Alexander Zeisal Bielski
Encyclopedia
Alexander Zeisal 'Zus' Bielski (19 October 1912 – 18 August 1995) was a leader of the Bielski partisans
that rescued approximately 1,200 Jews from Nazi execution in Belarus
during World War II
.
) located between towns of Lida
and Navahrudak (both housed Jewish ghettoes during World War II.) He was the son of David and Beila Bielski, who had twelve children: ten boys and two girls. With his brothers, he formed the Bielski partisans
. The group hid in the forests of Belarus throughout World War II, led by the Bielskis. Zus, along with his brothers Tuvia, Aron
, and Asael
, managed to save 1,236 Jews. Although he left the partisans for the Red Army for a few months, he returned to save his brothers and the innocent Jews from the Germans. Today, those who were saved have over 10,000 offspring. His first wife, Cyrl Borowski, and infant daughter were murdered by the Nazis. One of those rescued was eighteen-year-old Sonia Boldo, whom he would later marry.
After the war, he initially moved to Israel
, but left to move to New York in 1956. There, he operated a taxi fleet and a trucking company with his brother Tuvia Bielski. He died of cardiac arrest in Brooklyn
at age 83. He was survived by his wife Sonia, sons David, Jay, and Zvi, and six grandchildren, Matthew, Danielle, Elan, Rebecca, Rachel and Jessica. Matt Bielski and Elan Bielski served in the elite Israeli Paratroopers.
in the 2008 film Defiance
, which has been criticised by an online Polish news agency, www.rp.pl, due to its alleged omission of the alleged involvement of the Bielski group in a massacre of Polish civilians
conducted by Soviet-aligned partisans in Naliboki
. The Bielski partisan group was the subject of an official inquiry by the Polish Institute of National Remembrance
's Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation after witnesses testified that Bielski partisans were among the perpetrators of the Naliboki massacre; however, the investigation found no conclusive evidence linking the Bielski group to the crime.
Bielski partisans
The Bielski partisans were an organisation of Jewish partisans who rescued Jews from extermination and fought against the Nazi German occupiers and their collaborators in the vicinity of Nowogródek and Lida in German-occupied Poland...
that rescued approximately 1,200 Jews from Nazi execution in Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Biography
Alexander "Zus" Bielski was born approximately 1912. He grew up in the only Polish Jewish family in Stankiewicze, a small village in Eastern Poland (now Western BelarusBelarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
) located between towns of Lida
Lida
Lida is a city in western Belarus in Hrodna Voblast, situated 160 km west of Minsk. It is the fourteenth largest city in Belarus.- Etymology :...
and Navahrudak (both housed Jewish ghettoes during World War II.) He was the son of David and Beila Bielski, who had twelve children: ten boys and two girls. With his brothers, he formed the Bielski partisans
Bielski partisans
The Bielski partisans were an organisation of Jewish partisans who rescued Jews from extermination and fought against the Nazi German occupiers and their collaborators in the vicinity of Nowogródek and Lida in German-occupied Poland...
. The group hid in the forests of Belarus throughout World War II, led by the Bielskis. Zus, along with his brothers Tuvia, Aron
Aron Bielski
Aron Bielski, later changed to Aron Bell, is a Polish-American Jew and former member of the Bielski partisans group, the largest armed rescuers of Jews by Jews during World War II. He was also known as Arczyk Bielski...
, and Asael
Asael Bielski
Asael Bielski was the second-in-command of the Bielski partisans during World War II.-Early life:Asael was the third son of David and Beila Bielski, being about two years younger than his brother Tuvia who later commanded the Bielski Otriad...
, managed to save 1,236 Jews. Although he left the partisans for the Red Army for a few months, he returned to save his brothers and the innocent Jews from the Germans. Today, those who were saved have over 10,000 offspring. His first wife, Cyrl Borowski, and infant daughter were murdered by the Nazis. One of those rescued was eighteen-year-old Sonia Boldo, whom he would later marry.
After the war, he initially moved to Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, but left to move to New York in 1956. There, he operated a taxi fleet and a trucking company with his brother Tuvia Bielski. He died of cardiac arrest in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
at age 83. He was survived by his wife Sonia, sons David, Jay, and Zvi, and six grandchildren, Matthew, Danielle, Elan, Rebecca, Rachel and Jessica. Matt Bielski and Elan Bielski served in the elite Israeli Paratroopers.
Legacy
Bielski was portrayed by Liev SchreiberLiev Schreiber
Isaac Liev Schreiber , commonly known as Liev Schreiber, is an American actor, producer, director, and screenwriter. He became known during the late 1990s and early 2000s, having initially appeared in several independent films, and later mainstream Hollywood films, including the Scream trilogy of...
in the 2008 film Defiance
Defiance (2008 film)
Defiance is a 2008 World War II era film written, produced, and directed by Edward Zwick, set during the occupation of Belarus by Nazi Germany. The film is an account of the Bielski partisans, a group led by three Jewish brothers who saved and recruited Jews in Poland during the Second World War...
, which has been criticised by an online Polish news agency, www.rp.pl, due to its alleged omission of the alleged involvement of the Bielski group in a massacre of Polish civilians
Naliboki massacre
The Naliboki massacre was the mass killing of about 128 Poles by Soviet partisans at the village of Naliboki in Nazi-occupied Poland on May 8, 1943....
conducted by Soviet-aligned partisans in Naliboki
Naliboki
Naliboki is a village in western Belarus, Minsk Voblast.From 1386 to 1795 and 1918-1939 the village was located in Poland. During the times of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth it belonged to the family of the Radziwiłł magnates...
. The Bielski partisan group was the subject of an official inquiry by the Polish Institute of National Remembrance
Institute of National Remembrance
Institute of National Remembrance — Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation is a Polish government-affiliated research institute with lustration prerogatives and prosecution powers founded by specific legislation. It specialises in the legal and historical sciences and...
's Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation after witnesses testified that Bielski partisans were among the perpetrators of the Naliboki massacre; however, the investigation found no conclusive evidence linking the Bielski group to the crime.