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

(Hardback)

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An inspiring story of unarmed civilians of all ages who took on the Gestapo, the SS, and the Wehrmachtand 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 deathand many paid the price.

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Recommended for parish, high school, and college and university libraries. * Catholic Library World *

Author Bio

Irene Tomaszewski is the program director of an international symposium on Polish Studies in Canmore, Alberta, Canada, and founding president of the Montreal-based Canadian Foundation for Polish Studies. Tecia Werbowski has written eight novels.