Janina (Bender) Raczkiewicz' Testimony on August 25, 2010 on the Death of Franciszek Raczkiewicz

On August 25, 2010 -- eleven years ago -- the wife of the youngest of the Raczkiewicz siblings dictated a story. I found that story on the family tree of Tomasz Raczkiewicz in the past year and was able to verify a family tragedy that happened in Poland which my mother had heard about as a young girl. My Mom told me, “There were letters that came back and forth from Poland. What I remember is my mom said that Dad’s brother got shot or killed stealing his own corn for food.” Franciszek was killed by the Germans in the Zamosc Rotunda. The Germans had taken his farm away from him. The story about this was told by the widow of Franciszek’s brother Boleslaw. Franciszek was the 8th of nine children and Boleslaw was the youngest. Janina (Bender) Raczkiewicz was 95 years old when she told the story and it was written down. She died later that year. She was likely the last person remaining of the nine siblings and their spouses. Janina was relaying events that happened in 1943 to her soon-to-be husband’s brother. She would have been 28 years old at the time. The siblings that were in the area at the time were Boleslaw, who would have been around 36 years old, Paulina and Piotr, who would have been in their 40s and Stanislawa who would have been almost 50. Their oldest brother Jan was back in Poland, near Poznan, and was possibly also deceased by the time Franciszek died. In the United States, Antoni and Joe would have been in their early 50s. Their sister Mary was in her late 40s. We know the siblings in the U.S. heard about the death from the letters that were sent back and forth. It is really valuable that on August 25, 2010, the effort was made to ask Janina about this story, write it down and make it available for others searching our family history. ***** Relacja Janiny Bender - mojej babci zlożona 25.08.2010. Nasiedleńcom do Sabaudii zwanymi Czarniuchy lub Rumuńcy oddano pola i nie pozwlano Polakom zebrać z nich plonów. Za zbieranie swoich plonów groziła smierć. Franek wraz z żoną wyjechał do Łaszczowa. Po pewnyym czasie wrócił żeby zabrać po cichu coś z pola. wg cioci Wany (relacja z dn. 25.08.2010) pojechał po jabłka, kartofle, może zboże i załadował to na furmankę. Został złapany pod figurą. I dalej relacja babci: Franek załadował wóz wieczorem i wyjechal nad ranem, ale MINKA (NIE WIEM CZY CHODZI O JAKĄŚ OSOBĘ, O ILE PAMIĘTAM TAK) go złapał na zakręcie, koło Bogdana, tak jak idzie szosa i został aresztowany. Było śledztwo i pytano go, kto był razem z nim, alne Franek nikogo nie wydał, za co trafił na Rotundę. Dalej relacja Wandy: Moja mama (siostra Franka) chodziła do niego do Zamościa. Jemu wyczytali wyrok śmierci. On ze strachu poobgryzał palce. Został rozstrzelany ***** Janina Bender's testimony - my grandmother's on August 25, 2010. The people settled in Savoie called Czarniuchy or Romanians were given their fields and Poles were not allowed to harvest them. She was in danger of dying for harvesting her crops. Franek and his wife left for Łaszczów. After some time he returned to silently take something from the field. according to aunt Wana (report of August 25, 2010) he went for apples, potatoes, maybe grain and loaded them onto a wagon. He was caught under the statue. And then the grandmother's story: Franek loaded the car in the evening and left in the morning, but MINKA (I DON'T KNOW IF IT IS A PERSON, AS MUCH AS I REMEMBER THIS) caught him at the bend near Bogdan, just like the road, and was arrested. There was an investigation and he was asked who was with him, but Franek did not give up anyone, for which he ended up at the Rotunda. Further Wanda's account: My mother (Frank's sister) used to visit him in Zamość. They read him the death sentence. He bit his fingers out of fear. He was shot.