"ENTER INTO HISTORY" DRAMATIC LIVING CONDITIONS OF THE POLISH CIVILIAN POPULATION IN WARSAW DURING THE UPRISING

On August 4th, 2023, at the Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk, another installment of the "Enter Into History" series took place. This time, the event was dedicated to the dramatic living conditions of the Polish civilian population in Warsaw during the uprising.

As the first speaker, the Deputy Director of the Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk, Dr. Marek Szymaniak, addressed the audience:

Today, we will be talking about the Warsaw Uprising in a context that is discussed somewhat less often. We will be discussing the situation of the civilian population from August 1st until the end of the uprising in early October 1944. At that time, tens of thousands of civilians, who for various reasons couldn't participate in the insurgency, were living in Warsaw. During the Warsaw Uprising, about 120,000 civilians, including children, women, and elderly people, lost their lives. The Germans committed brutal genocide relentlessly throughout the duration of this national uprising. The suffering of the civilian population of Warsaw never received even elementary redress. Remembering the capital that was utterly destroyed is our duty.

Next, Wojciech Łukaszun, Head of the Collections Department at the Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk, shared his thoughts:

The Warsaw Uprising is sometimes called the Battle of Warsaw. The bloodiest battle in Poland's history, and besides the fighters, there were civilians present—people who tried to live, to care for their families. There were elderly individuals and children. Sometimes, even during the uprising, children were born, mothers lost breast milk in these tragic conditions, and there was nothing to feed these children. Horrific tragedies occurred there. The Government Delegation and the structures of the Home Army, understanding the problem and the scale of the need, organized aid operations, collecting porridge, various cereals, and powdered milk.

Exhibits presented as part of the event:

- A poster appealing for food assistance for the youngest inhabitants of wartime Warsaw, created by AK officer 2nd Lieutenant Mieczysław Jurgielewicz, pseudonym "Narbutt" | Collections of the Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk,

- A backpack sewn during the Warsaw Uprising for fire victims, the Baran family, whose apartment and most of their property had burned down | Collections of the Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk / Gift from Waleria Baran,

- A handcrafted teddy bear made during the occupation, a toy that belonged to Maria Całka, born in 1943. Her father, 2nd Lieutenant Leon Całka, pseudonym "Feliks," an officer of the Home Army, was shot by the Germans during the Warsaw Uprising in a mass street execution in Ochota, Warsaw, 1943-1944 | Collections of the Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk / Gift from Maria Całka. 

The exhibition is presented at the main entrance to the museum on level -1.