Deportation of January 1943
_ When Heinrich Himmler (leader of the Nazi SS) arrived in the ghetto on January 9, 1943, he was outraged to see the large population and ordered for the deportation of another 8,000. The Jews went into hiding in the bunkers they had constructed since the 1942 deportation. ZOB members called for action, and "...under the command of Mordechai Anielewicz, took their place among a convoy of Jews being led to the Umschlagplatz; at a premeditated signal, they began to shoot at the Germans with the few pistols in their possession. All the fighters, with the exception of Anielewicz, were killed by the Germans within minutes, but a few Germans were hit and the convoy of deportees disappeared" (Dreifuss 916). With the few weapons the ZOB obtained from the reluctant Polish underground, they were able to prevent the deportation of 2,000 Jews between January 18 and 22, 1943.
"We fought with grenades, guns, iron rods and light bulbs filled with sulfuric acid. For a few minutes we were intoxicated by the thrill of the battle. We had actually witnessed the German conquerors of the world retreat in fright from a handful of young Jews equipped with only a few pistols and hand grenades" (Zivia Lubetkin of the ZOB). "For now, for the first time, German plans were frustrated. For the first time the halo of omnipotence and invincibility was torn from the German's heads. For the first time the Jew in the street realized that it was possible to do something against the German's will and power. The number of Germans killed by ZOB bullets was not the only important thing. What was more important was the appearance of a psychological turning point. The mere fact that because of unexpected resistance, weak as it was, the Germans were forced to interrupt their 'deportation' schedule was of great value" (Marek Edelman). |
Click on images to view captions
Preparations for Battle
"The January uprising, which later became known as the 'small uprising,' convinced the ZOB members that during deportation, they should not act as a single force. The ghetto was therefore divided up into separate sectors under Anielewicz's command: Marek Edelman was placed in charge of the area of the Brush Factory; Eliezer Geller was in command of the Shop Area; and Izrael Kanal was placed in command of the Central Ghetto. Yitzhak Zuckerman was sent to the 'Aryan' side of Warsaw to renew ties with the Polish underground" (Dreifuss 917).
"The fighting unit was just like a kibbutz: we slept together, ate together, trained together, and performed operations with the same comrades. Among our routine daily operations was keeping watch to avoid unexpected searches by the SS or the Ghetto police. We trained in the use of weapons, emphasizing quick-draw tactics and accuracy of aim...Our major occupation was acquiring weapons, which naturally was very extensive, Since we had absolutely no sources of funding, we had to get money from rich Jews...These operations took place at night. We would get into an apartment and try to convince the person to give us the money we needed, without using force" (Shima Rotem, "Kazik"). |
The five hundred ZOB members also began fashioning their own grenades and Molotov cocktails, and Himmler ordered for the final liquidation of the ghetto.
"The time we've been waiting for has come" (Anielewicz)
Karl Brandt (courtesy of "AllVoices")
_ The ZOB became suspicious that another deportation would occur when First Lieutenant Karl Brandt left the ghetto with a deceitful grin after addressing the Judenrat on April 16, 1943. On April 18, a Jewish policeman secretly working for the ZOB reported that the Nazis would surround the ghetto the following morning. "On the eve of the final deportation, Himmler replaced Sammern-Frankenegg," the chief of the SS and police in Warsaw,"with Gerneral Jurgen Stroop, an SS member and police commander who had experience fighting partisans and street fighters. As leader of the German forces in Warsaw, his task was to suppress any uprising and bring the ghetto to its knees" (Callahan 91).
At 2:00 A.M on April 19, 1943, the ZOB prepared for battle:
"The windows were fortified with sandbags. People were assigned to various positions...I received an order from Berl Braundo to check the weapons and pass out ammunition to the men. We filled baskets with Molotov cocktails and passed them on to the positions....People from other groups came to receive provisions, battle rations, rusks, sugar, groats. 'Cjank' [doses of cyanide] was passed out to certain people, especially those whose tasks required them to be mobile and heightened their chances of being caught by the Germans and tortured during interrogation" (Chaim Frimmer, member of the ZOB).
"At 4:00 in the morning we saw a column of Hitlerites at the Nalewki passage moving towards the Central Ghetto. [The column] marched and marched without end, a few thousand strong. Behind it came a few tanks, armored cars, light cannon, and a few hundred SS troops on motorcycles" (Simha Ratajzer describes the German forces entering the ghetto). The Germans would liquidate the Central Ghetto first, as it contained the most non-working Jews.
|
"At five in the morning a loud rumble was heard. Suddenly I saw from my lookout on the balcony that cars had come through the ghetto gate. They reached the square, stopped, and soldiers got out and stood to the side...A column of six infantry entered. One section turned to Wolynska Street, and the other remained in place, as if awaiting orders. Before long the Jewish police came through the gate. I would report everything to a fighter lying down not far from me [who in turn passed word on] to the command room, where Mordechai [Anielewicz], Yisrael [Kanal], and others were seated...After the column of Jews crossed the street, an armed German column began to move. [I was ordered to wait] until the middle of the column had reached the balcony and then throw a grenade at it, which would serve as a signal to start the action...A mighty blast within the column was the signal to act. Immediately thereafter grenades were thrown at the Germans from all sides...Above the tumult of explosions and firing, we could hear the sputter of the German Schmeisser [a sub-machine gun used by the German army] operated by one of our men in the neighboring squad...The battle lasted for a half hour. The Germans retreated leaving many dead in the street" (Chaim Frimmer) |
Click on photos to view captions
"We shall wear out the enemy by constantly attacking from behind the gates, windows, ruins, day and night. The basis of our plan is the ghetto labyrinth. The Germans will have to fight for months on end. If we can get all the arms, ammunition and explosives we need, the enemy will pay with a sea of blood" (Anielewicz).
| The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising had begun, and when the Germans entered again with two tanks, the Jews threw bombs and Molotov cocktails. The Germans later encountered attack from Jews firing from their network of connected attics, as Stroop described in his report on April 20, 1943. This method of fighting, along with battle in the streets, lasted for days. In the beginning of the war, the Jews held the upper hand. For this reason, Stroop decided to "...systematically burn the ghetto. In this way, fighters would either die in the flames or escape into the street, only to face the wrath of the German army. This forced the ZOB to shift their strategy as well. Rather than fight at length in the street, they staged sporadic raids against the Nazis" (Callahan 97).
| "The most difficult struggle is before us, but up to the last moment our aim must be to be human beings...We must hold our flag high...Your greatness will come when each of you remains completely alone, face to face with the enemy..."(Mira Fuchrer).
|
"The only noteworthy item is the very stiff fighting between our police, including some degree of the army, and the insurgent Jews...The fighting there is very bitter, and matters have reached the point where the Jewish high command is issuing daily communiques. The joke evidently won't last long, but it is a perfect example of what can be expected of these Jews when they have weapons in their hands. Unfortunately they also have excellent German weapons, especially machine guns. God in heaven only knows how they got their hands on them" (Joseph Goebbels, Nazi propaganda minister, May 1, 1943). |
During the battle, Stroop was still attempting to deport Jews to Treblinka and desperately tried to find them. "Uncovering the bunkers becomes more difficult. Often it would be impossible to find [them] were it not for the treachery of other Jews. The command to leave the bunkers voluntarily is almost never obeyed; only the use of smoke bombs forces Jews to respond to it" (Stroop). Stroop had destroyed 631 bunkers by the time Anielewicz and some other ZOB members retreated to the ZOB headquarters bunker.
Click on photos to view captions
On May 8, 1943, the headquarters was discovered, and the ZOB members fought the Germans for two hours. The Germans eventually threw a gas bomb into the bunker, killing everyone who had not already committed suicide, including the heroic Mordechai Anielewicz. The remaining Jews were able to escape the ghetto through the sewers, and many were captured, killed by the Nazis, or were burned to death.
Joseph Greenblatt describes escaping the Warsaw ghetto by the sewers (courtesy of "Warsaw Ghetto Uprising Testimony Clips")
"We succeeded in capturing altogether 56,056 Jews, that is, definitely destroying them," Stroop declared on May 16, 1943, also announcing "The Grand Aktion' ended at [8:15 P.M.] with the demolition of the Warsaw synagogue."
Click on photos to make them larger and to view captions