Warsaw, 30 March 1946. Examining judge Alicja Germasz, delegated to the Commission for the Investigation of German Crimes, interviewed the person named below as a witness. Having advised the witness of the criminal liability for making false declarations and of the significance of the oath, the judge took an oath therefrom, following which the witness testified as follows:
| Name and surname | Jadwiga Smokalska |
| Parents’ names | Feliks and Waleria |
| Date of birth | 2 February 1899 |
| Education | domestic |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
| Criminal record | none |
Before the uprising I lived in Warsaw at Trębacka Street 5, together with my family. Opposite our house, at Trębacka Street 2 and 4, there was the "Art Palace" antique shop, which my husband was the proprietor of.
On 5 August 1944, seeing that buildings adjacent to ours were on fire, I proceeded to the “Art Palace”, where I took shelter with a few other people. The house had a shelter in which there were gathered a large group of people, both residents of the house and passers by. On the morning of 9 August, five armed “Ukrainians” ran into the courtyard of our house and ordered everyone to leave the bunker; my husband and I went into the courtyard. Next, the “Ukrainians” drove us on foot into the courtyard of the house at Focha Street 4. There were approximately 100 of us, including some 50 men and some 50 women with children; there were no insurrectionists among us. From there, we were led into the courtyard of the house at Focha Street 5. In both courtyards more people were added to our group, so by now it numbered some 150 people. The men and women were separated and arranged in lines. The men were marched off first, with us, the women, following behind to Focha Street, to the rear entrance to the opera.
We were escorted only by “Ukrainians”, who took our watches, jewellery, and money, informing us that we no longer needed these items as we would be deported to Germany for labour. However, they did not conduct any particularly thorough searches. The men were led into the opera building through one door, and we through another.
I found myself with a group of women in an enormous cellar; there were many women in there already, but I cannot give their number as it was completely dark. Immediately upon our arrival, a few “Ukrainians” passed through our group, selecting and taking some of the younger girls. Where to, I do not know. After some time, Volksdeutscher women, those employed by Germans, foreigners, and women aged over 60 were ordered to leave the cellar. We stayed behind.
The next day in the morning I was in a group of some 50 randomly selected people who were led through the premises of Lourse’s coffee shop to the corner of Wierzbowa and Fredry streets, where we were placed near a burning house. At the time, Wierzbowa Street was under strong fire from insurrectionists who had occupied Teatralny Theatre Square. Wounded German soldiers were being evacuated from the house next to which we were standing. We were then ordered to pass along Wierzbowa Street, in twos, back to the Theatre, and the German soldiers were carried behind our file. At this point the insurrectionists ceased their attack. We returned to the same cellar.
The next day, a few SS men entered our cellar and ordered us to go upstairs, to the Theatre gallery. When we entered, I saw a number of “Ukrainians” standing by, with the barrels of their rifles directed at us. At same time, looking down, I saw piles and piles of bodies lying on the stage. There were no women among them, only men, but I cannot specify their number. At this moment the Germans who were escorting us ordered us to return and, using a different exit, led us back to the same cellar from which we had previously been taken.
The next day we were taken from the Theatre building to the courtyard of the house no. 6 at Ossolińskich Street 6, where a group of men was attached to us. From there, we were all marched off to a church in the Wola district.
Following my return to Warsaw in June 1945 I learned from Leokadia Chołodowska, a neighbour of mine from Trębacka Street 4, that the men who had been taken along with us from our houses had been shot dead in the opera building. Chołodowska had seen many human remains and documents there, and it was she who handed over to me the documents of my husband, Józef Smokalski, which she had found in the building; apart from this, I have received no information regarding my husband to date.
The report was read out.