ŁUCJA STANISŁAWSKA

On 15 March 1947 in Gdańsk-Oliwa, a member of the Main Commission for the Investigation of German Crimes in Poland, Jerzy Rosner, interviewed the person named below as a witness, who, having been advised of the criminal responsibility for making false declarations, testified as follows:


Name and surname Łucja Stanisławska
Age 38 years
Parents’ names Tomasz and Helena
Occupation supported by her brother
Religion Roman Catholic
Place of residence Sopot, Bitwy pod Płowcami Street
Relationship to the parties none

Between 7 and 8 August 1944 the insurrectionary company ("Kryska" unit, "Tum" Battalion), in which I was a liaison officer and nurse, took over the ZUS building in Warsaw at Czerniakowska Street, which it occupied until 7 September. During this period the building was shelled constantly by the German artillery situated on the Poniatowski Bridge flyover, on the grounds of Frascati and the YMCA.

During the night from 7 to 8 September, my company was ordered to move to Solec. The wounded Home Army soldiers and civilians remained in the ZUS building. Over three days, that is until 11 September, I worked as a liaison officer and together with my five female friends – nurses – brought food for the wounded who had been left behind in the ZUS building. When around noon on that day I was going to visit the wounded, in Okrąg Street I was fired upon and wounded by the so-called cows. Unaided, I managed to get to the ZUS building, where I was placed in the bunker on a pile of paper.

According to the nurses, the total number of wounded was around 800, including some 150 insurrectionists from various companies. Other insurrectionary units, which arrived on 8 September (by night, through the sewers) from the Old Town, left the ZUS building on the morning of 12 September, making their way in the direction of Okrąg and Wilanowska streets. Thereafter, only the wounded and sick – cared for by the doctors and nurses – remained in the ZUS building. A Red Cross flag was hung up on the roof. The next day in the morning, aeroplanes started to bomb the building, while a large number of small tanks arranged in an arc in the vicinity of the municipal gasworks opened fire with their cannons. The shells would pierce the walls and then hit piles of paper, which (in a quantity of some two tonnes) had previously been removed from the bunkers and placed in the corridor. This started a fire that spread rapidly and made the rescue operation difficult. The less severely wounded left the building unaided and proceeded with the doctors – under German escort – in the direction of Frascati Street. As far as I was able to determine, this group was subsequently transported to Kraków. The gravely wounded were carried out of the flames and placed in the courtyard of the gasworks.

The female nurses were taken by soldiers inside the walls of the gasworks and raped.

I don’t know what German units were taking part in the operation.

On the evening of that day the Russians conducted a bombing raid, during which the man giving out orders – probably an officer, with the letters "SD" on his sleeve – left the wounded lying in the courtyard guarded by one soldier. Throughout this time individual soldiers would beat and kick the wounded, taking their money and jewellery and calling them "bandits" and "partisans". The civilians who had hid in the ZUS building during the air raid were also thrown out into the premises of the gasworks. They were treated in a similar way. The Germans announced that they would be shot, however the Soviet bombing raid ruined their plans. The Germans failed to return after the raid, and therefore we all took off in the direction of Tamka Street, helping one another along. The civilians did not help the wounded insurrectionists, for they had their own wounded and their luggage. Some 140 to 180 people died when the ZUS building was under fire.

Having reached Tamka Street, we went to St. Kazimierz’s Hospital, administered by nuns, where we were accepted. We stayed there until 27 September, under constant fire. On 26 September the less severely wounded (some of them) were taken by the Germans to the Baby Jesus Hospital, from where they were transferred to Kraków. On 27 September I was transported along with some 50 other people to St. Wojciech’s Church on Wolska Street, where we were attached to other groups, some of which had arrived before, while some came in later; next day in the morning we were led to the Western Railway Station and transported in wagons to Pruszków.

I can provide the surnames and addresses of the people who were with me in the ZUS building during this time. These are the following: M. Damięcka (Warsaw, Piusa XI Street 22), Kazimiera Terpiłowska (Warsaw, Grażyny Street 18, flat 6), Maryla Karwowska (Warsaw, Żoliborz, Czarnieckiego Street 29), Dr Walicki, I think his name is Tadeusz (Warsaw, I don’t know his street address), Lucyna Gawryszewska (Warsaw, Nowy Świat Street 72, flat 3), Jan Gajewski (Warsaw, Warecka Street 5, flat 6).

I would like to add that some of the German soldiers taking part in the operation described above spoke in Ukrainian. This is all.

The report was read out.