After a century of foreign domination, the Second Polish Republic became an independent state at the end of World War I. Bronna Góra was part of the Polesie Voivodeship, and remained so until the Nazi-Soviet invasion of Poland in 1939.[4] With a railway stop at the edge of the woods,[5] Bronna Góra became the location of secluded massacres in 1942, with trainloads of Jews transported and dislodged there from the Brześć Ghetto, the Pińsk Ghetto,[6] and all other ghettos created by Nazi Germany in the area.[5]
The first murder operation took place in June 1942, with 3,500 Jews transported from the Pińsk Ghetto and nearby Kobryn for "processing" (durchschleusen),[a] at Bronna Góra.[5] According to postwar testimony of Benjamin Wulf, a Polish Jew from Antopal who managed to survive the massacre,[14] the train stop was surrounded by a barbed-wire fence. The prisoners were informed by a translator that washing stations were in the woods behind. They were ordered to leave their outer garments by the train and take only the soap and towel. Those who did not have soap were told not to worry because it had been supplied. The path through the woods, surrounded by barbed wire, was heavily guarded. It became narrower until the sounds of shooting made it clear what went on at the end of the trail. The Jews who attempted to escape by crossing the fence were shot on the wires. Further up, the path opened to an area with execution pits 4 metres (13 ft) deep and 60 metres (200 ft) long, dug under the gun by hundreds of local laborers. Explosive materials were used to speed up the digging process.[14] The fresh new victims were brought into the trenches and were shot one by one over the bodies of others.[14] According to a witness interviewed by Yahad-In Unum, 52,000 people were killed in Bronna Góra, including Jews and people who were believed to be linked to partisans.[15]
"In memory of the 50,000 citizens of Jewish nationality from the Soviet Union and West Europe", reads the inscription on the monument at Bronnaja Gora (be)
In March 1944, as the Red Army advanced, the Germans attempted to erase the evidence of the massacres. A special Sonderaktion 1005 was brought in from outside,[16] consisting of 100 slave workers. For the next two weeks, they exhumed mass graves and burned the bodies on pyres. When they were finished, trees were planted, and all of the prisoners were shot.[1] After the war, at the 1945 Potsdam Conference, Poland's borders were redrawn and Bronna Góra became part of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic. A memorial was erected at the site commemorating the perished Jewish citizens of the Soviet Union.[5]
Notesedit
^The term durchgeschleust or "processed" to describe the annihilation of Jews in the occupied Eastern territories appeared in the Korherr Report,[12] by personal request of Heinrich Himmler, who objected to the word Sonderbehandlung or "special treatment" synonymous with death in the Nazi phraseology already since 1939 (per September 20, 1939 Heydrich's telegram to Gestapo).[13]
^IAJGS (2014). "Antopal: Brest". International Jewish Cemetery Project with links to resources. See: Ghetto liquidation "Aktion" (Bronna Gora), four days beginning October 15, 1942. Retrieved January 17, 2018.
^Echa Polesia 3 (39) 2013, Miejsca Pamięci Narodowej, Obwód Brzeski (Places of National Memory, Brest Oblast). Kresy24.pl – Wschodnia Gazeta Codzienna (daily) 2014.
^ abcdVirtual Shtetl (2015). (in Polish). Elektroniczna Encyklopedia Żydowska. Archived from the original on 2015-09-24.
^Krawcowicz, Barbara (2014). [Holocaust w Polsce – kalendarium]. Forum Żydów Polskich. Archived from the original on 2014-04-27 – via Internet Archive.
^Wegner, Bernd (1997). From peace to war: Germany, Soviet Russia, and the world, 1939–1941. The period of Soviet-German partnership. Berghahn Books. pp. 74–. ISBN1571818820.
^Sword, Keith (1991). The Soviet Takeover of the Polish Eastern Provinces, 1939–41. The mass deportations of the Polish population to the USSR. Springer. pp. 64, 224. ISBN1349213799.
^Eberhardt, Piotr; Owsinski, Jan (2003). Ethnic Groups and Population Changes in Twentieth-century Central-Eastern Europe: History, Data, Analysis. M.E. Sharpe. pp. 199–201. ISBN9780765606655.
^Andrew Wilson, Belarus: The Last European Dictatorship, Yale University Press 2011. Page 109.
^Korherr, Richard (April 10, 1943). "Anweisung Himmler an Korherr". Der Reichsführer-SS, Feld-Kommandostelle. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
^Himmler, Heinrich (2014). . Holocaust history.org. Archived from the original on 28 May 2013. Retrieved 2 September 2014. September 20th, 1939 telegram to Gestapo regional and subregional headquarters on the "basic principles of internal security during the war".
^"Testimony of Victor K." Yahad Map. Retrieved 23 December 2014.
^Arad, Yitzhak (1984), (PDF), Yad Vashem Studies XVI(PDF), pp. 205–239, archived from the original (PDF) on 18 March 2009
External linksedit
English translation of the video about the Holocaust in Brest, Belarus and the Memorial in Bronna Gora
May 11, 2024
bronna, góra, bronna, mount, english, belarusian, Бронная, Гара, bronnaja, hara, name, secluded, area, present, belarus, where, mass, killings, polish, jews, were, carried, nazi, germany, during, world, location, part, eastern, half, occupied, poland, which, b. Bronna Gora or Bronna Mount in English Belarusian Bronnaya Gara Bronnaja Hara is the name of a secluded area in present day Belarus where mass killings of Polish Jews were carried out by Nazi Germany during World War II The location was part of the eastern half of occupied Poland which had been invaded by the Soviet Union in 1939 in agreement with Germany and two years later captured by the Wehrmacht in Operation Barbarossa It is estimated that from May 1942 until November of that year during the most deadly phase of the Holocaust in Poland some 50 000 Jews were murdered at Bronna Gora forest in death pits The victims were transported there in Holocaust trains from Nazi ghettos including from the Brzesc Ghetto and the Pinsk Ghetto and from the ghettos in the surrounding area as well as from Reichskommissariat Ostland present day Western Belarus 1 2 3 Bronna GoraOld train tracks leading to location of forest massacres at Bronna GoraLocation of Bronna Gora in World War II northeast of Sobibor extermination camp Bronna MountLocation of Bronna Gora in modern day Belarus see above LocationBronna Gora Polesie Voivodeship occupied Second Polish Republic52 37 N 25 05 E 52 617 N 25 083 E 52 617 25 083DateMay 1942 November 1942Incident typeMass killings over execution pits dug in the forestPerpetratorsSchutzstaffel SS ParticipantsSS Totenkopfverbande SS TV GhettoBrzesc Bereza Janow Poleski Kobryn Horodec pl Pinsk GhettoVictims50 000 JewsNotesThe Holocaust in Poland Contents 1 Background 2 Mass killings 3 Notes 4 References 5 External linksBackground editAfter a century of foreign domination the Second Polish Republic became an independent state at the end of World War I Bronna Gora was part of the Polesie Voivodeship and remained so until the Nazi Soviet invasion of Poland in 1939 4 With a railway stop at the edge of the woods 5 Bronna Gora became the location of secluded massacres in 1942 with trainloads of Jews transported and dislodged there from the Brzesc Ghetto the Pinsk Ghetto 6 and all other ghettos created by Nazi Germany in the area 5 Following the Soviet invasion of 1939 Bronna Gora along with most of Polesie Voivodeship was annexed into the Soviet Belarus after the NKVD staged elections decided in the atmosphere of terror 7 8 All citizens previously living but also born in Poland would live in the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic from then on as the Soviet subjects not Polish 9 However the Soviet rule was short lived because the corresponding terms of the Molotov Ribbentrop Pact signed earlier in Moscow were broken when the German Army crossed the Soviet occupation zone on 22 June 1941 From 1941 to 1943 the province was under the control of Nazi Germany 10 govern by the collaborationist Byelorussian Central Council supported by the Nazi Belarusian battalions of the Byelorussian Home Defence 11 Mass killings editThe first murder operation took place in June 1942 with 3 500 Jews transported from the Pinsk Ghetto and nearby Kobryn for processing durchschleusen a at Bronna Gora 5 According to postwar testimony of Benjamin Wulf a Polish Jew from Antopal who managed to survive the massacre 14 the train stop was surrounded by a barbed wire fence The prisoners were informed by a translator that washing stations were in the woods behind They were ordered to leave their outer garments by the train and take only the soap and towel Those who did not have soap were told not to worry because it had been supplied The path through the woods surrounded by barbed wire was heavily guarded It became narrower until the sounds of shooting made it clear what went on at the end of the trail The Jews who attempted to escape by crossing the fence were shot on the wires Further up the path opened to an area with execution pits 4 metres 13 ft deep and 60 metres 200 ft long dug under the gun by hundreds of local laborers Explosive materials were used to speed up the digging process 14 The fresh new victims were brought into the trenches and were shot one by one over the bodies of others 14 According to a witness interviewed by Yahad In Unum 52 000 people were killed in Bronna Gora including Jews and people who were believed to be linked to partisans 15 nbsp nbsp In memory of the 50 000 citizens of Jewish nationality from the Soviet Union and West Europe reads the inscription on the monument at Bronnaja Gora be In March 1944 as the Red Army advanced the Germans attempted to erase the evidence of the massacres A special Sonderaktion 1005 was brought in from outside 16 consisting of 100 slave workers For the next two weeks they exhumed mass graves and burned the bodies on pyres When they were finished trees were planted and all of the prisoners were shot 1 After the war at the 1945 Potsdam Conference Poland s borders were redrawn and Bronna Gora became part of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic A memorial was erected at the site commemorating the perished Jewish citizens of the Soviet Union 5 Notes edit The term durchgeschleust or processed to describe the annihilation of Jews in the occupied Eastern territories appeared in the Korherr Report 12 by personal request of Heinrich Himmler who objected to the word Sonderbehandlung or special treatment synonymous with death in the Nazi phraseology already since 1939 per September 20 1939 Heydrich s telegram to Gestapo 13 References edit a b AZIH 2014 Bronna Gora Bronnaja Gora location of mass executions Bronna Gora miejsce masowych egzekucji Virtual Shtetl in Polish POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews Archived from the original on 2014 06 07 The Brest Ghetto Passport Archive former Soviet Union JewishGen 2014 IAJGS 2014 Antopal Brest International Jewish Cemetery Project with links to resources See Ghetto liquidation Aktion Bronna Gora four days beginning October 15 1942 Retrieved January 17 2018 Echa Polesia 3 39 2013 Miejsca Pamieci Narodowej Obwod Brzeski Places of National Memory Brest Oblast Kresy24 pl Wschodnia Gazeta Codzienna daily 2014 a b c d Virtual Shtetl 2015 Pinsk in Polish Elektroniczna Encyklopedia Zydowska Archived from the original on 2015 09 24 Krawcowicz Barbara 2014 The Holocaust in Poland Timeline Holocaust w Polsce kalendarium Forum Zydow Polskich Archived from the original on 2014 04 27 via Internet Archive Wegner Bernd 1997 From peace to war Germany Soviet Russia and the world 1939 1941 The period of Soviet German partnership Berghahn Books pp 74 ISBN 1571818820 Sword Keith 1991 The Soviet Takeover of the Polish Eastern Provinces 1939 41 The mass deportations of the Polish population to the USSR Springer pp 64 224 ISBN 1349213799 Davies Norman 2005 God s Playground A History of Poland Volume II OUP Oxford p 327 ISBN 0199253404 Eberhardt Piotr Owsinski Jan 2003 Ethnic Groups and Population Changes in Twentieth century Central Eastern Europe History Data Analysis M E Sharpe pp 199 201 ISBN 9780765606655 Andrew Wilson Belarus The Last European Dictatorship Yale University Press 2011 Page 109 Korherr Richard April 10 1943 Anweisung Himmler an Korherr Der Reichsfuhrer SS Feld Kommandostelle Retrieved 2 September 2014 Himmler Heinrich 2014 Special treatment Sonderbehandlung Holocaust history org Archived from the original on 28 May 2013 Retrieved 2 September 2014 September 20th 1939 telegram to Gestapo regional and subregional headquarters on the basic principles of internal security during the war a b c Testimony of B Wulf Docket nr 301 2212 Archives of the Jewish Historical Institute in Warsaw Bronna Gora Bronnaja Gora webpage Archived 2017 08 03 at the Wayback Machine Virtual Shtetl 2014 ibidem print Archived 2015 09 24 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved June 3 2014 Testimony of Victor K Yahad Map Retrieved 23 December 2014 Arad Yitzhak 1984 Operation Reinhard Extermination Camps of Belzec Sobibor and Treblinka PDF Yad Vashem Studies XVI PDF pp 205 239 archived from the original PDF on 18 March 2009External links editEnglish translation of the video about the Holocaust in Brest Belarus and the Memorial in Bronna Gora Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Bronna Gora amp oldid 1215104591, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
