I have been reading up, recently, on the life of Wojciech Jaruzelski, the former head of the Polish People's Republic.
In many ways, it is a tragic history - unfortunately - and one deeply connected with my country. I'm surprised that more Russians do not know the story of this man.
Jaruzelski was born in 1923, in a family of the Polish aristocracy with roots going back to the 15th century. His grandpa was a member of the Polish uprising in 1863-64, and for this was sent by the Tsar to ten years of exile in Siberia. After Poland gained independence, his father served as a volunteer in the Polish army during the Polish-Soviet War. Indeed, his father had many reasons to fight for Poland, as a very large landowner.
A young Jaruzelski attended a Catholic gymanasium, and all indicators probably pointed at a successful career as a lawyer or businessman. However, then Germany invaded, and shortly after - the Soviet Union. The Jaruzelski family fled to Lithuania, which soon also came under Soviet occupation. Him and his family were sent into exile in Siberia, his father assigned to a labor camp.
From an interview with Jaruzelski:
«Глядя уже из ссыльного вагона на советских солдат-охранников в ненавистных мне тогда шинелях чужой армии, с винтовками на плечах, мне и в голову не могло прийти, что вскоре вместе с солдатами в точно таких же, как и у них, гимнастерках и шинелях, одетый, правда, в новенькую польскую форму, я попаду на войну. С такой же винтовкой бить гитлеровцев, освобождать Польшу, Варшаву...».
Translation:
"Looking out of that exile train car, at the Soviet soldiers guarding us, wearing the despised uniforms of a foreign army, with rifles on their shoulders, I could never have imagined, that soon - with soldiers just like these - in Russian style uniform, but remade in Polish fashion, I would be thrown into the war. With a rifle just like that, to fight Hitlerites, to liberate Poland, Warsaw...".In Siberia, Jaruzelski father died in 1942 - shortly after being released from the GULAG. To support his family, a young Jaruzelski had to work as a mover and a lumberjack in the taiga of the Altay.
Later, Jaruzelski ended up being exiled himself. To a labor camp in Karaganda, in Soviet Kazakhstan. In Kazakhstan, Jaruzelski permanently ruined his back, as well as his eyes. This is why he always wore the sunglasses, which earned him the nickname of "Welder" from the Poles.
Despite all these insults, humiliations, and abuse that the Jaruzelski family experienced in the USSR, despite all the historical trauma that exists between our two countries, his personal attitude towards Russians always remained respectful.
Quote:
«Когда мы жили в Сибири, одна из знакомых россиянок спросила как-то: "А где ваш отец?" Говорю: "В лагере". "Ну, - отвечает, - это товарищ Сталин не знает..." Таков менталитет российского народа, для которого существует хороший царь и плохие бояре. Нужно знать этот народ, чтобы понять его. И я понимаю. Нельзя, чтобы действия каких-нибудь подлецов, которых можно найти в каждой стране, бросали тень на весь народ, который сам стал первой жертвой сталинизма. Одно могу сказать о россиянах - героический, но очень многострадальный народ...»
"When we lived in Siberia, one of our Russian acquaintances once asked us: "And where is your father?". I told her: "He's in a camp." "Well," - she answered - "Comrade Stalin does not know this." Such is the mentality of the Russian people, for whom there exists a kind Tsar and rotten nobility. You need to know this people, to understand it. And I do understand it. We must not allow, the actions of various miscreants, which can be found in every country, to throw shade on an entire people, which became the first victim of Stalinism. I can say one thing about the Russian - they are a heroic and long-suffering people." "When we lived in Siberia, one of our Russian acquaintances once asked us: "And where is your father?". I told her: "He's in a camp." "Well," - she answered - "Comrade Stalin does not know this." Such is the mentality of the Russian people, for whom there exists a kind Tsar and rotten nobility. You need to know this people, to understand it. And I do understand it. We must not allow, the actions of various miscreants, which can be found in every country, to throw shade on an entire people, which became the first victim of Stalinism. I can say one thing about the Russian - they are a heroic and long-suffering people."I think this is enough for one post about Jaruzelski.
