Code Name: Zegota: Rescuing Jews in Occupied Poland, 1942-1945: The Most Dangerous Conspiracy in Wartime Europe - Hardcover

Tomaszewski, Irene; Werbowski, Tecia

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 031338391X ISBN 13: 9780313383915

Publisher: Praeger, 2010

Synopsis

An inspiring story of unarmed civilians of all ages who took on the Gestapo, the SS, and the Wehrmacht―and outwitted them at least 20,000 times.

Code Name: Zegota: Rescuing Jews in Occupied Poland, 1942-1945: The Most Dangerous Conspiracy in Wartime Europe tells the story of the only secret organization in occupied Europe set up for the sole purpose of saving Jews. The first book on the subject in English, it details the danger and complexity behind Zegota rescue attempts, clarifying the relationship of the Germans, who had total control; the Poles, who were relegated to sub-human status and treated as slave labor; and the Jews, designated nonhuman and collectively condemned to death.



Illuminating the moral dilemmas that arose as one life was pitted against another under the lawless apartheid conditions created by the Nazis, Code Name: Zegota explores the critical situation in occupied Poland and the personalities that responded to desperate conditions with a mix of courage and creativity. It profiles the key players and the network behind them and describes the sophisticated organization and its mode of operation. The cast of characters ranges from members of prewar Poland's cultural and political elite to Girl Guides and Boy Scouts, who worked as couriers. As this inspiring book shows, all of these brave souls risked torture, concentration camps, and death―and many paid the price.

About this title

About the Author

Norman Davies FBA, FRHistS is a British-Polish historian noted for his publications on the history of Europe, Poland and the United Kingdom. He is widely regarded as one of the preeminent historians of Central and Eastern European history. He is the UNESCO Professor at the Jagiellonian University, Professor Emeritus at the University College London, a Visiting Professor at the College of Europe and an Honorary Fellow at St. Antony's College, Oxford.

Edition details

• Publisher: Praeger
• Publication date: 2010
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 031338391X
• ISBN 13: 9780313383915
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 216