In 1940, Witold Pilecki (a member of the Polish Resistance) volunteered to be captured by Nazis so he could collect intelligence on the Auschwitz Concentration Camp.
I'm glad he's finally getting the recognition he deserves after being executed as a traitor by the Soviets. The article is a great read for anyone who's on the fence about clicking through. Volunteered for the mission and became one of the first people to confront the Nazi death machine firsthand and actually report to the Allies about it, actually begging for the camp to be bombed even with prisoners in it (himself included) as it would have been a mercy. (Which apparently England actually considered doing, if not for the state of their airforce at the time?) Sounds like it took a terrible toll though, as one might expect.
Pilecki was assigned to a night shift at a camp bakery outside the fence, and he and two comrades overpowered a guard, cut the telephone line, and escaped on the night of 26–27 April 1943, taking with them documents stolen from the Germans. The men fled on foot to the village of Alwernia where they were helped by a priest, and then on to Tyniec where locals assisted them. After that, they reached the Polish resistance safe house near Bochnia, owned, coincidentally, by commander Tomasz Serafiński—the very man whose identity Pilecki had adopted for his cover in Auschwitz. At one point during the journey, German soldiers attempted to stop Pilecki, firing at him as he fled; several bullets passed through his clothing, while one wounded him without hitting either bones or vital organs.
I'm ready for the Witold Pilecki full motion picture.
dr_stre on December 5th, 2020 at 17:40 UTC »
I'm glad he's finally getting the recognition he deserves after being executed as a traitor by the Soviets. The article is a great read for anyone who's on the fence about clicking through. Volunteered for the mission and became one of the first people to confront the Nazi death machine firsthand and actually report to the Allies about it, actually begging for the camp to be bombed even with prisoners in it (himself included) as it would have been a mercy. (Which apparently England actually considered doing, if not for the state of their airforce at the time?) Sounds like it took a terrible toll though, as one might expect.
MemeBeamStream on December 5th, 2020 at 18:14 UTC »
INMATE IN HELL OR A HERO IN PRISON
TooShiftyForYou on December 5th, 2020 at 18:40 UTC »
Pilecki was assigned to a night shift at a camp bakery outside the fence, and he and two comrades overpowered a guard, cut the telephone line, and escaped on the night of 26–27 April 1943, taking with them documents stolen from the Germans. The men fled on foot to the village of Alwernia where they were helped by a priest, and then on to Tyniec where locals assisted them. After that, they reached the Polish resistance safe house near Bochnia, owned, coincidentally, by commander Tomasz Serafiński—the very man whose identity Pilecki had adopted for his cover in Auschwitz. At one point during the journey, German soldiers attempted to stop Pilecki, firing at him as he fled; several bullets passed through his clothing, while one wounded him without hitting either bones or vital organs.
I'm ready for the Witold Pilecki full motion picture.