Warsaw Robinsons

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Warsaw ruins in January 1945.

The Warsaw Robinsons ( Polish Robinsonowie warszawscy ) was the nickname for people who wanted to stay in the capital after the surrender of the Warsaw Uprising (August 1 - October 3, 1944) and hid from the Germans in the ruins. Not infrequently they stayed in Warsaw until the troops of the Red Army and the Polish People's Army marched in on January 17, 1945 as a result of the “Warsaw Operation” . The most famous of the “Robinsons” was Władysław Szpilman .

origin

The term "Warsaw Robinson" appears for the first time before the Second World War in a science fiction novel by Antoni Słonimski "Dwa końce świata" (German: "Twice the end of the world ") from 1937.

The plaque commemorating the four “Warsaw Robinsons”, unveiled in 2015 at 21/25 Marszałkowska Street.

The novel tells the story of the whole of humanity who was destroyed by the "blue rays of death" broadcast by Hans Retlich. Hans Retlich is a madman who thinks Adolf Hitler's political program is not radical enough (“Retlich” is an imprecise anagram of the name Hitler). By chance, a bookseller, Henryk Szwalba, survived the attack by Retlich in Warsaw. In the title of the fourth chapter the author calls him "Warsaw Robinson", and the plot of the novel refers several times to the novel " Robinson Crusoe " by Daniel Defoe . For example, Szwalba finds his "Friday" in deserted Warsaw, a man named Chomiak, who is an alcoholic and speaks in the stylized Warsaw dialect , in the so-called "wiech" (in Polish).

"Evacuation" from Warsaw

On the basis of the "Agreement on the Cessation of Operations in Warsaw" signed on October 2, 1944, all civilians remaining in Warsaw were to leave the city together with the surrendering units of the Polish Home Army (Pol. Armia Krajowa, AK for short ). Most of the surviving residents left the capital in the first ten days of October. After a short stay in the transit camp in Pruszków , most of them were sent to Germany for forced labor or expelled to the western districts of the Generalgouvernement . On October 24, 1944, the evacuation of the injured and sick from the insurgent hospitals ended. On the same day, the main and district administrations of the Polish Red Cross , which had remained in Warsaw until then, were evacuated to Radom . On October 25, a resolution came into force prohibiting civilians from staying in Warsaw. From that time Warsaw was a military zone ( Warsaw Fortress ). At the same time, the German units began to systematically loot and destroy the Polish capital .

There were still people hiding in the abandoned and destroyed city who did not want to leave Warsaw. These people were called “Warsaw Robinsons” (referring to the novel by Antoni Słonimski and the famous “Robinson Crusoe” by Daniel Defoe). Today it is difficult to determine the exact number of people. According to Jadwiga Marczak, there were around 400 of them, while Stanisław Kopf estimated their number to be around 1,000. The "Robinsons" included both men and women. There were also elderly people, but no information was found to suggest that children (not counting young people) were also hiding in the ruins.

There were several reasons why “Robinsons” wanted to stay in Warsaw. Among other things, there were people who survived the mass executions , which were carried out by soldiers under the leadership of Reinefarth and Dirlewanger in the first weeks of the uprising , and who later hid in the ruins. These people remained cut off from the world and often did not know for a long time that the uprising was over. A relatively large group of people of Jewish origin and some insurgents who did not believe the German assurances about the treatment of prisoners under the Hague Convention also stayed in Warsaw . Some sick and old people also stayed in the city because they had no strength or courage to embark on the hike. In addition, people who wanted to continue fighting the Germans hid in the ruins. For younger “Robinsons” a sense of adventure could also play a role.

The “Robinsons” mostly hid in basements or attics of abandoned buildings. Usually they tried to hide in the most destroyed buildings, which were not threatened by arson or detonation by German forces. The basements of these buildings have been converted into real, hidden bunkers with air intake and some entrances. Sometimes a passage was created in the neighboring cellar, thus ensuring underground communication. Individuals as well as groups hid in the ruins. The largest group of 37 refugees hid in the basement of the house on Sienna Street. The "Robinsons" were found in all districts of Warsaw, although they mostly hid in Śródmieście , then in Żoliborz and Ochota .

living conditions

The living conditions of the "Robinsons" were extremely difficult. It was particularly difficult to find water and food in the destroyed city. At every step the refugees had to pay attention to their tracks, their noises and their smells (e.g. smoke from the fireplace) so as not to draw the Germans' attention to their hiding place. For this reason, the “Robinsons” only left their hiding place when it was really necessary. Some of the refugees were more or less seriously injured. There were also psychological problems that arose due to imprisonment and loneliness, or which arose from being in the same small group of people all the time. One of the people in hiding remembered this time:

“In winter we heated the room with an iron stove. We had enough fuel, but the Germans could see the smoke, so it was possible to only heat at night. We usually slept during the day. When it was dark, life began with us. "

The “Robinsons” tried (except in isolated cases) to avoid contact with the Germans. However, they saw the people in hiding as a real threat behind them and treated them as " Bolshevik agents". On October 18, 1944, General Smilo von Lüttwitz , commander of the 9th German Army in the Warsaw district, issued an order to the units subordinate to him: “In the ruins of Warsaw there are still insidious Poles who could threaten the back of the German army. The elements that hide in the ruins and cellars of the houses are a constant threat to the backs of the combat units. ”Three police regiments - 34, 17 and 23 - were assigned to carry out a major raid on the city completely "to clean". The situation on November 15, 1944 was exceptional when the refugees captured as a result of a major raid were brought to the Pruszków camp.

The fates of the "Robinsons" were different. Some people informed the others outside the city of their location and were then able to get out with the help of the Poles who worked for the Germans in the removal of valuable objects and materials from the city or thanks to the help of the staff of the Main Council of Welfare and the Polish Red Cross escaped the city. Others were found and murdered by the Germans. A part of the "Robinsons" hid until the liberation of Warsaw by the troops of the Red Army and the Polish People's Army in January 1945.

The most famous of the “Warsaw Robinsons” was Władysław Szpilman . Marek Edelman and the journalist and chronicler of the Warsaw Uprising, Wacław Gluth-Nowowiejski, hid in the ruins of the city for a few weeks .

The film

Based on the memoirs of Władysław Szpilman, a script by Czesław Miłosz and Jerzy Andrzejewski was written . It was largely revised in accordance with communist propaganda and the film " Miasto nieujarzmione " (German: Unconquered City ) was shot on its basis .

memory

On October 2nd, 2015, a plaque was unveiled on the wall of the building at 21/25 Marszałkowska Street in memory of the four Warsaw Robinsons: Antoni (Dudek) Czarkowski, Jan Łatwiński, Zdzisław Michalik and Władysław Tymiński, who are in the ruins of the tenement house on the corner of Marszałkowska Street and Oleandrów Street.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Berezowska, Małgorzata., Borecka, Emilia., Kazimierski, Józef., Muzeum Historyczne m. st. Warszawy., Archiwum Państwowe m. st. Warszawy .: Exodus Warszawy: ludzie i miasto po Powstaniu 1944 . Wyd. 1st edition. Państwowy Instytut Wydawniczy, Warszawa 1992, ISBN 83-06-01589-4 .
  2. ^ Stanisław head: Wyrok na miasto. Warszawskie Termopile 1944–1945 . Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Askon, 2001, p. 17.
  3. ↑ a b c d Dunin-Wąsowicz, Krzysztof .: Warszawa w latach 1939–1945 . Wyd. 1st edition. Państwowe Wydawn. Nauk, Warszawa 1984, ISBN 83-01-04207-9 .
  4. ↑ a b Stanisław head: Wyrok na miasto. Warszawskie Termopile 1944–1945, op.cit. P. 68.
  5. ↑ Wacław Gluth-Nowowiejski: Stolica Jaskiń ( Memento of the original from March 5, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Plus-Minus, Rzeczpospolita, 14 września 2002. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.zwoje-scrolls.com
  6. ^ Stanisław head: Wyrok na miasto. Warszawskie Termopile 1944–1945, op.cit. P. 67.
  7. ^ Stanisław head: Wyrok na miasto. Warszawskie Termopile 1944–1945, op.cit. P. 30.
  8. ^ Robinsonowie warszawscy. In: Stolica. P. 10, January - February 2016.

literature

  • Krzysztof Dunin-Wąsowicz: Warszawa w latach 1939–1945 . Warszawa: Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe, 1984. ISBN 83-01-04207-9 .
  • Wacław Gluth-Nowowiejski: Stolica Jaskiń. Plus-Minus, Rzeczpospolita, 14 września 2002.
  • Stanisław head: Wyrok na miasto. Warszawskie Termopile 1944–1945 . Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Askon, 2001.
  • Exodus Warszawy. Ludzie i miasto po Powstaniu 1944 . T. I: Pamiętniki, relacje . Warszawa: Państwowy Instytut Wydawniczy, 1992. ISBN 83-06-01589-4 .