GERMAN WAR CRIMES IN POLAND 1939 – Świniarsko

TRANSLATED

German soldiers after capturing the village of Świniarsko, near Nowy Sącz on September 5 – 7- 1939 killed about 17 people, including women and burned 26 farms.

Captain Walter Drick, commander of the 82nd battalion of the 2nd Mountain Division, takes pictures during pacification.

The photos show commemorative plaques commemorating the pacification of Świaniarska on 5-7 September 1939.

Translated from: https://polishholokaust.blogspot.com/2022/09/zonierze-niemieccy-po-zajeciu-wsi.html?m=1

https://swiniarsko1939.pl/

The village of Świniarsko (gm. Chełmiec) was the first town pacified by German troops in the Sądecki Land.

On September 7, 1939, the village was occupied by a motorized column of German Nazi troops. Previously, there were ongoing fights with Polish troops, which resulted in the death of a German officer. In retaliation, the Germans shot 18 residents and burned 26 farms. During World War II, Świniarsko was a penal village.

The history of the villages and accompanying events in the first days of the war is described by Wojciech Lupa, a resident of this town. On 21 September 1986, as a souvenir of the inhabitants in the village, Świniarsko was awarded the Cross of Valour (Scream of Grunwald III class). It is worth noting that next Sunday (September 8, hour). 9:00) in Świniarku in the Parish Church there will be a mass for the victims of German aggression.

On September 1, the 2nd Mountain Division under General Valentin Feurstein crosses the borders with Slovakia and attacks Poland along the Dunajec line. Through Krościenko, Tylmanwa, Zabrze and Lodz on the fifth of September, they reach Świniarska. Wherever they come across any resistance, German soldiers homes burn and murder civilians.

Major Bolesław Miłka from 2nd The Mountain Brigade organizes the defense of Nowy Sącz. The choice of the first line of defense falls on Świniarsko near the Niskówka vertk crossing the road to Nowy Sącz. The first shots were fired on September 5 in the morning. The defense is quickly broken and the Germans enter Nowy Sącz. There is a 137th Sagittarius Brigade, whose task is to pacify the village. On the night of September 5-6, they will shoot seven men under a monument commemorating the Battle of Grunwald. Execution and burning of homes also take place the next day. Captain Walter Stepck, commander of the 82nd battalion of the 2nd Mountain Division, takes pictures during pacification.

Murdered in the first days of September, people from Świniarska:
1. The… BIEL JAN ur. 1855 House No. 35 – burned at home 05.09
2. GARGAS WOJCIECH ur. 1860 House No. 107 – shot dead in the yard in the morning 06.09
3. The following Wistures of JAN ur. 1913 of the year Brzezna – shot on the road
The 4. FRANCISZKA KOSTRZEWAK No. 94 – shot 05. 09. during escape from fire
5. KOTLARZ ANNA ur. 1899? House No. – shot on 06.09. during the escape to Gaj
6. PLATA J-ZEF ur. 1895 House No. 76 – shot 06.09.under the cross
7. ROLA ANDRZEJ ur. 1882 House No. 112 – executed 06.09. under the cross
8. SCHOOLS MICHAA ur. 1869 House No. 22 – shot on 06.09. in the field
9. SCHOOLS MICHAA ur. 1886 House No. 88 – shot 06.09.under the cross or in the backyard of Jan Potoczka
10. THE WITECKA KUNEGUNDA ur. 1899 of the house 9 – shot 05. 09. at the house
11. WITOWSKA STEFANIA ur. In 1906, home No. 104 – shot on 05.09. at the burning house died at night 06. 09
12. WITOWSKA ZOFIA ur. 1880 House No. 21 – shot on the road in the morning of 06.09.
13 of the… WJS JAN ur. 1867 House 16 – executed under the cross 05. 09
14. WJS JAN ur. 1903 House No. 16 – shot during the escape 05.09?
15. JZEF ur. 1900 House No. 16 – shot at home 05.09
16. WJAS WOJCIECH ur. 1880 House No. 36 – executed 06. 09. under the cross
17. ZYGMUNT JAN ur. 1878 House No. 20 – executed 05. 09. under the cross

The further massacre was prevented by the intervention of Adam Schreiner of Polish patriot of German origin, a resident of the nearby Podrzecza. My grandfather John transported the murdered to the cemetery in Helena, where they were buried in a collective grave.

2. The Mountain Division continued its military activities in the direction of Jasła, Rzeszów and Przemyśl, where it ended the September campaigns.

Valentin Feurstein, responsible for these killings was later commanded the defense of Monte Casino. He was never tried for war crimes. He published a memoir book. He died of natural causes in 1970.

In the same year, Walter Drick, the author of the photos, is killed in a car accident. Neither he was punished for the crimes committed. He was promoted to a civilian rank of general-major and works as the head of the export department of the manufacturer of fire trucks.

Translated from : https://miastons.pl/sadeckie/masakra-w-swiniarsku-pierwsza-na-ziemi-sadeckiej-podczas-ii-ws/