Witold Pilecki

[Astronomic101010]

Please read the book "Escaping Hell" by Kon Piekarski, Kon Piekarski was a good friend of Witold while in Auschwitz. The book descrides in detail what the Polish Underground was doing with the camps and what they're plans were. It is free to read just google "Escaping Hell" Kon Piekarski and you can find it on members.com

[Yankeesfanforlife5]

Communist where treating buy Poland Educated.

Rip General Pilecki

God Bless Poland

[MrPolakWalczacy]

A REAL HERO !

"Better dead than Red"

[whaddupmf]

The history of Poland during the 20th century is both tragic and inspiring. The end (in1918) of some 123 years of partitions, WWI, 1914-1918, the Polish-Bolshevik war of 1920, the devastation of WWII and the 45 years of Soviet Communist occupation. You would think that after all these cataclysms there would be no Poland today, and yet it is here and thriving. Amazing country, amazing history !!!

[licicaviki]

@whaddupmf Poland is the place in the hearts so any asshole with the biggest army can`t conquered this land. Poles want it so it`s always exist acordning Polish anthem "Poland has not yet perished, So long as we still live. What the alien force has taken from us,

We shall retrieve with a sabre."

[Rachman1337]

Bravest man of all time.

[enzorussian]

hero is the only word to describe him.

legend, who tried to stand up against german atrorities in one of the most evil times and place. not many man would have enough balls to do the same.

its an irony that someone given rightous among the nations was killed by a jew, whos very race he tried to save.

[Theriot6592]

The Nazis had to set up an entire new camp just for Pilecki's nads

[jarekgar1]

There is no evidence that Pilecki and Cyrankiewicz ever worked together in Auschwitz or indeed planned a mass breakout . Indeed, there is some doubt as to whether the two ever met there at all and Pilecki does not mention Cyrankiewicz in any of the three reports in wrote in 1943 or 1945 on his time in the camp. Nor does he mention a planned breakout by 500 prisoners. This is fiction as is the contention that Cyrankiewicz testified at Pilecki's trial. He did not.

[jarekgar1]

There is no evidence that Pilecki and Cyrankiewicz ever worked together in Auschwitz or indeed planned a mass breakout . Indeed, there is some doubt as to whether the two ever met there at all and Pilecki does not mention Cyrankiewicz in any of the three reports in wrote in 1943 or 1945 on his time in the camp. Not does he mention a planned breakout by 500 prisoners. This is fiction as is the contention that Cyrankiewicz testified at Pilecki's trial.

[jarekgar1]

There is no evidence that Pilecki and Cyrankiewicz ever worked together in Auschwitz or indeed planned a mass breakout . Indeed, there is some doubt as to whether the two ever met there at all and Pilecki does not mention Cyrankiewicz in any of the three reports in wrote in 1943 or 1945 on his time in the camp. Not does he mention a planned breakout by 500 prisoners. This is fiction

[MV23267]

This was a very good video. I may actually be related to Witold Pilecki.

[blackvirus1999]

@MV23267 I may also be related to him. Witold Pilecki in my point of view, was one of the bravest souls to roam this vast and endless earth

[Nowik1991]

U also could have mentioned Pilecki's fights agains Russians in 1920

[TheBeerNut1]

I think that Poland or rather the Polish film industry / institute with financial assistance from the Polish government ought to embark on the production of English-language films or documentaries on the lives of these many Polish heroes from the WWII era. There are people such as Irena Sendler, Witold Pilecki, Maximilian Kolbe and so many others that many don't know about. This effort should be undertaken in an aggressive manner with the intention of distributing it internationally.

[fromcliffs]

Stalinists' lies about so called 'pogroms' in soviet occupied Poland and Stalin's role to make Polish Jews soviet murderers should be disclosed as well. You are a real hero Pilecki!

[fromcliffs]

This is a story for Hollywood.. What I say... they prefere stupid Stalinists' stories made for dirty spoiled money, produced for idiots...

[licicaviki]

@fromcliffs They rather invent Polish joke about Pilecki.. as usual They do.

[Rob33TT]

good job, mate!!!

[AmAxORuLz]

What a brave man, fighting effectively agaisnt Nazis and being executed by communists. Exceptional human.

[licicaviki]

@AmAxORuLz Many resistance fighters from AK was executed by communists after war. Gen. Fieldorf was head of Kedyw for example was executed like Pilecki too...

[SnoopDom22]

Ja o tym człowieku dowiedziałem sie jakis rok temu, myślę że to prawdziwy Polak, a nie sprzedawczyk, jakich w kręgach rządzących wielu jest. Takich ludzi z charakterem bardzo sie szanuje, bez względu na narodowość.

Myśle tez, że skoro po tylu latach, ktoś kto go nigdy nie znał ( tak jak ja) pamieta o nim, a przuklad jego postępowania dalej może oddziaływać na ludzi, to tak jakby ciągle żył...jakby był nieśmiertelny.

[SnoopDom22]

mówiąc to ze jest prawdziwym Polakiem, miałem na mysli, ze próbował wykryć jak bardzo Polska traciła na "przyjaźni" z ZSRR. Bez względu na konsekwencje.

[farmkam]

Polecam wszystkim film o jego osobie "Śmierc rotmistrza Pileckiego"

[sczerstwpieczywialy]

Dzięki takim ludziom wierzę, że Naród Polski znowu będzie sobą. Wieczna chwała Bohaterom!

[loralilee]

Wow! Never heard of this guy. I just wonder, how in the world did he escape. I mean besides overcoming a ss guard or cutting phone lines but, how did he get passed the electrical fence? Did he dress as a guard and drive a vehicle out---or cut the wires of the fence and walk out, or dug under the gate and escaped? This would make a great movie thats for sure.

[ferdovit]

something about 300 person escape from Auschwitz. Pilecki escaped hen he was assigned to a night shift at a camp bakery outside the fence, he and two comrades overpowered a guard, cut the phone line and escaped on the night of April 26/27, 1943, taking along documents stolen from the Germans.

[amiloo34]

I pomyśleć że polscy eurodeputowani z byli przeciwko ustanowieniu 25 maja dniem Pileckiego i symbolu walki z totalitaryzmem.A ich nazwiska znajdziecie w necie,ZAPAMIĘTAJCIE ICH.

[yugster78]

in my opinion he was probably one of the greatest men who ever lived and my herro even though im not polish!

[mbison83]

God bless u, my friend. RIP Mr. Pilecki.

[yugster78]

A shame how his best friend was decived by the comunists and betrayed him.

[zjadaczsnu]

...mam 42 lata i jestem architektem...hmm... popłakałem się... PRAWDZIWY PATYIOTA !!!

[auriliusml]

mam 31 lat i nie jestem architektem.... tez sie poplakalem!!!

[Tommc125]

Ja mam 32 i sie nie poplakalem ale podziwiam faceta za mestwo i silny charakter, dobrze ze skazali oprawce - prokuratora - ale mysle ze to i tak za malo- powinien tez dostac takie tortury i kule w leb.

[divustitus]

HELLAVADEAL read more about Polish history and Culture in the works by NORMAN DAVIES.......PAX

[dynomatik]

Good place Poland that honors the fallen heroes, here in Spain we have the Franco's assasins in the streets... and nothing happens

[Ryanthefirst]

A great man, Witold Pilecki, and among the bravest men of World War II.

[amabeline]

Wspaniały film.

Rotmistrz Witold Pilecki był jednym z 6. największych bohaterów II wojny światowej.

W Kl Auschwitz zginął mój dziadek - polski nauczyciel. Numer obozowy 11 193.

Dziękuję i pozdrawiam

[hellavadeal]

Sounds like he was a good man. We need men like that today. He was a true marter.

Note about Warsaw : the Russians delaid attacking Warsaw to allow the Germans time to destroy the getto and kill the Jews there. The people there suffered greatly for it. They got rid of one tyrant for another. Now we face tyrany of a new and greater kind. the NWO. Thanks for The memorial to this hero.

[peem10]

Not exactly. There were two uprisings in Nazi occupied Warsaw. The first one (19th April - 16th May 1943) broke out in Warsaw ghetto when Polish Jews decided to make a stand against the Germans. There were over 50 000 Jewish casualties. The second one (1st August 1944 - 3rd October 1944) was the action of Polish resistance called the Home Army. It ended up with about 200 000 casualties, mostly civilians and deliberate destruction of the 85% of city.

Please, don't confuse these two uprisings.

[hellavadeal]

Thank you for the correction. However , more would have died if no one did anything about it. Thank you. I will review my history on the subject so to be better prepared. You are correct. pease.

[sylwiatime]

@hellavadeal

The book to read is "Rising" by Norman Davies. It covers both the Ghetto and the larger Warsaw Uprisings. Pilecki is described there too.

[yugster78]

A true patriot!

[PolishAmericanDC]

Roger Cohen napisał „swoją spowiedź w The New Times: „nigdy wcześniej nie byłem tak dalece zawstydzony przez Izrael. Jest to bardzo rozpowszechnione zjawisko. Niedawne niby zwycięstwo lobby Izraela w doprowadzeniu do dymisji ambasadora i nowego szefa urzędu nadzoru nad wywiadem USA, Charlesa Freemana, bardzo zaszkodziło politycznie lobby Izraela. Lobby to teraz przestaje być „niewidocznym słoniem, niewidocznym pod grozą represji przez system

[piotreks2a]

pierdolona komuna.... skurwysyny jebane ... nienawidze was mordercy ks. Popiełuszki, gen. Fieldorfa, rotmistrza Pileckiego, Danuty Siedzikówny, i wielu innych bohaterów prawdziwej Polski. Bycmoże w panującej żydodemokracji która nastąpiła po 50 latach żydokomuny nie znajdziecie zapłaty na jaką zasługujecie. Ale piekło was nie minie. Z radością przyjmuje wiadomości o waszych "odejściach". Tak jak np. ta stalinowska prokurator Wolińska.

[ginads66]

jesteś moim bratem

[lesz81]

There really needs to be a movie made about him. It could show so many angels of humanity in that era, of Polish history, of the complexity of the war, and of Jewish and other suffering. It would be a movie about the determination of this hidden hero.

[annapieklo]

I am Polish, so let me explain my feelings about this movie in my native language:

Dziękuję za film.

Jest ogromny głód na takie informacje i wiedzę, nie tylko w Europie czy świecie, ale przede wszystkim w samej Polsce.

Mam nadzieję, że wielu młodych ludzi odwiedza wirtualne strony tego rodzaju.

Powyższa projekcja na pewno inspiruje do chęci poznawania prawdy.

Pozdrawiam,

Anna

[lorimika]

A very important video. This man cannot be forgotten.

[blah1017]

God I fucking admire the hell out this hero. He wasn't a man, he was a hero.

I remember I did a 10th grade English report on this guy, his story has always touched my heart.

It's really amazing that among all of the atrocities committed during this time period that true heroes like this could really exist.

[mbison83]

i appreciate you saying that. thanks a lot.

[ferdovit]

The Gestapo-NKVD conferences were a series of meetings organized in late 1939 and early 1940, whose purpose was the mutual cooperation between Germany and Soviet. In spite of several differences, both Heinrich Himmler and Lavrentiy Beria had common purposes as far as the fate of Poland was concerned and the conferences discussed coordinating plans for occupation of the Polish nation and in fighting the Polish resistance movement, which was an irritant to both Nazi and Soviet occupiers of Poland.

[matt87pl]

A spy for the true Polish government in England??? He was a true Polish hero.

[peem10]

I wonder if you're serious or rather you're kidding with that bad taste joke like this. And frankly speaking I have no idea.

[mbison83]

great video. thank you!

[Filasbrandic]

Love this video, he was a great man, wish I had known about his story earlier.

[Soks4321]

Pilecki is a Polish HERO !!!!

Niech żyje Wolna Polska PRECZ Z KOMUNĄ !!!!!!!!

[ferdovit]

Prokurator who accused Witold Pilecki in 1948 was Czesław Łapiński. In 2004 He died in hospital... on Witold Pilecki street.

[PolishAmericanDC]

Polacy napiszcie do Ministra MSZ Radka Sikorskiego, dlaczego Polskie Ambasady na calym swiecie nie promuja takich filmow i historii Polski?

Lech Alex Bajan Washington DC

[irek643]

gdyby sikorski był narodowości Polskiej to może by coś z tym zrobił -sfołacz i tyle

[srebrnam]

Chief of prison: Alojzy Grabicki, his substitute -Ryszard Mońko saw Pileckis death

Shot him: Piotr Śmietański (moved to Izrael)

Investigetors who still keep denying that they have tortured Pilecki:Marian Krawczyński, Zbigniew Kiszel, Eugeniusz Himczak

[srebrnam]

Adam Humer(Adam Umer),Józef Czaplicki(Izydor Kurc),Roman Romkowski(Natan Grinszpan-Kikiel),Bronisław Szymański,Mieczysław Dytry

Public prosecutor:Zenon Rychlik,Stanisław Cypryszewski,

Investigators(read:in soviet prison people who tortured prisoners):Jerzy Kroszel,Tadeusz Słowianek,Jerzy Kaskiewicz,Stefan Alaborski( Stefan Malinowski)Bronisław Szymański

[srebrnam]

People connected with Pileckis death:

Issued sentence for death:Jan Hryckowian,Józef Badecki,Stefan Nowacki

Accused him:Czesław Łapiński

Approve sentence:Kazimierz Drohomirecki,Roman Kryże,Leo Hochberg(according to Jewish Historical Institude good and kind-hearted person)

Ruled the inquiry:Rubin Szwajg (died in Izrael),Stanisław Zarakowski,Henryk Podlaski(Hersz Podlaski),Jacek Różański(Józef Goldberg,his tomb is in Jewish Cemetery in Okopowa street in Warsow)),

[JuliuszKalodont]

Hey Bro!!!Not only snow is Your biggest problem, like most of ignorants.But how dare you to publish some soviets footage at stalingrad, claiming it's Polish September?Anyway, these times when the past is swept away and forbiden let's praise ignorants.Thanks

[ferdovit]

Warto docenić, ze Amerykanin robi taki film z potrzeby serca co pokazuje, że czyny Pileckiego mają uniwersalny charakter i są doceniane także poza Polską... znaczenie drugorzędne już ma jak to robi = robi jak potrafi.

[coulie27]

Dziękują, przepraszam za wszelkie błędy.

[ferdovit]

For my this errors it`s no a big problem because You may repair it if You read more informations about it. Most important thing it`s our lost memory. We must restore it- Pilecki deserved of this. If You feel spirit of Witold inform others about his life. We need a real heroes not heroes carved in plastic from marvel comics. Lie it`s more known than true in our world.

[ferdovit]

coulie27 A little correction - Germans atacked Poland in September - any snow.

[coulie27]

Also the video of the prisoners is not his arrival, and the arm tatto is not Witold Pilecki's. I don't have access to a lot of footage, so I borrowed from available Auschwitz related film. The video is meant to enhance the story, not to provide footage of the actual events. Your info helps for a better understanding of what it was really like.

[ferdovit]

I understand. I decided wrote this because sometimes Americans think that Poland is a country of ice and snow where bears run on the streets of Warsaw. I realy appreciate fact that You decided to make this video. I just try to help. Summer of 1939 was very long and sunny - Hiler has very lucky weather to blitzkrieg.

[just3ta]

@coulie27 wonderful, but please Pilecki was a nobleman, so he didnt own \farm\ but landlord's latifundium.

[lectrick]

Great story! Truth always comes out in the end

[skalskipilot]

Great vid. Thank you.

[peem10]

Great video, thank you so much for that!

I've got just one question. Could you point out the source saying that Pilecki and Cyrankiewicz became friends and cooperated in Auschwitz? Some research done by historians of the Auschwitz Museum points out that although Cyrankiewicz was a resistance conspirator, he and Pilecki didn't even know each other. There's also not a single mention about Cyrankiewicz in Pilecki's detailed reports about Auschwitz conpiracy.

[coulie27]

Thanks peem for your compliments!

It's a good question and actually, the sourcing is sometimes so hazy that, when you asked, I doubted whether I had recalled correctly. I've posted the sources in the video info (Jozef's wiki particularly). It's true that the exact relationship between them is unknown, so I admit to a bit of editorializing my interpretation. I certainly want to present a plausible version of what happened; where the museum and wiki articles differ, I can defer it... (more)

[coulie27]

Jozef's wiki entry lists a leadership role in the major plot to escape Auschwitz. I read that Witold organized 5 man teams unknown to each other, and I imagine his reports avoiding naming names, which might explain any failure to mention Jozef. I doubt if Jozef was in high command, but perhaps was a team leader. For me, it is hard to believe Jozef's later testimony wasn't personal on some level. That Jozef testified speaks to a possible relationship, but it was shameful either way. Thanks+! :)

[peem10]

Pilecki was very careful choosing people to his conspiracy and Cyrankiewicz is rather thought to be conspiring with communists in the camp. This is what the author of Pilecki's biography said about Cyrankiewicz:

"Jozef Cyrankiewicz went down in history of KL Auschwitz as a conspiring inmate, distinguishing with strong individuality, brave, clever and experienced, able to make original, risky and correct decisions in the most difficult situations. He was never a member of Pilecki conspiracy...

[peem10]

and never personally met Pilecki in Auschwitz. Cyrankiewicz heard a lot of Pilecki's resistance activity in the camp, but he associated him with the inmate Tomasz Serafinski, which was Pilecki's false name in the camp. Pilecki confirmed that in his report send on September 4th 1946 to the headquarters of the II Corps in Italy. What is more Pilecki mentioned about any acquaintance with Cyrankiewicz neither in the report from 1943 just after his escape nor in the post-war report from 1945."

[peem10]

I've read Pilecki's biography and the more I know about him the more I'm impressed. I think I'll make a video which will focus on the details of his resistance activity in the camp. He was always a few steps ahead, ho could always get out of trouble he got in. Colloquially speaking he was a kind of Michael Scofield of that time. The difference is that he was real...

[coulie27]

Thanks for the info. Who was the biographer? I'd like to order that book. I may update the video to downplay their connection, but no matter what, I think it's a story that needs to be told!

[peem10]

The biographer is Adam Cyra, historian and custodian of the KL Auschwitz Museum. His book is titled "Ochotnik do Auschwitz. Witold Pilecki (1901 - 1948)" (the first part of title means "Volunteer to Auschwitz"). This book seems to have the latest and most accurate information, but I'm afraid it's only in Polish. It consists of two parts: the biography and Pilecki's report about Auschwitz. The second part is available online in English at witoldsreport(dot)blogspot(dot­)com

[peem10]

The other book is titled "Rotmistrz Witold Pilecki" and was written earlier by Adam Cyra and Wieslaw Wysocki. As far as I know it's both in Polish and English.

Witold Pilecki is also described by Michael Foot in the book "Six faces of courage".

[ferdovit]

1948-2008 - 60 years of oblivion. Until 1989, information on his exploits and fate was suppressed by the Polish communist regime.

They try erased You from our memory. We never forget.