Last Updated on 5 years by Christopher G Mendla
Witold Pilecki was a Polish Officer who formed a resistance army after the Nazis invaded Poland. He volunteered to be captured and imprisoned in the Auschwitz death camp to gather intelligence. As a prisoner, he passed information to the Allies regarding the truth of the camp. He helped the prisoners as best as he could and eventually escaped.
Pilecki escaped from Aushwitz after 2 1/2 years. He worked with the resistance including partaking in the Warsaw Uprising.
Michael Schudrich, the Chief Rabbi of Poland, wrote as follows: “When God created the human being, God had in mind that we should all be like Captain Witold Pilecki, of blessed memory.”
The information he provided to the allies was the first exposure of the horror that the Nazis were inflicting on the World.
After fighting the Nazis, Witold Pilecki was arrested. There was a show trial guided by the wishes of the Soviet Communists. Witold Pilecki was sentenced to death and executed.
The heavy metal band, Sabaton performs a song in tribute to Pilecki , Inmate 4859.
Further Reading and information:
- Wikipedia Entry
- Lyrics for Inmate 4589 at Sabaton’s Site On that page, Sabaton explains how they chose stories for their Heroes album.
- NPR – Meet the man who sneaked into Aushwitz
- There is a made for TV movie “The Death of Captain Pilecki” about Witold Pilecki
