Because he offered bread to Jews…
The Story of Tadeusz Nowak, Codename “Szperacz”
IPN’s educational series of short films entitled “Not Only the Ulmas” presents well-researched examples of Poles who risked their own lives and the lives of their loved ones to save Jews under the German occupation of Poland during World War II. Each episode focuses on a separate person, and most often a family or several families, whose members risked, and most often lost, their lives trying to protect their Jewish fellow citizens.
The short video series “Not Only the Ulmas” was created by the IPN Media Bureau in cooperation with researchers at the IPN’s Historical Research Department and IPN’s Office of International Relations.
One such short film tells the story of Tadeusz Nowak, one of the Polish workers in the Skarżysko-Kamienna munition factory run by occupying German forces. He worked as a locksmith in this factory, and at the same time, served as a soldier of the Home Army, a Polish resistance movement. He smuggled ammunition to fight against the Germans.
Despite the death penalty announced by the occupiers for even the lightest help to Jews, Nowak and his group were delivering food and mail to Jewish prisoners. Just before Easter of 1943, Tadeusz Nowak was caught by the German security service (Werkschutz) while providing such assistance. On April 21, 1943, he was sentenced to public execution by hanging for these activities. During the execution the rope broke, so the Werkschutz commander shot the Polish brave man, killing him on the spot. Tadeusz Nowak’s body was hung on the factory gate in order to scare off other workers and discourage resistance. According to some witnesses, a plaque with the inscription “This Pole gave bread to Jews” was mounted on his body.
Watch this thirteenth episode in the series of short videos entitled “Not Just the Ulmas”. The IPN’s educational series of short films presents well-researched examples of Poles who risked their own lives and the lives of their entire families to save Jews in Poland under German occupation during WWII.
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YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3Rt1Ny0Ccc&list=PLqh0OnxCcUeQyNYehvw5m60GCz7FpMq3K
IPN
