[17][18] In one notorious atrocity ordered by Stalin, the Soviet secret police systematically shot and killed 22,000 Poles in a remote area during the Katyn massacre. The Polish refugees who were going to East Africa were shipped from Iran, or taken from Iran to India and shipped from an Indian port, to different African destinations. There is some controversy as to whether the Soviet Union's policies were harsher than those of Nazi Germany until that time. [2] Tens of thousands of ethnic Poles became victims of the Great Purge in 19371938 (see Polish operation of the NKVD ). The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. The deportation of Poles in 1939 from their homeland is one of histories great "barely told" travesties. Polish children and families were sent from Iran to India, Africa, Mexico and New Zealand where they remained for the rest of the war. In total, the Soviets killed tens of thousands of Polish prisoners of war. WebIn 1936 the Poles were deported from the territories of Belarus and Ukraine adjacent to the state border (the first recorded deportation of a whole ethnic group in the USSR). This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. [7] The categories first targeted by the NKVD included court judges, civil servants, staff of municipal governments, members of the police force, refugees from western Poland, tradesmen, forestry workers, settlers, and small farmers, as well as children from summer camps and Polish orphanages, family members of anyone arrested by the NKVD, and family members of anyone who had escaped to the West or had gone missing. ), This page was last edited on 31 March 2023, at 13:14. [11] Polish literature and language studies were dissolved by Soviet authorities. This action largely nullified the earlier political gains from the land reform as the peasants generally did not want to join the Kolkhoz farms, nor to give away their crops for free to fulfill the state-imposed quotas, which undercut nearly everyone's material needs. It does not store any personal data. WebIn February 1940 the Soviet Union started to deport Poles to exile in Siberia. Web+254-730-160000 +254-719-086000. Waves 1 to 3 were slightly less different in that a pretence of legal proceedings was carried out often against a single person in the household, for instance that they were an "Osadnik" (i.e had fought for Poland previously and had been given Polish land as a gesture). After Russia invaded Poland, Stalin deported 1.7 million Poles to slave labour camps in Siberia, Kazakhstan and the Arkhangelsk Oblast in the north, in cattle trucks. Meanwhile the newly formed Polish army fought valiantly alongside the Allies in France, Belgium, Holland and Italy with more than 45,000 losing their lives. All enterprises were taken over by the state, while agriculture was made collective.[55]. The second wave of deportations by the Soviet occupational forces across the Kresy macroregion, affected 300,000 to 330,000 Poles, sent primarily to Kazakhstan. [29][47] No later than several weeks after the last Polish units surrendered, on October 22, 1939, the Soviets organized staged elections to the Moscow-controlled Supreme Soviets (legislative body) of Western Byelorussia and Western Ukraine. In Northern Rhodesia, 245 evacuees were accepted for permanent residence. World War Two: The deportation of Polish refugees to Abercorn camp in Northern Rhodesia. Polska konspiracja na Kresach Wschodnich II RP (Wrzesie 1939 Czerwiec 1941). First schools were opened in Tehran, where after one year there were ten Polish educational institutions. [60] The events of the late 1940s amounted to a full-scale civil war according to some historians, especially in the eastern and central parts of the country (see: the Cursed soldiers). Later on, scouting teams were organized. There were four major deportations: Wave 1 - 10th Feb 1940 - 218,000 Deported. Transports of scouts, which went to Palestine, were directed to Camp Bashit. The Russians at railway stations were sympathetic to the plight of the deportees and would attempt to discreetly help them. 
Along Mombasa Road. Classes began on September 1, 1942. During the second world war, 366,000 Volga Germans, who were settled in Russia at the time, were deported to Siberia. 
The chairs of Marxism-Leninism, and Dialectical and Historical Materialism, aimed at strengthening Soviet ideology, were opened as well. But the food, clothing and equipment promised by the Russians did not arrive, and thousands of Poles died of starvation and disease. All organized religions were persecuted. Journeys that lasted weeks until they reached camps where the Russians assured them that bourgeois Poland was finished, and that they would never leave the forests where they had arrived to work with little food or shelter. Most accounts from survivors mention them cutting a hole in the floor through which they had toilet facilities. Free learning resources from arts, cultural and heritage organisations. There were four major deportations: Wave 1 - 10th Feb 1940 - 218,000 Deported Polish military settlers, policemen and foresters. Journeys that lasted weeks until they reached camps where the Russians assured them that bourgeois Poland was finished, and that they would never leave the forests where they WebDuring their almost two-year-long occupation, Soviet authorities deported approximately 1.25 million Poles to many parts of the Soviet Union. inauthor:"Marcin Zaremba" in Google Books. Those who packed kettles and pots were able to scoop up fresh snow when the train stopped and thus use it for washing or boiling a kettle on the stove in the cattle carriage. As you watch the video, picture this happening to you and your friends. [19], The first Polish refugees came to Palestine in summer 1942. Web1940, February to April: (The Red Army annexed territories in the eastern parts of Poland) About 250,000 Poles and thousands of Ukrainians and Byelorussians were deported in three major waves to Siberia and to Central and Far Eastern Asia in order to remove the most active populations from the annexed territories.
A Forgotten Odyssey - The Untold Story of 1,700,000 Poles Deported to Siberia in 1940 tells their story. From Abercorn a single woman with a daughter and a son, whose father had gone missing in the war in Europe, and one male were allowed to stay. On January 15, 1940 the Lww University was reopened; its professors started to teach in accordance with Soviet curricula. The refugees finally left Iran after a few months, and were transported to a number of countries, such as Lebanon, Mandatory Palestine, India, Uganda, Kenya, Tanganyika, Northern and Southern Rhodesia, South Africa, New Zealand, and Mexico. "De-Polonizing the territories newly incorporated into the USSR", "Near and Middle East: The evacuation of the Polish people from the USSR", "Evacuation of Polish civilians from the Soviet Union to Persia 1942". Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. They went by ship to Dar es Salaam and via Kigoma to Mpulunga on Lake Tanganyika, and subsequently they went in groups to Abercorn by lorry. The railway carriages that the innocent polish people were loaded into were "cattle wagons". The Poles struggled to reach southern Russia, where the Polish army was reassembling under General Anders. Web500,000 Polish nationals imprisoned before June 1941 (90% male) 22,000 Polish military personnel and officials killed in the Katyn massacre alone; 1,700,000 Poles deported to Siberia in 1939-1941; 100,000 women raped during the Soviet counter-offensive (est.) Polish experts lower nation's WWII death toll. I n 1940, after Russia invaded Poland, Stalin deported 1.7 million Poles to slave labour camps in Siberia and Kazakhstan. 
The terrible ordeal of working in mines, farms or remote logging camps was often too much for the old or young. Lola was deported to a Siberian labour camp during World War Two, and finally came to Britain. Between March 24 and April 4, 33,069 soldiers left the Soviet Union for Iran, as well as 10,789 civilians, including 3,100 children. Tehran was a gate, through which we were sent, in groups, to different parts of the world. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. [28], Subsequently, all institutions of the dismantled Polish state were closed down and reopened under the Soviet-appointed supervisors. Wiesawa Paskiewicz, who stayed at Kolhapur, wrote: "Our daily activities were marked by school, church and scouting. In the first stage, more than 30,000 military personnel and about 11,000 children left Krasnovodsk (Turkmen SSR, present-day Turkmenistan) by sea for Bandar Pahlavi. starts with. No medical attention meant many people died. The term "deportation" was used, as if, in some way, these people had committed a crime. Political Migrations on Polish Territories (19391950). For years few spoke about it. In the aftermath of the German and Soviet invasion of Poland, which took place in September 1939, the territory of Poland was divided in half between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union. starts with. Some 25,000 Polish underground fighters, including 300 top Home Army officers, were captured by NKVD units and SMERSH operational groups in the fall of 1944.
Many shared the feeling You didnt want to tell them because they wouldnt understand or would laugh so you just closed yourself up. The story of the horrifying crime carried out by the Russians during WWII on the people of Eastern Poland wasnt well known and still isnt. It was established on October 17, 2003 in order to recognise and commemorate the sufferings of Polish citizens deported to Siberia , Kazakhstan and Northern Russia from 19391956. [56] Pre-war Poland was portrayed as a capitalist state based on exploitation of the working people and ethnic minorities. 
WebThose arrested were deported to Siberia, central Asia, and other locations in the interior of the Soviet Union. Web1940, February to April: (The Red Army annexed territories in the eastern parts of Poland) About 250,000 Poles and thousands of Ukrainians and Byelorussians were deported in three major waves to Siberia and to Central and Far Eastern Asia in order to remove the most active populations from the annexed territories. [4] Maurice, Count de Benyovszky was deported and emigrated to Madagascar . The cross memorialises their devotion to the ideals of freedom and independence. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. Being Polish. On 22nd June 1941 Nazi Germany attacked the Soviet Union, forcing them to acknowledge all the help they could get to retaliate. There was a kindergarten, a men's school, a women's school, and a middle school. 
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Now there are books written by the survivors or their children and many reader comment proclaim that this story should be told. About 40,000 Jewish refugees continued their flight from Poland, fearing arrest and persecution in either German- or Soviet-occupied territory. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. 
Wave 2 - Apr 1940 Families of officers imprisoned in the Soviet Union and Poland, in hiding and abroad. language, region) are saved. Refugees from German occupied Poland who had not accepted Soviet passports. The majority of Polish Jews who survived World War II did so in the Soviet Union, some in the gulags of Siberia, experiencing forced labor, hunger, and illnesses. If you want more information about what cookies are and which cookies we collect, please read our cookie policy. Her son died young due to an accident; her daughter still lives in South Africa with her grandchildren.[16]. Between March 24 and April 4, 33,069 soldiers left the Soviet Union for Iran, as well as 10,789 civilians, including 3,100 children. After Russia invaded Poland, Stalin deported 1.7 million Poles to slave labour camps in Siberia, Kazakhstan and the Arkhangelsk Oblast in the north, in cattle trucks. "Terminal horror suffered by so many millions of innocent Jewish, Slavic, and other European peoples as a result of this meeting of evil minds is an indelible stain on the history and integrity of Western civilization, with all of its humanitarian pretensions" (Note: "this meeting" refers to the most famous third (Zakopane) conference). Repeated urgent knocks would follow, with urgent shouts to hurry up and open the door. Any Poles still left in Russia and hoping to join the army, were sent back to Soviet farms to work and after the war, some made it back to Poland. We were not first the Poles in Africa. Regarding the ethnic composition of these areas: ca. Fighting for a free Poland and homes to return to. [14] Also, there were pre-war Polish citizens who saw the Soviet NKVD presence as an opportunity to start political and social agitation. Approximately 250,000 Polish prisoners of war were captured by the USSR during and after the invasion of Poland. Although accounts mention wood burning stoves being in some cattle trucks, no wood was given to them so they had to hurriedly scurry around whenever the train stopped and quickly locate piece of wood which would give a little heat for a short period. In this year of womens emancipation both in the UK and in Poland, these women have left us a legacy we should know by heart. [15] The NKVD had to open dozens of ad-hoc prison sites in almost all towns of the region. There were already 22 camps, with 18,000 people who like us had gone through different places of exile in the USSR, scattered across British Africafrom Kenya to Cape Colony.[12]. Polish at Heart, 2020. In 1944, the prime minister of New Zealand, Peter Fraser, agreed to take a limited number of Polish orphans and half-orphans, whose parents had died either in Soviet Union or Tehran, or whose fathers had fought at the front. It was established on October 17, 2003 in order to recognise and commemorate the sufferings of Polish citizens deported to Siberia , Kazakhstan and Northern Russia from 19391956. The Ukrainians had failed to achieve independence in 1919 when their attempt at self-determination was crushed during the PolishSoviet and Polish-Ukrainian Wars. Wave 3 - Jun 1940 [2] There were four waves of deportations of entire families with children, women, and elderly people aboard freight trains from 1940 until 1941. Watch it. [34][35][36], The Poles and the Soviets re-established diplomatic relations in 1941, following the Sikorski-Mayski Agreement; but the Soviets broke them off again in 1943 after the Polish government demanded an independent examination of the recently discovered Katyn burial pits. The total of 200,000 civilians were expelled from Poland in the following years, including extended families and children of the privileged classes, teachers and priests. 
Iran and the Polish Exodus from Russia 1942. [6][7] The Soviets did not classify Polish military personnel as prisoners of war, but as rebels against the new Soviet government in today's Western Ukraine and West Belarus. [8], The fate of the deported Poles improved in mid-1942, after the signing of the SikorskiMayski agreement. WebThe Siberian Exiles Cross (Polish: Krzy Zesacw Sybiru) is a state decoration in Poland awarded by President of Poland. Web+254-730-160000 +254-719-086000. Once youve identified a location of deportation, you can enter the place of deportation in the search to obtain a list of all the deported to that location. In Ahvaz, "Camp Polonia" was one of the main exit centers for Poles leaving Iran, and the last Ahvaz camp closed in 1945. Polish identity, culture, history and heritage for those of us born around the world. On August 9, 1942, a second evacuation began, which lasted until September 1. Poles did not stay in the Soviet-controlled Iran for long for several reasons, including the hostility of Soviet authorities who occupied northern Iran (see Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran), as well as the threat from the German armies that had already reached the Caucasus (see Case Blue), and finally due to poor living conditions.[13]. My mother refused the tempting offer of going to Santa Rosa in Mexico.