Mordechai Anielewicz

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Mordechai Anielewicz

Mordechai Anielewicz (1919 – May 8, 1943) was the commander of the ŻOB or the Żydowska Organizacja Bojowa (English: Jewish Fighting Organization). As leader, Anielewicz helped to organize and lead the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. The uprising is the most famous example of Jewish resistance during World War II. At just age 23, Mordechai Anielewicz armed the Jews and called them to action, called them to resist getting into the railroad cars that would take them to the concentration camps. Instead, he encouraged them to die fighting.

In January l943, the German troops tried to enter the ghetto to round up another group of people for deportation. During this time the Warsaw ghetto fighters fired upon German troops and after a few days, the troops retreated. This small victory, the only one of its kind, encouraged the resistance members to continue fighting until the end.

Early Life

Mordecai Anielewicz was born into a Jewish working-class family in a poor neighborhood of Wyszkow (near Warsaw, Poland. He grew up extremely poor. Even at a young age, Anielewicz was filled with spunk and a deep sense of justice. He often stood up to bullying Poles and fought them off fiercely for his age. As he grew, he channeled that energy, and became a leader, an organizer, and a fighter.

Anielewicz spent a short time as a member of the Betar, is a Revisionist Zionist youth movement founded in 1923. After graduating from high school, he joined and became a leader in the Zionist-socialist youth movement "Hashomer Hatzair".

Anielewicz's country of Poland was invaded by Nazi troops in 1939. On September 7, 1939, one week after the invasion, Anielewicz escaped with his member of his group. They left Warsaw and headed toward Eastern Poland, in the hopes that Polish troops would be successful in slowing down the hostile German advance. His hopes were not fulfilled and the Red Army occupied all of Poland.

Anielewicz decided that the one course of action he could take would be to cross the Romaniaan border, and open a travel route young Jews that would assist them in getting to the Mandatory Palestine. In these valiant attempts, Anielewicz was caught and thrown into a prison located in the Soviet. Upon his release a short while later, he made his way to Vilna, Lithuania, which was under Soviet control. This was a place where hundreds of Jewish refugees, other youth movement members and political groups had gathered. Mordechai Anielewicz went there to convince all who would listen that it was necessary to return to Poland and fight the Germans, they could not abandoned Poland, they must fight!

Taking his own counsel, Anielewicz, along with his girlfriend, Mira Fuchrer returned to Poland in January of 1940. There he found his friends and family living in the ghetto that had been forcedly formed in Warsaw.

Mordechai went right to work, leading and organizing within the ghetto. He formed cells and youngster groups, he helped in the publication of underground pamphlets, he organized meetings, seminars and visits between corresponding groups in other cities. His call as a resistance leader was solidified.

World War II

When Mordechai and Mira volunteered to return to Warsaw, they became leaders. He worked every spare moment advancing the resistance movement and educating himself in the Hebrew language, studying history and economics and making his views known in the underground publications. However, these activities changed to more action oriented events when he found out about the mass killings of the Jews in Eastern Europe and throughout other war-laden areas. Immediately Anielewicz, along with his colleagues and Mira, organized self-defense groups inside the Warsaw Ghetto.

In March of 1942, Anielewicz founded the "Anti-fascist group", although the group did not live up the expectations of the other Zionist groups and after a series of arrests, the group was dismantled. During the summer of 1942, Anielewicz left the ghetto and traveled down to the southwest region of Poland, the part that had been annexed to German earlier. His goal was to motivate and organize men and women into armed resistance forces. When he returned to the ghetto he was shocked, saddened, angered, and more determined than ever to resist. While he was gone, the population of the ghetto had been reduced from 350,000 to 60,000. The deportation trains took the Jews to Treblinka extermination camp, which had been created for the sole purpose of killing the Jews in the surrounding ghettos. The stories of the horrors and mass murder taking place at Treblinka leaked back to the Warsaw ghetto.

Mordechai Anielewicz joined the ŻOB in the summer of 1942, and in the fall he was made the chief commander. In early 1943, he was successful in forming a valuable connection with the Polish government in exile in London. It was through this alliance that the Warsaw ghetto was able to obtain weapons and ammunition to fuel their resistance. They also made weapons from whatever resources that they could. Between the years of 1941 and 1943, the underground resistance took formation, due to men like Mordechai Anielewicz, and about 100 Jewish groups were formed.

With the reports of the murders in Treblinka, the ZOB prepared to stage a revolt.

Warsaw Ghetto Uprising

Mordechai Anielewicz and his girlfriend Mira Fuchrer in the ruined Warsaw ghetto. Painted by Shimon Garmize. Above the mural is the first line of the Partisan's Song "Zog Nit Keinmol" in Yiddish.

The Warsaw Ghetto was a part of the city that had been walled off from the rest of Warsaw. It was compulsory that for all Jews to transfer their residence to the ghetto. The ghetto, which usually only had one gate, was locked at night. Many of the Jews who were forced into the ghettos, were unaware of Hitler's Final Solution, they believed that they were being gathered to live in a certain part of town, not knowing that this confinement was the first step in the eventual extermination plan. Many Jews hoped that living together in ghettos would garner mutual respect and a sense of community to cling to until the Nazis were defeated.

The Warsaw Ghetto was established in October 1940, and initially held 200,000 people. But over the next three years, the ghetto would become horribly crowded and the population would grow. The wall surrounding the ghetto was very high and the sanitary conditions of the ghetto were non-existent. There were few ways to obtain food, and often, many died daily of starvation. Nevertheless, the Jews organized an educational system and became resourceful in finding ways to sell things for food.

This was the time when Mordechai Anielewicz organized the resistance. Many acts of rebellion had been delayed because several of the Jews refused to believe the stories of mass murder filtering into the ghetto. Eventually, the remaining Jews chose to die fighting and the uprising occurred. The preparation for the uprising began in January of 1943. In fact, the very first rebellion occurred on January 18, when Anielewicz and his army prevented the second major deportation of the remaining ghetto Jews.

The event that is now know as the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising happened on April 19, on the eve of Passover. The Germans came to the ghetto to perform the final deportation, and the uprising broke out. The Nazis were taken by such surprise that they suffered many casualties at the beginning of the uprising. In fact, the Jews were able to hold the German army off for three days. These three days were full of bloody street battles. However, the Nazis greatly outnumbered the resistance in both men and weapons. The resistance numbered only seven hundred and fifty Jewish fighters, they fought the heavily armed and well-trained Germans for almost a month. Their arsenal consisted of nine rifles, 59 pistols and several hundred grenades, explosives and mines. In the end, the Jews did not have a chance, but they would not surrender. Even the women and children would not give up, they remained hiding in shelters and the Nazis had to go house by house through the ghetto, burying and killing. After four weeks the Ghetto was defeated. The uprising ended on May 16, 1943. The person in charge, General Jurgen Stroop, could now report that "there is no more Jewish suburb in Warsaw".

Under the leadership of Mordecai Anielewicz, Warsaw Ghetto Jews staged the first urban uprising in occupied Europe. The uprising ended with the capture of 56,000 Jews captured, the murder of 7,000, and the remainder deported to annihilation centers or concentration camps.

Just before his death Anielewicz wrote to his colleague, Yitzhak Zukerman: "…what really matters is that the dream of my life has come true. Jewish self-defense in the Warsaw ghetto has become a fact. Jewish armed resistance and retaliation have become a reality. I have witnessed the magnificent heroic struggle of Jewish fighters.”

Death

Mordechai Anielewicz's memorial in Wyszków

The last known letter of Mordechai Anielewicz was dated April 23, 1943, and was addressed to his friend Yitzhak Cukierman. In it, he writes:

It is impossible to put into words what we have been through. One thing is clear, what happened exceeded our boldest dreams. The Germans ran twice from the ghetto. One of our companies held out for 40 minutes and another – for more than 6 hours. The mine set in the "brushmakers" area exploded. Several of our companies attacked the dispersing Germans. Our losses in manpower are minimal. That is also an achievement. Y. [Yechiel] fell. He fell a hero, at the machine-gun. I feel that great things are happening and what we dared do is of great, enormous importance....

Beginning from today we shall shift over to the partisan tactic. Three battle companies will move out tonight, with two tasks: reconnaissance and obtaining arms. Do you remember, short-range weapons are of no use to us. We use such weapons only rarely. What we need urgently: grenades, rifles, machine-guns and explosives.

It is impossible to describe the conditions under which the Jews of the ghetto are now living. Only a few will be able to hold out. The remainder will die sooner or later. Their fate is decided. In almost all the hiding places in which thousands are concealing themselves it is not possible to light a candle for lack of air.

With the aid of our transmitter we heard the marvelous report on our fighting by the "Shavit" radio station. The fact that we are remembered beyond the ghetto walls encourages us in our struggle. Peace go with you, my friend! Perhaps we may still meet again! The dream of my life has risen to become fact. Self-defense in the ghetto will have been a reality. Jewish armed resistance and revenge are facts. I have been a witness to the magnificent, heroic fighting of Jewish men in battle.

During the initial days of battles Anielewicz commanded the resistance forces. Eventually the street fight ended and Anielewicz moved to the headquarters shelter to Mila 18 street. Anielewicz committed suicide, along with his girlfriend and many of his staff, in the ŻOB bunker at 18 Miła Street[1] on May 8, once they knew that their capture was inevitable. On May 8, the headquarter's bunker was overtaken. His body was never found, and it's generally believed that his remains were taken to the nearby crematoriums along with the bodies of several other Jewish people.

In 1944, Mordechai Anielewicz was posthumously awarded the Virtuti Militari, the Polish military cross, by the Polish government in exile.

Kibbutz Yad Mordechai in Israel is named for him, and a monument was erected in his memory.

Notes


Cultural references

  • Anielewicz is a key figure in Harry Turtledove's alternate history series Worldwar.
  • Hank Azaria plays the role of Anielewicz in the 2001 TV Movie Uprising.

References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

  • Callahan, Kerry P. 2001. Mordechai Anielewicz: Hero of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. Holocaust biographies. New York: Rose. ISBN 0823933776
  • Yitzhak ("Antek") Zuckerman, A Surplus of Memory : Chronicle of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising (A Centennial Book), ISBN 0-520-07841-1.

External links

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