Object numberM2010/001:014
DescriptionTwo-page typed testimony of Tadeusz Jelenski, born in Lvov in 1908, recorded in the 'Refugee House' in Bucharest on 10 May 1945 by Jadwiga Sapera. The eyewitness account describes the transfer to a camp at Janowska Street where they were shaved, tagged with a number and a yellow patch and a red stripe painted on the back. He describes his weight loss, the conditions of the toilets (12 toilet holes for 8,000 persons), the beatings and so on.
Jadwiga Sapera was born Hermina Silberfeld, to Polish Jews Nathan Silberfeld and Anna (nee Hollander) on 27 November 1914 in Miskolc, Hungary. In 1918, the family returned to their home in Stary Sacz, Poland. Hermina attended a convent, which gave her a knowledge of German and Catholicism that was helpful for her survival. In 1942, Hermina attained false identification papers of a Polish-Catholic woman, Jadwiga Eleonora Jarzemiszewska. As Jadwiga she was able to find new accommodation and work, and at the end of 1942, moved to Krakow to better safeguard her secret. In 1943 she moved to Warsaw and then to Budapest, until liberation. After the war she kept the name Jadwiga and got work in Bucharest typing the testimonies of concentration camp survivors for the Association of Polish Jewish Refugees. She found out her father had died of hunger and disease, but her mother and brother survived. She was reunited with them in Poland. She lived in Katowice with her husband Jan Sapera who she met and married in 1946. They immigrated to Australia in 1958 with their three children. In the last decade of her life she re-adopted her Jewish name Hermina.
Jadwiga Sapera was born Hermina Silberfeld, to Polish Jews Nathan Silberfeld and Anna (nee Hollander) on 27 November 1914 in Miskolc, Hungary. In 1918, the family returned to their home in Stary Sacz, Poland. Hermina attended a convent, which gave her a knowledge of German and Catholicism that was helpful for her survival. In 1942, Hermina attained false identification papers of a Polish-Catholic woman, Jadwiga Eleonora Jarzemiszewska. As Jadwiga she was able to find new accommodation and work, and at the end of 1942, moved to Krakow to better safeguard her secret. In 1943 she moved to Warsaw and then to Budapest, until liberation. After the war she kept the name Jadwiga and got work in Bucharest typing the testimonies of concentration camp survivors for the Association of Polish Jewish Refugees. She found out her father had died of hunger and disease, but her mother and brother survived. She was reunited with them in Poland. She lived in Katowice with her husband Jan Sapera who she met and married in 1946. They immigrated to Australia in 1958 with their three children. In the last decade of her life she re-adopted her Jewish name Hermina.
Production date 1945
Subjecttestimonies, survivors, survival, eyewitness accounts, deportation
Object nametestimonies
Materialpaper
Dimensions
- width: 210.00 mm
height: 300.00 mm
Language
- Polish Testimony 14
PROTOCOL
Accepted in the Refugee House in Bucharest, Calea Mosilor 128, dated 10/V/1945.
With the aim of submitting this testimony presents himself JELENSKI TADEUSZ, born 31/V/1908 in LWOW and states the following:
In June 1941 the Germans found me in LWOW. During the Russian times I was a director of a restaurant. After the arrival of the Germans it was prohibited to return to one’s previous occupation (work place), however, in spite of this I proceeded to report to the restaurant. However on my way I was caught and I was attached to a group who were laying on the ground (next to the cinema house “KOPERNIK”). The Poles and the Ukrainians were beating us with whips and their hands. The group was taken to the prison on LACKIEGO Street for work, which was digging up of corpses. I managed to escape. For a month I was hidden at home. Because of the regulation that came out everyone was obliged to work (and in relation to this there were raids). I managed to get work in a restaurant. There I witnessed frequent “roundups” and pogroms on the Jews, carried out by the Germans and the Ukrainians. Until August 1942 I worked in this place. Because my work card wasn’t stamped I had to hide during the actions that sent people to Belzec. This action lasted 14 days. After the action I received a job in H.K.P. (HEERES KRAFTSFAHRPARK) as an expert in semi-precious metals. In November all the workers of H.K.P. were transferred to a SS camp at JANOWSKA Street where we were shaved, tagged with a number and a yellow patch (at the front and at the back) and a red stripe painted on the back. My number was 87. The Germans took away from us our documents and money. In cases when a Jew did not have money he was beaten cruelly. If a policeman hid money, he was executed immediately.
In relation to beatings distinguished himself BITTNER who was the driver of the superintendent of the camp, (used the butt of a revolver belonging to WILHAUS). The office that processed people coming into the camp was staffed by Jewish clerks whose duty, among other duties was to search the new arrivals. During periods when the Germans were absent the searches were not exact. After 2 days we were sent to our usual work place in the H.K.P. and on return to the camp during the evening there were incidents of escapes. In relation to this, strong repressive measures were introduced at our workplace. One time Oberfeldwebel FEROLI who was famous for his cruelty chose 6 persons who were already beaten by BITTNER with a whip and they were shot to death in the square by the Ukrainian police. The execution was preceded by a speech made by Captain SCWARZ who threatened to execute by shooting 10 persons who remained in the camp for every single escape. Five of those sentenced to be executed defended themselves against their death sentence using different means of persuasions. A metallurgic specialist was exchanged for a young boy due to the intervention of the German foreman. Only LEON the deaf and dumb locksmith went to his death with his head proudly held high. He was the only one who was shot in the chest (the remaining 5 were shot in the back). The major of H.K.P. influenced by Leon’s posture delivered a speech to us in which he likened escape from the camp to desertion from the army, and these executions he likened to military executions.
The conditions in the camp were deteriorating. The H.K.P. workers were not respected and we were harnessed to perform heavy camp work particularly unloading rail carriages at the Kleparow Station which was at a distance of 2 kilometres from the camp. Whilst we were carrying out this work the Germans and the Ukrainians beat us with rifle butts and many were beaten to death.
My wife was sent away by a German woman (BENKE-GALANTERIE WEKSTATTE), and she ended up without work documents. During seizures my wife was discovered with her 6 year old child hiding in a chimney. As a result of the intervention by the commandant of the Jewish Police the lawyer Mr LINDA who stated that she was his sister, she was released. Because work could only be obtained through the payment of a high fee to a German (through Jewish intermediaries) she had to continue to hide. In relation to this I became totally unemployed on the outside; I was sentenced to eat camp food. (My body weight dropped from 80 kg to 56 kg). During this period diseases were spreading. All the sick and incapable of work were shot to death. The frequent place where people were finished off was the toilets. For 8000 persons there were only 12 toilet holes. Whilst people were crowding around to relieve themselves the SS men were torturing them and eventually killing them. The camp manager, Commander GEBAUER was choking (suffocating) people. WILHAUS was shooting at the camp inmates from the windows of his villa; ROSENOV was breaking people’s arms. Once ROSENOV attacked me trying to suffocate me. Realising that if I yielded it would result in me being shot, I kept quiet even though I was in great pain. The same happened when he unsuccessfully tried to break my arm. Because of superhuman strength I managed to extricate myself from his hands but he ordered a Jewish policeman to give me 25 beatings with a rubber truncheon. During the beatings I was also silent which resulted in praise from ROSENOV’s mouth. I recall that in March 1943 the then local rabbi and butcher were brought into the RAWA RUSKA camp after they were discovered in their hiding place. They were brought deliberately so as to avoid Jews with beards. In front of all camp inmates and Germans on a specially purpose built podium they danced day after day to the sounds of the camp orchestra, holding in their hands umbrellas with holes. To assure that special care was taken with the “performances” Volksdeutch KALANKO from KATOWICE directed the “performances”. Up until the time of my escape these people were still in the camp. The group form H.K.P. which numbered 2000 that ended up in the camp was reduced to 600.
The place where my wife was hiding was supposed to have been cut off from the Ghetto therefore my wife moved in with her brother Dr Henryk Ritter who was on the Aryan side. After her lengthy exile on the Aryan side he placed the child in a monastery orphanage called IRENA HULL (I don’t know exactly/ with the help of the chairwoman of P.K.O./ POLSKI KOMITET OPIEKI NAD DZIECKIEM, (POLISH COMMITTEE FOR THE CARE OF CHILDREN). Dr Cwiklinska. Through the Arbeitsant he sent my wife to do agricultural work in Austria. Following my wife’s and my child’s survival I decided to escape from the camp. Into our workplace arrived groups of Russian prisoners who were then in the service of the Germans who we had to teach how to carry out our work. W.H.U.V./HERRES UNTERKUNFT VERWALTUNG and after the remaining Jews had trained the Russians they were shot to death. It looked as if this would happen with us. Therefore I decided to escape. My brother-in-law facilitated this for me though a particular tram driver. On the same day smugglers that were paid off were supposed to escort me as an Aryan to the Aryan transport system that went into the direction of Dniepropietrowsk. I however was left on the street. After three days I managed to leave for Kiew for work. There by chance in a public bath I unintentionally betrayed my origin (my Jewish Origin) in front of three Poles, whose harassment against me was limited to monetary blackmail. Despite my lack of money, I managed to persuade them not to betray me.
Only the manager of the transport from KIEW to TRYCHAT (TRANZAISIA) MARIAN SADOWSKY (who later turned out to be a Jew from ROWNO) harassed me and tried unsuccessfully to throw me out of the train at a train station. He managed to succeed in doing this same thing to two typically looking German workers. When I arrived to TRYCHAT I came across a Jewish friend from LWOW who was a manger of a workplace office. Together with him I worked in the office. I remained there until 24/V11/1943, when I left TRYCHAT for RUMANIA. I took with me DR TEICHMAN a surgeon from BORYSLAW who arrived there several days before my escape.
A list of persons who I know are alive.
POMERANZ Lusia – Age 19
POMERANZ Henia – Age 18 – from LWOW, both escaped from the ghetto lived on Aryan papers (lived as Aryans) in KRAKOW and later in TARNOPOL.
MINCZELES Lusia – my cousin, she left with the choir “TREMITA” for performances in SOTCHI where the war found her, she then left for MOSOW.
MINCHELES Erna - who escaped from the LWOW ghetto and travelled to Warsaw as an Aryan.
RITTER Barbara – travelled for work to PRUS in September 1942
HAGENSTREICH Sydenia – travelled for work to PRUS in November 1942
Credit lineSydney Jewish Museum Collection, Donated by Mrs Jadwiga Sapera