| Revision as of 19:36, 19 October 2010 edit205.213.8.231 (talk) →Background← Previous edit | Revision as of 20:56, 19 October 2010 edit undoJ.kunikowski (talk | contribs)83 edits →HistoryTag: references removedNext edit → | ||
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| By July 2, 1941, many of the initial terror actions were halted, yet the individual, planned executions continued. At approximately 3 o'clock in the evening Prof. ] was arrested by one of the '']'' operating in the area. | By July 2, 1941, many of the initial terror actions were halted, yet the individual, planned executions continued. At approximately 3 o'clock in the evening Prof. ] was arrested by one of the '']'' operating in the area. | ||
| During the night of July 3 and July 4, several dozen professors and their families were arrested. The lists were prepared by their ] students<ref>IPN — Oddziałowa Komisja w Rzeszowie, "Śledztwo w sprawie zabójstwa profesorów polskich wyższych uczelni, członków ich rodzin oraz współmieszkańców, we Lwowie w lipcu 1941 roku, podjęte na nowo z umorzenia w dniu 25 lutego 2003 roku. sygn. S 5/03/Zn.", </ref>. |
During the night of July 3 and July 4, several dozen professors and their families were arrested. The lists were prepared by their ] students<ref>IPN — Oddziałowa Komisja w Rzeszowie, "Śledztwo w sprawie zabójstwa profesorów polskich wyższych uczelni, członków ich rodzin oraz współmieszkańców, we Lwowie w lipcu 1941 roku, podjęte na nowo z umorzenia w dniu 25 lutego 2003 roku. sygn. S 5/03/Zn.", </ref>. In the early morning of July 4 one of the professors and most of his servants were set free while the rest were either brought to the Wulka hills or shot dead in the courtyard of the ''Bursa Abrahamowiczów'' building. The victims were buried on the spot, but several days after the ] their bodies were exhumed and transported by the Wehrmacht to an unknown place. | ||
| ==Methodology of the crime== | ==Methodology of the crime== | ||
Revision as of 20:56, 19 October 2010
The murder of the Lviv professors (in Polish Mord profesorów lwowskich) was an organized execution of approximately 25 Polish professors from various tertiary educational establishments in nowadays Ukrainian city of Lviv (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-de) along with their families and guests. It took place in July 1941, when the city was occupied by Nazi Germany during World War II. The organized murder of the civilian population was a continuation of the AB Action, or Ausserordentliche Befriedungsaktion, started in 1940.
Background
Previous to September 1939 and the joint Nazi-Soviet invasion of Poland, presently Ukrainian Lviv was a Polish city of Lwów, which in 1939 had 318,000 inhabitants, of whom about 60% were Poles, up to 30% were Jews and about 10% Ukrainians.. The city was one of the most important cultural centers of prewar Poland, housing 5 tertiary educational facilities including renown University and Polytechnic school. It was a home for many Polish and Polish-Jewish intellectuals, political and cultural activists, scientists and members of interwar Poland's elites.
After the German invasion of the Soviet Union started in June 1941, since 1939 Soviet-held Lviv was captured by German forces on June 30. Along with the Wehrmacht, a number of smaller Abwehr units entered the city.
During the Nazi occupation almost all of the 120,000 Jewish inhabitants of the city were killed, within the city's ghetto or in lager Belzec. At the end of the war only 200-800 Jews survived.
Members of other ethnic groups also suffered. In order to control the population, prominent citizens and intellectuals were transported to known execution sites such as the Gestapo prison on Pełczyńska Street, the Brygidki Prison, the former military prison at Zamarstynów and to the fields surrounding the city: in the suburb of Winniki, the Kortumówka hills and the Jewish Cemetery. Many of the people killed were prominent leaders of Polish society: politicians, artists, aristocrats, sportsmen, scientists, priests and the intelligentsia. The mass murder of people suspected of potential anti-Nazi activity was seen as a pre-emptive measure to keep the Polish resistance scattered and to prevent the Poles from revolting against Nazi-German rule. It was a direct continuation of the infamous anti-Polish AB Action and one of early stages of Generalplan Ost, after the German campaign against the USSR started and eastern half of prewar Poland fell under German occupation in place of previous Soviet. One of the earliest Nazi crimes in Lviv was the mass murder of Polish professors together with some of their relatives, carried out in the beginning of July, 1941.
History
By July 2, 1941, many of the initial terror actions were halted, yet the individual, planned executions continued. At approximately 3 o'clock in the evening Prof. Kazimierz Bartel was arrested by one of the Einsatzgruppen operating in the area.
During the night of July 3 and July 4, several dozen professors and their families were arrested. The lists were prepared by their Ukrainian students. In the early morning of July 4 one of the professors and most of his servants were set free while the rest were either brought to the Wulka hills or shot dead in the courtyard of the Bursa Abrahamowiczów building. The victims were buried on the spot, but several days after the massacre their bodies were exhumed and transported by the Wehrmacht to an unknown place.
Methodology of the crime
There are accounts of four different methods used by the German troops. The victims were either beaten to death, killed with a bayonet, killed with a hammer, or shot to death.
The professors themselves were shot to death, although it is highly probable that some of them were buried alive.
Responsibility
According to eyewitness execution was made by unit Einsatzgruppen (Einsatzkommando zur besonderen Verwendung) under command of SS-Brigadeführer Karl Eberhard Schöngarth with the participation of Ukrainians translators, who were dressed in German uniforms.
The decision was taken by the highest level of the Third Reich authorities. The direct decision maker concerning the massacre was the commander of the Sicherheitspolizei (Befehlshaber der Sicherheitspolizei und des SD- BdS) in District Krakau Generalgouvernement, Brigadeführer Karl Eberhard Schöngarth. The following Gestapo officers also participated: Heinz Heim (Chief of Staff Schöngarth), Hans Krüger, Walter Kutschmann, Kurt Stawizki, and Felix Landau. They were never punished for that crime.
Victims
Abbreviations used:
- UJK = Uniwersytet Jana Kazimierza (Lwów University, now Ivan Franko National University of Lviv)
- PSP = Państwowy Szpital Powszechny (National Public Hospital)
- PL = Politechnika Lwowska (Lwów Polytechnic, now Lviv Polytechic National University)
- AWL = Akademia Weterynaryjna we Lwowie (Academy of Veterinary Sciences in Lwów)
- AHZ = Akademia Handlu Zagranicznego we Lwowie (Academy of Foreign Trade in Lwów)
Murdered on the Wulka hills
- Prof. Dr. Antoni Cieszyński, Professor of Stomatology UJK
- Prof. Dr. Władysław Dobrzaniecki, head of the ord. Oddz. Chirurgii PSP
- Prof. Dr. Jan Grek, Professor of Internal Medicine, UJK
- Maria Grekowa, wife of Jan Grek
- Doc. Dr. Jerzy Grzędzielski, head of the Institute of Ophthalmology, UJK
- Prof. Dr. Edward Hamerski, Chief of Internal Medicine, AWL
- Prof. Dr. Henryk Hilarowicz, Professor of Surgery, UJK
- Rev. Dr. Władysław Komornicki, theologian, a relative of the Ostrowski family
- Eugeniusz Kostecki, husband of Prof. Dobrzaniecki's servant
- Prof. Dr. Włodzimierz Krukowski, Chief of the Institute of Electrical Measurement, PL
- Prof. Dr. Roman Longchamps de Bérier, Chief of the Institute of Civil Law, UJK
- Bronisław Longchamps de Bérier, son of Prof. Longchamps de Bérier
- Zygmunt Longchamps de Bérier, son of Prof. Longchamps de Bérier
- Kazimierz Longchamps de Bérier, son of Prof. Longchamps de Bérier
- Prof. Dr. Antoni Łomnicki, Chief of the Institute of Mathematics, PL
- Adam Mięsowicz, grandson of Prof. Sołowij
- Prof. Dr. Witołd Nowicki, Dean of the Faculty of Anatomy and Pathology, UJK
- Dr. Med. Jerzy Nowicki, assistant at the Institute of Hygiene, UJK, son of Prof. Nowicki
- Prof. Dr. Tadeusz Ostrowski, Chief of the Institute of Surgery, UJK
- Jadwiga Ostrowska, wife of Prof. Ostrowski
- Prof. Dr. Stanisław Pilat, Chief of the Institute of Technology of Petroleum and Natural Gases, PL
- Prof. Dr. Stanisław Progulski, pediatrician, UJK
- Andrzej Progulski, son of Prof. Progulski
- Prof. Dr. Roman Rencki, Chief of the Institute of Internal Medicine, UJK
- Dr. Med. Stanisław Ruff, Chief of the Department of Surgery of the Jewish Hospital
- Anna Ruffowa, Dr. Ruff's wife
- Inż. Adam Ruff, Dr. Ruff's son
- Prof. Dr. Włodzimierz Sieradzki, Dean of the faculty of Court Medicine, UJK
- Prof. Dr. Adam Sołowij, former Chief of the Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics of the PSP
- Prof. Dr. Włodzimierz Stożek, Dean of the Faculty of Mathematics, PL
- Inż. Eustachy Stożek, assistant at the Politechnika Lwowska, son of Prof. Stożek
- Emanuel Stożek, son of Prof. Stożek
- Dr. Tadeusz Tapkowski, lawyer
- Prof. Dr. Kazimierz Vetulani, Dean of the Faculty of Theoretical Mechanics, PL
- Prof. Dr. Kacper Weigel, Chief of the Institute of Measures, PL
- Mgr Józef Weigel, son of Prof. Weigel
- Prof. Dr. Roman Witkiewicz, Chief of the Institute of Machinery, PL
- Prof. Dr. Tadeusz Boy-Żeleński, writer and gynaecologist, Chief of the Institute of French Literature
Murdered in the courtyard of Bursa Abrahamowiczów
- Katarzyna Demko, English language teacher
- Doc. Dr. Stanisław Mączewski, head of the Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics of the PSP
- Maria Reymanowa, nurse
- Wolisch (name unknown), merchant
Murdered on July 12
- Prof. Dr. Henryk_Korowicz, Chief of the Institute of Economics, AHZ
- Prof. Dr. Stanisław Ruziewicz, Chief of the Institute of Mathematics, AHZ
Murdered on July 26 in Brygidki Prison
- Prof. Dr. Kazimierz Bartel, former Prime Minister of Poland, former Rector of PL, Chairman of the Department of Geometry, PL
Aftermath
After World War II the leadership of the Soviet Union made attempts to diminish the Polish cultural and historic legacy of Lviv. Crimes committed east of the Curzon line could not be prosecuted by Polish courts. Information on the atrocities that took place in Lviv was restricted.
In 1960 Dr. Helena Krukowska, the widow of Prof. Dr. Włodzimierz Krukowski, launched an appeal to the court in Hamburg. After five years the German court closed the judicial proceeding. Public prosecutor von Beelow argued that the people responsible for the crime were already dead. This however was not true since at the same time SS-Hauptsturmführer Hans Krüger, commander of the Gestapo unit supervising the massacres in Lviv in 1941, was being held in Hamburg prison (he was sentenced to life imprisonment for the mass murder of Jews and Poles in Stanisławów, committed several weeks after his unit was transferred from Lviv). As a result no person has ever been held responsible for this atrocity.
In the 1970s Abrahamowicz Street in Lviv was renamed Tadeusz Boy-Żeleński Street.
Various Polish organisations have made deputations to remember the victims of the atrocity with a monument or a symbolic grave in Lviv. These requests have been so-far rejected.
The case of the murder of the professors is currently under investigation by the Institute of National Remembrance.
Controversy
Some Polish sources contend that members of the Nachtigall Battalion killed the Polish professors, including the ex-Polish Prime minister Kazimierz Bartel, Tadeusz Boy-Żeleński and others.
Russian sources state "That on June 30 in Lviv the German administration started mass repressions. The commander of the Einzatzgruppen C Dr. Rasch had incriminated the death of those incarcerated in the Lviv jails to the "Jews from the NKVD" which became the spark for the terror against the Jews and Poles of Lviv. In the bloody murder of the Jews the Einsatzgruppen under the command of brigadeerfuhrer SS Karl Eberhard Schenhardt took prominence. Sections of this group under the command of H. Kruger and W. Kutshman on July 4 murdered 23 Polish professors and their families. On July 11, 2 more were killed, and later the former prime-minister of Poland, professor Bartel."
See also
- Intelligenzaktion
- Sonderaktion Krakau
- Ponary massacre
- NKVD prisoner massacres
- Anti-Polonism
- Jakub Karol Parnas
- List of massacres
References
- Mały Rocznik Statystyczny 1939 (Polish statistical yearbook of 1939), GUS, Warsaw, 1939
- IPN — Oddziałowa Komisja w Rzeszowie, "Śledztwo w sprawie zabójstwa profesorów polskich wyższych uczelni, członków ich rodzin oraz współmieszkańców, we Lwowie w lipcu 1941 roku, podjęte na nowo z umorzenia w dniu 25 lutego 2003 roku. sygn. S 5/03/Zn.",
- Krakowscy i wrocławscy akademicy na wzgórzach wuleckich we Lwowie, Alma Mater nr 33/2001
- Zygmunt Albert, Kaźń profesorów lwowskich w lipcu 1941 roku, Warszawa 2004 (in Polish)
- The decision regarding Kazimierz Bartel, former Polish Prime Minister, was taken by Heinrich Himmler.
- Wacław Szulc Wyniki śledztwa w sprawie mordu profesorów lwowskich, prowadzonego przez Główną Komisję Badania Zbrodni Hitlerowskich w : Zygmunt Albert Kaźń profesorów lwowskich – lipiec 1941 / studia oraz relacje i dokumenty zebrane i oprac. przez Zygmunta Alberta Wrocław 1989, Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Wrocławskiego, ISBN 83-229-0351-0 s. 177-185.(in Polish)(main article in English,German and Russian).
- * RUSSIAN:Chuyev, Sergei Ukrainskyj Legion — Moskva, 2006 p. 180
Sources
- Albert, Zygmunt (1989). Kaźń profesorów lwowskich — lipiec 1941 - collection of documents. Wrocław, University of Wrocław Press. ISBN 8322903510.
- Lanckorońska, Karolina (2001). Wspomnienia wojenne. Kraków, Znak. ISBN 8324000771.
- Sterkowicz, Stanisław (1974). Tadeusz Boy-Żeleński; lekarz, pisarz, społecznik. Warsaw, PZWL.
- Szewalski, Robert (1993). Politechnika Lwowska 1844-1945. Wrocław, Wrocław University of Technology Press. ISBN 8370850588.
- Template:Uk icon Ярослав Грицак (Yaroslav Hrytsak) (1996). Формування модерної української нації XIX-XX ст. (Formation of the Modern Ukrainian Nation in the late 19th–20th centuries). Kiev: Генеза (Heneza). ISBN 966-504-150-9. Available online. Section 5.4 Between two totalitarianisms. The question of collaboration: an attempt at analysis
External links
- Murder of Lwow professors
- Template:Pl icon report of an ongoing investigation by IPN
- Template:Pl icon Zygmunt Albert - Mord Profesorów Lwowskich w lipcu 1941 roku
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