Checking the Authenticity of a Photo of a Massacre of
Polish Priests
I came across the photo, above, in a Wikipedia article on
Persecution of the Catholic Church in Poland. You can visit that page here.
The caption reads, "Public execution of Polish
priests and civilians in Bydgoszcz's Old Market Square on 9 September 1939."
I saw no support on the page for this caption. Wikipedia
cited a source, Okupacja hitlerowska na
Pomorzu Gdańskim w Latach 1939-1945, but I knew that getting a copy of that
book might take a while.
One must be wary of information on the internet. Through
Facebook I have seen evidence of how gullible people can be. People circulate
Barack Obama's Columbia ID card that identifies him as a foreign-born student,
evidence that George Bush planned 9-11, and advice to keep a cut onion in your
house to make you immune to influenza. It saddens me to witness people
displaying their credulity and lack of critical thinking in response to these
false memes.
The other day the above photo came through my facebook
feed. The poster said it showed Michelle Obama texting during the national
anthem. It's clearly not a photograph of Michelle Obama.
I wanted to know if the above Bydgoszcz photo and its
caption were authentic.
I sent the photo to the United States Holocaust Memorial
Museum. Their researchers have been very helpful to me. They were again. They
wrote back, "We do not have the exact copy in our catalog, however we do
have an alternate angle, see attached. We also have other photographs of clergy
from the Krone Prison. Please e-mail if you would like to receive reference
copies."
Below please find the photo and the text that the USHMM sent me:
United States Holocaust Memorial Desig #509.10502 W/S
#50837
Museum Photo Archives CD # 0032
This image is for reference purposes only!
Polish clergy and prominent citizens arrested by members
of Einsatzgruppe IV, police, and German soldiers are held hostage on the
Bydgoszcz market square. Just after the beginning of the German-Polish war on 3
September 1939, armed groups of ethnic Germans in the city of Bydgoszcz staged
an uprising against the local Polish garrison. This was put down by the next
day, one day prior to the entrance of German troops in the city on 5 September.
A local command structure was quickly put into place by Major General Walter
Braemer, and in response to continued attacks upon German personnel in the
city, severely repressive measures were instituted in the following days.
Assisted by Military Field Police Section 581, Einsatzgruppe IV under the
command of SS-Brigadefuehrer Lothar Beutel, and the 6th Motorized Police
Battalion, Braemer's troops assembled hundreds of hostages and executed
hundreds more at various locations in and around the city, including the
Bydgoszcz market square.
As a result of these actions, at least 500 Polish
civilians, many of whom were members of the local intelligentsia and clergy,
were shot and over 1,000 more incarcerated between 6 and 11 September. On 11
September, Braemer moved his headquarters out of Bydgoszcz, placing Police
Colonel Goesch, SS-Brigadefuehrer Henze, and Lothar Beutel in command. These
men continued to order the execution of hostages, particularly of members of
the intelligentsia and clergy, in accordance with instructions given by
Heydrich and Himmler for the 'political housecleaning' of Poland.
Photo Credit: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum,
courtesy of
Instytut Pamieci Narodowej
Date: Sep 9, 1939 - Sep 11, 1939
Place: Locale: Bydgoszcz
[variants: Bromberg]
Region: Bydgoszcz
Country: Poland
Photographer: No photographer recorded
Source(s): 1. INSTYTUT PAMIECI NARODOWEJ; (59276) neg.
06358
Copyright: AGENCY AGREEMENT
Provenance(s): 1. Agnieszka Piatek
Medium/Format: bw print; 1 bw 120 neg.
Any legitimate questions about the authenticity of the photo in question should not distract from the German crimes against Poles at Bydgoszcz (Bromberg) in 1939.
ReplyDeleteThere had also been a Goebbels-style propaganda effort to falsely accuse Poles of conducting atrocities on German civilians. Aspects of this propaganda sometimes resurface to this very day.
For more on all this, please click on my name in this specific posting.
Thank you very much for giving your valuable time to this subject. I often am dismayed at lack of prudence in the spread of misinformation. As unfortunately lack of authenticity does diminish the very subject it may well be trying to honor. So kudos to you, and God Bless all those in the photo and indeed all that suffered persecution.
ReplyDeletethank you for thanking me. It doesn't happen often at this blog, and when it happens, it means a lot to me.
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