The Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Poland has honored the memory of the residents of Michniów and all victims of German terror in the Polish countryside. On the occasion of the Day of Struggle and Martyrdom of the Polish Countryside, it published a moving social media post accompanied by archival photographs and footage commemorating one of the most brutal pacifications carried out by the German occupiers during World War II.
Presidential Chancellery commemorates the victims of German terror
July 12 marks the Day of Struggle and Martyrdom of the Polish Countryside. The national observance was established by the Polish parliament on September 29, 2017, as a tribute to the inhabitants of Polish villages who fought the occupiers, supported the resistance movement, and fell victim to German terror during World War II. The date was chosen deliberately, as it commemorates the tragic events that took place in Michniów in July 1943.
The Pacification of Michniów – a symbol of the martyrdom of the Polish countryside
On July 12 and 13, 1943, the German occupiers carried out the brutal pacification of the village of Michniów in the Świętokrzyskie region. The operation was carried out in retaliation for assistance provided by local residents to units of the Polish Home Army (Armia Krajowa) and other resistance fighters.
Over the course of two days, 204 people were murdered: 102 men, 54 women, and 48 children. The youngest victim was only nine days old. Many residents were burned alive, and the entire village was destroyed, effectively ceasing to exist.
The pacification of Michniów has become a symbol of the fate of hundreds of Polish villages that fell victim to German reprisals during World War II. According to figures cited by Polish state institutions, German forces pacified 817 Polish localities between 1939 and 1945. Today, Michniów is home to the Mausoleum of the Martyrology of Polish Villages, where the central commemorations of the Day of Struggle and Martyrdom of the Polish Countryside are held each year.
“And I never saw them alive again…”
The Chancellery of the President commemorated the victims of Michniów by publishing a moving social media post together with archival photographs and footage from the site of the tragedy.
The post recalled that on July 12 and 13, 1943, the German occupiers murdered the village’s residents in retaliation for helping resistance fighters before setting the entire settlement ablaze. It also emphasized that these events are commemorated each year on July 12 through the Day of Struggle and Martyrdom of the Polish Countryside, which became an official national observance in 2017.