Kaia, heroine of the 1944 Warsaw Rising
Ziolkowska-Boehm, Aleksandra, 1949-2014
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Kaia, Heroine of the 1944 Warsaw Rising tells the story of one woman, whose life encompasses a century of Polish history. Full of tragic and compelling experiences such as life in Siberia, Warsaw before World War II, the German occupation, the Warsaw Rising, and life in the Soviet Ostashkov prison, Kaia was deeply involved with the battle that decimated Warsaw in 1944 as a member of the resistance army and the rebuilding of the city as an architect years later.Kaia's father was expelled from Poland for conspiring against the Russian czar. She spent her early childhood near Altaj Mountain and remembered Siberia as a "paradise". In 1922, the family returned to free Poland, the train trip taking a year. Kaia entered the school system, studied architecture, and joined the Armia Krajowa in 1942. After the legendary partisan Hubal's death, a courier gave Kaia the famous leader's Virtuti Militari Award to protect. She carried the medal for 54 years. After the Warsaw Rising collapsed, she was captured by the Russian NKVD in Bialystok and imprisoned. In one of many interrogations, a Russian asked about Hubal's award. When Kaia replied that it was a religious relic from her father, she received only a puzzled look from the interrogator. Knowing that another interrogation could end differently, she hid the award in the heel of her shoe where it was never discovered.In 1946, Kaia, very ill and weighing only 84 pounds, returned to Poland, where she regained her health and later worked as an architect to the rebuild the totally decimated Warsaw.
Kaia, heroine of the 1944 Warsaw Rising / Aleksandra Ziolkowska-Boehm ; translated by Alla Makeeva-Roylance.
Lanham : Lexington Books, 2014.
232 pages ; 24 cm
Translated from the Polish.This translation originally published: 2012.Includes bibliographical references and index.
Foreword by Bruce E. JohansenIntroduction: The Message of Isaac B. Singer Chapter 1. Poles in Siberia Chapter 2. The Szemiot-Iljin Family Chapter 3. Zaysan at the Foothills of the Altaj Chapter 4. 11 Months by Train from Siberia to Poland Chapter 5. Poland, Bialystok Chapter 6. Vilnius Chapter 7. Warsaw, the 1930s Chapter 8. Outbreak of the War Chapter 9. Zamosc Chapter 10. Warsaw under the German Occupation Chapter 11. The Hubal Soldiers Chapter 12. Arrest of Modest and Death in Auschwitz Chapter 13. "Buzzard", a Hubal Partisan Chapter 14. The Organization Chapter 15. The Warsaw Uprising Chapter 16. "Thank you, I have a lollipop" Chapter 17. Eastbound Journey to Bialystok Chapter 18. Arrest Chapter 19. NKVD Camp 41 in Ostashkov Chapter 20. Back from Ostashkov Chapter 21. After the Return Chapter 22. Marek Szymanski Chapter 23. Inprisonments: the Lublin Castle and Wronki Chapter 24. Released, then arrested again Chapter 25. Finally, back to normal? Chapter 26. Rebuilding of Warsaw Chapter 27. Trips and Travels Chapter 28. Poland's Attraction: Kashubia and Sudovia Chapter 29. Communism in Poland Chapter 30. Marek, the Loyal Hubal soldier Chapter 31. Friends Chapter 32. Animals and Pets Chapter 33. Major Hubal's Virtuti Militari Cross Chapter 34. Farewells Chapter 35. Marek's Death Chapter 36. Poland Independent, Poland Westernized: Fears and Anxieties Chapter 37. Departing Notes Appendix: Images of Siberia and Warsaw Uprising Bibliography Index
97807391905319780739190531 (pbk)
940.54213
EnglishPolish
Iljin-Szymanska, CezariaSzymanski, Marek, 1915-1996Poland. Armia. Oddzial Wydzielony Wojska Polskiego Majora "Hubala"Ostashkov (Russia : Concentration camp)Women guerrillas -- Poland -- BiographyGuerrillas -- Poland -- BiographyPrisoners of war -- Soviet Union -- BiographyPolish people -- Russia (Federation) -- Siberia -- BiographyBiographyPoland -- History -- Occupation, 1939-1945Warsaw (Poland) -- History -- Uprising, 1944
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