Eugene Lazowski
Encyclopedia
Dr. Eugene Lazowski born Eugeniusz Sławomir Łazowski (1913, Częstochowa
, Poland
– December 16, 2006, Eugene, Oregon
, United States
) was a Polish
medical doctor who saved thousands of Jews
during the Holocaust by creating a fake epidemic
which played on racist German
phobias about hygiene
. By doing this, he risked the German death penalty, which was applied to Poles who helped Jews in the Holocaust
.
During World War II
Łazowski served as a Polish Army Second Lieutenant
on a Red Cross train, then as a military doctor of the Polish resistance Home Army. Thanks to a medical discovery by his friend, Dr Stanisław Matulewicz, Łazowski created a fake outbreak of Epidemic Typhus, a dangerous infectious disease. He spread it in and around the town of Rozwadów
(now a district of Stalowa Wola
), which the Germans then quarantined. This saved an estimated 8,000 Polish Jews from certain death in German concentration camps during the Holocaust. Łazowski did this in utmost secrecy because he, like all Poles, were under the threat of execution by the Germans if they helped Jews. In 1958, Lazowski emigrated to the United States
on a scholarship from Rockefeller Foundation
and became professor
of Pediatrics
at the State University of Illinois. He wrote a memoir
entitled Prywatna wojna (My Private War) and over a hundred scientific dissertations.
Eugeniusz Łazowski obtained a medical degree at the Józef Piłsudski University in Warsaw
. During the German occupation
Łazowski resided in Rozwadów with his wife and young daughter. Łazowski spent time in a prisoner-of-war camp
prior to his arrival in the town, where he reunited with his family and began practising medicine with his medical-school friend Dr Stanisław Matulewicz. Matulewicz discovered that by injecting a healthy person with a "vaccine" of killed bacteria, that person would test positive for Epidemic Typhus without experiencing the symptoms. The two doctors hatched a secret plan to save about a dozen villages in the vicinity of Rozwadów and Zbydniów not only from forced labor exploitation
, but also Nazi extermination. Łazowski, the Polish 'Schindler', created a fake typhus
epidemic in the town of Rozwadow and its vicinity and spared 8,000 Jews
from Nazi persecution
. He used medical science to deceive the Germans and save both Jews and Poles from deportation to the Nazi concentration camps
.
Germans were terrified of the disease because the disease was highly contagious. Those infected with typhus were not sent to concentration camps. Instead, when a sufficient number of people were infected, the Germans would quarantine the entire area. However, the Germans would not enter the FLECKFIEBER zone, fearing the disease would spread to them also.
In this way, while Dr. Lazowski and Dr. Matulewicz did not hide Jewish families in their homes, they were able to spare 8,000 people from 12 ghettos from summary executions and inevitable deportations to concentration camps. Jews who tested positive for typhus were summarily massacred by the Nazis, that's why the doctors used to inject the non-Jewish population in neighborhoods surrounding the ghetto
s knowing that a possibility of widespread outbreak inside would cause Germans to abandon the area and thus spare local Jews in the process.
A documentary about Dr. Eugene Lazowski entitled "A Private War" was made by a television producer Ryan Bank
who followed Lazowski back to Poland and recorded testimonies of people whose families were saved by the fake epidemic.
Lazowski retired from practice in the late 1980s. He died in 2006 in Eugene, Oregon
, where he had been living with his daughter.
Czestochowa
Częstochowa is a city in south Poland on the Warta River with 240,027 inhabitants . It has been situated in the Silesian Voivodeship since 1999, and was previously the capital of Częstochowa Voivodeship...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
– December 16, 2006, Eugene, Oregon
Eugene, Oregon
Eugene is the second largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon and the seat of Lane County. It is located at the south end of the Willamette Valley, at the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast.As of the 2010 U.S...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) was a Polish
Poles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
medical doctor who saved thousands of Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
during the Holocaust by creating a fake epidemic
Epidemic
In epidemiology, an epidemic , occurs when new cases of a certain disease, in a given human population, and during a given period, substantially exceed what is expected based on recent experience...
which played on racist German
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
phobias about hygiene
Hygiene
Hygiene refers to the set of practices perceived by a community to be associated with the preservation of health and healthy living. While in modern medical sciences there is a set of standards of hygiene recommended for different situations, what is considered hygienic or not can vary between...
. By doing this, he risked the German death penalty, which was applied to Poles who helped Jews in the Holocaust
Rescue of Jews by Poles during the Holocaust
Polish Jews were the primary victims of the German Nazi-organized Holocaust. Throughout the German occupation of Poland, many Polish Gentiles risked their own lives—and the lives of their families—to rescue Jews from the Nazis. Grouped by nationality, Poles represent the biggest number of people...
.
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...
Łazowski served as a Polish Army Second Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
on a Red Cross train, then as a military doctor of the Polish resistance Home Army. Thanks to a medical discovery by his friend, Dr Stanisław Matulewicz, Łazowski created a fake outbreak of Epidemic Typhus, a dangerous infectious disease. He spread it in and around the town of Rozwadów
Rozwadów
Rozwadów is a suburb of Stalowa Wola, Poland. Founded as a town in 1690, it was incorporated into Stalowa Wola in 1973. The Rozwadów suburb of Stalowa Wola included a thriving Jewish shtetl prior to World War II, closely associated with the Jewish communities of Tarnobrzeg and other nearby...
(now a district of Stalowa Wola
Stalowa Wola
Stalowa Wola is the largest city and capital of Stalowa Wola County with a population of 64,353 inhabitants, as of June 2008. It is located in southeastern Poland in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship...
), which the Germans then quarantined. This saved an estimated 8,000 Polish Jews from certain death in German concentration camps during the Holocaust. Łazowski did this in utmost secrecy because he, like all Poles, were under the threat of execution by the Germans if they helped Jews. In 1958, Lazowski emigrated to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on a scholarship from Rockefeller Foundation
Rockefeller Foundation
The Rockefeller Foundation is a prominent philanthropic organization and private foundation based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The preeminent institution established by the six-generation Rockefeller family, it was founded by John D. Rockefeller , along with his son John D. Rockefeller, Jr...
and became professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
of Pediatrics
Pediatrics
Pediatrics or paediatrics is the branch of medicine that deals with the medical care of infants, children, and adolescents. A medical practitioner who specializes in this area is known as a pediatrician or paediatrician...
at the State University of Illinois. He wrote a memoir
Memoir
A memoir , is a literary genre, forming a subclass of autobiography – although the terms 'memoir' and 'autobiography' are almost interchangeable. Memoir is autobiographical writing, but not all autobiographical writing follows the criteria for memoir set out below...
entitled Prywatna wojna (My Private War) and over a hundred scientific dissertations.
The Polish Schindler
Before the onset of World War IIWorld 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...
Eugeniusz Łazowski obtained a medical degree at the Józef Piłsudski University in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
. During the German occupation
History of Poland (1939–1945)
The history of Poland from 1939 to 1945 encompasses the German invasion of Poland as well as the Soviet invasion of Poland through to the end of World War II. On 1 September 1939, without a formal declaration of war, Germany invaded Poland...
Łazowski resided in Rozwadów with his wife and young daughter. Łazowski spent time in a prisoner-of-war camp
Prisoner-of-war camp
A prisoner-of-war camp is a site for the containment of combatants captured by their enemy in time of war, and is similar to an internment camp which is used for civilian populations. A prisoner of war is generally a soldier, sailor, or airman who is imprisoned by an enemy power during or...
prior to his arrival in the town, where he reunited with his family and began practising medicine with his medical-school friend Dr Stanisław Matulewicz. Matulewicz discovered that by injecting a healthy person with a "vaccine" of killed bacteria, that person would test positive for Epidemic Typhus without experiencing the symptoms. The two doctors hatched a secret plan to save about a dozen villages in the vicinity of Rozwadów and Zbydniów not only from forced labor exploitation
Forced labor in Germany during World War II
The use of forced labour in Nazi Germany and throughout German-occupied Europe during World War II took place on an unprecedented scale. It was a vital part of the German economic exploitation of conquered territories. It also contributed to the mass extermination of populations in German-occupied...
, but also Nazi extermination. Łazowski, the Polish 'Schindler', created a fake typhus
Typhus
Epidemic typhus is a form of typhus so named because the disease often causes epidemics following wars and natural disasters...
epidemic in the town of Rozwadow and its vicinity and spared 8,000 Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
from Nazi persecution
Persecution of Jews
Persecution of Jews has occurred on numerous occasions and at widely different geographical locations. As well as being a major component in Jewish history, it has significantly affected the general history and social development of the countries and societies in which the persecuted Jews...
. He used medical science to deceive the Germans and save both Jews and Poles from deportation to the Nazi concentration camps
Nazi concentration camps
Nazi Germany maintained concentration camps throughout the territories it controlled. The first Nazi concentration camps set up in Germany were greatly expanded after the Reichstag fire of 1933, and were intended to hold political prisoners and opponents of the regime...
.
Germans were terrified of the disease because the disease was highly contagious. Those infected with typhus were not sent to concentration camps. Instead, when a sufficient number of people were infected, the Germans would quarantine the entire area. However, the Germans would not enter the FLECKFIEBER zone, fearing the disease would spread to them also.
In this way, while Dr. Lazowski and Dr. Matulewicz did not hide Jewish families in their homes, they were able to spare 8,000 people from 12 ghettos from summary executions and inevitable deportations to concentration camps. Jews who tested positive for typhus were summarily massacred by the Nazis, that's why the doctors used to inject the non-Jewish population in neighborhoods surrounding the ghetto
Ghetto
A ghetto is a section of a city predominantly occupied by a group who live there, especially because of social, economic, or legal issues.The term was originally used in Venice to describe the area where Jews were compelled to live. The term now refers to an overcrowded urban area often associated...
s knowing that a possibility of widespread outbreak inside would cause Germans to abandon the area and thus spare local Jews in the process.
A documentary about Dr. Eugene Lazowski entitled "A Private War" was made by a television producer Ryan Bank
Ryan Bank
Ryan Clayton Bank is an Emerging Technology Expert and Innovation Evangelist. Bank is the Founder of , a start-up company that enables governments and corporate clients to gather Social and Open Source Intelligence...
who followed Lazowski back to Poland and recorded testimonies of people whose families were saved by the fake epidemic.
Lazowski retired from practice in the late 1980s. He died in 2006 in Eugene, Oregon
Eugene, Oregon
Eugene is the second largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon and the seat of Lane County. It is located at the south end of the Willamette Valley, at the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast.As of the 2010 U.S...
, where he had been living with his daughter.