WŁADYSŁAW CZERWONKA

On 7 November 1947 in Końskie, the [District] Commission for the Investigation of German Crimes, Końskie Branch, in the person of K. Gwarek, interviewed the person specified below as a witness, without taking an oath. Having been advised of the criminal liability for making false declarations, the witness testified as follows:


Name and surname Władysław Czerwonka
Age 45
Parents’ names Marcin and Marianna
Place of residence Hucisko, commune of Borkowice
Occupation farmer
Religious affiliation Roman Catholic

In the spring of 1940, our village of Hucisko aided a unit of the Polish partisans led by Major “Hubal” by providing them with food and fodder for their horses. In retaliation, on 1 April 1940 the German gendarmerie seized 28 men and transported them to the camp in Dachau. Only four of them came back.

On 11 April 1940 at 3.00 a.m., the SS units surrounded our village and shot at houses with machine guns. Then the SS men went from door to door, rounding up the residents. The women and children were herded into a field, while men were gathered on the road. I escaped to the forest, from where I saw that the captured men were on their knees, with hands tied behind their backs. Next to them, the SS men were digging a ditch. After being subjected to a short interrogation, the detainees started lamenting and begging for their lives. Once the ditch had been dug, the Germans herded 22 people inside, ordered them to squat down, threw in three grenades, and fired at them with a machine gun. Then they finished off those who were still alive with bayonets. The Germans filled the grave in. The SS men jumped all over the grave while holding hands, and then they drove off. During the execution the entire village of Hocisko – 78 houses – was burnt down, including my house and all of my possessions.