Henryk Łagodzki – operating under the secret names of Eagle and Count, POW number 105494 – was born on 15 July 1927 in Warsaw. During the Warsaw Uprising he served in the Home Army in the northern part of the city centre. On 5 October 1944 together with his unit he left Warsaw. He was taken to the camp in Ożarów and from there to the POW camps at 344 Lamsdorf and IV B Mühlberg. From December 1944 he worked at the glass works at Brockwitz. He came home after the war ended in 1945.
On 1 August I left my house in ul. Łucka. My parents were not yet home. I left them a message saying that I would be back soon...
We could not believe it but yes it was true. Surrender. It was 3 October 1944 and at 07:30 we left the position we had defended for 63 days. We could not believe it after we had defended it so well and that the Ukrainians were going to occupy it without firing a shot. Orders are orders. We were part of the 2 Battalion of the Chrobry II unit which in turn was part of 15 Division of the Home Army (AK). At Żelazna 36 street we left our weapons, attended mass with many civilians and then marched in fours into captivity with our commanders leading us.
I said goodbye to my family before leaving. They lived at Łucka 14, to be precise, they then were living in the cellar below the building. I was able to fill up my bag with some useful things which I would need. My parents were very upset at my decision but I could not leave my comrades with whom I had fought. That is solidarity.
We sadly said goodbye to the walls, the ruins and our positions. We said goodbye to the Jews who had been in our platoon who had to stay in the city and had found food supplies to see them through. Some Jews even accompanied us into captivity. They changed their surnames and managed to survive the POW camp. No‐one betrayed them and they all returned after the war.
We marched through Warsaw, leaving around 10:00 until we got to Ożarów Mazowiecki. We held our heads high as we went into captivity. Civilians waved us goodbye. As we walked along ul. Żelazna and ul. Grzybowska our families left the cellars to wave to us. I saw my parents again briefly after leaving home and I waved to them but they did not see me. German troops guarded us. The street was clear but everywhere else there were the ruins of burnt out buildings.
We turned into ul. Chłodna where the high Gestapo building was. I remembered the bunker at the gate of Żelazna 75 and looked at the empty broken windows. Here in July 1943 I was arrested and was held on the first floor with Ryszard Kowalski who was later killed in a concentration camp. Here during the first days of the Uprising I had seen SS men who had been captured who were working on strengthening the barricades and working on clearing the pavements.
The German military guard looked at us with hate. We saw the fires still burning in the courtyards in ul. Chłodna in which human body parts were burning. The Ukrainians had murdered civilians and to get rid of the fetid stench of decomposing bodies were now burning them on pyres which they had previously soaked with petrol. We saw the same again in ul. Wolska.
As we turned towards Plac Kercelego (Kercelego square) there were tables and baskets for weapons. We threw down our weapons but parts had been removed or they were broken, no‐one threw away or surrendered weapons in working order. The square looked so different on the second day of the Uprising. I can still see the tank we captured on that day with the lads inside from the Parasol detachment. Now there was a guard of German soldiers escorting us. Once we left Warsaw, they no longer permitted civilians to get close to us. On seeing our long column locals probably wanted to give us vegetables, fruit and water.
The rebels were a hard bunch of girls and boys and we sang songs from the underground of partisan life which did not please the escort. It certainly did not help when they shouted at us or hit those nearest to them, we continued singing.
We were tired. A long column of POWs, one could see neither the beginning or the end. From time to time we halted as the wounded who had refused to go to hospital needed to rest. For the first time in more than two months we saw the fields and meadows. We saw countrywomen, their eyes full of tears, carrying milk, food and cold water. These treasures were given to us. Not everyone had eaten before the surrender. The German soldiers did not permit them to get too close, but some ignored this and there was shouting everywhere. Some stopped for a while but they could hold up the entire column. Those that fell behind got lost amongst the locals. We could see the cable factory at Ożarów from a distance on the left hand side. That was our destination for today. They put us into the empty, dirty factory halls. We fell, tired out, on the dirty cold concrete. That was how we spent the night.
The 16km march to the camp was much more than we had covered in the previous 65 days. Sleeping on the bare concrete was unpleasant but it gave our bones a rest. We had not been able to rest so long since the Uprising began. We slept without eating as they did not give us anything and so we did not sleep well. On 6 October we woke up dirty, hungry and red from something that had been sprinkled everywhere. We went outside hoping for something hot to eat – something we had not had for a very long time. This was how we began our lives as POWs.
The second day as a POW. Bad weather. There was no chance of any food. Everyone was dirty. Nowhere to wash, no toilets. Men and women relieved themselves against the wall. No‐one was ashamed. They had no choice. Later on rail cars arrived on one of the railway sidings to the factory. A cauldron with coffee was set up and we could drink something warm. Other POWs organised fresh bread and margarine and shared it with us.
In the morning lists of names were read out and loading to the trains began. We were treated like cattle, maybe worse. In one car, 60 people with their luggage was placed. We got food for the journey, a loaf of bread and some margarine each. As they loaded us they called us bandits. Our group stayed together. We got close to the window and that way we could breathe. We were packed like sardines and could not move. We had to be patient. The worst was the lack of a toilet – but we found a way. We cut a hole in the floor, it was not big enough. My friend Leszek Brzozowski used a litre container and then the contents were flung out of the barred window. Unfortunately it did not always work and sometimes it fell on the heads of those nearest the window.
The journey lasted three days and nights. They only opened the door twice for a short period. At night there was a very strong wind and the cold and light snow woke us up. The wind had taken the roof off the car. We had a beautiful yet threatening sky above us and the roof had completely vanished. We thought of escape but then we thought that as we were in Germany and we did not know where were then it would not take them long to recapture us. Our shouts and banging on the walls were not heard by anyone. It was a long time before the train stopped. We were wet through and very hungry as we had not eaten anything for two days. The guards were furious, they had to open up all the wagons and put some of us in each one. It was not easy. It was dark and there was a strong wind and cold rain. The train moved again, everyone was quiet and we slept standing. During the day the doors were opened again. They counted us fearing that someone may have escaped. Some managed to get some beets or cabbages from the fields. We thought that they were clever but later this made them ill. The stench in the wagon was overpowering. We could not manage much longer with the sick. No food, no water and not everyone had brought something from Warsaw.
On the third day the Germans opened the wagons and told us to get out. The guards had dogs. Not everyone could get out without assistance. There were many sick. We carried them out of the wagons and laid them down on the ground. They were later taken to the camp. We were formed up in a large column, there was chaos, some could not cope. The angry dogs barked and jumped up at us.
After a rainy start to the day, the weather improved and the sun came out. We were so happy to breathe the fresh air which we had missed for the previous two months. The column started slowly which was not to the pleasure of the shouting guards and their barking dogs who seemed to be getting worse. During the march the Wehrmacht guards took our valuables such as watches or jewellery saying that they would be confiscated later anyway. Maybe some believed them and I saw how in exchange they received cigarettes or German marks. Many older and weaker Poles threw away their baggage. The march went on for several hours. From afar we saw the guard towers, barbed wire and barracks and that everything was empty all the way around. On the left hand side we could see some houses and the forest.
Around midday everyone looked at the sky. There were two aircraft that were quickly coming in our direction. They were German planes, probably training. Even the Germans were worried when they looked up into the sky. The planes went away, then returned straight at us. Maybe the pilots had seen our huge column. Suddenly a bang and they crashed into each other. An explosion and fire that leapt high into the sky. It was a wonderful sight for several thousand rebels. There was a huge shout and explosion of joy. Fate had dealt justice to our enemies. The guards as though temporarily asleep, woke up and once again there was shouting accompanied by the barking of dogs. The column started off and by now those at the head were near to the gates of the camp. We were really happy. Everyone was talking about it as though they had forgotten where they were. Shouts of ‘Polish bandits!’ brought them back to reality.
We walked through the main gate into the camp. The young like me, together with a group of officers were sent to the left. The rest to the right. The women, who were in a minority, had their own barracks. On one side they had some Slovaks, on the other us. Amongst the officers there were many people who were getting on in life – maybe even old. They needed assistance to keep on going. We still had to worry about being searched again and how we would be accommodated.
The Germans lined us up in very long lines. Everything we had was to be placed in front of us and the search went on all night. After a while some were allowed to go to the barracks. They kept on repeating that we were Polish bandits and that they ought to finish us off. Another day without eating. From hunger I started to chew my belt. This gives my jaws something to do. Eventually I got some coffee like drink which I gratefully drank.
There was a three level bunk in the huge barrack. The youngest got the top bunks and this was not very good as the ceiling was full of insects and they fell on our faces during the night. In the morning we looked terrible, blood everywhere from squashed insects. The mattresses were made of paper filled with some rotten straw. On them was what once had been a blanket – all we had to cover ourselves.
The first day in the camp was cold but sunny. For the first time in various days we had slept in a bed of sorts. There was no roll call that day. We needed to do something to look after ourselves – we were dirty and full of insects although not many were prepared to admit to the latter. I tried to wash myself as carefully as I could. It was not easy as everyone wanted to do the same. I asked my friend ‘Moneta’ to shave my head completely. ‘Moneta’ was not his real name, it was the name he had used in the underground. When he shaved me, it left a bloody mark on my head. After washing my head and freshening up I felt much better. ‘Moneta’ had more hair than I and he also decided to do this and felt much better afterwards and told me so. It was cold in the morning but we managed to find something to put on our heads.
We enjoyed the hot ersatz coffee and the bread. They gave it to us once a day. However there was still hunger. There was also an evening meal but only the strongest and the cleverest managed to get it. When the potatoes ran out, people were served a watery substance they called soup.
Something resembling normal life started in the camp. Some managed to get some hay to sleep on although most slept on bare planks. The officers made sure that there was order in the barracks and tried to make soldiers out of us which was not easy when there were so many different types of people there. They tried to ensure that our uniforms and boots were clean in order to show the Germans that we were not just bandits but real soldiers. Not everyone was lucky enough to be placed indoors, some still had to sleep outdoors. The Germans removed some Soviet POWs to make room for us. We heard firing increasingly more often coming from the forests near the camp.
After several days, ‘Moneta’ and I were transferred to the other side of the camp where conditions were much worse. There were no mattresses or bits of blanket here, no bunks only three levels of shelves and there was no glass in the windows. We found a place in the attic which was full of insects. This barrack was surrounded by barbed wire. Two barracks further, beyond the womens’ barrack, was the haircutting barrack and sick bay.
On the right there was a very large roll call square through which one got to the toilets which were located near the barbed wire and guard towers. We were able to trade with the Slovakians here. They had better conditions than us and still received parcels from home. Not all the guards minded what we got up to. Some looked the other way and we were able to buy them with cigarettes. They were Silesians mainly and quite well disposed towards us.
After several days they took all of our civilian clothes from us at the bathhouse. I was sad to lose my trousers which I had received in the last days of the Uprising.
Then they shaved us with a blunt razor which injured our skin. Then some grey, smelly substance was put on the places that had been shaved and stung badly. After this we went under the shower. We thought that the wachman was changing the temperature to suit his mood – sometimes really hot, sometimes cold. Then we got to the point of the exercise. Those that were believed to have fleas were shaved whether they liked it or not. Then off to the photographer. We held a number to our chests and were photographed from three angles. We looked like criminals and not POWs.
Nights were the worst as we did not receive anything to cover ourselves with the whole time we were at Lamsdorf. Trousers could be used as a mattress of sorts, boots as a pillow and jacket or coat as a cover. The barracks were made of wood, there was no glass in the windows and no heating. The autumn of 1944 was cold. There was also a lack of water as one well for so many prisoners was insufficient. Some used the ersatz coffee to wash themselves with but that was no more than a few drops. Such was hygiene in a German POW camp. Fortunately from time to time they took us to the washroom.
The food was bad and sometimes uneatable. There was often a shortage of potatoes. The worst was dried beets which after cooking were still uneatable.
Roll calls could be either boring or a source of entertainment in our monotonous life. Sometimes they went on for hours, irrespective of the weather. We were counted several times. One day a German film crew came and they were interested in a ten year old amongst us. He walked in big boots and was not very tall even for someone his age. They could not believe that such a young boy had fought bravely and it seemed as though they wanted to use him as an example for the Hitler Youth.
Sometimes the Soviet POWs helped us. They looked after the camp and cleaned the toilets. They could get into all the camps and also had access to the kitchens, washroom etc. Thanks to them we could get information about our officers and use them as intermediaries to trade with others.
I used to smoke which was not good for an empty stomach. A cigarette was divided into four and smoked. When one smoked, others would gather around to breathe in the smoke. When there were no cigarettes we improvised using the knots in the wood or the leaves from one of the trees wrapped up in twisted newspaper.
We were taken to Mühlberg. Before travelling, we were thoroughly searched in the roll call square and then we said our goodbyes to those that were staying in Lamsdorf. They took us another route from the one we had taken earlier. As we walked through the camp we saw the buildings, warehouses, washrooms and Soviet subcamps. The Soviet POWs were badly treated and did the worst jobs. Sometimes they were tied to carts to pull them instead of horses. We felt sorry for them, they had been forgotten by everyone. We shared our cigarettes with them and gave them what we could. We were not allowed to speak to them in theory but in practice we found ways.
At Lamsdorf goods station we were loaded onto to cattle wagons with fifty in each car. It took two tiring days to get to Mühlberg. We were treated a bit better this time and once we arrived in the camp we were put in two barracks, which were separated from the rest of the camp. Women were also placed here. It was paradise compared to Lamsdorf. There were POWs from various countries playing football, the barracks were clean, there were blankets and mattresses and most importantly clean clothes.
POWs from western countries got parcels from the Red Cross and they had enough to eat which was not the case with us. After several days we got half a Canadian parcel each. Many got ill after eating the wonderful food as our bodies were not used to it. Camp authorities also permitted a group of us to visit the British and Americans. Our group was very well treated and received presents of cigarettes, chocolate and minced meat. They also threw cigarettes and other things to us over the wire. On 6 December we all received presents for Christmas from the British. That day there was also holy mass. In the middle of December 1944 we were taken by train to the Brockwitz glass factory at Fabrikstrasse 1. This was now an aircraft cockpit factory. We were escorted by Germans in civilian clothes who worked there. We were accommodated in the factory in a large hall. The floor was brick and there were only two lights in the ceiling which did not give off much light. Fortunately the ventilation was good because there were fifty of us there. Once again we had to put up with poor conditions. There were no bunks there, just some wood shavings. The officer in charge was lame and fought in the First World War, in charge of the hall was a corporal.
We worked on riveting and assembly of aircraft. None of them ever took off. Apparently the person in charge of construction was shot.
In the next room there were some younger Poles who were between ten and fifteen. They were badly treated and worked hard as boot makers and tailors even though they knew nothing of these professions.
We were 17km from Dresden. We lived through the bombing. We saw the night light up with flares and searchlights and how fires lit up the sky and the city died.
The front was getting closer and we could hear the guns firing. We hoped that it would reach us soon. Once more we received American parcels. There were cigarettes in them and with cigarettes you could buy anything you wanted. We got some British uniforms, but without boots – only the puttees. We now looked like soldiers. The word ‘Kriegsgefangenen’ was written in white paint on the reverse of the overcoat. We put a small red triangle over the top like the POWs from 1939.
Christmas 1944 was full of hope and there was plenty to eat as we once more received food parcels.
There were more and more bombing attacks, during which we went to an air raid shelter outside. The Germans took cover and we went inside and watched Dresden burn. There was no longer any discipline.
We were evacuated in the middle of April 1945 towards the Czech border. We travelled mainly by night and rested during the day. On 8 May we covered the retreating German army somewhere in the hills on the Czech border. From the heights we could see the Soviet guns and they were aiming at us. They fired and suddenly there were dead people and horses. Most of the dead were soldiers from the Polish Home Army, now prisoners. Maybe the Soviets did not understand the word Kriegsgefangenen? Some people had written other things on their uniforms and not everyone managed to wipe off what else they had written there.
They took us to the forest as it was safer. Now the SS were polite and smiled to us.
This is where we were liberated by the Red Army. The Americans were close. ‘Moneta’ and I decided to return to Warsaw together – our families were there. That was where we had left our youth fighting for Poland’s freedom.
It was a difficult journey. On 22 May 1945, I returned to Warsaw. And so ended the six years of war for me.