AP Lubliř, RG ę18, 8 items) – řŚtices ařd śublic ařřŚuřcemeřts, lists Śf the Jewish families resideřt iř ZamŚ ć, a list Śf statistics for the Jewish śŚśulatiŚř iř the cŚmmuřities Śf ZamŚ ć cŚuřty, lists Śf real śrŚśerties, ařd Śther documents.388 The following files of Judenräte from smaller localities are held in other archives: Rada ydŚwska w RŚzwadŚwie z 19ė1 r. (Jewish CŚuřcil iř RŚzwadów, AP Rzeszów, RG 1399); ydŚwska Rada Starszych w SařdŚmierzu z 19ė1 r. (Jewish CŚuřcil Śf Elders iř SařdŚmierz, AP Szternfinkiel, Zagłada ydów SŚsnŚwca, Katowice 1946; P. Wiederman, PłŚwa Bestia [novel], Munich 1948. KŚściŚwski, “Der Judeřrat iř ZamŚ ć”, Theresienstädter Studien und Dokumente, compiled by J. Milotova, U. Rathgeber, G. Kalinova, Prag 2002; A. Kopciowski, Zagłada ydów w ZamŚ ciu, Lublin 2005. 387 N.E. 388 A. 217 Sandomierz, RG 221, 1 item); a remnant of the files of the Judenrat of Izbica is to be found in Akta miasta Izbica (Files of the town of Izbica, AP ZamŚ ć, RG 28), call řŚ. 2ė2 – these include a list of the řames Śf Jewish resideřts Śf Izbica iř 19ė0, iřcludiřg lists Śf Jews frŚm KŚłŚ ařd Łód resettled to Izbica (147 pages). Akta Gminy Gorzkowice (Files of the Commune of Gorzkowice, AP Piotrków, RG 20), call no. 529, holds correspondence and other documents of the Jewish Council of Gorzkowice from 1940. Akta poniemieckie (Former German Files, ANK, RG 1576) contains a dossier of documents of the Jewish Council in Krzeszowice (Judenrat Kressendorf) – these are lists of people sent to do forced labour, and personal files (Fragebogenlisten) of Jews resettled from Krakow for the period 1939-1945, containing large quantities of personal data. In Gmina WyzřařiŚwa ydŚwska w Czudcu 1922-1942 (Jewish Community in Czudec, AP Rzeszów, RG 736) dossiers 9-21 are connected with the occupation; these papers are minutes of meetings of the Council, data on numbers of Jews before the war and in May 1940, subscriptions paid by community members, the personal data sheets Śf refugees frŚm KrakŚw, a budget (iřcludiřg the cŚmmuřity’s cash ledger up to 1941), welfare, data sheets for real estate owned, lists of people sent for forced labour, a book of deaths for the period 1939-1940, orders issued by the German authorities, and Śther items. Iř Gmiřa WyzřařiŚwa ydŚwska w RzeszŚwie 18ė2-1942 (Jewish Community in Rzeszów, AP Rzeszów, RG 533) call no. 47-54 refer to the occupation; these hold marriage certificates (Trauungscheine) from 1940, 1941 and 1942 and death certificates389 for the same years, a few notifications to collect a body from prison, birth certificates, official copies of marriage certificates frŚm the fŚrmer Izraelicki Urz d Metrykalřy (Israelite Registry Office) iř Rzeszów frŚm the years 1939-1942, and registration documents (Meldekarten), personal identification documents, variŚus certificates ařd affidavits; Urz d Metrykalřy ydŚwski w D bicy 19ė2-1945 (Jewish Registry Office iř D bica, AP Rzeszów, RG 882, 1 item) cŚřtaiřs ař iřdex Śf řames ařd 1ė řŚtebŚŚks Śf deaths iř D bica, PilzřŚ, BrzŚstek, JŚdłŚwa, Mielec, RŚśczyce, JasłŚ, S dziszów ařd KrŚsřŚ, including cause of death. The largest řumber Śf cŚllectiŚřs Śf Judeřrat files has beeř amassed by A IH, thŚugh unfortunately, with a few exceptions, these are vestigial collections, some of them containing even just a single document. The materials of Jewish communities, including the Judenräte, have been śrŚfiled iř a cŚllective iřveřtŚry by Tadeusz Eśszteiř, accessible Śř the 389 IH website: The death certificate (Toteskarte) contained the following information: given name and surname, gender, date and time of death, place and cause of death, given names of parents, place and date of birth, place of residence, marital status, children, and profession. 218 http://www.jhi.pl/uploads/archive_record/file/59/Judenraty_.pdf. These are the collections of the Jewish CŚuřcils iř BiałystŚk, Cz stŚchŚwa, Faleřica, JasłŚ, Kamieńsk, KŚńskie, KrakŚw, Lubliř, Lwów, Ł czyca, Łachwa, Mi dzyrzec PŚdlaski, MŚdlibŚrzyce, Piřsk, Rawa Ruska, Staszów, Warsaw ařd WłŚszczŚwa. These collections contain small numbers of official letters, and other documents such as forms, notices and public announcements, summons, lists of people to be sent for forced labour, correspondence with the German authorities, circulars, statistical population data, and documents referring to the OD. AmŚřg the dŚcumeřts iř RG 229, Rada ydŚwska we LwŚwie. Zbiór dŚkumeřtów dŚtycz cych Getta LwŚwskiegŚ (Teka Lwowska) 1941-1942 (Jewish Council in Lwów. Collection of documents on the Lwów Ghetto [The Lwów File])are the surviving files of the Lwów Judenrat, such as: report of the Welfare Section of Lwów Jewish Community Organization for 13 Aug. – 31 Dec. 1941; Report of the Economics Department for the Presidium for 1941; Appeal by Dr J. Parnas Chairman of the JC in Lwów regarding a tribute payment in the amount of 20 million roubles, 28 July 1941; Appointment of members of the Jewish Council, list of names and addresses, 22 July 1941; Report on the work of the Jewish Council for the period 16 Aug. – 30 Sep. 1941; Appeal regarding the furs campaign, 4 Jan. 1942; Document authorizing the Chairman of the Jewish Council Salomon Czortkower to carry out the furs and warm clothing campaign, 27 Dec. 1941; Financial report, 12 Aug. 1941. The larger cŚllectiŚřs Śf Judeřrat files held iř A IH are the fŚllŚwiřg: - Rada Starszych w Krakowie 1939-1942 (Council of Elders in Krakow, RG 218) – a diverse collection of documentation has survived, concerning lists of transports of those deported from Krakow in 1940-1941, forced labour, people in possession of Ausweise and resettled to Krakow in 1940, as well as copies of the following: orders issued by the Jewish Council as stipulated by the German authorities, resettlements of German Jews, mutual aid and abandoned apartments, a list of the members of the Jewish Council, and a report for the period 13 Oct. 1939 – 30 Oct. 1940, the annual report for the period from 13 Sep. 1939 to 30 Sep. 1940, and monthly reports for July, August and October 1940. Also from Krakow many documents connected with the issue of Ausweise have been preserved: 19,905 applications from the period July - August 1940, 361 uncollected Ausweise, and 1,912 official copies of Kennkarten. These are a source of extensive personal data on Krakow Jews. 219 - PrzedstawicielstwŚ LudřŚ ci ydŚwskiej w B dziřie 1939-1943 (Representation of the Jewish PŚśulatiŚř Śf B dziř, RG 212, 2ė items) – a list of the ghetto population. A full index of personal names has been drawn up, containing some 15,000 names. - Rada Starszych w Cz stŚchŚwie 1939-19ė2 (CŚuřcil Śf Elders iř Cz stŚchŚwa, RG 213, 10Ę items) – Reports from the Statistics Unit, vol. 1-3 (call no. 1-3), a list of 500 people, and lists of forced labourers, correspondence of the Jewish Council on various matters; call no. 9-105 hold the files of matters relating to the OD (Jewish police): correspondence regarding confiscations of homes, arrests, forced labour, the furs campaign, official letters on personnel matters, passes, iřstructiŚřs fŚr the OD, “Ksi ga wydarzeń i zarz dzeń” (Iřcideřt ařd Order BŚŚk) fŚr the śeriŚd June - August 1942, book of plans for the OD, a list of names of people detailed for forced labour March - April 1940, public announcements and orders issued by the German authorities, and several dozen dossiers of personal files of members of the OD. A IH alsŚ hŚlds a cŚllectiŚř eřtitled PŚdziemře Archiwum Getta BiałŚstŚckiegŚ390 (Underground Archive Śf the BiałystŚk GhettŚ) 19ė1-1943 – documents include appeals, regulations issued by the Judeřrat fŚr the Jewish śŚśulatiŚř, ařd a reśŚrt fŚr the GestaśŚ iř BiałystŚk. The maiř bŚdy Śf documents in this collection, however, are of a totally different nature – above all eye-witness accounts. Archives outside Poland also contain original files generated by Judenräte. For instance, among the surviving documents from the Radom district are the partially preserved files of the Jewish Council in Kozienice391 (Acc. 2003.406.1 Kozienice ghetto papers in USHMM, Washington, D.C.) – a list of the Jewish population of the town of Kozienice in November 1939, comprising a list of 4,248 people and the following information about each of them: surname, given name, gender, age, profession, address, and remarks; official correspondence of the Judenrat, including reports to the German authorities (186 documents in all) for the period 30 July 1941 – 15 August 1942; financial dŚcumeřts “Miesi c marzec 19ė2. DŚwŚdy rzeczŚwe rŚzchŚdŚwe” (The mŚřth Śf March 19ė2. Evidentiary proofs of outgoings): various invoices and receipts for items purchased, payslips for Cf. Sz. Datner, Walka i zagłada białŚstŚckiegŚ getta, Łód 19ėę; S. Beřder, Mul mavet orev: Yehude Bialistok be-milchemet haolam ha-sheniya, 1939-1943, Tel Aviv 1997; Darko shel Judenrat (Conduct and actions of a Judenrat. Documents from the Bialystok ghetto), ed. N. Blumental, Jerusalem 1962. 391 Cf. A. Skibińska, “ ycie cŚdzieřře ydów w KŚzieřicach śŚd řiemieck Śkuśacj ”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, no. 3, 2007. 390 220 work carried out on behalf of the Jewish Council (80 documents in all). There are materials geřerated by the Head Śf the CŚuřcil Śf Jewish Elders iř the Łód GhettŚ iř the YIVO Iřstitute iř New York (submitted there after the war by Nachman Zonabend). There are files on the Vilnius ghetto in the Lithuanian Central State Archives in Vilnius (RG R.1421/1), while in Ukrainian archives there are materials on ghettos in the district of Galicia, including those in the cities of Lwów and Tarnopol, as well as on the Pinsk ghetto. There is a wealth of information on the functioning of the Jewish Councils, their various departments, competencies, personnel, and other matters in Gazeta ydŚwska, the official newspaper for Jews published in the GG in Polish.392 There are also correspondences with Judenräte in other collections, e.g. those of some German admiřistrative Śffices (GettŚverwaltuřg w ŁŚdzi) ařd Jewish mutual aid ŚrgařizatiŚřs, such as the SS ařd the Americař JŚiřt Distribution Committee. 392 M. Fuks, “Małe Judeřraty w wietle «Gazety ydŚwskiej»”, B IH 1983, no. 3 and 4. 221 222 3. The Underground Archive of the Warsaw Ghetto (ARG), the Ringelblum Archive (Ring. I and Ring. II) The Ringelblum Archive (abbrev. ARG393) comprises a total of 2,063 items394 – documents excavated from beneath the ruins of the Warsaw ghetto in 1946 and 1950 (hence the use of the division into Part I and Part II ARG). The first two parts of this body of materials were concealed in the basement of the Jewish school at 68 Nowolipki Street in Warsaw395; the third part of the archive, buried not later than on 18 April 1943, and possibly containing documents relating to the Bund396 or tŚ the OB397, and perhaps also other materials398, was never found. The archive owes its name to Emanuel Ringelblum399, the historian who was the initiator and organizer of the group of people brought together by the idea of gathering materials documenting the fate of the Jews under German occupation. In 1999 ARG was honoured by UNESCO with inscription on the Memory of the World register, a repository of the most valuable materials for the history of mankind. Before the war Ringelblum had been a teacher in a Jewish high school, a member of the party Poalei Zion Left, and a historian (with a doctorate from the University of Warsaw) researching the history of the Jews of Warsaw during the partitions of Poland and in previous periods. He wrote in two languages, Polish and Yiddish, which was common practice among the young historians connected with the YIVO Institute in Vilnius before the war. As early as in October 1939 Ringelblum began to write a diary400, in which he made note of the first anti-Jewish ordinances issued by the German authorities. In light of the progressively restrictive anti-Jewish policy of the occupiers and the 393 The abbreviatiŚř ARG was deciśhered by Ruta SakŚwska as meařiřg “Archiwum Getta”, Śr “GhettŚ Archive”; it was already in use in the ghetto among members of the underground. For more on the scholarly work of Ruta Sakowska and her mařy years Śf wŚrk Śř the Riřgelblum Archive, see T. Eśszteiř, “WsśŚmřieřie Ś Rucie SakŚwskiej”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2014, np 10, pp. 285-296. 394 Ring. I – 1,505 items (approx. 20,740 sheets, 25,540 pages) and Ring. II – 558 items (approx. 7,906 sheets, 9,829 pages). 395 Part I (in ten metal boxes) in the night of 2-3 Aug. 1942, Part II (in two milk cans) in January or February 1943. 396 According to Marek Edelman. 397 According to Israel Gutman. 398 Some of the materials amassed by ARG mentioned by Emanuel Ringelblum in his Kronika are not in any of the archive collections in the world known to us today. 399 Emařuel Riřgelblum, śseud. “Meřachem” (1900 Buchach – 1944 Warsaw), historian of the Jews of Warsaw, originator of the Underground Archive of the Warsaw Ghetto. Connected with the Poalei Zion movement. Worked as a high school teacher, member of the Yunger Historiker group in YIVO circles. Iř the ghettŚ he wŚrked fŚr the SS. He and his family were executed by firing squad in the ruins of the ghetto. Cf. Samuel D. Kassow, Who will write our history? Emanuel Ringelblum, the Warsaw Ghetto, and the Oyneg Shabes Archive, Bloomington 2007. 400 E. Ringelblum, Kronika getta warszawskiego, Warszawa 1983. Engl. edition: Notes from the Warsaw Ghetto, New York 1958. 223 isolation of the Warsaw Jews inside the ghetto, behind a wall (from 16 November 1940), he deemed his own notes and attempts at documenting events to be insufficient. He decided to form a group of writers, teachers, journalists and historians, thenceforth to operate under the cryptonym Oneg Shabat/Oyřeg Shabes (“The JŚy Śf the Shabbat”, the day Śř which their meetiřgs were held). The first efforts towards creating an underground archive were undertaken as early as in May 1940, but work got underway in earnest in November of that year, after the ghetto was finally sealed, which took place on 15 November 1940. The mission of Oneg Shabat (OSh) was to document, day by day, the events in the ghettos in the Polish lands, in particular in Warsaw, by writing down eyewitness testimonies of Jews while they were still fresh. OSh also collected materials such as German public announcements (alternatively they copied out their wording), documents from Jewish CŚuřcils, cŚrresśŚřdeřce Śf welfare ŚrgařizatiŚřs ( SS, JŚiřt), uřdergrŚuřd ařd sŚ-called reptilian401 press items, posters, documents testifying to the everyday life of the community (e.g. food ration cards, tram tickets, sweet wrappers), letters, Kennkarten, ordinances related to forced labour, legacies and papers of particular individuals, scientific studies and drafts thereof, radio bulletins, reports for Polish underground organizations, and proclamations by underground organizations (e.g. OB, the Jewish CŚmbat OrgařizatiŚř). AmŚřg the mŚst imśŚrtařt Śf these dŚcumeřts is a collection of the ghetto underground press (around 40 titles), diaries written on a regular basis by various people, drawings (e.g. those by Gela Seksztajn), and photographs. The majority of the documents are in manuscript form, some of them copied out several times. The dominant languages are Polish and Yiddish, though some of the documents were also recorded in Hebrew, some of the official materials are in German, and there are sporadic items in English, French, Romanian, Ukrainian, Russian and Italian. The ARG documentation is unique in every respect, and crucial to study of the history of the Holocaust in the GG and the former eastern borderlands of Poland known as the Kresy. The members of OSh tried to make use of the materials they gathered in their own research and to record the history of the Holocaust as it happened. A range of research methods were used, including sociological and psychological methods, and this in part determined the selection of the materials to be gathered, which were not restricted to official documentation – the value of personal This term denotes the legal, i.e. occupier-cŚřtrŚlled śress iř PŚlařd. See Lucjař DŚbrŚszycki’s study Śř the subject: Die legale polnische Presse im Generalgouvernement, Munich 1977; English translation: Reptile Journalism. The Official Polish-language press under the Nazis, 1939-1945, New Haven 1994. 401 224 documents and the words of individuals were recognized. The OSh group encouraged people to keep journals, schoolchildren to write essays and other texts on current affairs, and those resettled from other places to write down their accounts of the fates of Jews in the small towns from which they came. OSh comprised several dozen people with strong personalities. Its secretary was Hersz Wasser402 – the only member of the organization who survived and knew where the archive was hidden, so enabling him to help excavate the documents from beneath the ruins of the ghetto.403 In the ghettŚ he alsŚ wŚrked as the SS secretary delegated tŚ the Ceřtralřa KŚmisja Przesiedleńcza (Central Resettlement Committee). Wasser’s deśuty iř OSh was Eliasz GutkŚwski frŚm the śarty PŚalei ZiŚř Right, who was assisted by Rabbi Szymon (Shimon) Huberband, an Agudas Isroel activist, member of the Warsaw rabbinate, ařd chairmař Śf the religiŚus sectiŚř Śf the Warsaw SS. He wrŚte mařy reśŚrts Śř the religiŚus life of the Jews under the occupation, and on the destruction of the synagogues and cemeteries.404 Menachem Linder was responsible for the economic and statistical section, and Izrael Lichtensztajn for education. Other members of OSh were writers and poets, among them Icchak Kacenelson, Rachela Auerbach, Perec OśŚczyński ařd Lejb GŚldiř. Riřgelblum’s Śther immediate assŚciates were Abraham Lewin, Daniel Fligelman, Nechemiasz Tytelman and Jerzy Winkler. Ringelblum himself examined the history of OSh and profiled those who formed the group in an essay written iř Jařuary 19ė3. A year śreviŚusly the grŚuś had lauřched a research śrŚject eřtitled “Dwa i śół rŚku” (TwŚ-and-a-half Years). This involved research into issues such as the Jewish woman, religious life, Polish-Jewish relations, house committees, community soup kitchens, bookshops and libraries, the fate of small Jewish communities, and German-Jewish relations. Each chapter was structured chronologically. This project may be viewed as a form of summary of the work of OSh. In the foreword, Ringelblum posed a number of seminal questions as to the impact of the war on Jewish society and its future prospects in both the short term and after the war. The project was never completed. 402 Hersz (Hirsh) Wasser (1912 Suwałki – 1980 Israel), lawyer and economist connected with the party Poalei Zion Left. Duriřg the war he was iř the Warsaw ghettŚ ařd wŚrked as the secretary Śf the SS refugee cŚmmissiŚř; Śře Śf Riřgelblum’s clŚsest assŚciates. Keśt recŚrds Śf the materials gathered by OSh. BŚth he ařd his wife Bluma mařaged tŚ escaśe frŚm the ghettŚ. After the war he wŚrked briefly fŚr the CK P, befŚre emigratiřg tŚ Israel. Cf. K. Person, “Hersz Wasser. Sekretarz Archiwum”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2014, no. 10, pp. 297-303. 403 The others who worked with OSh and Ringelblum ařd whŚ survived were Wasser’s wife, Bluma Kirszeřfeld-Wasser, and the writer Rachela Auerbach. 404 Sz. Huberband, Kiddush Hashem. Jewish Religious and Cultural Life in Poland During the Holocaust, ed. J.S. Gurock, R.S. Hirt, New York 1987. 225 Naturally, the initiators and founders of ARG could not have foreseen the consequences of the Nazis’ śŚlicy tŚ extermiřate all the Jews Śf EurŚśe. NŚřetheless, the cŚřtiřued acts Śf terrŚr, the isolation of the Jews and their exclusion from successive spheres of life, and their annihilation through labour and the poor living conditions in the ghetto and also in direct liquidation campaigns did force the members of OSh to realize that they, too, were unlikely to survive, and that it was therefore imperative that they conceal the materials they had amassed for posterity. When, after the war, first ten metal crates (Ring. I) and later two milk cans (Ring. II), packed full of documents gathered in the ghetto, were unearthed, the world learned just how broadly the members of OSh had understood their mission. The documents they had collected reference all aspects of the life of the Jews in those extreme conditions, from the ways in which the ghetto internees procured food, to works of art and literature. They also offer insight into the way in which the Jews in various different social groups lived in that period, and by what means some of them succeeded in enduring and surviving. Ruta Sakowska, the pre-eminent scholar of the documentation gathered in ARG, believes that Emanuel Ringelblum was one of the leaders of the civilian resistance in the ghetto, which until the summer Śf 19ė2 was the dŚmiřařt fŚrce iř the ghettŚ’s uřdergrŚuřd resistařce mŚvemeřt. 405 Civiliař resistařce was very imśŚrtařt iř řeutraliziřg the cŚřsequeřces Śf the Śccuśiers’ śŚlicy, which was to finish the ghetto off by starvation. Every institution, organization and group in the ghettŚ, frŚm the Judeřrat tŚ the SS – an institution created for the express purpose of bringing aid – was eřgaged iř the battle tŚ survive, iř the literal seřse Śf that wŚrd. Iř fact, the SS was an umbrella organization that brought together many other aid and charitable initiatives, including Centos, TOZ 406 , and Toporol 407 . MŚreŚver, the Warsaw SS was alsŚ a cŚver fŚr the ghettŚ underground. Emanuel Ringelblum was the head of one of the departmeřts Śf the SS: he was responsible for the house committees that were spontaneously set up in tenement houses, and for the landsmanshaftn (around 80 tenement-based associations) for Jews resettled into the Warsaw ghetto R. SakŚwska, “Dwie generacje, dwie formy oporu”, B IH, no. 2 (150), IV-VI 1989, pp. 55-ęė; eadem, “Archiwum Ringelbluma – ogniwem konspiracji warszawskiego getta”, B IH, no. 4 (152), X-XII 1989, pp. 91-102, no. 1 (153), I-III 1990, pp. 79-95, no. 3-4 (155-156), VII-XII 1990, pp. 153-160. 406 Towarzystwo Ochrony Zdrowia, (TOZ, Health Care Organization). 407 TŚwarzystwŚ PŚśierařia RŚlřictwa w ród ydów (TŚPŚRŚl, SŚciety fŚr the SuśśŚrt Śf Agriculture amŚřg the Jews). 405 226 from other towns and cities.408 The members of OSh had close links to the parties Poalei Zion Left and Poalei Zion Right and their youth arms, Hashomer Hatzair and Hehalutz-DrŚr. The wŚrkers’ party Bund and its youth wing Tsukunft (Cukunft) had their own underground archive (which was destroyed), but nevertheless some of the wartime issues of their underground press publications were included in ARG. The documentation amassed by OSh is testimony to the fact that the Warsaw ghetto was the central hub of the Jewish resistance movement conceived as both spiritual opposition to Nazi policy and active resistařce Śrgařized iřtŚ the armed grŚuśs OB ařd ydŚwski Zwi zek WŚjskŚwy ( ZW, the Jewish Military Union). Its most effective act was to inform the free world of the first mass murders of Jews committed in the eastern lands (following the invasion of German forces as a consequence of the outbreak of hostilities between the Germans and Russians in June 1941) and in the extermiřatiŚř camś iř ChełmřŚ řad Nerem ařd the řearby Rzuchów fŚrests. 409 In the late spring of 19ė2, with the řews frŚm the East, frŚm the camś iř ChełmřŚ ařd the Lubliř regiŚř (Majdařek ařd Beł ec), the members Śf OSh realized that the Germařs had takeř the decisiŚř tŚ ařřihilate the Jews completely. From that point on, OSh also became a hub for information on the actions of the Germans. Between March and June 1942 three reports were drawn up on the extermination of the Jews, ařd they were disśatched, via the HŚme Army’s Office fŚr IřfŚrmatiŚř ařd PrŚśagařda (BIP), to the Polish Government-in-Exile in London. Their reports gave London cause for alarm, and were broadcast in part by British radio. Even before that, a letter by the Bund dated to 11 May 1942 cŚřcerřiřg the extermiřatiŚř camś iř ChełmřŚ řad Nerem ařd the murders Śf the Jews in the East had reached the West. The OSh group had relatively moderate links with the armed underground. In the spring of 1942 it undertook cooperation with the Anti-fascist Bloc, to which some Zionists and Communists also belonged. In November 1942 OSh published the first issue of WiadŚmŚ ci (News); a long report by OSh fŚrmed the text dated 1Ę NŚvember 19ė2 eřtitled “Zagłada ydów Warszawy” (The ExtermiřatiŚř Śf Warsaw’s Jews). FrŚm December 19ė2 Riřgelblum ařd his team fŚrmed the Cf. A. bikŚwski, “ ydŚwscy śrzesiedleńcy z dystryktu warszawskiego w getcie warszawskim 1939-1942 (z śŚgrařicza Śśisu i iřterśretacji)”, [in:] PrŚwincja nŚc. ycie i zagłada ydów w dystrykcie warszawskim, ed. B. Engelking, J. Leociak, D. Libionka, Warszawa 2007, pp. 223-269. 409 R. SakŚwska, “Biuro Informacji i Propagandy KG Armii Krajowej a Archiwum Ringelbluma (luty-lipiec 1942)”, B IH, no. 2-3 (162-163), IV-IX 1992, pp. 19-3ė.; eadem, “ChełmřŚ řad Nerem. Ostrze eřia i śŚmŚc”, B IH, no. 2 (142), IVVI 1987, pp. 135-139. 408 227 civiliař arm Śf OB ařd ydŚwski KŚmitet KŚŚrdyřacyjřy (the Jewish CŚŚrdiřatiŚř CŚmmittee), established with the aim of initiating cooperation with the Polish underground. Groups of fighters frŚm OB ařd the Śther armed ŚrgařizatiŚř iř the Warsaw ghettŚ, the ZW 410, launched an active front on 19 April 1943 with the outbreak of the Warsaw ghetto uprising. Without the documents and testimonies generated by the Jews during the war and immediately thereafter, the history of the Holocaust would be completely illegible and impossible for historians to reconstruct. It would be nothing more than a history of the decisions taken by one nation to implement the mass murder of another and of the technical and administrative methods by which that plan was put into action. The materials generated during the war by the Jews give us an insight into the human suffering, and reveal the humanistic dimension of the sacrifices in the ghettos and camps. The Warsaw ghetto existed for three and a half years – for most of that time the Jews lived and suffered iř hŚśe Śf liberatiŚř ařd survival. Seeiřg the “Aryař” śŚśulatiŚř Śř the Śther side Śf the wall, they cultivated the hope and illusion of their sympathy and empathy – at least at first. In time, this expectation had to cede ground to the conviction that they had only themselves on whom to count and trust. The occupation and the tragic conditions in which the Jews found themselves also altered their attitudes to the values and traditions that before the Holocaust had been the essence of Jewishness and Judaism, such as kosher food, prayers and rituals in the synagogue, the burial of the dead, and many other rituals and orthodox tenets that had previously been scrupulously observed. Ringelblum spent several months (Jan.-Apr. 1943) outside the ghetto, in a hiding place set up for him by the egŚta CŚuřcil tŚ Aid Jews. He returřed tŚ the ghettŚ Śř the eve Śf the uśrisiřg, 18 Aśril 1943, but just a few days later he and several others were captured by the Germans and sent to the camp in Trawniki. He was aided iř his escaśe frŚm there by egŚta members Tadeusz Pajewski ařd SzŚszařa “Emilka” KŚsŚwer. Oř his returř tŚ Warsaw he weřt iřtŚ hidiřg agaiř (with mařy Śther śeŚśle) iř the buřker cŚdeřamed “Krysia” at 81 Grójecka Street. There he begař writiřg a semiřal essay, “Stosunki polsko- ydŚwskie” (PŚlish-Jewish relations).411 The Germans discovered the bunker LibiŚřka, “AśŚkryfy z dziejów ydŚwskiegŚ Zwi zku WŚjskŚwegŚ i ich autŚrzy”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, no. 1, 2005, pp. 165-19Ę; M. Wójcicki, “ ydŚwski Zwi zek WŚjskŚwy w getcie warszawskim”, Kwartalnik HistŚrii ydów, no. 1 (217), 2006, pp. 35-47; D. Libionka, W. Laurence, Bohaterowie, hochsztaplerzy, opisywacze - wŚkół ydŚwskiegŚ Związku Wojskowego, Warszawa 2011. 411 E. Ringelblum, Stosunki polsko- ydŚwskie w czasie drugiej wŚjny wiatŚwej, Warszawa 1988. Eng. edition: Polish-Jewish relations during the Second World War, Jerusalem 1974. 410 D. 228 in March 1944, and Ringelblum, together with his family and the others who had been hiding there, was shot in the ruins of the ghetto. During his time in Trawniki, Ringelblum had maintained his contacts with the Jewish underground in Warsaw – the ŚrgařizatiŚř ydŚwski KŚmitet NarŚdŚwy ( KN, the Jewish NatiŚřal CŚmmittee), which was eřgaged iř rescuiřg Jews iř hidiřg acrŚss the city after the ghetto was razed. He wrŚte letters tŚ the leader Śf the KN, AdŚlf Bermař, ařd his wife Barbara (Basia) Temkin-Bermanowa. The Bermans managed to salvage those letters, and today they are held iř the “Bermař Archive” iř the Museum at the GhettŚ Fighters’ HŚuse iř Israel; they were recently published in their entirety in Polish for the first time.412 Iř 1997 IH lauřched a series Śf śublicatiŚřs Śf ARG sŚurce materials. The first vŚlume, cŚmśiled and edited by Ruta Sakowska, is entitled Listy Ś Zagładzie (Letters on the Holocaust; it contains the texts of letters sent to Warsaw from smaller ghettos with information on the inexorable extermination of the Jews). The second volume, also by Sakowska, Dzieci – tajne nauczanie w getcie warszawskim (Children – clandestine teaching in the Warsaw ghetto), examines the fate of the children iř the ghettŚ, clařdestiře teachiřg, ařd schŚŚls. The third vŚlume, cŚmśiled by Ařdrzej bikŚwski, Relacje z Kresów (Testimonies from the Eastern Borderlands), comprises the texts of testimonies of Jews frŚm PŚlařd’s fŚrmer easterř territŚries. Siřce 2011 IH has śursued this series413, and all the volumes published up to 2014 are listed in the bibliography in this Guide. Certain documents from the Ringelblum Archive had in fact already been published in extenso, many of them edited by Sakowska 414 (some of them in Biuletyn IH) and Józef Kermisz 415 . Sakowska published a large quantity of documents from ARG in her book Dwa etapy.416 A selection of the documents from ARG and photographs from the Warsaw ghetto has also been published by the quarterly periodical Karta. 417 Nevertheless, it must be stressed that early source publications may contain errors and ŚmissiŚřs Śf Śrigiřal text, sŚ it is imśŚrtařt tŚ use the series “Archiwum Riřgelbluma. KŚřsśiracyjře Archiwum Getta WarszawskiegŚ”, cŚŚrdiřated by Tadeusz Eśszteiř ařd Eleonora Bergman. All the volumes in this series include translations of the documents into Polish and “Listy Emařuela Riřgelbluma”, cŚmśiled by I. Gutmař, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, no. 1, 2005, pp. 193-229. plans to complete publication of all the documents in ARG in 2017. 414 Archiwum Ringelbluma. Getto warszawskie lipiec 1942 – styczeń 1943, cŚmśiled by R. SakŚwska, IH, Warszawa 1980. 415 TŚ Live with HŚnŚr and tŚ Die with HŚnŚr. Selected DŚcuments frŚm the Warsaw GhettŚ UndergrŚund Archives (“O.S.”, Oneg Shabbath), ed. J. Kermish, Jerusalem 1986. 416 R. Sakowska, Dwa etaśy. HitlerŚwska śŚlityka eksterminacji ydów w Śczach Śfiar. Szkic historyczny i dokumenty, WrŚcław 198ę, German edition: Die zweite Etappe ist der Tod : NS-Ausrottungspolitik gegen die polnischen Juden, gesehen mit den Augen der Opfer : ein historischer Essay und ausgewahlte Dokumente aus dem Ringelblum-Archiv 1941-1943, Berlin 1993. 417 Karta 2003, no. 39, pp. 4-63. 412 413 ZIH 229 extensive back matter. Each document is furnished with detailed archival information and information on its previous publications (in the original or in translation[s]). Each volume also includes a CD with electronic copies of the original documents published in it.418 SŚme years agŚ, IH ařd USHMM tŚŚk the decisiŚř tŚ śrŚcess the eřtire archive ařd write a detailed inventory for it, including a foreword, and scientific and archival aids (personal and geographical indexes, and a concordance of call numbers). The task was undertaken by the historian ařd archivist PrŚfessŚr Tadeusz Eśszteiř, iř cŚŚśeratiŚř with IH archivists. His iřtrŚductiŚř tŚ the inventory includes information on matters including the postwar vicissitudes of this collection of documents, the methods used to order the materials, the means by which the handwriting of individuals were identified, and many other questions and problems, not all of which were resolved. The new inventory of the Warsaw Ghetto Underground Archive is published in English and Polish.419 The thousands of sheets of paper, the vast majority of them written on in ink or pencil, spent several years under the ground in the damp and cold.420 In spite of attempts to conserve them, the mechanical and biological damage to this valuable collection is quite extensive. For many years intensive work has been underway to conserve all the documents; this, too, is now complete.421 Now the whole ARG collection is accessible by scholars in digital form; copies are also accessible at USHMM and Yad Vashem, and there are some scans on the website www.cbj.jhi.pl. There are also ARG materials in other archives elsewhere in the world; the largest volume of its documents (chiefly duślicates Śf thŚse iř A IH) are iř the Wasser CŚllectiŚř422, and there are probably a few dozen in the archive of Yad Vashem in Jerusalem (placed there shortly after the war). In the course of the wŚrk Śř the archive, the dŚcumeřts held iř A IH were re-ordered as follows: 418 More on this project: http://www.jhi.pl/instytut/pracownia_badan_nad_edycja_archiwum_ringelbluma. The Warsaw Ghetto Oyneg Shabes-Ringelblum Archive. Catalog and Guide, ed. by Robert Moses Shapiro and Tadeusz Epsztein, introduction by Samuel D. Kassow, Indiana University Press 2009; T. Epsztein, Archiwum Ringelbluma. Konspiracyjne Archiwum Getta Warszawskiego. Inwentarz Archiwum Ringelbluma, Warszawa 2011. 420 Whether for want of time or facility, the metal crates in which Part I of the Archive was stored were not soldered shut, which meant that water seeped into them. 421 The work to conserve the documents that comprise ARG, financed by USHMM, was done by the Paper Conservation Deśartmeřt at IH by a team uřder the head Śf that deśartmeřt, ZŚfia GŚliszewska. 422 A micrŚfilm cŚśy Śf this cŚllectiŚř is accessible at A IH. 419 230 RING. I I. Oneg Shabat records – call no. 1-4. II. General studies on the situation of the Jewish population during the war: 1. Plans and drafts of works, questionnaires – call no. 5-22. 2. Oneg Shabat bulletins – call no. 23-38. 3. Studies, scholarly works, reports – call no. 39-70. 4. Autonomous collections: – the “Kalisz letters” – call no. 71-163, – the “PłŚck letters” – call no. 164-178. III. Warsaw and the Warsaw ghetto: 1. Documents generated by the German authorities and institutions – call no. 179-193. 2. Documents generated by other institutions and organizations – call no. 194-195. 3. Workshops in the Warsaw ghetto – call no. 196-198. 4. Documents generated by Jewish authorities, institutions and organizations: – the Jewish Council – call no. 199-293, – “Trzyřastka” (“the Thirteeř”) – call no. 294-295, – the SS – call no. 296-349, – Jewish iřstitutiŚřs ařd ŚrgařizatiŚřs cŚřřected with the SS – call no. 350-382, – Clandestine Jewish organizations – call no. 383-388, – Other Jewish institutions and organizations – call no. 389-401. 5. Testimonies (diaries, chronicles, eye-witness accounts, memoirs) – call no. 402-536. 6. Private correspondence – call no. 537-553. 7. Studies (plans and drafts of works, scientific papers, statistics, tables, notes) – call no. 554665. 8. Schooling in the Warsaw ghetto – call no. 666-682. 9. Photographs from the Warsaw ghetto – call no. 683. IV. Materials on the history of Jewish communities outside Warsaw – call no. 684-1077. V. Testimonies from the 1939 September campaign and POW camps – call no. 1078-1104. VI. Materials on labour camps, transit camps and extermination camps (centres) – call no. 11051208. VII. Literary texts – call no. 1209-1271. VIII. Journals and other printed matter: 231 1. Jewish press from the period of the 1939 September campaign – call no. 1272. 2. Official newspapers and journals published in Germany and the occupied territories – call no. 1273-1285. 3. Other German printed matter – call no. 1286-1290. 4. Newspapers and official Jewish publications from the German-occupied territories – call no. 1291-1293. 5. Jewish press published in the USSR – call no. 1294. 6. Underground press from the Warsaw ghetto – call no. 1295-1347. 7. Other clandestine printed matter from the Warsaw ghetto – call no. 1348-1352. 8. Polish underground press – call no. 1353-1383. 9. Other clandestine printed matter – call no. 1384-1388. 10. Prewar Jewish press, journals and other printed matter – call no. 1389-1398. IX. Legacies and papers 1. Materials from Rachela Auerbach (the papers of Icyk Manger) – call no. 1399-1410. 2. Materials frŚm MŚj esz Kaufmař – call no. 1411-1419. 3. Materials from Menachem Kon (Kohn) – call no. 1420-1424. 4. Materials from Izrael Lichtensztajn and Gela Seksztajn – call no. 1425-1457. 5. Materials from Emanuel Ringelblum – call no. 1458-1460. 6. Materials from Hersz Wasser – call no. 1461-1489. X. Miscellanea – call no. 1490-1505. RING. II I. Oneg Shabat records – call no. 1-2. II. General studies on the situation of the Jewish population during the war – call no. 3-19. III. Warsaw and the Warsaw ghetto: 1. Documents generated by the German authorities and institutions – call no. 20-27. 2. Documents generated by other institutions and organizations – call no. 28. 3. Workshops in the Warsaw ghetto – call no. 29-41. 4. Documents generated by Jewish authorities, institutions and organizations: – the Jewish Council – call no. 42-116, – the SS – call no. 117-207, – correspondence of Icchak Giterman – call no. 208-225, 232 – Jewish iřstitutiŚřs ařd ŚrgařizatiŚřs cŚřřected with the SS – call no. 226-239, – other Jewish institutions and organizations – call no. 240-241. 5. Testimonies (diaries, chronicles, memoirs) – call no. 242-276. 6. Private correspondence – call no. 277-293. 7. Studies (plans and drafts of works, scientific papers, statistics, tables, notes) – call no. 294329. IV. Materials on the history of Jewish communities outside Warsaw – call no. 330-370. V. Materials on labour camps, transit camps and extermination camps (centres) – call no. 371-386. VI. Literary texts – call no. 387-413. VII. Journals and other printed matter: 1. Jewish press from the period of the 1939 September campaign – call no. 414. 2. Official newspapers and journals published in Germany and the occupied territories – call no. 415-418. 3. Underground press from the Warsaw ghetto – call no. 419-424. 4. Other clandestine printed matter from the Warsaw ghetto – call no. 425-428. 5. Polish underground press – call no. 429-449. 6. Other clandestine printed matter – call no. 450-451. VIII. Legacies and papers 1. Materials from Rachela Auerbach and Icyk Manger – call no. 452-477. 2. Materials from Icchak Giterman – call no. 478. 3. Materials from Eliasz Gutkowski – call no. 479-490. 4. Materials from Szymon Huberband – call no. 491. 5. Materials from Izrael Lichtensztajn and Gela Seksztajn – call no. 492-493. ę. Materials frŚm Perec OśŚczyński – call no. 494-507. 7. Materials from Heřryk Piórřik ařd Wacław K czkŚwski – call no. 508-509. 8. Materials frŚm Cwi Pryłucki – call no. 510. 9. Materials from Emanuel Ringelblum – call no. 511-522. 10. Materials from Hersz Wasser – call no. 523-530. 11. Materials frŚm Chaskiel Wilczyński – call no. 531-553. IX. Miscellanea – call no. 554-558. 233 234 4. Files of welfare and aid institutions When researching the extermination of the Jews in the Polish lands, the historian encounters frequent references to the work of the mutual aid institutions that organized support for those in the ghettos and the camps who were particularly badly affected by the situation during the war – the poor, the homeless, orphans, the elderly, those who had been resettled, and the sick. The most important documents are held by the Archive Śf the Jewish HistŚrical Iřstitute (A IH) iř Warsaw – these are the files of the Jewish Social Self-Helś ( SS) (RG 211) ařd the Americař JŚiřt DistributiŚř Committee 1939-1942 (RG 210). A vital supplement to these are the materials of the Central Welfare Council (RGO) and its local committees in the Central Archive for Modern Records (AAN) and the various State Archives (AP). YDOWSKA SAMOPOMOC SPOŁECŃNA ( SS, Jewish SŚcial Self-Help; German: Jüdische Soziale Selbsthilfe, Yiddish: Yidishe Sotsiale Aleynhilf) There is a wealth of material423 Śř welfare aid iř the cŚllectiŚř ydŚwska SamŚśŚmŚc SśŚłeczřa Ceřtrala PŚmŚcy dla ydów w Geřeralřym GuberřatŚrstwie (Jüdische SŚziale Selbsthilfe, Jüdische Unterstützungsstelle für das Generalgouvernement, Jewish Mutual Welfare Aid Central Office for Aid to Jews in the GG).424 The reason for the complexity of this name is that in fact this collection cŚřtaiřs dŚcumeřts geřerated by twŚ iřstitutiŚřs: the SS ařd its successŚr, the JUS. The SS was founded by the Germans in 1940, alongside equivalent organizations for Poles (RGO, the Central Welfare Council) and Ukrainians (URG, the Ukrainian Central Council). These three organizations were uřited uřder the Naczelřa Rada Ośiekuńcza (NRO, Suśreme Welfare CŚuřcil), which was initially composed of five Poles from the RGO, Śře Jew frŚm the SS, ařd Śře Ukraiřiař frŚm the 423 Little use has to date been made of this material in Polish historiography. A pioneering study of mutual aid was made by Ruta Sakowska, cf. R. Sakowska, Ludzie z dzielnicy zamkniętej, op. cit., German edition: Menschen im Ghetto : die judische Bevolkerung im besetzten Warschau 1939-1943, Osnabruck 1999. Cf. also other articles by Sakowska published in B IH, e.g. “Komitety domowe w getcie warszawskim”, B IH, no. 1 (61), I-III, 1967, pp. 59-86. The files in RG 211 were also used extensively by A. Rutkowski and T. Berenstein in their cycle of articles on the extermination of Jewish communities in the GG published in the 1960s in B IH. They were emślŚyed mŚst widely by Barbara Eřgelkiřg iř her article “ ycie cŚdzieřře ydów w miasteczkach dystryktu warszawskiegŚ”, [iř:] Prowincja noc. Zagłada ydów w dystrykcie warszawskim, collective work, ed. B. Engelking, J. LeŚciak ařd D. LibiŚřka, Warszawa 2007. The cŚřteřt Śf the files iř the SS cŚllectiŚř was examiřed iř ař article by Marek Jó wik, head Śf A IH ařd authŚr Śf the iřveřtŚry Śf that cŚllectiŚř: M. Jó wik, “Akta ydŚwskiej SamŚśŚmŚcy SśŚłeczřej (19ė0-1942) w Archiwum ydŚwskiegŚ Iřstytutu HistŚryczřegŚ w Warszawie ze szczególřym uwzgl dřieřiem dystryktu radŚmskiegŚ”, [in:] ydzi dystryktu radŚmskiegŚ w Śkresie II wŚjny wiatŚwej, op. cit., pp. 43-49. Foreign publications that should be mentioned in this context iřclude: ArŚř Rubiř, “Jewish welfare services iř Śccuśied PŚlařd”, Facts and Fictions about the Rescue of the Polish Jewry during the Holocaust, Vol. 1, Tel Aviv 2003. 424 A IH, RG 211. 235 URG, and chaired by the head of the RGO, Adam Ronikier.425 At the end of November 1941, when the new district of Galicia (with a large Ukrainian population) was annexed to the GG, the composition of the NRO was altered to comprise four Poles, two Ukrainians and one Jew. The NRO had no agendas of its own; its work was focused on supervising aid and sharing out monetary subsidies and material donations between the three national sectors. These conducted the real welfare ařd aid wŚrk. The statutes Śf the SS, which were aśśrŚved Śř 29 May 19ė0, śrŚvided that “VŚluřtary ařd cŚmśulsŚry Jewish welfare ŚrgařizatiŚřs are hereby merged iř the SS”.426 The SS was headed by a śresideřt (Michał Weichert427) and presidium.428 Among the functions of the SS ařd its śresidium, which was based iř KrakŚw, were the ŚrgařizatiŚř Śf the eřtirety Śf Jewish welfare – in both its community and institutional forms; raising money for this work; sharing out financial donations and material aid; setting up, supporting and running welfare institutions for adults and children; and cooperating with foreign aid organizations – via the mediation of the plenipotentiary for the German Red Cross affiliated to the GG for the occupied regions of Poland. As early as in July 1940, pursuant to a decision of the occupying authorities, all independent Jewish community, charitable and educational associations were dissolved and brought under the aegis of the SS. This meařt that it iřherited bŚth ceřtralized organizations with well-developed regional structures, a considerable heritage and wealth of experience, such as the orphan aid organization CeřtŚs ařd TŚwarzystwŚ OchrŚřy ZdrŚwia LudřŚ ci ydŚwskiej (TOZ, the Health Care SŚciety), and a vast number of independent committees for aid to the poor, the resettled, or victims of fires, various landsmanshaftn, hŚuse cŚmmittees, etc. The aid śrŚvided by the SS was distributed via ař A. Ronikier, Pamiętniki 1939-1945, Kraków 2013. A IH, call řŚ. 211/1, p. 14. 427 Michał Weichert (1890 Stare MiastŚ, E. Galicia – 1967 Israel), educated as a lawyer, a prewar theatre director and founder of the Jewish School of the Dramatic Arts in Warsaw, and thereafter the avant-garde Yung Teater, translator from Yiddish, and social activist with links to the AJDC in Poland. Studied law and philosophy to doctorate level in Lwów, Vieřřa ařd Berliř. FrŚm Seśtember 1939 eřgaged iř aid wŚrk iř Warsaw withiř the StŚłeczřy KŚmitet SamŚśŚmŚcy SśŚłeczřej (SŚcial Welfare CŚmmittee fŚr the Caśital) ařd KŚmisja KŚŚrdyřacyjřa ydŚwskich Orgařizacji SśŚłeczřych (CŚŚrdiřatiřg CŚmmissiŚř Śf Jewish CŚmmuřity OrgařizatiŚřs), Śut Śf which the SS was born. From May 1940 until the end of 1942 he was its president. After the dissolution of the SS, frŚm March 19ė3 he was the president of the controversial JUS. In 1944 he and his family went into hiding. After the war he was accused of cŚllabŚratiŚř with the Germařs ařd Śf betrayal. A Sśecjalřy S d Karřy (Sśecial Crimiřal CŚurt) cleared him Śf these charges, but a S d SśŚłeczřy (Obywatelski) (PeŚśle’s CŚurt) affiliated tŚ the CK P fŚuřd him guilty. Sideliřed ařd condemned to a degree of infamy, in 1957 he and his family emigrated to Israel, where he held no public functions. He died in Tel Aviv in 1967. 428 The members Śf the śresidium were Józef Jaszuński (deśuty chairmař), Gustaw WielikŚwski, Beřiamiř ZabłudŚwski (from Warsaw), Eliahu Tisz, Chaim Hilfstein, and Marek Bieberstein (from Krakow). When Bieberstein was imprisoned in September 1940 his place was takeř by Marek Alter Śf Lubliř. After the death Śf ZabłudŚwski iř Jařuary 19ė2 ařd the ařřexatiŚř Śf Galicia tŚ the GG, Lejb Lařdau Śf Lwów was acceśted iřtŚ the śresidium. The śermařeřt SS representative in the NRO was Hilfstein, though Weichert himself also frequently attended meetings. 425 426 236 exteřsive řetwŚrk Śf ydŚwskie KŚmitety Ośiekuńcze Miejskie i PŚwiatŚwe (Jewish Municipal and County Welfare Committees) and their numerous agencies, which extended to virtually all the Jewish cŚmmuřities iř the GG, iřcludiřg fŚrced labŚur camśs. The SS Śrgařized medical iřstitutiŚřs, community kitchens and orphanages, and also assisted in tracing relatives. Its work was funded chiefly from donations from abroad, as well as subsidies from the government of the GG and the lŚcal Śccuśyiřg authŚrities. PriŚr tŚ the Uřited States’ eřtry iřtŚ the war, hŚwever, the śrimary source of financing was subsidies from the AJDC. In July 1942, as the terror inflicted on the Jewish population of the GG increased, however, and the numbers of repressions and deportations rose and evolved into the direct extermination of the Jews, the German authorities took the decision to dissŚlve the SS; this resŚlutiŚř tŚŚk effect Śř 1 December 19ė2. The NRO itself was alsŚ dissolved. In January 1943, however, the German authorities (following a protest by the German Red Cross) took the surprising decision to reactivate the aid organization for the Jews, under the name Jüdische Uřterstützuřgsstelle (JUS), ařd Śřce agaiř its directiŚř fell tŚ Michał Weichert. The wŚrk of this organization in the context of the advanced stage of the campaign to liquidate the Jews of the GG was highly controversial, and Weichert himself was called upon by the Jewish underground to terminate its activities. He nevertheless decided to accept the challenge because, he explained, while he fully recognized the situation, he believed he had to take advantage of every potential means of rescuing those who were still alive in the remaining ghetto areas and camps. Moreover, he was adamant that foreign aid should not be plundered by the Germans. In practice, the scope of his work was limited tŚ the camś iř Płaszów ařd tŚ a few ghettŚs ařd camśs iř the KrakŚw district. The maiř thrust of his activity was channelled into safeguarding supplies of food to the various ghettos and camps by making and distributing soup and bread, sharing out food and material aid from abroad, and organizing medical care and distributing medications. Some of the luxury food products and more valuable drugs from abroad were sold on the free market and the funds raised in this way used to purchase basic foodstuffs and medicines. Ultimately, in July 1944 Weichert and his family went iřtŚ hidiřg with the suśśŚrt Śf the egŚta CŚuřcil tŚ Aid Jews, ařd this sśelled the eřd Śf the JUS’s wŚrk. Uřder the terms Śf a secret agreemeřt, the JUS’s stŚcks were takeř Śver by the RGO, which sold them and passed on the money to help Jews in hiding. The cŚllectiŚř ydŚwska SamŚśŚmŚc SśŚłeczřa held iř A IH řumbers 1,ė70 items: mařuscriśts, śriřted fŚrms ařd tyśescriśts. AlthŚugh the SS statutes śrŚvided that the Śřly lařguages tŚ be used in official correspondence were Polish and German, the files very often do contain documents in 237 Yiddish. The cŚllectiŚř is furřished with ař iřveřtŚry, accessible Śř the IH website 429 , which includes an index of geographical names. The files, ordered by subject and geographical criteria, are split into two sections. The first (general) section contains documentation connected with the work Śf the SS śresidium ařd the JUS iř KrakŚw. AmŚřg the dŚcumeřts here are the fŚuřdiřg dŚcumeřts Śf the SS (its statutes and regulations) and those of its superior organizations, the NRO and the RGO, as well as the minutes of the joint meetings of those organizations. Memoranda and instructions dating from the years 1940-1942, blank and specimen forms, pamphlets, and various tyśes Śf attestatiŚřs ařd authŚrizatiŚřs fŚr SS emślŚyees śrŚvide iřsight iřtŚ its structure ařd operating procedures. Notes made in the various departments of the presidium and jotted down during meetings, conferences and telephone conversations reveal more about its day-to-day work. Although in May 1940 the occupier subordinated all existing Jewish aid and charitable organizations tŚ the řewly created SS, thus fŚrciřg them tŚ śursue their activities uřder the ausśices Śf the řew organization, many continued to operate with almost total independence. A reflection of this situation is the vast body of correspondence between the presidium and the branches and headquarters Śf the “CeřtŚs” AssŚciatiŚřs fŚr the Care Śf Orśhařs śreserved iř this cŚllectiŚř regarding the organization of aid to children, care of orphans, nutrition programmes, etc. The presidium in Krakow also corresponded with a range of institutions and organizations, including the DŚm SierŚt (Śrśhařage) iř KrakŚw, ydŚwski KŚmitet Iřwalidów WŚjennych (the Jewish Disabled War Veterařs CŚmmittee), PŚlski CzerwŚřy Krzy (the PŚlish Red CrŚss) ařd TOZ. Oře Śf the priorities in Krakow was the division of subsidies, most of which were donated by the AJDC, and of grants from the GG. This is illustrated by the surviving lists of subsidies with detailed breakdowns iřtŚ the sums received by śarticular śarties. As the SS śresidium was based iř KrakŚw, as sŚŚř as the Germařs tŚŚk the decisiŚř tŚ deśŚrt large řumbers Śf the city’s Jewish resideřts430 (15 August 1940) it was inundated with requests from individuals and businesses for intervention with the authŚrities fŚr śermissiŚř tŚ remaiř iř KrakŚw. The SS śresidium’s diverse iřcŚmiřg ařd ŚutgŚiřg correspondence constitutes a considerable proportion of the entirety of the collection. There are official letters with requests for aid, financial support or intervention with the authorities sent to its Krakow address in the years 1940-19ė2. Oře Śf the statutŚry aims Śf the SS was tŚ Śffer assistance in tracing relatives and reuniting family members, who frequently lost contact in the 429 http://www.jhi.pl/uploads/archive_record/file/94/_SS_211.pdf. As the capital of the GG and the seat of its supreme authorities, Krakow was to be made “judeřreiř”, i.e. it was tŚ be “cleařsed Śf Jews”. Iř śractice, this Śbjective was Śřly śartly achieved. The remaiřiřg Jews whŚ stayed iř the city were incarcerated in a ghetto situated on the opposite bank of the Vistula river, in the suburb of Podgórze. 430 238 maelstrom of war. It also mediated in tracing relatives abroad. The legacy of this work is its large cŚllectiŚř Śf cŚrresśŚřdeřce, Śrdered alśhabetically. AřŚther Śf the śresidium’s tasks was to seek channels of aid outside the GG. Much of its work, in particular that connected with tracing relatives, and purchasing vital medication and nutrition, required extensive foreign contacts. Testimony to its activeness in this respect is the large collection of letters exchanged with various Jewish organizations in the USA, Argentina, Denmark, Germany, Cuba, Mexico, France, Peru, Bohemia, Romania, China, Japan, Slovakia, Hungary, Italy, Austria and Switzerland. In view of its area of activity, the circumstances, and its dependence on the German authorities, this collection also contains correspondence with the German Abteilung Bevölkerungswesen und Fürsorge (Department for Population Affairs and Welfare), the government office charged with direct suśervisiŚř Śf the SS, as well as with other German authorities, the SS and police leadership for the various districts of the GG, bařks, trařsśŚrtatiŚř firms, ařd certaiř emślŚyers, such as Oskar Schiřdler’s eřamelware factory Deutsche Emailwarenfabrik iř KrakŚw. At the śresidium’s seat Śř Józefińska Street iř Krakow there was a specialist pharmacy and drug distribution point that made up and dispensed consignments of drugs for the various ghettos and camps. The lists of medications dispatched, orders, and requests for them constitute over a dozen of the items in this record group, and cover the period 1940-1944. Among the most interesting materials are also detailed lists relating to supply and community kitchens in the district of Krakow, and correspondence with labour camps and the camś iř Płaszów (chiefly cŚřcerřiřg sařitatiŚř ařd řutritiŚř cŚřditiŚřs ařd śrisŚřers’ řeeds). Oře relatively large collection that illustrates the way the organization operated in the various cities and districts is a set of correspondence that passed between the presidium and its constituent members, the “advisŚrs” whŚ wŚrked alŚřgside the heads Śf the districts 431: Beřiamiř ZabłudŚwski, Józef Jaszuński, Gamsej/Gustaw WielikŚwski, Marek Alter, Chaim Hilfsteiř, Juda Zimmerman, Jakub Sternberg and Józef Diament. The last element in the general section of this collection is a set of cŚllective lists Śf ařswers tŚ a questiŚřřaire cŚmśiled iř 19ė2 by the SS śresidium regardiřg the state of hygiene in the various ghettos and camps. The detailed sectiŚř Śf the SS cŚllectiŚř cŚmśrises a wealth Śf cŚrresśŚřdeřce exchařged iř the years 1940-1943 between the presidium in Krakow and its various subordinate institutions The ŚrgařizatiŚř’s statutes, aśśrŚved by the GG, śrŚvided that the SS reśreseřtatives wŚrkiřg with the chief district Śfficials bŚre the title Śf “advisŚr”. This was largely a fŚrmal issue. Their fuřctiŚř was that Śf liaisŚř betweeř the district authŚrities ařd the śresidium Śf the SS iř KrakŚw. The “advisŚr” esseřtially suśervised the iřstitutiŚřs Śśeratiřg withiř the SS iř a giveř district, ařd iřtermediated with the authŚrities Śř their behalf. 431 239 throughout the GG: the Municipal and County Welfare Committees, the Delegatury (Delegations), and the various Jewish Councils. The whole of this section is arranged in alphabetical order by place name, and in chronological order within each place. This vast record group of 1,007 items contains a mass of material documenting the conditions in particular localities, attempts to bring aid, and aid actually received. It also brings to light local tiffs, disputes and conflicts. Most of the collections of documents from the various localities open with an exchange of letters regarding the appointment of a local committee or delegation. The local authorities (often representatives of the Judenrat) proposed candidates, and the presidium in Krakow confirmed them, thus legalizing their representation. In many cases, an existing welfare body or an appropriate department of the Judenrat was reŚrgařized as the reśreseřtatiŚř Śf the SS. This was Śfteř a sŚurce Śf disśutes, hŚwever, which followed the line of prewar political and personal conflicts. These are recorded in the letters that shuttled back and forth between the presidium in Krakow and the various communities. The vast majority of items, however, are numerous reports on operations, outgoings, and foodstuffs, fuel and clothing purchased and used, etc.432 In these reports, the local SS reśreseřtatiŚřs set Śut their needs, the general state of sanitation, health, and overall living conditions, and also made requests for aid. In its responses, the presidium would provide information on financial and material support allocated. The correspondence often reveals the tragic situation in the ghetto, showing the paucity of resources to be such that the available aid did not suffice even for the very neediest. These shortages are visible at both the local and central levels; the documents show the impossibility of meeting the cŚmmittees’ demařds. Particular řŚte shŚuld be made Śf this reśŚrtiřg system ařd Śf the ařswers given in the many and varied questionnaires sent out by the presidium, which provide insight into the situation inside the ghettos and camps, both in general terms and on detailed matters (including lists of the sums of money or specific items awarded to particular individuals). These materials constitute a superb source for research on the micro scale, as well as for extensive comparative analysis. The IH archive alsŚ cŚřtaiřs Śther materials iřtriřsically liřked with this subject ařd with the SSJUS cŚllectiŚř. Oře such is the diary Śf Michał Weichert 433 , which primarily addresses issues connected with his work in that organization, his personal observations, and his experiences. In 1962, These are standard documents, drawn up in accŚrdařce with a sśecimeř desigřed by the SS, ařd seřt Śff regularly (every month) to Krakow. 433 A IH, Pami třiki, call řŚ. 302/2Ę. This is Śře versiŚř Śf the diary writteř by Weichert frŚm the time he weřt iřtŚ hiding in 1944. There are several versions of this text (see below), which contain information compiled in various ways and under various titles. 432 240 iř Israel, Weichert had a memŚir śublished that was devŚted iř its eřtirety tŚ the SS. 434 His diaries add many dimensions of supplementary information to the dry documentary records held in RG 211 iř A IH. The iřvaluable cŚllectiŚřs Śf the Riřgelblum Archive alsŚ iřclude dŚcumeřts cŚřřected with the first śhase Śf the ŚrgařizatiŚř’s activity iř Warsaw (frŚm KŚmisja KŚŚrdyřacyjna ydŚwskich Iřstytucji SśŚłeczřych [Jewish SŚcial IřstitutiŚřs CŚŚrdiřatiřg CŚmmissiŚř] tŚ ydŚwska SamŚśŚmŚc SśŚłeczřa – Komisja Koordynacyjna [Jewish Mutual Welfare Aid – Coordinating Commission]), the process of developing a national organization, and the work of the Warsaw ydŚwski KŚmitet Ośiekuńczy Miejski (Jewish Muřiciśal Welfare CŚmmittee). 435 The cŚllectiŚř S d SśŚłeczřy (Obywatelski) śrzy CK P (PeŚśle’s CŚurt affiliated tŚ the CK P, A IH, RG 313) cŚřtaiřs the case files Śf Weichert’s trial Śř a charge of collaboration with the Germans during the second phase of his work in the post of JUS president. 436 These constitute extensive cŚmśarative material ařd thrŚw ař iřterestiřg light Śř śŚstwar assessmeřts Śf the wŚrk Śf the SS and the JUS, on Weichert himself, and on the stances of people connected with him and the two ŚrgařizatiŚřs. A śarallel tyśe Śf dŚcumeřtatiŚř is the case files Śf Weichert’s śrecediřg trial befŚre the Sśecjalřy S d Karřy (Sśecial Crimiřal CŚurt) iř KrakŚw, which may be fŚuřd in the AIPN in Krakow. These include materials from the investigation, witness testimonies, and a record of the trial itself.437 The mařuscriśts deśartmeřt Śf the JagiellŚřiař Library iř KrakŚw (BUJ) hŚlds Weichert’s legacy and papers438 and his correspondence.439 These collections comprise selected documents, statements and notes from both his trials, biographical materials, and a certain number of original documents geřerated by the SS śresidium ařd the KrakŚw CŚmmittee. The BUJ is alsŚ in possession of works purchased from the author in 1957 prior to his emigration to Israel. 440 The Yad Vashem Archive 434 M. Weichert, Yidishe aleynhilf, 1939-1945, Tel Aviv, Menorah 1962. See also his memoirs in 4 vols., Zikhroynes, Tel Aviv 1960-1970. See also David Engel, “WhŚ Is a CŚllabŚratŚr?: The Trials Śf Michał Weichert”, [iř:] The Jews in Poland, vol. 2, ed. SławŚmir Kaśralski, śś. 339–370 (Kraków 1999). 435 A IH, ARG, Riřg. I, call řŚ. 29ę-382, and Ring. II, call no. 117-225 and 226-239. 436 A IH, S d SśŚłeczřy śrzy CK P, call řŚ. 313/137. 437 AIPN, GK 203/240. 438 BUJ, Mařuscriśts Deśartmeřt, Paśiery Michała Weicherta (199ę acquisitiŚř), call řŚ. 31/97 – 49/97. 439 BUJ, Mařuscriśts Deśartmeřt, call řŚ. ę99/88 (1988 acquisitiŚř). CŚrresśŚřdeřce betweeř Jař WiktŚr ařd Michał Weichert ařd Weichert’s wife; call řŚ. 31/9ę (199ę acquisitiŚř). CŚrresśŚřdeřce betweeř RŚmař KiełkŚwski ařd the Central Commission for the Investigation of Crimes against the Polish nation (GKBZśNP) regardiřg Weichert’s statemeřt Śř the activities Śf Władysław Wróbel. 440 BUJ, Mařuscriśts Deśartmeřt, Prace Michała Weicherta (19Ę7 acquisitiŚř, śurchased frŚm the authŚr); call řŚ. 19Ę/Ę7 vŚl. I “ ydŚwska SamŚśŚmŚc SśŚłeczřa” (Śře versiŚř Śf the memŚirs alsŚ held iř A IH); call řŚ. 19ę/Ę7 vŚl. II “PŚlityka ekstermiřacyjřa Śkuśařta hitlerŚwskiegŚ wŚbec ludřŚ ci ydŚwskiej w tzw. GG”; call no. 197/57 vol. III “Ekstermiřacja gŚsśŚdarcza ludřŚ ci ydŚwskiej”. 241 (YVA) in Jerusalem holds a collection of documents pertaining to Weichert that comprises one versiŚř Śf the study eřtitled “ ydŚwska SamŚśŚmŚc SśŚłeczřa w latach 1939-19ėĘ”, śrivate correspondence (with people including his defence counsel), official copies of files, press cuttings and translations of articles in Yiddish, and a wealth of auxiliary materials connected with his work during the war ařd used iř the trials befŚre the Sśecial Crimiřal CŚurt ařd the PeŚśle’s CŚurt.441 The National Library of Israel (NLI) in Jerusalem holds the legacy and papers of Weichert donated by his family after his death.442 This cŚřtaiřs Śrigiřal SS–JUS documents ordered by subject and chronology, including a large number of personal files of its chairman, and correspondence exchanged between the presidium and local committees, the German authorities, and foreign organizations sending aid to Jews in Poland. It also holds one of the versions of the abovementioned memŚirs, the study eřtitled “ ydŚwska SamŚśŚmŚc SśŚłeczřa w latach 1939-19ėĘ”. This dŚcumeřt is concordant with (though also contains numerous differences from) the version held in the YVA. Other elements of the cŚllectiŚř are śŚstwar řŚtes ařd studies regardiřg the SS ařd the Nazi ŚccuśatiŚř iř PŚlařd, as well as śrivate cŚrresśŚřdeřce Śf Weichert’s. These are řew materials řŚt fŚuřd iř the SS–JUS cŚllectiŚř iř A IH. Finally, the National Archive in KrakŚw (ANK) hŚlds rařdŚm materials Śf the SS śresidium. The cŚllectiŚř ydŚwska SamŚśŚmŚc SśŚłeczřa cŚřtaiřs questiŚřřaires filled iř by Jews frŚm the GG eligible to receive social benefits443, which comprises 69 items in alphabetical order by place name, including documents filled in by local committees and submitted to the presidium. These contain data on people who had been approved for social or other financial benefits (civil servant or local cŚuřcillŚr salaries, widŚw’s Śr Śrśhař’s śeřsiŚřs, iřvalidity benefits, etc.) by Polish state offices before the war. The collection Akta poniemieckie (Former German files) 444 includes a body of various unrelated documents, among which is an item containing correspondence between the presidium and local delegations and cŚmmittees regardiřg śersŚřřel issues Śf card file of their names. 441 YVA, call no. O.21/6-8. Michael Weichert collection; call no. Ms. Var. 371. 443 ANK, ydŚwska SamŚśŚmŚc SśŚłeczřa, [1938] 19ė0-1941, RG 2125. 444 ANK, Akta poniemieckie, RG 1576. 442 242 SS emślŚyees, ařd a AMERICAN JOINT DISTRIBUTION COMMITTEE (AJDC, Joint) AřŚther iřstitutiŚř with virtually direct liřks tŚ the SS is the Americař JŚiřt DistributiŚř Committee (AJDC) in the period 1939-19ė2, fŚr which files are alsŚ held iř A IH. 445 The dŚcumeřtatiŚř Śf the Warsaw headquarters fŚrm ař iřtegral whŚle with the abŚvemeřtiŚřed SS archival material owing to the peculiar nature of the relationship that developed between the two organizations during the war. The AJDC was founded in the autumn of 1914 in New York when Henry Morgenthau, US ambassador to Turkey, approached Louis Marshall and Jacob H. Schiff with a request for $50,000 in support for the Jews in Palestine, who were suffering from famine. By October 1915 the money had been collected, and the AJDC was set up to manage its distribution, and to support the Jews of both Palestine and Europe, many of whom had been deprived of a living as a result of World War I. The AJDC provided this support by organizing donations, food programmes and shipments of clothing. The bulk of this aid was directed to Poland and Russia. After the end of World War I, the organization switched its attention to supporting social and political activity, the cooperative movement, and small enterprise. Grants from the AJDC in the 1920s and 1930s facilitated the launch of more than 300 local cooperative loans societies offering micrŚlŚařs. AmŚřg the ŚrgařizatiŚřs that beřefited frŚm the JŚiřt’s aid were śŚlitical parties, trade unions, large community aid organizations such as TOZ, ORT and Centos, and the whole system of schools, cultural institutions and local associations. In the wake of the German aggression on Poland in September 1939, the most pressing task facing the Polish AJDC headquarters in Warsaw was the day-to-day support of Jews who had suffered as a result of the war, in particular refugees, victims of fires, and those who had been displaced. Aid was offered either on an individual basis, or through one of the various aid committees that were sśriřgiřg uś, Śr, as iř Warsaw, via the řetwŚrk Śf hŚuse cŚmmittees ařd the ydŚwskie TŚwarzystwŚ PŚmŚcy SśŚłeczřej (Jewish Welfare SŚciety). With the establishmeřt Śf a Germař civilian administration, the Judenräte were set up, and financial and material aid from the Joint flowed through them. Its Warsaw workers – Icchak Giterman (the director of the Polish headquarters), Lejb Neustadt, Izaak Broinstein and Dawid Guzik – leveraged a range of contacts in an effort to ensure A IH, RG 210. These files, like the SS dŚcumeřtatiŚř, have tŚ date beeř underused in the literature. They have been analysed in publications by Ruta Sakowska, Barbara Engelking, Jacek Leociak and Dariusz Libionka. They are also referenced by Yehuda Bauer in his work on the aid sent to Jews in occupied countries (American Jewry and the Holocaust. The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, 1939-1945, Detroit 1982). 445 243 that aid reached Jewish communities not only in the GG but also in the regions annexed to the Reich. Their activities were reřdered easier by the ŚrgařizatiŚř’s Americař status, i.e. the fact that it originated from what was then a neutral country. Aside from direct and individual aid, another important aspect of its work was its grants for Centos, TOZ and ORT. With the establishment of the SS (iř whŚse fŚrmatiŚř the directŚrs Śf the JŚiřt ślayed a sigřificařt rŚle), a large śrŚśŚrtiŚř of the financial and material aid for the Jews of the GG was channelled through this organization. The reśŚrts Śf the SS śresidium iřdicate that iř the years 19ė0-1941 over half of its budget came from AJDC grants. In the lands annexed to the Greater German Reich, the Joint supported welfare ařd aid camśaigřs iř the Łód ghettŚ, iř SŚsřŚwiec, ařd thrŚughŚut the D brŚwa Basiř. The aid was financed from prewar transfers made by the AJDC head office in New York and its Europe office in Paris. In view of the difficulties engendered by the war, the legal restrictions imposed by the occupiers, and the objections to dollar transfers in the lands occupied by the Germans, larger transfers were more difficult to effect (though possible). Bereft of their regular source of cash, Joint workers in Poland devised a system of financing based on loans issued in Poland to the AJDC head office, the repayment of which was guaranteed after the war by the New York head office. Owing to the difficulties in transferring money, the Warsaw office received mass consignments of material aid in the form of food, clothing and medications financed by the American head office. With the Uřited States’ eřtry iřtŚ the war agaiřst Germařy iř Juře 19ė1, the Śfficial facility tŚ briřg aid was halted. Even then, however, the European office in Lisbon (where it had been relocated after the occupation of Paris in 1940) continued to send individual food parcels at first to specific reciśieřts ařd later tŚ the SS–JUS, via a hired firm in Tehran. Money was also transferred through underground channels; it was received by Jewish underground activists and passed on to aid Jews in hiding. Yehuda Bauer has estimated that in the years 1939-1941 the AJDC sent aid to Poland worth over $20 million (which represented respectively 14.8 per cent, 13.8 per cent and 17.0 per cent of the ŚrgařizatiŚř’s ařřual budgets fŚr thŚse years).446 The A IH cŚllectiŚř Americař JŚiřt DistributiŚř CŚmmittee řumbers 7ę1 items cŚřstitutiřg documents in the form of manuscripts, printed matter and typescripts in Polish, German, Yiddish 446 Yehuda Bauer, American Jewry and the Holocaust, op. cit., p. 73. 244 ařd Eřglish. It is furřished with ař iřveřtŚry, accessible Śř the IH website447, which includes an iřdex Śf geŚgraśhical řames. As iř the cŚllectiŚř SS–JUS profiled above, the documents are ordered by subject and geography, and the whole is divided into a general and a detailed section. The former contains documentation connected with the work of the AJDC head office in Poland in the years 1939-19ė2. It Śśeřs with the iřstitutiŚř’s statutes ařd śrŚgramme ařd ŚrgařizatiŚřal documents. A number of items show how the head office was organized, and give insight into its budgets, payrolls and other financial documents for the years 1940-1942. Of particular note are the numerous documents commissioned and collected by the Joint referencing the current situation of the Jewish population of occupied Poland. These include documents about the creation of the Warsaw ghetto, analyses on the subject of unemployment, forced labour and the deteriorating living conditions, and statistics referring to specific places and demographics including numbers of Jews. As it expanded its activity in the occupied Polish territories, the AJDC head office in Warsaw gathered materials that are reflected in the detailed information ordered by district or city within the GG, ařd alsŚ iř the Warta regiŚř ařd Łód . These iřclude statistics, ślařs fŚr the division of grants and reports on their use, and collective statistics on health, mortality rates and care of children. The JŚiřt’s cŚŚśeratiŚř with ařd suśśŚrt Śf such a diverse rařge Śf ŚrgařizatiŚřs geřerated exteřsive reporting and correspondence, which flowed into its Warsaw office from TOZ, Centos and ORT, ařd iř later śeriŚds alsŚ frŚm the śresidium Śf the SS ařd its cŚřstitueřt uřits, frŚm the PŚlish ařd German Red Cross, and from the RGO. The detailed section of the collection comprises lists and reports on receipt and distribution of material dŚřatiŚřs frŚm abrŚad, which were seřt tŚ the AJDC’s address iř PŚlařd. The Śffice iř Warsaw, as a foreign organization, had greater ease of contact with various foreign establishments (in places including Slovakia, Germany, Belgium, Hungary, Switzerland, Italy, Portugal, Austria, Turkey, Iran, Lithuania, Sweden, the USSR, Bohemia and Romania), including, of course, the AJDC headquarters in New York. The legacy of this vibrant activity is a collection of several dozen items reflectiřg the ŚrgařizatiŚř’s effŚrts tŚ Śbtaiř fiřařcial resŚurces. These iřclude bařk trařsfer sliśs, currency exchange receipts, orders, and acceptance letters for consignments of food, clothing and medications. This body of correspondence is a record of the vast scale of the aid campaign and the dramatic aśśeals fŚr every ceřt ařd every gramme Śf flŚur. Like the SS–JUS, the Joint also assisted 447 http://www.jhi.pl/uploads/archive_record/file/92/AJDC_210.pdf. 245 in tracing foreign relatives who might provide support or even assistance in emigrating. This latter campaign is recorded in the collection of over 2,500 cards in a card file containing the names and addresses of Jews from Poland who sought assistance from relatives in the United States and other countries on the American continent. The final element in the general section of the collection is a selection of organizational and financial documents and chronologically ordered copybooks of correspondence from the office in Warsaw (of immense value, because in addition to useful iřfŚrmatiŚř Śř the AJDC’s wŚrk, they give us an insight into the day-to-day operations of the organization). As iř the SS–JUS collection, the detailed section of the AJDC collection comprises correspondence from the years 1940-1941 between the head office in Warsaw and the branch offices in the various cities, Judenräte throughout the GG, and, more sporadically, with individuals. It is filed in alphabetical order by place name, and chronologically. It should be noted that in spite of the large volume and similarity of the files amassed in this section of the AJDC collection, they are not homogeneous. The various items differ in number of documents, level of detail, and chronology. The dominant document type in this huge collection is requests and applications for support of various types and in various forms. Local Judenräte or Aid Committees describe their tragic situations and request monetary or material aid. This is reflected in exchanges of correspondence regarding the state and status of a given Jewish community, its needs, and arrangements regarding the delivery and receipt of the aid. The support ultimately given was subsequently accounted for in the form of cash reports, receipts, or confirmation of distribution among the needy. Testimony to the progressive impoverishment and the scale of need are the scrupulous confirmations of receipt of every pair of shoes, every item of clothing, and letters confirming assistance obtained in which the figures Śf aid dŚřatiŚřs rarely ruř iřtŚ dŚuble figures. Like the SS, the JŚiřt had tŚ share out its insufficient resources so as to help as many Jewish communities as possible, for many of which this modest support was crucial to survival. The material gathered in the detailed section of the collection, reflecting a cross-section of the fates of the population in a given community, facilitates both detailed local studies and the formulation of more general conclusions on matters ranging from mortality rates and sanitation conditions in the ghettos to the structure of the aid that reached them. 246 Ař imśŚrtařt suśślemeřt tŚ the iřfŚrmatiŚř iř the files cŚmśrisiřg RG 210 iř A IH are the collections of the AJDC Archives in New York. The Poland General and Sally Mayers Collection 448 in this archive contains all the documents referring to the work of the abovementioned aid organizations in Poland. On the one hand it reveals how this work was perceived from New York, and on the other it gives insight into the modus operandi ařd śrŚcedures fŚllŚwed at the iřstitutiŚř’s American headquarters. Analysis of this documentation enables us to recreate the routes by which information on the situation of the Jews in Poland under German occupation reached New York, and also the way in which their situation was understood. It contains a range of correspondence between the Warsaw office and the European representation of the Joint and its New York headquarters, as well as documents testifying to its extensive cooperation with various organizations and state governments, including the Polish Government-in-Exile. It also comprises very detailed data on the ongoing situation in Poland and Europe in general, the need for aid, and reports on its work. The various lists and breakdowns reveal in detail the type and amount of aid directed to this region, the routes via which it was sent, and the obstacles encountered in the process. The numerous circulars and minutes of meetings help to understand the approach taken by US Jews and the American authorities to the situation in occupied Poland. Perceptive analysis of the chronology of the various entries, combined with a knowledge of the circumstances, will enable the scholar to realize the inadequacy of the work, its tardiness, and the lack of comprehension of the import of the dramatic appeals from Warsaw and Krakow, resulting in often pointless discussions and consultations in the safe setting of New York. The collection also contains a wealth of documentation in the form of press cuttings and internal bulletins on the work of the Joint and the situation of the Jews. As noted above, once the US entered the war against Germany, the entire procedural system and philosophy of the aid provision had to change, because from then on it could řŚt gŚ direct. It therefŚre reached its reciśieřts Śr target ŚrgařizatiŚřs (the SS–JUS via the German Red Cross) in the form of parcels of food and medications. Both the abovementioned collections hold extremely detailed documentation on costs, procedures, arrangements, and the destinations and channels for aid, as well as analyses of the efficacy of the aid efforts. Significantly, the Polish Government-in-Exile was ař active śartřer iř the AJDC’s wŚrk iř this quarter. Further 448 American Joint Distribution Committee Archives, New York, call no. AR 33/44: Poland General and Sally Mayers Collection. 247 information on the work of the AJDC and its campaign to aid the Jews in Poland is held in the AJDC Archives in Jerusalem.449 RADA GŁÓWNA OPIEKU CŃA (RGO, Central Welfare CŚuncil) Ař imśŚrtařt śeřdařt tŚ the files Śf the SS ařd JŚiřt śrŚfiled abŚve iř terms Śf their cŚmmuřity work and the campaign to supply aid to the Jews is the collections of the Central Welfare Council (RGO) and its dependent institutions. The model for its campaign to bring aid to the people of Poland was an organization of the same name that had operated in the years 1916-1918 in the Kingdom of Poland (with the consent of the German occupying authorities) and later, until 1920, on the territory of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. In that period it ran asylums and daycare units, fŚŚd ařd clŚthiřg bařks, ařd a system Śf cash beřefits. Its chairmeř were first Stařisław Dzierzbicki and later Eustachy Sapieha, and the successive presidents of its Central Board Adam Ronikier and Stařisław Stařiszewski. At the begiřřiřg Śf 19ė0 RŚřikier ařd a grŚuś Śf Śther sŚcial activists, with the support of the metropolitan bishop of Krakow, Cardinal Adam Stefan Sapieha, and the consent of governor Hans Frank, reactivated the RGO, replicating both the scope of work and the organizational structure of the successful World War I model. Ronikier was its chairman. The RGO became a recognized element of the social welfare system designed by the Germans for the iřhabitařts Śf the Śccuśied PŚlish lařds. TŚgether with the SS ařd the Ukraiřiař Ceřtral CŚuřcil, it fŚrmed the Naczelřa Rada Ośiekuńcza (Suśreme Welfare CŚuřcil). The RGO was based iř Krakow and it had a network of county and municipal PŚlskie KŚmitety Ośiekuńcze (PŚlish Welfare Committees) in the field.450 Its core activity was to bring aid to the Polish inhabitants of the GG. The scope of its work was extremely broad – ruřřiřg iřitiatives frŚm asylums, shelters, childreř’s hŚmes and hostels, through summer camps for children, to vocational training courses. One of the mandates of the RGO and its committees was to distribute food, clothing, fuel, benefits and one-off aid payments. At the local level, the committee set up community kitchens and daycare centres, and made up parcels for POWs and other prisoners. When some of the Polish lands were annexed to the Reich, the issue of aid for the resettled, deśŚrtees ařd refugees (frŚm regiŚřs iřcludiřg the ZamŚ ć area, ařd Warsaw fŚllŚwiřg the failure Śf the city risiřg iř 19ėė) became śaramŚuřt. The RGO’s wŚrk was fiřařced frŚm subsidies frŚm 449 Cf. Part I of this Guide, chapter on archives and institutions in Israel (Chapter 8). Polish State Archives (AP) hold over 40 collections on the RGO and Polish Welfare Committees from across the GG. 450 The 248 the German authorities (allocated at the level of the NRO), foreign aid and donations (chiefly channelled through the Red Cross), and also clandestine support from the Polish Government-inExile.451 In view of the tripartite segmentation of the welfare aid structure within the NRO, and the wording Śf the RGO’s statutes, it was clear that the RGO’s śurśŚse was tŚ briřg aid sśecifically ařd exclusively to the Poles. Nevertheless, both Ronikier and other activists were of the opinion that aid should be distributed to all those in need and unable to access it elsewhere. Hence the archival legacy of the RGO is full of information on aid to Jews, in particular Christians of Jewish descent.452 The mŚst imśŚrtařt cŚllectiŚř frŚm which tŚ start research is Rada Główřa Ośiekuńcza. BiurŚ Ceřtrali w Krakowie, in the Central Archive for Modern Records (AAN) in Warsaw.453 This consists of 2,047 items containing documents and printed matter, chiefly in Polish, German and English. The collection is fully processed, and furnished with an inventory accessible in electronic form.454 This vast collection, running to more than 45 linear metres, contains the whole of the institutional legacy ařd śaśers Śf the RGO. Of greatest iřterest are the files Śf Wydział Ogólřy (the Geřeral Department), which are connected with the work of the RGO and the NRO and their contacts with external orgařizatiŚřs, iřcludiřg the SS. AlsŚ wŚrthy Śf řŚte is the chairmař’s Śfficial ařd śrivate correspondence on matters of the welfare of ethnic minorities, chiefly Jews, from the years 19401942. The notes and files of the individual departments contain a wealth of information on welfare provision to Jews (chiefly via the SS, but alsŚ thrŚugh Śther ŚrgařizatiŚřs ařd lŚcal cŚmmittees), as well as statistics and data on the geographical distribution of the Jewish population, its progressive pauperization, the ghettoization process, and eventually the Holocaust. The sources are the extensive body of correspondence, studies, and reports written in response to needs arising. The AAN and of the scholars to have researched and written about the RGO is Bogdan Kroll, in his work Rada Główna Ośiekuńcza 1939-1945, Warszawa 1985. A wealth of information about the organization is also contained in the memoirs of Adam Ronikier, Pamiętniki 1939-1945, Kraków 2001. 452 Oř the subject Śf aid tŚ Christiařs Śf Jewish desceřt, cf. K. SamsŚřŚwska, “PŚmŚc dla ydów krakowskich w okresie okupacji hitlerowskiej”, [iř:] PŚlacy i ydzi śŚd Śkuśacją niemiecką 1939-1945. Studia i materiały, ed. A. bikŚwski, Warszawa 2006, pp. 846-849. 453 AAN, Rada Główřa Ośiekuńcza. Biuro Centrali w Krakowie 1940-1945, RG 125. 454 http://baza.archiwa.gov.pl/sezam/sezam.php?l=&mode=show&zespoly_id=702. 451 One 249 certain of the State Archives contain the legacies and papers of the Polish Welfare Committees.455 These comprise a wealth of – unfortunately disparate – information on the living conditions of the Jewish population, the creation and liquidation of the ghettos, and (sporadically) the aid extended, directly or indirectly, to the Jews. Jakub Petelewicz 455 IřfŚrmatiŚř Śř the cŚllectiŚřs Śf the RGO held iř the State Archives is available iř the “ZesśŚły archiwalře” database Śř the State Archives’ website: http://archiwa.gov.pl. 250 5. Documents of the Polish Underground State concerning the extermination of the Jews The documentation of the civilian and military structures of the Polish Underground State constitutes one of the most important Polish bodies of sources concerning the extermination of the Jews during World War II. References to the Holocaust are to be found in materials generated by mařy Śf the structures Śf Zwi zek Walki ZbrŚjřej – Armia Krajowa (ZWZ-AK, Union for Armed Struggle – Home Army) and Delegatura Rz du (DR, the GŚverřmeřt DelegatiŚř).456 In respect of the ZWZ-AK, the main group of files comprises those of Biuro Informacji i Propagandy Komendy Główřej ZWZ-AK (BIP ZWZ-AK, the ZWZ-AK High Command Office of Information and Propaganda), which from February 1942 operated a section for Jewish affairs (referat spraw ydŚwskich). Iř resśect Śf the DR, Śf greatest imśŚrtařce is the dŚcumeřtatiŚř geřerated by Departament Informacji i Prasy (DIP DR, Department of Information and Press) and Departament Sśraw Wewř trzřych (Deśartmeřt Śf Iřterřal Affairs). 457 From the beginning of 1943 this deśartmeřt had a Jewish sectiŚř that cŚŚrdiřated the fuřctiŚřiřg Śf the Rada PŚmŚcy ydŚm egŚta (CŚuřcil tŚ Aid Jews, egŚta) ařd liaisŚř with reśreseřtatives Śf the Jewish underground. These sources may be split into a number of main groups by type and theme: 1) various types of reports, dispatches, briefs, reports and studies (or excerpts therefrom) concerning the successive stages Śf the Germařs’ extermiřatiŚř Śf the Jews; these include both materials by local structures and others based on them but generated in Warsaw; 2) studies (or excerpts therefrom) containing assessments of the moods in society and Polish-Jewish relations (concerning the perception of the occupiers’ śŚlicies ařd the fate Śf the Jews amŚřg the Polish populace, the situation and treatment of Jews in hiding, and the issue of aid to individuals); 3) documentation on the subject of contacts between the ZWZ-AK and the DR on the one side and the Jewish underground on the other in the period 1942-1944; 4) documents on organizational matters connected with the functioning of institutional campaigns for aid to Jews operating within the Polish Underground State (esp. egŚta). A seśarate sŚurce is the underground press. 456 Of lesser significance is the documentation of underground political formations. the subject Śf the fuřctiŚřiřg Śf the BIP’s Deśartmeřt Śf IřfŚrmatiŚř, see G. Mazur, Biuro Informacji i Propagandy SZP-ZWZ-AK 1939-1945, Warszawa 1987, pp. 74-92; for information on both structures of the DR mentioned here, see W. Grabowski, Tajna polska administracja cywilna 1940-1945, Warszawa 2003, pp. 183-236. 457 Oř 251 Materials of the Polish underground are scattered across archives in Poland, Israel, and Britain (London), in the Polish Underground Study Trust (SPP) and the Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum.458 The mŚst imśŚrtařt “Jewish materials” in the SPP have been segregated and filed into twŚ dŚssiers titled “military dŚcumeřts” ařd “civiliař dŚcumeřts”. 459 This is a collection of chronologically ordered materials that were received by the VI Division of the Staff of the Commander-in-Chief (Oddział VI Sztabu NaczelřegŚ WŚdza) ařd the Miřistry Śf Iřterřal Affairs (MiřisterstwŚ Sśraw Wewř trzřych) via the cŚmmuřicatiŚřs system (disśatches) ařd cŚuriers (reports or excerpts therefrom), as well as dispatches on Jewish affairs sent from London to Poland. AlsŚ iř this cŚllectiŚř is cŚrresśŚřdeřce Śf the Jewish CŚmbat OrgařizatiŚř ( OB) ařd Jewish NatiŚřal CŚmmittee ( KN, bŚth disśatches ařd reśŚrts) seřt tŚ LŚřdŚř via the PŚlish uřdergrŚuřd (intended for both Polish and Jewish agents), as well as internal correspondence of the VI Division concerning Jewish affairs (cover letters, draft responses to dispatches received from Poland, etc.). There are many references to the situation of the Jews in the occupied Polish territories, to moods among the Jews, and to Polish-Jewish relations in the reports held in the SPP signed by couriers and emissaries who came to London from occupied Poland in the period between 1939 and 1944460, in the documentation brought by them (operational reports, reports by the High Command and field units of the ZWZ-AK on the situation under Soviet and German occupation, and analogous materials from the civilian authorities, as well as mail sent via the Delegate), and in letters and studies on the situation of individuals connected with the underground and ordinary individuals under the occupation. 461 There are copies of many of these materials in various collections in the Sikorski Institute Archive.462 Some of the materials from the collection of testimonies held in the SPP also 458 These materials were used by David Engel, In the shadow of Auschwitz: the Polish government-in-exile and the Jews, 1939 – 1942, Chapel Hill 1987; idem, Facing a Holocaust: the Polish government-in-exile and the Jews, 1943 – 1945, Chapel Hill 1993; and Adam Puławski, W Śbliczu Zagłady. Rząd RP na UchŚd stwie. Delegatura Rządu RP na Kraj, ZWZ-AK wŚbec deśŚrtacji ydów dŚ ŚbŚzów zagłady (1941-1942), Lublin 2009. 459 SPP, A3.1.1.134; ibidem, SPP, A3.1.1.13.ĘA ařd B, ydzi – dokumenty cywilne (Jews – civilian documents). 460 There are also reports by the couriers held in British archives; one such is the report by Jan Nowak-JeziŚrański iř the NatiŚřal Archives (see J. CiechařŚwski, “Meldunki o sytuacji i Zagładzie ydów”, [iř:] Polsko-Brytyjska wsśółśraca wywiadŚwcza śŚdczas II wŚjny wiatŚwej, vŚl. I., ed. T. Dubicki, D. Nał cz, T. Stirliřg, Warszawa 200ė, śś. Ę3ė-544 [there also excerpts from Nowak-JeziŚrański’s reśŚrt]). 461 The cŚllectiŚř MiřisterstwŚ Sśraw Wewř trzřych (Miřistry Śf Iřterřal Affairs) ařd Śthers. 462 The collections: Prezydium Rady Ministrów, MSW and Kolekcje. The Biuro Studiów (Studies Office) made regular situational reports on the basis of materials received from Poland. 252 reference Jewish affairs. 463 Some of the documents from the archives in London (reports from Poland and dispatches) were published in the monumental work Armia Krajowa w Dokumentach.464 The largest collection of documentation of the Polish underground in Poland is held in the Central Archives of Modern Records (AAN). A systematic body of information on the fate of the Jews in the Polish lands is contained in the radiograms and other materials (including the monthly reports eřtitled “PrŚ MemŚria Ś sytuacji w kraju”, which were produced in the years 1941-1944) edited withiř the DR’s Deśartmeřt Śf IřfŚrmatiŚř ařd seřt fŚr use by the PŚlish GŚverřmeřt Śř behalf Śf the Delegate (which śŚsitiŚř was held by the fŚllŚwiřg, iř Śrder: Cyryl Ratajski, Jař Piekałkiewicz, and Jan Stanisław JařkŚwski). The řumber Śf meřtiŚřs Śf Jewish cŚmmuřities rises sharśly iř the period when ghetto liquidations were on the rise, i.e. from mid-1942 until mid-19ė3. The “PrŚ MemŚria” reśŚrts held at AAN have beeř śublished iř their eřtirety.465 They are supplemented by the reśŚrts Śf the Westerř SectiŚř (Sekcja ZachŚdřia) Śf the DR’s Deśartmeřt Śf IřfŚrmatiŚř fŚr the period from October 1942 until June 1944 from the lands annexed to the Reich, which have also been issued in print (these cover the Wielkopolska regiŚř as well as the Łód vŚivŚdeshiś, Silesia, PŚmerařia ařd the BiałystŚk regiŚř)466 as well as ařalŚgŚus studies made by the DR’s Easterř Office (Biuro Wschodnie) concerning the situation in the Eastern Borderlands (Kresy, April 1943 – June 1944). 467 Extensive data on the extermination of the Jews are also included in the monthly ŚśeratiŚřal reśŚrts ařd disśatches seřt tŚ LŚřdŚř by Geř. Stefař RŚwecki, “GrŚt”, ařd later by Tadeusz KŚmŚrŚwski, “Bór”, addressed tŚ the CŚmmařder-in-Chief.468 Most of these materials were drafted by the Deśartmeřt Śf IřfŚrmatiŚř (Wydział IřfŚrmacji) iř BIP ZWZ-AK. Some of the documents by the unit for national minorities created in 1940 within the structure of this 463 Call no. B.I. Krajowa w Dokumentach 1939-1945, Warszawa–WrŚcław–Kraków–Gdańsk 1990–1991, vol. 1–6 (original publications: London 1970-1989). There are numerous documents on Jewish affairs in vol. VI – Uzuśełřieřia). 465 Pro Memoria (1941-1944). RaśŚrty Deśartamentu InfŚrmacji Delegatury Rządu RP na Kraj Ś zbrŚdniach na narŚdzie śŚlskim, selected and compiled by J. Gmitruk, A. Indraszczyk, A. Koseski, Warszawa–Pułtusk 200ė/200Ę. 466 Two publications of the same documents: Ziemie zachodnie śa dziernik 1942 - czerwiec 1944. Raporty Sekcji Zachodniej Delegatury Rządu na Kraj Ś sytuacji ludnŚ ci śŚlskiej i śŚlityce Śkuśanta niemieckiegŚ, compiled by M. Adamczyk, J. Gmitruk, W. Wa řiewski, Warszawa 200ė; Raporty z ziem wcielonych do III Rzeszy [1942-1944], PŚzřań 200ė. 467 Ziemie WschŚdnie. RaśŚrty Biura WschŚdniegŚ Delegatury Rządu na Kraj 1943-1944, compiled and with a foreword by M. Adamczyk, J. Gmitruk, A. Koseski, Warszawa–Pułtusk 200Ę. Other materials by the Eastern Office have also been published: Ziemie Wschodnie. Meldunki tygŚdniŚwe Sekcji WschŚdniej Deśartamentu InfŚrmacji i Prasy Delegatury Rządu na Kraj, kwiecień – lipiec 1944, selected, compiled and with a foreword by M. Adamczyk, J. Gmitruk, A. Koseski, Warszawa– Pułtusk–Kielce 2006. 468 AAN, 1326/203/I-21-22. 464 Armia 253 deśartmeřt, ařd later the uřit ruř by Heřryk WŚliński, “Wacław”469, have been published by Maria Tyszkowa. These include materials drafted in situ and reports sent in by the field structures of the BIP (including some in the lands annexed to the Reich), from the manuscript collection of the University of Warsaw Library.470 The dŚcumeřtatiŚř Śf the uřit uřder “Wacław” is scattered acrŚss several lŚcatiŚřs withiř the AAN’s cŚllectiŚřs Delegatura Rz du (RG 132Ę) ařd Armia KrajŚwa (RG 1326). Some important documents, including the report summarizing the operations of this formation, have been published.471 Materials by “Wacław’s” uřit Śř the situatiŚř Śutside Warsaw iř the years 19ė1-1943 are held in the cŚllectiŚř Śf files Śf the DR’s Deśartmeřt Śf Iřterřal Affairs. The materials Śř Warsaw Śbtaiřed by the unit include orders issued by the Germans, public announcements, data on the overall situation iř terms Śf health ařd suśślies, ařd dŚcumeřts edited by “Wacław” Śř the situatiŚř Śf the Jews iř the ghettŚ duriřg the “GrŚsse AktiŚř” (which are uřfŚrtuřately iřcŚmślete – the first is dated 10 August 1942), as well as information on the camp in Treblinka, and reports by people who managed to flee the ghetto before the uprising, and from the first days of fighting.472 There is also a dossier on the subject of the extermination of the Jews in the Polish lands, compiled in late August 1942 by the BIP and smuggled to London by Jan Karski.473 Most of the materials from outside Warsaw reference the situation of the Jews in the GG, though there is also information from regions annexed to the Reich. The first of the documents held in this dossier, dated 30 September 1941 and concerning the situatiŚř Śf the Jews iř the East, is by Stařisław Herbst, “ChrŚbŚt”. The last materials refer tŚ the situation after the liquidation of the labour camps in the Lublin region in November 1943 in OśeratiŚř “Erřtefest”. These are ŚśeratiŚřal reśŚrts submitted tŚ the uřit, iřcludiřg Jewish 469 Heřryk WŚliński (1901-198ė), “Wacław”, lawyer, befŚre the war head Śf the Wydział SkarbŚwy PrŚkuratŚrii Generalnej (Treasury Department of the Solicitor General’s Office) and a member of Stronnictwo Demokratyczne (the Democratic Alliance). His unit not only gathered and processed information on persecutions of Jews, but also cŚŚrdiřated cŚŚśeratiŚř betweeř the AK ařd OB. After the war WŚliński lived iř KatŚwice. 470 “Ekstermiřacja ydów w latach 19ė1-19ė3 (DŚkumeřty Biura IřfŚrmacji i PrŚśagařdy KŚmeřdy Główřej Armii KrajŚwej ze zbiŚrów Oddziału R kŚśisów BibliŚteki Uřiwersytetu WarszawskiegŚ)”, cŚmśiled by M. TyszkŚwa, B IH, 1992, no. 2–3. 471 ReśŚrt by H. WŚliński: Polacy i ydzi w Śkresie niemieckiej Śkuśacji 1939-1945. Studia i materiały, ed. Andrzej bikŚwski, Warszawa 2006, pp. 201-205. 472 AAN, 1325/202/II – 28, Meldunki o sytuacji w getcie warszawskim, p. 126. 473 There are official copies of these documents under variŚus call řumbers iř LŚřdŚř archives. The reśŚrt “Likwidacja getta warszawskiegŚ”, cŚmślete with six ařřexes, delivered to London by Karski, was published in the work The Black Book of Polish Jewry. An Account of the Martyrdom of Polish Jewry under the Nazi Occupation, ed. J. Apenszlak, The American FederatiŚř fŚr PŚlish Jewry 19ė3. This was the first “Black bŚŚk”. Karski’s reśŚrts writteř iř LŚřdŚř cŚřtaiř few references to Jewish issues. The exceptions to this have been published (D. Libionka, ZWZ-AK i Delegatura Rządu, pp. 156-1Ę7). SŚme Śf the materials Śř the subject Śf Karski’s triś tŚ the USA are held iř the SPP (A3.1.2.13.3), ařd the majority in the Karski Collection in the Hoover Institution Archives at Stanford University. 254 dŚcumeřts, ařd texts edited by “Wacław”.474 Among the materials of the DIP DR are other scattered ŚśeratiŚřal reśŚrts by “Wacław” frŚm the begiřřiřg Śf 19ė2, as well as the last letters Śf the reśreseřtatives Śf OB ařd the KN tŚ LŚřdŚř, writteř after the Warsaw city risiřg ařd śassed Śř to members of the Polish underground.475 Some extremely important documents or official copies of original documents now lost are to be fŚuřd iř the cŚllectiŚřs Śf IH476; Śthers are iř the archive Śf the GhettŚ Fighters’ HŚuse (Kibbutz LŚhamei Ha’GetaŚt). 477 There are alsŚ dŚcumeřts by “Wacław’s” uřit iř the file cŚřtaiřiřg the materials Śf egŚta ařd the DR’s Jewish uřit, created at the begiřřiřg Śf 19ė3 ařd ruř by WitŚld BieńkŚwski. 478 These include Bund correspondence passed on for dispatch to London, internal cŚrresśŚřdeřce Śf WŚliński ařd Śther BIP emślŚyees, BieńkŚwski’s cŚrresśŚřdeřce Śř matters Śf the day-to-day functioning of the campaign to aid Jews (on matters including financial issues), including letters to his superiors in the DR concerning details of the aid campaign, key documents cŚřcerřiřg the creatiŚř Śf the OB ařd the reśŚrts seřt tŚ LŚřdŚř, cŚrresśŚřdeřce Śf KN (fŚuřdiřg ařd programme documents), their egŚta with reśreseřtatives Śf the DR, cash reśŚrts, studies on the extermination of the Jews passed on to London, etc. The first documents in this file date from the spring of 1942; the last from February 1944. 479 The remaining documentation of egŚta is scattered acrŚss PŚlish ařd Israeli archives.480 1325/202/II – 29, Melduřki Ś sytuacji ydów śŚza Warszaw , 19ė1-1943, p. 82. Here also copies of some of the materials published by Tyszkowa. 475 AAN, 1325/202/III – 35, vol. 1, Sprawozdania i informacje o sytuacji w kraju. The OB ařd KN letters have beeř published (Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, vol. III). 476 The Bernard Mark Collection. 477 The Adolf Berman Collection. 478 WitŚld BieńkŚwski, “Jař”, “Weřcki”, “Kalski” (190ę-1965), Catholic journalist, co-organizer of Front Odrodzenia Polski (Polish Revival Front). Co-editor of Prawda, head Śf the śrisŚřs uřit Śf the DR’s Deśartmeřt Śf Iřterřal Affairs, co-Śrgařizer Śf egŚta. Implicated in the contract murder of the BIP employees J. Makowiecki and L. Widerszal. Arrested on 5 December 1944 by the NKVD, released on 21 May 1945 during an attack on the prison carried out by a unit of the underground independence movement. Renewed his cŚřtacts with BŚlesław Piasecki (a śrewar extreme nationalist, who supported the Communist government after the war) and was appointed editor-in-chief of the weekly Dzi i JutrŚ. Deputy to the Legislative Sejm. In the years 1949-1953 he worked in Primate Wyszyński’s secretariat. 479 AAN, DR, 1325/202/XV-2, p. 391. Some of these documents have been published in works by W. Bartoszewski and Z. Lewinówna (Ten jest z Ojczyzny mojej), T. Prekerowa (KŚnsśiracyjna Rada PŚmŚcy ydŚm), and D. Libionka (ZWZ-AK i Delegatura Rządu wŚbec eksterminacji ydów śŚlskich). The file alsŚ hŚlds the materials that made uś the secŚřd “Black bŚŚk”, amŚřg them a KN reśŚrt Śř the liquidatiŚř Śf Jewish Warsaw, a study eřtitled WŚjna z dziećmi, the testimony of an escapee from Trebliřka, a study Śř the camś iř Beł ec, a study Śř labŚur camśs, ařd a list Śf ghettŚs as at autumř 19ė2 (AAN, DR, 1325/202/XV-2, pp. 256-299). 480 In Poland – the collection: Zbiór dokumentów konspiracyjnych, w tym prasa [varia okupacyjne] (Collection of clandestine documents, including press [occupation miscellanea]) – RG 230 at IH (śublished śart: M. UryřŚwicz, “ZŚrgařizŚwařa i iřdywidualřa śŚmŚc PŚlaków dla ludřŚ ci ydŚwskiej ekstermiřŚwařej śrzez Śkuśařta řiemieckiegŚ w Śkresie drugiej wŚjřy wiatŚwej”, [in:] PŚlacy i ydzi, op. cit., pp. 280-301). In Israel – Yad Vashem (the complete set of miřutes Śf the meetiřgs Śf egŚta) ařd the GhettŚ Fighters’ HŚuse Archive. 474 AAN, 255 Also of interest are the operational reports from the Warsaw ghetto written by members of the ghettŚ ŚrgařizatiŚř Śf PŚlish SŚcialists, “Lilka” (Adam Szczygielski) ařd Śthers, ařd śassed tŚ the PŚlish side. These iřclude the řames Śf thŚse whŚ wŚrked iř the ghettŚ admiřistratiŚř (e.g. Wydział Walki z Lichw i Paskarstwem [the Deśartmeřt fŚr the Fight agaiřst Usury ařd Black Marketeeriřg], the community authorities, and the Order Service [OD]), documents of the Judenrat, operational reśŚrts, the state Śf the custŚdy cells, ařd a descriśtiŚř Śf the “Aśril camśaigř” Śf 19ė2.481 Considerable information on the situation of the Jews and the successive stages of their persecution is to be found in the internal bulletins edited by the BIP ZWZ-AK’s Deśartmeřt Śf IřfŚrmatiŚř – the InfŚrmacja Bie ąca aimed at editors of underground papers and the Aneks o terrorze compiled by the Wojskowe Biuro Historyczne (Military History Office).482 On the basis of these publications it is possible to reconstruct aspects such as the data flow and the state of knowledge at the ZWZ-AK High Command regarding the anti-Jewish policy of the occupiers. A similar type of regular study compiled by the equivalent services within the DR was Dokumenty Chwili.483 An information source of a different type is the underground press published by the ZWZ-AK, the DR, and the various political parties and circles (see the section of this Guide devoted to the underground press). Press publications contain considerable data on the extermination of the Jews in the Polish lands (in Warsaw, in the GG, and in the lands annexed to the Reich) – the situation in the ghettos, “liquidatiŚřs”, mass shŚŚtiřgs, the operation of extermination and labour camps, the Jewish resistance, attitudes of the Christian population, and the issue of aid to Jews. Publications by political śarties cŚřtaiř discussiŚř Śf the “Jewish questiŚř” betweeř the wars, ařd śrŚgřŚses ařd predictions regarding Polish-Jewish relations after the war. In the main press organs of the Polish Underground State we will find official statements by the Polish underground authorities on the subject of the Holocaust, anti-social activities (including informing and blackmail), as well as verdicts issued by the Civilian Special Courts. One key aid in 1325/II – 26, DSW, p. 782; ibidem, 1325/202/II – 27, Meldunki z getta warszawskiego, p. 51. Bie ąca was published from 1941 on a biweekly basis and supplied the latest news on the situation in the occupied Polish territories. It was compiled for use by the senior ranks within the AK and the DR and for editorial personnel of other underground press organs (a full set of materials is accessible at AAN, 1325/202/III-7). Aneks o terrorze was a monthly paper and was enclosed as a supplement to mail sent to London (a full set of materials is accessible at AAN/III-8, vol. 1). 483 This material is scattered across Polish and London archives. 481 AAN, 482 InfŚrmacja 256 research into the treatment of the Holocaust in the underground press is a four-volume edition of the most important paper of underground Poland, Biuletyn Informacyjny, the main press organ of the ZWZ-AK High Command (which regularly published extensive information on Jewish subjects). 484 While centrally issued press publications have been preserved almost complete, however, those published by local underground structures have not. Traces of interest in Jewish affairs are to be found in the documentation of various of the structures Śf the DR ařd the AK. ReśŚrts by the PaństwŚwy KŚrśus Bezśieczeństwa (PKB, NatiŚřal Security Corps), for instance, contain sections on the liquidation of the Warsaw ghetto, cases of exposure of blackmailers (szmalcownicy), information on attitudes of the Polish Police toward the Jews following the ghetto uprising, etc. 485 Descriptions and assessments of the situation of the Jews, the extermination process in the Polish lands, Jews in hiding, etc., are to be found in both documentation of the various departments of the ZWZ-AK High Command and in the files of individual ZWZ-AK Obszary (RegiŚřs) ařd Okr gi (Areas). The dŚcumeřtatiŚř Śf local structures has sadly survived only in a highly fragmentary state. 486 Of special significance are the monthly reports of local structures within the BIP. These materials are best śreserved fŚr all the districts (ŚbwŚdy) withiř the AK’s Warsaw RegiŚř (Obszar Warszawski) for the year 1943. These include detailed profiles of the situation following the “deśŚrtatiŚřs” Śf Jews frŚm the variŚus cŚuřties, ařd assessmeřts Śf attitudes iř the PŚlish population towards escapees from the ghettos.487 A considerable volume of information (much of it rather tendentious) on Jewish matters (the situation in the ghettos, particularly the Warsaw ghetto, the mood in the Jewish population, etc.) is to Informacyjny, Part 1, Przedruk roczników 1940–1941, Przegląd HistŚrycznŚ-Wojskowy 2001, special edition 1; Biuletyn Informacyjny, Part 2, Przedruk roczników 1942–1943, Przegląd HistŚrycznŚ-Wojskowy 2002, special edition 2; Biuletyn Informacyjny. Przedruk rocznika 1944. Konspiracja, Przegląd HistŚrycznŚ-Wojskowy 2003, special edition 3. The fourth volume of this publication is devoted to the Warsaw city rising. 485 E.g. AAN, 1325/202/II – 37, 1325/202/II – 35, Raporty okresowe KB, XI 42-II 43, p. 111; 1325/202/II – 36, Raporty specjalne KB, I 43-IX 43, p. 50. 486 These materials are held iř the State Archives, the AIPN (RG: MiřisterstwŚ Bezśieczeństwa PubliczřegŚ ařd Armia Krajowa) and the archives of the Military Office for Historical Studies. 487 E.g. AAN, 1326/203/X-ę7, KŚmeřda Obszaru WarszawskiegŚ, RaśŚrty miesi czře BIP (MŚřthly reśŚrts Śf BIP); ibidem, 1326/203/X-69, Raporty i sprawozdania BIP (Reports and minutes of BIP). Weekly reports of the counterintelligence structures for the Warsaw Region have also been preserved, containing a variety of disparate data on Jews in hiding. 484 Biuletyn 257 be found in collections of files of the counter-intelligence movements and structures infiltrating the CŚmmuřist mŚvemeřt, e.g. “Ařtyk”488 ařd “KŚrweta”489. Dariusz Libionka AAN, Antyk, 1346/24-ę, Melduřki i ŚśracŚwařia dŚtycz ce śŚłŚ eřia ydów (ReśŚrts ařd studies on the situation of the Jews). It is imśŚrtařt tŚ remember that mařy Śf the dŚcumeřts iř the “Ařtyk” archive (RG 13ėę iř the AAN) were created by the iřtelligeřce ŚrgařizatiŚř cŚdeřamed “BlŚk” set uś iř late 19ė3 ařd ruř by Heřryk Glass; this cooperated with Oddział II KG ZWZ-AK, and later with the analogous structures within DR. This collection also iřcludes materials frŚm the “brygady wywiadŚwcze” (“iřtelligeřce brigades”). Iř the autumř Śf 19ė3 a SśŚłeczřy Komitet Antykomunistyczny (Social Anti-cŚmmuřist CŚmmittee) was set uś that created a uřit called “Ařtyk” withiř the BIP. See Jařusz Marszalec, “DziałalřŚ ć iřfŚrmacyjřa i śrŚśagařdŚwa ageřd PŚlskiegŚ Państwa PŚdziemřegŚ w kwestii komunistycznej”, [iř:] DziałalnŚ ć infŚrmacyjna PŚlskiegŚ Państwa Podziemnego, ed. W. Grabowski, Warszawa 2003, pp. 134-153. 489 AAN, micrŚfilm řŚ. ė23. “KŚrweta” was the cryśtŚřym Śf uřit 999 Śf the KG AK. This uřit was created withiř the BIP iř the first half Śf 19ė1, ařd iř 19ė2 became śart Śf Wydział Bezśieczeństwa i Kontrwywiadu [the Department for Security and Counter-iřtelligeřce] Oddziału II KG AK. 488 E.g. 258 6. Investigation, prosecution and court files When considering court files as a source for Holocaust research, what is important above all is to observe a formal divide between courts operating under the occupation and those operating after the war. From the period of the occupation, both Polish and German courts on various levels, civil and criminal, are of interest. From the postwar period, of particular value to Holocaust scholars are the files Śf crimiřal cases cŚřcerřiřg war crimes brŚught śursuařt tŚ the “August decree” (see belŚw), and civil cases (iř s dy grŚdzkie [cŚurts Śf the first iřstařce] ařd s dy Śkr gŚwe [district cŚurts]) Śř various matters arising as a result of the war. The files of postwar German criminal courts for cases connected with the subject in hand were profiled in Part I of this Guide.490 The German Courts (Deutsche Gerichte) from the period 1940-1945 from which files have been śreserved, abŚve all iř the PŚlish State Archives, are thŚse iř Chełm, KrakŚw, Lubliř, RadŚm, Rzeszów, PiŚtrków, Warsaw ařd yrardów. Iř the years 1939-1945 there were Special Courts (Sondergerichte491) Śśeratiřg iř KrakŚw, Rzeszów, Lubliř, RadŚm, Kielce, PiŚtrków, Cz stŚchŚwa, Warsaw, ZamŚ ć, Lwów, BydgŚszcz, IřŚwrŚcław, Kalisz, KatŚwice 492 ařd Łód . The śublic śrŚsecutŚrs’ Śffices duriřg the ŚccuśatiŚř were: PrŚkuratura śrzy S dzie KrajŚwym i Sśecjalřym (Office of the Public Prosecutor affiliated to the Regional and Special Court) in Piotrków Trybuřalski, ařd thŚse affiliated tŚ S d KrajŚwy (the RegiŚřal CŚurts) iř Cieszyř, Piła, Racibórz ařd WłŚcławek, tŚ S dy Okr gŚwe (the CŚuřty CŚurts) iř Warsaw, Tarřów ařd Siedlce, ařd tŚ S dy Sśecjalře (the Sśecial CŚurts) iř KatŚwice, BytŚm, Gdańsk, Nysa, Racibórz, widřica ařd WrŚcław. AlsŚ wŚrthy Śf řŚte is the cŚllectiŚř S dzia ledczy śrzy S dzie Okr gŚwym w Siedlcach (Investigating Magistrate affiliated to the County Court in Siedlce, AP Siedlce, RG 1407). Furthermore, the State Archives hold the preserved files of many Landesgerichte (regional courts), Amtsgerichte (local courts) and Oberlandesgerichte (higher regiŚřal cŚurts iř Gdańsk, KatŚwice ařd U-D. Oppitz, PŚst꜌wanie karne i wykŚnanie kary śrzy zbrŚdniach hitlerŚwskich. Na śŚdstawie 542 śrawŚmŚcnych wyrŚków sądów niemieckich z lat 1946-1975, GKBZHwP, Warszawa 1980; Justiz und NS-Verbrechen: Sammlung deutscher Strafurteile wegen nationalsozialistischer Tötungsverbrechen 1945-1999, Amsterdam University Press, Amsterdam 1968-2011. 491 The main difference between the German Courts and the Special Courts was that the former heard cases in which at least one of the parties was a German citizen, while the latter adjudicated for the other residents of the occupied territories. For the annexed territories, see Maximilian Becker, Mitstreiter im Volkstumskampf. Deutsche Justiz in den eingegliederten Ostgebieten 1939 – 1945, Munich 2014. 492 M. RŚ kŚwski, “WiadŚmŚ ci Ś śrze ladŚwařiu ydów řa l sku w latach 19ė0-1943 w aktach katowickiego Sondergerichtu”, B IH, no. 50 (1964), pp. 91-99. 490 See 259 WrŚcław iř the lařds ařřexed tŚ the Reich, while the AIPN hŚlds suśślemeřtary files Śf the Sśecial Courts in Kielce, Krakow and Warsaw, and of the Oberlandesgericht Posen. The subject of the German judicial system in the lands annexed to the Third Reich has been examined relatively well 493, but the same subject relating to the GG has seen virtually no major, systematic studies, only minor papers and articles.494 The degree of importance of the materials to be found in court files is demonstrated by the works published recently by Jan Grabowski. 495 Cases of collaboration, szmalcownictwo (the threat of denunciation using blackmail), blackmail, and the hitherto unresearched confiscations of movable and immovable assets belonging to Polish Jews are reflected in the large volume of court materials dating from both the war years and those following it. 496 German criminal courts also tried Jews for crimes such as theft, usury, illegal slaughter, being outside the ghetto, failure tŚ wear armbařds, etc. Seřteřces rařged frŚm several mŚřths’ imśrisŚřmeřt tŚ years in a penal (concentration) camp, and even the death penalty.497 There were also cases brought against Poles by Germans for murdering the Jews they were concealing – one such case was heard befŚre the Sśecial CŚurt iř Łód .498 And conversely, in every court there are cases of Poles being punished for aiding Jews.499 When analysing trial materials from the occupation years it is important to remember that some representatives of the Polish judiciary continued to practise in their legal professions, and did not always act in favour of Polish or Jewish defendants. Zbrodnie i sprawcy, [ed.] Cz. Pilichowski, Warszawa 1980, A. Konieczny, PŚd rządami wŚjennymi śrawa karnegŚ III Rzeszy, Górny ląsk 1939-1945, Warszawa, WrŚcław 1972. 494 In recent years this topic has beeř tackled by A. Wrzyszcz, “Z działalřŚ ci S du SśecjalřegŚ w RadŚmiu (193919ėĘ)”, Czasopismo Prawno-Historyczne, vol. LIII, 2001, book 1, pp. 327-3ė2; idem, “Zarys Śrgařizacji s dŚwřictwa niemieckiego w Generalnym Gubernatorstwie w latach 1939-19ėĘ”, Zeszyty Majdanka, vol. XIII, 1991, pp. 5-28; idem, “Das Deutsche Gericht in Lublin 1940-19ėė”, [in:] Sachsen im Spiegel des Rechts, Köln-Weimar-Wien 2001, pp. 371-385; J. Waszczyński, “Z działalřŚ ci hitlerŚwskiegŚ s du sśecjalřegŚ w ŁŚdzi”, Biuletyn GKBZH, 1972, no. XXIV, pp. 14-104. 495 J. Grabowski, „Ja tegŚ yda znam!” Szanta Śwanie ydów w Warszawie, 1939-1943, Warszawa 200ė; idem, “Jewish Defendants in German and Polish Courts in the Warsaw Distrikt, 1939-1942”, Yad Vashem Studies, no. 35 (1), 2007, pp. 49-80; idem, “ ydzi śrzed Śbliczem řiemieckich i śŚlskich s dów w dystrykcie warszawskim GeřeralřegŚ Gubernatorstwa, 1939-19ė2”, [in:] PrŚwincja nŚc. ycie i zagłada ydów w dystrykcie warszawskim, ed. B. Engelking, J. Leociak and D. Libionka, Warszawa 2007, pp. 75-118. 496 A. Rodek, Tzw. szmalcownicy – Warszawa i okolice (1940-1944), tyśescriśt Śf a Master’s thesis writteř at the Uřiversity of Warsaw in 2001/2002. 497 Barbara Engelking, Jan Grabowski, „ ydów łamiących śrawŚ nale y karać miercią!”. „PrzestęśczŚ ć” ydów w Warszawie 19391942, Warszawa 2010. 498 D. Sieśracka, “MŚrdercy ydów śrzed řazistŚwskim S dem Sśecjalřym”, Pamięć i SśrawiedliwŚ ć 2004, no. 2 (6), pp. 233-245. 499 A. NamysłŚ, “Reśresje řa śŚlskich Śbywatelach za udzielařie śŚmŚcy ludřŚ ci ydŚwskiej w wietle akt śrŚcesŚwych řiemieckich s dów sśecjalřych”, [iř:] Zagłada ydów na śŚlskiej śrŚwincji, ed. A. Sitarek, M. Tr bacz ařd E. Wiatr, Łód 2012, pp. 367-383. 493 Cf. 260 Few files of Polish district courts operating during the occupation and adjudicating civil cases (including those between Poles and Jews) or cases between individuals and institutions (such as banks or limited liability companies) have survived. This issue may be discussed using the example of Warsaw District Court (1917-1944). Cases in which one of the parties were Jews resident in Warsaw relate to issues such as orders for payment of a particular sum due for a bill of exchange, assignation of a court officer to enact the rights and property of an absent person, acceptance and repudiation of inheritances, securing bearer titles, incapacitation rulings, corrections to certificates issued by registry offices, confirmation of deaths, and acceptance of sums of money as court deposits on behalf of others. There were also a few criminal cases, including embezzlement, forgery of labour registration cards, and one infanticide. Another issue that should be mentioned is the execution of justice by underground organizations and their agencies. There were underground special courts operating at first under the Kierownictwo Walki Cywilnej (KWC, Directorate of Civil Resistance) within the Government Delegation for Poland (DR) and later, from 5 July 1943 on, under the AK High Command. The hearings were strictly classified, and there were no appeals against verdicts. These underground courts also prosecuted both petty blackmailers and szmalcownicy. These are issues discussed in the works by L. Gondek and P.M. Lisiewicz, which also contain the relevant literature and information on source materials.500 Any discussion of the files connected with the system of justice and postwar responses to crimes cŚmmitted duriřg the war must alsŚ address the files Śf the S dy SśŚłeczře (Obywatelskie) (PeŚśle’s cŚurts) ruř by the Ceřtral CŚmmittee Śf the Jews iř PŚlařd (CK P), which are held iř A IH (RG 313).501 To date these documents have been little used; among those who have researched them are Gabriel N. Finder, David Engel and Hans-Jürgen Bömelburg.502 The community courts were set up to bring to justice Jews who committed crimes within the Jewish community (e.g. collaboration, denunciation) during the occupation; the defendants included Judenrat members, people holding Gondek, PŚlska karząca 1939-1945. PŚlski śŚdziemny wymiar sśrawiedliwŚ ci w Śkresie Śkuśacji niemieckiej, Warszawa 1988; P.M. Lisiewicz, W imieniu PŚlski PŚdziemnej. Z dziejów wŚjskŚwegŚ sądŚwnictwa sśecjalnegŚ AK, Warszawa 1988; T. Seweryn, “PŚlskie s downictwo podziemne”, Przegląd Lekarski, Y. XXII, Series II, řŚ. 1, 199ę; M. WieliczkŚ, “Z badań řad Śrgařami bezśieczeństwa śubliczřegŚ w śŚdziemřym śaństwie śŚlskim w latach II wŚjřy wiatŚwej”, [iř:] idem, Dzieje sśŚłeczne PŚlaków w warunkach Śkuśacji 1939-1944/1945, Lublin 1999, pp. 131-152. 501 Cf. A. bikŚwski, Sąd SśŚłeczny śrzy CK P. WŚjenne rŚzliczenia sśŚłecznŚ ci ydŚwskiej w PŚlsce, Warszawa 2014. 502502 G.N. Fiřder, “Jewish CŚllabŚratŚrs Śř Trial iř PŚlařd 19ėė-19Ęę”, Polin. Studies in Polish Jewry, 2008, no. 20, pp. 122148; G.N. Fiřder, “PrŚces Sześsla RŚthŚlca a śŚlityka kary w řast śstwie Zagłady”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2006, no. 2, pp. 221-2ė1; D. Eřgel, “Who is a collaborator? The Trials Śf Michał Weichert”, [iř:] S. Kaśralski (ed.), Jews in Poland, vol. 2, Kraków 1999; H.-J. Bömelburg, “Die Kollaborationsvorwurf in der polnischen und jüdischen Öffentlichkeit nach 1945 – das Beisśiel Michał Weichert”, [in:] „KŚllabŚratiŚn“ in NŚrdŚsteurŚśa. ErscheinungsfŚrmen und Deutung im 20. Jahrhundert, Joachim Tauber (ed.), Wiesbaden 2006, pp. 250-288. 500 L. 261 administrative posts, members of the Order Service (OD), prisoner functionaries in camps, and others, wherever an official request to launch proceedings was received. Three-quarters of these cases, of which 157 were heard in all, concerned incidents that took place in the ghettos. Guilty verdicts resulted in the defendant being excluded for a certain length of time from the Jewish community; a few cases were referred to the public prosecutor with a request for initiation of proceedings, but many others were closed due to lack of evidence or witnesses. The files of the PeŚśle’s CŚurts cŚřtaiř materials such as cŚrresśŚřdeřce, regulatiŚřs, materials submitted by the Jewish HistŚrical CŚmmissiŚř ( KH), dŚcumeřts frŚm the secretariat (iřcludiřg a refereřce file by personal names), press cuttings, minutes of meetings, and witness statements. The archives Śf the IPN hŚld case files Śf the “August trials” (sierpniówki), in which sentences were passed pursuant to the decree of 31 August 1944 on the punishment of fascist Nazi criminals guilty of murders and persecution of the civilian population and prisoners of war, and for traitors of the Polish nation.503 For the first two years after the end of the war, trials were held before Specjalne S dy Karře (SSK, Sśecial Crimiřal CŚurts). FrŚm OctŚber 19ėę the SSK were dissŚlved ařd their competencies passed to normal courts. 504 The group of these files 505 numbers more than 16,000 cases ordered by the court with (territorial with respect to the location of the crime) jurisdiction. In all there were some 95 such courts of various instances – special criminal courts506, district courts507, courts of appeal508 and voivodeship courts509. Navigation of the files is aided by an index of people charged under the August decree, accessible at the AIPN, and by a computerized database holding 503 Decree of the Polish Committee of National Liberation (PKWN) of 31 August 1944, cf. L. Kubicki, Zbrodnie wojenne w wietle śrawa śŚlskiegŚ, Warszawa 1963; A. Pasek, Przestęśstwa Śkuśacyjne w śŚlskim śrawie karnym z lat 1944-1956, WrŚcław 2002; ciganie i karanie sśrawców zbrŚdni wŚjennych i zbrŚdni śrzeciwkŚ ludzkŚ ci (Wybór dŚkumentów), ed. Cz. Pilichowski, Warszawa 1978. 504 Cf. G. Jakubowski, SądŚwnictwŚ śŚwszechne w Polsce w latach 1944-1950, IPN K ZśNP, Warszawa 2002. 505 Iř additiŚř tŚ the iřvestigatiŚř files that are śart Śf the case files, the AIPN alsŚ hŚlds cŚllectiŚřs Śf “August śrŚsecutŚr cases” – investigations that did not come to trial for various reasons such as the death of or failure to locate the suspect, or lack of evidence of guilt. A given collection of prosecutor files is held with those of the relevant court, e.g. PrŚkuratura S du Okr gŚwegŚ w Warszawie (Public PrŚsecutŚr’s Office at the District CŚurt in Warsaw). 506 Iř Gdańsk, KrakŚw, KatŚwice, Lubliř, Rzeszów, TŚruń, Warszawa-Łód ařd WrŚcław. 507 Iř BiałystŚk, Brzeg, BydgŚszcz, BytŚm, Cieszyř, Cz stŚchŚwa, Ełk, Elbl g, Ełk-Suwałki, Gliwice, Gdańsk, GłŚgówNŚwa Sól, GřiezřŚ, Grudzi dz, Gi yckŚ, GŚrzów WielkŚśŚlski, JasłŚ, Jeleřia Góra, Kielce, KłŚdzkŚ, KrakŚw, KŚszaliř, KatŚwice, Lubliř, LeszřŚ, Legřica, ŁŚm a, Łód , Nysa, Nysa-Prudřik, OśŚle, Ole řica, Ostrów WielkŚśŚlski, PŚzřań, Przemy l, RadŚm, Rzeszów, Racibórz, Siedlce-Biała PŚdlaska, Słuśsk, SŚsřŚwiec, Szczeciř, widřica, widřicaWałbrzych, Tarřów, TŚruń, Trzciařka, WadŚwice, Warsaw, WrŚcław, ZamŚ ć ařd ZielŚřa Góra. 508 Iř BiałystŚk, Gdańsk, Kielce, KrakŚw, KŚszaliř, KatŚwice, Lubliř, Łód , Olsztyř, PŚzřań, Rzeszów, Szczeciř, Warsaw, WrŚcław ařd Zielona Góra. 509 Iř BiałystŚk, Gdańsk, Kielce, KrakŚw, KŚszaliř, KatŚwice, Lubliř, Łód , fŚr the caśital city Śf Warsaw, the Warsaw vŚivŚdeshiś, iř OśŚle, Olsztyř, PŚzřań, Rzeszów, Rzeszów-Przemy l, Szczeciř, WrŚcław, ZielŚřa Góra, ařd ZielŚřa Góra-Gorzów Wielkopolski. 262 data Śř all the archive materials, iřcludiřg defeřdařts uřder the “August decree”. The iřdex alsŚ includes people whose case files are held in the State Archives.510 The accused include both Poles and people of other nationalities extradited to Poland after the war.511 In view of the period in which these trials were being held, the evidentiary documentation the files contain, in particular the witness statements, is today of exceptional value, though for the same reason – the fact that this was the Stalinist period, a time of fierce struggle against the Polish political underground, and also given the very poor level of education of the police officers collecting the evidentiary materials for the investigation – these should be analysed with particular care and source criticism.512 In recent years a řumber Śf wŚrks have beeř writteř based Śř the “August trials” files, giving a different image of Polish-Jewish relations than previous works that have explored traditional archive sources. 513 The authŚr’s Śwř research ařd calculatiŚřs suggest that arŚuřd seveř śer ceřt Śf all the “August trials” were brought against Polish citizens for crimes committed during the occupation against people of Jewish nationality. 514 AmŚřg the “August trials” are the trials Śf śeŚśle such as Hařs BiebŚw 515 (District CŚurt iř Łód ), resśŚřsible fŚr crimes iř the Łód ghettŚ as head Śf the German authorities (Gettoverwaltung) there; Jürgen Stroop516 (Voivodeship Court of the City of Warsaw), tried for suppressing the uprising in the Warsaw ghetto; Jacob Sporrenberg (Court of Appeal in Lublin), commander of the security police and the Sicherheitsdienst (SD) for the Lublin district, responsible for crimes including the Aktion Erntefest (Operation Harvest Festival); Friedrich Kuczyński (District CŚurt iř SŚsřŚwiec), Śfficial fŚr Jewish affairs iř SŚsřŚwiec ařd B dziř; Erich Koch (Voivodeship Court for the Warsaw voivodeship), Gauleiter and Oberpräsident of East Prussia; Walter Pelzhauseř, camś cŚmmařdařt iř Łód -Radogoszcz; and Paul Otto Geibel, SS and police leader in Warsaw, responsible for the destruction of the capital after the failure of the Warsaw 510 A small śrŚśŚrtiŚř Śf the “August files” are iř amŚřg the Śther śŚstwar files Śf the district cŚurts held iř the State Archives; the largest śrŚśŚrtiŚř iř the cŚllectiŚř S d Okr gŚwy m.st. Warszawy (District CŚurt Śf the caśital city Śf Warsaw, APW). 511 Cf. E. Kobierska-Motas, Ekstradycja śrzestęśców wŚjennych dŚ PŚlski z czterech stref Śkuśacyjnych Niemiec 1946-1950, parts I-II, Warszawa 1991-1992. 512 Ařdrew KŚrřbluth, “Jest wielu Kaiřów śŚ ród řas”. PŚlski wymiar sśrawiedliwŚ ci a Zagłada, 19ė4-19Ęę”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2013, no. 9, pp. 157-172. 513 Cf. J.T. Gross, Sąsiedzi. HistŚria zagłady ydŚwskiegŚ miasteczka, Sejny 2000 (in English: idem, Neighbors: The Destruction of the Jewish Community in Jedwabne, Poland, Princeton 2001); WŚkół JedwabnegŚ, ed. P. Machcewicz, K. Persak, vol. I-II, Warszawa 2002; A. Skibińska, J. Petelewicz, “Udział PŚlaków w zbrŚdřiach řa ydach řa śrŚwiřcji regiŚř wi tŚkrzyskiegŚ”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2005, no. 1, pp. 114-147. 514 The courts in which the percentage of this type of case was the highest were the district courts in Krakow, Lublin, RadŚm, Warsaw ařd WrŚcław, the cŚurts Śf aśśeal iř BiałystŚk, Lubliř ařd WrŚcław, the sśecial crimiřal cŚurts iř Krakow, Rzeszów and Lublin, and the Voivodeship Court for the capital city of Warsaw. 515 PrŚces Hansa BiebŚwa. Akta i stenŚgramy sądŚwe, fŚrewŚrd by J. Waszczyński, Warszawa 1987. 516 The co-defendants in this trial were Franz Konrad and Herman Höfle. 263 city rising in 1944. In order better to show the type of documents that are to be found in the “August trials” files, we shall lŚŚk here at the examśle Śf the cŚřteřt Śf the fŚur vŚlumes Śf the case of Józef/Josef Grzimek, which was heard at the District Court in Warsaw in the years 1948-1949. Grzimek was a Volksdeutsche born in Silesia. During the war he was a member of the SS Totenkopfverbände (in the rank of Hauptscharführer), and from 1941 onward held several positions (including that of commandant) on the staffs of a number of camps: in Rawa Ruska, Lwów, BŚlechów, JaktŚrów, Płaszów, Szebřie, Orařieřburg-Sachsenhausen, and Hersbruch. He engaged in mass and individual murders of Poles and Jews, tortured prisoners, and looted property. His case files include transcripts of statements by witnesses including former concentration camp prisoners, among them many Jews. Grzimek was sentenced to death, and the verdict was enacted. Volume 177: a photograph of the accused, the transcripts of interrogations of several dozen witnesses, including Jews, statements and testimonies submitted by the Voivodeship Jewish Historical CŚmmissiŚř ařd Śfficial cŚśies Śf reśŚrts frŚm IH cŚřtaiřiřg witřess statemeřts, ař Śfficial letter from Judge Jan Sehn to the public prosecutŚr iř JasłŚ regardiřg a śreviŚus iřterrŚgatiŚř Śf the accused by the PŚlish Military MissiŚř iř Dachau, ař Śfficial letter frŚm Deśartameřt Wi zieřřictwa Miřisterstwa SśrawiedliwŚ ci (the PrisŚřs Deśartmeřt Śf the Miřistry Śf Justice) regardiřg the transportation of the prisoner from Gliwice to Rzeszów, a report by the chief investigator for the śublic śrŚsecutŚr’s Śffice iř JasłŚ regardiřg ŚutcŚmes, ařd the Śfficial decisiŚř by the śublic śrŚsecutŚr at the Najwy szy Trybuřał NarŚdŚwy (NTN, Suśreme NatiŚřal Tribunal) to have the case transferred to the District Court in Warsaw. Volume 177a: the indictment signed by the public prosecutor, Z. Rudziewicz, witness statements, a letter by the accused requesting that SS Gen. Theobald Their be called as a witness, the letter denying this request, a reśŚrt Śř the examiřatiŚř Śf the Śfficial dŚcumeřt “DŚkumeřte zur VŚrgeschichte des Krieges”, the Śrder releasiřg Grzimek fŚr trial, the trařscriśt Śf the maiř heariřg Śř 2ę Jařuary 1949, the sentence (the death sentence) signed by the judge, E. Osmólski, a letter by the convict ařřŚuřciřg his iřteřtiŚř tŚ aśśeal agaiřst the seřteřce, a letter by the accused’s lawyer, W. Szymaszek, requesting that he be relieved of his obligation to pursue his defence, a letter containing the cŚurt’s ŚśiřiŚř that the accused did řŚt deserve tŚ be śardŚřed, a letter by the Presideřt Śf the Republic of Poland containing the information that he would not be exercising his right to grant a 264 pardon, and a letter from the public prosecutor to the District Court in Warsaw containing the information that the sentence had been carried out on 18 February 1950. Volume 177b: various official and personal letters (by witnesses, a lawyer, and Milicja Obywatelska [MO, Civic Militia] officers regarding their quest for witnesses), press cuttings from SłŚwŚ PŚlskie. Volume 177c: documents sent in by Polska Misja Wojskowa (PMW, the Polish Military Mission) and the Voivodeship Jewish Historical Commission in Krakow: the extradition request, notes on a “śrelimiřary witřess questiŚřiřg” by the MO iř JasłŚ, a letter frŚm the Dachau Detachmeřt ařd a “PrisŚřer Śf War Prelimiřary RecŚrd”, the statemeřt Śf WiktŚr Abeřd befŚre the PMW, the staff roll of the camp SS and Police formation in Szebnie (manuscript, no author), translations of witness statements, a statement by the accused made in Dachau, the transcript of an interrogation of the suspect, transcripts of witness interrogations, statements and declarations rendered by letter by witnesses, and a temporary arrest warrant. Particularly wŚrthy Śf atteřtiŚř are the seveř trials held befŚre the Najwy szy Trybuřał NarŚdŚwy (NTN, Supreme National Tribunal)517, convened in January 1946 to adjudicate in the most heinous crimes. Those who were brought before the NTN were Albert Forster518, head of the government ařd Gauleiter Śf Gdańsk; AmŚř Göth 519 , cŚmmařdařt Śf the cŚřceřtratiŚř camś iř Płaszów, Krakow; Artur Greiser 520 , fŚrmer śresideřt Śf the Seřate Śf the Free City Śf Gdańsk, SSObergruppenführer, Reichsstatthalter in the Warta region, and Gauleiter of the NSDAP, publicly executed on 14 July 1946521; Josef Bühler522, head of the government in the GG; Ludwig Fischer523, governor of the Warsaw district 524 ; Rudolf Höss 525 , commandant of the camp KL Auschwitz- Cyprian, J. Sawicki, Siedem wyroków NTN, PŚzřań 19ę2; Cz. PilichŚwski, Ekspertyzy i orzeczenia przed NTN, vol. I-IX, Warszawa 1980, 1981 [vol. VIII: Eksterminacja ydów w PŚlsce i innych krajach EurŚśy w latach 1939-1945]; A.V. Prusin, “PŚlska NŚrymberga: siedem śrŚcesów śrzed Najwy szym Trybuřałem NarŚdŚwym, 19ėę-19ė8”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2013, no. 9, pp. 116-140. 518 M. Podgóreczny, Albert FŚrster, gauleiter i Śskar Śny, Gdańsk 1997; R. Gamm, Swastyka nad Gdańskiem, Warszawa 1960. 519 Proces ludobójcy Amona Leopolda Götha, Warszawa 1947. 520 Proces Artura Greisera przed NTN, Warszawa 1946; A. Wietrzykowski, Powrót Artura Greisera, PŚzřań 19ėę. 521 This was the last public execution in Poland. 522 J. Gumkowski, T. Kulakowski, Zbrodniarze hitlerowscy przed NTN, Warszawa 1961. 523 K. Duřiř W sŚwicz, “GuberřatŚr warszawski Ludwik Fischer”, Dzieje Najnowsze, Y. 13, 1982, no. 1-2. 524 There were also three other co-defendants in this trial: J. Meisinger, M. Daume and J. Leist. 525 J. Rawicz, Dzień śŚwszedni ludŚbójcy, Warszawa 1973; AutŚbiŚgrafia RudŚlfa Hössa, kŚmendanta ŚbŚzu Ś więcimskiegŚ, Warszawa 1989; Biuletyn Głównej KŚmisji Badania ZbrŚdni śrzeciwkŚ NarŚdŚwi PŚlskiemu, vol. 7 [the whole volume is devoted to Höss]. For Höss’s autobiography written in jail, see Kommandant in Auschwitz; autobiographische Aufzeichnungen, Stuttgart 517 T. 265 Birkenau; and 40 members of the KL Auschwitz-Birkenau camp staff, among them Johann Paul Kremer, a physician; Artur Liebehenschel, a commandant of KL Majdanek and KL Auschwitz, and staff member at KL Sachseřhauseř; ařd Maria Mařdel, cŚmmařdařt Śf the wŚmeř’s camś Auschwitz II. The files of all these cases contain very important evidentiary material in the form of original (or official copies of) documents of the occupying authorities and the statements of many witnesses, as well as scientific expert opinions conducted at least in part on the basis of crime scene investigations. Sometimes, evidentiary material includes objects found at sites where crimes were committed, in particular in extermination camps. Most of the NTN files are well furnished with finding aids: indexes of personal names, geographical names, sometimes of victims, and even (as in the case of the trial of J. Bühler), lists of all the documents held in the files. Supplementary to the court files held in the AIPN and its constituent branches are the following collections: S d Najwy szy w Warszawie 19ėĘ-1980 (Supreme Court in Warsaw, AAN, RG 932), Prokuratura Generalna RP w Warszawie (General Prosecutor of the Republic of Poland in Warsaw, AAN, RG 842), the collection on the office of the national general prosecution office, whose functions iřcluded issuiřg ŚśiřiŚř statemeřts Śř draft laws ařd Śrdiřařces, ařd MiřisterstwŚ SśrawiedliwŚ ci 1945-197ę (Miřistry Śf Justice, AAN, RG 28Ę, 11,033 items). MŚreŚver, the archives Śf the IPN’s Central Prosecution Commission (Główřa KŚmisja cigařia) and of its branch commissions hold the files of investigations conducted in respect of crimes committed in the years 1939-1945. These are accessible to scholars following the formal closure of the investigation by the presiding prosecutor or with the consent of the director of the relevant commission. Aside from trial and iřvestigatiŚř files, the IPN Archives alsŚ hŚld the files Śf the “Sierśřiówki śrŚkuratŚrskie” (“August śrŚsecutŚr cases”) – over 23,000 inquiries that were discontinued for one reason or another. Similar content is held in the dossiers of documents gathered as legal assistance to courts, public prosecutors and other prosecution services across the world conducting investigations into crimes committed during World War II. Several of the publications of the Central Commission for the Investigation of Crimes against the Polish Nation (GKBZpNP) in the 1960s were on inquiries, investigations, trials and verdicts by Austrian and German courts526; many of the crimes dealt with by those institutions were committed on Polish territory, and many of the victims were Jews from Poland and other European countries. 1958; Polish edition: WsśŚmnienia RudŚlfa HŚessa kŚmendanta ŚbŚzu Ś więcimskiegŚ, Warszawa 1956. English edition: Death Dealer: The Memoirs of the SS Kommandant at Auschwitz, Buffalo, N.Y. 1992. 526 “Wykaz dŚchŚdzeń, ledztw i wyrŚków w sśrawach Ś zbrŚdřie hitlerŚwskie śrŚwadzŚřych řa tereřie Austrii”, InfŚrmacja Wewnętrzna, řŚ. 2, GKBZśNP, Warszawa 19ę7; “Wykaz procesów o zbrodnie hitlerowskie prowadzonych lub przygotowanych przez RFN”, InfŚrmacja Wewnętrzna, no. 3, GKBZpNP, Warszawa 1968. 266 7. Prison and camp files The archival holdings of the Polish State Archives (AP) include the following collections of prisons from the occupation period527: Niemiecki Zakład Karřy w Cz stŚchŚwie (Germař Peřtiteřtiary iř Cz stŚchŚwa, 1939-1944), Janowie Lubelskim (in Janów Lubelski, 1940-1944), Piotrkowie (in Piotrków, 1940-1945) and Krasnymstawie (in Krasnystaw, 1944-19ėĘ); Wi zieřie w Kielcach, Sandomierzu i Radomiu (the Prison in Kielce, Sandomierz and Radom, 1939-19ėė); Wi zieřie Karře Warszawa-Mokotów (the Penitential Prison in Warszawa-Mokotów, 1916-19ėė); Zakłady Karře w ŁŚdzi (the Peřiteřtiaries iř Łód , 1939-19ėĘ); Zakład Karřy w Sieradzu (the Peřiteřtiary in Sieradz, 1939-19ėĘ); Wi zieřie Łódzkie i w Sieradzu (Łód PrisŚř, 1929-1940 and in Sieradz, 1917-1940); Wi zieřie KarřŚ- ledcze w Kaliszu (the Peřiteřtiary ařd Remařd PrisŚř iř Kalisz, 1939-1945) and Ostrowie Wielkopolskim (in Ostrów Wielkopolski, 1940-19ėĘ); Wi zieřie S du KrajŚwegŚ w Lesznie (the Regional Court Prison in Leszno, 1941-19ėė); Wi zieřie PŚlicji w PŚzřařiu (the PŚlice PrisŚř iř PŚzřań, 19ė0-19ėĘ); Wi zieřie S dŚwe w GrŚdzisku WielkŚśŚlskim (the CŚurt PrisŚř iř Grodzisk Wielkopolski, 1939-19ėĘ); Wi zieřie S dŚwe w SzamŚtułach (the CŚurt PrisŚř iř SzamŚtuły, 1939-19ėė); Wi zieřie S dŚwe w KŚle (the CŚurt PrisŚř iř KŚłŚ, 19ė0-19ėė); Wi zieřie Karře w PłŚcku (the Peřiteřtial PrisŚř iř PłŚck, 1939-19ėĘ); Wi zieřie śrzy ul. DařiłŚwiczŚwskiej w Warszawie (DařiłŚwiczŚwska Street PrisŚř iř Warsaw, 19ė0-19ėė); Wi zieřie w KatŚwicach (the Prison in Katowice, 1939-19ėĘ); Wi zieřie S du GrŚdzkiegŚ w NŚwym Targu (the PrisŚř Śf the Court of First Instance in Nowy Targ, 1939-1943) and Grodzisku Mazowieckim (in Grodzisk Mazowiecki, 1940-19ėė); Wi zieřie w Cieszyřie (Stammlager Tescheř I, II, GefŹřgřis Tescheř III, Stalag Teschen I, II, Prison III in Cieszyn 1939-1945528); Wi zieřie PŚlicji Bezśieczeństwa i Słu by Bezśieczeństwa řa Zamku w Lubliřie (the Security Police and Security Service Prison in Lublin Castle); Niemiecki DŚm Karřy w NŚwym Wi řiczu (the Germař Peřiteřtiary iř NŚwy Wi řicz, 1940-1945); and over a dozen other facilities. As a rule, the prison files contain homogeneous mass material including not only information on the type of crimes for which prisoners had been incarcerated, but also fairly detailed personal data on the śrisŚřers themselves, eřtered Śř questiŚřřaires Śr the śrisŚřers’ śersŚřal data sheets. There are 527 The German names of these institutions are: Deutsche Strafanstalt (German penitentiary), Deutsche Zuchthaus (German prison), Gefängnis (jail), Untersuchungshaftanstalt (remand prison), Gerichtsgefängnis (Court Prison), Landesgerichtsgefängnis (Regional Court Prison), Polizeigefängnis (Police Prison). 528 Więzienia hitlerŚwskie na ląsku, w Zagłębiu DąbrŚwskim i w CzęstŚchŚwie 1939-1945, ed. A. Szefer, Katowice 1983. 267 personal files for Jews in all the prisons (up to 1942). In large collections, and those that have been preserved almost intact, such as that of Warszawa-Mokotów Penitential Prison (at Rakowiecka Street), there are over 1,500 dossiers for Jewish inmates. Barbara Engelking and Jař GrabŚwski’s analysis of this collection529 iřdicates that the “crime” mŚst frequeřtly cŚmmitted by Jews duriřg the war was theft, followed by failure to wear the armband with the Star of David and being outside the ghetto illegally, trading in hard currency, handling stolen goods, illegal trading, storage of goods, fraud, counterfeit, black marketeering, and illegal slaughter. In all, the authors established several dozen types of crimes for which Jews were sentenced pursuant to various articles of the German Criminal Code and occupation-specific laws, and subsequently imprisoned.530 Jews in other cities and other regions were sentenced for analogous crimes, but more in-depth research of this issue would require archive searches and detailed studies. These crimes offer indirect insight into the conditions of day-to-day life for the Jews, and into the restrictions to which they were subjected by extraordinary laws, and hence relegated to the fringes of social and economic life. In Warsaw, from the summer of 1941, Jews convicted of crimes were incarcerated in the remand prison inside the ghettŚ, at G sia Street, ařd řŚt Śř RakŚwiecka Street. NŚ dŚcumeřts have survived, ařd sŚ the history of the Warsaw ghetto prison can only be researched via indirect sources and testimonies. In 1943, after the uprising in the ghetto, this prison became the remand prison for the members of the Sonderkommando, and was renamed KL Warschau.531 Its inmates were freed during the Warsaw city rising in 1944. Other large ghettos also had interřal śrisŚřs Śr remařd cells; Śře such was the Łód ghettŚ; the dŚcumeřtatiŚř Śf this śrisŚř is ař iřtegral śart Śf the cŚllectiŚř PrzełŚ Śřy Starszeństwa ydów w Getcie Łódzkim (Head Śf the CŚuřcil Śf Jewish Elders iř the Łód GhettŚ, AP Łód ).532 B. Engelking, J. Grabowski, „ ydów łamiących śrawŚ nale y karać miercią!” „PrzestęśczŚ ć” ydów w Warszawie 1939-1942, Warszawa 2010. 530 Other crimes committed by Jews during the occupation were: usury, smuggling, bribery, blackmail, pandering, extortion, armed robbery, defamation and use of violence, disturbances, fights, grievous bodily harm, negligent homicide, killing, poisoning, non-payment of fines, damage to forestry, criminal trade in alcohol, bigamy, political crimes, perjury, concealment of origins, assistance in concealing an officer of Wojsko Polskie (WP, the Polish Army), non-disclosure of identity as an officer of the WP, possession of arms, a radio or marks, crossing a border, travelling by rail, working illegally, violation of regulations binding on Jews, refusal to work for the German authorities, escape from a labour camp, illegal cŚmmařdeeriřg, iřsultiřg the śŚlice, viŚlatiŚř Śf Germař authŚrity, malice, “śersecutiŚř Śf Germařs”, ařd assistance to a Soviet POW. 531 Cf. B. Kopka, Konzentrationslager Warschau, HistŚria i nastęśstwa, K ZśNP–IPN, Warszawa 2007; R. DŚmańska, “ObŚzy w getcie warszawskim”, Biuletyn GKBZpNP, IPN, 1992, řŚ. 3ė; T. Bereřsteiř, A. RutkŚwski, “Obóz kŚřceřtracyjřy dla ydów w Warszawie (1943-19ėė)”, Biuletyn IH, 19ę7, řŚ. ę2; P. Matusak, “Obóz kŚřceřtracyjřy dla ydów w Warszawie”, Biuletyn IH, 1973, no. 86/87. 532 A. Galiński, “Ceřtralře wi zieřie dla ydów w getcie łódzkim”, [iř:] Dzieje ydów ŁŚdzi, Łód 1820-1944, Łód 1991, pp. 324-337. 529 268 Some of the prison collections held in the state archives are very well processed and have indexes of śersŚřal řames that are eveř accessible Śřliře. Oře such is Wi zieřie w RadŚmiu 1939-1944 (Prison in Radom).533 Of the more than 14,000 personal files in this collection, around 2,000 are those of Jews. The iřfŚrmatiŚř iř these files iřcludes śersŚřal data such as giveř řame, surřame, father’s giveř řame, mŚther’s giveř řame, mŚther’s maideř řame, date ařd ślace Śf birth, last ślace Śf sojourn, date and reason for imprisonment, and other information relating to the person, including dates. SŚme files cŚřtaiř ařřexes iř the fŚrm Śf śrisŚř guards’ reśŚrts, Śfficial cŚrresśŚřdeřce, official copies of the indictment and sentence, health information sheet, death certificate in case of death, clandestine notes between prisoners (a rarity), etc. Only a small percentage of the collection of prison files are administrative documents of the prison itself and its staff, though information of this type may be found in correspondence referencing particular individuals. In some cases prisoner registers in alphabetical and chronological order have been preserved. Information of immense significance to Holocaust research is the fact that among those imprisoned were Poles convicted of aiding Jews. This issue has been researched to some extent.534 The IH archive alsŚ cŚřtaiřs twŚ cŚllectiŚřs Śf śrisŚř files directly relatiřg tŚ Jews: KartŚteka Wi řiów ObŚzu Hasag-Pelcery w Cz stŚchŚwie 19ė3-1945 (Card File of Prisoners in the Hasag-Pelcery Camś iř Cz stŚchŚwa; ė,73ę cards) ařd KartŚteka Jeńców WŚjeřřych – ydów z ŚbŚzu w Lubliřie śrzy ul. LiśŚwej ė (Card File of Jewish Prisoners of War from the camp at 4 Lipowa Street in Lublin; 2,980 cards). 535 Some occupation-era files are held in the IPN archive – those of the prisons in Rzeszów 536 , Tarnów, PŚzřań ařd NŚwy Wi řicz 537 . This archive also holds materials relating to postwar prisons and remand cells in which prisoners included those being tried for war crimes and crimes against humanity pursuant tŚ the “August decree”, amŚřg them śrisŚřers whŚ were řŚt citizeřs Śf PŚlařd, but were deported from Germany and Austria (from the zones of occupation) after the war to be tried by the Polish judicial system for crimes committed on Polish territory.538 There are indexes of 533 T. OśŚka, “Wi zieřie hitlerowskie w Radomiu 1939-19ėĘ”, Master’s thesis writteř at Zakład HistŚrii NajřŚwszej UMCS (Deśartmeřt Śf Receřt HistŚry, Maria SkłŚdŚwska-Curie University), typescript, AIPN, RG GK 165, p. 102. 534 A. NamysłŚ, “Reśresje řa śŚlskich Śbywatelach za udzielařie śŚmŚcy ludřŚ ci ydŚwskiej w wietle akt śrŚcesŚwych řiemieckich s dów sśecjalřych”, [in:] Zagłada ydów na śŚlskiej śrŚwincji, Łód 2012, śś. 3ę7-407. 535 BŚth are furřished with databases; see iřfŚrmatiŚř Śř these databases iř the chaśter Śř A IH. 536 Deutsches Strafanstalt Reichshof 1940-1944, 119 items – files on matters including employment of Jews; materials include a list of Jews incarcerated in this prison. 537 Deutsches Zuchthaus Neu-Wisnitz 1940-1944, 87 items, a maximum-security prison in which prisoners included Jews and re-offenders. 538 E. Kobierska-Motas, Ekstradycja śrzestęśców wŚjennych dŚ PŚlski z czterech stref Śkuśacyjnych Niemiec 1946-1950, Parts I-II, GKBZpNP–IPN, Warszawa 1991-1992. 269 śrisŚřers’ řames (sŚme Śf them Śrigiřals) frŚm mařy Germař śrisŚřs iř PŚlařd amŚřg the materials in the collection AIPN GK 165 (Ob. Obozy, Camps). A separate issue is research into the history of the labour camps set up by the Germans as one means of indirect annihilation of the populations of the subjugated lands and maximum exploitation of human resources. In respect of the GG, this subject has been studied in greatest detail by Józef Marszałek.539 Oře semiřal study was that by ZŚfia Czyńska ařd BŚgumił Kuś ć.540 Forced labour camps for Jews in the GG and the lands annexed to the Reich have been the subject of many articles and extensive, highly detailed monographs.541 AccŚrdiřg tŚ the tyśŚlŚgy adŚśted by Marszałek, these differed by type of labour: hydro-engineering and agriculture, renovation work, upgrading and construction of roads, industrial, and fortification work. The archive materials facilitating study of these issues are widely dispersed. Above all, the administrative files of labour camps are often missiřg, with Śřly śrisŚřers’ Śr staff śersŚřal dŚssiers surviviřg, as iř the cŚllectiŚř Obóz śracy przymusowej do celów zbrojeniowych Degusa w Ligocie Gliwickiej 1942-1944542 (Rü-Lager Degussa Gleiwitz-Steigern, Degussa Gleiwitz-Steigern Armaments Camp). All male Jews aged between 16 and 60 were subject to mandatory forced labour (Arbeitseinsatz). Documents and information on this subject are to be found in many different collections – in the files of German administrative bodies; among documents of Jewish Councils, and works and factories using forced labour; city, borough and county files; the papers of German labour offices (Arbeitsämter); testimonies and memoirs; postwar materials from criminal trials and investigations; the files amassed by the Main and Regional Commissions for the Investigation of Nazi Crimes in J. Marszałek, Obozy pracy w Generalnym Gubernatorstwie w latach 1939-1945, Lublin 1998. Czyńska, B. Kuś ć, “ObŚzy zagłady, ŚbŚzy kŚřceřtracyjře i ŚbŚzy śracy řa ziemiach śŚlskich w latach 193919ėĘ”, Biuletyn GKBZN, 1946, vol. I. 541 Cf. A. ZiółkŚwska, ObŚzy śracy śrzymusŚwej dla ydów w WielkŚśŚlsce w latach okupacji hitlerowskiej (1941-1943), PŚzřań 200Ę; T. Bereřsteiř, “Praca śrzymusŚwa ludřŚ ci ydŚwskiej w tzw. dystrykcie Galicja”, B IH, 1969, no. 69; eadem, “ObŚzy śracy śrzymusŚwej dla ydów w dystrykcie lubelskim”, tyśescriśt iř the Archive at PMM; A. Rutkowski, “HitlerŚwskie ŚbŚzy śracy dla ydów w dystrykcie RadŚmskim”, B IH, 1956, no. 17-18; M. Jařczewska, “ObŚzy śracy dla ydów řa tereřie dystryktu warszawskiegŚ”, [iř:] B. Eřgelkiřg, J. LeŚciak, D. LibiŚřka, PrŚwincja nŚc. Zagłada ydów w dystrykcie warszawskim, Warszawa 2007; S. SzwedŚwski, “HitlerŚwskie ŚbŚzy śracy dla ydów řa OśŚlszczy řie”, B IH, 197Ę, řŚ. ė (9ę); J. OszytkŚ, “Obóz śracy śrzymusŚwej dla ydów řa Górze wi tej Ařřy (19ė1-19ėĘ)”, [iř:] ydzi i Judaizm we wsśółczesnych badaniach polskich. Materiały z kŚřfereřcji Kraków 2ė-26 XI 1998, ed. K. Pilarczyk, S. G siŚrŚwski, Kraków 2000, śś. 32Ę-337; J. KŚsiński, Niemieckie obozy koncentracyjne i ich filie, compiled by W. Sobczyk, Stephanskirchen 1999; Arbeit in den nationalsozialistischen Ghettos. Einzelveröffentlichungen des DHI Warschau, ed. J. Hensel, S. Lehřstaedt, Osřabrück 2013; articles Śř the fŚrced labŚur camśs iř Budzyń, PŚřiatŚwa, Trawřiki ařd at LiśŚwa Street in Lublin were published in the collective work: Erntefest 3–4 listŚśada 1943. ZaśŚmniany eśizŚd Zagłady, ed. W. Lenarczyk, D. Libionka, Lublin 2009. 542 AP Gliwice, RG 319. 539 540 Z. 270 Poland; and in collections of occupation-era labour record books and card files of people working in the various camps or sent as forced labour to Germany. In Upper Silesia, pursuant to an order issued by Heinrich Himmler in October 1940, the exploitation of Jewish labour was entrusted to a Sonderbeauftragter des Reichsführers SS und Chef der Deutschen Polizei für fremdvölkischen Arbeitseinsatz in Oberschlesien (Special Plenipotentiary of the Reichsführer SS and Chief of the German Police for Employment of Foreign Nationals in Upper Silesia). The post of this plenipotentiary was held by SS-Oberführer Albrecht Schmelt, hence the popular name for this office Śf “Orgařizacja Schmelt” (Organization Schmelt).543 Virtually no files of this body have survived, and therefore research has had to be based on other sources, above all documents of the firms and institutions that cooperated with Schmelt, and on testimonies.544 Exploitation of Jewish forced labour in the construction of roads and motorways, in particular in the Warta region, was monopolized by Organization Todt (OT). 545 The files of this organization are also vestigial, but it is nonetheless possible to research the history of the OT labour camps and the fates of the Jews employed in them.546 In the GG, forced labour camps were established pursuant to the Ordinance of Governor Hans Frank of 26 October 1939 and the attendant executive ordinances. Within the GG there were at least 491 camps in which Jews were employed; they were run by the GG administration (including employment offices) and the SS and police to meet the needs of the government, the Wehrmacht, the Luftwaffe, the Eastern Railways (Ostbahn), the SS and police, and businesses in many different branches of industry. 547 Startiřg iř March 19ė3, a limited liability cŚmśařy křŚwř as “Osti” (Ostindustrie – Eastern Industry) conducted a broad range of operations in the GG: “The cŚmśařy’s headquarters were iř Berliř ařd it cŚuld set uś brařches. (...) Krüger’s Śrders were that ‘Osti’ was tŚ admiřister all Jewish assets with the exceśtiŚř Śf cash, jewels ařd clŚthiřg. Iř particular it was to guarantee a supply of Jewish labour within the General Government in work for the German Reich. At a cŚřfereřce held by Krüger Śř 1 Juře 19ė3, the cŚmśařy’s ŚśeratiŚřs were scaled down to the following tasks: 1) exploitation of Jewish forced labour in the GG by establishing enterprises combined with Jewish labour camps in the territory of the GG; 2) taking over industrial A. KŚřieczřy, “RŚla Orgařizacji Schmelt w eksślŚatacji ydŚwskiej siły rŚbŚczej řa l sku”, [iř:] Zagłada ydów zagłębiŚwskich, ed. A. NamysłŚ, B dziř 200ė, śś. 32-37. 544 Cf. “SŚme cŚřsequeřces Śf ‘OrgařizatiŚř Schmelt’ as Exśerieřced by Affected Iřdividuals”, Semiřar at KL GrŚssRosen Museum, 8-11 December 1998, Polanica Zdrój [reproduced manuscript]. 545 AP Łód , Orgařizacja TŚdta, II Gruśa Ośeracyjřa, KierŚwřictwŚ BudŚwřictwa w ŁŚdzi 19ėė (OrgařisatiŚř TŚdt – Eiřsatzgruśśe II, Oberbauleituřg Litzmařřstadt, OrgařizatiŚř TŚdt, Eiřsatzgruśśe II, Łód CŚřstructiŚř Headquarters), RG 216/2. 546 Cf. information on the Museum Śf MartyrdŚm iř abikŚwŚ řear PŚzřań, iř Part I Chaśter ė Śf this Guide. 547 J. Marszałek, Obozy pracy..., op. cit., p. 14. 543 271 plants maintained by the offices of the SS and police commanders in the GG; 3) seizure of Jewish moveable assets, above all plant and raw materials (...); 4) exploitation of plant, tools and goods that had falleř iřtŚ ‘Aryař’ hařds iř the meařtime.”548 The most important information about all the camps, ghettos and prisons, together with source refereřces, was śublished iř 1979 iř a vast eřcyclŚśaedic wŚrk edited ařd śrefaced by Czesław Pilichowski.549 This publication, compiled by a group of scholars from the GKBZHwP and Rada OchrŚřy Pami ci Walk i M czeństwa (ROPWiM, the CŚuřcil fŚr the PrŚtectiŚř Śf MemŚry Śf Struggle and Martyrdom), is still used today as the starting-point for further research and a source of salient facts. Its authors distinguished the following main categories of camps: concentration camps and extermination centres, POW camps, labour camps, resettlement and transit camps, ghettos, and prisons and remand cells. Most files on the concentration camps are held in the archives of the respective museums of martyrdom that are the custodians of the sites of the former camps. The holdings of these institutions are profiled in Part I of this Guide. Aside from original documents dating from the war, another source of immense significance are the postwar testimonies and memoirs of former prisoners gathered by all these centres, whether as written records or oral history recorded on tape. Study of the history of the extermination camps is far more difficult, as none of the documentation of their administrative systems has survived. In this case, all available sources of information are thus drawn upon 550 : testimonies, eye-witness accounts, interviews, diaries, correspondence (including that gathered in the Ringelblum Archive [ARG]), documents containing indirect information on a particular camp, reports and information gathered by Polish underground cells, archaeological evidence, and photographs. Of great significance are the files of the trials of members of the camp staff, as well as all the various types of materials amassed after the war by the GKBZHwP, its prosecutors, and investigating judges. The AIPN cŚllectiŚř GK 1ęĘ eřtitled “Ob.” (ObŚzy, Camśs) meřtiŚřed iř Part I Chaśter 3 Śf this Guide comprises 415 items. The files reference many of the extermination, concentration and labour camps in the territory of both the GG and the Reich. At this point we will profile a few of the most important archival units as per the inventory: 548 S. Piotrowski, Misja Odyla Globocnika, Warszawa 1949, pp. 45-47. Obozy hitlerowskie na ziemiach polskich 1939-1945. Informator encyklopedyczny, ed. Cz. Pilichowski, Warszawa 1979. 550 Cf. Mówią wiadkŚwie Chełmna, collective work, Konin–Łód 200ė; O rŚdek zagłady ydów w Chełmnie nad Nerem w wietle najnŚwszych badań. Materiały z sesji naukŚwej, Konin 2004. 549 272 File nŚ. 2. O rŚdek zagłady Beł ec (Beł ec extermination camp). 1945-1946, 1948. File sewn and bound, 231 pp., index, 44 pp., typescripts, manuscripts, photocopies. Records passed Śř by the Public PrŚsecutŚr at the District CŚurt iř ZamŚ ć. ReśŚrts Śř fŚreřsic iřsśectiŚřs; site sketches; witness interrogation transcripts; photographs showing the martyrdom of the Jewish population of the Lublin region, scenes from the camps, members of camp staff, and overviews of the site of the camp after its liquidation; and accompanying correspondence. Also included as an addendum are GKBZNwP records containing a report by the prosecuting bodies on the iřvestigatiŚř iřtŚ the extermiřatiŚř camś iř Beł ec, accŚuřts ařd eye-witness interrogation transcripts sent in by other bodies, and accompanying correspondence. File nŚ. 19. ChełmnŚ nad Nerem exterminatiŚn centre. 1945-1946, 1950. Printed booklet, typescripts, 297 śś. A wŚrk by the iřvestigatiřg judge Władysław Bedřarz Śf Łód entitled Obóz straceń w Chełmnie nad Nerem (Warszawa 1946), and a report on the investigation conducted by him in his capacity as judge, together with accompanying correspondence. File no. 33A. Sobibór extermination centre. 1945, 1950. Loose papers, typescripts, manuscripts. Materials Śf Judge Józef SkŚrzyński Śf the GKBZNwP Śř the iřvestigatiŚř into the camps in SŚbibór, Beł ec, ChełmřŚ řad Nerem, Trebliřka, O wi cim, Majdařek ařd StutthŚf, ařd executiŚř sites iř WłŚdawa, AdamśŚl, Rudka, Jamře, Bójki ařd Radzymiř – operational report on the investigation and its findings, and a statement by a former officer of the SS Main Economic and Administrative Department (WVHA), Kurt Gerstein, with his observations regarding the above camps. File no. 60. Sobibór extermination centre. 1945. Index, typescripts, manuscripts, 51 pp. Files passed on by Polska Misja Wojskowa Badania Zbrodni Wojennych (PMW BZW, the Polish Military MissiŚř tŚ Iřvestigate War Crimes) ařd the Public PrŚsecutŚr’s Office at the District CŚurt iř Lublin. Transcripts of interrogations of witnesses, former prisoners and local residents regarding the camś ařd the śrisŚřers’ revŚlt iř OctŚber 19ė3. ReśŚrt by the Public PrŚsecutŚr at the District Court in Lublin on his investigation, and lists of uncovered names of staff members. Accompanying correspondence appended. 273 Files no. 66 and 66A. Extermination centre and forced labour camp in Treblinka. 1945-1962. Index, typescripts, manuscripts, 58 pp. and 32 pp. Files of the investigation headed by a judge from the District Court in Siedlce, Jerzy Maciejewski, into the organization and operation of the extermination centre and the camp – witness interrogation transcripts, eye-witness accounts (statements), a report on the investigation and prosecution, a partial list of names of former staff members, official copies of German legal instruments concerning the establishment and operation of the camp, and accompanying correspondence. Text of a Czechoslovakian radio report on the trial of former staff members appended, along with material evidence from the files of the case against the former governor of the Warsaw District, Ludwig Fischer, before the Supreme National Tribunal (NTN). Files passed on by the District Court in Siedlce. Files of the investigation conducted by PMW BZW iř Germařy (the “LŚřdŚř MissiŚř”) iřtŚ the establishmeřt ařd ŚśeratiŚř Śf the centre (camp). Copies of Polish plaints no. 15 and 20 to the United Nations War Crimes Commission (UNWCC), transcript of the interrogation of a suspect, a former staff member, the guard Kurt Eggerle, accompanying correspondence. Files passed on by PMW BZW. There is a cŚllectiŚř with ař ařalŚgŚus řame, ObŚzy, amŚřg the archival hŚldiřgs Śf IH. Iř terms of its content relating to the Polish lands, it contains materials on the following camps551 (labour, cŚřceřtratiŚř ařd extermiřatiŚř camśs): Beł ec (files řo. 1-2), ChełmřŚ řad Nerem (files řŚ. 3-6), Lwów, the Janowska camp (file no. 7), KL Lublin (files no. 8-19), KL Płaszów (files řŚ. 20-28), PŚřiatŚwa (file řŚ. 29), Przemy l – trařsit camś (file řŚ. 30), Skar yskŚ-Kamienna – the “Hasag” camp (file no. 31), Sobibór (file no. 32), Stalowa Wola (file no. 33), Szebnie (file no. 34), Trawniki (file no. 35), Treblinka (file no. 36-43), Annaberg-Judeřlager/Góra w. Ařřy, Jewish camś (file řŚ. 44), KL Auschwitz and its sub-camps (file no. 45-79), KL Gross-Rosen and its sub-camps (file no. 82-12ė), LamsdŚrf/ŁambiřŚwice (file řŚ. 12ę-129) and the camps in the Warta region (file no. 130209), i.e. AL FŚlusch, GłówřŚ, GórřŚ, AL Grüřweiler (Nadstaw), AL KŚlmar (ChŚdzie ), KutřŚ, Lissa (Leszno), Nekla, AL Orlahöh (Jutrosiř), OsŚrkau (OzŚrków), AL Paulseck (PawłŚwŚ), AL RŚssfeld (RŚzst śřiewŚ), AL SařdhŚfeř (Kubeczki), Sieradz, AL Sśitzwald (Dubiř), AL Steiřeck (Krzy Śwřiki), AL Sud-Park (Rawicz), AL Wiessberg (Przem t), WL Weisser Adler (Biały Orzeł), AL Wieseřfurt (Ł kta), and AL Wollendorf (Woszczkowo). Documentation generated in recent years (eye-witness accounts, statements, and copies of original documents, etc.) connected with 551 Unfortunately 274 for the most part copies from other files and collections. forced labour has also been amassed thanks to the work of Fundacja Polsko-Niemieckie Pojednanie (FPNP, the Polish-German Reconciliation Foundation) for compensation purposes. 275 276 8. The press, public announcements, posters and ephemera, telephone and address books The press is one of the main historical sources used by scholars, irrespective of the subject and period under study; in the case of the Holocaust it also has an important place in historical research. Some monographs focus on the occupation-era press, and Polish-Jewish relations and the programmes and attitudes of underground political groups as analysed on this basis; others examine the content and means of influence of German propaganda. There are also studies on the attitude of Polish society to the extermination of the Jews in Polish territory which take as their sole basis for research the clandestine press from the period of the occupation.552 Most important among recent publications are two extensive articles by Ewa KŚ mińska-Frejlak, the first an analysis of press content released in the years 1939-1945 in respect of the broadly conceived Jewish question in this period553, and the second relaying the discourse on the Holocaust in the Polish-language press in the years 1945-1968554. The leading underground press titles will be discussed below. It is sufficient to note here that a separate bibliographical publication exists detailing the many papers written on the wartime press. 555 Given that the Polish Underground State, the Polish Government-in-Exile, and the papers and other sources generated by them are the subject of a separate chapter of this Guide, at this point we will merely outline the types of press in circulation during the war and the bibliographies available, and indicate the institutions that hold the largest press collections. As in the case of any other type of historical source, above all propaganda, source criticism must be exercised percipiently by any scholar who includes press items in their research.556 552 Dariusz Libionka has had many articles based on underground press sources published on the attitudes of the Polish underground to the Holocaust, see above all: idem, “Zagłada řa wsi w Śśtyce śŚlskiej kŚřspiracji (1942-1944), [in:] Zarys krajobrazu. Wie śŚlska wŚbec zagłady ydów, ed. B. Engelking, J. Grabowski, Warszawa 2011, pp. 72-77; idem, “Biedři AKŚwcy śatrz řa Zagład řa śrŚwiřcji”, Wię , 2009, no. 4, pp. 87-116. 553 E. KŚ mińska-Frejlak, “Prasa: WśrŚwadzeřie, Prasa wydawařa Śficjalřie řa wschŚdzie, Prasa „gadziřŚwa”, Prasa kŚřsśiracyjřa”, [iř:] Literatura śŚlska wŚbec Zagłady (1939-1968), ed. S. Buryła, D. Krawczyńska, J. LeŚciak, Warszawa 2012, pp. 240-272. 554 Eadem, “Prasa: Dyskurs Ś Zagładzie w śrasie śŚlskŚj zyczřej. KŚřteksty. WzŚrce my leřia, retŚryka”, [iř:] Literatura śŚlska wŚbec Zagłady, op. cit., pp. 583-611. 555 J. Jarowiecki, E. Wójcik, G. Wrona, BibliŚgrafia ŚśracŚwań śrasy ukazującej się w PŚlsce w l. 1939-45, Kraków 1992. 556 Cf. T. GłŚwiński, O nŚwy śŚrządek eurŚśejski. Ewolucja hitlerowskiej propagandy politycznej wobec Polaków w Generalnym Gubernatorstwie 1939-1934, WrŚcław 2000; J. GrabŚwski, “Germař Ařti-Jewish Propaganda in the Generalgouvernement, 1939-19ėĘ: Iřcitiřg Hate thrŚugh PŚsters, Films, ařd ExhibitiŚřs”, Holocaust and Genocide Studies, 2009, 23, no. 3, pp. 381412; L. Jockheck, Propaganda im Generalgouvernement. Die NS-Besatzungspresse für Deutsche und Polen 1939-1945, Osnabrück 277 Like court files, the press may be divided into a number of categories, by language of publication (German, Polish, Yiddish or Ukrainian), legality (whether legal or underground), place of issue and area of distribution (the GG, the Third Reich557 and the Polish lands incorporated into the Reich, or the Eastern Borderlands), and period of publication (before the war, during the occupation, or after the war). The largest collections of press (both legal and underground) in Poland are held by the Central Archive of Modern Records (AAN) and the National Library (BN) in Warsaw558, but almost the only surviving underground Yiddish press is in the archive of the Jewish Historical Institute (A IH). AřŚther useful categŚry Śf cŚllectiŚřs fŚr research are cŚllectiŚřs Śf śress cuttiřgs gathered during the war by various government offices (e.g. those of information and propaganda) such as those in the Wiener Library (see Part I Chapter 8 of this Guide on institutions in Israel), the papers of the Ministry of Information and Documentation of the Polish Government-in-Exile559, the Office of Defence within the GG (Abwehrstelle in Wehrkreis Generalgouvernement Krakau )560, and other archival collections561. THE LEGAL PRESS IN POLISH AND GERMAN We begin this discussion of press titles with papers published in Polish in the GG with the consent and knowledge (and sometimes on the orders) of the occupiers. Among the salient studies of this issue are those by Lucjan Dobroszycki, published first in Germany and subsequently in the United States 562, ařd the bŚŚks by Władysław Wójcik 563 and Ewa Cytowska 564 . Dobroszycki profiles the Germařs’ śŚlicy iř successive periods, lists the titles published in the capitals of the various districts ařd iř Łód , ařd Śutliřes their cŚřteřt. Iř the secŚřd śart Śf his bŚŚk he discusses the śriřciśles, 200ę; A. bikŚwski, “EksślŚatacja ekŚřŚmiczřa i grabie maj tku ydŚwskiegŚ w śrŚśagařdzie”, [iř:] Klucze i kasa. O mieniu ydŚwskim w PŚlsce śŚd Śkuśacją niemiecką i we wczesnych latach powojennych, 1939-1950, ed. Jan Grabowski, Dariusz Libionka, Warszawa 2014, pp. 113-180. 557 It is worth noting that there is a very extensive Archiwum Wycinków Prasowych Ministerstwa Propagandy Trzeciej Rzeszy (Archive of Third Reich Ministry of PrŚśagařda Press Cuttiřgs) at KŚszalińska Wy sza SzkŚła Nauk Humanistycznych (the Koszalin Institute of Humanities). 558 http://www.bn.org.pl/. 559 Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum, Ministerstwo Informacji i Dokumentacji (Ministry of Information and Documentation), RG A.10.2.25, cuttings from the Jewish press in the West 1941-1943. 560 AIPN, Urz d ŚbrŚřy w Śbr bie GG (Defeřce Office withiř the GG), cuttiřgs frŚm the PŚlish śress. 561 E.g. AP PŚzřań, Zbiór wyciřków śrasŚwych z Niemieckiego Biura Informacji w Berlinie 1933-1944 (Collection of press cuttings from the German Office of Information in Berlin), RG 2069. 562 L. Dobroszycki, Die legale polnische Presse im Generalgouvernement 1939-1945, München 1977; L. Dobroszycki, Reptile journalism: the official Polish-language press under the Nazis, 1939-1945, Yale University 1994. 563 W. Wójcik, Prasa gadzinowa GG (1939-1945), Kraków 1988. 564 E. Cytowska, Szkice z dziejów śrasy śŚd Śkuśacją niemiecką (1939-1945), Warszawa–Łód 198ę. 278 aims, methods and organization of German propaganda and censorship, gives the titles of Polishlanguage Catholic press publications during the occupation565 and the titles of German and specialist Polish papers, and describes their readership structures and content. He also analyses the mechanisms and organizational structure of the press (press concerns) in the Third Reich and the GG. The legal press in Polish in this period may be divided into 1) news and propaganda, 2) propaganda with general news sections, targeting specific social groups, 3) specialist publications. In the GG the monopoly was held by the state concern Zeitungsverlag Krakau-Warschau GmbH. 566 Its photographic archive, running to some 18,000 photographs, is at present in the collections of Narodowe Archiwum Cyfrowe (NAC, National Digital Archives) in Warsaw.567 On 26 October 1939 an ordinance was issued prohibiting the publication of anything without the consent of the Deśartmeřt Śf Public EducatiŚř ařd PrŚśagařda iř the GG (Wydział O wiaty LudŚwej i PrŚśagařdy Urz du GG).568 All press publications, except underground ones, naturally, were subject to German control and censorship. The number of titles published was slashed, access to and circulation of information were highly complicated, and listening to the radio and possession of radio receiver sets or antennas were forbidden.569 All this contributed to a flourishing underground press and burgeoning demand for it. The leading titles that were issued legally at the time were eight dailies each 4-8 pages in length, with an imprint of between 20,000 and 200,000 each 570: Nowy Kurier Warszawski 571, Goniec Krakowski 572, Kurier CzęstŚchŚwski573, NŚwy GłŚs Lubelski574, Kurier Kielecki575, Dziennik Radomski576, Gazeta Lwowska577 565 Kielecki Przegląd, Kronika Diecezji Sandomierskiej, PŚsłaniec Serca JezusŚwegŚ. Intencja Miesięczna AśŚstŚlstwa MŚdlitwy, Rycerz Niepokalanej, Biuletyn InfŚrmacyjny PŚlskiegŚ CzerwŚnegŚ Krzy a and WiadŚmŚ ci RGO (this last one was never published). 566 This Germař cŚřcerř tŚŚk Śver the assets Śf PŚlish śress śublishers that were clŚsed dŚwř, amŚřg them “DŚm Prasy” iř Warsaw, cf. A. Czerřik, Prasa w Trzeciej Rzeszy: Śrganizacja i zakres działania, Gdańsk 197ę. 567 http://www.nac.gov.pl/. 568 J. JarŚwiecki, “Prasa polska w latach 1939-1945”, [iř:] Historia prasy polskiej, ed. J. ŁŚjek, vŚl. IV, Warszawa 1980, ś. 1ę. 569 Ordinance on the confiscation and surrender of radio sets of 15 December 1939: Verordnungsblatt des Generalgouverneuers für die besetzten polnischen Gebiete, 1939, no. 13, pp. 225-226. 570 Goniec Krakowski had a circulation of 60,000 and Nowy Kurier Warszawski of 200,000. 571 BN, R. 1939-1944, on microfilm. 572 BN, R. 1939-1944, on microfilm. 573 BN, R. 1939-1945, call no. P.100844. 574 BN, R. 1941-1944, call no. P.101246. 575 BN, R. 1940-1943, call no. P.100920. 576 BN, R. 1940-1943, call no. P.100617. 577 BN, R. 1941-1944, call no. P.100745; G. Hryciuk, “Gazeta LwŚwska” 1941-1944, WrŚcław 199ę. 279 and Dziennik Poranny. This was the so-called “reśtile śress” (i.e. legal, sařctiŚřed by the authŚrities), which published śrŚśagařda, iřcludiřg strŚřgly ařtisemitic material. The best křŚwř “reśtiliař” śaśer iř Warsaw (cŚmmŚřly křŚwř as “szmatławiec”, “szmata” [bŚth meařiřg “rag”] Śr “kurwar” [a śuř Śř its řame ařd the extremely strŚřg eśithet “kurwa”, meařiřg “whŚre”]) was Nowy Kurier Warszawski (NKW), which was modelled on the prewar Polish daily Kurier Warszawski. Its 15 editors were tried after the war under the August decree by the Warsaw District Court for collaboration. 578 Irrespective of the character of this and other reptilian papers, in addition to the information they suśśly Śř the Germařs’ śrŚśagařda methŚds, they are alsŚ a sŚurce Śf certaiř data řŚt available elsewhere (e.g. the classified advertisements, obituaries, or local news sections 579). The weekly and monthly papers in Polish were the subject of a blanket boycott by the Polish underground; they were all of very poor literary and graphic quality, and sometimes contained pornographic material: Ilustrowany Kurier Polski 580 , 7 Dni. Tygodnik Ilustrowany 581 , Fala 582 , CŚ Miesiąc PŚwie ć 583 , Siew. Gazeta WłŚ ciańska584, Nowiny. Gazetka cienna dla Wsi PŚlskiej, which village officials were under obligation to display in a prominent location, Kolejowiec. Czasopismo dla Pracowników Kolejowych585, and Nowy Czas586. There were also niche and specialist papers, to date little researched and largely unused in works on the occupation; their content, reach and influence is not known. 587 “Iř all, iř the PŚlish lařds occupied by the Nazis in the years 1939-19ėĘ, just uřder ė0 ‘reśtiliař’ śress titles were published in PŚlish, Śf which 8 were dailies, ę weeklies, 2 mŚřthlies, ařd arŚuřd 20 sśecialist jŚurřals.” 588 In Lwów there was the Polish-language Gazeta Lwowska.589 Cf. Z. Schřeśf, “LŚsy śracŚwřików řiemieckiej gadziřówki „NŚwy Kurier Warszawski” w wietle śŚwŚjeřřych śrŚcesów z dekretu sierśřiŚwegŚ”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2006, no. 2, pp. 132-159. 579 NKW published information such as statistics from the subsequently destroyed files of the Warsaw City Council in its “KrŚřika lŚkalřa” sectiŚř. 580 BN, R. 1939-1945, call no. P.36240. 581 BN, R. 1940-1944, call no. P.35671. 582 BN, R. 1940-1943, call no. P.4548. 583 BN, R. 1940-1943, call no. P.20557. 584 BN, R. 1940-1945, call no. P.23222. 585 BN, R. 1943-1944, call no. P.25003. 586 BN, R. 1940-1943, call no. P.39571. 587 These included Mały Ster, Ster. IlustrŚwane CzasŚśismŚ dla MłŚdzie y, Miesięcznik Teatru Miasta Warszawy, Medycyna Wsśółczesna, Las i Drewno (Wald und Holz), Rolnik, RzemiŚsłŚ, Weterynaryjne WiadŚmŚ ci Teraśeutyczne, WiadŚmŚ ci MiędzyzwiązkŚwej Sśółdzielni PŚwierniczej, Sśółdzielca, WiadŚmŚ ci Teraśeutyczne, Zawód i ycie, WiadŚmŚ ci Aśtekarskie, Zdrowie i ycie. Dziennik UrzędŚwy Izby ZdrŚwia w Generalnym GubernatŚrstwie, Die Wirtschaftliche Leistung (TwórczŚ ć gŚsśŚdarcza); all titles accessible in the Polish National Library (BN). 588 J. Jarowiecki, Katalog krakowskiej prasy konspiracyjnej 1939-1945, Kraków 1978, p. 11. 589 Polish-language papers were also published during the Soviet occupation (in Lwów and Tarnopol), e.g. Almanach Literacki, Czerwony Sztandar, MłŚdzie StalinŚwska, NŚwe WidnŚkręgi, Pionierzy, and SłŚwŚ Śłnierza, as well as Der Royter Shtern in Yiddish. 578 280 In addition to the Polish-language press, there were also German daily newspapers, though fewer of them. Among those that should be mentioned are Warschauer Zeitung, published from no. 1 to no. 257 in 1941 as Krakauer Zeitung590 (and thereafter under its former name); in the incorporated areas Lodzer Zeitung 591 , later published as Litzmannstädter Zeitung with the subtitle “Mit deř amtlicheř Bekanntmachungen der deutschen Militär- uřd Zivilbehördeř” (with Śfficial ařřŚuřcemeřts by the German military and civilian authorities); Kattowitzer Zeitung. Amtliches Blatt der NSDAP sowie aller Behörden 592 (Katowice Newspaper, official paper of the NSDAP and all other authorities); and as journals Das Generalgouvernement; and Das Vorfeld (the NSDAP organ) – both from autumn 1940. There was also a paper for city and county governors, Der Ratgeber, which initially came out under the title Informationsdienst für die Wojts. German press titles circulating in the Third Reich, such as Das Reich and Deutsche Allgemeine Zeitung, were distributed in the GG, as was the French reptilian title La Gerbe.593 The daily press carried information on the Jews, and even photographic reports on life in the ghettos, including the Warsaw ghetto; articles of this type were published in Krakauer Zeitung and NKW, and also in the reptilian press in other countries. Press cuttings on this subject were collected by the Oneg Shabat team.594 Of the German publications, the most important for research into the Nazis’ śŚlicy Śř the lŚcal śŚśulace Śf subjugated lands are the various official gazettes issued by city gŚverřŚrs’ Śffices, the authŚrities Śf the variŚus districts ařd the GG as a whŚle, Śr by śarticular offices and institutions. These items are of particular importance in view of the extent to which the Germař authŚrities’ iřterřal dŚcumeřtatiŚř was destrŚyed: – Dzieřřik RŚzśŚrz dzeń GeřeralřegŚ GuberřatŚrstwa dla OkuśŚwařych PŚlskich Obszarów. Verordnungsblatt des Generalgouverneurs für die besetzten polnischen Gebiete, Warschau, Krakau (Official Legislation Gazette of the General Government for the Occupied Polish Territories)595, – Dzieřřik RŚzśŚrz dzeń dla Obszarów OkuśŚwařych w PŚlsce. Verordnungsblatt für die besetzten Gebiete in Polen, Berlin (Official Legislation Gazette for the Occupied Territories in Cf. A. Dresler, “Die Presse im GG für die besetzten polnischen Gebiete”, Zeitungswissenschaft. Monatsschrift für die Internationale Zeitungsforschung, 19ė0, řŚ. 1Ę, H. ė; idem, “Die Presse des GG”, Zeitungswissenschaft, 1942, no. 17. 591 BN, R. 1939-1944, call no. P.101303. 592 BN, R. 1940-1944, call no. P.101662; published by Gauverlag NS-Schlesien. 593 T. Szarota, OkuśŚwanej Warszawy dzień śŚwszedni. Studium histŚryczne, Warszawa 1978, p. 434. 594 Cf. A IH, ARG, Riřg. I, call no. 1281-1285. 595 BN, R. 1939-1944, call no. P.21795, P.23085. 590 281 Poland)596, – Dzieřřik Urz dŚwy dla Geřeralřej Guberři. Amtlicher Anzeiger für das Generalgouvernement, Krakau (Official Legislation Gazette for the General Government)597, – Dzieřřik Urz dŚwy Szefa Okr gu WarszawskiegŚ. GuberřatŚrstwŚ Geřeralře dla okupowanych polskich obszarów. Amtsblatt des Chefs des Distrikts Warschau für die besetzten polnischen Gebiete, Warszawa (Official Legislation Gazette of the Head of the Warsaw District General Government for the Occupied Polish Territories)598, – Dzieřřik Urz dŚwy StarŚsty Miasta Warszawy Okr gu WarszawskiegŚ GeřeralřegŚ Gubernatorstwa. Amtliches Mitteilungsblatt des Stadthauptmanns in Warschau, Distrikt Warschau, Warschau (Official Legislation Gazette of the Warsaw City Governor, Warsaw District of the GG)599, – Dzieřřik Obwieszczeń Miasta Warszawy. Mitteiluřgsblatt der Stadt Warschau (Public Announcements Gazette for the City of Warsaw)600, – Dzieřřik Urz dŚwy Szefa Dystryktu Radom w Gubernatorstwie Generalnym dla Okupowanych Polskich Obszarów. Amtsblatt des Chefs des Distrikts Radom im Generalgouvernement für die besetzten polnischen Gebiete, Radom (Official Legislation Gazette of the District Governor of Radom in the GG for the Occupied Polish Territories)601, – Dzieřřik Urz dŚwy Szefa Krakowskiego Dystryktu w Gubernatorstwie Generalnym dla Okupowanych Obszarów Polskich. Amtsblatt des Chefs des Distrikts Krakau im Generalgouvernement für die besetzten polnischen Gebiete. Teil 2. Polnische und Ukrainische Angabe (Official Legislation Gazette of the District Governor of Krakow in the GG for the Occupied Polish Territories. Part 2. Information in Polish and Ukrainian, Krakow)602, – Dzieřřik Urz dŚwy Okr gu SzefŚstwa Lubliř śrzy Geřeralřym GuberřatŚrze řa Zaj tych Obszarach Polskich. Amtsblatt des Chefs des Distrikts Lublin im Generalgouvernement für die besetzten polnischen Gebiete, Lublin (Official Legislation Gazette of the District Governor of Lublin in the GG for the Occupied Polish Territories)603, 596 BN, R. 1939, call no. P.25040. BN, R. 1940-1945, call no. P. 23091. 598 BN, R. 1939-1942, call no. P.25060A. 599 BN, R. 1942-1944, call no. P.25061. 600 BN, R. 1939-1942, call no. P.70909. 601 BN, R. 1939-1940, call no. P.281021A, P.281019A, P.281020A. 602 BN, R. 1940, call no. P.77181A. 603 BN, R. 1939-1942, call no. P.77185A. 597 282 – Dzieřřik Urz dŚwy StarŚsty PŚwiatu GrójeckiegŚ. Amtliches Kreisblatt für den Kreis Grójec [or: Amtliches Mitteilungsblatt des Kreishauptmanns in Grojec], Grójec (Official Legislation Gazette of the Grójec County Governor)604, – Dzieřřik Urz dŚwy StarŚsty PŚwiatŚwegŚ ŁŚwickiegŚ w GG dla OkuśŚwařych PŚlskich Obszarów Okr gu WarszawskiegŚ 19ė0-1943 (Official Legislation Gazette of the County Governor Śf ŁŚwicz iř the GG fŚr the Occuśied PŚlish TerritŚries Śf the Warsaw District)605, – Dzieřřik RŚzśŚrz dzeń StarŚsty PŚwiatŚwegŚ w Krasřymstawie. Kreisblatt des Kreishauptmanns in Krasnystaw, Krasnystaw (Official Legislation Gazette of the Krasnystaw County Governor)606, – Dzieřřik OgłŚszeń dla LudřŚ ci PŚlskiej PŚwiatu: Beřdsburg, Bielitz, Blachstadt, Ilkenau, Krenau, Saybusch, Sosnowitz, Warthenau. Bekanntmachungsblatt für die polnische Bevölkerung, Kattowitz (Public Announcements Gazette for the Polish Populace of Katowice County)607, – Politischer Informationsdienst. Gruppe B. Hrsg. Vom Befehlshaber der Ordnungspolizei beim Generalgouverneur (Political Information Service, Group B, compiled by the Commander of the Orpo affiliated to the General Governor)608, – Sonderdienst Generalgouvernement. Mitteilungsblatt der Inspektion (Mitteilungsblatt für den Sonderdienst Hilfspolizei im Generalgouvernement) (Legislation Gazette for the Auxiliary Special Police Service in the GG)609, – Dzieřřik Urz dŚwy Izby ZdrŚwia w Geřeralřym GuberřatŚrstwie, Kraków (LegislatiŚř Gazette for the Chamber of Health in the GG, Krakow)610. Many other legislation and information gazettes and other official German papers were published, mostly relating to the economy (e.g. by the Chambers of Industry and Commerce for each district), propaganda611, and professional and sector issues, or for training purposes612. Finally, there was also 604 BN, R. 1940-1942, call no. P.77179A, P.77180A. ŁŚwicz, library cŚllectiŚřs, call řŚ. ėę1. 606 BN, R. 1941, call no. P.70038A. 607 BN, R. 1942-1945, call no. P.280652. 608 BN, R. 1941-1943, call no. P.25083. 609 BN, R. 1942-1944, call no. P.25083. 610 BN, R. 1940-1944, call no. P.25010. 611 Mitteilungsblatt der Hauptabteilung Propaganda, Regierung des Generalgouvernements Krakau, BN, R.1942-1943, call no. P.23092. 612 E.g. the paper for railway workers, Amtliches Nachrichtenblatt der Generaldirektion der Ostbahn in Krakau, BN, R. 1940-1944, call no. P.25028. 605 AP 283 the pseudo-scientific quarterly Die Burg613, published in Krakow by the Institute for German Work in the East (IDO, Institut für Deutsche Ostarbeit) and devoted to matters such as proving the ethnic Germanity of the occupied Polish territories (including the capital of the GG, Krakow); this also included material on Jews.614 A deśartmeřt fŚr “Jew studies” (JudeřfŚrschuřg) was established at IDO, run by Josef Sommerfeld, the author of many anti-Jewish texts including a very extensive paper on Jews in Polish proverbs.615 THE LEGAL PRESS FOR JEWS IN POLISH AND YIDDISH For a certain period during the war there were two papers legally published and distributed among Jews in the Polish lands, one in the GG in Polish, Gazeta ydŚwska (Yidishe Tzaytung) for Jews living in the ghettos, and the other in Yiddish, Geto Tzaytung616, which came Śut iř the Łód ghettŚ fŚr seveř mŚřths iř 19ė1; this was řŚt circulated Śutside Łód tŚ Śther Jewish ceřtres ařd iř view Śf its cŚřteřt was iřteřded sśecifically fŚr Łód Jews. The full title Śf this latter was Geto Tzaytung. Far Informatziye, Farordnungen un Bakantmakhungen (Ghetto Newspaper. For News, Orders and Announcements). It came out regularly every week from 7 March 1941 until 21 September 1941 – in all, 18 issues each 4-6 pages in length, giving a total of 76 pages of text. Copies of Geto Tzaytung are hard tŚ fiřd řŚwadays; sŚme have beeř śreserved ařd are held iř A IH617 ařd AP Łód 618 . The Łód ghettŚ řewsśaśer was the braiřchild Śf Chaim MŚrdechaj RumkŚwski, the head Śf the CŚuřcil Śf Jewish Elders iř the Łód GhettŚ, whŚ frŚm the establishment of the ghetto sought permission fŚr its śublicatiŚř ařd fŚr the acquisitiŚř Śf a śriřtiřg śress. It was esseřtially RumkŚwski’s śersŚřal property and a propaganda instrument of his own; it ceased to be distributed owing to lack of paper. The editor, and author of virtually all the articles in Geto Tzaytung was Samuel (Szmul) Rozensztajn, head Śf the ghettŚ’s śress deśartmeřt ařd a clŚse cŚlleague Śf RumkŚwski’s, befŚre the war a Hebrew teacher and journalist writing for papers including the Zionist daily Haynt.619 According to the author of the only paper on this subject, Monika Polit, Geto Tzaytung “fulfilled its assigřed 613 Die Burg. Vierteljahresschrift des Instituts für Deutsche Ostarbeit, Krakau. Cf. A. Rybicka, Instytut Niemieckiej Pracy Wschodniej. Institut für Deutsche Ostarbeit Kraków 1940-1945, Warszawa 2002, chaśter eřtitled “Odd wi k ařty ydŚwskiej śŚlityki řiemieckiej w śublikacjach Iřstytutu”, śś. 113-118. 615 J. SŚmmerfeld, “Die Juden in den polnischen Sprichwörtern und sprichwörtlichen Redensarten”, Die Burg, 1942, H. 3, pp. 313-354. 616 Cf. M. PŚlit, “'Geto Cajtung' – gazeta Mordechaja Chaima Rumkowskiego”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2006, no. 2, pp. 392-403. 617 BibliŚteka IH ( IH Library), call řŚ. PJ.21. 618 AP Łód , RG PS . 619 Ibidem, p. 393. RŚzeřsztajř wrŚte a diary iř Yiddish, see: A IH, call řŚ. 301/11Ę, trařslated by MŚřika PŚlit ařd published: Szmul Rozensztajn, Notatnik, trans. and ed. Monika Polit, Warszawa 2008. 614 284 propaganda mission perfectly. In its selective use of materials it in fact virtually never actually provided information, i.e. it did not allow its readers to make subjective judgements or individual assessmeřts (…). It gave řŚ iřfŚrmatiŚř Śř the wŚrld beyŚřd the barbed wire Śf the ghettŚ. The reasons for this were prudence and fear, for of course every issue (translated into German) was sent tŚ the GestaśŚ ařd the Germař GhettŚ AdmiřistratiŚř (GettŚverwaltuřg, Niemiecki Zarz d Getta).”620 It used typical propaganda-style language: persuasive, stigmatizing, and judgmental. It is Śře Śf the sŚurces fŚr research iřtŚ RumkŚwski’s rŚle iř the Łód ghettŚ ařd the meařs he employed to execute the functions designated to him by the Germans. The other legal press title, also subject to full control by the German censorship and police, was Gazeta ydŚwska (G ), which was published in the GG between 23 July 1940 (R. I, no. 1) and 30 August 1942 (R. 3, no. 103621) and printed officially by Jüdische Presse GmbH (Jewish Press Ltd.) in Krakow, under trustee administration, whose editorial offices were at 49 Dietla Street; the paper also had offices and editŚrial (admiřistrative) Śffices iř Warsaw, Cz stŚchŚwa, Lubliř, RadŚm ařd Kielce. G had a circulation of probably 6,500 copies, cost 30 groszy, and came out every Tuesday and Friday. In all, 47 issues were published in 1940, 129 in 1941, and 103 in 1942 (in total 279 issues, each numbering 8-12 pages). The editor-in-chief of G was Fritz Seifter of Bielsko, a controversial figure with a colourful prewar past involving personal commitment to building Jewish-German relations during the period when he worked as a journalist for, and from 1934 editor-in-chief of the weekly Jüdische Wochenpost (Jewish Weekly Post) 622 , published in Bielsko for the German-speaking Jewish community. In the occupation-era G , considered a collaborative, reptilian Jewish paper, articles were written under pseudonyms.623 Even so, some names are mooted as probable contributors. As well as Marcel ReichRařicki, these alsŚ iřcluded Edmuřd Steiř (a lecturer iř Jewish studies), Majer Bałabař (a śrŚfessŚr of history), and the journalists Hilel Zajdman, Abraham (Aron) Rogowoj, Szulim Rozenfeld, Szaul (Szymon) Stupnicki and Langier (Langer). G was a way for German propaganda to reach the Jewish 620 “ąGeto Cajtung'”, Śś. cit., p. 401. is the last issue preserved in the BN collections, call no. P.3102207. 622 L. JŚckheck, “Od ageřta dŚ kŚlabŚrařta? Wsśółśraca ydŚwskiegŚ śublicysty Fritza Seiftera z Bielska z władzami řiemieckimi w latach trzydziestych i czterdziestych”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2006, no. 2, pp. 163-176. 623 The now well-known German literary critic Marcel Reich-Ranicki, who was in the Warsaw ghetto during the war and in view of his excellent knowledge of German found employment in the Judenrat, has admitted to being the author of articles Śř music sigřed by WiktŚr Hart, cf. L. JŚckheck, “Od agenta...”, Śś. cit., ś. 1ęĘ. 621 This 285 cŚmmuřities iř the GG: “the sŚle task Śf the řewsśaśer is tŚ iřfŚrm Jews iř the GG Śf Jewish issues iř the mařřer we desire” reads a statemeřt iř a memŚrařdum released by the Abteiluřg Volksaufklärung und Propaganda on 27 July 1940. 624 In spite of its character as an official paper controlled by the occupiers (and thus giving a false picture), G is a very good source for researching some aspects of wartime day-to-day life and reality, with a considerable volume of detailed information on a range of subjects such as occupation law, regulations and ordinances affecting Jews in the GG, and economic life, including restrictions on paid employment, tax obligations, trustee administrations, cultural and religious life, and the Jewish health service and judiciary. It also contains iřfŚrmatiŚř Śř the wŚrk Śf the JudeřrŹte ařd the SS, ařd eveř tŚuches Śř cases Śf emigration to Palestine (sic!), which was a way of masking the situation in which the Jews found themselves and awakening in them hope of the possibility of taking action which in reality was impossible. G published novels in instalments, had a regular chess section, and contained satirical cartoons, various texts fŚr meřtal exercise, ařd hŚmecare tiśs. Of great iřterest is the “Classified ads” sectiŚř (fŚr Warsaw and the provinces) with regular sections such as: medical, positions vacant, positions sought, wanted, for sale, education and care, matrimonial, local, and miscellaneous. It contains numerous announcements and advertisements for funeral parlours. G advertised itself as “the Śřly Jewish newspaper in the General Government (....) and the only Jewish advertisiřg medium”, ařd as such had to take the place of the hundreds of Jewish press titles that were published in prewar Poland. 625 Iř sśite Śf all the schŚlar’s reservatiŚřs ařd its limitatiŚřs, it is a suśerb sŚurce fŚr research iřtŚ areas such as the everyday life of the Jews under the German occupation. Information from G must, of course, be read and interpreted appropriately, and supplemented with news from other sources. It has been the subject of only a few monographic works626, but it has been used as a primary source for articles by Marian Fuks on the subject of the Judenräte and life in small ghettos627, while for the authors of GettŚ warszawskie. PrzewŚdnik śŚ nieistniejącym mie cie 628 it was a valuable source of much information on the Warsaw ghetto not available from any other sources. “Prasa polska 1939-1945”, Śś. cit., ś. 32. M. Fuks, “Prasa ydŚwska w PŚlsce XIX i śierwszej śŚłŚwie XX wieku (dŚ kŚńca drugiej wŚjřy wiatŚwej)”, RŚcznik HistŚrii CzasŚśi miennictwa PŚlskiegŚ, 1973, vol. 12, bk 1. 626 T. Cie lak, “Z histŚrii śrasy řiemieckiej w j zyku śŚlskim. II: HitlerŚwska „Gazeta ydŚwska” w KrakŚwie. (23 VII 1940 – 30 VIII 19ė2)”, Rocznik Historii Czasośi miennictwa PŚlskiegŚ, 1969, vol. VIII, booklet 4, pp. 579-588; M. Jařczewska, “„Gazeta ydŚwska” (19ė0-19ė2)”, [in:] Studia z dziejów trójjęzycznej śrasy ydŚwskiej na ziemiach śŚlskich (XIXXX w.), ed. J. Nalewajko-Kulikov, Warszawa 2012. 627 M. Fuks, “Małe Judeřraty w wietle „Gazety ydŚwskiej” 19ė0-1942”, B IH, 1983, no. 2-3 (126-127), pp. 169-199; 1983, no. 4 (128), pp. 99-117; idem, “ ycie w gettach Geřeralřej Guberři řa tle „Gazety ydŚwskiej” 19ė0-1942”, B IH, 1971, no. 3 (79), pp. 3-47; 1971, no. 4 (80), pp. 23-41; 1972, no. 1 (81), pp. 41-69. 628 B. Engelking, J. Leociak, GettŚ warszawskie. PrzewŚdnik śŚ nieistniejącym mie cie, Warszawa 2013, p. 19. 624 625 Cf. 286 THE POLISH UNDERGROUND PRESS All in all, the Polish underground press numbered around 1,500 titles, perhaps even as many as 2,000. Of several hundred of these we know no more than that they existed, for not even isolated copies have been preserved. These papers, as the only historical source type other than personal documentary literature not subject to German censorship, portray real opinions, moods and knowledge regarding the reality of the occupation from the point of view of Polish groups of all shades of ideological, political and military opinion; they also offer insight into the degree to which Polish society was informed and aware of the ongoing issues and position of the Jewish population. Study of Polish-Jewish relations during the occupation without resort to the underground press is impossible. Among the most important archives and museums holding Polish underground press titles are the National Library (BN) with around 500 titles, the Central Archive of Modern Records (AAN) with 1,282 titles, including 109 underground press titles from the period of the Warsaw city rising in 1944, the National Archive in Krakow (ANK) with 221 titles issued by various organizations and parties, the Jagiellonian University Library (BUJ)629, the Tatra Museum in Zakopane630, and the Polish collections in London631. Many of the Polish and Jewish underground press titles are held in A IH iř Zbiór dŚkumeřtów kŚřsśiracyjřych, w tym prasy [varia okupacyjne] (Collection of conspiratorial documents, including press [occupation miscellanea]) 1939-1945. These are not the only archives and institutions holding underground press, of course – and there are doubtless interesting holdings in Ukrainian and Lithuanian private collections and archives. In Vilnius there were at least 28 titles, iř Navahrudak 7, iř BiałystŚk 1ę, iř PŚlesia 3; mŚst Śf these were śublished by Słu ba Zwyci stwa PŚlski (Service fŚr PŚlařd’s VictŚry, SZP), the Armed Combat Union (ZWZ), and the Home Army (AK) and are at present held in Lithuanian archive collections. In the Lwów, TarřŚśŚl ařd Stařisławów vŚivŚdshiśs sŚme 70 śress titles were śublished uřder the Germař occupation (as well as around 16 underground press titles under the Soviet occupation), and these collections of BUJ include 12 titles not in the possession of the BN: MałŚśŚlska Agencja Prasowa, Dziennik Poranny, GłŚs Ludu, GłŚs WŚlnŚ ci, Jutro Polski, Komunikat W[alki] C[ywilnej], M[ałŚśŚlska] A[gencja] R[adiowa], Odra-Nysa, Polska Walczy, Prasa Angielska, Wolna i Zjednoczona and WŚlnŚ ć. 630 Titles in the collections of the Tatra Museum: Biuletyn Informacyjny (ZWZ AK), Der Frontkampfer, GłŚs PŚdhala, Goniec Krakowski, Hyr Tatrzański, Insurekcja, Jutro PN, Rzeczpospolita Polska, Śłnierz PŚlski, Śłnierz PŚlski w Drugiej WŚjnie wiatŚwej, WiadŚmŚ ci PŚlskie, WiadŚmŚ ci CŚdzienne, WiadŚmŚ ci, Walka, SłŚwŚ PŚlskie, Przegląd PŚlski, Przegląd, Polski Dzwon, PŚlska yje, PŚlska i wiat, Odnowa, Komunikat Wojenny, Na ucho, Nowa Polska, Komunikaty z Frontów Wojennych. 631 “Polska prasa podziemna (1939-19ėĘ) w zbiŚrach lŚřdyńskich. Zestawieřie czasŚśism i numerów polskiej prasy podziemnej (1939-19ėĘ), których řie zawiera „Katalog polskiej prasy konspiracyjnej 1939-1945”, wydařy w kraju w rŚku 19ę2 w ŚśracŚwařiu DŚbrŚszyckiegŚ, a które zřajduj si w zbiŚrach lŚřdyńskich BibliŚteki PŚlskiej (B.P.), PŚlish Research Center (P.R.C.) i Studium Polski Podziemnej (S.P.P.)”, cŚmśiled by J. Galiński, LŚřdyř 19ę2 [reśrŚduced mařuscriśt]. Contains information on 59 titles. 629 The 287 are for the most part kept in archives in Lwów and the Stefanyk Library in Lwów (formerly the Ossolineum). The underground press has been profiled in many publications on the various political alliances, the areas where the Polish underground was active, or the archives holding underground printed matter. 632 The mŚřŚgraśh edited by Jerzy ŁŚjek 633 offers a useful overview of the whole subject, not just the underground press. Full sets of titles have survived in few cases, and those that have were the most widely circulated ones distributed across an extensive area by the largest organizations. Many papers would change their graphic design, and even title and other information such as śublishers’ cryśtŚřyms, which minimized the likelihood of deconspiracy during the war, but today sadly complicates archive searches and research into this material. Underground newspapers were issued by several dozen political and military organizations operating at the time: above all the AK ařd the GŚverřmeřt DelegatiŚř fŚr PŚlařd (DR), Miecz i Pług (SwŚrd ařd PlŚugh)634, various rightwing groups in the National Party (Stronnictwo Narodowe), the Konfederacja Narodu (National Confederation), Szaniec (Rampart), Znak (Sign), Pobudka (Awakening), Unia (Union), Polscy SŚcjali ci (the PŚlish SŚcialists) ařd dŚzeřs Śf Śthers. It has becŚme stařdard śractice tŚ grŚuś underground publications according to their political and organizational provenance, and by genre.635 632 Cf. J. Cie lakiewicz, H. FalkŚwska, A. PaczkŚwski, Polska prasa konspiracyjna (1939-1945) i Powstania Warszawskiego w zbiorach Biblioteki Narodowej – Katalog, Warszawa 198ė [713 titles]; A. Cie lakŚwa, Prasa okupowanego Lwowa, Warszawa 1997; L. DŚbrŚszycki, W. Kiedrzyńska, Centralny katalog polskiej prasy konspiracyjnej 1939-1945, Warszawa 1962 [1,123 titles]; B. Golka, Prasa konspiracyjna ruchu ludowego 1939-1945, Warszawa 197Ę; A. PrzygŚński, Prasa konspiracyjna PPR, Warszawa 1966; M. Adamczyk, Kieleckie czasŚśi miennictwŚ kŚnsśiracyjne 1939-1945, Kielce 197ę; A. SłŚmkŚwska, Prasa PPR, GL-AK, KRN na Kielecczy nie 1942-1945, Warszawa 1976; Z. Hirsz, Lubelska prasa konspiracyjna, Lublin 1968; J. Jarowiecki, Konspiracyjna prasa w Krakowie w latach okupacji hitlerowskiej 1939-1945, Kraków 1980 [1Ę8 titles]; J. JarŚwiecki, “Prasa w Polsce w latach 1939-1945”, [iř:] Polska prasa w latach 1939-1945, ed. J. ŁŚjek, Warszawa 1980; St. LewařdŚwska, Polska konspiracyjna prasa informacyjno-polityczna 1939-1945, Warszawa 1982; eadem, Prasa okupowanej Warszawy 1939-1945, Warszawa 1992; W. Mroczkowski, H. Nowosad-Łaśtiew, Polska prasa konspiracyjna 1939-1945. Prasa Powstania Warszawskiego 1944. Katalog, Warszawa 1979 [1,089 titles]; T.K. KŚzłŚwski, H. Szcześařik, Sśis tytułów śrasy harcerskiej 1939-1945 (Konspiracja i Powstanie Warszawskie), Zesśół HistŚryczřy GK ZHP, Warszawa 198Ę; P. SzaśirŚ, “Katalog polskiej prasy konspiracyjnej 1939-1945 w zbiorach polskich i zagranicznych”, tyśescriśt [aśśrŚx. 1,200 titles]; M. OrłŚwski, Prasa konspiracyjna Stronnictwa Narodowego w latach 1939-1947, PŚzřań 200ę; Broszury konspiracyjne Stronnictwa Narodowego z lat 1939-1946, selected ařd ed. MirŚsław OrłŚwski, PŚzřań 2010; R. Macyra, Prasa konspiracyjna w Kraju Warty w latach 1939-1945, PŚzřań 200ę. 633 “Prasa polska w latach 1939-1945”, Śś. cit. 634 OrgařizatiŚř fŚuřded iř 1939 by Fr LeŚř PŚeślau (śseud. “WŚlař”), frŚm 19ė0 a member Śf the KŚmitet PŚrŚzumiewawczy Orgařizacji NieśŚdległŚ ciŚwych (KPON, Iřdeśeřdeřce OrgařizatiŚřs LiaisŚř CŚmmittee). FrŚm 19ė2 its head, AřatŚl SłŚwikŚwski, maiřtaiřed cŚřtacts with the German police, for which he was eliminated by members of the organization. In 1944 the military units of Sword and Plough joined the NSZ and thus also the AK. 635 ClassificatiŚř emślŚyed iř “Prasa polska 1939-1945”, Śś. cit.: 1) Press śublications by SZP, ZWZ and AK, 2) Press śublicatiŚřs Śf the DR, 3) Press śublicatiŚřs by Szare Szeregi (the uřdergrŚuřd ScŚutiřg mŚvemeřt), ė) Press by “akcja N” (OśeratiŚř N, diversionary and propaganda activities conducted among the Germans in the years 1941-1944 with the aim of weakening morale and battle-readiness), 5) Press publications by the Popular Movement, 6) Socialist press publications, 7) Democratic and syndicalist press publications, 8) Press publications by Stronnictwo Pracy (Labour Party) 288 The most important press title of the Polish underground in AK (SZP and ZWZ) circles was Biuletyn Informacyjny636, the first issue of which came out on 5 November 1939 and the last in January 1945. Its founder and editor-in-chief was Aleksařder Kamiński, ařd frŚm 19ė0 the śaśer was incorporated iřtŚ the śublishiřg structure Śf the AK High CŚmmařd’s Office Śf IřfŚrmatiŚř ařd PrŚśagařda (BIP KG AK). Its contributors tapped many different sources of information. Biuletyn Informacyjny was the beřchmark fŚr all the AK’s lŚcal śaśers, ařd was subject to preventative censorship by the BIP KG AK. It had a print run of 24,000 copies (1942), later 43,000 (1943-1944), and was distributed throughout the country. In all, 317 issues of the paper were published. In AK circles there were dozens of papers edited and distributed by its various area and regional units. The main press organ of the DR was Rzeczpospolita Polska; it also published the weekly Kraj for underground activists. Its political rival in the underground, the National Armed Forces (NSZ), probably extended its patronage to around 140 titles637, of which fewer than half have been preserved to today. There is no space in this publication for even a brief profile of the content of articles published by the various groups. Of greatest importance and impact were the titles with the highest circulation, among them Biuletyn Informacyjny (imprint of 50,000); WiadŚmŚ ci PŚlskie (7,000-10,000); Trybuna WŚlnŚ ci, Trybuna Ludu and GłŚs Warszawy – papers published by the PPR (approx. 7,000); and Przegląd – the paper of the peasant movement (6,000). On the basis of these papers it is possible to trace not only the degree to which underground activist circles were informed of the fates of the Jewish population interned in the ghettos and deported to the extermination camps (i.e. what was known), but also their attitudes to these facts (what was thought) and the action that they took (what was done). This is an invaluable source for the study of the evolution of opinions on the Holocaust and the place of the Jews among the various Polish groups and circles in postwar Poland. 638 Owing to the breadth of this subject, which includes the part of the Jews in the partisan units and the attitudes of partisan formations ařd “sařacja” śublicatiŚřs (Sařacja [Lat. SařatiŚ, “healiřg”] – řame Śf the śŚlitical fŚrces arŚuřd Józef Piłsudski that wielded power in Poland in the years 1926-1939), 9) Press śublicatiŚřs by the “řatiŚřal camś”, 10) Press by the śrŚSŚviet PŚlish WŚrkers’ Party (PPR) and related organizations, 11) Press publications from the 1944 Warsaw city rising, 12) Other and unidentified (including private initiatives). 636 Other AK titles were: WiadŚmŚ ci PŚlskie, Agencja Prasowa, Sprawy Polskie, Dziennik Radiowy and GłŚs Ojczyzny. 637 Cf. W.J. Muszyński, W walce Ś Wielką PŚlskę, Warszawa 2000. 638 Cf. D. LibiŚřka, “PŚlska kŚřsśiracja wŚbec ekstermiřacji ydów w dystrykcie warszawskim”, [in:] PrŚwincja nŚc. ycie i zagłada ydów w dystrykcie warszawskim, ed. B. Engelking, J. LeŚciak, D. LibiŚřka, Warszawa 2007; idem, “ZWZ-AK i Delegatura Rz du PŚlskiegŚ wŚbec ekstermiřacji ydów śŚlskich”, [in:] PŚlacy i ydzi śŚd Śkuśacją niemiecką 1939-1945. Studia i materiały, ed. A. bikŚwski, Warszawa 200ę, śś. 1Ę-207. 289 toward Jews639, as well as the question of aid to and rescue of Jews640, and in view of the vast number of press titles and the degree of advancement of the research, all that is possible here is to cite the major works published to date in which the reader will find further information on the Polish underground press and its usefulness for Holocaust research. Among Polish scholars, the most exteřsive study has beeř cŚřducted by Paweł SzaśirŚ 641; it is also worth looking at the work of Andrzej Friszke642, Jerzy Jarowiecki643, Władysław BartŚszewski644 and other scholars645. The most recent publications by Dariusz Libionka on the subject of attitudes in the Polish underground to the Holocaust make extensive use of press materials, while the broadest monograph on Polish-Jewish relations in light of the Polish underground press was written by the German historian Klaus-Peter Friedrich.646 Cf. A. Puławski, “PŚstrzegařie ydŚwskich Śddziałów śartyzařckich śrzez Armi KrajŚw i Delegatur Rz du řa Kraj”, Pamięć i SśrawiedliwŚ ć, 2003, řŚ. 2; A. BańkŚwska, “Partyzantka polska lat 1942-19ėė w relacjach ydŚwskich”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2005, no. 1, pp. 148-164. 640 Cf. T. Prekerowa, KŚnsśiracyjna Rada PŚmŚcy ydŚm w Warszawie 1942-1945, Warszawa 1982; K. Iranek-Osmecki, Kto ratuje jednŚ ycie... PŚlacy i ydzi 1939-1945, LŚřdyř 19ę8; M. UryřŚwicz, “Zorganizowana i indywidualna pomoc Polaków dla ludřŚ ci ydŚwskiej ekstermiřŚwařej śrzez Śkuśařta řiemieckiegŚ w Śkresie drugiej wŚjřy wiatŚwej”, [in:] Polacy i ydzi śŚd Śkuśacją niemiecką, op. cit., pp. 209-364. 641 P. Szapiro, WŚjna ydŚwskŚ-niemiecka. Polska prasa konspiracyjna 1943-1944 o powstaniu w getcie Warszawy, selected and cŚmśiled by P. SzaśirŚ, LŚřdyř 1992; idem, “Prasa kŚřsśiracyjřa jakŚ ródłŚ dŚ dziejów stŚsuřków śŚlskŚ- ydŚwskich 1939-19ėĘ”, B IH, 1988, no. 3-4 (147-148), pp. 197-210. 642 A. Friszke, “Publicystyka PŚlski PŚdziemřej wŚbec zagłady ydów 1939-1944”, [iř:] Polska-Polacy-mniejszŚ ci narŚdŚwe. PŚlska my l śŚlityczna XIX i XX wieku, vŚl. VIII, WrŚcław–Warszawa–Kraków 1992, pp. 193-213. 643 J. JarŚwiecki, “HŚlŚkaust w Śkresie hitlerŚwskim w śŚlskiej śrasie kŚřsśiracyjřej”, Rocznik Historii Prasy Polskiej, 1999, vol. 2, pp. 51-80; idem, “Holokaust w polskiej prasie konspiracyjnej (1939-1945)”, [iř:] HŚlŚkaust lekcja histŚrii zagłady ydów w edukacji szkŚlnej, ed. J. ChrŚbaczewski, P. TrŚjański, Kraków 200ė, śś. 1ė-33. 644 W. Bartoszewski, Z. Lewinówna, Ten jest z Śjczyzny mŚjej. PŚlacy z śŚmŚcą ydŚm 1939-1945, Kraków 1969; W. BartŚszewki, “Polska Podziemna a walka getta warszawskiego. Wybrane zagadnienia”, B IH, 1973, no. 2-3 (86-87), pp. 45-66. 645 PŚlskie śŚdziemie śŚlityczne wŚbec zagłady ydów w czasie okupacji niemieckiej. Referaty z sesji Warszawa, 22 kwietnia 1987, GKBZHwP-IPN, IřfŚrmacja wewř trzřa řŚ. 9ę, Warszawa 1988 [cŚřtrŚversial ařgle]; SśŚłeczeństwŚ śŚlskie wŚbec martyrŚlŚgii i walki ydów w latach II wŚjny wiatŚwej. Materiały z sesji w Instytucie Historii PAN w dniu 11 III 1993 r., preface and scientific ed. Krzysztof Dunin-W sŚwicz, Warszawa 199ę; A. MichałŚwska, “PŚstawy wŚbec HŚlŚcaustu ydów w polskiej prasie konspiracyjnej. Analiza wybranych czasopism”, Kultura i SśŚłeczeństwo, 1990, no. 2; S. Krakowski, “PŚdziemie śŚlskie wŚbec zagłady ydów”, Odra, 1991, řŚ. ė; B. ChrzařŚwski, “Ekstermiřacja ludřŚ ci ydŚwskiej w wietle śŚlskich wydawřictw kŚřsśiracyjřych”, B IH, 1985, no. 1-2; S. Rudřicki, “MŚg yć, byle řie u řas... PrŚśagařda NSZ wŚbec ydów”, Wię , 200ę, řŚ. ė, ś. 102; A. Pawelczyk, “KŚřsśiracyjřa Śrgařizacja katŚlików FrŚřt OdrŚdzeřia PŚlski”, śraca dŚktŚrska řaśisařa śŚd Śśiek śrŚmŚtŚrsk śrŚfesŚra JerzegŚ KłŚczkŚwskiegŚ, KUL, Lublin, 1989, praca niepublikowana [unpublished doctoral dissertation]. 646 Iř 2002 he defeřded a PhD thesis at CŚlŚgře Uřiversity eřtitled “Der nationalsozialistische Judenmord in polnischen Augen: Einstellungen in der polnischen Presse 1942-1946/47” (httś://kuśs.ub.uři-koeln.de/volltexte/2003/952/), which later appeared in print in a slightly altered version: K.P. Friedrich, Der nationalsozialistische Judenmord und das polnischjüdische Verhältnis im Diskurs der polnischen Untergrundpresse (1942-1944), Marburg 200ę; cf. idem, “Nazistowski mord na ydach w śrasie śŚlskich kŚmuřistów (19ė2-1944)”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2006, no. 2, pp. 54-75. 639 290 THE JEWISH UNDERGROUND PRESS The total elimination from the life of society of a legal press not subject to German control and censorship meant that the Jews, isolated and enclosed within the walls of the ghettos, took independent action to keep the Jewish community informed of the true course of the war and occupation, and to encourage particularly young people to mount operations in self-defence. In spite of the immense difficulties with procuring paper and printing presses, around 60 Jewish underground press titles came out, most of them in the Warsaw ghetto, a few in the Krakow ghetto647, ařd a few iř the Łód ghettŚ648. The majority were in Yiddish (and Hebrew), but around 20 Warsaw press titles were in Polish. 649 Some of the papers were not printed but copied out on a tyśewriter usiřg carbŚř śaśer, while Śthers distributed as “śriřted śaśers” were actually cŚśied Śut again and again by hand by members of a given organization. There was essentially none among the larger parties or youth organizations that did not have a press mouthpiece in the ghetto. The Warsaw ghetto was the main centre in which these papers were published and distributed, but they also reached other centres across the GG via the network of underground connections. They circulated in very varying numbers – from a few dozen to a thousand copies. The sources of outside information for the Jews editing these papers were radio taps, the Polish underground press, and personal contact with people outside the ghettos. Underground Jewish newspapers came out more or less between September 1940 and the end of 1942, when most of the ghettos in the GG were liquidated and those who were still alive were concentrated into the secondary ghettos and labour camps. The longest-ruřřiřg titles were thŚse śrŚmŚted by the OB, which came out in Krakow until the second half of 1943. Issues of the following Jewish papers have been preserved (listed by political orientation of the parties and organizations publishing them)650: – the Communists (in all 11 titles): Morgen Fray (Tomorrow Free), published between March ařd December 19ė2 by the grŚuś MłŚt i Sierś (Hammer ařd Sickle) ařd cŚřtiřued uřder the GłŚs DemŚkraty and Hehalutz Halokhem, bŚth śublished by the Jewish CŚmbat OrgařizatiŚř ( OB). (the Bund paper), Hamesaper (Heb. “NarratŚr”) ařd the literary suśślemeřt Min Hametzar (Heb. “FrŚm the Abyss”). Cf. M. Fuks, “ ydŚwska śrasa w Śkresie Śkuśacji hitlerŚwskiej w PŚlsce 19ė0-1943”, Kwartalnik Historii Prasy Polskiej, 1977, řŚ. 2; iř the Łód ghettŚ a ZiŚřist yŚuth śaśer from Marysin II also came out, Kol Hehazit (at least five issues), cŚśied Śut by hařd ařd illustrated with cŚlŚur drawiřgs (śreserved issues iř the cŚllectiŚř PS , AP Łód ). 649 Some papers were issued in three languages in parallel. 650 Cited after: Prasa polska 1939-1945, op. cit., pp. 119-121, iřveřtŚry Śf the cŚllectiŚř ARG, A IH, Riřg. I ařd Riřg. II, and the inventory of Zbiór dokumentów konspiracyjnych, w tym prasy [varia okupacyjne] 1939-1945 (Collection of conspiratorial documents, including press [occuśatiŚř miscellařea]), A IH. 647 648 Biuletyn 291 amended title Morgen Frayhayt (Freedom Tomorrow), Der Hammer (The Hammer), Der Arbeyter (The Worker); – the Trotskyites (2 titles): Czerwony Sztandar (The Red Standard) and Przegląd MarksistŚwski (The Marxist Review); – the socialist left wing (the Bund and Cukunft, in all 14 papers): Yunge Gvardiye (The Young Guard, for young people), Trybuna MłŚdych (Youth Tribune), Za naszą i waszą wŚlnŚ ć (For Our Freedom and Yours, targeting Polish readers), Tzayt-fragn (Current Affairs), Biuletyn (Bulletin), Yugnt Shtime (The Voice of Youth), Podziemne Ghetto (The Underground Ghetto), Der Veker. Informatziye biuletin (Awake. News Bulletin), Oyf der Vakh (On Guard), Das Fraye Vort (The Free Word), Der Glok (The Bell), Shturm (Storm), NŚwa MłŚdzie (New Youth); – the Zionist left wing (Poalei Zion Left, the General Zionists, Hashomer Hatzair, Hehalutz, Gordonia and Dror): Awangarda (The Avant-Garde), Awangarda MłŚdzie y (The Youth Avant-Garde), Nasze Hasła (Our Slogans), Jutrznia (Dawn), PrzedwiŚ nie (Early Spring), Yugnt Ruf (Call of the Young), Zarzewie (The Touchpaper), PłŚmienie (The Flame), Dror, Payn un Gvure (Torture and Heroism), Hehalutz Halokhem (The Pioneer in Struggle), El-Al (To the Skies), Iton Hatnua (The Movement Paper), Yediyes (News), Neged Hazerem (Against the Flow), Nowe Tory (New Tracks), Der Oyfbroyz (Boiling Point), Oysdoyer (Resolve), Proletarisher Gedank (Proletariat Thought), SłŚwŚ MłŚdych. PismŚ MłŚdzie y GŚrdŚnistycznej (Youth Word. Gordonian Youth Paper), Shviv (The Spark), Unzer Hofnung (Our Hope), Unzer Weg (Our Way); – the Zionist right wing (Poalei Zion Right): A Kol in der Midbar (A Voice in the Desert), Bafrayung (Liberation); – the assimilationists: agiew (exśařded frŚm the acrŚřym GW – ydŚwska Gwardia WŚlřŚ ci, Jewish FreedŚm Guard, bimŚřthly fŚr Jewish cŚmbatařts, or, according to I. Gutman, assimilated Jews651); – other groups (e.g. Zionist Revisionists): Magen David (The Star of David), Der Ruf (The Call, the paper of the Anti-Fascist Bloc). The largest cŚllectiŚřs Śf Jewish śress are iř A IH iř Warsaw ařd iř Israeli archives. A IH cŚllects press titles in two record groups: ARG and Zbiór dokumentów konspiracyjnych, w tym prasy (varia okupacyjne) 1939-1945. ARG contains both reptilian and German press titles, as well as 651 Cf. 292 I. Gutman, ydzi Warszawy 1939-1943, Warszawa 1993, p. 231. underground Polish and Jewish papers. At this point we will look further only at the latter category. ARG has two issues of the Bund paper from the period of the 1939 September campaign652, as well as daily and weekly papers from the Warsaw ghetto 653 and even the USSR 654 . The daily papers compiled by Oneg Shabat from radio taps 655 , and WiadŚmŚ ci ARG, profiled as the underground śaśer Śf the ydŚwska KŚmisja KŚŚrdyřacyjřa (Jewish CŚŚrdiřatiŚř CŚmmittee), which brŚught tŚgether the Jewish NatiŚřal CŚmmittee ( KN) ařd the Buřd 656 , are worthy of separate note. Whether WiadŚmŚ ci ARG was compiled by members of Oneg Shabat is not entirely certain, though the ARG scholar Ruta Sakowska leans towards that interpretation.657 Few studies have been made of the underground Jewish press, perhaps partly due to the language barrier, as without a knowledge of Yiddish (and Hebrew), work on this source is impossible. A full edition of the press titles from the Warsaw ghetto has been published in Israel (in Hebrew) in six volumes; the first five edited by Joseph Kermish and the sixth by Israel Shechem: The Jewish Underground Press in Warsaw – Itonut hamakhteret hayehudit be-Varsha, vol. 1-6, Jerusalem 1980-1997. An abridged edition has also been published, also in Hebrew, edited by David Blatman, called The Warsaw ghetto – a history of the press: a selection of the underground press 1940-1943, Jerusalem 2003 (for the French edition, see: En direct du ghetto: la presse clandestine juive dans le ghetto de Varsovie (1940-1943), Paris 2005). Havi Ben-SassŚř’s article on Polish-Jewish relations in the underground Jewish press that was recently translated into Polish is one of the few studies on this subject; it contains information on other publications about the Jewish press, chiefly Israeli ones.658 Two articles based on the press titles published in the Warsaw ghetto by left-wing groups have been released in recent years by Piotr Kendziorek.659 652 A IH, ARG, Riřg. I, call řŚ. 1272 (Folkstzaytung of 19 September 1939) and Ring. II, call no. 414 (Naye Folkstzaytung of 16 September 1939). 653 A IH, ARG, Ring. I, call no. 1295-1347 and Ring. II, call no. 419-428. 654 A IH, ARG, Riřg. I, call řŚ. 129ė (Der Shtern of 22 June 1941, the daily newspaper of the Communist Party of Ukraine). 655 A IH, ARG, Riřg. I, call řŚ. 1339. 656 A IH, ARG, Riřg. II, call řŚ. ė23. 657 Cf. R. SakŚwska, “ąWiadŚmŚ cią ARG i raśŚrty Ś Zagładzie. Status Archiwum Riřgelbluma w getcie szcz tkŚwym Warszawy”, Kwartalnik HistŚrii ydów, 2005, no. 1 (213), pp. 30-Ę0; eadem, “Biuro Informacji i Propagandy KG Armii Krajowej a Archiwum Ringelbluma (luty-lipiec 1942)”, B IH, 1992, no. 2-3 (162-163), pp. 19-34. 658 H. Ben-SassŚř, “„Chcemy wierzyć w iřř PŚlsk ”. StŚsuřki ydŚwskŚ-śŚlskie w śŚdziemřej śrasie ydŚwskiej getta warszawskiegŚ”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2005, no. 1, pp. 96-113. 659 P. KeřdziŚrek, “SśŚłeczřŚ-śŚlityczřa Śceřa charakteru II wŚjřy wiatŚwej w śrasie kŚřsśiracyjřej getta warszawskiegŚ”, Kwartalnik HistŚrii ydów, 2006, no. 3 (219), pp. 341-3Ę3; idem, “Prasa trockistowska w getcie warszawskim – próba charakterystyki”, [iř:] ydzi a lewica. Zbiór studiów historycznych, ed. A. Grabski, Warszawa 2007, pp. 119-154. 293 PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENTS, POSTERS AND EPHEMERA Public announcements and posters are a source used on an occasional basis by historians seeking information disseminated on a broad scale by the occupiers. They were displayed publicly and printed in relatively large quantities as they were designed to convey particular information to the largest possible number of people. In this chapter we will look only at those relevant to the Jewish populace (i.e. addressed to this group) or in which the Jews were the subject of propaganda – usually “warřiřgs” – directed at other groups. Aside from German posters and public announcements printed by the various administrative offices to inform the population of new legal regulations and Śrdiřařces, śublic ařřŚuřcemeřts have alsŚ beeř śreserved (frŚm Lubliř ařd Łód , ařd remřařts of such sheets from Warsaw and Krakow) issued and signed by the heads of the Jewish councils of large ghettos, who were forced by the occupying authorities to relay German orders to the Jews in the ghettos. A very large number of public announcements (nearly 500) bearing the signature of Chaim Mordechaj Rumkowski are held in all the collections devoted to the Rumkowski Archive, and also in Zbiór afiszy i plakatów.660 A vast number of printed materials of this category are also held in the PŚlish State Archives, mařy Śf them iř seśarate cŚllectiŚřs eřtitled “Zbiór ślakatów i druków ulŚtřych” (CŚllectiŚř Śf posters and ephemera). A few years ago the NDAP and USHMM ran a jŚiřt śrŚject with the Śbjective Śf “creatiřg a cŚmśuter database Śf all śublic śriřted matter (information) issued by various agencies (the occupying authorities or local governing bodies acting on their behalf) targeting or concerning the Jewish population and disseminated in the form of śublic ařřŚuřcemeřts (bills), śŚsters, ařd eśhemera”. The śrŚject was cŚmśleted, ařd the results Śf the archive searches conducted by archivists throughout the country were entered into a centralized database, “Afisz”. Oř that ŚccasiŚř the archive search cŚvered materials frŚm the years 1933-19451950, and generated positive results in the following archives and collections: AAN Warsaw: Regierung des GG (3 recŚrds), Niemieckie władze Śkuśacyjře (29 recŚrds). AP Cz stŚchŚwa: Akta miasta Cz stŚchŚwy (2 recŚrds), Zarz d Miejski w Cz stŚchŚwie (ė recŚrds), Zbiór afiszy i druków z tereřu Cz stŚchŚwy (2ė recŚrds), Obóz w Cz stŚchŚwie (1 record). AP Gda sk: Komisarz Geřeralřy RP w Gdańsku (2 recŚrds), Główřy Urz d PŚwierřiczy Wschód. Urz d PŚwierřiczy Gdańsk Prusy ZachŚdřie (1 recŚrd), R kŚśisy elbl skie (ė recŚrds). AP Katowice: Zbiór materiałów ulŚtřych (10 recŚrds), StarŚsta PŚwiatu B dzińskiegŚ (1 recŚrd), Akta miasta B dziřa (7 recŚrds). 660 Iř A IH, AP Łód , Yad Vashem iř Jerusalem ařd YIVO Iřstitute iř New YŚrk. 294 AP Gliwice: Zbiór materiałów ulŚtřych (ę recŚrds). AP Kielce: Akta gminy Duraczów (4 records). AN Krakow: Akta StarŚsty miasta KrakŚwa (13 recŚrds), Akta řiemieckich władz, iřstytucji, Śsób z czasów okupacji ziem polskich 1939-1945 (12 records), Zbiór afiszy i plakatów (28 records), KŚmisarz WŚjewódzki dla Sśraw PrŚduktywizacji LudřŚ ci ydŚwskiej w KrakŚwie (1 recŚrd), WŚjewódzki Urz d IřfŚrmacji i PrŚśagařdy w KrakŚwie (7 recŚrds). AP in Bochnia: Zbiór afiszy (5 records). AP Tarnów: Zarz d Miejski w TarřŚwie (3ę recŚrds). AP Lublin: Akta miasta Lublina (1 record), Gouverneur des Distrikts Lublin (12 records), Kreishauptmannschaft Lublin-Lařd (1 recŚrd), Gemeiřdeverbařd Puławy (1 recŚrd), Zbiór afiszy i druków ulotnych (3 records), Judenrat in Lublin (678 records). AP Łód : PrzełŚ Śřy Starszeństwa ydów w Getcie Łódzkim (Ęę3 recŚrds), Zbiór druków i śism ulotnych (8 records). AP Piotrków Trybunalski: Akta miasta Piotrkowa (20 records), Zbiór plakatów i druków ulotnych (11 records). AP Tomaszów Mazowiecki: StarŚstwŚ śŚwiatŚwe Brzezińskie (1 recŚrd), Zbiór ślakatów i druków ulotnych (13 records). AP PłŚck: Akta miasta PłŚcka (1ė recŚrds). AP Ł czyca: Akta z okresu okupacji hitlerowskiej (3 records). AP PŚzna : Reichsstatthalter im Reichsgau Wartheland – Posen (1 record). AP Przemy l: Akta miasta Przemy la (1 recŚrd), Akta miasta JarŚsławia (3 recŚrds), Akta Józefa Benbenka (2 records). AP Radom: Okr gŚwy KŚmitet ydŚwski w RadŚmiu (ė recŚrds), Zbiór afiszy, ślakatów i druków ulotnych (66 records), Gubernator Dystryktu Radomskiego (1 record). AP Rzeszów: Akta miasta RzeszŚwa (2ė recŚrds), Akta miasta Bła Śwej (1 recŚrd), Akta gmiřy Racławówka (1 recŚrd). AP Sanok: Akta miasta Gorlic (84 records). AP Siedlce: Akta gminy Korczew (1 record), Akta gminy Tuchowicz (1 record), Zbiór afiszy Śkuśacyjřych śŚwiatu sŚkŚłŚwskiegŚ (3 recŚrds), Zbiór afiszy Śkuśacyjřych śŚwiatu siedleckiegŚ (8 recŚrds), Zbiór afiszy śŚwiatu w grŚwskiegŚ (3 recŚrds). AP m.st. Warszawy: Zbiór afiszy cz. IV wrzesień 1939-1944 (1 record), Amt des Gouverneurs des Distrikts Warschau, Der Kommisar für den Jüdischen Wohnbezirk in Warschau, Transferstelle 295 Warschau (1 record), Kreishauptmannschaft Warschau-Lařd (2 recŚrds), Zarz d miasta PłŚcka (Ę records). AP Grodzisk Mazowiecki (collections removed from AP Góra Kalwaria): Akta gminy Goszczyn (5 records), Akta gminy Jeziorna (1 record), Akta miasta Grójca (10 records), Akta miasta Piaseczna (15 records). AP ŁŚwicz: Akta miasta ŁŚwicza (7 recŚrds), Akta gmiřy BŚlimów (2 recŚrds), ŁŚwickie Zakłady PrzemysłŚwe i CukrŚwřia „Ireřa” w ŁyszkŚwicach (1 recŚrd), Zbiór afiszy (10 recŚrds). AP Otwock: Akta miasta OtwŚcka (ęę recŚrds), Akta miasta Mińska MazŚwieckiegŚ (1ę recŚrds), Akta gminy Iwowe (1 record), Akta gminy Kuflew (14 recŚrds), Akta gmiřy PŚdł (2 recŚrds). AP Rawa Mazowiecka: Zbiór afiszów (17 records). AP ŃamŚ ć: Zbiór afiszy, ŚgłŚszeń, druków ulŚtřych (12 recŚrds). In all, over two thousand bill posters, public announcements (Ger. Bekanntmachungen 661 ) and ephemera relating to the Jewish populace were located in the State Archives. AIPN also has a very large cŚllectiŚř Śf several huřdred Śrigiřal “Obwieszczeřia, afisze i ślakaty” (Public ařřŚuřcemeřts, bills and posters) from the period of the German occupation, ordered by administrative category, and chronologically within each category. There is an analogous collection (Obwieszczenie i zarz dzeřia władz Śkuśacyjřych, Public ařřŚuřcemeřts ařd Śrders issued by the Śccuśyiřg authŚrities) iř A IH, iř which eight huřdred original public announcements, posters and other printed matter from the occupation era are collected, including a huge collection of public ařřŚuřcemeřts frŚm the Łód ghettŚ sigřed by Chaim MŚrdechaj RumkŚwski. These relate abŚve all to the legal status of the Jews, and convey information on matters such as the following: establishment of the Jewish districts and their boundaries; prohibition of or restrictions on entry to certain areas (justified by the need for protection from typhoid fever); punishments for leaving the ghettos (up to and including the death penalty662); the death penalty for offering support to Jews outside the Jewish district without permission663; rewards for people denouncing Jews (e.g. those at large iř the Mińsk MazŚwiecki cŚuřty without permission664); resettlements; compulsory domicile 661 German public announcements were usually printed in both Polish and German, on very brightly coloured paper. Cf. public announcement of 17 March 1942 signed Der Gouverneur – Abteilung Justiz in Lublin on the execution, pursuant to a verdict by the Extraordinary Court in Lublin, on 4 March 1942 of the named Jews for wilfully leaving their place of residence, AP Lublin, Kreishauptmannschaft Lublin Land 1939-1944, call no. 501/75. 663 Cf. Public ařřŚuřcemeřt by the HSSPF fŚr the Warsaw District (Obwieszczeřie Wy szegŚ DŚwódcy SS i PŚlicji dla Okr gu WarszawskiegŚ) Śf Ę Seśtember 19ė2, APW, Zbiór afiszów, part IV, call no. 204/A/IVP-52. 664 APW, Zbiór afiszów cz. IV, call no. 204/IV/P-Ę1. OgłŚszeřie Kreishauśtmařřa śŚw. mińskŚ-mazowieckiego z lutego 1942 r. 662 296 and population registration, especially of Jews capable of working (all males aged 12 to 60); the duty to report for snow and ice clearing; the obligation for all aged over 12 to wear identification and for Jewish shops and workshops (i.e. those at least 50% owned by Jews) to be marked as such (mostly with a white Star of David and an appropriately worded sign) ; the obligation to carry official identification (Ger. Kennkarte); the obligation to register Jewish assets (owned by individuals, companies, associations, enterprises, whether capital or material), including real property, financial assets, valuables and other assets; the exclusion of Jews from economic life and administration of real property; the prohibition of storage, sale or gifting of Jewish property on pain of harsh punishment665; punishments for failure to report assets, and confiscation thereof; registration and legalization of weights and measures; the obligation to register cars and other mechanical vehicles and the prohibition on using them; the confiscation of furs; the prohibition of Jews bowing to Germařs iř śublic ślaces; the śrŚhibitiŚř Śf use Śf the Hebrew lařguage ařd the “Jewish jargŚř” iř public life; curfews (from 8 p.m. or 9 p.m. until 5 a.m.); travelling in the rear section of tramcars (separated from other passengers by partitions); the prohibition of walking along the Planty park ring or in the Main Square, or entering the Cloth Hall in Krakow (public announcement of 29 April 1940); the prohibition on Jews attending evening circus performances (public announcement in Krakow dated 13 June 1940); and hundreds of other prohibitions and orders from across the country. Among the surviving bills and posters there are also materials containing typical śrŚśagařda, amŚřg them the famŚus bill śŚster “Jews – lice – tyśhus”666; posters on the spread of Jewish populations throughout the world, e.g. one showing a picture of the figure of a Jew peering round a curtain made from the US, British ařd SŚviet flags, ařŚther eřtitled “ yd tŚ Śszust jedyřy twój wróg” (The Jew is a fraud[,] yŚur Śřly eřemy)667, and another showing photographs of several faces with the caśtiŚř “EurŚśa řie chce wi cej widzieć tej twarzy!” (EurŚśe řever wařts tŚ see this face again) 668 ; śŚsters ařd flyers advertisiřg the exhibitiŚř eřtitled “ wiatŚwa zaraza ydŚwska” (Global Jewish plague) held in the Cloth Hall in Krakow in October 1943669; and many others whose Cf. RŚzśŚrz dzeřie NaczelřegŚ WŚdza Szefa Zarz du CywilřegŚ w KrakŚwie z dř. ę IX 1939 r., AN Kraków, Zbiór afiszów i plakatów, call no. 665/1503. 666 APW, Zbiór afiszów cz. IV, call no. 204/A/IV/P-7. 667 ANK, Zbiór afiszów i plakatów, call no. 665/7, no date. 668 ANK, WŚjewódzki Urz d IřfŚrmacji i PrŚśagařdy 19ėĘ-1947, call no. 720/WUIP 62/VIII 54, no date. 669 This touring exhibition of antisemitic propaganda, commissioned by the Propaganda Department of the Government of the GG, was shown in many cities across the GG to great acclaim. It was opened in Krakow in October 1943, and shown for the last time in June 1944 in Ostrów Mazowiecka. Exhibits including photographs have survived from this exhibition, some of which are in the collections of the NAC (Narodowe Archiwum Cyfrowe); a photoreport on the exhibition was published in Ilustrowany Kurier Polski 1943, no. 41. Polish visual artists from Krakow were involved in the exhibition preparations. I am grateful to Prof. Jan Grabowski for information on this subject. 665 297 content referenced the stereotype of the Communist Jew, and identified Bolshevism with Jewish ideology and the desire to rule the world attributed to the Jews. Stalin was depicted as a puppet in the hands of Western powers, which according to German propaganda were in turn steered and mařiśulated by a “glŚbal Jewish cŚřsśiracy”. PŚsters Śf this tyśe, ařd their cŚřteřt, reach ařd impact are very interesting source material that has not to date been processed on a mass scale. The same propaganda role was played by antisemitic publications in Polish that came out in the GG thrŚughŚut the ŚccuśatiŚř; these have beeř discussed iř ař article by KrzysztŚf WŚ řiakŚwski. 670 AmŚřg the authŚrs Śf these śublicatiŚřs were Stařisław BrŚchwicz, Heřryk BŚrkŚwski, Dr Feliks Burdecki, Fr Józef Radliński, Władysław BŚcquet, Waleriař W sŚwicz, Feliks Zdrojewski, Władysław Wardziński, Fryderyk TŚ Gaste (śrŚbably a śseudŚřym), Ludwik BrŚřŚwski, Zbigřiew Kowalewski and Hannes Kremer. Also during the war the tenth Polish edition of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion was published.671 “Iř all, iř the years 1940-1944 a total of 20 poisonously antisemitic books and propaganda leaflets came out in Polish (this is apart from works of literature, which we do not discuss here); three in 1940, five in 1942, eight in 1943, and four in 1944. The leading publishers in this field were the Warsaw firms Wydawnictwo Polskie (5 titles) and Wydawnictwo Glob (7 titles). Aside from these, 1-2 antisemitic pamphlets must be attributed to publishers such as Wydawnictwo NŚwŚczesře, Buchverlag Ost, Nauka i Sztuka, Ksi garřia Powszechna and Hauptabteilung Propaganda. This latter institution masterminded, promoted and coordinated the whole campaign, ařd as such its ‘cŚřtributiŚř’ is disśrŚśŚrtiŚřately greater thař the mŚdest řumber Śf titles advertised under its name might suggest.”672 TELEPHONE DIRECTORIES AND ADDRESS BOOKS Official German information publications and address books may also be useful for research purposes. Below are those found in library and archive collections, though this is almost certainly not an exhaustive list: K. WŚ řiakŚwski, “HitlerŚwskie ařtysemickie wydawřictwa śrŚśagařdŚwe w j zyku śŚlskim w Geřeralřym Gubernatorstwie (1939-1945)”, [iř:] HŚlŚkaust lekcja histŚrii zagłady ydów w edukacji szkŚlnej, op. cit., pp. 34-46. 671 PrŚtŚkŚły Mędrców SyjŚnu czyli wykłady mędrca syjŚńskiegŚ wtajemniczŚnegŚ w ślany śŚdbŚju wiata śrzez ydów, ed. B. Rudzki, Krakau 1943. 672 “Hitlerowskie antysemickie wydawnictwa”, Śś. cit., ś. ėĘ. FŚr ařŚther Geřeral GŚverřmeřt-issued news bulletin, see the Pressedienst des Generalgouvernements, online under http://zefys.staatsbibliothekberlin.de/list/title/zdb/24368568/. 670 298  Amtliches Gemeinde- und Dorfverzeichnis für das Generalgouvernement auf Grund der summarischen Bevölkerungsbestandsaufnahme am 1. März 1943, Herausgegeben vom Statistischen Amt des Generalgouvernements, Burgverlag Krakau 1943. This is a list of localities in the whole of the GG, divided into three sections. Part I is a general section listing collective data on districts and cŚuřty gŚverřŚrs’ Śffices iř each district, as well as 37 cities with śŚśulatiŚřs Śf Śver 20,000. 673 Part II is a systematic directory of the towns and villages in each district, county and borough, including numbers of residents. Part III is an alphabetical list of all the cities, towns and villages with location by district.  Amtliches Fernsprechbuch für den Distrikt Radom, Deutsche Post Osten 1942 (Official Telephone Book for the Radom District, German Post Office in the East 1942)674.  Fernsprech-Verzeichnis. Der Gouverneur des Distrikts Krakau, Krakau [1942] (Telephone Directory. Governor of the Krakow District, Krakow [1942]).  Amtliches Fernsprechbuch für den Distrikt Warschau (Official Telephone Book for the Warsaw District)675.  Amtliches Fernsprechbuch für den Distrikt Lublin, Krakau-Warschau 1942 (Official Telephone Book for the Lublin District)676.  Amtliches Fernsprechbuch für den Bezirk der Reichspostdirektion Breslau 1940 (Official Telephone Book for the Area Reich Post Office Directorate Breslau/WrŚcław 19ė0).  Amtliches Fernsprechbuch für den Bezirk der Reichspostdirektion Köslin 1941 (Official Telephone Book for the Area Reich Post Office Directorate Köslin/Koszalin 1942).  Amtliches Fernsprechbuch für den Bezirk der früheren Oberpostdirektion Liegnitz 1940 (Official Telephone Book for the Area of the Former Reich Post Office Directorate Liegnitz/Legnica 1940).  Amtliches Fernsprechbuch für den Bezirk der Reichspostdirektion Posen 1942 (Official TeleśhŚře BŚŚk fŚr the Area Reich PŚst Office DirectŚrate PŚseř/PŚzřań 19ė2). 673 This includes area covered, number of residents in total and by gender, population density per 1 km², number of admiřistrative ceřtres (cŚuřty ařd city gŚverřŚrs’ Śffices), ařd řumber Śf boroughs and villages. As at 1 March 1943 the total number of residents in the five districts of the GG was 14,853,798. http://gov.genealogy.net/item/show/source_386794. 674 Available online: http://sbc.wbp.kielce.pl/dlibra/docmetadata?id=13459&from=publication 675 Available online: http://mbc.cyfrowemazowsze.pl/dlibra/doccontent?id=9817&from=FBC 676 Available online: http://dlibra.umcs.lublin.pl/dlibra/doccontent?id=1736&from=FBC 299  Amtliches Fernsprechbuch für den Bezirk der Reichspostdirektion Stettin 1941 (Official Telephone Book for the Area Reich Post Office Directorate Stettin/Szczecin 1941).  Amtliches Fernsprechbuch für den Bezirk der Reichspostdirektion Oppeln 1942 (Official Telephone Book for the Area Reich Post Office Directorate Oppeln/Opole 1942)  SkŚrŚwidz gmiř l ska DŚlřegŚ i OśŚlskiegŚ z řiemieckimi i polskimi nazwami miejscŚwŚ ci według stařu z dř. 1 I 1941 roku, Katowice 1945 (Quick reference of boroughs in Lower Silesia and the Opole region with German and Polish place names as at 1 January 1941, Katowice 1945). 300 9. First-person documentary literature: journals, memoirs, diaries, letters, eyewitness accounts The term “first-śersŚř dŚcumeřtary literature” (fśdl) was cŚiřed by the literature schŚlar RŚmař Zimand, who used it to describe the whole field of autobiographic writing in its various genre variants.677 Holocaust-era fpdl is an extremely valuable source for research into this period that has long been used by historians. One might even claim that it is the most valuable of all sources, given that journals, memoirs, letters and other types of fpdl are the voices of the victims, who were the most immediate witnesses to the Holocaust. In most texts of this type, especially those written during the war, the authors state directly their motivation for writing. They usually stress the fact that their need to record their experiences in writing is rooted in their sense of moral obligation toward their murdered brethreř. They write “fŚr future geřeratiŚřs” Śr “fŚr a future tribuřal”, iř which expression they emphasize the factographic side of their texts and their value as testimony. The motivations of authors recording their memoirs after the war seem somewhat more complicated (memory therapy, overarching attempts to interpret their own lives, etc.), but very often they, too, exhibit the much exśŚuřded theme Śf śreservatiŚř Śf the victims’ memŚry ařd śassiřg Śř the truth about the Holocaust to subsequent generations. Hence in and of itself, Holocaust-era fpdl incorporates a declaration of faithfulřess tŚ the facts rŚŚted iř its authŚrs’ seřse Śf mŚral ŚbligatiŚř. On the other hand, the reader approaches all autobiographical texts with the awareness that they speak of events that took place in the real world. This attitude on the part of the reader arises out of the element of prior knowledge with which he or she comes to autobiographic forms as reading matter, ařd which is fŚuřded Śř the “autŚbiŚgraśhical śact”. The authŚr Śf this term, Philiśśe Lejeune, defines it as a certain understanding between the author and the reader that both parties assume the existence of a fundamental unity of identity between the author, narrator and protagonist of a text.678 The vast heterogeneity of fpdl texts and the fluidity of their categorization by genre are due to the personalized nature of the narrative, which in every case is focused on the first-person narrator. All Zimand, Diarysta Stefan ., WrŚcław 1990. Philippe Lejeune, Wariacje na temat pewnego paktu. O autobiografii, ed. R. Lubas-BartŚszyńska, trařs. W. Grajewski et al., Kraków 2001. 677 Roman 678 Cf. 301 literary forms of this type are grouped around two basic śŚles (accŚrdiřg tŚ Zimařd’s classificatiŚř): “the wŚrld Śf writiřg abŚut the self directly” ařd “the wŚrld Śf the eye-witřess”. The fŚrmer grŚuś is characterized by authorial declaration focused on a unique personal reception of the outside world, through which the writer attempts to understand the self. The latter comprises texts written from the position of witness, who shifts the focal point of the narrative from their own experiences to events in the outside world. What is the value of first-person documentary literature as a historical source? In terms of establishing the cognitive status of autobiographical forms and defining their referential value, there are twŚ śŚssible research aśśrŚaches. The first takes “real facts”, eveřts ařd śeŚśle as the subject of analysis, i.e. concentrates on studying the referential value of texts. It assumes that what is described (i.e. the autobiography) should constitute the most faithful reflection possible of what was experienced (i.e. the biography). This assumption causes autobiographical forms to be treated with susśiciŚř ařd distařce, ařd the research śrŚcess tŚ fŚcus Śř siftiřg “autheřtic eveřts” ařd the “real wŚrld” frŚm the “subjective” rest. FŚr this aśśrŚach, fśdl is thus at Śřce a śreciŚus ařd trŚublesome sŚurce, as it fŚrces the schŚlar tŚ cŚmśare the autŚbiŚgraśhical text with “Śbjective” materials (as official papers are usually considered to be). The other research approach comes from a different angle. It assumes that the autobiography, as a unique form of expression of the individual, is also a product of culture, and is thus historically and culturally conditioned. Every autobiographical form is essentially a forum for confrontation between intimacy and conventionality. Unique experiences can only be expressed in language, which is in essence communal and is the only medium through which the śast ařd the iřdividual’s exśerieřces may be revealed.679 Together with language we also inherit cognitive patterns, and thus our perception of the world and the way we describe it are more a question of our socio-cultural structures than the unfettered expression of the individual. For this reason, a life history as recorded in an autobiography cannot exist independently of the way it is represented, i.e. of the narrative strategy selected more or less deliberately by its author. The model of identity chosen by an author to talk about their story and life must be rooted in their culture. This choice (of which the author is not always fully aware) enables them to understand themselves. In this research approach, in the reading of autobiographical texts, rather than focusing on their objective refereřces (i.e. their refereřtiality) the schŚlar fŚllŚws the authŚr’s śrŚject tŚ gaiř ař uřderstařdiřg of themselves, and as such emphasizes the hermeneutical dimension of fpdl. 679 Cf. 302 H. White, Poetyka pisarstwa historycznego, ed. E. DŚmańska ařd M. Wilczyński, Kraków 2000. Likewise, in the field of Holocaust research, some historians treat fpdl as supplementary to standard historical sources such as court files, official reports, etc., which they consider more credible and valuable fŚr beiřg mŚre Śbjective. This aśśrŚach tŚ sŚurces is based Śř amassiřg as mařy “Śbjective facts” as śŚssible. The Śther side Śf the stŚry is that HŚlŚcaust research (ařd histŚrical methŚdŚlŚgy in general) is exhibiting an increasing fascination with the category of memory. This approach stresses the fact that eye-witřess accŚuřts, jŚurřal ařd memŚirs exśress their authŚrs’ bruised ařd damaged memory. Thus the past is less a set of incontrovertible facts to which we have direct access than a construct created by the narrator, whose active role is invaluable – the facts do not exist independently of or separately from the cognizant subject. The autobiographical form is a space where the wounded memory of the author has the chance to work through its trauma. 680 Hope remains that the discourse advocating faithful reconstruction of the factography and the discourse of memory (a term coined by Frank Ankersmit, which its author considers the antithesis of objectifying scientific description681) need not be radically mutually exclusive. What methodological challenges do fpdl texts present in the context of Holocaust research? The scholar confronts the sources with a dual mission: on the one hand she must attempt a reconstruction of the past, yet on the other she cařřŚt igřŚre the emŚtiŚřal charge Śf the victims’ suffering that is present in these texts. Her duty is not only integrity in her approach to her craft but also empathy toward these narrators.682 She is thus burdened with an unusual obligation – she must demŚřstrate bŚth taleřt ařd the tact “tŚ křŚw wheř ařd hŚw tŚ avŚid the śitfalls Śf iřaśśrŚśriacy”.683 As such, then, the use of fpdl sources is a form of responsibility that every scholar takes on.684 Division of first-person documentary literature685: 1. By form of communication and type of record: 680 Cf. D. LaCapra, Writing History, Writing Trauma, Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore 2001. Ařkersmit, “Pami taj c HŚlŚcaust: ałŚba i melařchŚlia”, trařs. A. Ajschtet, A. Kubis, J. Regulska, iř: idem, Narracja, reśrezentacja, dŚ wiadczenie. Studia z teorii historiografii, ed. E. DŚmańska, Kraków 200ė. 682 Dominik LaCapra has drawn attention to the tension between objectivity and the need for empathy in the work of the Holocaust scholar. Cf. D. LaCapra, Writing History, Writing Trauma, op. cit. 683 AccŚrdiřg tŚ Ařkersmit, the aesthetic categŚry Śf aśśrŚśriacy “will helś us tŚ steer clear Śf the bliřd alleys iř which the quest fŚr a sŚle truth ařd ethical gŚŚd might be lŚst” (F. Ařkersmit, Pamiętając HŚlŚcaust: ałŚba i melanchŚlia, p. 403). 684 For mŚre Śř the issues addressed here, see J. LeŚciak, “Literatura dŚkumeřtu ŚsŚbistegŚ jakŚ ródłŚ dŚ badań řad zagład ydów. RekŚřesařs metŚdŚlŚgiczřy”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2005, no. 1. 685 Cited after: J. Leociak, Literatura dokumentu osobistegŚ jakŚ ródłŚ dŚ badań nad zagładą ydów, op. cit. 681 F. 303 – written sources (texts), – oral sources (oral history). 2. By time at which the source was created: – hic et nunc, – post factum. Typology of first-person documentary literature: A. Texts written hic et nunc – written during the occupation, i.e. with no knowledge of the end of the war, in a state of permanent danger and uncertainty, which is reflected in the form of record and type of expression used by the author: 1. The diary and daily chronicle – characterized by regular note-taking; the time of note-taking is clŚse iř time tŚ the eveřts described; the authŚr’s śersŚřal śersśective ařd subjective wŚrld view are exśŚsed (cf. the diaries Śf Abraham Lewiř, ArŚř Chaim Kaśłař, Mary Berg, Dawid SierakŚwiak, Dawid Rubinowicz); the diary or daily chronicle is characterized by an attempt to objectivize description and offer a panorama of the life of the entire community (cf. the diaries of Ludwik Landau and Emanuel Ringelblum). 2. The journal – written at a certain distance in time in relation to the events described, which has a significant impact on the composition and narrative strategy assumed, usually in ordering and evaluating the events experienced. Journals written during the Holocaust were usually written in hidiřg “Śř the Aryař side” (cf. the jŚurřals Śf Mariař Berlařd, Calel 686 Perechodnik and Stefan Ernest). 3. Letters – most often sent from the ghettos and camps; especially dramatic are messages thrown from trains travelling to extermination camps; cf. Listy Ś Zagładzie (compiled by Ruta Sakowska). 4. Eye-witness accounts, answers to questionnaires, etc. and other elicited sources, such as eyewitness accounts gathered in the Warsaw ghetto by the Oneg Shabat team in the Warsaw Ghetto Underground Archive. 686 “Calek”, as PerechŚdřik referred tŚ himself, is a dimiřutive fŚrm Śf the Hebrew řame Betzalel Śr Besaleel; Perechodnik figures in various documents, including official papers, as Calel. The first Polish edition of his journal is: Calel Perechodnik, Czy ja jestem mŚrdercą?, compiled by P. Szapiro, Warszawa 1993; the second edition, revised on the basis Śf the mařuscriśt, was śublished, like the first, by O rŚdek KARTA: Calek PerechŚdřik, SśŚwied . Dzieje rodziny ydŚwskiej śŚdczas Śkuśacji w PŚlsce, compiled by D. Engel, Warszawa 2004. Iř A IH, where the tyśescriśt (a faithful trařscriśtiŚř Śf the mařuscriśt) Śf the jŚurřal is held, uřder call řŚ. 302/ĘĘ, the authŚr figures as “Calek PerechŚdřik” – as in the text. 304 B. Texts written post factum – a very extensive collection of texts recorded after the war by Holocaust survivors. A significant role here is played by the time when these works were written, which ranges from very soon after the end of the war to even decades after the events. The time of writing plays a significant role in interpretation of the texts. 1. The journal. 2. The autobiography – ař attemśt at ař Śverview Śf the survivŚr’s life, iř which the HŚlŚcaust is one of many elements, though usually dominant. 3. The memoir – restricted to a selected theme, often published in periodicals. 4. Elicited sources, including eye-witness accounts made to historical commissions and in court trials. 5. The interview – e.g. Barbara Eřgelkiřg’s Na łące śŚśiŚłów (1993). 6. The reconstructed journal – cf. e.g. Henryk Grynberg Szmuglerzy (2001; based on the experiences Śf Jař KŚstański). The latter twŚ fŚrms are “dual authŚr” texts (which is visible iř śarticular iř recŚřstructed jŚurřals); no less sigřificařt thař the “material”, i.e. the exśerieřces Śf the śrŚtagŚřist, is the cŚřtributiŚř Śf the second author compiling and editing the material – the way the questions are asked, the type of questions, the composition, etc. The form most characteristic for belles lettres on the subject of the Holocaust is autobiography, i.e. an authorial approach in which the experiences of the writer are given a voice in their creative writing. It is imśŚrtařt tŚ emśhasize, hŚwever, that the writer’s autŚbiŚgraśhical position is never a dŚcumeřtary reflectiŚř Śf their life, but merely a cŚřveřtiŚř that śermits the use Śf the authŚr’s (Śr Śther śersŚř’s) exśerieřces iř a literary wŚrk, but Śř the authŚr’s terms at every stage. Here the writer is not bound by the autobiographical pact, meaning that the persona of the protagonist, while it may demonstrate some attributes of the author, is not identical with the latter. Belles lettres in the traditiŚřal seřse is the realm Śf the authŚr’s imagiřatiŚř, ařd the wŚrld created in a work (whether that wŚrk is eśic, dramatic Śr śŚetry) is Śf the authŚr’s iřveřtiŚř. Literary texts dŚ řŚt stařd uś tŚ questioning regarding the truth of the events portrayed (in the traditional meaning of the word) – in every case they can lay claim to the status of true only within the world created in the work, irrespective of the fact that the author uses real events as material. Literary texts influenced by the Holocaust, which are also known as literature of witness, encompass many works that are a response by their authors to their wartime experiences (the oeuvres of authors including Primo Levi, Elie Wiesel, Henryk Grynberg, Bogdan Wojdowski and Adolf Rudnicki). Although the dividing line 305 between the narrative of the novel and autobiographical prose is hard to establish with any clarity and the boundaries between fiction and non-fiction are often fluid, the works of the authors mentioned above should be considered belles lettres in view of the convention adopted in the writing. Yet more subtle distinctions should be applied to any examination of poetry, in which radical seśaratiŚř betweeř the exśerieřces Śf the authŚr ařd thŚse Śf the “writiřg self” is the acceśted critical approach. In summary, belles lettres may be used as a source for Holocaust research only subject to certain extensive reservations. Of key significance is the question posed by the scholar of the source: whether the elemeřt Śf iřterest are eveřts, the “stŚry” (which cařřŚt be verified sŚlely Śř the basis of a literary text), or whether the work of literature is treated as a reflection of certain processes from the sphere of the consciousness (this latter approach permits the recognition of works by many authors as a fundamental source for Holocaust research).687 The fŚremŚst cŚllectiŚřs Śf texts iř the categŚries referred tŚ iř this chaśter are held iř A IH ařd iř the manuscript collections of the Biblioteka Narodowa (BN, National Library). There are extremely valuable collections of memoirs and eye-witness testimonies in the archives of museums of martyrdom (as mentioned in Part I of this Guide), and in addition, detailed archive searches would be expedient in the archive of the Polish Academy of Sciences (PAN), Muzeum Literatury (the Museum of Literature) in Warsaw, the manuscripts sections of all major libraries and museums, the archive of the OssŚliřeum FŚuřdatiŚř iř WrŚcław, ařd ařy ařd all Śther archives, museums ařd libraries with collections of legacies and papers or manuscripts. Outside Poland, the most valuable collections of directly Holocaust-related original diaries, memoirs and eye-witness testimonies are to be found in the archive of Yad Vashem in Jerusalem and in other archives and collections in Israel (see Part I of this Guide). There is a remarkable collection of some 6,500 letters and postcards from the war years in the Massuah Institute in Israel. Naturally, much correspondence is still in the hands of the private iřdividuals tŚ whŚm it was addressed. Oře Śf the irratiŚřal “śheřŚmeřa” Śf the HŚlŚcaust that is more on the subject of the relations between the literary work and the historical source, see DziełŚ literackie jakŚ ródłŚ histŚryczne, ed. Z. StefařŚwska ařd J. Sławiński, Warszawa 1978; Z. WŚjtkŚwiak, Nauki pomocnicze historii najnowszej. ródłŚznawstwŚ. ródła narracyjne, Part I. Pamiętnik, tekst literacki, PŚzřań 2001; StŚsŚwnŚ ć i fŚrma. Jak ŚśŚwiadać Ś Zagładzie?, ed. M. GłŚwiński, K. Chmielewska, K. Makaruk, A. MŚlisak, T. ukŚwski. 687 For 306 incomprehensible to us is the fact that the ghettos had a functioning system of telephone communication and mail, often right up until the final day, until the liquidation of the ghettos. That was certaiřly the case iř Warsaw, Łód ařd several other cities. It was also possible to correspond with people incarcerated in labour camps or concentration camps. Whether this was a deliberate camouflage on the part of the occupying Nazi order or an oversight or ignoring of this mode of communication between people condemned to victimhood in the Holocaust and the rest of the world, we do not know. Neither do we know why people condemned to death were nevertheless allowed to conduct correspondence and maintain contacts with the outside world (under the eye of the censor, of course).688 Correspondence is a unique and very subjective source, to date relatively rarely processed, used or published.689 Among the exceptions to this rule are the letters collected in the Ringelblum Archive and released in print by Ruta Sakowska, who furnished them with detailed back matter, writiřg iř her śreface that “iř their exśressiŚř they are śŚssibly the mŚst dramatic dŚcumeřts iř ARG”.690 All the museums of martyrdom have large collections of letters from the camps, many of them sent by prisoners on special forms. Characteristic of many of them (in particular those sent from KL Auschwitz, where many visual artists were imprisoned) was decoration in the form of drawings or coloured inscriptions, as an expression of the unique creativity of camp prisoners. There is correspondence never sent by the ghetto postal system to relatives and friends in the GG, the German Reich and other countries, including some in America and Asia, in the cŚllectiŚř PS w ŁŚdzi, uřder the call řumbers 231ę-2325. USHMM in Washington, D.C. also holds very interesting collections of private letters donated by family members now living in the USA. Recently, a collection of letters written and sent from ghettos, concentration camps and other places was also published in Israel.691 A. PiwŚwarczyk, “PŚczta getta łódzkiegŚ”, [iř:] 50-lecie ruchu filatelistycznegŚ w ŁŚdzi, Warszawa 1964, pp. 110-137; R. SakŚwska, “Ł czřŚ ć śŚcztŚwa getta warszawskiegŚ”, B IH, no. 1-2 (45-46), I-VI 1963, pp. 94-109; B. Engelking, J. Leociak, Getto warszawskie, op. cit., pp. 356-369. 689 Cf. Adresat nieznany, compiled by Ewa KŚ miřska-Frejlak, Warszawa 2009: letters from members of the family of Jakub (Janek) Gelbart, sent to him from the Warsaw ghetto between May 1940 and 21 July 1942; W. Lubelska, Listy z getta, Warszawa 2000; Hanka (Hana) Goldszajd, Listy z getta. Letters from the Ghetto, Wydawnictwo Charaktery, Kielce 2007. 690 Listy Ś Zagładzie. Archiwum Ringelbluma. KŚnsśiracyjne Archiwum Getta WarszawskiegŚ, vol. 1, (compiled by) R. Sakowska, Warszawa 1997, ś. XXIV; see M. UryřŚwicz, “Listy o Zagładzie. KryśtŚiřfŚrmacja”, Pamięć i SśrawiedliwŚ ć, no. 1 (1), 2002, pp. 121-131. 691 Last Letters from the Shoah: Testimonies from 1945, ed. Z. Bacharach, Yad Vashem, Devora Publishing, Jerusalem 2004 [Hebrew version: Ele dvaray haakharonim – mikhtavim akharonim min hashoa, ed. Z. Bacharach, Yad Vashem, Jerusalem 2002]. 688 Cf. 307 There are twŚ cŚllectiŚřs iř A IH tŚ which we wish tŚ draw śarticular atteřtiŚř: Relacje 692 (no. 301) ařd Pami třiki693 (no. 302). Relacje contains about 7,000 archival units and was an open collection until 2011. The core of the collection are several thousand eye-witness testimonies gathered shortly after the war by emślŚyees Śf the Jewish HistŚrical CŚmmissiŚř ( KH) affiliated tŚ the Ceřtral CŚmmittee Śf the Jews iř PŚlařd (CK P).694 Work was begun as early as in August 1944 in Lublin, and befŚre lŚřg Śther histŚrical cŚmmissiŚřs alsŚ begař tŚ Śśerate iř Śther cities: BiałystŚk, Łód , KrakŚw, KatŚwice, Warsaw, BydgŚszcz, WłŚcławek, TŚruń, Cz stŚchŚwa, Kielce, KutřŚ, RadŚm, Przemy l, Szczeciř, SŚsřŚwiec, Dzier Śřiów, Wałbrzych ařd WrŚcław.695 Wheř the Ceřtral Jewish HistŚrical CŚmmissiŚř (C KH) was relŚcated tŚ Łód iř the sśriřg Śf 1945, a set of instructions designed to make the gathering and ordering of the materials easier was drawn up. 696 The eye-witřess testimŚřies iř the IH cŚllectiŚřs are an immensely important, universal and irreplaceable source used in almost all works and studies on the Holocaust; they have also been used as evidentiary material in war crimes trials. Among the testimonies (statements) in this collection are some by Poles who aided Jews and others who witnessed their fates. A representative selection of 107 texts of testimonies from 71 localities across the Polish lands occupied by the Third Reich was śublished sŚme years agŚ by Michał Gryřberg ařd Maria KŚtŚwska. 697 The other record grŚuś iř A IH that must řŚt be fŚrgŚtteř is Pami třiki (RG 302, MemŚirs). This material, tŚŚ, was first gathered by emślŚyees Śf the KH. At śreseřt the cŚllectiŚř Pami třiki řumbers 339 items. Some of these texts have been published and are widely known, while others have remained manuscripts. The majority of journals (and testimonies) were written in Polish and Yiddish. The collection includes such important documents of the age as the diary of Dawid Sierakowiak from the Łód ghettŚ, that Śf Chaim ArŚř Kaśłař frŚm the Warsaw ghettŚ, ařd the accŚuřt Śf Calel Perechodnik from Otwock. There are also two precious manuscripts by Emanuel Ringelblum: “StŚsuřki śŚlskŚ- ydŚwskie w czasie drugiej wŚjřy wiatŚwej. Uwagi i sśŚstrze eřia” (PŚlish-Jewish 692 Relacje z czasów Zagłady. Inwentarz. Archiwum IH-INB, zesśół 301, cŚmśiled by M. Jó wik, T. MahŚrŚwska, A. Umińska, M. Czajka, vol. I-VII, Warszawa 1998-2011. This finding aid is in both Polish and English. 693 M. Czajka, Inwentarz zbiŚru śamiętników. Archiwum IH, zesśół 302, Warszawa 2007. 694 Cf. Ceřtralřa ydŚwska KŚmisja HistŚryczřa śrzy CK P 19ėė-19ė7, Archiwum IH, RG 303/XX. 695 A IH, RG C KH, 303/XX. 696 Cf. the bibliŚgraśhy Śf C KH śublicatiŚřs at the eřd Śf this Guide. 697 ycie i zagłada ydów śŚlskich 1939-1945. Relacje wiadków, selected and compiled by M. Grynberg and M. Kotowska, Warszawa 2003. 308 relations during WWII. Remarks and observations)698 and a collection of biographical sketches about Jewish activists699. The řew iřveřtŚry tŚ this cŚllectiŚř (iř PŚlish ařd Eřglish) by Michał Czajka includes, in addition to an archival description of each diary, also a summary of its contents, information on the author, and a bibliography of publications.700 It has two indexes – an index of authors and a geographical index. Over sixty of the diaries in this collection relate to the Warsaw ghetto. An interesting and reśreseřtative selectiŚř Śf excerśts frŚm the diaries held by IH has beeř śublished by Michał Gryřberg.701 Aside frŚm the twŚ cŚllectiŚřs abŚve, A IH alsŚ has diaries ařd eye-witness testimonies in the Ringelblum Archive. These are very important texts, writteř “there ařd theř”. There are also texts that should not be ignored in locations beyond Poland. Among the papers of the Ministry of Information and Documentation of the Polish Government-in-Exile (1939-1945)702 is a remarkable cŚllectiŚř křŚwř as the “Palestiře śrŚtŚcŚls” – these are testimonies and accounts of Jews deported deep into the USSR from various towns and villages, who in the spring of 1943 found themselves iř the Middle East with Ařders’ Army as it was leaviřg Russia. AmŚřg these testimŚřies, most of which were made orally and transcribed by recording clerks, are chilling testimonies by children. These texts cover both the fates of the Jews under the German occupation before they managed to flee east, and the conditions in which they survived in the distant territories of Siberia, in the Archangelsk and Sverdlovsk (now Yekaterinburg) oblasts. These testimonies, 170 texts in all, have been published by Feliks Tych and Maciej Siekierski, the curator of the East European collections at the Hoover Institution Archives (HIA).703 The last collection to be profiled here is that of manuscripts in the Polish National Library (BN) in Warsaw.704 Uřlike the twŚ IH cŚllectiŚřs, the manuscripts in the BN are for the most part texts written by Poles in Polish about the Polish world of their authors. The world of their Jewish neighbours is sketched in the background to or on the 698 A IH, call řŚ. 302/337, cf. E. Riřgelblum, Stosunki polsko- ydŚwskie w czasie drugiej wŚjny wiatŚwej. Uwagi i sśŚstrze enia, Warszawa 1988; E. Ringelblum, Polish-Jewish relations during the second World War, Evanston 1992. 699 A IH, call řŚ. 302/338, cf. E. Riřgelblum, “Sylwetki”, [iř:] Kronika getta warszawskiegŚ wrzesień 1939 – styczeń 1943, Warszawa 1983. 700 Michał Czajka, Inwentarz zbiŚru śamiętników (Archiwum IH, zesśół 302). MemŚirs CŚllectiŚn CatalŚgue (Jewish HistŚrical Institute Archives, Record Group 302), Warsaw 2007. 701 Pamiętniki z getta warszawskiego. Fragmenty i regesty, compiled by M. Grynberg, Warszawa 1988. 702 HIA, MiřisterstwŚ IřfŚrmacji i DŚkumeřtacji Rz du PŚlskiegŚ řa UchŚd stwie, bŚxes ėę, Ę9, 123 ařd 12ė. Materials also accessible on microfilm at the AAN. 703 M. Siekierski, F. Tych, Widziałem aniŚła mierci. LŚsy deśŚrtŚwanych ydów śŚlskich w ZSRR w latach II wŚjny wiatŚwej, Warszawa 2006. 704 Pamiętniki i relacje w zbiŚrach rękŚśi miennych BibliŚteki NarŚdŚwej, compiled by D. Kamolowa with T. Sieniatycka, Biblioteka Narodowa, Warszawa 1998. 309 margins of the main subjects being related. For some of these authors the extermination of the Polish Jews was one of the major strands of their wartime memories, while by others it was barely noticed, passed over in silence, or even desirable, as in the recently published war diaries of Frařciszek Wyszyński, ař authŚr Śf NatiŚřal DemŚcratic cŚřvictiŚřs. 705 These texts are a crucial source for research into Polish-Jewish relations during the occupation; of exceptional significance, fŚr iřstařce, is the hithertŚ uřśublished “Dzieřřik z lat 1939-19ėė” (Diary Śf the years 1939-1944) Śf Aurelia Wyle yńska706 and Zygmunt Klukowski respectively707, extensive excerpts of which focus on the extermination of the Jews in Szczebrzeszyn and the reactions of Polish society to that event.708 There are a number of very important wartime diaries held in the AAN, among them a text by Ludwik Landau.709 Scholars who use first-person documentary literature will surely appreciate the assistance offered by bibliographic publications such as that by Józef Skrzypek 710 , as well as Centralny katalog relacji i wsśŚmnień z lat 1939-1945 compiled by IH PAN711. As the authors of the catalogue mention in the preface, the number of memoirs, eye-witness testimonies and other first-person documents from this period held in various institutions and organizations is in all certainty in excess of 20,000. The IH PAN catalogue lists around 13,000 712 ; it does not include the results of the dozens of chronicle competitions calling for the submission of memoirs which were announced in the years 1945-1970. The geographical index of this publication features 2,700 entries and 240 names of organizations and F. Tych, “ wiadkŚwie ShŚah. Zagłada ydów w śŚlskich śami třikach i wsśŚmřieřiach”, [iř:] idem, Długi cień zagłady. Szkice histŚryczne, Warszawa 1999, pp. 9-Ęė, H. Kirchřer, “HŚlŚcaust w dzieřřikach ZŚfii NałkŚwskiej i Marii D brŚwskiej”, [iř:] Literatura śŚlska wŚbec zagłady, collective work, ed. A. Brodzka-Wald, D. Krawczyńska ařd J. LeŚciak, Warszawa 2000, pp. 105-122; F. Wyszyński, Dzienniki z lat 1941-1944, compiled by J. Grabowski and Z.R. Grabowski, Warszawa 2007. 706 In the Polish National Library (BN) in Warsaw, collection of manuscripts, IV.6456, III.10786,III.10787. 707 The original of this diary is held in the Library of the Catholic University of Lublin. 708 Z. Klukowski, Zamojszczyzna 1918-1958, vol. 1-2, Warszawa 2007; Z. Klukowski, Diary from the years of occupation, 193944, trans. from the Polish by George Klukowski, ed. Andrew Klukowski and Helen Klukowski May, Urbana 1993; cf. D. LibiŚřka, “PŚlacy wŚbec ekstermiřacji ydów. Kilka uwag řa margiřesie czytařia ródeł”, [iř:] WŚjna, dŚ wiadczenie i zaśis. NŚwe ródła, śrŚblemy, metŚdy badawcze, ed. S. Buryła, P. RŚdak, Kraków 200ę, śś. 73-90. 709 L. Landau, Kronika lat wojny i okupacji, compiled by Z. Landau and J. Tomaszewski, vol. 1-3, Warszawa 1962. 710 J. Skrzypek, BibliŚgrafia śamiętników śŚlskich dŚ 1964 rŚku, OssŚliřeum, WrŚcław 197ę. This publication lists both works published as autonomous items and excerpts of diaries and journals printed in periodicals. 711 Centralny katalŚg relacji i wsśŚmnień z lat 1939-1945. Indeksy nazwisk i pseudonimów, nazw geograficznych, organizacji konspiracyjnych, cŚmśiled by E. Duraczyński ařd S. LewařdŚwska, IH PAN, WrŚcław – Warszawa – Kraków – Gdańsk 1972. 712 It cŚvers the cŚllectiŚřs amassed by IH, the KC PZPR Zakład HistŚrii Partii (Department for Polish United WŚrkers’ Party HistŚry), the ZjedřŚczŚře StrŚřřictwŚ LudŚwe (ZSL, Uřited PeŚśle’s Party) Zakład HistŚrii Ruchu LudŚwegŚ (Deśartmeřt fŚr the HistŚry Śf the PŚśular MŚvemeřt), the Okr gŚwe KŚmisje HistŚryczře ZBŚWiD (Area HistŚrical CŚmmissiŚřs Śf the SŚciety Śf Fighters fŚr FreedŚm ařd DemŚcracy) iř KatŚwice, Gdańsk, KŚszaliř ařd Lublin, and the Polish History Department at IH PAN. 705 Cf. 310 iřstitutiŚřs (iřcludiřg virtually all the uřdergrŚuřd ŚrgařizatiŚřs Śśeratiřg duriřg the war). “This iřitiative was bŚrř Śut Śf a tařgible řeed fŚr better ŚrgařizatiŚř Śf the histŚriař’s research environment and in connection with the persistent debate on the value of depositions as a historical source. These disputes relate to many aspects, one of the foremost among which is the question of whether the method employed for fpdl research to establish attitudes and opinions is equally suitable for establishing real behaviours. Some sociologists and the majority of historians, while recognizing the shortcomings of the method, nevertheless believe that first-person documents (diaries, memoirs, survey questionnaires) can supply information on both objective societal facts and subjective attitudes. Regardless of the further discussions on the advantages and disadvantages of the methods for research into first-person documents, however, the significance of these in the study of various communities and phenomena is iřdisśutable.”713 A special place in Holocaust literature in the Polish milieu is the publication Literatura polska wobec Zagłady (1939-1968), edited by SławŚmir Buryła, DŚrŚta Krawczyńska ařd Jacek LeŚciak (Warszawa 2012). This is a monographic synthesis of various different forms of record of the experience that was the Holocaust set against a broad historical and anthropological context. The authors profile literary ařd dŚcumeřtary testimŚřy Śf the HŚlŚcaust created bŚth “there ařd theř” [hic et nunc], i.e. in the years 1939-1945, and post factum (up to 1968). The book addresses both theoretical issues connected with the poetics of texts on the Holocaust (including the key problem of inexpressibility) and questions of genre (including a typology of fpdl and the characteristics of Socialist Realist prose), and also offers numerous interpretative angles on both specific works on the Holocaust and entire collections (such as the Ringelblum Archive). The common perspective of these examinations of fpdl, poetry and belles lettres on the Holocaust is their interpretation as literature of testimony that is an expression of the direct experience of their authors, their scream about the Holocaust. The final section of the book is a supplementary chapter on the public debate surrounding the Holocaust, and the fullest Holocaust bibliography in Polish literature, ordered by genre: belles lettres – fpdl – press. Marta Janczewska and Alina Skibińska 713 Ibidem, p. 7. 311 312 10. Oral History Recounting past times, experiences and in particular major, extraordinary or tragic events (of which war is certainly one) is as old as human history. Passing down knowledge from generation to generation, by word of mouth, i.e. oral history, began well before the era of the written word, for obvious reasons, but as a fundamental form of interpersonal communication and transfer of information will, for equally obvious reasons, never disappear, just as human speech and cŚřversatiŚř will řever disaśśear. Iř accŚrdařce with the defiřitiŚř assumed here, Śral histŚry is “a self-conscious, disciplined conversation between two people about some aspect of the [experienced] past considered by them to be of historical significance and intentionally registered for the record. AlthŚugh the cŚřversatiŚř takes the fŚrm Śf ař iřterview (…) Śral histŚry is, at its heart, a dialŚgue. The iřterviewer’s questiŚřs, derived frŚm a śarticular frame Śf refereřce Śr historical interest, elicit certaiř resśŚřses frŚm the řarratŚr, derived frŚm that śersŚř’s frame Śf refereřce, that śersŚř’s seřse Śf what is imśŚrtařt Śr what he Śr she thiřks is imśŚrtařt tŚ tell the iřterviewer.”714 It is a dynamic interaction. Sometimes audio recordings constitute the fundamental source material for histŚriařs, because the texts trařscribed frŚm taśes ařd subject tŚ the authŚr’s selectiŚř ařd editiřg are the only narrative material available to work with. In some cases, audio recordings constitute the fundamental source material for historians, because the texts transcribed from tapes and subject to the authŚr’s selectiŚř ařd editiřg are the Śřly řarrative material available tŚ wŚrk with 715, others are scientific (chiefly sociological and anthropological) studies in which oral history is an equal and very important source base.716 It is alsŚ wŚrth meřtiŚřiřg here the śrŚject “EurŚśa według Auschwitz” (EurŚśe accŚrdiřg tŚ Auschwitz) ruř by LabŚratŚrium ReśŚrta u (ReśŚrtage LabŚratŚry) at the University Śf Warsaw’s Deśartmeřt Śf JŚurřalism. “Usiřg ař editiřg techřique develŚśed by Śur laboratory, we manage to combine the interviews of several witnesses into homogeneous reportage 714 L. Shopes, Making sense of oral history, text accessible on the Internet at: http://historymatters.gmu.edu/mse/oral/oral.pdf, pp. 2-3 (date of access 5 June 2014). 715 Cf. B. Engelking, Na łące śŚśiŚłów... Ocaleni z HŚlŚcaustu, Warszawa 1993; A. Gruśińska, Ciągle śŚ kŚle. RŚzmŚwy z Śłnierzami getta warszawskiegŚ, WŚłŚwiec 2013; A. Gruśińska, 12 ŚśŚwie ci ydŚwskich, WŚłŚwiec 2013; M. Gryřberg, Ocaleni z XX wieku. PŚ nas nikt ju nie ŚśŚwie, najwy ej ktŚ śrzeczyta…, Warszawa 2012; M. Grynberg, Oskar am Auschwitz. OśŚwie ci rodzinne, WŚłŚwiec 201ė. 716 Cf. A. Cała, Wizerunek yda w polskiej kulturze ludowej, Warszawa 1992; B. Engelking, Zagłada i śamięć, Warszawa 2001; M. Melchior, Zagłada a tŚ samŚ ć. PŚlscy ydzi Ścaleni „na aryjskich śaśierach”. Analiza dŚ wiadczenia biŚgraficznegŚ, Warszawa 2004; K. Kazimierska, DŚ wiadczenia wŚjenne PŚlaków a kształtŚwanie tŚ samŚ ci etnicznej. Analiza narracji kresŚwych, Warszawa 1999; A. Rokuszewska-Pawełek, Chaos i przymus. Trajektorie wojenne Polaków – analiza biograficzna, Łód 2002; Ocaleni z Mauthausen. Relacje śŚlskich wię niów ŚbŚzów nazistowskich systemu Mauthausen-Gusen, ed. Katarzyřa MadŚń-Mitzner, Warszawa 2010; German edition: Errettet aus Mauthausen : Berichte ehemaliger Häftlinge des NS-konzentrationslagers Mauthausen-Gusen, bearb. vŚř Katarzyřa MadŚń-Mitzner, Warszawa 2010. 313 texts talking about events from the history of the camp, famous figures, and recurring issues, without the use Śf cŚmmeřtary.”717 For more information see: http://www.reporter.edu.pl/europa_wg_auschwitz. Oral history as recorded on tape has one fundamental objective that is absent from depositions recorded solely in writing: to hear and see the narrator as they are talking and retelling. It is all about recording the wealth of non-verbal information they convey: their body language, movements, pronunciation, accent, the tone and timbre of their voice, emotions, moments of silence, hesitations, and tensions. In oral history, body language is as significant as verbal language.718 These are qualities that we will never have from an archival document or written testimony. In oral history both the story itself and the person telling it are important – both these factors are received, analysed and evaluated. The point is to record individual, subjective history as experienced by that particular person. That person is the main character in their story. In the course of the narrative interview a process of retrieval from memory of images from the past and attribution to them of contemporary meanings is enacted. The story told is not a story of facts, but of remembering facts and understanding them today. Giving an interview is consenting to giving access tŚ what are iř śart iřtimate, śrivate areas Śf Śře’s life, bŚth literally ařd symbŚlically, fŚr iř talkiřg about our feelings and expressing them, we draw closer to our listeners and allow them to come closer to us. This produces a remarkable emotional bond between the interviewee and the listener, which creates a unique, incomparable situation in which past events are retrieved from memory. James E. Young draws attention to some very interesting linguistic aspects of interviews with survivŚrs recŚrded Śř taśe: “After the war, mařy survivŚrs decided tŚ sśeak ařd tell their Śwř stories in English, which they consider neutral, innocent and – and this sounds ironic – devoid of memory. Although they spoke Yiddish, Polish or German at the time of the events, they often found 717 Excerśt frŚm a letter frŚm Paweł Sawicki, a śrŚject śarticiśařt, tŚ the authŚr Śf this Guide. To date, the following strands have been created, using excerpts from many different interviews previously recorded onto video: Pierwszy trařsśŚrt wi řiów dŚ ŚbŚzu (The first trařsśŚrt Śf śrisŚřers tŚ the camś), “Arbeit macht frei”, Erřest Krařkemařř, Najdłu szy aśel (The lŚřgest rŚll-call), Otto Küssel, Boks (Boxing), Gerhard Palitzsch, O. [Fr] Maksymilian Kolbe, Szpilowanie (Phenol infections to the heart), Cyklon B. (Zyklon B), Orkiestra (The orchestra), Rudolf Höss, Bunt w karnej kompanii (Revolt in the penal company), Lagermuseum, Architekci (Architects), Maria Mandel, SŚřderkŚmmařdŚ, Zigeuřerlager, TrařsśŚrty w gierskie (The Huřgariař trařsśŚrts), Sereřata iř MessicŚ, Piłka řŚ řa (Football), Ucieczka Cyli Cybulskiej i Jerzego Bieleckiego (The escape of Cyla Cybulska and Jerzy Bielecki), Wigilie (Christmas Eves), Marsze mierci (The death marches), WyzwŚleřie (LiberatiŚř), PŚ wŚjřie (After the war). 718 Cf. A. Skibińska, “Wywiady z mieszkańcami Chełmřa śrześrŚwadzŚře śrzez The Uřited States HŚlŚcaust MemŚrial Museum”, [in:] O rŚdek zagłady w Chełmnie nad Nerem w wietle najnŚwszych badań. Materiały z sesji naukŚwej, Konin 2004, pp. 44-56. 314 that English served both as an intermediary between them and the experience, and as a vehicle for describing it. In film and video testimonies this simultaneous interpretation of events from memory into language and from one language into another recorded in front of the camera is striking in a way that literature never can be. The text of the video comprises the visual record of this metamorphosis of memory into language, the search for the right words, and the simultaneous interpretation of the eveřts iř the search fŚr the lařguage.” 719 Thus a recording session may be evocative of a psychotherapy session, during which successive deposits of memory are uncovered, layer after layer, and new meanings are discovered that are on occasion unexpected either by the narrator or by the interviewer. The method most widely used is the biographical method (equivalent to the biographical method and in-depth interview in sociology), which allows the interviewee to speak freely about their own life. The Śral histŚry methŚd is a meařs by which the wŚrds Śf “Śrdiřary śeŚśle”, whŚ wŚuld Śtherwise have left no testimony to their experiences, may be recorded. People unaccustomed to writing down or otherwise documenting their experiences and feelings, or who consider them insignificant, have to be prompted to talk, drawn out, so to speak. This, in turn, permits a reconstruction of their life and the daily lives of people in the background in the context of major historical events. In parallel with the development of interest in oral history techniques and the benefits inherent in this source of knowledge about the past, since the 1960s university centres have opened and evolved that specialize in recording, archiving and releasing interviews, above all in the US. Some of these include the Yale University Library Fortunoff Video Library for Holocaust Testimonies, and the University of California and Columbia University video archives. It is two non-university projects that have produced the largest numbers of interviews, however; the Shoah Visual History Foundation (with over 50,000 testimonies by Holocaust survivors), and USHMM iř WashiřgtŚř, D.C. “Oral histŚry cŚllectiŚřs iř Westerř Europe are far more modest. Two important centres are the University of Essex in Britain and the archive Deutsches Gedächtnis iř Lüdeřscheid iř Germařy.”720 And of course we must not fail to mention the institutions in Israel, 719 J.E. YŚuřg, “Holokaust w wiadectwach filmŚwych i w wiadectwach wideŚ. DŚkumeřtŚwařie wiadka”, Literatura na wiecie, 2004, no. 1-2 (390-391), p. 250. 720 P. Filipkowski, Historia mówiona i wojna, 2005, pp. 9: http://biblioteka.teatrnn.pl/dlibra/Content/9618/Historia_mowiona_i_wojna.pdf. 315 above all Yad Vashem and the Oral History Division at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, which were profiled in Part I of this Guide. For the purposes of Holocaust research, the potential interviewees sought are (were): Jewish Holocaust survivors; people who helped, rescued and liberated; members of the underground and partisan units; incidental eye-witnesses; perpetrators and executors; collaborators; employees of various institutions; and members of organizations. The primary rule is to seek out people who have something to tell and can do so; people who are incapable of expressing their feelings or describing their experiences should not give interviews except in exceptional circumstances. These include people who are the only surviving witnesses to a very important event, or whose role in a particular event was so significant that recording an interview with them is interesting and worthwhile irrespective of their verbal skills or expression. Moreover, the oral interview is the only way of recording the testimonies of people who are illiterate. The brief rules and guidelines outlined below were drawn up by the USHMM Department of Oral History. Those who work there have extensive experience in preparing and recording interviews on this subject. “CŚřductiřg ař iřterview is řŚt a scieřce but ař art”721 – the witness should tell the story as she herself remembers it, from her own point of view, i.e. subjectively, and in the way she thinks and feels. The interview is supplementary to our knowledge obtained from archival and written documentation, and as such does not replace the former in any way. It is an absolutely subjective individual statement. It is important to be inquisitive and ask questions in such a way as to stimulate the story, which should flow fluently. There is no one accepted technique for conducting interviews; any technique is good in as far as it proves effective and produces the desired result. It is important to know that the same question asked of the same person by different interviewers and in different circumstances may elicit different answers, which in no way means that they are untrue. The basic rules that must always be adhered to are the following: – Do not argue with the interviewee, even if she makes obvious mistakes; it is not the job of the interviewer to correct them – he must remain in the shadow, and he must absolutely not exploit the situation to manifest his knowledge. 721 J. Ringelheim, A. Donahue, A. Rubin, Oral History Interview Guidelines. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Department of Oral History, Washington 1998. Cf. Historia mówiona. Elementarz, ed. Marta Kurkowska-Budzan, Warszawa 2008. 316 – The interview is not intended to be an ordinary conversation, but active reception of the story, which does not rule out asking questions, of course; true listening means hearing exactly what is said, ařd řŚt Śře’s Śwř iřteřtiŚřs, iřterśretatiŚřs Śr exśectatiŚřs. – Every interview should include basic, vital information such as names, dates, place names, and historical context. – The interviewer is a guide, not a director, and as such should help the witness to recall, but may not manipulate her memory or knowledge with suggestions or hints. – The witness must be permitted the comfort of silence. – Given the subject matter of the interviews, it is alsŚ imśŚrtařt tŚ ideřtify Śře’s Śwř fears ařd emŚtiŚřs, because we have a teřdeřcy tŚ avŚid them, ařd thus tŚ avŚid listeřiřg tŚ the iřterviewee’s words; we should be prepared to hear everything and ask every question in the simplest, most direct form possible. If the interviewer reacts too emotionally, e.g. by crying, the interviewee will attempt to protect him from such reactions. – The idea is tŚ try ařd feel Śře’s way iřtŚ the řarratŚr’s rŚle, ařd tŚ listeř as thŚugh řŚthiřg else existed; the interviewer must also attempt to understand the narrator – this is the art of empathetic, but attentive, scrupulous and critical listening. It is a good idea to use a range of thematic areas to guide the interview, such as education, skills acquired that were later useful in surviving, family, religion, politics, and gender-related issues. The interview should include details about day-to-day life, feelings, family members, friends, and colleagues: what they knew, saw, heard, and felt, and how their senses functioned. Prior to the interview proper, which will be recorded on tape, a preliminary interview should be conducted, which is vital in order to decide whether a particular candidate really is suitable for an audio interview recording: – At this stage all the basic information should be gathered and questions asked that will not be asked again during the interview proper. – A list of questions should be prepared if plans are to conduct interviews with a larger group of people. – The questions from the questionnaire should be asked with tact and delicacy; these are difficult subjects and people one does not know. – The basic questions that must be asked are: given name (names) and surname (surnames), date and place of birth, and chronology of places lived in during the war. 317 – If the plans are to release the completed questionnaires to scholars, the informed, written consent of the interviewee must be obtained; contact information such as address and telephone number must of course not be released. – During the preliminary interview it is important to grasp the chronology of events and experiences, and their localization; this will permit the appropriate prior research to be conducted and the right questions to be formulated for the interview proper. – The most difficult aspect is to weight the questions astutely: not too many should be asked, and they should not be too detailed, though it is important to remember that too much information is always better than significant gaps. – The preliminary interview should be conducted suitably ahead of the interview proper – at least a week, ařd ideally a few weeks befŚrehařd, iř Śrder tŚ avŚid reactiŚřs such as: “As I said a week agŚ….” – In evaluating a potential witness for an audio or video recording, it is important to take into consideration not only what she said but also how: the clarity of her words, the state of her memory, and her ability to verbalize and organize her story into a cohesive whole. – A written summary should be edited and compiled directly after the interview is conducted; if this is not possible, we suggest that the preliminary interview should be recorded, not merely notes taken, but even then, the recording should not be treated as a substitute for a written summary. A superb introduction to the history of gathering oral history materials on the extermination of the Jews, and the interpretation of these materials, is the article by Piotr Filipkowski, which should be studied by anyone using materials of this nature for their own research.722 “The śaper presents the development of oral history about the Holocaust from the first research projects undertaken immediately after the war to the modern, global initiatives of recording interviews with survivors, an archive providing thousands of such audiovisual testimonies. This development forms a part of the broader perspective of collective memory – especially in the US – about the Holocaust and the changes in the perception of survivor-witnesses and their testimonies. A special place within such memory was given to the historiography of the Holocaust – using several vivid examples, the author shows different approaches to these sources: from wary and even suspicious, to uncritically FiliśkŚwski, “PŚzagładŚwe histŚrie mówiŚře: řagrařia, archiwa, sśŚsŚby lektury”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2013, vol. 9, pp. 86-115. 722 P. 318 affirmative. The conclusion outlines other than purely historical possible interpretations of these sŚurces”.723 In Poland, oral history projects covering World War II, and as such in part the extermination of the Jews, have been or are being conducted by the institutions and individuals in the bullet list below, and also by the O rŚdek PŚgrařicze (BŚrderlařds Ceřtre) iř Sejřy, StudiŚ HistŚrii MówiŚřej (Oral History Studio) at Radio Lublin, the EFKA Foundation in Krakow, the Warsaw Rising Museum, the State Museum at Majdanek (PMM) in Lublin, and the Stutthof State Museum in Sztutowo. • CeřtrŚśa (Ceřtral EurŚśe Ceřter fŚr Research ařd DŚcumeřtatiŚř) – this is an institution that conducted interviews in Poland 724 in the years 2003-200ę uřder the umbrella title “Witřess tŚ a Jewish Ceřtury”. It is admiřistered by the ŚrgařizatiŚř Jewish Heritage in Central and Eastern Europe, based in Vienna and Budapest. Centropa collaborators make audio recordings of fascinating extended interviews on the whole lives of people who identify with the Jewish tradition, religion and culture who still live in Europe. Recorded and subsequently transcribed, and then edited in accordance with the principles of oral history and ultimately translated into English, these interviews are accessible online at http://centropa.org. One of the main principles of this project is to record ařd śublish Śř the iřterřet the iřterviewee’s family śhŚtŚgraśhs alŚřgside the iřterview. Iř PŚlařd, the śrŚject, ruř fŚr several years by writer ařd jŚurřalist Ařka Gruśińska 725, has now come to a close. In the course of its duration over eighty interviews were recorded, among them one with the late Michał Friedmař, a śre-eminent translator of Yiddish literature and for many years the president Śf the IH AssŚciatiŚř. • The Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum (PMAB) iř O wi cim has amassed almŚst 1,300 audiŚ taśe recordings of a total duration of some 1,600 hours. PMAB cooperates with the radio station Polskie Radio Katowice. The PMAB collections include more than 700 documentary films incorporating some 1,300 statements by former prisoners, and 100 complete film recordings with an overall running time of more than 120 hours. The interviews are with former prisoners, and their subject is the history of KL Auschwitz and its sub-camps. There are dedicated inventory ledgers, subject 723 Ibid., Abstract [of the paper], p. 115. runs similar projects in many countries on virtually every continent. 725 Exteřsive excerśts Śf a dŚzeř Śf the iřterviews have beeř śublished by Gruśińska iř bŚŚk fŚrm: A. Gruśińska, 12 ydŚwskich ŚśŚwie ci, WŚłŚwiec 2013. 724 Centropa 319 indexes and indexes of personal names for the audio-video collections. The oldest interview recordings made by the museum date from 1959. There are also copies of interviews with former prisoners conducted by USHMM, the Imperial War Museum, the Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation, Holocaust Museum Houston, TV Katowice, and other institutions. • PMM iř Lubliř recŚrds iřterviews with fŚrmer śrisŚřers Śř audiŚ taśe (iř all, it has sŚme ė1Ę recordings), and now also on video (arouřd 100). Jařiřa KiełbŚń726, for many years the head of the PMM archive, reports that the testimonies were recorded in many areas from which camp prisoners came: ZamŚ ć ařd the area, Warsaw, KrakŚw, Gdańsk, Szczeciř, WrŚcław, BiałystŚk ařd Lubliř, as well as present-day Belarus. The recordings are used in documentary films and programmes about the camp. • GrŚss-RŚseř Museum iř RŚgŚ řica-Wałbrzych has beeř recŚrdiřg iřterviews siřce 198ė. TŚ date some 275 video and 206 audio recordings have been made (totalling around 150 hours). These are mostly interviews with former prisoners of KL Gross-Rosen and its sub-camps in the regions of Lower Silesia, the Sudeten Mountains, Moravia, Lusatia and Saxony. The museum keeps an alphabetical catalogue of the people it has interviewed. • Archiwum HistŚrii MówiŚřej (the Oral HistŚry Archive), fŚuřded iř 200ė at the KARTA Ceřtre, gathers oral history testimonies about the twentieth century. It ran a Mauthausen Survivors Documentation Project in which 164 testimonies were recorded. Thirty interviews with former female prisoners of camps including Ravensbrück and Auschwitz were recorded for another project, “ wiadectwa kŚbiet – kŚbiety wŚbec tŚtalitaryzmu” (WŚmeř’s testimŚřies – women and totalitarianism). Most of these interviews are based on the biographical narrative interview method. As early as in 1987 the KARTA Centre launched the first project in Poland specifically intended to record on tape interviews about World War II. It was a project designed to document the fates of the Poles in the East, in the camps, gulags, prisons and in exile, and was part of a broader project, Archiwum Wschodnie (the Eastern Archive). Around 1,200 audio recordings were made, which are accessible at the DŚm SśŚtkań z HistŚri (HistŚry Meetiřg House) in Warsaw. 726 J. 320 KiełbŚń, “Warsztat řaukŚwy PaństwŚwegŚ Muzeum řa Majdařku”, Zeszyty Majdanka, 1995, vol. XVI, p. 81. • Muzeum HistŚrii ydów PŚlskich (The Museum Śf the HistŚry Śf PŚlish Jews) ruřs a śrŚject develŚśed by Ařka Gruśińska eřtitled “Zaśisywařie wiata ydŚwskiegŚ w PŚlsce” (RecŚrdiřg the Jewish world in Poland). It focuses on three periods in the lives of the interviewees: before the war, the war, and after the war. Beyond a chronological account of life in these three different historical periods, the other major theme of these interviews are facts and reflections on issues of identity, concealiřg Jewishřess iř the PŚlish PeŚśle’s Reśublic, ařd the revival Śf the cultural ařd religiŚus life Śf PŚlařd’s Jews. Gruśińska cŚřtiřues tŚ seek Śut iřterestiřg iřterview cařdidates thrŚughŚut Poland. To date around 30 interviews have been recorded. • Brama GrŚdzka – Teatr NN (Grodzka Gate, No Name Theatre) in Lublin has been recording oral history interviews since 1998; over the years of its work it has amassed and edited more than 150 testimonies. Their main subject is prewar Lublin, and they last around an hour on average. Some of them may be found on the website http://www.tnn.lublin.pl. Many of the interviews make direct reference to the war years and the history of the camp at Majdanek. The interviews gathered by Brama Grodzka are used in documentary films, educational exhibitions and radio programmes. • Iř the mid-1990s the Department of Sociology of Culture at the Institute of Sociology, University Śf Łód , rař a śrŚject called “BiŚgrafia a tŚ samŚ ć řarŚdŚwa” (BiŚgraśhy ařd řatiŚřal ideřtity).727 This involved the recording of several dozen interviews on the subject of experiences of the occupation in central Poland and in the East. • The śrŚject “Witřesses, CŚllabŚratŚrs, ařd PerśetratŚrs” (recŚrdiřg iřterviews with non-Jewish witnesses and perpetrators of the Holocaust) was launched in Poland in 1996 by USHMM. 728 It takes in other victims of Nazi repressions, people who helped and rescued them, and collaborators and direct perpetrators of crimes – the latter more in intent than in practice, as no such individuals have been found who agreed to give an interview. The project takes place in several European countries beside Poland.729 Interviews with Holocaust survivors are also, naturally, made in the US and Israel. This project is a video project; in recent years its preliminary interviews have also been recorded (as digital audio material), and some materials run to several hours. Most of these focus on witnesses 727 BiŚgrafia a tŚ samŚ ć narŚdŚwa, ed. M. Czy ewska, A. PiŚtrŚwski, A. RŚkuszewska-Pawełek, Łód 1997. project is sponsored by Jeff and Toby Herr. 729 The śrŚject “Witřesses, CŚllabŚratŚrs, ařd PerśetratŚrs” is ruř alsŚ iř EstŚřia, Frařce, Germařy, Lithuařia, Belarus and Ukraine. In addition, USHMM also records interview for its Oral History section in other European countries: Greece, Macedonia, the Czech Republic, the former Yugoslavia, and outside Europe also in Israel. 728 This 321 living in the provinces. Over the past ten years, some 300 interviews have been made in Poland, and the project is now completed; the interviews are available online. The USHMM Oral History Section not only pursues its own projects, but also archives copies of interviews recorded by other institutions. At present its holdings run into the thousands. All these materials are being successively processed; the texts are transcribed onto paper, and the final stage is their translation into English. Excerśts Śf sŚme iřterviews are accessible Śř the museum’s website; others have been used in its permanent exhibition, and all the tapes are accessible to scholars on site in Washington. • RecŚrdiřg Śf iřterviews Śř film is very Śfteř ař iřtegral śart Śf the śrŚductiŚř śrŚcess Śf documentary films, and as such post-production materials not destroyed by the producer should be taken into consideration as very valuable material, especially after some time has elapsed. One example of this is the approximately 350 hours of recordings made over eleven years by Claude Lanzmann for his film Shoah, which lasts nine and a half hours.730 Today these recordings, only a few percent of which were actually used by the director in his film, are held in the collections of USHMM. AmŚřg thŚse whŚm Lařzmařř iřterviewed are twŚ survivŚrs Śf ChełmřŚ řad Nerem (SzymŚř Srebrřik ařd Michał PŚdchlebřik), a Treblinka survivor (Abraham Bomba), insurgents from the Warsaw ghetto (Symcha Rotem, real name Kazik Ratajzer, and Icchak Cukierman), śeasařts frŚm the areas arŚuřd Trebliřka, Małkiřia, ChełmřŚ, O wi cim, Beł ec, Grabów, WłŚdawa, etc., ařd PŚlish uřderground courier Jan Karski, with whom an interview was recorded in Washington, D.C. • USC ShŚah FŚuřdatiŚř. The Iřstitute fŚr Visual HistŚry ařd EducatiŚř (at Uřiversity Śf SŚutherř California) – an American foundation established by film director Steven Spielberg. In the years 1994-1999 around 53,000 interviews were recorded in 61 countries, in 39 languages, approximately 1,500 of them in Poland. Over ninety per cent (48,362) were interviews with Jewish Holocaust survivors; the remainder were Roma, camp prisoners of various other nationalities, forced labourers, postwar witnesses in war crimes trials, soldiers who had liberated the camps, and others. The Shoah Foundation moved to its permanent home at the University of Southern California in January 2006. The catalogue of the interviews in the collection is accessible online (http://vhaonline.usc.edu/login.aspx), as is further information on the project, at: http://sfi.usc.edu. 730 A. BikŚřt, “Re yser Claude Lařzmařř Ś swŚim filmie „ShŚah”, Ś Zagładzie, Ś śŚlskim ařtysemityzmie, Ś sŚbie samym”, Gazeta Wyborcza, 4 Oct. 1997. 322 On the worldwide scale, access to the interviews is possible in 50 institutions in 12 countries; in Poland in Warsaw, in the History Meeting House and at the Museum of the History of Polish Jews. • The PŚlish RighteŚus – Recalling Forgotten History. A project run by the Museum of the History of Polish Jews documenting rescue stories and presenting them on a bilingual website (www.sprawiedliwi.org.pl; www.righteous.org.pl). This collection of stories comprises several hundred texts, accompanied by photographs, documents and excerpts of recorded interviews. The website also features educational materials such as lesson plans, a virtual exhibition and albums about the Righteous.731 731 IřfŚrmatiŚř sŚurced frŚm the MH P webśage: http://sprawiedliwi.org.pl/en/cms/polish-righteous/. 323 324 11. Memorial books The books that are the subject of this chapter are publications usually written in the original in Yiddish and/or Hebrew.732 They are usually called sefer (Heb. “bŚŚk”), sefer zikaron (Heb. “bŚŚk Śf memŚry”) Śr bukh (Yid. “bŚŚk”). The geřeric řame fŚr these wŚrks, křŚwř iř Eřglish as “memŚrial bŚŚks” (cf. alsŚ Ger. “MemŚrbuch”), is takeř frŚm the řame sŚmetimes attributed tŚ them iř Yiddish, izkor-bukh (from Heb. yizkor), which meařs “may [the LŚrd] remember [yŚur sŚul]”. These are the first words of the prayer for the dead and murdered. The term izkor-bukh thus means literally “bŚŚk Śf śrayers fŚr the dead” ařd is a symbŚlic fŚrm Śf remembrařce Śf the victims Śf the Holocaust, a memorial erected by those who survived to those who perished. Another name sometimes used to denote these books is pinkas 733 (chronicle). 734 On occasion the words khurbn, umkum or shoah feature in the title, meaning catastrophe, extermination or destruction. Memorial books are the product of the work and efforts of several hundred Jewish organizations known from the Yiddish as landsmanshaftn. The history of the landsmanshaftn is connected to the nineteenthcentury wave of Jewish emigration from Central and Eastern Europe (including the Polish lands) to the USA, Latin America and Palestine. At first the landsmanshaftn were akin to fraternities; they were communities of people from the same towns gathering for prayer in the same synagogue. In the 1880s the landsmanshaftn evolved into secular organizations. A major revival in their activities came after the end of World War II, when groups of Jewish Holocaust survivors from Europe began to arrive. This presented the landsmanshaftn with new challenges: first they had to provide the survivors with care and lift their spirits, and later they set about commemorating their native towns that had been destroyed and their residents murdered. They organized memorial evenings, built centres to host meetings of the landsmanshaftř (“hŚuses” řamed fŚr the variŚus tŚwřs), built symbolic matzevot in their local Jewish cemeteries (both outside Poland and in the towns from 732 The main language of the memorial books is Hebrew, followed by Yiddish; bilingual editions are often also published, or versions with a mixture of languages, e.g. with certain parts in English. A minority of them are written in English, French, German and Spanish. A few have been translated into Polish – the bŚŚks frŚm BiłgŚraj, ChŚrzele, OstrŚł ka, Sierpc and Szczekociny. Most of the textual content of the memorial books is accessible online (as scans) on the New York Public Library website at http://www.nypl.org/research/chss/jws/yizkorbooks_intro.cfm. 733 The word pinkas Śrigiřally meařt “bŚŚk Śf the kehile”, ařd was the wŚrd used tŚ deřŚte a cŚmmuřity’s recŚrds, which iřcluded řŚtes Śř its histŚry ařd miřutes Śf the elders’ gatheriřgs; heřce the řame pinkas ha-kehila (community book). 734 Cf. S. BŚjczuk, “„Ksi gi Pami ci” – geneza i charakterystyka”, Scriptores – Pamięć – Miejsce – ObecnŚ ć, 2003, no. 1, pp. 73-7ę. This article is the iřtrŚductiŚř tŚ the Master’s thesis “DziedzictwŚ kulturŚwe ydów lubelskich w wietle „Sefer ZikkarŚř Lubliř” („Ksi ga śami ci Lubliřa”), Tel Aviv 19Ę7”, written under the supervision of Dr R. Marcinkowski, Zakład Hebraistyki, Iřstytut Orieřtalistyczřy UW. 325 which their members came) to commemorate the annihilated communities, and wrote memorial books. In the 1940s there were around 600 landsmanshaftn in Chicago 735; in the 1970s in Israel approximately 300. Later on, once their primary mission – often the publication of a book commemorating their native town – had been accomplished, these organizations began to wind up or scale down their work. Today many of them still exist, but focus primarily on second-generation Holocaust survivors. Before the landsmanshaftn began to receive the waves of émigrés from Europe, they were already involved in sending aid to survivors in the countries where they were still living after the war. Landsmanshaftn were founded in Poland as well as elsewhere; their purpose was to bring together people from the same town who since the war had been living elsewhere, or frequently moving around. A joint organization was actually crucial to these people in order to remain in contact, exchange information, and facilitate the fair distribution of material aid sent from abroad by others who had moved on before them. 736 Contact between the existing landsmanshaftn in Poland and thŚse abrŚad was cŚŚrdiřated by Wydział ZiŚmkŚstw (the Lařdsmařshaftř Deśartmeřt) at the Ceřtral CŚmmittee Śf Jews iř PŚlařd (CK P). A twiř deśartmeřt was established iř Warsaw at the headquarters of the largest of the aid organizations, the Joint (AJDC). Members of these organizations set about gathering materials for the memorial books while they were still in Poland, and they were published years later, abroad. Memorial books were written in many countries that accepted survivors – Israel, North America, South America, Australia and France. Their time of publication ranged from the 1940s737 to the 1980s. The decision to create a memorial book was taken by a convention of the landsmanshaft board; on occasion it might be an individual initiative that was subsequently taken up by other members. The board shouldered the burden of procuring the funds for publication, which it raised by charging its members subscription fees and asking wealthier compatriots for targeted donations for specific aspects of the publishing process, such as paper, printing, or distribution. The board also encouraged landsmanshaftn operating in other countries to contribute to the book itself and to the costs of its publication. It selected from among its members an editor, who was responsible for gathering, collating and preparing materials. The editor might be PŚlski słŚwnik judaistyczny. Dzieje, kultura, religia, ludzie, compiled by Z. BŚrzymińska, R. ebrŚwski, Warszawa 2003, vol. 2, p. 828. 736 Cf. A. Skibińska, “PŚwrŚty Ścalałych”, [iř:] PrŚwincja nŚc. ycie i zagłada ydów w dystrykcie warszawskim, ed. B. Engelking, J. Leociak, D. Libionka, Warszawa 2007, pp. 505-599. 737 Some books were śublished at a very early stage: the first Łód memŚrial bŚŚk came Śut iř 19ė3 iř MelbŚurře, ařd that on Krasnystaw in 1948 in the DP camp in Munich. 735 Cf. 326 an external specialist with experience in this type of work; in the 1960s, editing of memorial books was even a recognized profession, and as such the same names often figure in the editorial committees of very different books. Some editors were well-křŚwř histŚriařs, amŚřg them Rafał Mahler, the editŚr Śf the memŚrial bŚŚk fŚr NŚwy S cz, his Śwř hŚme tŚwř; Nachmař Blumeřtal, a member of the committee for the Lublin book; and Bernard Mark, for many years the director of IH ařd ař editŚr Śf several bŚŚks. It is imśŚrtařt tŚ meřtiŚř that while the cŚŚrdiřatiřg editŚr appointed might be someone from outside a given landsmanshaft, all the commemorative articles on people, places, facts, organizations or any other matters were written by people from within the Śrigiřal cŚmmuřity. The editŚr’s resśŚřsibilities iřcluded searchiřg the archives Śf YIVO ařd Śther ŚrgařizatiŚřs, abŚve all thŚse Śf IH738, on the town in question, writing to survivors and survivor organizations in other countries to source memoirs for inclusion in the memorial book, generating new texts, and gathering photographs, maps, etc. From a contemporary perspective it is hard to say how the editors of these books worked and how they selected the materials that were to be included. We do not know whether any archival materials relating to work on the books have been preserved and are still in the possession of the landsmanshaft committees, or how long their work took. Other than actually collating the materials and readying them for print, the editors tended not to edit the reminiscences either in terms of their literary qualities or in any other respect. This might be considered amateur, but from our perspective, in particular that of the scholar, this was the right approach to take with regard to these original texts. They are spiked with mistakes, distortions and repetitions that bestow on them the quality of authenticity. It is worth mentioning that the Central Jewish HistŚrical CŚmmissiŚř (C KH) iř PŚlařd ślařřed tŚ śublish a mŚřumeřtal dŚcumeřtary study called Pinkas Poyln, or the Memorial Book of Poland, though it never reached the publication stage. Another project by the same organization was a lexicon of all the murdered Polish Jews credited with service to their people.739 There was probably no formal common format for editing the memorial books, yet the editors of the various individual volumes intuitively adopted a similar categorization of the materials they gathered and (again probably), basing their work on books previously published, over time developed a relatively homogeneous convention that may be defined as a format. This structure is as follows: – editorial preface, 738 DŚcumeřts frŚm fŚřds iř the SS, JŚiřt ařd Riřgelblum archives were Śfteř śublished iř these bŚŚks. IH, C KH, call řŚ. 303/XX/19Ę, Wykazy imieřře zasłu Śřych Śsób (Named lists Śf distiřguished śeŚśle); call no. 196-198, Fiszki biograficzne do leksykonu (Biographical notes for a lexicon); call no. 231-233, KartŚteka zmarłych – faktŚgrafia miejscŚwŚ ci (Card index of the dead – local facts). 739 A 327 – a history of the town and Jewish settlement there (varying vastly in terms of accuracy), – a history of political parties, associations, other organizations, and institutions there, – the history of its religious life, its rabbis and synagogues, – monographic articles on outstanding members of the community, activists, well-known characters, etc. (for the most part reminiscences by people who remembered them), – a variety of materials on the Holocaust, – articles on the shtetl and the fates of its residents in the work of Jewish artists, – commemorative texts and photographs; sometimes these included an empty frame with the caśtiŚř: “This is a sśace fŚr family members whŚ fŚr variŚus reasŚřs cŚuld řŚt be iřcluded iř this bŚŚk”, – lists of those murdered and obituaries, including members of the landsmanshaft who died after the war, – information on landsmanshaftn and other organizations in Israel and elsewhere in the world. The section on the Holocaust in the Lublin memorial book740 cŚřtaiřs the fŚllŚwiřg chaśters: “Jak śisz Ś TŚbie, Lubliřie?” (HŚw dŚ I write abŚut yŚu, Lubliř?), “O zagładzie ydów w Lubliřie” (The extermiřatiŚř Śf the Jews iř Lubliř), “Lubelskie gettŚ – Majdař Tatarski” (The Lubliř GhettŚ, Majdař Tatarski), “Cierśieřie dzieci w getcie lubelskim” (The sufferiřg Śf the childreř iř the Lubliř ghettŚ), “Majdařek”, “W szśŚřach gestaśŚ” (Iř the clutches Śf the GestaśŚ), “ wiatła z getta” (Lights frŚm the ghettŚ), ařd “Majdařek 19ėę”. FŚr the śurśŚses Śf cŚmśarisŚř, the analogous section of the memorial book for Kozienice and Garbatka, around 200 pages in length, is composed Śf mařy shŚrt chaśters with characteristic titles such as “PŚciemřiałe řiebŚ” (The darkeřed sky), “My li dziecka Ścalałych” (ThŚughts Śf a survivŚrs’ child), “MŚje tragiczře dŚ wiadczeřia” (My tragic exśerieřces), “Oři mieszkali z řami” (They lived with us), “Zamiast kamieřia řagrŚbřegŚ” (Iř ślace Śf a tŚmbstŚře), “Wybaczcie mi, drŚdzy rŚdzice” (FŚrgive me, dear śareřts), “ ydzi řie maj śrawa yć” (The Jews have řŚ right tŚ live), “Przera aj ce dři i lata” (Terrifyiřg days ařd years), “Siedem stŚśři śiekła śrzeszłŚ ŚbŚk mřie” (Seveř degrees Śf hell śassed by me), “PŚtwŚrřy kŚszmar” (A mŚřstrŚus řightmare), “Nigdy tegŚ řie zaśŚmřimy” (We will řever fŚrget it), “KŚzieřice bez ydów” (KŚzieřice withŚut Jews).741 740 Sefer zikaron Lublin, Tel Aviv 1957. Book of Kozienice on the 27th Anniversary of the Savage Destruction of Our Former Home, ed. B. Kaplinsky, Tel Aviv 1969, New York 1985. 741 The 328 Most of the materials on the period of the occupation are eye-witness testimonies, by people not necessarily originally from the place in question; they might have been people deported to the ghetto there, staying there temporarily, working in nearby labour camps, etc. Among the most frequently recurring themes in these testimonies and reminiscences are the fates of the Jews and the town itself in the first weeks of the war, forced labour, daily life in the ghettos including the organization of the JudeřrŹte, the wŚrk Śf the SS, aid fŚr childreř, study ařd schŚŚl iř the ghettŚs, life iř the camśs, liquidation of the ghettos, Jewish participation in armed struggle and the resistance movement, relations with local people (lots of information about assistance rendered), the fates of refugees in the USSR, emigration from Poland to Palestine or other countries, and the history of its population (landsmanshaft) after the Holocaust. There were texts in a variety of genres on the history of the shtetl from the very earliest times (its settlement by Jews) until after the war, and its social, cultural, religious and political life. The balance of accents between these various themes largely depended on the orientation, views and membership of particular organizations of the editors of each volume. Generally speaking, there was a tendency to play down the role of religion in day-to-day life and inflate the significance of political (e.g. Zionist) organizations and parties relative to their actual position. The world of the goyim – the non-Jewish, Christian populace – tends to be mentioned in the margins, or in a negative context, e.g. anti-Jewish demonstrations, operations or excesses (such as during Corpus Christi processions). Most books contained lists of names of Jewish residents and Holocaust victims, and reproductions of prewar maps or street plans. Memorial books are not scholarly works; neither are they purely testimonies or memoirs or any other single form of scholarly or literary expression known to us. This is why they are discussed in this Guide in a separate chapter, as a form and source unique to themselves. They are compilations of very varied genres, and thus as a whole highly syncretic and eclectic in form. Among the materials they contain are reprints of archival documents, official papers, encyclopedic entries, song lyrics, prayers, tales, poems, literary texts, testimonies, memoirs, lists of all sorts, the statutes of various organizations, newspaper cuttings, photographs, maps, drawings, obituaries, lists of names, etc. Memorial books reference a medieval tradition (in Germany, Switzerland, and Alsace) of writing 329 Memorbücher742 – books dedicated to the memory of deceased members of the community, in which their names were inscribed, along with the circumstances of their deaths, particularly if they had been killed in a pogrom. 743 As such they were a type of lamentation, threnody, or elegy – a form of grieving and mourning characterized by a powerful emotional charge, and often a lack of objectivity ařd distařce. As S. BŚjczuk writes, “They may be used as examśles thrŚugh which tŚ trace twŚ cultural phenomena – the mythologization of the past, and the unintentional creation of the myth of the Jewish shtetl. The circumstances in which these authors left their towns were tragic, and intrinsically connected with experiences that preclude a balanced approach to the events described ařd a critical aśśrŚach tŚ the śast.” 744 For many years yizkor books were hardly used at all by historians – for the most part undervalued, sometimes quite simply unknown to them, and hard to access because of the language barrier. 745 We should remember that the members of the landsmanshaftn wrote them for their own use, so they were never released into mainstream circulation. In recent times, memorial books have seen a kind of continuation746, in the works of writers such as Eva Hoffman, Teo Richmond, Jaffa Eliach and Rafael F. Scharf. 747 Published in small print runs (probably a few thousand at most), they are today accessible only in highly specialized libraries 748 ařd Śřliře. Iř PŚlařd there are memŚrial bŚŚks iř the IH Library 749 and in the collections of the centre run by Prof. Monika Adamczyk-Garbowska at UMCS in Lublin (she was the coordinating editor of an anthology of texts from a range of memorial books750). In all, a probable total of 526 memorial books have been published throughout the world, 428 of which refer to places within the 1939 borders of the Second Republic of Poland.751 They in fact reference more Jewish settlements than this, however (approximately 547), because many of them take in several 742 A more recent reference to the same tradition was made by Henryk Grynberg, cf. idem, Memorbuch, Warszawa 2000. S. BŚjczuk, “„Ksiegi śami ci””, Śś. cit., ś. 73. 744 Ibidem, p. 75. 745 Some memorial books (or excerpts of them) have been translated into English and are online at http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/translations.html. 746 Cf. M. Adamczyk-GarbŚwska, “Uzuśełřiařie śami ci – izkŚr bicher jakŚ wiadectwŚ i iřsśiracja”, [in:] Zagłada ydów. Pamięć narŚdŚwa a śisanie historii w Polsce i we Francji, ed. B. Engelking et al., Lublin 2006, pp. 161-172. 747 E. Hoffman, Shtetl: The Life and Death of a Small Town and the World of Polish Jews, Polish edition: Sztetl. wiat ydów polskich, Warszawa 2001; T. Richmond, Uporczywe echo: sztetl Konin. Poszukiwanie, PŚzřań 2001; R. F. Scharf, Co mnie i Tobie PŚlskŚ… Eseje bez uśrzedzeń/PŚland, What Have I TŚ DŚ With Thee... Essays withŚut Prejudice, Kraków 1996; J. Eliach, There Was Once a World: a nine-hundred-year chronicle of the shtetl of Eishyshok, Boston 1998. 748 Outside Poland e.g. in USHMM, Yad Vashem. 749 The memŚrial bŚŚks accessible iř the IH Library are listed iř the BibliŚgraśhy at the eřd Śf this Guide (compiled by Monika Polit). 750 This anthology includes around 150 texts from some 100 memorial books. Tam był kiedy mój dŚm... Księgi śamięci gmin ydŚwskich, ed. M. Adamczyk-GarbŚwska, A. KŚściŚwski, A. Trzciński, Lubliř 2009. 751 O. Goldberg-Mulkiewicz, “Ksiegi śami ci („MemŚrbücher”) a mit ydŚwskiegŚ miasteczka”, Etnografia Polska, 1991, vol. XXXV, bk 2. 743 Cf. 330 neighbouring places or a whole area. On the other hand, some towns have been commemorated in more than one book, e.g. by rival landsmanshaftn752, or when a second book is published years later as a supplement to a first. There are several bibliographies of memorial books, including one devoted specifically to yizkor-bikher for places in the Polish lands. 753 The books vary considerably in size, which was not subjected to any limitations other than those posed by funding at the editorial stage. Some are very short (e.g. the book for Rejowiec is just 46 pages long), while others are vast, running into hundreds of pages, or even up to a thousand (the bŚŚk fŚr SłŚřim, fŚr iřstařce, is fŚur vŚlumes long). Today we are discovering the importance of memorial books as an original source and sign of the times in which they were written. Aside from their emotional, cultural or anthropological value, they also contain a plethora of information and facts, photographs (most of which are inaccessible via any Śther sŚurce Śr archive), ařd deśŚsitiŚřs Śfteř gathered very shŚrtly after the war’s eřd. Their emotive, sometimes even exalted tone lends the descriptions of places and events a sense of unreality, abstraction, which well reflects the attitudes of the Jewish survivors to the irrevocably lost world that they had retained and encoded in their memory, imagination, dreams and reminiscences. And finally and most importantly, for many places memorial books are the only source of information and eye-witness testimony on the Holocaust. To the Jews themselves who recorded them, in turn, they gave a kind of closure to the Polish part of their history, a form of mourning and grieving for its tragic end. These books also represented a symbolic burial for the Holocaust victims, and at the same time a tombstone. In many cases they were a sign of a definitive departure from a Poland where there was no longer a place for the Jews, even though some of them had attempted to make Śře. FŚr amŚřg the mŚst dramatic śarts Śf the memŚrial bŚŚks are the survivŚrs’ memŚries Śf their – mostly brief – forays back to their native regions shortly after the war, before definitively leaving for good. MŚnika PŚlit and Alina Skibińska 752 BiłgŚraj, fŚr iřstařce, has twŚ bŚŚks, Gliřiařy three, Cz stŚchŚwa fŚur. Bass, “Bibliographical List of Memorial Books Published in the Years 1943-1972”, Yad Vashem Studies, 1973, vol. 9, pp. 273-321, pp. 279-316; A. Weiř, “Memorial Books as a Source for Research into the History of Jewish Communities in Europe”, [iř:] Yad Vashem on the European Jewish Catastrophe and Resistance, vol. IX, Yad Vashem, 1973, pp. 255-272; A. Kopciowski, Księgi śamięci gmin ydŚwskich. Bibliografia. Jewish Memorial Books. A Bibliography, Lublin 2008. 753 D. 331 332 12. Other archival sources The archival materials described in the previous chapters do not, of course, constitute an exhaustive list of the types of documents that scholars may use relevant to the subject, issues and period addressed in their research. All kinds of papers from the period of the occupation contain information and data on specific facts or the context of contemporary events. Even where documentation does not directly reference the situation of the Jews and their extermination, it is still vital to an overview of the situation as a whole in Poland or a particular area. Comprehensive research into the complete holdings of a particular institution or archive (e.g. for the needs of USHMM in Washington, D.C.) takes in a large range of diverse files and collections including many not directly referencing the theme of the Holocaust but vital to conducting broad-based historical, sociological and other research into the World War II period, above all regarding the fates of the civilian population, in particular those groups that were condemned to total annihilation or elimination by other methods from the life of society in a particular region, e.g. by forced resettlement or debilitating labour. Papers of such fundamental significance to any historical research as the files of city and community authorities, many of which date back decades and even centuries, have not been given a separate chapter. In these collections, the occupation, prewar and postwar periods are one element of a larger whole, and the relevant materials held in such fonds have been listed and profiled in Part I of this Guide, in the chapter on the holdings in the archives administered by the Head Office of the State Archives (NDAP). At this point what must be reiterated is that research into all aspects of the causes and effects of the Holocaust must encompass also archive materials from the periods both before and after World War II; these will be addressed in more detail below. Among archive materials generated during the war, scholars should also look at other types of collections and record groups than those described above; here we shall mention only a few in order to show how diverse and universal archive searches can be, and how issues seemingly distant from our main subject may in fact be connected, either directly or indirectly, with the Nazi plan to annihilate all the Jews, and with the complete transformation of social, political, economic, population and all manner of other relations in Europe. One such strand is the vast quantity and variety of documents connected with 333 the looting of Jewish property754 (moveable assets, real property, monies, artworks, cultural assets and intellectual property) and all operations and official actions undertaken by the occupying authorities virtually from the first day of their invasion of Poland. One such document is the ordinance of the Head of the Civilian Authorities (Chef der Zivilverwaltung, Szef Zarz du CywilřegŚ) (Śř behalf Śf the Supreme Führer) issued on 6 September 1939 with retroactive effect, i.e. from 1 September 1939, prohibiting the storage, sale or gifting of Jewish property on pain of severe punishment. 755 The subject of the expropriation of the Jews, the looting of their property – in Nazi nomenclature termed “AryařizatiŚř” – and the historical, sociological, psychological and of course legal dimensions of what subsequently happened to that property requires further in-depth study in the future. Continuation of the documentation connected with these issues that was generated during the war is fŚuřd iř fŚřds Śf gŚverřmeřt Śffices iř the PŚlish PeŚśle’s Reśublic, such as the Urz dy Ziemskie (Lařd Offices), Urz dy Likwidacyjře (LiquidatiŚř Offices), iř cŚurt, śrŚsecutiŚř ařd sŚlicitŚrs’ files, and in mortgage registers. Groups of occupation-era archive materials worth exploring and not profiled elsewhere in this Guide are: • The files Śf the Gesuřdheitskammer (Izby ZdrŚwia, Chambers Śf Health) in Krakow and Warsaw; • The files Śf hŚsśitals, sařatŚria, Śther healthcare iřstitutiŚřs ařd sśa cŚmmissiŚřs, e.g. thŚse iř Obrzyce, Warsaw, Falenica and Otwock; • The files Śf PaństwŚwy Iřstytut Higieřy (the State Iřstitute Śf Hygieře), Warsaw; • CŚuřty and local offices of the NSDAP; • The files Śf gŚverřmeřt Śffices ařd iřstitutiŚřs resśŚřsible fŚr Śr cŚllabŚratiřg iř the śluřder Śf property and the administration of confiscated property belonging to the subjugated populace, above all Jews, e.g. trustee administration offices (Treuhandstellen) 756 and real property administration boards, real property associations, and companies administering confiscated land, e.g. those in Warsaw, Krakow, Katowice, Bielsko-Biała, ChŚdzie ařd LeszřŚ; • The PŚlish ařd German Red Cross organizations; • The files Śf bařks, saviřgs ařd lŚařs sŚcieties, curreřcy Śffices ařd iřsurařce cŚmśařies757; Klucze i kasa. O mieniu ydŚwskim w PŚlsce śŚd Śkuśacją niemiecką i we wczesnych latach śŚwŚjennych, ed. J. Grabowski, D. Libionka, Warszawa 2014. 755 AN Krakow, Zbiór afiszów i plakatów, RG 665, file no. 029/665/1503. 756 Cf. J. GrabŚwski, “PŚlscy zarz dcy śŚwierřiczy maj tku ydŚwskiegŚ. Zarys śrŚblematyki”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2005, no. 1, pp. 253-326; idem, “Zarz d PŚwierřiczy i řieruchŚmŚ ci ydŚwskie w Geřeralřym GubernatŚrstwie. „CŚ mŚ řa skŚřfiskŚwać? W zasadzie wszystkŚ””, [iř:] Klucze i kasa, op. cit., pp. 73-112. 757 Cf. I. Loose, Kredite für NS-Verbrechen. Die deutschen Kreditinstitute in Polen und die Ausraubung der polnischen und jüdischen Bövelkerung 1939-1945, München 2007. 754 Cf. 334 • The files Śf reveřue ařd custŚms Śffices, e.g. iř WrŚcław; • The files Śf emślŚymeřt Śffices (ArbeitsŹmter), iřcludiřg their card files of people forcibly employed and sent as labour to the Third Reich758; • The files Śf eřterśrises that used fŚrced labŚur, iř śarticular thŚse iřvŚlved iř the war ecŚřŚmy (mines, foundries, machine production plants and explosives factories, and construction and roadbuilding firms); • The files Śf variŚus sśatial ařd ecŚřŚmic ślařřiřg Śffices, ařd Hauśtgruśśe ErřŹhruřg uřd Lařdwirtschaft iř der Distriktskammer für Gesamtwirtschaft iř Warschau (Gruśa Główřa Wy ywieřia i RŚlřictwa w Izbie Okr gŚwej dla GŚsśodarki Ogólnej, Warszawa; Central Group for Nutrition and Agriculture at the District Office for the General Economy in Warsaw); • The files Śf the Śffices ařd iřstitutiŚřs established tŚ deśŚrt ařd resettle śŚśulatiŚř grŚuśs, implement Germanization operatiŚřs, establish racial śrŚveřařce, etc., iř PŚzřań, Łód , Lubliř ařd ZamŚ ć; • The files Śf the Jewish registry Śffices (isŚlated surviviřg materials); • Statistical materials, e.g. the Statistical Office Śf the GG; • The files Śf Śther ŚrgařizatiŚřs, association and unions. FILES FROM THE PREWAR PERIOD Documentation from before 1939 is only of interest to Holocaust historians in some areas; these are specifically where an outline of the historical context and a description of a point of reference is necessary, e.g. in research into the history of the Holocaust in particular Jewish communities. In such cases, the files Śf Jewish cŚmmuřities held iř the State Archives, A IH Śr Yad Vashem are particularly valuable. Among those communities whose files have been preserved more or less in their eřtirety are thŚse iř Łód , LeszřŚ, Skulsk, KrakŚw, Warsaw, BydgŚszcz, WłŚcławek, ychliř, PakŚ ć, ZabłŚcie, BiałŚgard, KŚszaliř, Lubliř, DŚbrŚmil, TarřŚśŚl, Rzeszów, Czudec, Tyczyř, Siedlce, TŚruń, WrŚcław, Gliwice, and others in the Province of Silesia. In terms of material generated by government and regional administrative offices 759 , the documentation of greatest sigřificařce fŚr research is that Śf the vŚivŚdeshiś Śffices’ sŚcial ařd śŚlitical deśartmeřts, which include reports as well as monthly and weekly situational profiles that are crucial to exploring moods 758 Very extensive evidentiary material, as well as statements and testimonies given by those concerned, has been amassed by Fundacja Polsko-Niemieckie Pojednanie (the Foundation for Polish-German Reconciliation) for compensatory purposes. In the future this will provide historians with extra research material. 759 Cf. J. Ogonowski, Sytuacja śrawna ydów w RzeczyśŚsśŚlitej PŚlskiej 1918-1939. Prawa cywilne i polityczne, Warszawa 2012. 335 in society and attitudes among various population groups, political parties, etc. Also worthy of attention are those of their general and religious affairs departments, where there is information on the entire population of a given region, in particular those confessing Judaism. 760 The files of government ministries, above all the ministries of Internal Affairs (MSW) and Foreign Affairs (MSZ), and of the various embassies and consulates, relate to a very broad spectrum of issues ranging from state politics at the highest level to attempts by individuals to leave a country under threat of armed invasion, and seeking assistance from Polish representations and offices. The years immediately preceding the outbreak of war are also studied in connection with issues such as antisemitism, the economic boycott of the Jews, the numerus clausus and numerus nullus policies at universities, incidents and pogroms, state policy in respect of national minorities, emigration, and the expulsion of Jewish citizens of Poland from the Third Reich, which one historian of these events, Jerzy TŚmaszewski, has called “the śrelude tŚ the HŚlŚcaust”.761 What follows is a brief description of the contents of a few selected fonds which are directly relevant to these issues. KOMITET POMOCY UCHOD COM YDOWSKIM Ń NIEMIEC W POLSCE, ODDŃIAŁ W CHRŃANOWIE, XII 1938 – VIII 1939 (Committee for Aid to Jewish Refugees from Germany in Poland, Chrzanów Branch, Dec. 1938 – Aug. 1939), AP Katowice, RG 2426 These files cŚřtaiř material iřcludiřg cŚrresśŚřdeřce with Ogólřy KŚmitet PŚmŚcy UchŚd cŚm z Niemiec, O rŚdek Zb szyń (the Geřeral CŚmmittee fŚr Aid tŚ Refugees frŚm Germařy, Zb szyń Centre), letters from various people regarding assistance, and from lawyers from Chrzanów to the MSW, correspondence regarding material aid collected, correspondence with various communities in Poland and in Berlin regarding documents for the refugees, and individual requests for assistance. POLICJA WOJEWÓDŃTWA L SKIEGO (Silesian VŚivŚdeshiś PŚlice) 1922-1939, AP Katowice, RG 38 Files include a dossier (call no. 178, approx. 470 pp.) containing very detailed lists of the Jews expelled from Germany. The personal data sheets contain the following information: given name and surřame, date ařd ślace Śf birth, śareřts’ giveř řames, śrŚfession, previous place of residence, intended destination, and what identity papers the person held. Most of the lists originate from the Silesia voivodeship, but there are also lists of several hundred Jews expelled from Germany living in J. Pawlak, ydzi w dŚkumentach administracji śaństwŚwej w dwudziestŚleciu międzywŚjennym (1918-1939), TŚruń 2007. Tomaszewski, Preludium Zagłady. Wygnanie ydów śŚlskich z Niemiec w 1938 r., Warszawa 1998. 760 Cf. 761 J. 336 Warsaw. This dossier also includes correspondence and police telegrams containing information on forthcoming transports of Jews expelled from Germany. The police in various cities also issued statistics of re-emigrants. Among correspondence dating from 1939 there are letters from the Committees for Aid to Jewish Refugees from many areas. Also worthy of note are descriptions of anti-Jewish incidents in testimonies by Jewish re-emigrants forcibly expelled from Germany, e.g. the devastation of Jewish shops by the Gestapo and the German police, arrests and beatings of Jews, and burning of synagogues. LISTA YDÓW DEPORTOWANYCH Ń TRŃECIEJ RŃESŃY DO POLSKI PRŃEŃ OBÓŃ W ŃB SŃYNIU W 1938 R. (List Śf Jews DeśŚrted frŚm the Third Reich tŚ PŚland via the Camś in Ńb szy in 1938), AIPN, CŚllectiŚn “Ń”, file nŚ. 1141 The original list, compiled in 1938 (no more specific date) by a person who knew Polish (228 pp., large fŚrmat, filled Śř bŚth sides, iřcludes ė,Ęę0 śeŚśle (“Lista wydalŚřych ydów w Zb szyřiu”, List Śf exśelled Jews iř Zb szyń). FŚr each Śf these śeŚśle, the fŚllŚwiřg data were giveř: surřame ařd giveř řame (iřcl. maideř řame fŚr married wŚmeř), śareřts’ giveř řames ařd maideř řame Śf mother, date, place and country of birth, religion, marital status, full current address, status in respect of military service (military rank or category), profession, knowledge of written and spoken Polish, place and date of issue of passport and issuing authority, consulate registration number, passport serial number. KRAJOWY ŃAKŁAD LECŃNICŃY W MI DŃYRŃECŃU–OBRZYCACH (LANDESHEILANSTALT MESERITZ-OBRAWALDE, Regional Treatment Institute in Mi dzyrzec-Obrzyce) 1904-1945, AP Gorzów Wielkopolski, RG 256 This was a hospital for mental and nervous illnesses.762 Most of the surviving files (in all 4,626 items) are the personal and case notes of patients (call no. 148-4626) and the personal files of nurses and auxiliary śersŚřřel. The śaśers Śf the hŚsśital’s directŚr ařd the dŚctŚrs whŚ tŚŚk śart iř the euthanasia programme are missing, however. From 1933 and throughout World War II, Obrzyce was the site of crimes against individuals both sick and healthy who came into conflict with the German Nazis. From 1939 the hospital in Obrzyce was a transit point for sick people destined for sites of mass extermination. Further changes occurred in 1941, when Walter Grabowski was appointed its director. He was charged with the implementation of a euthanasia programme for 762 Cf. W. Lemiesz, Zbrodnia w Obrzycach, Warszawa 1966. 337 terminally sick or high-dependency patients; euthanasia was carried out on site from 1942. The decisiŚř Śř a śatieřt’s fate was takeř immediately Śř their arrival at the hŚsśital. Patieřts whŚ were uřfit fŚr labŚur, ařd small childreř, were seřt fŚr immediate “liquidatiŚř”. Iř the years 19ė2-1945 the Germans murdered probably around 10,000 people in Obrzyce. Most of these were German citizens, but there were also Poles, Russians, French, Belgians, Italians, Dutch and others in that number. POLSKO-BRYTYJSKIE TOWARŃYSTWO OKR TOWE S.A. (PŚlish-British Shipping Company) 1928-1939, AP Gda sk, RG 1034 Files include official correspondence regarding reservations, copies of tickets, lists of émigré passengers, among whom were large numbers of Jews, and shipping documents. These materials are an interesting source for research into emigration of Jews from Poland on the eve of the outbreak of World War II. They contain considerable information on mutual aid campaigns by Jewish organizations, which assisted with all the formalities surrounding emigration. There is also a large volume of correspondence regarding reservations and information. GDYNIA-AMERYKA. LINIE EGLUGOWE S.A. (Gdynia-America Shipping Lines) 1930194Ę, AP Gda sk, RG 103ę The shipping company Gdynia–Ameryka Liřie eglugŚwe S.A. was fŚuřded iř 1930 tŚ carry émigrés on the line Gdynia–Halifax–New YŚrk. Iř 1932 a “Palestiře liře” was lauřched, serviřg the rŚute CŚřstařţa–Haifa–Pireus–Istanbul–CŚřstařţa. Iř 1938 this liře was susśeřded as fiřařcially non-viable, and from then on GAL ships served lines to ports in South America. The surviving files include contracts for transport of Jewish passengers on the Palestine line, official correspondence regardiřg śeŚśle Śf Jewish birth beiřg smuggled Śř the MS Piłsudski iř the years 193Ę-1937, collective lists of passengers and names lists (e.g. of those travelling to Buenos Aires), passenger traffic statistics, and personal files of some passengers, including Jews from Poland and Germany. POSTWAR FILES The State Archives contain many collections that must certainly be searched by anyone wishing to study the period after the Holocaust and all that may be classified as the aftermath of the war and the extermination policies of the Third Reich in every sense and aspect. The files of the Land and 338 Liquidation Offices763 have been mentioned above; their role was to adjudicate formally on cases related tŚ “discarded ařd abařdŚřed” śrŚśerty (iř śarticular real śrŚśerty – land and buildings) left behind by murdered Jews and also by Germans or Ukrainians who left regions that fell within PŚlařd’s śŚstwar bŚrders. These were also matters that were dealt with by courts of the first instance and other courts, in particular in terms of establishing the circumstances of death and inheritance rights, and issuing replacements of documents destroyed during the war but vital for functioning normally within society. Scholars should also take an interest in issues connected with the repatriation of hundreds of thousands of Polish citizens from the USSR. There are materials on this subject in the very numerous files of the Repatriation Offices764, among others. The papers of the Union of Polish Patriots in the USSR (Zwi zek PatriŚtów PŚlskich, ZPP), held in the Central Archive of Modern Records (Archiwum Akt Nowych, AAN) are directly related to the return of Jews from the USSR, as are the legacies and papers of some political activists held in the AAN, e.g. thŚse Śf SzymŚř Zachariasz. CŚllectiŚřs Śf files Śf city ařd cŚmmuřity gŚverřŚrs’ Śffices, voivodeship and county national councils, county offices, voivodeship committees of the Polish Uřited WŚrkers’ Party (PŚlska ZjedřŚczŚřa Partia RŚbŚtřicza, PZPR), ařd vŚivŚdeshiś Śffices, iř particular their socio-political and religious departments, contain materials such as statistics, and above all data on postwar Polish-Jewish relations and moods in society.765 The pogroms and attacks on Jews in the first two to three years after the war need researching in the files of criminal courts, brařches Śf the Security Office (UB, Urz dy Bezśieczeństwa), brařches Śf the Civic Militia (MO, Milicja Obywatelska), and many others.766 The most interesting and important archive materials on this śeriŚd, hŚwever, have beeř amassed by A IH; sŚme Śf these, as esśecially śreciŚus, will be discussed here in slightly more detail. Above all, these are a large group of sub-collections of the CK P.767 These papers are profiled in PrzewŚdnik śŚ zesśŚłach archiwum CentralnegŚ KŚmitetu ydów w 763 There are around 117 collections of District and Regional Liquidation Office files in State Archives all over Poland. 220 collections of Repatriation Offices from all over Poland have been preserved. 765 Cf. N. Aleksiun-M drzak, “Materiały dŚtycz ce histŚrii ydów w PŚlsce w latach 19ėĘ-1950 w archiwach wŚjewódzkich”, B IH, 1994, no. 169-171, pp. 159-162. 766 Cf. A. Cichopek, PŚgrŚm ydów w KrakŚwie 11 sierśnia 1945 r., Warszawa 1998; B. Szaynok, PŚgrŚm ydów w Kielcach 4 liśca 1946, WrŚcław 1992; D. Eřgel, “Patterns of Anti-Jewish Violence in Poland 1944-1946”, Yad Vashem Studies, 1998, vol. 26, pp. 43-8Ę; A. bikŚwski, “MŚrderstwa śŚśełřiŚře řa ydach w śierwszych latach śŚ wŚjřie”, [iř:] Nastęśstwa zagłady ydów. Polska 1944-2010, ed. F. Tych, M. Adamczyk-Garbowska, Lublin 2011, pp. 71-93; English edition: Jewish Presence in Absence. The Aftermath of the Holocaust in Poland, 1944-2010, Jerusalem 2014, pp. 67-93. 767 Cf. J. AdelsŚř, “W PŚlsce zwařej LudŚw ”, [iř:] NajnŚwsze dzieje ydów w PŚlsce w zarysie (dŚ 1950 rŚku), ed. J. Tomaszewski, Warszawa 1993, pp. 387-477; A. Grabski, Centralny KŚmitet ydów w PŚlsce (1944-1949). Historia polityczna, Warszawa 2014. 764 Some 339 PŚlsce ze zbiŚrów ydŚwskiegŚ Instytutu HistŚrycznegŚ w Warszawie 768 by Tadeusz Epsztein, the historian and archivist who personally śut mŚst Śf the CK P cŚllectiŚřs iř Śrder. He is alsŚ the authŚr Śf many detailed inventories for collections of files that he himself processed. 769 He writes: “A significant percentage of the more than 200,000 surviving Polish Jews had some form of contact with the CK P Śr its ageřcies iř the years 19ėė-1950. Tens of thousands of people took advantage Śf the variŚus fŚrms Śf aid at the CŚmmittee’s iřstitutions. A reflection of the multilateral contacts maiřtaiřed by śeŚśle with the CK P is tŚ be fŚuřd thrŚughŚut its śreserved archive. The CK P not only provided material aid and medical treatment to the Jewish populace, and ran schools, orphanages and Śld śeŚśle’s hŚmes, but it alsŚ keśt a register Śf survivŚrs, cŚřducted searches fŚr missing people, gathered information and secured documentation on the Holocaust, as well as historical documentation and museum collections, etc. In every aspect of its work, at virtually every stage, the recent and tragic past surfaced. Particular emphasis was placed on personal matters, and as such, references to the Holocaust period are frequently found in personal files. Clerks registering new people at local Jewish committees would ask where they spent the war, employees of the Education Department interviewing children would record their occupation-era experiences, people seekiřg relatives thrŚugh the CK P gave exteřsive biŚgraśhical details Śf their Śwř, ařd thŚse requesting material aid also supplied information as to where they had been rescued or where they had survived. Mařy tyśical fŚrms, questiŚřřaires, surveys, etc., iřcluded a śŚiřt abŚut the aśślicařt’s experiences during the occupation. These diverse testimonies ařd data submitted tŚ the CK P iř hundreds and thousands of documents created a database of information on a vast number of people and events. They enable us not only to recreate an approximate image of Jewish society in Poland after the war, but also to reconstruct many biographies and facts from the time of the war and the occupation. It is for this reason that anyone with an interest in the Holocaust and those who survived it should not fail to make use in their research of the personal files in the CK P archives.” 770 The CK P was fŚrmally fŚuřded at the begiřřiřg Śf February 19ėĘ frŚm the Temporary Central Committee of Jews in Poland established in Lublin immediately after the Soviet fŚrces eřtered the city. The CK P was the Śřly bŚdy reśreseřtiřg the entire Jewish community in 768 T. Eśszteiř, “PrzewŚdřik śŚ zesśŚłach archiwum CeřtralřegŚ KŚmitetu ydów w PŚlsce ze zbiŚrów ydŚwskiegŚ Instytutu HistŚryczřegŚ w Warszawie. HŚlŚcaust, ewideřcja ŚcalŚřych, śŚszukiwařia, materiały biŚgraficzře”, Warszawa 200Ę [tyśescriśt accessible at A IH]. 769 Archiviřg wŚrk Śř the CK P files has beeř uřderway siřce 199ę thařks tŚ the fiřařcial suśśŚrt Śf USHMM in Washington, D.C. All the inventories this work has generated include introductions, indexes of personal and geographical names, and in some cases also appendices of persons for particular archival items containing lists, personal files, etc. 770 T. Epsztein, PrzewŚdnik śŚ zesśŚłach archiwum..., op. cit., pp. 3-4. 340 Poland after the war in relations with both domestic authorities and institutions abroad. Pursuant to ař agreemeřt, the CK P authŚrities were cŚmśŚsed Śf all the Jewish śŚlitical ŚrgařizatiŚřs operating legally after the war (this excluded the Zionist Revisionists, whose party was not legalized). TŚ śursue its statutŚry ŚśeratiŚřs, the CK P fŚrmed a řumber Śf deśartmeřts active bŚth at the central level in Warsaw and in the field, through local (provincial, municipal and county) committees – iř BiałystŚk, KrakŚw, Lubliř771, Łód , Przemy l, Warsaw, Tarřów, widřica, ary, Szczeciř773, 772 WrŚcław 774 and other cities. 775 The CK P archive hŚlds archival materials frŚm each Śf its departments: the Presidium & Secretariat, and the Organization, Records and Statistics, Culture and Propaganda, Finance, Legal, Productivity Improvement, Youth, Education, Landsmanshaftn, Repatriation, Emigration, Building, and Personnel Departments, as well as its Special Commission, the Central Jewish Historical CommissiŚř, its PeŚśle’s CŚurt, the Health Care OrgařizatiŚř 776 (TOZ), ařd the Jewish cŚmmittees (śrŚviřcial ařd lŚcal) uřder the CK P. The CK P archives hŚld few original papers from the occupation period; most were generated after the war by the ŚrgařizatiŚř’s work devoted to the fate of the Jews who had survived the Holocaust. The names of the variŚus deśartmeřts Śf the CK P teřd tŚ iřdicate the thematic scŚśe tŚ which śarticular dŚcumeřts might refer, but it must be remembered that all the CK P’s dŚcumeřtatiŚř contains iřfŚrmatiŚř, sŚme Śf which is very scattered ařd “hiddeř” iř the text Śf the dŚcumeřts Śř the mařy huřdreds Śf thŚusařds Śf PŚlařd’s Jews, bŚth thŚse whŚ survived ařd thŚse whŚ śerished. AmŚřg these documents are various questionnaires, forms, card files, certifications, records, named lists of 771 A. KŚściŚwski, “ ydzi w Lubliřie w latach 19ėė-1949”, A IH, 3ė7/20ę [Master’s thesis, tyśescriśt]. L. Olejřik, “WŚjewódzki KŚmitet ydŚwski w ŁŚdzi – śŚwstařie i główře kieruřki działalřŚ ci (1945-1950)”, B IH, 1998, no. 187, pp. 3-22. 773 Cf. I. BiałŚstŚcki, “WŚjewódzki KŚmitet ydów PŚlskich w Szczeciřie (19ėę-1950)”, B IH, 1969, no. 71-72, pp. 83105. 774 Cf. SśrawŚzdanie z działalnŚ ci WŚjewódzkiegŚ KŚmitetu ydów na DŚlnym ląsku za 1946 rŚk [WrŚcław 19ė7]; J. Egit, Tzu a naye lebn [Ku nŚwemu yciu], WrŚcław 19ė7; idem, “RŚk ycia ydŚwskiegŚ řa DŚlřym l sku”, NŚwe ycie, 15 lipca 1946; idem, Grand Illusion, TŚrŚřtŚ 1991; B. SzayřŚk, “PŚcz tki Śsadřictwa ydŚwskiegŚ řa DŚlřym l sku śŚ II wŚjřie wiatŚwej (maj 19ėĘ – styczeń 19ėę)”, B IH, 1994-1995, no. 2-4 (172-174), pp. 45-63; eadem, LudnŚ ć ydŚwska na DŚlnym ląsku 1945-1950, WrŚcław 1992; P. WieczŚrek, “ ydzi wałbrzyscy śŚ II wŚjřie wiatŚwej”, ląski Kwartalnik HistŚryczny Sobótka, 2003, R. LVIII, no. 4, pp. 389-ė03; idem, “ ydzi w Wałbrzychu i śŚwiecie wałbrzyskim 19ėĘ-19ę8” [Ph.D. thesis, tyśescriśt iř A IH]. 775 The files of the committees listed here have beeř śreserved iř the CK P archives; the Śthers śrŚbably weřt missiřg or were destroyed in some other way for reasons now unknown. All the archival materials of the field committees, with the exceśtiŚř Śf thŚse geřerated by the WŚjewódzki KŚmitet ydŚwski (WK , PrŚviřcial Jewish CŚmmittee) iř WrŚcław (AP WrŚcław) ařd the Okr gŚwy KŚmitet ydŚwski (LŚcal Jewish CŚmmittee) iř RadŚm (AP RadŚm), are held iř A IH, cf. M. Chmielewska, “ ródła archiwalře dŚ histŚrii ydów w zasŚbie Archiwum PaństwŚwegŚ we Wrocławiu”, Acta Universitatis Wratislaviensis. Historia, no. 1182, R. 84, pp. 159-170. 776 Cf. I. Einhorn, TŚwarzystwŚ OchrŚny ZdrŚwia LudnŚ ci ydŚwskiej w PŚlsce w latach 1921-1950, TŚruń 2008. 772 Cf. 341 various collectivities, indexes of personal names, correspondence, etc.777 It is not always the case that the name of a department supplies clear information on the content of the papers its archive collection holds. Only well-informed historians of the subject know, for instance, that among the Building Department778 papers, in file no. 2, is documentation from the postwar search (1949-50) amŚřg the ruiřs Śf the Warsaw ghettŚ fŚr the third śart Śf ARG at 3ė wi tojerska Street. Ten metal crates and the two milk cans hidden during the war containing the documents of the Warsaw Ghetto Underground Archive (ARG) were located and retrieved at 68 Nowolipki Street in 1946 and 1950. 779 A number of themes may be identified iř the CK P archive materials: – materials discussing the experiences of the Jewish population in the years 1939-1945 (forced labŚur, the ghettŚs, the camśs, the “AktiŚřeř” (rŚuřd-uśs ařd deśŚrtatiŚřs), the “Aryař side”, the partisan life, cultural life under the occupation, etc.), – documentation registering losses in the Jewish population, – registration of surviving Jews, – Poles bringing aid to the Jewish population, – commemoration of the Holocaust, – prosecution of war criminals.780 Often, however, there is no way of separating the individual themes from each other, as the same dŚcumeřts cař serve tŚ study mařy differeřt issues. AmŚřg the mŚst imśŚrtařt śarts Śf the CK P archive are the files of its Presidium & Secretariat781, and within that the full set of the minutes of its meetings from 8 January 1945 until 31 December 1949 complete with all the annexes thereto (reports, documents, memos); its Personnel Department782, in which the most precious elements are the personal forms and files of the employees of the CK P ařd its lŚcal cŚmmittees, iř geŚgraśhical order; and its Records and Statistics Department (Wydział Ewideřcji i Statystyki, WEiS)783, whose remit was registering survivors, searches (its information section) and statistics. The most prominent 777 MŚřika Taras, “ ródła autŚbiŚgraficzře w zbiŚrach Archiwum ydŚwskiegŚ Iřstytutu HistŚryczřegŚ w Warszawie”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2013, no. 9, pp. 508-520. 778 A IH, Wydział BudŚwlařy CK P, 303/X, ė2 items. 779 Epsztein Tadeusz, Archiwum Ringelbluma. Konspiracyjne Archiwum Getta Warszawskiego. Inwentarz Archiwum Ringelbluma, Warszawa 2011. 780 T. Epsztein, PrzewŚdnik śŚ zesśŚłach..., op. cit., p. 7. 781 A IH, CK P Prezydium 303/I, 278 items. 782 A IH, CK P Wydział PersŚřalřy, 303/III, 18ę items. 783 A IH, CK P Wydział Ewideřcji i Statystyki, 303/V, 1,ėęĘ items. 342 deliverable Śf the WEiS’s wŚrk is the Ceřtralřa KartŚteka ydów PŚlskich784 (Central Card File of Jews in Poland), which comprises some 300,000 registration cards, as well as card files (or the vestiges thereŚf) frŚm Lubliř, Łód , Warsaw, Gliwice, BielskŚ Biała and Lwów. The WEiS files also hold alphabetical lists of the names of Holocaust survivors from dozens of localities throughout Poland, lists of former prisoners in many of the camps, a large body of correspondence regarding searches, and many other valuable archive materials that may serve the scholar of the postwar vicissitudes of Polish Jews. 785 The Repatriation Department (Wydział Reśatriacji) 786 was established in June 1945 to assume the care of the large groups of Jews (approx.136,000) who began to return from the USSR in organized transports as part of the repatriation operation launched at the beginning of the next year. These files contain lists of those being repatriated, certifications, correspondence, the documents of demobilized soldiers, lists of the transports, type of aid given, etc.787 The Social Welfare Department (Wydział Ośieki SśŚłeczřej, WOS)788 took care of all the groups of Jews who needed particular special care: children, repatriates, the sick and elderly, and invalids. WOS ran soup kitchens, řight shelters ařd Śld śeŚśle’s hŚmes. The files iř this cŚllectiŚř are vital to an understanding of the physical and mental state of the Jewish population after the war. Also held here are materials on the care afforded to those who had aided and rescued Jews during the war. The Education Department (Wydział O wiaty, WO)789 was founded in order to guarantee Jewish children a certain level of care. The work of its employees focused on registering and searching for children, establishing and running pre-school and nursery settings and in particular childreř’s hŚmes, resideřtial treatmeřt ařd care hŚmes, ařd cliřics. Iř 19ėĘ arŚuřd Ę,000 childreř were under the care of the WO, which also ran Jewish schools, courses, summer camps and boarding schools. 790 The Culture and Propaganda Department (Wydział Kultury i PrŚśagařdy) 791 ran information campaigns, published bulletins, gathered materials connected with both the day-to-day life of the Jews in Poland and the period of the war and the occupation (e.g. press cuttings), Part I of this Guide, chaśter Śř A IH ařd its electrŚřic databases. T. Eśszteiř, “ ydzi w śŚwŚjeřřej PŚlsce w wietle archiwaliów Wydziału Statystyki i Ewideřcji CeřtralřegŚ KŚmitetu ydów w PŚlsce (19ėĘ-1950)”, Kwartalnik HistŚrii ydów, IH-IN-B, 2006, no. 3 (219), pp. 391-405. 786 A IH, CK P Wydział Reśatriacji, 303/VI, ę7 items. 787 Cf. E. HŚrřŚwa, “PŚwrót ydów PŚlskich z ZSRR Śraz działalřŚ ć Śśiekuńcza CeřtralřegŚ KŚmitetu ydów w PŚlsce”, B IH, 1985, no. 133-134, pp. 105-122. 788 A IH, CK P Wydział Ośieki SśŚłeczřej 303/VIII, Ę82 items. 789 A IH, CK P Wydział O wiaty, 303/IX, 1880 items. 790 Cf. H. Datner- śiewak, “Iřstytucje Śśieki řad dzieckiem i szkŚły śŚwszechře CeřtralřegŚ KŚmitetu ydów PŚlskich w latach 1945-19ėę”, B IH, 1981, no. 119, pp. 37-Ę1; eadem, “SzkŚły CeřtralřegŚ KŚmitetu ydów w PŚlsce w latach 1944-1949”, B IH, 1994, no. 169-171, pp. 103-119; N. Ba Śwska, TŚ był mój dŚm. ydŚwski dŚm dziecka w KrakŚwie w latach 1945-1957, Warszawa 2011. 791 A IH, Wydział Kultury i PrŚśagařdy, 303/XIII, 248 items. 784 Cf. 785 Cf. 343 organized anniversary ceremonies (e.g. to commemorate the uprising in the Warsaw ghetto), and published newspapers aimed at Jews, such as Dos Naye Lebn (New Life), Yidishe Nayes fun Poylin (Jewish News from Poland), Nidershlezye (Lower Silesia) and Tygodnik Informacyjny. 792 Within the deśartmeřt there was a Jewish řews ageřcy, ydŚwska Ageřcja IřfŚrmacyjřa, whŚse Biuletyny (Bulletins, 1944-1950) are an invaluable source of information. The Emigration Department (Wydział Emigracyjřy) 793 was founded with the aim of bringing assistance to those resolved to emigrate from Poland. This assistance consisted above all in issuing registration certificates to the Polish passport authorities. Tens of thousands of these documents have been preserved; they are often complete with a photograph and contain the personal data of the applicant. The Legal Department (Wydział Prawřy)794 was established in order to provide all-round legal services not Śřly tŚ the CK P itself ařd its variŚus brařches, but alsŚ tŚ iřdividuals whŚ requested them. It contains files relating to matters including replacements of documents, inheritances, restitution of śrŚśerty, śrŚsecutiŚř Śf crimiřals, exhumatiŚřs, ařd care Śf childreř. The CK P’s Central Special Commission (Centralna Komisja Specjalna)795 operated from July 1946 until the spring of 1947 as a resśŚřse tŚ “the redŚubled activity Śf the reactiŚřary uřdergrŚuřd, ařti-Jewish provocations, attacks on trains and killing of Jews on them, and ultimately the culminating point of the activity of antiJewish fascist gangs – the Kielce śŚgrŚm”. GrŚuśs Śf armed guards (sŚme 2,Ę00) Śśerated iř the field, śrŚtectiřg a tŚtal Śf arŚuřd 390 differeřt sites: Jewish cŚmmittee Śffices, childreř’s hŚmes, schools, warehouses, etc.796 The Landmanshaftn Department (Wydział ZiŚmkŚstw)797 coordinated the work of the spontaneously emerging organizations bringing together Jews originally from the same town or place. When their members left Poland, these landsmanshaftn were the initiators and publishers of the memorial books that were the subject of the previous chapter of this Guide. The Central Jewish Historical Commission (Ceřtralřa ydŚwska KŚmisja HistŚryczřa, C KH) 798, mentioned above as an institution gathering survivor testimonies and other materials on the 792 Cf. J. KŚrzeřiŚwski, “BibliŚgrafia czasŚśism ydŚwskich wychŚdz cych w PRL (19ėė-1950)”, B IH, 1986, no. 3-4, pp. 143-154. 793 A IH, CK P Wydział Emigracyjřy, 303/XIV, ęė8 items. 794 A IH, CK P Wydział Prawřy, 303/XVI, 197 items. 795 A IH, CK P Ceřtralřa KŚmisja Sśecjalřa, 303/XVIII, 7ė items. 796 Cf. J.T. GrŚss, “Cena strachu”, [iř:] idem, UśiŚrna dekada. Trzy eseje Ś stereŚtyśach na temat ydów, PŚlaków, Niemców i komunistów 1939-1948, Kraków 1998, pp. 93-113; A. Cała, Ochrona bezśieczeństwa fizycznegŚ ydów w PŚlsce śŚwŚjennej. KŚmisje Sśecjalne śrzy Centralnm KŚmitecie ydów w PŚlsce, Warszawa 2014. 797 A IH, CK P Wydział ZiŚmkŚstw, 303/XIX, 1ęĘ items. 798 A IH, CK P Ceřtralřa ydŚwska KŚmisja HistŚryczřa, 303/XX, ę92 items. Cf. N. Aleksiuř, “The Ceřtral Jewish Historical Commission in Poland 1944-19ė7”, Polin. Studies in Polish Jewry, 2008, vol. 20, pp. 74-97; L.Jockusch, Collect and Record! Jewish Holocaust Documentation in Early Postwar Europe, Oxford University Press 2012. 344 Holocaust799, alsŚ keśt ař archive ařd a library, cŚřducted research ařd śublishiřg wŚrk (cf. C KH publications in the Bibliography at the end of this Guide). Iř 19ė7 the C KH was trařsfŚrmed iřtŚ the Jewish HistŚrical Iřstitute ( IH), which exists tŚ this day, siřce 2010 as IH im. Emařuela Ringelbluma (the Emanuel Ringelblum Jewish Historical Institute). The CK P PeŚśle’s CŚurt (S d SśŚłeczřy (Obywatelski) śrzy CK P)800 śassed seřteřce: “a) iř cases where members Śf the Jewish community did not preserve a stance worthy of a Jewish citizen, by participating in and conducting detrimental activity in the Judenräte, the order service, the administration of the concentration camps, or other form of collaboration with the occupiers to the detriment of society; b) in matters where members of the Association of Committees of Jews in Poland violate the statutes of the assŚciatiŚř Śr act iř ŚśśŚsitiŚř tŚ their duties ařd gŚŚd custŚm”.801 These collections include the files of particular cases (over 150) that were heard by the court, as well as correspondence, regulations, and other materials referencing the work of the court. The Health Care Organization (Towarzystwo Ochrony Zdrowia, TOZ) 802 carried on the mission of the organization operating under the same name in prewar Poland. 803 After the war the TOZ took over the running of iřstitutiŚřs established ařd ruř by the CK P’s Deśartmeřt Śf Health (clŚsed dŚwř iř early 19ėę). It offered all kinds of medical services for the Jewish population: out-śatieřt cliřics, dŚctŚrs’ surgeries, hospitals and sanatoria. This collection holds a vast amount of information on the subject of the state Śf the Jews’ health after WŚrld War II. AMERICAN JOINT DISTRIBUTION COMMITTEE IN POLAND 1945-1949804 The AJDC (the Joint) was founded in 1914 as an American-Jewish mutual aid organization to bring aid to Jews in Europe, whose situation had deteriorated dramatically. The Joint operated in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe from the end of World War I and continued its mission throughout World War II (see chapter on collections of welfare and aid institutions). It was reactivated in Poland in July 1945, with its headquarters in Warsaw, under Dawid Guzik, a social activist already during the war; after his death, his successor as director of the Joint was William Bein, N. Grüss, RŚk śracy Centralnej ydŚwskiej KŚmisji HistŚrycznej, Łód 19ėę; M. HŚrř, “ ydŚwski Iřstytut Historyczny w Polsce w latach 1944-1949”, B IH, 1979, no. 109, pp. 3-15. 800 A IH, S d SśŚłeczřy śrzy CK P, 313, 1ėę items. Cf. G.N. Finder and A.V. Prusiř, “Jewish CŚllabŚratŚrs Śn Trial in Poland, 1944-19Ęę”, Polin. Studies in Polish Jewry, 2008, vol. 20, pp.122-1ė8; A. bikŚwski, Sąd SśŚłeczny śrzy CK P. WŚjenne rŚzliczenia sśŚłecznŚ ci ydŚwskiej w PŚlsce, Warszawa 2014. 801 A IH, S d SśŚłeczřy śrzy CK P, 313, file řŚ. 1Ę0, Regulamiř S du śrzy CK P. 802 A IH, CK P TOZ, 324, 2122 items. 803 Cf. H. KrŚszczŚr, R. ZabłŚtřiak, “TŚwarzystwŚ OchrŚřy ZdrŚwia LudřŚ ci ydŚwskiej w latach II RzeczyśŚsśŚlitej”, B IH, 1978, no. 1 (105), pp. 53-68. 804 A IH, JŚiřt 1944-1950, 350, 2445 items. 799 Cf. 345 and its secretary-general Józef Gitler-Barski. The mission and objective of the Joint was to render all manner of aid to Jewish survivors of the war, many of whom had been left with literally nothing, often not even the most basic assets or means of survival. The Joint sent food, medication, clothing, blankets, machines, raw materials and other goods to Poland, which were then disseminated by its Śwř distributiŚř řetwŚrk ařd the Śffices Śf the CK P. Iř all, uś tŚ the delegalizatiŚř Śf this institution in Poland (in 1949) some 600 transports were sent here, the majority by sea. Aside from sending consignments of material goods, it also subsidised the work of Jewish organizations and political parties – the CK P (iř the years 19ėĘ-1949 it obtained around 3.5 billion zloty), the TOZ, all the political parties and youth organizations, as well as the religious organizations Komitet Orgařizacyjřy ydŚwskich KŚřgregacji WyzřařiŚwych (the OrgařizatiŚřal CŚmmittee Śf Jewish Religious Congregations), Naczelna Rada Religijna (the Supreme Religious Council), and the Aguda kibbutz. In addition, material aid was supplied to landsmanshaftn, religious schools (with instruction in Hebrew), and scientific, cultural, artistic and economic organizations and associations. Indeed, it is hard to imagine how Jewish life could have existed and continued in postwar Poland without the subsidies and aid of the Joint. As well as the Jewish populace, individual Poles and some Polish iřstitutiŚřs such as childreř’s hŚmes ařd religious houses that had concealed Jewish children during the war also received monetary grants totalling around one million zloty from the AJDC. 805 The Joint also helped individuals: it conducted searches all over the world, and offered support in seeking somewhere to start a new life to those resolved to emigrate and needing visas, money, tickets, and cŚřtacts. The few years Śf the JŚiřt’s activity iř PŚlařd frŚm the eřd Śf WŚrld War II left a vast legacy – these are papers vital and fundamental to study of the life of the surviving Jews.806 As I bring to a close this discussion of the postwar archive materials and documentation based on selected examśles, I wŚuld like tŚ draw atteřtiŚř tŚ the legacies ařd śaśers amassed iř A IH ařd geřerated by the first Holocaust scholars, themselves survivors, who undertook the immense effort of researching, describing and publishing materials on those most tragic of events. To this day we use their work, draw on their knowledge, and turn to their publications; those people are Tatiana Berenstein, Szymon Datner, Artur Eisenbach, Filip Friedman and Bernard (Ber) Mark. 805 T. Eśszteiř, “Wst ś dŚ iřweřtarza archiwum Americař JŚiřt DistributiŚř CŚmmittee w PŚlsce 19ėĘ-1949”, Warszawa 2005, p. 4 [typescript]. 806 Cf. Y. Bauer, Out of the Ashes. The Impact of American Jews on Post-Holocaust European Jewry, Oxford–Toronto 1989; Midrasz, 2004, no. 11 (91). 346 13. Photography, film, material objects This final chapter will be about a particular type of source not generated as a result of the work of an office, newspaper editorial board or other organization, or under the influence of an inner need to record experiences, thoughts, reflections or memories. For the most part these are not records on paper at all, though some of them are on photographic paper. The history of the Holocaust can also be read from non-textual sources – pictures, photographs, films, artworks, pieces of music, but also buildings, street paving, working tools such as sewing machines, and objects of all sizes, from a tiny Mickey MŚuse tŚy that was with a child murdered iř ChełmřŚ řad Nerem (KulmhŚf), tŚ a railway goods wagon, one of thousands used to transport people. There is no way of discussing these sources in just a dozen pages; all we can do is stress the importance of their existence and the need to use the knowledge that we can draw from them. We will devote the least space here to film, as the Holocaust was essentially not recorded on film. We do know from other sources that the Germans did film some of the anti-Jewish incidents and pogroms that they incited, but these tapes have probably not survived, aside from a brief sequence showing a pogrom in July 1941 in Lwów, during which several thousand people perished, cruelly murdered Śř the city’s streets. Brief sequeřces, sceřes ařd isŚlated takes have alsŚ survived, frŚm variŚus ślaces, iřcludiřg the Łód ghettŚ, KutřŚ, D brŚwa Górřicza ařd B dziř, ařd the Jewish quarter in Krakow; there is a pseudo-documentary from 1942 titled ydzi, wszy, tyfus (Jews, lice, 807 typhus) , and above all also propaganda material filmed in April and May 1942 in the Warsaw ghetto.808 The Germans never used this in the production of a film to be shown publicly in the Third Reich, however. Perhaps from their point of view it had ceased to be useful or necessary given that a few mŚřths later the “Fiřal SŚlutiŚř” was tŚ be virtually cŚmśleted. We alsŚ křŚw Śf Śře shŚrt, eight-minute piece of footage shot on colour film in the Warsaw ghetto, probably in 1941. The Holocaust as a theme of both documentary and feature films is such a broad, unique subject that the Cf. B. ZiółkŚwski, “Film řa usługach řiemieckiej śrŚśagařdy w Geřeralřej Guberři”, [in:] Historia filmu polskiego, vol. III: 1939-1956, Warszawa 1974. 808 M. Kubicki, “O niemieckim filmie propagandowym z warszawskiego getta. Przyczynek do analizy”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2006, no. 2, pp. 351-373. Film materials from the World War II period and documentary films are collected in Archiwum Wytwórni Filmów Dokumentalnych i Fabularnych (Archive of the Documentary and Feature Film Production Company) in Warsaw (now part of the Filmoteka Narodowa) and in Filmoteka Narodowa (the National Film Library). 807 347 reader should be directed to the relevant literature809, and here only a few salient titles should be mentioned: Majdanek – cmentarzysko Europy (Majdanek, Burial Ground of Europe, 1944), Mir leben geblibene810 (We Who Survived; 1948), Nasze dzieci (Unzere kinder, Our Children; 1948), Ostatni etap (The Last Stage, 1948), PŚwszedni dzień gestaśŚwca Schmidta (An Ordinary Day for Gestapo Officer Schmidt, 1962), Requiem dla 500 tysięcy (Requiem for the Five Hundred Thousand, 1963), Pasa erka (Passenger, 1963), Archeologia (Archaeology, 1967), Zdą yć śrzed Panem BŚgiem (To Outwit God, 1981), Wybór Zofii (SŚśhie’s Choice, 1982), Shoah (1985), Nadzieja umiera ostatnia (Hope Dies Last, 1992), Miejsce urodzenia (Place of Birth, 1992), KrŚnika śŚwstania w getcie warszawskim według Marka Edelmana (A Chronicle of the Uprising in the Warsaw Ghetto according to Marek Edelman, 1994), Fotoamator (Photographer, 1998), Pianista (The Pianist, 2001), Portrecista (The Portraitist, 2005). Just as the “śrelude tŚ the HŚlŚcaust” fŚr PŚlish Jews was the exśulsiŚř Śf Jews with PŚlish citizenship from Germany in 1938, so one of the Nazis’ first crimiřal acts iř the Śccuśied PŚlish territŚries was the executiŚř Śf 22 Jews iř KŚńskie, carried Śut Śř 12 September 1939 by the Germans in revenge for the deaths of a few German soldiers. This was sufficiently remarkable for its victims, witnesses and perpetrators to have been immortalized on photographs; among them was the famous Leni Riefenstahl, the queen of German film propaganda. The German forces marched into KŚńskie Śř 8 September, and the next day Hitler paid a visit to the staff corps of Gen. Walter von Reicheřau, while Riefeřstahl śursued the trail Śf victŚries ařd triumśhs Śf “her Führer”, which she intended to immortalize. By an irony of fate, at the very beginning of her route, she witnessed heiřŚus acts: a whŚle day’s śŚgrŚm Śř the Jews, looting and destruction of their shops, their synagogue set alight, acts of violence and humiliation of a group of Jews selected to dig a grave for the soldiers who had been killed, and the shooting of those Jews once their work had been done. Some of the photographs show Riefenstahl crying with pain, and the caption beneath one reads: M. Hendykowski, Film jakŚ ródłŚ histŚryczne, PŚzřań 2000; A. Madej, KinŚ, władza, śublicznŚ ć. Kinematografia polska w latach 1944-1949, Bielsko-Biała 2002; J.E. YŚuřg, “HŚlŚcaust w wiadectwach filmŚwych i wiadectwach wideŚ”, Literatura na wiecie, 2004, no. 01-02 (309-391), pp. 245-2ęę; H. LŚewy, “The Mother of All Holocaust Films?: Wanda Jakubowska’s Auschwitz trilŚgy”, Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, 2004, vol. 24, no. 2, pp. 179-204; K. TŚmczak, “Ogl dařie HŚlŚcaustu. Mi dzy etyk a sztuk filmŚw ”, Master’s thesis, Adam Mickiewicz Uřiversity, Faculty of Polish and Classical PhilŚlŚgy, PŚzřań 200ę [tyśescriśt]; Jewish Film Directory: A guide to more than 1200 films of Jewish interest from 32 countries over 85 years, Wiltshire 1992; Bibliografia polskich wydawnictw filmowych 1945-1972, compiled by A. Dembowska, Filmoteka Narodowa, Warszawa 1974 [reproduced typescript]; B. Kwieciński, Obrazy i klisze. Między biegunami wizualnej śamięci Zagłady, Kraków 2012; A. Skibińska, “Film śŚlski Ś Zagładzie. FilmŚgrafia w układzie chrŚřŚlŚgiczřym”, Kwartalnik HistŚrii ydów, 2010, no. 1 (233). 810 Cf. N. Gross, Film ydŚwski w PŚlsce, Kraków 2002. 809 348 “Die ŚhřmŹchtige (faiřtiřg) Leři”.811 We may – and should – debate the purport and significance of these photographs, for they bring into focus later events multiplied so many times. The roles of perpetrator, victim or bystander certainly did not have to be the only roles that the majority of people were forced to play.812 Research into the history of the Holocaust, and as such of the extreme situations in which people found themselves during the war, shows that being a witness can lead to being a participant and an active perpetrator or, in the positive sense, an actor – a bringer of assistance and rescue. In certain conditions – defined as extreme – these “rŚles” may be interchangeable. Unequivocal definitions and concepts are often inadequate to describe real, extremely complex human behaviours. In certain specific circumstances it was impossible to remain an observer, an innocent witness. Such situations and circumstances were the product of a totalitarian system that deprived people of their freedom in every sense of the word, of their privacy, and of their dignity.813 There was řŚ řeutral, uřcŚřtamiřated sśace tŚ which Śře cŚuld “retreat” ařd isolate oneself. The totalitarianism based on Nazi doctrine and violence pervaded every sphere of human life, including art. The photographs that have been preserved from this period beg the question of the boundaries of individual responsibility for the effects of words, actions and involvement, but also for passivity and silence. Riefenstahl expressly refused to take part in the “ceremŚřy” Śf the executiŚř Śf iřřŚceřt, defeřceless śeŚśle, but she alsŚ refused ever tŚ admit that her professional, perfect and aesthetically refined films that heralded the apotheosis of power made any contribution to the triumph of the army, whose soldiers committed cruel, horrendous acts. The surviving photographs are stored in the Archive of the Institute of National Remembrance (AIPN) in the largest collection of wartime photographs in Poland, which numbers over 68,000, largely unique images. 814 They were taken by German war correspondents and photojournalists, soldiers of the Wehrmacht, SS and Gestapo officers, policemen, and civilians in the service of the Cf. A. Gass, “Turystka na wojnie”, Sztuka, 1987, no. 4. Cf. R. Hilberg, Sśrawcy, Śfiary, wiadkŚwie. Zagłada ydów 1933-1945, Warszawa 2007. 813 Cf. A. Pawełczyńska, WartŚ ci a śrzemŚc. Zarys sŚcjŚlŚgicznej śrŚblematyki Oswięcimia, Warszawa 2004; eadem, GłŚwa hydry. O śrzewrŚtnŚ ci wsśółczesnegŚ zła, Warszawa 2004. 814 Cf. T. StemśŚwski, K.W. lusarski, „WydzielŚřy zbiór fŚtŚgrafii byłej Główřej KŚmisji Badařia ZbrŚdři śrzeciwkŚ NarŚdŚwi PŚlskiemu”, Przegląd Archiwalny Instytutu Pamięci NarŚdŚwej, 2013, no. 6, pp.171-203; P. Chojnacki, K. W. lusarski, „Zbiór fŚtŚgraficzřy Iřstytutu Pami ci NarŚdŚwej i jegŚ cechy sśecyficzře”, Przegląd Archiwalny Instytutu Pamięci Narodowej, 2009, no. 2, pp. 159-194.. 811 812 349 Third Reich.815 Others were taken by Polish and Jewish photographers hoping to capture on film evidence of daily life and crimes under the occupation. It is important to note that AIPN holds photographic documentation as important as the original report by Jürgen Stroop documenting the liquidatiŚř Śf the Warsaw ghettŚ (the caśtiŚř Śř the title śage reads: “Es gibt keiřeř jüdischeř WŚhřbezirk iř Warschau mehr”; it cŚřtaiřs Ę3 śhŚtŚgraśhs) ařd the reśŚrt by SS-Gruppenführer Friedrich Katzmařř Śř “the sŚlutiŚř tŚ the Jewish questiŚř iř the district Śf Galicia” (which contains 152 photographs and photocopies of various documents). 816 Aside from thousands of photographs showing military operations, devastated cities, daily life under the occupation, executions, the fate of the Jews in the ghettos and camps, resettlements and suppressions, these collections also include photographs from the postwar trials of the criminals, and of exhumations. In foreign archives, chiefly German (esp. https://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/), Israeli (first and foremost the Yad Vashem Photo Archive) and American (NARA, USHMM and others), there are tens of thousands of photographs, most of them taken by the perpetrators, both anonymous and those whose names are known to us, amateurs and professionals. Names include Arnold Becker, Hellmuth Bienieck, Walter Genewein, Heinrich Jöst817, Willi Georg818, Joe J. Heydecker819 and HansJoachim Gerke820. The śhŚtŚgraśhic archive Śf the Jewish HistŚrical Iřstitute ( IH) řumbers some 40,000 photographs, of which only a minority (around 8,000) date from the period of the ŚccuśatiŚř. SŚme are “Śrigiřals”, i.e. Śrigiřal śriřts frŚm the war years, sŚmetimes iř albums; the others are copies of photographs stored in other archives, and most of them have unclear copyright status.821 Among the originals are three albums of the Order Service (OD, the Jewish police) from the ghetto; one shows the structure of the police force in the Warsaw ghetto in the years 1940-1941 and is dedicated to Inspector M. Händl, deputy commandant of the OD, presented to him by Cf. I. Kurz, “CŚdzieřře i řiecŚdzieřře w Śbiektywie „fŚtŚamatŚrów”. Niemieckie fŚtŚgrafie i śŚlska śami ć Ś Śkuśacji”, [in:] WŚjna. DŚ wiadczenie i zaśis. NŚwe ródła, śrŚblemy, metŚdy badawcze, ed. S. Buryła, P. RŚdak, Kraków 200ę, pp. 55-69. 816 http://arcweb.archives.gov/arc/action/ExternalIdSearch?id=6003996, http://pamiec.pl/ftp/ilustracje/Raport_STROOPA.pdf, F. Katzmann, RŚzwiązanie kwestii ydŚwskiej w Dystrykcie Galicja. Lösung der Judenfrage im Distrikt Galizien, Warszawa 2001. 817 G. Schwarberg, Im Ghetto von Warschau, Heinrich Jösts Fotografien, Göttingen 2001. 818 W. Georg, In the Warsaw Ghetto Summer 1941. Photographs by Willy Georg with Passages from Warsaw Ghetto Diaries, New York 1993. 819 J.J. Heydecker, Das Warschauer Getto. Foto-Dokumente eines deutschen Soldaten aus dem Jahr 1941, München 1983. 820 Warszawa 1940-1941 w fotografii dr. Hansa-Joachima Gerke, photographs selected and compiled by Danuta Jackiewicz and Eugeniusz Cezary Król, Warszawa 1996. 821 Like all other original works, photographs are protected by copyrights, which accrue to the author of the photograph or their heirs unless the author names a third party as their beneficiary. In the case of wartime photographs it is often very difficult to establish authorship and rights. 815 350 officers on 1 March 1942; the second was presented on 12 July 1942 to Major Franciszek Przymusiński, a lieuteřařt iř the PŚlish PŚlice, by the DirectŚrate Śf the Ceřtral Remařd PrisŚř iř the ghettŚ (at 2ė G sia Street); ařd the third cŚřtaiřs śrivate śhŚtŚgraśhs belŚřgiřg tŚ Przymusiński (amŚřg them six Śf streets iř the ghettŚ ařd řiře Śf the ghettŚ Śř fire). The cŚllectiŚřs at IH alsŚ cŚřtaiř twŚ albums frŚm the Łód ghettŚ fŚuřd iř BydgŚszcz in 1954.822 The first is titled “LŚdzer Judeř. 1937 uřd GettŚ” (Łód Jews. 1937 ařd the ghettŚ), the secŚřd “Die PŚlizei greift durch!” (The śŚlice steśs iř). FŚur Śther albums Śf Śrigiřal śhŚtŚgraśhs frŚm Łód are: “KrŚřika S du... 19ė2” (CŚurt ChrŚřicle, ę2 śhŚtŚgraśhs), “Przesiedleřie 19ė0” (Resettlemeřt, 17ę śhŚtŚgraśhs), “Areszt Ceřtralřy” (The Ceřtral Remařd PrisŚř, ę9), ařd “ChrŚřik des Lařd uřd Amtsgericht Litzmařřstadt” (ChrŚřicle Śf the Łód regiŚřal ařd lŚcal cŚurt) Śf 19ė2, with several dŚzeř photographs interspersed between sections of text. A further 763 loose photographs have been teřtatively ideřtified as cŚmiřg frŚm the Łód ghettŚ. The IH cŚllectiŚřs alsŚ cŚřtaiř Śře Śrigiřal album of photographs from the Warsaw ghetto (of a probable five that existed823) made by “FŚtŚ FŚrbert” tŚ a cŚmmissiŚř frŚm the JŚiřt, which fiřařced the Jewish SŚcial Self-Helś ( SS) ařd aid to the ghetto population, in particular children. These albums hold many photographs of children in orphanages, canteens, playgrounds, and in medical settings; they were designed to illustrate the efficacy of the aid provided by the Joint. It is also important to note the photographs from the Ringelblum Archive (ARG), only a dozen or so of which, unfortunately, can in all certainty be attributed to ARG, i.e. are originals. 824 The rest are probably prints of photographs gathered by members of Oneg Shabat. A list of them has been preserved, together with the descriptions made in 1946 by the archivists who were processing the documents retrieved from the metal boxes at that time. In all, there were 76 of these photographs, showing a wide range of subjects, including the construction of the wall, traffic on the street, a group of women, distribution of bread, potato digging, smugglers throwing goods over the wall, Jewish policemen, Czerniaków, head of the Judenrat, with a rescued girl, a child by the wall, and other scenes from ghetto life in Warsaw.825 822 They were most probably abandoned there by SS-Brigadenführer Dr Karl Albert as he fled from the Soviet forces; the dedicatiŚř iř the album reads: “TŚ the Presideřt Śf the PŚlice, Dr Albert, as a memento of our work together on the sŚlutiŚř tŚ the Jewish questiŚř iř Litzmařřstadt”. 823 Three of the other Joint albums are in the collections of the Jagiellonian University Library, and the fifth in a Yad Vashem collection. 824 A IH, ARG, Riřg. I/ę83. 825 Cf. Getto warszawskie 1940-1942: zdjęcia wykŚnane śrzez ludnŚ ć ydŚwską, ed. J. Jagielski, U. KŚbiałka-Fuks, Warszawa 1996. 351 The first album of photographs documenting the Holocaust was collated and published as early as in 19ėĘ by the Ceřtral Jewish HistŚrical CŚmmissiŚř (C KH); it cŚřtaiřs 2Ę2 śhŚtŚgraśhs frŚm across occupied Poland.826 There were ślařs fŚr twŚ mŚre, Śř the Łód ařd Warsaw ghettŚs, but they were řever śublished. Mařy Śf the śhŚtŚgraśhs iř the C KH album are incredibly drastic, and provide an excellent illustration of the magnitude of the suffering visited on the Jews during the ŚccuśatiŚř. AmŚřg them are sŚme takeř iř the Łód ghettŚ by Arie beř Meřachem (Arie Priřtz during the war) using the photomontage and collage technique and included under the joint title Terra Incognita827, and though the original album has been lost, the glass negatives made from them have beeř śreserved iř the IH śhŚtŚgraśhic archive, ařd the śriřts śublished iř this C KH album. The śhŚtŚgraśhic cŚllectiŚřs at IH, which are still exśařdiřg thařks tŚ dŚřations and acquisitions, also contain many other photographs documenting the Holocaust in various places in occupied Poland; sadly, only some of them have been recognized and identified in terms of their author, the place and people they show, and the circumstances in which they were taken. The Polishlanguage literature available to date on war and Holocaust photographs, and in particular their identification and interpretation, is meagre, which is why those books and publications that are available are all the more noteworthy; these include Holokaust w fotografiach by Janina Struk and Z historii fotografii wojennej by Heřryk LatŚ .828 The Łód ghettŚ is the Śřly ghettŚ iř the PŚlish lařds fŚr which a vast archival legacy, bŚth documentary and iconographic, has beeř śreserved. AmŚřg the śaśers iř the fŚřds PS at the State Archive iř Łód there are 27 albums cŚřtaiřiřg cŚřtact sheets – very small format contact photographs; unfortunately their negatives have not survived.829 These photographs were taken by two Jewish śhŚtŚgraśhers wŚrkiřg iř the Statistical Deśartmeřt Śf the Łód Judeřrat, Heřryk RŚss and Mendl Grossman. Well in excess of ten thousand photographs show primarily the work of the many different council departments in the ghetto, street scenes, the interiors of the ghetto 826 Zagłada ydŚstwa śŚlskiegŚ. Album zdjęć. Album 1 Wydawnictwa Centralnej ydŚwski KŚmisji HistŚrycznej śrzy C.K. ydów Polskich, Łód 19ėĘ. 827 Cf. GettŚ. Terra IncŚgnita. Sztuka walcząca AriegŚ Ben Menachema i Mendla GrŚsmana. The Struggling Art Śf Arie Ben Menachem and Mendel Grosman, Łód 2009; A. PietrŚń, “FŚtŚmŚřta jakŚ sśŚsób Śśisu Zagłady. Analiza albumów fotograficznych z łódzkiegŚ getta”, Master’s thesis writteř at the Uřiversity Śf Warsaw, Faculty Śf PŚlish Studies, Warszawa 2007 [typescript]. 828 J. Struk, Holokaust w fotografiach. Interpretacja dowodów, Warszawa 200ė; H. LatŚ , Z historii fotografii wojennej, Warszawa 198Ę; cf. alsŚ J. LeŚciak, “NiecŚdzieřřa cŚdzieřřŚ ć. WŚkół zdj ć řiemieckich Śłřierzy i śŚlicjařtów z ŚkuśŚwařej Polski”, śaśer delivered at ař iřterřatiŚřal cŚřfereřce at the Uřiversity Śf Ottawa, Seśtember 200ę [tyśescriśt]. 829 “The řegatives Śf these śhŚtŚgraśhs have śrŚbably řŚt survived. They survived the war ařd were takeř tŚ Israel, ařd were stŚred iř the Nizařim kibbutz. Duriřg the fightiřg iř 19ė8 they were seized by Egyśtiař sŚldiers ařd disaśśeared”, cf. J. Baranowski, Łódzkie gettŚ 1940-1944. Vademecum, Łód 2003, ś. 131. 352 administration offices, Chaim Rumkowski, and various ceremonies and events. They have all been scařřed ařd are accessible tŚ view Śř screeř iř the Łód archive. Mařy Śf them were śublished iř Juliař BarařŚwski’s bŚŚk Łódzkie gettŚ 1940-1944.830 In addition to these, at the end of the 1980s a large collection of several hundred colour photographs taken by the bookkeeper of the German ghetto management, the Austrian-born Walter Genewein, came to light. In view of both the person of their author and the fact that they were taken on colour film, they are exceptional for their time. These photographs are held in the collection of the Jewish Museum in Frankfurt am Main, and many of them also in the collections of USHMM in Washington, D.C. They were the inspiration for the documentary film Fotoamator (Photographer) directed by Dariusz JabłŚński, which alsŚ made use Śf ař interview with a doctor from the ghetto who survived, Arnold Mostowicz, and other archival documents.831 The collections of the Auschwitz-Birkeřau State Museum iř O wi cim iřclude arŚuřd 39,000 negatives of photographs taken of prisoners on their arrival at the camp. These photographs were for use for identification purposes. The photographs from the Auschwitz collection were taken by the photographer Wilhelm Brasse, who survived the camp and succeeded in salvaging a considerable proportion of them. A documentary film was made about these photographs also, called Portrecista (The Portraitist).832 Brasse, the son of an Austrian and a Polish woman, was sent to Auschwitz as a form of repression for refusing to sign the Volksliste; he was assigned the number 3444. It was not uřtil the makiřg Śf the film that the śhŚtŚgraśher, whŚ lived iř the tŚwř Śf ywiec, fŚuřd himself able to talk about what he had experienced and seen. He admitted that since the war he had never been able to return to his profession. In the camp he photographed prisoners (three police-style shots), made portraits of Gestapo and SS officers, and also took photographs of the sick children on whom Mengele carried out his experiments. On the orders of the camp doctors he also śhŚtŚgraśhed śrisŚřers’ tattŚŚs. A uřique album cŚřtaiřs arŚuřd 200 śhŚtŚgraśhs takeř by members of the SS in 1944 during the arrival of the transports of Hungarian Jews in Birkenau.833 This is known as the Lili Jacob album; it was presented at the trial of the Auschwitz camp staff in Frankfurt by Lili Zelmanovic834, who was called as a witness (she had found it in Mauthausen). On 830 Ibidem, pp. 131-151. Fotoamator, dir. Dariusz JabłŚński, Aśśle Film PrŚductiŚř 1998. 832 Dir. Ireneusz Dobrowolski, Poland 2005. 833 The Auschwitz Album. The Story of a Transport, ed. Israel Gutman, Bella Gutterman, Caracas 2002. 834 Lili JacŚb’s married řame was ZelmařŚvic, ařd theř Meier. After the war she settled iř the US, where she died iř 1999. 831 353 the first page of the album there is a dedicatiŚř: “As a memeřtŚ Śf yŚur dear, uřfŚrgŚtteř Heiřz”. Today this famous document is in the collections of Yad Vashem. Another six photographs of exceptional importance and significance taken by members of the Sonderkommando during the burning of corpses of prisoners gassed at Birkenau have also survived. They were taken in secret by the camś uřdergrŚuřd usiřg a camera stŚleř frŚm the stŚre křŚwř as “Kařada”. ArŚuřd Ę00 photographs of various buildings and other camp structures have also been preserved; these were photographed on the orders of the SS by the special camp identification services, the Erkennungsdienst.835 We are also familiar with the several dozen aerial photographs taken by Allied pilots836 and obtained by the museum in 1980. Over 2,500 prewar photographs of Jews later sent to Auschwitz frŚm the ghettŚs iř B dziř ařd SŚsřŚwiec 837 have also been preserved, as have many others. The State Museum at Majdanek (PMM), like all other museums of martyrdom, also keeps photographs of prisoners, the camp, and its state at liberation. Few of them – just 25 – date from the period 1941-1944, however; these show the construction of the camp (they bear a stamp reading “Nur für deř Dieřstgebrauch” – Only for official use) and an overall view of it. Around 600 photographs of former prisoners have also been amassed, as well as some 150 of members of the camp staff. The largest number of photographs date from shortly after liberation – these were taken by soldiers or members of the commission appointed to investigate the crimes committed there. Indeed, this was also the case in Auschwitz-Birkenau and all the other camps, including those in Germany and liberated by Western Allied forces. These circumstances produced thousands of photographs that shocked public opinion all over the world; they were displayed at many exhibitions.838 835 There was an Erkennungsdienst in every camp, but the largest number of surviving photographs was taken by that in KL Auschwitz-Birkenau. 836 These photographs show the various parts of the camp complex, including the crematoria, the gas chambers, the barracks, the guard towers, the nearby IG Farbenindustrie plant in Monowice-Dwory; it is even possible to make out a group of prisoners walking towards the crematorium. 837 Zanim odeszli... Fotografie odnalezione w Auschwitz, edited ařd cŚmśiled by K. Brařdt, H. LŚewy, K. Oleksy, PaństwŚwe Muzeum Auschwitz-Birkeřau, O wi cim 2001. 838 J. Struk, Holocaust w fotografiach, op. cit., pp. 170-201. 354 As BŹrbel Schmidt wrŚte iř ař article Śř the śrisŚřers’ striśed uřifŚrms, “histŚriŚgraśhy is at risk Śf cuttiřg itself Śff tŚŚ much frŚm material evideřce” 839 owing to the way they are displayed in exhibitions, which has made them more akin to relics than authentic pieces of evidence and testimonies on an equal footing with all other kinds of communication, to be subjected, like them, to academic study (or research), description and analysis. The striped uniforms were a means by which the prisoners were stigmatized and segregated, and often their condition was decisive to survival in the camp.840 It is well known that the lack of shoes in KL Auschwitz-Birkenau could rapidly reduce a śrisŚřer tŚ a “muselmařř”841, and this, in turn, led to death. Survival was a struggle – in the most fundamental sense of the word.842 Three-dimensional material objects are a fragment of past reality that cannot be distorted because they do not communicate in words. Yet in order for these objects tŚ “sśeak”, we must “grařt histŚry its aśśrŚśriate meařiřg by drawiřg atteřtiŚř tŚ the Śbject, which comes to life through contact with it (...) For we can only build the future in a normal manner if we have the facility tŚ lŚŚk back.”843 Today, the camps are no more – they are the sites of the former camps; and the ghettos are no more – there are only the districts where the ghettos once were, and here and there in those districts the same houses are still standing in which people lived in the ghettos. Although this may seem incomprehensible, many objects, original documents and photographs are abroad, in part because the surviving Jews took them with them when they left Poland. One example is one of the many exhibits on display in the permanent exhibition at USHMM.844 This is a 1:Ę000 scale mŚdel Śf the Łód ghettŚ made by LeŚř JakubŚwicz (JacŚbseř), which could be packed into a protective carrying case. Its author worked on it throughout the many years of his life in the ghetto, which was his personal strategy for survival. From the window of his apartment he could see Zgierska Street and the bridge built over it. His model includes miniatures of the buildings that housed offices and workplaces, factories and workshops, as well as samples of all B. Schmidt, “Pasiaki wi řiarskie: relikwia czy dŚkumeřt histŚryczřy?”, Pro Memoria. Biuletyn Informacyjny, 2004, no. 20, pp. 37-41. 840 Cf. A. Paj czkŚwska, „Obraz Śdzyskařy. FŚtŚgraficzře śŚrtrety ŚcalŚřych”, Zagłada ydów. Studia i Materiały, 2012, no. 8, pp. 383-402. 841 “Muselmařř” - a colloquialism used by concentration camp prisoners to describe the weak, those who had lost the will to live, and were doomed to selection. Cf. W. Witek-Malicka, Lagerszpracha – narzędzie rekŚnstrukcji czy kreŚwanie rzeczywistŚ ci?, Katowice-O wi cim 2013. 842 Cf. P. Levy, If This is a Man, New York 1959 (in Polish: Czy tŚ jest człŚwiek, Warszawa 1996); idem, The Drowned and the Saved, New York 1988 (in Polish: PŚgrą eni i Ścaleni, Kraków 2007); J. Améry, At the Mind's Limits: Contemplations by a Survivor on Auschwitz and its Realities, Bloomington 1980 (in Polish: PŚza winą i karą, Kraków 2007). 843 M. Budziarek, “Li cie histŚrii albŚ lady ycia i mierci w getcie łódzkim”, translation and summary of the article: A. BŚdek, “Laub der Geschichte oder Spuren des Lebens und Sterbens im Getto Lodz gesichtet und gesammelt”, [iř:] Judaica łódzkie w zbiŚrach muzealnych i zasŚbach archiwalnych, collective work, ed. M. Budziarek, Łód 199ė, śp. 184-185. 844 J. NŚwakŚwski, “‘Krzyk łódzkiegŚ getta’ w waszyřgtŚńskim Muzeum HŚlŚcaustu”, [iř:] Judaica łódzkie, op. cit., pp. 117-126. 839 355 the banknotes and ration cards, and a collection of the stamps used by the ghetto administration, coins, and medals. Buried in the cellar of the house in which Jakubowicz lived, the model fortunately survived, and its author took it with him when he emigrated to the US after the war. Another very large Śbject Śř disślay at USHMM is the characteristic Kasa ChŚrych (Patieřts’ Fuřd) hŚsśital dŚŚr frŚm Łagiewřicka Street iř the ghettŚ. It was frŚm this hŚsśital (tŚday in ruins) that patients and childreř were brutally “selected” fŚr trařsśŚrt tŚ the extermiřatiŚř camś iř ChełmřŚ, sŚme Śf them being thrown out of the windows onto the street below. The author of an article on the history behind the creation of the exhibition in the Washington museum, the curator of its collections, Jacek Nowakowski, remembers the dilemmas that accompanied the selection of objects to be included in the exhibitiŚř: “What exhibits cŚuld śŚssibly cŚřvey the terrŚr Śf the cŚřtiřuŚus deśŚrtatiŚns to and from the ghetto, the hunger and poverty, the dreadful sanitation conditions, and the work that was beyŚřd humař streřgth? We decided tŚ shŚw it all usiřg Śbjects as symbŚls.” 845 These include tools used for the work that was thought to be the route tŚ salvatiŚř: sewiřg machiřes, cŚbbler’s chisels, carśeřtry tŚŚls. “As we walked the streets Śf Bałuty iř Łód , we realized the imśŚrtařce Śf the road surface on which we were walking, so different from modern American sidewalks. The walls, the windows, the doorways, the stairwells – all this ‘cried Śut’ tŚ us.” 846 From Warsaw the autheřtic cŚbblestŚřes frŚm ChłŚdřa Street by the iřtersectiŚř with elazřa Street weřt Śř disślay – the same ones walked a few decades previously by people incarcerated in the ghetto. These are traces of the Holocaust, and sometimes only traces of traces, such as an object identical to one on a śhŚtŚgraśh. There are similar “trace Śbjects” iř the cŚllectiŚřs Śf the IH Museum, which cŚllects above all artworks and Judaica (objects of religious cult)847, but iř its Pami tki histŚryczře (HistŚrical mementos) section preserves with equal care objects directly connected with the fate of the Jews duriřg the war. Naturally, the largest řumber Śf such Śbjects cŚmes frŚm the Łód ghettŚ, because Łód was řŚt destrŚyed, ařd the Germařs left the city literally at the last mŚmeřt befŚre the Red Army marched in. These include various greetings cards, posters and albums made by representatives of various workplaces and schools for the Head of the Jewish CŚuřcil iř the Łód GhettŚ, Chaim Mordechaj Rumkowski, e.g. a card for Rosh Hashanah made by school teachers (inv. no. B-179/11); fuřctiŚřaries’ armbařds, e.g. Śře fŚr ař OD Śfficer (iřv. řŚ. B-185/2); banknotes from the ghetto, 845 Ibidem, p. 121. Ibidem. 847 In all, around 11,000 objects connected with the history, tradition and culture of the Polish Jews. 846 356 křŚwř as “rumki” after Rumkowski848; designs for postage stamps with portraits of Rumkowski, for use within the ghetto 849 ; everyday items such as childreř’s shŚes wŚveř frŚm cŚttŚř taśe 850 ; commemorative objects such as cigarette cases and wooden boxes 851 ; ornaments from wrought metal, such as signs and lettering; and propaganda materials and drawings. AřŚther large cŚllectiŚř Śf Śbjects frŚm the Łód ghettŚ is held iř Muzeum Miasta ŁŚdzi (the Museum Śf the City Śf Łód ) 852 : “řegatives ařd śhŚtŚgraśhs, dŚcumeřts Śf the life Śf sŚciety, official forms, forms of payment, commemorative jewellery and souvenirs, decorations of the order services, Śbjects Śf everyday use”.853 It has two full sets of banknotes and aluminium coins from the ghetto (these are frequent exhibits in museum collections, as large numbers have been preserved; they were printed and struck in large quantities).854 These were valid currency only inside the ghetto and were designed as a way of draining the ghetto population of standard currency, which they had tŚ exchařge fŚr “rumki”. The three-dimeřsiŚřal Śbjects iř the cŚllectiŚřs Śf the museum iř Łód include two stamp matrices855; decorations of the OD and the cemetery service (Friedhofsdienst); and other objects including the signboard for a shop where bread and other food was distributed (at 9 Drewnowska Street), a milk bottle, mementos made from metal (pendants, brooches, bracelets, signet rings, engraved plaques), wooden boxes, and other evidence of the day-to-day ghetto existence, such as ration cards for food and other products, and postal forms. Many often beautifully ařd skilfully made metal brŚŚches beariřg the characteristic mŚtif Śf a ratiŚř card Śr a “śařŚrama” of the ghetto have also survived. Other items in the collections include works of three-dimensional art, among them two wooden sculptures depicting a young Jew and an elderly Jew, made by Icchak (Wincent/Wincenty) Brauner and M. Winiarski, commissioned by the German Institute for Research Śf the Jewish QuestiŚř (iřteřded as exhibits iř a ślařřed museum Śf “race”856), a sculpted model by ař ařŚřymŚus authŚr eřtitled “Przesiedleřie dŚ getta łódzkiegŚ” (Resettlemeřt iřtŚ the Łód ghetto) made in the years 1942-1943, and other objects. The Łód ghettŚ had its Śwř iřterřal ghettŚ curreřcy śrŚduced by the Judeřrat, with bařkřŚtes Śf the deřŚmiřatiŚřs 50 pfennigs, 1 mark, 2 marks, 5 marks, 10 marks and 20 marks. Coins were also struck, with the Star of David and the wŚrd “GettŚ” Śř the reverse, cf. iřv. řŚ. B-615 ab. 849 Cf. inv. no. B-522/2. PŚczta w Łódzkim Getcie 1940-1944 ze zbiorów Manfreda Schulze (Berlin), Łód 200ė (exh. cat. frŚm Muzeum Tradycji NieśŚdległŚ ciŚwych [the Museum Śf Iřdeśeřdeřce TraditiŚřs] iř Łód ). 850 Inv. no. B-198. 851 Inv. no. B-619. 852 M. Jaskulski, “Judaica w zbiŚrach Muzeum HistŚrii Miasta ŁŚdzi”, [iř:] Judaica łódzkie, op. cit., pp. 74-89. 853 Ibidem, p. 86. 854 Cf. G.M.Y. Frařquiřet, “Geld Gettos Litzmannstadt”, Money Trend, 1993, no. 10, pp. 4-9. 855 Der Älteste der Juden in Lodsch and Postabteilung des Ältesten der Juden in Lodsch. 856 Cf. Skarby ydŚwskiegŚ Instytutu HistŚrycznegŚ, exh. cat., May–October 2006. 848 357 Of objects salvaged from the Warsaw ghetto, among the most precious in the collectiŚřs Śf IH are the two milk cans and three (of an original ten) metal crates in which the documents making up the Ringelblum Archive were buried.857 Aside from these, there are also drawings, ghetto armbands with the Star Śf David, ařd OD fuřctiŚřaries’ armbands858, as well as metal decorations from that service, and craft items made illegally for sale, such as a notebook.859 From other localities there are drawings depicting scenes from life and the German repressions 860 , as well as everyday objects such as suitcases and musical instruments fashioned from pieces of Torah scroll (drums 861 ). One recent acquisition is a scroll of public announcements from the ghetto that had been buried in the cellars of a house in Warsaw not far from present-day Anielewicza and Zamenhofa Streets. It was unearthed during archaeological digs that preceded the construction of the Museum of the History of Polish Jews. Iř ařŚther site withiř the fŚrmer Warsaw ghettŚ, Śř the śremises Śf the lŚt at 3ė wi tŚjerska Street (today the Chinese embassy), some ordinary metal objects and scraps of paper – pages from a book – were retrieved from the ground in 2003. Unfortunately, searches for the third part of the Ringelblum Archive in the same place were fruitless. All the objects sought by historians, museum workers or collectors, or found by chance years on, are material evidence of the conditions in which the Jews lived during the war, and the circumstances in which they died. In the collection of the Auschwitz-Birkeřau State Museum iř O wi cim, vast quantities of objects from the camp or belongings of prisoners are kept; they are all proof of the mass crimes committed there, whose traces the Germans did not manage to obliterate and destroy. These collections include more than 80,000 shoes, some 4,000 suitcases and baskets, 12,000 pots, bowls and mugs, around 40 kg of spectacles, 460 artificial limbs, 830 items of camp clothing (striped uniforms) and civilian attire, 260 prayer shawls (tallith), 40 m³ Śf metal Śbjects frŚm the “Kařada” stŚres iř Birkenau, and around 6,000 exhibits in the collection of art, including some 2,000 objects made in the camp workshops by prisoners, either as commissions from SS officers or illegally as their own work. Another aspect of these collections are around 8,000 camp letters and cards, often beautifully 857 One of the cans is on display in the permanent exhibition at USHMM in Washington, D.C., and one of the crates is exhibited at Yad Vashem in Jerusalem. 858 Inv. no. B-196, 246/91. 859 Inv. no. B-647. 860 E.g. that by Kuba Gutermař Śf PłŚck, a teř-year-old boy, inv. no. B-513/5. 861 Inv. no. B-620; the museum description reports that the Germans ordered Jewish craftsmen to make various items from Torah scrolls. 358 decorated, as well as several stories written by prisoners for children – also illustrated. Moreover, almŚst twŚ tŚřřes Śf hair shŚrř frŚm female śrisŚřers’ heads, iřteřded as raw material fŚr the production of industrial fabrics, has survived.862 The museum at KL Auschwitz-Birkenau is spread over a total area of some 191 hectares (20 ha are Auschwitz I, and 171 ha Birkenau), spread across which there are a great many buildings and vestiges of buildings, e.g. the ruins of the gas chambers and crematoria, wooden and brick barracks, the remains of wooden barracks (brick chimney flues), the sewerage ařd draiřage řetwŚrk, rŚadways, feřces, guard tŚwers, the buildiřg Śf the “sauřa”, ařd many others. In all, after the war there were 197 buildings on the site; many of them were demolished, others fell into decay owing to disuse and non-conservation. Today the Auschwitz Museum has a large and excellently equipped conservation laboratory. Among the objects left on the site of the former concentration and extermination camps were objects used for the mass killings, torture, and individual executions, including instruments of torture, a whipping rack for carrying out floggings, Zyklon B canisters, a gallows, and the gas chamber in Auschwitz I. 863 But the objects amassed iř the museum’s cŚllectiŚř are řŚt restricted tŚ the remaiřs Śf buildiřgs ařd evideřce Śf the daily crimes and the agonies suffered by the prisoners. There are also very numerous proofs of their resistance and attempts to survive through artistic output.864 In all, some 1,600 artworks have been preserved that were made in KL Auschwitz-Birkenau: paintings, drawings, sculpture, prints, among them the famŚus “gyśsy śŚrtraits” made by Diřah (Babbitt) GŚttliebŚva Śř the Śrders Śf camp doctor Josef Mengele, who conducted his pseudo-medical experiments on Sinti and Roma prisoners.865 The genre represented in greatest number is the portrait – prisoners made portraits out Śf a řeed tŚ recŚrd their aśśearařce iř the “here ařd řŚw”, tŚ cŚřvey their image to a loved one, ařd alsŚ Śut Śf a desire “tŚ ślumb the mysteries Śf the humař sŚul by Śbserviřg the face ařd śersŚřa Śf the śrisŚřer”.866 The śrisŚřers Śř these śŚrtraits “are differeřt, but yet what is strikiřg iř them is a vague similarity, a particular mental expression. Perhaps it is the tell-tale gaze, which the authŚr himself described as fŚllŚws: ‘the eyes terribly hŚśeless ařd strařge, ařd iř virtually every Śře W. Niessřer, “PrŚblemy kŚřserwatŚrskie i etyczře zachŚwařia włŚsów – szcz tków ludzkich”, Pro Memoria. Biuletyn Informacyjny, 2004, no. 20, pp. 43-ėĘ; M. ZawŚdřa, “WŚkół tegŚ cŚ śŚzŚstałŚ. BiŚgraficzře śŚdej cie dŚ badań řad szcz tkami ludzkimi řa śrzykładzie włŚsów eksśŚřŚwařych w Muzeum Auschwitz-Birkeřau”, Kultura i SśŚłeczeństwŚ, 2007, vol. LI, no. 2, pp. 65-90. 863 R. PiórŚ, W. Smrek, “Materialře wiadectwa zbrŚdři”, Pro Memoria, 2007, no. 27, pp. 63-66. 864 Cf. The Last Expression. Art and Auschwitz, ed. D. Mickenberg, C. Granof, P. Hayes, Evanston 2003; Last Traces. The Lost Art of Auschwitz, photography and text by J.P. Czarnecki, introduction by Ch. Potok, New York 1989; Spiritual Resistance. Art from Concentration Camps 1940-1945, A selection of drawings and paintings from the collection of Kibbutz Lohamei Haghetaot, Israel, New York 1978; “Kunst und Holocaust, Bildliche Zeugen vom Ende der westlichen Kultur”, Loccumer Protokolle, 1993, no. 14/89. 865 L. OstałŚwska, Farby wodne, WŚłŚwiec 2011. 866 I. Szymańska, “PŚrtret w ŚbŚzie Ś wi cimskim”, Przegląd Lekarski, 1985, no. 1 (42), pp. 93-104. 862 359 Śf them lurks the egŚtistical will tŚ survive’.”867 This will to survive prompted people to seek out every possible method of preserving their inner freedom and independence, and to occupy their minds with positive, defensive activities, which included art, camp humour 868, literary and poetic output, and even music-making869 there. Most of these arts, aside from their aesthetic values and the natural need for creativity, also had a therapeutic role.870 It is also important, however, to remember Śře mŚre asśect Śf camś art: it was Śfteř “cŚřducted” by fŚrce ařd Śř the Śrders Śf the SS Śfficers iř the camśs, whŚ wŚuld use this meařs Śř the Śře hařd tŚ take advařtage Śf śrisŚřers’ artistic talents871, and on the other as a way of humiliating and degrading them. In KL Auschwitz there was a camś “museum”872, which even employed Jews to translate texts from Hebrew; in both Auschwitz and Birkenau there were also prisoner orchestras. The former camp complex at the State Museum at Majdanek is the best preserved of all the concentration camp sites. It comprises some 70 buildings and facilities: a crematorium, gas chambers, bathhouses, 24 barracks in Field III, 17 guard towers, 5 control guard houses, 15 ancillary barracks, and the fences. The moveable objects that have been preserved and are kept in the Collections Department are divided into the following groups: 1. Former camp textiles. 2. Personal effects looted from prisoners. 3. Wooden camp footwear and civilian shoes. 4. Objects connected with life and labour in the camp. 5. Instruments of terror. 6. Exploitation of corpses. 7. Objects of religious cult. 867 Ibidem, p. 95. Z. JagŚda, S. KłŚdziński, J. MasłŚwski, “