TT Media Essay
The Council for Aid to Jews: Żegota
The Council for Aid to Jews (codenamed “Żegota”) was an underground rescue organization of Poles and Jews. It operated in German-occupied Poland from December 4, 1942, to January 1945 and was supported by the Polish government-in-exile. Żegota’s main objective was to coordinate efforts to save Jews from Nazi persecution and murder. Its members worked clandestinely, often risking their own lives and the lives of their families and friends. Żegota supplied tens of thousands of Polish Jews with fake IDs. The network also identified hiding places and delivered money, medical assistance, and food to thousands of Jews in its care. Yad Vashem has honored the organization and individual Żegota members for their efforts.
Portrait of Żegota co-founder Władysław Bartoszewski
Portrait of Władysław Bartoszewski, Poland, unknown date.
Władysław Bartoszewski (1922–2015) was a co-founder and member of the Council for Aid to Jews (codenamed “Żegota”). Żegota was a clandestine rescue organization of Poles and Jews in German-occupied Poland. Supported by the Polish government-in-exile, Żegota coordinated efforts to save Jews from Nazi persecution and murder. It operated from 1942 to 1945.
After World War II broke out in September 1939, Władysław Bartoszewski worked as a janitor at a Polish Red Cross clinic. In the fall of 1940, Bartoszewski was caught in an arbitrary arrest wave in Warsaw and sent by Nazi German authorities to the Auschwitz concentration camp. He was released in 1941 through the efforts of the Red Cross. Throughout the rest of the war, Bartoszewski actively resisted the Nazis by engaging in clandestine work. He was a member of various underground organizations, including the Provisional Committee for Aid to Jews (the precursor to Żegota).
In late 1942 when Żegota was established, Bartoszewski became responsible for such clandestine activities as providing forged documents or medical aid to Jews under Żegota’s care. Bartoszewski also compiled reports describing the plight of Jews in German-occupied Poland. Beginning in 1943, he began serving as deputy director of the Jewish Department of the Government Delegation for Poland (Delegatura). This was a liaison office between Żegota and the Polish government-in-exile.
Władysław Bartoszewski survived the war and went on to become a historian and politician. In 1963, Bartoszewski was invited to plant an olive tree in Yad Vashem in honor of Żegota. Two years later, in 1965, Yad Vashem recognized Bartoszewski as Righteous Among the Nations.
Item ViewPortrait of Żegota member Irena Sendler
Portrait of Irena Sendler in Warsaw, Poland, circa 1939.
Irena Sendler (Sendlerowa) was a member of the Council for Aid to Jews (codenamed “Żegota”). Żegota was a clandestine rescue organization of Poles and Jews in German-occupied Poland. Supported by the Polish government-in-exile, Żegota coordinated efforts to save Jews from Nazi persecution and murder. It operated from 1942 to 1945.
Irena Sendler (1910–2008) was working as a social worker in Warsaw when World War II broke out in 1939. After the Nazis forced Warsaw’s Jews to move into the ghetto in the fall of 1940, Sendler used her position and prewar network to supply food and offer financial assistance to Jews. By early 1943, Sendler had joined Żegota. Żegota members secured hiding places for Polish Jews and delivered money, food, false identity documents, and medical assistance to those in their care.
Under the alias “Jolanta,” Sendler helped smuggle several hundred Jewish children out of the Warsaw ghetto. She found hiding places for them in orphanages, convents, schools, hospitals, and private homes. Sendler provided each child with a new identity, carefully recording their original names and placements in code so that surviving relatives could find them after the war. In the fall of 1943, only a few days after Sendler was appointed head of Żegota’s children's section, she was arrested by the Gestapo (German secret state police). The Gestapo brutally beat and tortured her. Nonetheless, Sendler never revealed the names of the children or her colleagues. She was later released from the Gestapo prison thanks to a bribe organized by her fellow rescuers. Despite the dangers, Sendler continued working with Żegota under a new alias.
Irena Sendler survived the war. In 1965, Yad Vashem recognized Sendler as Righteous Among the Nations.
Item ViewFalse identity for Żegota member Tadeusz Sarnecki
During World War II, people often used false identities and forged identity documents to evade Nazi authorities. False identities were essential for resistance fighters, aid workers, and Jews hoping to pass as non-Jews. Creating high-quality, convincing forgeries required dozens of people to work together clandestinely. It also required sophisticated photography and printing equipment. For Jews passing as non-Jews, acquiring forged documents could mean the difference between life and death.
This forged document was used by Tadeusz J. Sarnecki during World War II. Under the pseudonym “Kazimierz Hutecki,” Sarnecki worked with the Council for Aid to Jews (codenamed “Żegota”). Żegota was a clandestine rescue organization of Poles and Jews. Supported by the Polish government-in-exile, it coordinated efforts to save Jews in German-occupied Poland from Nazi persecution and murder. From 1942 to 1944, Sarnecki and his wife, Ewa, secretly worked as couriers for the Zamość and Lublin branches of Żegota. They traveled to forced labor camps in the region, including Piotrków Trybunalski, Radom, and Starachowice. The Sarneckis secretly delivered money, documents, food, medicine, and letters to some of the Jews imprisoned there. On several occasions, they helped individuals escape by smuggling them out of these camps. Both Tadeusz and Ewa survived the war.
Item ViewFalse identity for Żegota member Ewa Sarnecka
During World War II, people often used false identities and forged identity documents to evade Nazi authorities. False identities were essential for resistance fighters, aid workers, and Jews hoping to pass as non-Jews. Creating high-quality, convincing forgeries required dozens of people to work together clandestinely. It also required sophisticated photography and printing equipment. For Jews passing as non-Jews, acquiring forged documents could mean the difference between life and death.
During World War II, Ewa Sarnecka adopted the alias “Regina Cybulska” and used this false identity document to conduct clandestine activities. From 1942 to 1944, Sarnecka and her husband Tadeusz Sarnecki worked for the Council for Aid to Jews (codenamed “Żegota”). Żegota was a clandestine rescue organization of Poles and Jews that coordinated efforts to save Jews from Nazi persecution and murder. The Sarneckis served as couriers for the Zamość and Lublin branches of Żegota. They traveled to selected forced labor camps in the region, including Piotrków Trybunalski, Radom, and Starachowice. The Sarneckis secretly delivered money, documents, food, medicine, and letters to the Jews imprisoned there. On several occasions, they were even able to smuggle individuals out of the camps. Both Ewa and Tadeusz survived the war.
Item ViewPortrait of Żegota member Andrzej Klimowicz
Wartime portrait of Andrzej Klimowicz, Poland.
Andrzej Klimowicz (1918–1996) aided and rescued Jews in Warsaw throughout the duration of the German occupation of Poland. He eventually became a member of the Council for Aid to Jews (codenamed “Żegota”), a clandestine organization that coordinated efforts to save Jews from Nazi persecution and murder. Under the auspices of Żegota, Klimowicz played a role in providing Jews in Warsaw with forged identity papers and hiding places outside the walls of the Warsaw ghetto. Klimowicz survived the war. In 1981, Yad Vashem recognized Klimowicz as Righteous Among the Nations.
Item ViewLarge wooden crate used by Żegota to hide false documents
This large, lidded wooden chest was used by the Council for Aid to Jews (codenamed “Żegota”) to hide false identity documents from Nazi authorities.
Żegota was an underground rescue organization of Poles and Jews in German-occupied Poland and operated from December 1942 to January 1945. Supported by the Polish government-in-exile, it coordinated efforts to save Jews in German-occupied Poland from Nazi persecution and murder. One of Żegota’s most impactful clandestine activities was producing and providing Jews with fake identification documents to help them evade the German authorities. Creating high-quality, convincing forgeries required dozens of people to work together clandestinely at great risk to themselves and their families.
Item ViewFalse identity for Żegota member Izabela Bieżuńska
During World War II, people often used false identities and forged identity documents to evade Nazi authorities. False identities were essential for resistance fighters, aid workers, and Jews hoping to pass as non-Jews. Creating high-quality, convincing forgeries required dozens of people to work together clandestinely. It also required sophisticated photography and printing equipment. For Jews passing as non-Jews, acquiring forged documents could mean the difference between life and death.
This identification document was used by Izabela Bieżuńska to establish her alias as "Janina Truszczyńska.” Bieżuńska was a member of the Council for Aid to Jews (codenamed “Żegota”), an underground rescue organization of Poles and Jews in German-occupied Poland. Supported by the Polish government-in-exile, Żegota operated from December 1942 to January 1945. The organization coordinated efforts to save Jews from Nazi persecution and murder.
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