Kraków pogrom
Encyclopedia
The Kraków pogrom refers to the events that occurred on August 11, 1945, in the city of Kraków
, Poland
, which resulted in one dead and five wounded victims.
before the German invasion of Poland in September, 1939. Resulting from the Holocaust and further migration only 500 were present by January 1945 immediately after the arrival
of the Soviet Red Army
. This number gradually increased as nearly 2,000 prewar inhabitants of the city returned home. Many Jewish refugees returned to Kraków from the Soviet Union
, including those who came from the neighbouring villages and towns.
By May 1945, the number of Jews in the city reached 6,637.
The return of the Jewish population was not always welcomed, especially by the anti-Semitic elements in the populace. The safety of the Jewish community
in Kraków was becoming a very serious problem, even though "no serious antisemitic events were recorded in the rural and small-town regions." In his report for 1–10 August, the Cracow city administrator (starosta grodzki) noted the "insufficient supply of food." In June 1945, the voivode of Kraków described growing tensions in his report:
police station
falsely accused of attempting to abduct a child. Despite the fact that the investigation revealed that the mother had left her child in the care of the suspect, rumours started to spread that a Jewish woman abducted a child in order to kill it. A mob shouting anti-Jewish slogans gathered at Kleparski square, but a Milicja detachment brought the situation under control. Blood libel rumours continued to spread. False claims that thirteen corpses of Christian children allegedly had been discovered were disseminated. By 11 August, the number of rumoured "victims" had grown to eighty. Groups of hooligans
who gathered at Kleparski Square had been throwing stones at the Kupa Synagogue
on a weekly basis. On 11 August an attempt to seize a thirteen year old boy who was throwing stones at the synagogue was made, but he managed to escape and rushed to the nearby marketplace screaming "Help me, the Jews have tried to kill me". Instantly the crowd broke in into the Kupa synagogue and started beating Jews, who had been praying at the Saturday morning Sabbath
service; and the Torah
scrolls were burned. The Jewish hostel was also attacked. Jewish men, women and children, were beaten up on the streets; their homes were broken into and robbed. Some Jews wounded during the pogrom were hospitalized and later were beaten in the hospitals again. One of the pogrom victims witnessed:
During the pogrom some Poles, mistaken for Jews, were also attacked. The centre of these events was Miodowa, Starowislna, Przemyska, and Jozefa Streets in the Kazimierz
quarter. The riots were most intense between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., calming down around 2 p.m., only to regain strength in the late afternoon when the Kupa synagogue was set on fire. Polish policemen and soldiers actively participated in these events Among twenty-five of those accused of inciting racial hatred, robberies, and violence against Jews, twelve were officers
, shot while standing behind closed doors.
Polish historian Dr Anna Cichopek stated in her university Master Thesis later published as a book that all historical sources confirmed this one death. However,
she also noted that in an archival photo of a funeral there were five coffins visible, thus suggesting that there might have been five fatalities; she also claimed in her book that the New York Times in 1946 had noted a death of a man (Anszel Zucker), and Polska Agencja Prasowa noted a death of another unknown woman (in addition to Róża Berger) and five wounded.
Polish historian, Dr Julian Kwiek
, who has published existing Polish documents regarding the Kraków event stated that he is not familiar with the documents quoted by Cichopek from outside the scientific literature. He stated that one death is confirmed in all historical sources, therefore it is questionable whether this event truly falls under the definition of a pogrom
, even though most other sources refer to the event as such.
Another historian, Dr Dariusz Libionka
from the Center for Holocaust Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences
, suggested that the photos showing the coffins were taken in the Spring (April 24, 1946) of the following year and came from the Kraków funeral of five Jews shot on April 21, 1946 by partisans of Józef Kuraś
"Ogień" near Nowy Targ. In many cases – Libionka suggested – it would have been more appropriate if Anna Cichopek relied on existing studies rather than on archival material. He stated, that Polska Agencja Prasowa noted one dead person and five wounded. Dr Libionka questioned the source of information regarding Anszel Zucker's death. According to him it should have been concluded that the Kraków pogrom resulted in one dead and five wounded victims.
(local 'Gazeta w Krakowie'), August 11, 2000 Darisz Libionka, Recension of Anna Cichopek's book "Pogrom Żydów w Krakowie", in Pamięć i Sprawiedliwość, nr 1/2002 str. 179-182 Tomasz Konopka Śmierc na ulicach Krakowa w latach 1945-1947 w materiale archiwalnym krakowskiego Zakladu Medycyny Sadowej - "Pamięć i Sprawiedliwość", IPN, 2005, nr 2, p. 148 Bożena Szaynok (2005). "The Role of Antisemitism in Postwar Polish-Jewish Relations", in Robert Blobaum: Antisemitism And Its Opponents In Modern Poland. Cornell University Press. Retrieved on 21 March 2007. p. 272 Marcin Zaremba "Psychoza we krwi" in Polityka
05.07.2006 reprint in Onet.pl review of Stefan Grajek, Po wojnie i co dalej? Żydzi w Polsce, w latach 1945−1949], (translated from Hebrew by Aleksander Klugman), Żydowski Instytut Historyczny, Warszawa 2003
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, which resulted in one dead and five wounded victims.
Background
Around 68,000–80,000 Jews lived in KrakówKraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
before the German invasion of Poland in September, 1939. Resulting from the Holocaust and further migration only 500 were present by January 1945 immediately after the arrival
East Prussian Offensive
The East Prussian Offensive was a strategic offensive by the Red Army against the German Wehrmacht on the Eastern Front . It lasted from 13 January to 25 April 1945, though some German units did not surrender until 9 May...
of the Soviet Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
. This number gradually increased as nearly 2,000 prewar inhabitants of the city returned home. Many Jewish refugees returned to Kraków from the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, including those who came from the neighbouring villages and towns.
By May 1945, the number of Jews in the city reached 6,637.
The return of the Jewish population was not always welcomed, especially by the anti-Semitic elements in the populace. The safety of the Jewish community
Anti-Jewish violence in Poland, 1944-1946
Anti-Jewish Violence In Poland, 1944–1946 refers to a series of violent incidents that immediately followed the end of the Second World War in Poland and influenced postwar history of Jews as well as Polish Jewish relations. The exact number of Jewish victims is a subject of debate, but the range...
in Kraków was becoming a very serious problem, even though "no serious antisemitic events were recorded in the rural and small-town regions." In his report for 1–10 August, the Cracow city administrator (starosta grodzki) noted the "insufficient supply of food." In June 1945, the voivode of Kraków described growing tensions in his report:
In regard to the attitudes of the Polish population towards the Jews, the remnants of Nazi influences acquired during the occupation still linger... Robberies combined with murdering Jews occur: the motives and the perpetrators are usually not found. Nevertheless, their anti-Semitic background is apparent...In the previous month there were no serious anti-Jewish events in the voivodeship, yet there is no evidence that society's attitude towards the Jews has changed ... An utterly insignificant event, or the most improbable rumour can trigger serious riots. The populace's attitude towards the Jews is a serious problem requiring a constant vigilance on the side of the authorities, and proper interaction with lower level offices.
Unrest
On June 27, 1945, a Jewish woman was brought to a local Milicja ObywatelskaMilicja Obywatelska
Milicja Obywatelska was a state police institution in the People's Republic of Poland. It was created in 1944 by Soviet-sponsored PKWN, effectively replacing the pre-war police force. In 1990 it was transformed back into Policja....
police station
Police station
A police station or station house is a building which serves to accommodate police officers and other members of staff. These buildings often contain offices and accommodation for personnel and vehicles, along with locker rooms, temporary holding cells and interview/interrogation rooms.- Facilities...
falsely accused of attempting to abduct a child. Despite the fact that the investigation revealed that the mother had left her child in the care of the suspect, rumours started to spread that a Jewish woman abducted a child in order to kill it. A mob shouting anti-Jewish slogans gathered at Kleparski square, but a Milicja detachment brought the situation under control. Blood libel rumours continued to spread. False claims that thirteen corpses of Christian children allegedly had been discovered were disseminated. By 11 August, the number of rumoured "victims" had grown to eighty. Groups of hooligans
Hooliganism
Hooliganism refers to unruly, destructive, aggressive and bullying behaviour. Such behaviour is commonly associated with sports fans. The term can also apply to general rowdy behaviour and vandalism, often under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs....
who gathered at Kleparski Square had been throwing stones at the Kupa Synagogue
Kupa Synagogue
Kupa Synagogue is a 17th century synagogue in Kraków, Poland. It is located in the former Jewish quarter of Kazimierz developed from a neighborhood earmarked in 1495 by King Jan I Olbracht for the Jewish community, which has been transferred from the budding Old Town...
on a weekly basis. On 11 August an attempt to seize a thirteen year old boy who was throwing stones at the synagogue was made, but he managed to escape and rushed to the nearby marketplace screaming "Help me, the Jews have tried to kill me". Instantly the crowd broke in into the Kupa synagogue and started beating Jews, who had been praying at the Saturday morning Sabbath
Shabbat
Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...
service; and the Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
scrolls were burned. The Jewish hostel was also attacked. Jewish men, women and children, were beaten up on the streets; their homes were broken into and robbed. Some Jews wounded during the pogrom were hospitalized and later were beaten in the hospitals again. One of the pogrom victims witnessed:
I was carried to the second precinct of the militia where they called for an ambulance. There were five more people over there, including badly wounded Polish woman. In the ambulance I heard the comments of the escorting soldier and the nurse who spoke about us as Jewish crust whom they have to save, and that they shouldn't be doing this because we murdered children, that all of us should be shot. We were taken to the hospital of St. Lazarus at Kopernika Street. I was first taken to the operating room. After the operation a soldier appeared who said that he will take everybody to jail after the operation. He beat up one of the wounded Jews waiting for an operation. He held us under cocked gun and did not allow us to take a drink of water. A moment later two railroadmen appeared and one said, "It's a scandal that a Pole does not have the civil courage to hit a defenceless person", and he hit a wounded Jew. One of the hospital inmates hit me with a crutch. Women, including nurses, stood behind the doors threatening us that they were only waiting for the operation to be over in order to rip us apart
During the pogrom some Poles, mistaken for Jews, were also attacked. The centre of these events was Miodowa, Starowislna, Przemyska, and Jozefa Streets in the Kazimierz
Kazimierz
Kazimierz is a historical district of Kraków , best known for being home to a Jewish community from the 14th century until the Second World War.-Early history:...
quarter. The riots were most intense between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., calming down around 2 p.m., only to regain strength in the late afternoon when the Kupa synagogue was set on fire. Polish policemen and soldiers actively participated in these events Among twenty-five of those accused of inciting racial hatred, robberies, and violence against Jews, twelve were officers
Casualties
There is one record of a death relating to Kraków events in the archives of the Forensic Medicine Department in Kraków. The victim was 56-year old Auschwitz survivor Róża BergerRóza Berger
Roza Bergerthe only verified named victim of the 1945 Kraków pogrom, was born Reizel Leser in Kraków on 20 June 1889. She was married in Kraków on 17 September 1911 to Josef Berger. She escaped Kraków during the war and was deported to Auschwitz in August of 1944 with her daughter and granddaughter...
, shot while standing behind closed doors.
Polish historian Dr Anna Cichopek stated in her university Master Thesis later published as a book that all historical sources confirmed this one death. However,
she also noted that in an archival photo of a funeral there were five coffins visible, thus suggesting that there might have been five fatalities; she also claimed in her book that the New York Times in 1946 had noted a death of a man (Anszel Zucker), and Polska Agencja Prasowa noted a death of another unknown woman (in addition to Róża Berger) and five wounded.
Polish historian, Dr Julian Kwiek
Julian Kwiek
Julian Kwiek is Polish scientist and historian, who graduated from the University of Adam Mickiewicz in Poznań. In 1989 he received his Ph. D. in History at the Jagiellonian University in Kraków....
, who has published existing Polish documents regarding the Kraków event stated that he is not familiar with the documents quoted by Cichopek from outside the scientific literature. He stated that one death is confirmed in all historical sources, therefore it is questionable whether this event truly falls under the definition of a pogrom
Pogrom
A pogrom is a form of violent riot, a mob attack directed against a minority group, and characterized by killings and destruction of their homes and properties, businesses, and religious centres...
, even though most other sources refer to the event as such.
Another historian, Dr Dariusz Libionka
Dariusz Libionka
Dariusz Libionka born in 1963 in Bielsko-Biała is a Polish historian focused on the status of Jewish citizens in the Polish Republic, matters of Judaism and the Polish-Jewish relations.Libionka is affiliated with the Institute of National Remembrance in Lublin...
from the Center for Holocaust Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences
Polish Academy of Sciences
The Polish Academy of Sciences, headquartered in Warsaw, is one of two Polish institutions having the nature of an academy of sciences.-History:...
, suggested that the photos showing the coffins were taken in the Spring (April 24, 1946) of the following year and came from the Kraków funeral of five Jews shot on April 21, 1946 by partisans of Józef Kuraś
Józef Kuras
Józef Kuraś, born in 1915 in Waksmund, was a lieutenant in the Polish Army who fought in the Polish September Campaign, a partisan of Armia Krajowa and Bataliony Chłopskie in the Podhale region and after World War II one of the leaders of anticommunist resistance...
"Ogień" near Nowy Targ. In many cases – Libionka suggested – it would have been more appropriate if Anna Cichopek relied on existing studies rather than on archival material. He stated, that Polska Agencja Prasowa noted one dead person and five wounded. Dr Libionka questioned the source of information regarding Anszel Zucker's death. According to him it should have been concluded that the Kraków pogrom resulted in one dead and five wounded victims.
Sources
Julian Kwiek, "Wydarzenia antyżydowskie 11 sierpnia 1945 r. w Krakowie: dokumenty", in Biuletyn Żydowskiego Instytutu Historycznego, nr 1/2000 str. 77–89. Anna Cichopek, Pogrom Żydów w Krakowie, 11 sierpnia 1945 r., Żydowski Instytut Historyczny, 2000. Anna Cichopek (2003). The Cracow pogrom of August 1945, in Joshua D. Zimmerman: Contested Memories: Poles and Jews During the Holocaust and Its Aftermath. Rutgers University Press, 87. Magdalena Tytuła, Kielce na Kazimierzu, in Gazeta WyborczaGazeta Wyborcza
Gazeta Wyborcza is a leading Polish newspaper. It covers the gamut of political, international and general news. Like all the Polish newspapers, it is printed on compact-sized paper, and is published by the multimedia corporation Agora SA...
(local 'Gazeta w Krakowie'), August 11, 2000 Darisz Libionka, Recension of Anna Cichopek's book "Pogrom Żydów w Krakowie", in Pamięć i Sprawiedliwość, nr 1/2002 str. 179-182 Tomasz Konopka Śmierc na ulicach Krakowa w latach 1945-1947 w materiale archiwalnym krakowskiego Zakladu Medycyny Sadowej - "Pamięć i Sprawiedliwość", IPN, 2005, nr 2, p. 148 Bożena Szaynok (2005). "The Role of Antisemitism in Postwar Polish-Jewish Relations", in Robert Blobaum: Antisemitism And Its Opponents In Modern Poland. Cornell University Press. Retrieved on 21 March 2007. p. 272 Marcin Zaremba "Psychoza we krwi" in Polityka
Polityka
Polityka is a centre-left weekly newsmagazine in Poland. With a circulation of 170,000 it is the country's biggest selling weekly, ahead of Newsweek's Polish edition and Wprost. Today, the magazine has a slightly intellectual, social liberal profile, setting it apart from the more conservative...
05.07.2006 reprint in Onet.pl review of Stefan Grajek, Po wojnie i co dalej? Żydzi w Polsce, w latach 1945−1949], (translated from Hebrew by Aleksander Klugman), Żydowski Instytut Historyczny, Warszawa 2003