Haczów
Encyclopedia
Haczów ' is a village
in Brzozów County
, Subcarpathian Voivodeship
, in south-eastern Poland. It is the seat of the gmina
(administrative district) called Gmina Haczów
. It lies approximately 10 kilometres (6 mi) west of Brzozów
and 42 km (26 mi) south of the regional capital Rzeszów
. The village has a population of 3,370.
According to the administrative division during the years of 1975-1998, Haczów was located in the Krosno Voivodeship
.
The village is the site of Assumption of Mary
and St. Michael's Archangel
church, built in the end of the 14th century. 1624 it was severely damaged by tatar attacks.
The site is one of the six with Wooden Churches of Southern Little Poland
, on the UNESCO
list of World Heritage Site
s since 2003. Inside a valuable figural wall paintings dating from 1494 can be seen. The church has recently been renovated. It is believed that the Haczów church is the biggest Gothic wooden church in Europe.
and east of Krosno
. The village is extended along the Wisłok river for 7 km (4.35 mi) and the entire village covers an area approximately 25 km (15.53 mi) ².
on Magdeburg Law as a German Settlement village named Hanshoff, Hanshau.
On February 7, 1388 king Wladyslaw Jagiello confirmed the foundation document and he created the Roman Catholic parish in Haczów during his stay in Sandomierz
. Archaeologists have discovered church burials from the late fourteenth or early fifteenth century, which show the size of the city in those times. From this time period the Pietà
originates, which was later crowned by Pope John Paul II
in 1997 in Krosno
.
In 1402, the parish was bought by Schindeler Mathias, a cechmistrz from Krosno
. In the year 1426 the village was sold for 300 parish fines. The proof of the kingship of these sites are provided by a document from 1504 in which King Aleksander Jagiellończyk gave Sanok
, Haczów, Besko
, and Wróblik Jan of Tarnow to a Ruthenian
palatine
in exchange for the loan of 2,300 zł. In 1520, king Zygmunt II August allowed a steward of Queen Jadwiga' court to purchase for 1200 zł the sołectwo of Haczów, and again in 1533 the king allowed the treasurer of the royal court,Marcin Wolski, to purchase the parish and sołectwo from the heirs of the deceased Nicholas Piotrowski . According to church documents, in 1604 the local population still spoke German (see Walddeutsche
),thus explaining the origin of the polonised German names which the villagers have today. In 1624 the village was mostly destroyed by the Tatars, among the things that survived was the church. During this period, a number of cholera epidemics swept the village and in 1698 a large fire destroyed the majority of the village.
The owners of the Haczów sołectwo are:
n rule . That same year a new statute went in which forbade the burial of the dead near churches which was to reduce the chances of epidemics. On March 15, 1775 the German language became the official language in schools.
In the period preceding to the outbreak of the Uprising of Krakow, operating in Haczów from 1845-1846 was an emissary of the National Government, Julian Goslar, who proclaimed among the peasants the National Government's decision to abolish serfdom and to spread its "new gospel to the Polish people." Austrian agents sensing danger, pinned the serfs against count Felix Urbanski and Julian Goslar in order to prevent the chances of an uprising in the region. On January 22, 1846 the serfs disarmed the count in the marketplace and handed him over to Austrian authorities in Sanok
along with the priest, Walenty Zgrzebnym.
In 1869 the region was visited by geographer Wincenty Pol
who was amazed that Walddeutsche
settles who settled in the region along the Wisłok, spoke with such a fluent lesser Poland
accent that it is almost impossible to recognize the settlers' German origin.
In the year 1900, Haczów had 2,689 inhabitants; of which 2,150 were Roman Catholics, 486 were Greek-Catholic, and 50 were Jews. Until 1914, the village was one of the richest municipalities in the province of Galicia.
. The front eventually moved closer to Haczów and in September of that year, the sound of the artillery was heard, signaled the approach of the Russian army. The first Russian patrols appeared in Haczów on September 26 1914. On October 4, 1914, a Cossack
patrol raided the village only to be pushed back by the Austro-Hungarian Army
. In November, the Austro-Hungarian army
started a general retreat towards the Carpathian mountains
and the last troops left Haczów on November 10. Shortly after a Russian patrol consisting of around 100 cossacks came into the village and started to pillage it. In December of 1914, in particularly from December 10 to 12, large columns of the Russian army passed through the village in the direction of the Carpathian mountains
. However three days later, on December 15 the Russians started to retreat and fighting occurred between the two opposing armies which resulted in the destruction of a few houses as well as the death of three civilians. On December 16 1914, the first units of the Austro-Hungarian army
started to advance through the village. However on December 22 1914, the Austro-Hungarian army
started to withdraw and once again the Russian army quartered in Haczów. The commander of Russian army, Radko Dymitrjew as well as Nikolai Mikolajewicz were quartered in the village.
In the spring of 1915,the Russian army started to retreat from the region of Dukla
and this resulted in a tremendous battle that began on May 8, 1915. During the course of this battle, 42 houses were burned and a number of civilians were killed including Maria Szuber who was hacked to death by the retreating Russian troops. The church also was slightly damaged after a grenade started a small fire which was eventually put out. After the battle, the front never again swept through Haczów. The German and Austro-Hungarians maintained up until the conclusion of the Eastern front
a make-shift field hospital that was located at the local school.
, they formed a company and were sent to Chyrów to fight against Ukrainian nationalists. During the Polish–Soviet War, the men from Haczów served bravery primary in artillery units and a number of soldiers returned to Haczów with the highest military order, the Virtuti Militari
. The generosity of the Haczowian showed in 1919 when State Treasury made an appeal to raise money for the war effort, the locals responded by collecting a total of around a million koruna
.
After the Polish-Soviet War
, the village started to rebuild itself. In 1934 Haczów became the gmina
(an administrative district) under which the following villages were contained in the gmina
: Jabłonica Polska, Malinówka
, Zmiennica
, Trześniów, Buków
, Jasionów, and Wzdów
. In 1935 a monument was built in the memory of the Haczowian who died in the first world war as well as in the defense of the Second Polish Republic
, initially there were 88 names of locals who died in the two conflicts.
, the first arrests started on June 19, 1940. The Haczowian pastor Fr. Marcin Tomaka was arrested on June 19, 1940 for keeping an illegal radio. He was first sent to a prison in Sanok
and then was transported to Auschwitz. On December 12, 1940, he was sent to Dachau
(his camp number was 22242) where he died on July 8, 1942. A total of 25 Haczowians died in concentration camps and 3 died as the result of being overworked on forced labor projects. The years of 1939–1940 were the hardest for the locals who suffered under the new requisitions, quotas and taxes. Many suffered from hunger as well as the ever present fear of arrests. The Jewish population was taken to Rymanów
, where they were massacred in the forest.
Haczów was the site of one of the most organized Polish Home Army groups in the entire Krosno
inspectorate
, nicknamed "Placówka - Tulipan" or the "Tulip" . It was the site of the armed partisan group, communication, underground intelligence, medical service, and propaganda
groups. The commander of this partisan group was lieutenant Stanisław Nowak "Barbaty" from Haczów. Alongside him were his assistants and his staff, which included Stanisław Szuber, Andrzej Pniewski, Edward Szuber, as well as the group's chaplain
, Fr. Mieczysław Bossowski. The partisan group was formed into four platoons which were led by :
The partisan group was fairly active in the Brzozów area of operations for the Home Army. The staff would meet in the home of M. and H. Klepacki since the location was located off to the side of the village. The group was involved in a number of armed actions as well as sabotage acts that were directed at the occupying German
forces. One of the first sabotage acts occurred in the time period from June 23 to October 30, 1942, when the group dropped massive amounts of blacksmith nails on the roads between Targowiska
- Jasienica Rosielna
, Rymanów
- Besko
, as well as Trześniów - Wróblik Szlachecki
. The nails were made by Jan Rozenbajger, who was a member of the partisan group as well as a blacksmith. These nails were then distributed to Jan Rysz and Andrzej Szopiak (both from Jabłonica) who would spread the nails on the designated routes. The following operation was for the group to excavate and remove ammunition and grenades that were left behind by the retreating Polish Army in 1939 in the garden of the Jasionów manor house. After gathering information from the countess Doszotów, the group decided to go ahead with the operation. In the operation that occurred during the end of October in 1943, ten partisans under the command of Lt. Nowak as well as six partisans from the Home Army group from Domaradz
conducted the operation. Since there were German soldiers quartered in the manor house, the partisans split up their force into three groups - group one would provide cover for the manor house, the second group would cover the nearby roads from Brzozów
to Jasionów, and the third group would retrieve the ammunition and grenades as well as load them onto horse drawn carts that would take the items away. All of the partisans were armed in case of the expected clash between the Germans and the partisans, however the entire operation went without incident and the partisans retrieved a few boxes of grenades as well as ammunition. These items were taken to Zmiennica
where they were inspected and finally preserved for future use. Half of the grenades went to the partisans in Haczów while the other half went to the group in Domaradz. The next operation occurred on June 18, 1944, which was to remove grain from a German mill located in Haczów. The operation was commanded by the assistant commander of the partisan force, Stanisław Szuber, while the group that was to provide cover was under Lt. Nowak who was located 2 km (1.24 mi) away from the mill in Wróblik. Twenty partisans were involved in the operation and during the early morning hours of June 19, 1944; the operation was completed and a total of 40 tons were taken from the German mill which was later redistributed among the poorest people in the Brzozów County
.
The partisans were also used in a retaliation operation against Ukrainian nationalists in Besko
in 1943 who were persecuting the local Polish population in that area. The penalties given to those that were convicted of hostility towards the Polish population were flogged. Those individuals who were considered more dangerous were executed on the spot.
During the German occupation, in the Haczów area there were two active confidents who served the occupants: Waleria Bębnów and her son Mieczysław Bębnów (who later fled Haczów under a false name probably to Germany
. Bębnów was very active and she would try to get as much information as possible concerning the local population and whether they were breaking the occupant's laws. Many locals were arrested by the Gestapo
, a number of them were executed on the spot and a few were sent to Auschwitz, never to return. "Bębenka", as the locals called her, used many different types of signals to communicate with the police and or with other confidents; for example when she had some information to give, she would put a picture of a Polish national symbol, the white eagle (which was not allowed by the local occupational authorities, and those who broke these rules would be severely punished), or other symbols that included flowers and different colored drapes. Even after many warnings from the Polish Underground, she continued to operate. Fearing for their lives, locals started to avoid her. In their opinions, it was through Waleria's actions that the village pastor was arrested and who later died in Dachau
. Relatives and close friends of Fr. Tomaka would go to church every evening to listen to the radio in order to get information about the course of the war. Through someone's indiscretion, Waleria managed to get a hold of this information. When on June 19, 1940 the Gestapo
came to the house of engineer
Turkiewicz, his wife discretely got out of the house to the warn the priests that the Gestapo would shortly come looking for them. The current curate
, Fr. Mieczysław Bossowski (who was also the chaplain
of the partisan unit stationed in Haczów), ran away and swam across the Wisłok river without his cassock
and on the other side of the river a local woman who was working in the fields helped him get new clothes and eventually he managed to get to England
. The pastor, Fr. Tomaka, being an older man, decided to stay behind and to talk the Gestapo since he knew German. Unfortunately the Gestapo arrested the pastor who later died in Dachau
. Fr. Bossowski finally returned from England to visit Poland in 1991. For collaborating with Germans, on July 27, 1944 the Home Army partisans executed Waleria after conducting an operation to liberate cattle from the Germans. According to the locals, the next day her body was found and it appeared that she was executed while entering her house.
The partisans also undertook a risky daytime transfer of weapons from their safe houses to supply the partisans for the upcoming Operation Tempest
. Three partisans undertook this risky operation: Władysław Szuber (who was the unit's quartermaster
), his father Paweł Szuber, and Bronisław Budryk "Czesław" (a member of the Rzeszów district intelligence unit). The trio took a horse-drawn cart and went to Wola Jasienicka
through the village of Wola Komborska
to pick up the weapons. After meeting the warehouseman and after exchanging the prearranged passwords, they received a couple of Sten
submachine guns along with ammunition and grenades. After hiding the weapons in bags of flour, they started their journey back home. On the way back, somewhere before the turn to Jabłonica in the village of Kombornia
they encountered an oncoming automobile that was commandeered by Germans. The only option for the partisans was to open fire in case the car stopped to legitimize them. Fortunately the Germans only slowed down and passed the trio, they headed towards Iskrzynia
and probably onwards to Krosno
. However that was not the end of the troubles for the trio. In Haczów they encountered a member of the Blue Police
who stopped them and started asking questions. Paweł Szuber answered that they were taking wheat to the mill, however that did not stop the policeman from putting his arm into the bag of grain where he felt the wooden crate in which the weapons were located. Seeing that they might be in trouble of compromising the operation, Bronisław Budryk jumped down from the cart which caused the pistol that he had to fall out of his coat onto the ground. Immediately the policeman figured out with whom he was dealing with and what they were carrying. The trio along with the policeman went onto a side road where they threatened him that if he told anything then he would expect death from the Home Army. This threat was satisfactory enough for the policeman and the incident went unreported. Paweł Szuber was a soldier who took part in the Polish-Soviet War
and received the "Defenders of Eastern Kresów" medal for participating in the fighting in Przemyśl
and in Lwów against the Ukrainians and the Soviets. Władysław Szuber, his son, was persecuted by the communist authorities from 1944 to 1947 for being a member of the Home Army; he later lived in Krosno.
Just before the Soviets advanced to the region, lieutenant Nowak ordered a mission to liberate the library of Dzieduski and Doszolów as well as their family fortune from the manor house in Jasionów before the Soviets could loot it. Mieczysław Klepacki was in command of the entire operation. After taking all of the belongings, they loaded all of it onto horse-drawn carts in the forest near the border of Trześniów–Zmiennica
where it was taken to a Jesuit monastery in Stara Wies
and later to Kraków
.
During the second half of 1944, the locals experienced first hand the horror of war when the 1st Ukrainian Front
moved through the region in the part of the Lvov–Sandomierz Offensive. In the fall of 1944, the Red army
stopped for a few weeks on the Wisłok river, thus resulting in the village being split between the two sides. The northern side of the village was controlled by the Soviets while the southern side was controlled by the Germans. During this stalemate, 31 villagers died and many houses were destroyed as the result of the fighting. The Home army partisans conducted one final coordinated mission with the Soviets against the dug-in Germans. Lieutenant Nowak was able to gain contact with the Soviet forces on the other side of the river after he escorted a Soviet major who was trying to return to friendly lines after his tank was hit during the fighting in Krosno. Nowak agreed with the Soviet captain who was in command of the patrol to conduct a coordinated mission to gain information on the German forces by kidnapping the corporal who was in charge of the machine gun. In the next following days after the meeting, around 6:00 am, Lt. Nowak and a Soviet soldier crossed the Wisłok river and advanced to the position of the machine gun which was located next to the house of G. Klamut. The Soviet soldier waited in the nearby house of Ignacy Stypuły while Nowak went into the house of Klamut where he learned that the machine gun position was empty and that the corporal was currently in the bathroom. Nowak immediately after receiving this information ran to the bathroom and knocked the corporal out with the butt of his weapon and started to drag his body out of the house. However the German regained consciousness and started to run in the direction of where his fellow German soldiers were located. Seeing this, the Soviet soldier opened fire at the German, wounding him in the shoulder and in the check. Meanwhile another Soviet ran up and the two soldiers whisked the German back to their side of the river. During this time, Lt. Nowak jumped into the machine gun position and removed the ammunition as well as the bolt, thus rendering the weapon useless. The result of the mission was the successful capture of the prisoner and the immobilization of the machine gun. After interrogating the prisoner, the Soviets gained the needed information of the layout of the German positions to plan for their next attack which happened after a few days. However before the Soviets attacked, the Germans in retaliation for this mission arrested 12 locals and took them to the mines located near Targowiska
. Those who were arrested were shortly released and returned home after a few days. Once the front completely passed through the region, Haczów was able to lick her wounds and to start to rebuild. After the fighting ceased, the Home Army partisan unit was disbanded.
in the Polish army until September 17, 1940 when he was captured by the soviets. The NKWD forced Żubryd to serve as an informant for them however after Germany
invade the Soviet Union
in 1941, he started serving in the Polish Home army. When the Red Army
returned to Sanok
in 1944, Żubryd reported to the Soviets that he wanted to continue serving them. Soon afterwards he was advanced to the rank of a lieutenant
and worked in the Ministry of Public Security of Poland
as a interrogator in Sanok
. However as an interrogator, he was different from this co-workers since he never tortured the arrestees and in fact warned them of any future arrests. In 1945,Żubryd decided to no longer serve the communist regime and he contacted the anti-communist partisans and formed a partisan group that grew to the size of a battalion.Żubryd was active in the Brzozów
and Sanok
regions where his partisans would ambush and attack Ministry of Public Security of Poland
officials, Milicja Obywatelska
(MO) officials, and regional communist party officials. The communist authorities actively pursued Żubryd and they were able to capture and his son as well as his mother-in-law which they held hostage in order to lure in Żubryd. Żubryd was in the Haczów area when he heard this information. Immediately his partisans captured the commandant as well as the MO station in Haczów. After putting the prisoners in a nearby cellar, Żubryd the next day called the Sanok
Ministry of Public Security of Poland
(SB) office and demanded that in exchange for the release of his son and mother-in-law, he would not harm the prisoners. The SB agreed to the exchange and release their hostages while Żubryd released his prisoners. This daring action angered the SB who were now more determined to capture Żubryd. Żubryd was eventually betrayed by his personal bodyguard who switched sides and started working as an agent for the SB. One day the agent along with Żubryd went out to survey the region near Malinówka
, he murdered Żubryd with a shot to the head from behind. Moments later he lead Żubryd's wife on the same trail and murdered her in a similar fashion. Currently in Żubryd's memory there is a cross with a memorial plaque that is located in the forest near the village of Malinówka
.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
in Brzozów County
Brzozów County
Brzozów County is a unit of territorial administration and local government in Subcarpathian Voivodeship, south-eastern Poland. It came into being on January 1, 1999, as a result of the Polish local government reforms passed in 1998. Its administrative seat and only town is Brzozów, which lies ...
, Subcarpathian Voivodeship
Subcarpathian Voivodeship
Podkarpackie Voivodeship , or Subcarpathian Voivodeship, is a voivodeship, or province, in extreme-southeastern Poland. Its administrative capital and largest city is Rzeszów...
, in south-eastern Poland. It is the seat of the gmina
Gmina
The gmina is the principal unit of administrative division of Poland at its lowest uniform level. It is often translated as "commune" or "municipality." As of 2010 there were 2,479 gminas throughout the country...
(administrative district) called Gmina Haczów
Gmina Haczów
Gmina Haczów is a rural gmina in Brzozów County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. Its seat is the village of Haczów, which lies approximately west of Brzozów and south of the regional capital Rzeszów....
. It lies approximately 10 kilometres (6 mi) west of Brzozów
Brzozów
Brzozów is a town in south-eastern Poland, with 7,677 inhabitants . It is situated in Subcarpathian Voivodeship and is the seat of both Brzozów County and the smaller administrative district of Gmina Brzozów...
and 42 km (26 mi) south of the regional capital Rzeszów
Rzeszów
Rzeszów is a city in southeastern Poland with a population of 179,455 in 2010. It is located on both sides of the Wisłok River, in the heartland of the Sandomierska Valley...
. The village has a population of 3,370.
According to the administrative division during the years of 1975-1998, Haczów was located in the Krosno Voivodeship
Krosno Voivodeship
Krosno Voivodeship was a unit of administrative division and local government in Poland in years 1975–1998, superseded by Subcarpathian Voivodeship . Its capital city was Krosno....
.
The village is the site of Assumption of Mary
Assumption of Mary
According to the belief of Christians of the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, and parts of the Anglican Communion and Continuing Anglicanism, the Assumption of Mary was the bodily taking up of the Virgin Mary into Heaven at the end of her life...
and St. Michael's Archangel
Michael (archangel)
Michael , Micha'el or Mîkhā'ēl; , Mikhaḗl; or Míchaël; , Mīkhā'īl) is an archangel in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic teachings. Roman Catholics, Anglicans, and Lutherans refer to him as Saint Michael the Archangel and also simply as Saint Michael...
church, built in the end of the 14th century. 1624 it was severely damaged by tatar attacks.
The site is one of the six with Wooden Churches of Southern Little Poland
Wooden Churches of Southern Little Poland
Wooden Churches of Southern Lesser Poland and Subcarpathia of the UNESCO inscription are located in Gorlice, Nowy Targ, Bochnia counties , and Brzozów County and are in Binarowa, Blizne, Dębno, Haczów, Lipnica Dolna, and Sękowa...
, on the UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
list of World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
s since 2003. Inside a valuable figural wall paintings dating from 1494 can be seen. The church has recently been renovated. It is believed that the Haczów church is the biggest Gothic wooden church in Europe.
Geography
The village lies west of BrzozówBrzozów
Brzozów is a town in south-eastern Poland, with 7,677 inhabitants . It is situated in Subcarpathian Voivodeship and is the seat of both Brzozów County and the smaller administrative district of Gmina Brzozów...
and east of Krosno
Krosno
Krosno is a town and county in Subcarpathian Voivodeship, Poland with 47,455 inhabitants, as of 2 June 2009.Notably Krosno is the site of the first oil well in the world....
. The village is extended along the Wisłok river for 7 km (4.35 mi) and the entire village covers an area approximately 25 km (15.53 mi) ².
1388-1772
The first mention of Haczów from 1352, when Casimir III the Great issued a foundation charter for the colony of "Haczów". The village was founded in 1378 by the WalddeutscheWalddeutsche
Walddeutsche Germans , sometimes simply called Polish Germans, the name for a group of people, mostly of German origin, who settled during the 14th-17th century on the territory of present-day Sanockie Pits, Poland, a region which was previously only sparsely inhabited because the land was...
on Magdeburg Law as a German Settlement village named Hanshoff, Hanshau.
On February 7, 1388 king Wladyslaw Jagiello confirmed the foundation document and he created the Roman Catholic parish in Haczów during his stay in Sandomierz
Sandomierz
Sandomierz is a city in south-eastern Poland with 25,714 inhabitants . Situated in the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship , previously in Tarnobrzeg Voivodeship . It is the capital of Sandomierz County . Sandomierz is known for its Old Town, a major tourist attraction...
. Archaeologists have discovered church burials from the late fourteenth or early fifteenth century, which show the size of the city in those times. From this time period the Pietà
Pietà
The Pietà is a subject in Christian art depicting the Virgin Mary cradling the dead body of Jesus, most often found in sculpture. As such, it is a particular form of the Lamentation of Christ, a scene from the Passion of Christ found in cycles of the Life of Christ...
originates, which was later crowned by Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
in 1997 in Krosno
Krosno
Krosno is a town and county in Subcarpathian Voivodeship, Poland with 47,455 inhabitants, as of 2 June 2009.Notably Krosno is the site of the first oil well in the world....
.
In 1402, the parish was bought by Schindeler Mathias, a cechmistrz from Krosno
Krosno
Krosno is a town and county in Subcarpathian Voivodeship, Poland with 47,455 inhabitants, as of 2 June 2009.Notably Krosno is the site of the first oil well in the world....
. In the year 1426 the village was sold for 300 parish fines. The proof of the kingship of these sites are provided by a document from 1504 in which King Aleksander Jagiellończyk gave Sanok
Sanok
Sanok is a town in south-eastern Poland with 39,110 inhabitants, as of 2 June 2009. It's the capital of Sanok County in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship. Previously, it was in the Krosno Voivodeship and in the Ruthenian Voivodeship , which was part of the Lesser Poland province...
, Haczów, Besko
Besko
Besko is a village in Sanok County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It is the seat of the gmina called Gmina Besko. It lies approximately west of Sanok and south of the regional capital Rzeszów....
, and Wróblik Jan of Tarnow to a Ruthenian
Ruthenian
Ruthenian may refer to:*Ruthenia, a name applied to various parts of Eastern Europe*Ruthenians, a historic ethnic group*Ruthenian Catholic Church, the sui iuris particular church united to the Bishop of Rome and the Roman Catholic Church...
palatine
Palatine
A palatine or palatinus is a high-level official attached to imperial or royal courts in Europe since Roman times...
in exchange for the loan of 2,300 zł. In 1520, king Zygmunt II August allowed a steward of Queen Jadwiga' court to purchase for 1200 zł the sołectwo of Haczów, and again in 1533 the king allowed the treasurer of the royal court,Marcin Wolski, to purchase the parish and sołectwo from the heirs of the deceased Nicholas Piotrowski . According to church documents, in 1604 the local population still spoke German (see Walddeutsche
Walddeutsche
Walddeutsche Germans , sometimes simply called Polish Germans, the name for a group of people, mostly of German origin, who settled during the 14th-17th century on the territory of present-day Sanockie Pits, Poland, a region which was previously only sparsely inhabited because the land was...
),thus explaining the origin of the polonised German names which the villagers have today. In 1624 the village was mostly destroyed by the Tatars, among the things that survived was the church. During this period, a number of cholera epidemics swept the village and in 1698 a large fire destroyed the majority of the village.
The owners of the Haczów sołectwo are:
- 1426 - Mathias Schindeler, the cechmistrz from KrosnoKrosnoKrosno is a town and county in Subcarpathian Voivodeship, Poland with 47,455 inhabitants, as of 2 June 2009.Notably Krosno is the site of the first oil well in the world....
- 1520 - Mikołaj Piotrowski, the court chamberlain of Queen JadwigaJadwigaJadwiga is a Polish feminine given name. It originated from the old German Hedwig .* Jadwiga of Greater Poland, Queen of Poland and mother of Casimir III of Poland...
- 1533 - Marcin Wolski, the treasurer and standard-bearer of the royal court of Sigismund I the OldSigismund I the OldSigismund I of Poland , of the Jagiellon dynasty, reigned as King of Poland and also as the Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1506 until 1548...
- 1698 - Marcin Jerzy Wybranowski
1772-1914
After the partition of Poland in 1772, Haczów was under AustriaAustria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n rule . That same year a new statute went in which forbade the burial of the dead near churches which was to reduce the chances of epidemics. On March 15, 1775 the German language became the official language in schools.
In the period preceding to the outbreak of the Uprising of Krakow, operating in Haczów from 1845-1846 was an emissary of the National Government, Julian Goslar, who proclaimed among the peasants the National Government's decision to abolish serfdom and to spread its "new gospel to the Polish people." Austrian agents sensing danger, pinned the serfs against count Felix Urbanski and Julian Goslar in order to prevent the chances of an uprising in the region. On January 22, 1846 the serfs disarmed the count in the marketplace and handed him over to Austrian authorities in Sanok
Sanok
Sanok is a town in south-eastern Poland with 39,110 inhabitants, as of 2 June 2009. It's the capital of Sanok County in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship. Previously, it was in the Krosno Voivodeship and in the Ruthenian Voivodeship , which was part of the Lesser Poland province...
along with the priest, Walenty Zgrzebnym.
In 1869 the region was visited by geographer Wincenty Pol
Wincenty Pol
Wincenty Pol was a Polish poet and geographer.-Life:Pol was born in Lublin , to Franz Pohl , a German in the Austrian service, and his wife Eleonora Longchamps de Berier, from a French family living in Poland. Pol fought in the Polish army in the November 1830 Uprising and participated in the 1848...
who was amazed that Walddeutsche
Walddeutsche
Walddeutsche Germans , sometimes simply called Polish Germans, the name for a group of people, mostly of German origin, who settled during the 14th-17th century on the territory of present-day Sanockie Pits, Poland, a region which was previously only sparsely inhabited because the land was...
settles who settled in the region along the Wisłok, spoke with such a fluent lesser Poland
Lesser Poland
Lesser Poland is one of the historical regions of Poland, with its capital in the city of Kraków. It forms the southeastern corner of the country, and should not be confused with the modern Lesser Poland Voivodeship, which covers only a small, southern part of Lesser Poland...
accent that it is almost impossible to recognize the settlers' German origin.
In the year 1900, Haczów had 2,689 inhabitants; of which 2,150 were Roman Catholics, 486 were Greek-Catholic, and 50 were Jews. Until 1914, the village was one of the richest municipalities in the province of Galicia.
First World War
When the First World War started on the fourth of August, 1914 it had an immediate impact on the lives of the Haczowian. A general mobilization order was sent out and all of the eligible men were sent off to serve in the Austro-Hungarian ArmyAustro-Hungarian Army
The Austro-Hungarian Army was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint army , the Austrian Landwehr , and the Hungarian Honvédség .In the wake of fighting between the...
. The front eventually moved closer to Haczów and in September of that year, the sound of the artillery was heard, signaled the approach of the Russian army. The first Russian patrols appeared in Haczów on September 26 1914. On October 4, 1914, a Cossack
Cossack
Cossacks are a group of predominantly East Slavic people who originally were members of democratic, semi-military communities in what is today Ukraine and Southern Russia inhabiting sparsely populated areas and islands in the lower Dnieper and Don basins and who played an important role in the...
patrol raided the village only to be pushed back by the Austro-Hungarian Army
Austro-Hungarian Army
The Austro-Hungarian Army was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint army , the Austrian Landwehr , and the Hungarian Honvédség .In the wake of fighting between the...
. In November, the Austro-Hungarian army
Austro-Hungarian Army
The Austro-Hungarian Army was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint army , the Austrian Landwehr , and the Hungarian Honvédség .In the wake of fighting between the...
started a general retreat towards the Carpathian mountains
Carpathian Mountains
The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians are a range of mountains forming an arc roughly long across Central and Eastern Europe, making them the second-longest mountain range in Europe...
and the last troops left Haczów on November 10. Shortly after a Russian patrol consisting of around 100 cossacks came into the village and started to pillage it. In December of 1914, in particularly from December 10 to 12, large columns of the Russian army passed through the village in the direction of the Carpathian mountains
Carpathian Mountains
The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians are a range of mountains forming an arc roughly long across Central and Eastern Europe, making them the second-longest mountain range in Europe...
. However three days later, on December 15 the Russians started to retreat and fighting occurred between the two opposing armies which resulted in the destruction of a few houses as well as the death of three civilians. On December 16 1914, the first units of the Austro-Hungarian army
Austro-Hungarian Army
The Austro-Hungarian Army was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint army , the Austrian Landwehr , and the Hungarian Honvédség .In the wake of fighting between the...
started to advance through the village. However on December 22 1914, the Austro-Hungarian army
Austro-Hungarian Army
The Austro-Hungarian Army was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint army , the Austrian Landwehr , and the Hungarian Honvédség .In the wake of fighting between the...
started to withdraw and once again the Russian army quartered in Haczów. The commander of Russian army, Radko Dymitrjew as well as Nikolai Mikolajewicz were quartered in the village.
In the spring of 1915,the Russian army started to retreat from the region of Dukla
Dukla
Dukla ; , Duklya] is a town and an eponymous municipality in southeastern Poland, in the Subcarpathian Voivodship. The town is populated by 2,127 people . while the total population of the commune containing the town and the villages surrounding it is 16,640...
and this resulted in a tremendous battle that began on May 8, 1915. During the course of this battle, 42 houses were burned and a number of civilians were killed including Maria Szuber who was hacked to death by the retreating Russian troops. The church also was slightly damaged after a grenade started a small fire which was eventually put out. After the battle, the front never again swept through Haczów. The German and Austro-Hungarians maintained up until the conclusion of the Eastern front
Eastern Front
Eastern Front may refer to one of the following:* Eastern Front * Eastern Front * Eastern Front * Eastern Front * Eastern Front * 1635: The Eastern Front...
a make-shift field hospital that was located at the local school.
Interwar Period (1918-1939)
Immediately following the conclusion of the first world war, Haczów once again faced a new threat which this time were the Ukrainian nationalists as well as the Bolsheviks. In 1918, 250 locals volunteered in order to defend the sovereignty of the Second Polish RepublicSecond Polish Republic
The Second Polish Republic, Second Commonwealth of Poland or interwar Poland refers to Poland between the two world wars; a period in Polish history in which Poland was restored as an independent state. Officially known as the Republic of Poland or the Commonwealth of Poland , the Polish state was...
, they formed a company and were sent to Chyrów to fight against Ukrainian nationalists. During the Polish–Soviet War, the men from Haczów served bravery primary in artillery units and a number of soldiers returned to Haczów with the highest military order, the Virtuti Militari
Virtuti Militari
The Order Wojenny Virtuti Militari is Poland's highest military decoration for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy at war...
. The generosity of the Haczowian showed in 1919 when State Treasury made an appeal to raise money for the war effort, the locals responded by collecting a total of around a million koruna
Koruna
-Currencies:*Czech koruna or Czech crown, the only modern currency with the name*Austro-Hungarian krone, localized as koruna in Czech/Slovak*Bohemian and Moravian koruna*Czechoslovak koruna*Hungarian korona, localized as koruna in Slovak*Slovak koruna...
.
After the Polish-Soviet War
Polish-Soviet War
The Polish–Soviet War was an armed conflict between Soviet Russia and Soviet Ukraine and the Second Polish Republic and the Ukrainian People's Republic—four states in post–World War I Europe...
, the village started to rebuild itself. In 1934 Haczów became the gmina
Gmina
The gmina is the principal unit of administrative division of Poland at its lowest uniform level. It is often translated as "commune" or "municipality." As of 2010 there were 2,479 gminas throughout the country...
(an administrative district) under which the following villages were contained in the gmina
Gmina
The gmina is the principal unit of administrative division of Poland at its lowest uniform level. It is often translated as "commune" or "municipality." As of 2010 there were 2,479 gminas throughout the country...
: Jabłonica Polska, Malinówka
Malinówka
Malinówka may refer to the following places:*Malinówka, Łódź Voivodeship *Malinówka, Chełm County in Lublin Voivodeship *Malinówka, Podlaskie Voivodeship...
, Zmiennica
Zmiennica
Zmiennica is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Brzozów, within Brzozów County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately west of Brzozów and south of the regional capital Rzeszów....
, Trześniów, Buków
Buków
Buków may refer to the following places in Poland:*Buków, Lower Silesian Voivodeship *Buków, Łódź Voivodeship *Buków, Lesser Poland Voivodeship *Buków, Subcarpathian Voivodeship...
, Jasionów, and Wzdów
Wzdów
Wzdów is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Haczów, within Brzozów County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately south-east of Haczów, south of Brzozów, and south of the regional capital Rzeszów. The village has a population of 1,000. The...
. In 1935 a monument was built in the memory of the Haczowian who died in the first world war as well as in the defense of the Second Polish Republic
Second Polish Republic
The Second Polish Republic, Second Commonwealth of Poland or interwar Poland refers to Poland between the two world wars; a period in Polish history in which Poland was restored as an independent state. Officially known as the Republic of Poland or the Commonwealth of Poland , the Polish state was...
, initially there were 88 names of locals who died in the two conflicts.
World War Two (1939–1944)
On September 9, 1939, Haczów came under German occupation when the elements of the German 1. Gebirgs Division marched into the village. Beginning from 1939–1940, the German authorities had tried, like Goralenvolku, to create a separate nation in Haczów. They created a new term for a Haczowian: Hatshower. However this turned out to be unsuccessful even after the threats of concentration camps as well as the promised benefits did not affect the residents of Haczów to admit to being Germans. Many, in order to avoid being conscripted into the German army, admitted to a Swedish nationality. (Sweden was a neutral country.) After the failing attempt of GermanisationGermanisation
Germanisation is both the spread of the German language, people and culture either by force or assimilation, and the adaptation of a foreign word to the German language in linguistics, much like the Romanisation of many languages which do not use the Latin alphabet...
, the first arrests started on June 19, 1940. The Haczowian pastor Fr. Marcin Tomaka was arrested on June 19, 1940 for keeping an illegal radio. He was first sent to a prison in Sanok
Sanok
Sanok is a town in south-eastern Poland with 39,110 inhabitants, as of 2 June 2009. It's the capital of Sanok County in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship. Previously, it was in the Krosno Voivodeship and in the Ruthenian Voivodeship , which was part of the Lesser Poland province...
and then was transported to Auschwitz. On December 12, 1940, he was sent to Dachau
Dachau
Dachau is a town in Upper Bavaria, in the southern part of Germany. It is a major district town—a Große Kreisstadt—of the administrative region of Upper Bavaria, about 20 km north-west of Munich. It is now a popular residential area for people working in Munich with roughly 40,000 inhabitants...
(his camp number was 22242) where he died on July 8, 1942. A total of 25 Haczowians died in concentration camps and 3 died as the result of being overworked on forced labor projects. The years of 1939–1940 were the hardest for the locals who suffered under the new requisitions, quotas and taxes. Many suffered from hunger as well as the ever present fear of arrests. The Jewish population was taken to Rymanów
Rymanów
Rymanów is a town of 3,585 inhabitants . in Poland's Subcarpathian Voivodeship. It is a capital of a separate commune within the powiat of Krosno...
, where they were massacred in the forest.
Haczów was the site of one of the most organized Polish Home Army groups in the entire Krosno
Krosno
Krosno is a town and county in Subcarpathian Voivodeship, Poland with 47,455 inhabitants, as of 2 June 2009.Notably Krosno is the site of the first oil well in the world....
inspectorate
Inspectorate
An Inspectorate or Inspectorate-General is a civil or military body charged with inspecting and reporting on some institution or institutions in its field of competence...
, nicknamed "Placówka - Tulipan" or the "Tulip" . It was the site of the armed partisan group, communication, underground intelligence, medical service, and propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
groups. The commander of this partisan group was lieutenant Stanisław Nowak "Barbaty" from Haczów. Alongside him were his assistants and his staff, which included Stanisław Szuber, Andrzej Pniewski, Edward Szuber, as well as the group's chaplain
Chaplain
Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister in a specialized setting such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, or imam or lay representative of a religion attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, university, or private chapel...
, Fr. Mieczysław Bossowski. The partisan group was formed into four platoons which were led by :
- Mieczysław Klepacki "Szarak" - commander of the first platoon
- Bronisław Stepek "Wacław" - second platoon
- Jan Rychlicki - third platoon
- Jan Czyż - from Trześniów who commanded the forth platoon
The partisan group was fairly active in the Brzozów area of operations for the Home Army. The staff would meet in the home of M. and H. Klepacki since the location was located off to the side of the village. The group was involved in a number of armed actions as well as sabotage acts that were directed at the occupying German
German Army
The German Army is the land component of the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. Following the disbanding of the Wehrmacht after World War II, it was re-established in 1955 as the Bundesheer, part of the newly formed West German Bundeswehr along with the Navy and the Air Force...
forces. One of the first sabotage acts occurred in the time period from June 23 to October 30, 1942, when the group dropped massive amounts of blacksmith nails on the roads between Targowiska
Targowiska
Targowiska is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Miejsce Piastowe, within Krosno County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately south-east of Krosno and south of the regional capital Rzeszów....
- Jasienica Rosielna
Jasienica Rosielna
Jasienica Rosielna is a village in Brzozów County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It is the seat of the gmina called Gmina Jasienica Rosielna. It lies approximately north-west of Brzozów and south of the regional capital Rzeszów.The village has a population of...
, Rymanów
Rymanów
Rymanów is a town of 3,585 inhabitants . in Poland's Subcarpathian Voivodeship. It is a capital of a separate commune within the powiat of Krosno...
- Besko
Besko
Besko is a village in Sanok County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It is the seat of the gmina called Gmina Besko. It lies approximately west of Sanok and south of the regional capital Rzeszów....
, as well as Trześniów - Wróblik Szlachecki
Wróblik Szlachecki
Wróblik Szlachecki is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Rymanów, within Krosno County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately north of Rymanów, south-east of Krosno, and south of the regional capital Rzeszów.The village has a population of...
. The nails were made by Jan Rozenbajger, who was a member of the partisan group as well as a blacksmith. These nails were then distributed to Jan Rysz and Andrzej Szopiak (both from Jabłonica) who would spread the nails on the designated routes. The following operation was for the group to excavate and remove ammunition and grenades that were left behind by the retreating Polish Army in 1939 in the garden of the Jasionów manor house. After gathering information from the countess Doszotów, the group decided to go ahead with the operation. In the operation that occurred during the end of October in 1943, ten partisans under the command of Lt. Nowak as well as six partisans from the Home Army group from Domaradz
Domaradz
Domaradz may refer to the following places:*Domaradz, Opole Voivodeship *Domaradz, Pomeranian Voivodeship *Domaradz, Subcarpathian Voivodeship *Domaradz, West Pomeranian Voivodeship...
conducted the operation. Since there were German soldiers quartered in the manor house, the partisans split up their force into three groups - group one would provide cover for the manor house, the second group would cover the nearby roads from Brzozów
Brzozów
Brzozów is a town in south-eastern Poland, with 7,677 inhabitants . It is situated in Subcarpathian Voivodeship and is the seat of both Brzozów County and the smaller administrative district of Gmina Brzozów...
to Jasionów, and the third group would retrieve the ammunition and grenades as well as load them onto horse drawn carts that would take the items away. All of the partisans were armed in case of the expected clash between the Germans and the partisans, however the entire operation went without incident and the partisans retrieved a few boxes of grenades as well as ammunition. These items were taken to Zmiennica
Zmiennica
Zmiennica is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Brzozów, within Brzozów County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately west of Brzozów and south of the regional capital Rzeszów....
where they were inspected and finally preserved for future use. Half of the grenades went to the partisans in Haczów while the other half went to the group in Domaradz. The next operation occurred on June 18, 1944, which was to remove grain from a German mill located in Haczów. The operation was commanded by the assistant commander of the partisan force, Stanisław Szuber, while the group that was to provide cover was under Lt. Nowak who was located 2 km (1.24 mi) away from the mill in Wróblik. Twenty partisans were involved in the operation and during the early morning hours of June 19, 1944; the operation was completed and a total of 40 tons were taken from the German mill which was later redistributed among the poorest people in the Brzozów County
Brzozów County
Brzozów County is a unit of territorial administration and local government in Subcarpathian Voivodeship, south-eastern Poland. It came into being on January 1, 1999, as a result of the Polish local government reforms passed in 1998. Its administrative seat and only town is Brzozów, which lies ...
.
The partisans were also used in a retaliation operation against Ukrainian nationalists in Besko
Besko
Besko is a village in Sanok County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It is the seat of the gmina called Gmina Besko. It lies approximately west of Sanok and south of the regional capital Rzeszów....
in 1943 who were persecuting the local Polish population in that area. The penalties given to those that were convicted of hostility towards the Polish population were flogged. Those individuals who were considered more dangerous were executed on the spot.
During the German occupation, in the Haczów area there were two active confidents who served the occupants: Waleria Bębnów and her son Mieczysław Bębnów (who later fled Haczów under a false name probably to Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. Bębnów was very active and she would try to get as much information as possible concerning the local population and whether they were breaking the occupant's laws. Many locals were arrested by the Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
, a number of them were executed on the spot and a few were sent to Auschwitz, never to return. "Bębenka", as the locals called her, used many different types of signals to communicate with the police and or with other confidents; for example when she had some information to give, she would put a picture of a Polish national symbol, the white eagle (which was not allowed by the local occupational authorities, and those who broke these rules would be severely punished), or other symbols that included flowers and different colored drapes. Even after many warnings from the Polish Underground, she continued to operate. Fearing for their lives, locals started to avoid her. In their opinions, it was through Waleria's actions that the village pastor was arrested and who later died in Dachau
Dachau
Dachau is a town in Upper Bavaria, in the southern part of Germany. It is a major district town—a Große Kreisstadt—of the administrative region of Upper Bavaria, about 20 km north-west of Munich. It is now a popular residential area for people working in Munich with roughly 40,000 inhabitants...
. Relatives and close friends of Fr. Tomaka would go to church every evening to listen to the radio in order to get information about the course of the war. Through someone's indiscretion, Waleria managed to get a hold of this information. When on June 19, 1940 the Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
came to the house of engineer
Engineer
An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...
Turkiewicz, his wife discretely got out of the house to the warn the priests that the Gestapo would shortly come looking for them. The current curate
Curate
A curate is a person who is invested with the care or cure of souls of a parish. In this sense "curate" correctly means a parish priest but in English-speaking countries a curate is an assistant to the parish priest...
, Fr. Mieczysław Bossowski (who was also the chaplain
Chaplain
Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister in a specialized setting such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, or imam or lay representative of a religion attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, university, or private chapel...
of the partisan unit stationed in Haczów), ran away and swam across the Wisłok river without his cassock
Cassock
The cassock, an item of clerical clothing, is an ankle-length robe worn by clerics of the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, Anglican Church, Lutheran Church and some ministers and ordained officers of Presbyterian and Reformed churches. Ankle-length garment is the meaning of the...
and on the other side of the river a local woman who was working in the fields helped him get new clothes and eventually he managed to get to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The pastor, Fr. Tomaka, being an older man, decided to stay behind and to talk the Gestapo since he knew German. Unfortunately the Gestapo arrested the pastor who later died in Dachau
Dachau
Dachau is a town in Upper Bavaria, in the southern part of Germany. It is a major district town—a Große Kreisstadt—of the administrative region of Upper Bavaria, about 20 km north-west of Munich. It is now a popular residential area for people working in Munich with roughly 40,000 inhabitants...
. Fr. Bossowski finally returned from England to visit Poland in 1991. For collaborating with Germans, on July 27, 1944 the Home Army partisans executed Waleria after conducting an operation to liberate cattle from the Germans. According to the locals, the next day her body was found and it appeared that she was executed while entering her house.
The partisans also undertook a risky daytime transfer of weapons from their safe houses to supply the partisans for the upcoming Operation Tempest
Operation Tempest
Operation Tempest was a series of uprisings conducted during World War II by the Polish Home Army , the dominant force in the Polish resistance....
. Three partisans undertook this risky operation: Władysław Szuber (who was the unit's quartermaster
Quartermaster
Quartermaster refers to two different military occupations depending on if the assigned unit is land based or naval.In land armies, especially US units, it is a term referring to either an individual soldier or a unit who specializes in distributing supplies and provisions to troops. The senior...
), his father Paweł Szuber, and Bronisław Budryk "Czesław" (a member of the Rzeszów district intelligence unit). The trio took a horse-drawn cart and went to Wola Jasienicka
Wola Jasienicka
Wola Jasienicka is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Jasienica Rosielna, within Brzozów County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately west of Jasienica Rosielna, north-west of Brzozów, and south of the regional capital Rzeszów.The village has...
through the village of Wola Komborska
Wola Komborska
Wola Komborska is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Korczyna, within Krosno County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately east of Korczyna, north-east of Krosno, and south of the regional capital Rzeszów....
to pick up the weapons. After meeting the warehouseman and after exchanging the prearranged passwords, they received a couple of Sten
Sten
The STEN was a family of British 9 mm submachine guns used extensively by British and Commonwealth forces throughout World War II and the Korean War...
submachine guns along with ammunition and grenades. After hiding the weapons in bags of flour, they started their journey back home. On the way back, somewhere before the turn to Jabłonica in the village of Kombornia
Kombornia
Kombornia is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Korczyna, within Krosno County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately east of Korczyna, east of Krosno, and south of the regional capital Rzeszów....
they encountered an oncoming automobile that was commandeered by Germans. The only option for the partisans was to open fire in case the car stopped to legitimize them. Fortunately the Germans only slowed down and passed the trio, they headed towards Iskrzynia
Iskrzynia
Iskrzynia is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Korczyna, within Krosno County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately south-east of Korczyna, east of Krosno, and south of the regional capital Rzeszów....
and probably onwards to Krosno
Krosno
Krosno is a town and county in Subcarpathian Voivodeship, Poland with 47,455 inhabitants, as of 2 June 2009.Notably Krosno is the site of the first oil well in the world....
. However that was not the end of the troubles for the trio. In Haczów they encountered a member of the Blue Police
Blue Police
The Blue Police, more correctly translated as The Navy-Blue Police was the popular name of the collaborationist police in the German occupied area of the Second Polish Republic, known as General Government during the Second World War...
who stopped them and started asking questions. Paweł Szuber answered that they were taking wheat to the mill, however that did not stop the policeman from putting his arm into the bag of grain where he felt the wooden crate in which the weapons were located. Seeing that they might be in trouble of compromising the operation, Bronisław Budryk jumped down from the cart which caused the pistol that he had to fall out of his coat onto the ground. Immediately the policeman figured out with whom he was dealing with and what they were carrying. The trio along with the policeman went onto a side road where they threatened him that if he told anything then he would expect death from the Home Army. This threat was satisfactory enough for the policeman and the incident went unreported. Paweł Szuber was a soldier who took part in the Polish-Soviet War
Polish-Soviet War
The Polish–Soviet War was an armed conflict between Soviet Russia and Soviet Ukraine and the Second Polish Republic and the Ukrainian People's Republic—four states in post–World War I Europe...
and received the "Defenders of Eastern Kresów" medal for participating in the fighting in Przemyśl
Przemysl
Przemyśl is a city in south-eastern Poland with 66,756 inhabitants, as of June 2009. In 1999, it became part of the Podkarpackie Voivodeship; it was previously the capital of Przemyśl Voivodeship....
and in Lwów against the Ukrainians and the Soviets. Władysław Szuber, his son, was persecuted by the communist authorities from 1944 to 1947 for being a member of the Home Army; he later lived in Krosno.
Just before the Soviets advanced to the region, lieutenant Nowak ordered a mission to liberate the library of Dzieduski and Doszolów as well as their family fortune from the manor house in Jasionów before the Soviets could loot it. Mieczysław Klepacki was in command of the entire operation. After taking all of the belongings, they loaded all of it onto horse-drawn carts in the forest near the border of Trześniów–Zmiennica
Zmiennica
Zmiennica is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Brzozów, within Brzozów County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately west of Brzozów and south of the regional capital Rzeszów....
where it was taken to a Jesuit monastery in Stara Wies
Stara Wies
Stara Wieś may refer to the following places in Poland:*Stara Wieś, Silesian Voivodeship *Stara Wieś, Subcarpathian Voivodeship...
and later to Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
.
During the second half of 1944, the locals experienced first hand the horror of war when the 1st Ukrainian Front
1st Ukrainian Front
The 1st Ukrainian Front was a front—a force the size of a Western Army group—of the Soviet Union's Red Army during the Second World War.-Wartime:...
moved through the region in the part of the Lvov–Sandomierz Offensive. In the fall of 1944, the Red army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
stopped for a few weeks on the Wisłok river, thus resulting in the village being split between the two sides. The northern side of the village was controlled by the Soviets while the southern side was controlled by the Germans. During this stalemate, 31 villagers died and many houses were destroyed as the result of the fighting. The Home army partisans conducted one final coordinated mission with the Soviets against the dug-in Germans. Lieutenant Nowak was able to gain contact with the Soviet forces on the other side of the river after he escorted a Soviet major who was trying to return to friendly lines after his tank was hit during the fighting in Krosno. Nowak agreed with the Soviet captain who was in command of the patrol to conduct a coordinated mission to gain information on the German forces by kidnapping the corporal who was in charge of the machine gun. In the next following days after the meeting, around 6:00 am, Lt. Nowak and a Soviet soldier crossed the Wisłok river and advanced to the position of the machine gun which was located next to the house of G. Klamut. The Soviet soldier waited in the nearby house of Ignacy Stypuły while Nowak went into the house of Klamut where he learned that the machine gun position was empty and that the corporal was currently in the bathroom. Nowak immediately after receiving this information ran to the bathroom and knocked the corporal out with the butt of his weapon and started to drag his body out of the house. However the German regained consciousness and started to run in the direction of where his fellow German soldiers were located. Seeing this, the Soviet soldier opened fire at the German, wounding him in the shoulder and in the check. Meanwhile another Soviet ran up and the two soldiers whisked the German back to their side of the river. During this time, Lt. Nowak jumped into the machine gun position and removed the ammunition as well as the bolt, thus rendering the weapon useless. The result of the mission was the successful capture of the prisoner and the immobilization of the machine gun. After interrogating the prisoner, the Soviets gained the needed information of the layout of the German positions to plan for their next attack which happened after a few days. However before the Soviets attacked, the Germans in retaliation for this mission arrested 12 locals and took them to the mines located near Targowiska
Targowiska
Targowiska is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Miejsce Piastowe, within Krosno County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately south-east of Krosno and south of the regional capital Rzeszów....
. Those who were arrested were shortly released and returned home after a few days. Once the front completely passed through the region, Haczów was able to lick her wounds and to start to rebuild. After the fighting ceased, the Home Army partisan unit was disbanded.
Major Żubryd in Haczów (1945-1946)
The end of the Second World War did not necessarily end the hostilities in the Haczów region. During the late 1940's and early 1950's many anti-communist partisan groups existed who continued to carry out armed resistance against the newly installed communist regime. One of these partisan groups was a National Armed Forces (NSZ) that was under command of major Antoni Żubryd. Before the war, Żubryd served as a non-commissioned officerNon-commissioned officer
A non-commissioned officer , called a sub-officer in some countries, is a military officer who has not been given a commission...
in the Polish army until September 17, 1940 when he was captured by the soviets. The NKWD forced Żubryd to serve as an informant for them however after Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
invade the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
in 1941, he started serving in the Polish Home army. When the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
returned to Sanok
Sanok
Sanok is a town in south-eastern Poland with 39,110 inhabitants, as of 2 June 2009. It's the capital of Sanok County in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship. Previously, it was in the Krosno Voivodeship and in the Ruthenian Voivodeship , which was part of the Lesser Poland province...
in 1944, Żubryd reported to the Soviets that he wanted to continue serving them. Soon afterwards he was advanced to the rank of a 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...
and worked in the Ministry of Public Security of Poland
Ministry of Public Security of Poland
The Ministry of Public Security of Poland was a Polish communist secret police, intelligence and counter-espionage service operating from 1945 to 1954 under Jakub Berman of the Politburo...
as a interrogator in Sanok
Sanok
Sanok is a town in south-eastern Poland with 39,110 inhabitants, as of 2 June 2009. It's the capital of Sanok County in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship. Previously, it was in the Krosno Voivodeship and in the Ruthenian Voivodeship , which was part of the Lesser Poland province...
. However as an interrogator, he was different from this co-workers since he never tortured the arrestees and in fact warned them of any future arrests. In 1945,Żubryd decided to no longer serve the communist regime and he contacted the anti-communist partisans and formed a partisan group that grew to the size of a battalion.Żubryd was active in the Brzozów
Brzozów
Brzozów is a town in south-eastern Poland, with 7,677 inhabitants . It is situated in Subcarpathian Voivodeship and is the seat of both Brzozów County and the smaller administrative district of Gmina Brzozów...
and Sanok
Sanok
Sanok is a town in south-eastern Poland with 39,110 inhabitants, as of 2 June 2009. It's the capital of Sanok County in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship. Previously, it was in the Krosno Voivodeship and in the Ruthenian Voivodeship , which was part of the Lesser Poland province...
regions where his partisans would ambush and attack Ministry of Public Security of Poland
Ministry of Public Security of Poland
The Ministry of Public Security of Poland was a Polish communist secret police, intelligence and counter-espionage service operating from 1945 to 1954 under Jakub Berman of the Politburo...
officials, Milicja Obywatelska
Milicja Obywatelska
Milicja Obywatelska was a state police institution in the People's Republic of Poland. It was created in 1944 by Soviet-sponsored PKWN, effectively replacing the pre-war police force. In 1990 it was transformed back into Policja....
(MO) officials, and regional communist party officials. The communist authorities actively pursued Żubryd and they were able to capture and his son as well as his mother-in-law which they held hostage in order to lure in Żubryd. Żubryd was in the Haczów area when he heard this information. Immediately his partisans captured the commandant as well as the MO station in Haczów. After putting the prisoners in a nearby cellar, Żubryd the next day called the Sanok
Sanok
Sanok is a town in south-eastern Poland with 39,110 inhabitants, as of 2 June 2009. It's the capital of Sanok County in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship. Previously, it was in the Krosno Voivodeship and in the Ruthenian Voivodeship , which was part of the Lesser Poland province...
Ministry of Public Security of Poland
Ministry of Public Security of Poland
The Ministry of Public Security of Poland was a Polish communist secret police, intelligence and counter-espionage service operating from 1945 to 1954 under Jakub Berman of the Politburo...
(SB) office and demanded that in exchange for the release of his son and mother-in-law, he would not harm the prisoners. The SB agreed to the exchange and release their hostages while Żubryd released his prisoners. This daring action angered the SB who were now more determined to capture Żubryd. Żubryd was eventually betrayed by his personal bodyguard who switched sides and started working as an agent for the SB. One day the agent along with Żubryd went out to survey the region near Malinówka
Malinówka
Malinówka may refer to the following places:*Malinówka, Łódź Voivodeship *Malinówka, Chełm County in Lublin Voivodeship *Malinówka, Podlaskie Voivodeship...
, he murdered Żubryd with a shot to the head from behind. Moments later he lead Żubryd's wife on the same trail and murdered her in a similar fashion. Currently in Żubryd's memory there is a cross with a memorial plaque that is located in the forest near the village of Malinówka
Malinówka
Malinówka may refer to the following places:*Malinówka, Łódź Voivodeship *Malinówka, Chełm County in Lublin Voivodeship *Malinówka, Podlaskie Voivodeship...
.
1945 to the Present Day
After the war Haczów started to rebuild itself and once again the village started to grow . Through many investments, the following advancements were made to modernize the village:- 1958 - 1963 - 1000 hectares were drained on the southern side of the village which were given for agricultural use.
- 1960 - Veterinary services are offered to the farmers.
- 1962 - 1963 - Street lights are introduced to the village center, and an office building, a bakery as well as a GC warehouse is built.
- 1964 - 1969 - The elementary school is rebuilt and modernized.
- 1964 -The village is hooked up to receive natural gas in order to heat homes and to cook.
- 1966 - The top portion of the fire station is given to public use.
- 1970 - A health clinic is built.
- 1971 - 1982 - The director of the GminaGminaThe gmina is the principal unit of administrative division of Poland at its lowest uniform level. It is often translated as "commune" or "municipality." As of 2010 there were 2,479 gminas throughout the country...
is a Haczowian named Kazimierz Węgrzyn who is able to find the resources to invest into many local projects for the benefit of Haczów. - 1976 - The Communal Center for Culture and for Leisure is built.
- 1976 - 1977 - The church rectory is rebuilt.
- 1978 - A GS general store as well as a school store is built.
- 1979 - Additional add-ons to the elementary school are finished and the company "Friends of Haczów " building is built
- 1981 - A sewing/clothing factory is built in Haczów which employees many of the local women.
- 1983 - The parish house is opened.
- 1990 - The entire village is now hooked up to the telephone wires and over 100 new telephones are added.
- 1990 - 1995 - The village now has a sewage treatment.
- 2000 - The Church of the Assumption of Holy Mary and St. Michael's Archangel, is added to the UNESCOUNESCOThe United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
world heritage list. - 2002 - 2003 - The manor house is being rebuilt and modernized.
See also
- LendiansLendiansThe Lendians were a Lechitic eastern Wends tribe recorded to have inhabited the ill-defined area in East Lesser Poland and Cherven Towns between the 7th and 11th centuries....
- Great MoraviaGreat MoraviaGreat Moravia was a Slavic state that existed in Central Europe and lasted for nearly seventy years in the 9th century whose creators were the ancestors of the Czechs and Slovaks. It was a vassal state of the Germanic Frankish kingdom and paid an annual tribute to it. There is some controversy as...
- OstsiedlungOstsiedlungOstsiedlung , also called German eastward expansion, was the medieval eastward migration and settlement of Germans from modern day western and central Germany into less-populated regions and countries of eastern Central Europe and Eastern Europe. The affected area roughly stretched from Slovenia...
- WalddeutscheWalddeutscheWalddeutsche Germans , sometimes simply called Polish Germans, the name for a group of people, mostly of German origin, who settled during the 14th-17th century on the territory of present-day Sanockie Pits, Poland, a region which was previously only sparsely inhabited because the land was...
- Galicia (Central Europe)
- PogórzaniePogórzaniePogórzanie , also known as Western Pogorzans and Eastern Pogorzans, are a distinctive subethnic group of Poles that mostly live in the Central Beskidian Range of the Podkarpacie highlands....
- Turze PoleTurze PoleTurze Pole is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Brzozów, within Brzozów County, Podkarpackie Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. The village has a population of 1,040. The highest point in Turze Pole is the hill located just north of the village named Patria which is 383 meter...
- BrzozówBrzozówBrzozów is a town in south-eastern Poland, with 7,677 inhabitants . It is situated in Subcarpathian Voivodeship and is the seat of both Brzozów County and the smaller administrative district of Gmina Brzozów...