Memory of the Hope Sign

nik.gov.pl 2 years ago

On 20 March 2023 Mr Marian Banaś, president of NIK in the presence of invited guests unveiled a plaque describing and commemorating the 3 “Kotwice” – signs of the fighting Poland.

At the ceremony of unveiling commemorative plaques arrived among others. Mateusz Szpytma Vice president of the Institute of National Memory, Colonel Mariusz Tomalski typical of the Office for Combatants and Represented Persons, Lieutenant Scout Janusz Komorowski, typical of the planet Association of National Army Soldiers, Warsaw insurgent, priest Wojciech Jurkowski, chaplain of the Polish Scouting Association, scoutmaster Catherine Charlesak, commandant of the capital flag with Chief of Hufca Warszawa – Mokotów named after the Grey Lines, scoutmaster Michał Michałowski, Scout Piotr Stanisławski, Head of the Inspectorate of Communication of the Polish Scouting Union, Scouts Caesary Supel, Commandant of Mazowiecka Chorągwi, Scout Piotr Jaworski associate of the office of the Polish Scouting Union, representatives of the Commandos Military Unit in Lublin, captain Grzegorz Paciak and the elder private Tomasz Kotlarek and scouts, soldiers and NIK staff.

These signs discovered during the renovation work in 2014 and taken care of by the ultimate Chamber of Control are not only a evidence to dramatic events related to the current office of NIK, or this part of Warsaw during the German business (1939-1945), but are besides a unique legacy from the position of the past of Warsaw and the memory of the Polish Underground State.

Since the beginning of the German occupation, there has been a intellectual war on the streets of large cities of the General Government - especially Warsaw - on symbols and countersymbols. In addition to the systematic extermination of the Polish judaic community, the killing of the elites of the II Republic and their possible successors, the panic of captures and public executions, he besides sought to break morale, to take distant the hope for the Polish society, for example the Western Allies.

Therefore, erstwhile Warsaw has not yet been demolished from September's destructions and the fallen from parks and squares have not been exhumed, posters (authored by Austrian graphic artist Theo Matejko) appeared on the walls of Warsaw in addition to the announcements of the business authorities with a "wrong" on which the injured Polish soldier shows the rubble and demolition with the regret of the Prime Minister of large Britain. The inscription under them said: “England! Your work!”

Each action is accompanied by a counterattack. So a part of the inhabitants of Warsaw spontaneously or as part of the emerging seeds of the conspiracy began to destruct German propaganda. The first paid for this with the life of Elizabeth Zahorska, a UW student, a brave soldier September 1939, as well as a daughter and sister of pre-war NIK controllers. She was shot by the Germans in early November 1939, in 1 of the first collective executions. Posthumously she was decorated by the Chief of the General gathering (later the 1st Commander of the AK) General Stefan Rowecki by the conflict Cross. On the another hand, it was created in 1941 on the basis of a conspiracy scouting (Share Privates) The organisation of the tiny Sabotage “Wawer” adopted Elizabeth Zahorska as its patron.

The war on symbols with real victims was fought throughout Europe. And there have always been 2 key issues here: matching social sentiments and the ability to take over or at least neutralise the message of the opponent. Supporting opposition in Europe conquered by the Nazis United Kingdom tried in 1941 to strengthen opposition and hope with the letter V (Victory, Victoria in Latin). but it coincided with the first months of the large successes of the 3rd Reich in the fight against the russian Union. And in this installment, Germany took the sign of V triumph on their steamboats or squares in the conquered part of Europe.

The heroes of the Stones for the Rim, due to the fact that they and their peers formed the tiny Sabotage Organization to a large extent, were not only physically efficient, of superior courage and resourcefulness, but besides graduates of the elite schools of Warsaw. Hence, it rapidly began, of course, under conditions of life-threatening conditions, to counter enemy propaganda. And so the letter V became a verb/name verloren meaning in German: lose, lose, be lost. Change the letter in the verb siegen na Iiegen radically changed the situation of German troops on all fronts: alternatively of winning - they lay down.

As part of the propaganda war, there were besides another inscriptions and symbols as part of organised tiny sabotage and as spontaneous citizens' initiatives. For example, the turtle was expected to show how efficient Poles were to work for the occupier, the swastikas on the gallows were rather obvious, while the kind of black business humor was the marking of street lanterns with inscriptions: Nur fuer Deutsche (Only for Germans).

Chief of ZWZ/AK Stefan Rowecki and Aleksander Kamiński leading propaganda activities in Warsaw (e.g. editor-in-chief of the “Information Bulletin” of SZP, ZWZ and AK, creator of “small sabotage” etc.) very well understood the specificity of conspiracy/fighting in the city, including intellectual warfare. The beginning of 1942 is besides a time of consolidation of the Polish independency conspiracy (so far for organisational and political reasons somewhat dispersed). This was demonstrated by the transformation on the basis of the order of the Chief Leader, General Władysław Sikorski of 14 February 1942 of the Armed Combat Union into the National Army. Of course, it was an evolutionary process. At the same time - as the reports state - at the beginning of the year a competition for a sign was announced in the conspiracy, which was to add hope and unite Poles during the occupation. The competition was organized by the Information and Propaganda Bureau of KG ZWZ/AK, and the inspiration most likely came from Gen. Rowecki. Anna Smoleńska ps. “Hania” is the author or co-author of the winning project.

The winning task presented the anchor from the list of letters P and W, which was read as Poland Fighting, and the sign through the form of the anchor besides referred to the symbolism of hope. In March 1942, mainly through groups of the tiny Sabotage Organization “Wawer” Anchor - Sign of Hope/ The fighting Poland was painted throughout Warsaw and then began to appear in another cities of the General Government. According to the April study by Alexander Kamiński for Colonel Antoni Chrushiel “Monter” - the Warsaw commander of the ZWZ-AK - about 400 people were active in the painting of the “cat” action. It is assumed that the first anchor was painted on 20 March 1942 on the veranda of the popular Warsaw pastry store Lardelli at Polna Street. As of 1943, the orders of the Commander of the National Army were besides given by the “catchers” military dimension, which full occurred in the “Burza” action on the National Army soldiers' uniforms. Letters P and W were then interpreted as: Polish Army.

Three of the signs preserved and discovered during the renovation work are unique, at least in Warsaw. They survived at the site where they were originally placed. They were painted between 1942 and 1943. The NIK building built in the 1930s as the seat of the provincial office, during the German occupation, housed part of the administration under the politician of the Warsaw territory Ludwig Fischer, liable for many crimes on Jews and Poles. Due to the administrative function (the building was occupied by Polish officials supervised by German superiors), the building was under increased supervision by police forces and the placement of respective signs of the fighting Poland was associated with a advanced risk. However, it was an crucial win in the ongoing intellectual war.

The exposed plaques besides commemorate Anna Smolenska. She died in March 1943, tortured in Auschwitz 1 year after the first “catcher” appeared in Warsaw (her parents besides died after being arrested in November 1942). Much of her short life was linked to Volota. She was, among others, an teacher in Ochot's group, but besides a postgraduate of the Slovak advanced School located since the 1930s. 20th century close the present office of NIK.

Krzysztof Madej, NIK past and Memorial Team

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