History sleuths uncover photo evidence of boy hero who became ‘symbol of resistance to Soviet aggression’
Ensconced in patriotic legend, the story of Tadeusz Jasiński, the boy killed after being used by the Red Army as a human shield, has taken a remarkable twist after new evidence surfaced confirming his existence.
Sucker punched by Stalin on September 17th, 1939, the Soviet invasion condemned Poland to a doomed war on two fronts. By September 20th, the Red Army’s 15th Tank Corps had reached the gates of Grodno (now in Belarus).
Though vastly outnumbered and hopelessly ill-equipped, the Poles offered staunch resistance as they attempted to stave off the fierce Red Army onslaught. Among the defenders was Tadeusz Jasiński, a local 15-year-old boy who had answered the call to arms.
Caught throwing petrol bombs during the brief but bloody siege, Jasiński was allegedly beaten and tortured before being tied to a tank and used as a human shield.
In addition to the photo, the history group also tracked down papers and certificates and a portrait-style painting of the boy who was captured by the Soviets after attacking them with petrol bombs and then strapped to the front of a tank and used as a human shield.
Mortally wounded, he died of his injuries on September 21st having been earlier freed by his fellow defenders.
But whilst this story has often been repeated in Polish text books, doubts had been voiced as to its veracity. In some quarters, Jasiński’s very existence had been questioned.
Attacked on September 17th, 1939, the Soviet invasion condemned Poland to a doomed war on two fronts. By September 20th, the Red Army’s 15th Tank Corps had reached the gates of Grodno (now in Belarus).
Now, thanks to the sleuthing of a historical society, pictorial proof has been uncovered proving that Jasiński was, indeed, a real person. In the process, historians believe that these discoveries will serve to validate the tales of his bravery.
According to Dr. Marcin Zwolski of the soon to be opened Sybir Memorial Museum in Białystok, the finds are crucial in shaping our perception of the tragedy and betrayal that unfolded in 1939.
“Tadeusz Jasiński is very well-known in Poland,” he tells TFN. “But many people – for example in modern day Grodno – had begun to cast suspicion on the story.”
Among the defenders of Grodno (pictured here in 1931) was Tadeusz Jasiński, a local 15-year-old boy who had answered the call to arms.
The insinuation had been that Jasiński’s life and death were a fiction that had been fanned to promote Poland’s anti-Communist agenda.
“Now though we can put a face to Jasiński,” says Zwolski. “We can say with absolute certainty that he lived.”
Jasiński’s heroism first came to light in the 1988 memoirs of Grażyna Lipińska, herself a highly-decorated WWII veteran and participant of the Battle of Grodno.
Jasiński’s heroism first came to light in the 1988 memoirs of Grażyna Lipińska, herself a highly-decorated WWII veteran and participant of the Battle of Grodno.
Sparking the curiosity of a group of historical enthusiasts, Stowarzyszenie Grupa Wschód, members of the association began digging further into the story of Jasiński.
Having faced numerous brick walls, a breakthrough came this February when a new member of the group realized he was related to Jasiński’s mother, Zofia.
Although she passed away in 1982, the amateur researchers were able to trace her post-war life and even meet those that had looked after her in her old age.
Speaking to those who knew her, the group learned that she had settled in Białystok after the war where she worked as a cook and lived in a modest apartment.
There, she kept a handkerchief stained with the blood of her son, and whilst she had been buried together with it, the association further learned of the existence of numerous other artefacts associated with the life of Tadeusz.
Following a painstaking and often tedious hunt, they tracked down papers and certificates relating to Tadeusz Jasiński as well as a portrait-style painting and a photograph of him and his mother.
Dr Marcin Zwolski from the soon to be opened Siberian Memorial Museum in Białystok, said the photograph showing Jasiński with his mother was probably taken in either 1938 or 1939.
“We think this was taken in either 1938 or 1939 by an unknown street photographer in Grodno,” says Zwolski. “Back in those days such photographers were a common sight in the towns and cities, and they’d take pictures of pedestrians before selling them on to these same passersby.”
Dressed in baggy clothes, his cap set at a rakish angle, the photograph depicts a grinning Jasiński with his hands plunged deep in his pockets. To his side, his mother gently smiles to the camera whilst uniformed men mingle in the background. Behind, a flat-capped onlooker stares deeply at the mother and son, adding a haunting poignance to the scene.
Despite the interest of various other cultural institutions, it was to the Sybir Memorial Museum that the group chose to donate the picture to.
Formally handed over at a press conference held on Tuesday, Andrzej Bieluczyk of Stowarzyszenie Grupa Wschód told the media that the decision had been logical: “As a group we felt that the photograph should remain in Białystok where Tadeusz’s mother had lived and died, which is why we asked the museum if they could add it to their permanent exhibition.”
Set to open on September 17th – the anniversary of the Soviet invasion – the museum has pledged to incorporate the items into their permanent exhibition even though its layout had already been determined.
For their part, the group’s research has been met with blanket praise with their findings, as well as those of the IPN, doing much to realign the facts – we now know, for instance, that Jasiński was 15-years-old when he died, and not 13 as mistakenly recorded in Lipińska’s book.
Less clarity surrounds other aspects of his life, however.
“We know only a few things about his upbringing,” says Zwolski. “We know that his mother raised him alone and that they were a poor family, but we remain in the dark about many other things.”
Regardless, the donation of the photograph has been seen as a pivotal moment for both the city and the museum.
Speaking at the handover ceremony, Deputy Mayor Rafał Rudnicki underlined its importance: “All those that are interested in history know of Tadeusz Jasiński, and this photo has allowed this hero to re-gain his face,” he said. “That this photograph is now in our city should be considered a great honour.”
Set to open on September 17th - the anniversary of the Soviet invasion - the museum have pledged to incorporate it into their permanent exhibition even though its layout had already been determined.
Cap: the museum says the finds are crucial in shaping our perception of the tragedy and betrayal that unfolded in 1939.
“We’re tremendously excited to have this picture,” says the museum’s Dr. Piotr Popławski, “so it hasn’t been an issue finding a way to introduce it into the exhibits.
“Moreover, it’s in incredibly good condition, so it doesn’t need to be subjected to anything other than the standard conservation procedures we apply to all the other items we receive.”
Even so, Popławski is aware that its inclusion could trigger debate about the role of children in combat.
“This is a topic that’s controversial,” he tells TFN, “but I think that it also demonstrates the depth of patriotism that existed in Poland.
“It’s difficult for us to understand the adolescent mind,” he adds, “but ultimately we have to respect that it was Jasiński’s own independent decision to fight.”
For Dr. Marcin Zwolski, such concerns should not be allowed to cloud Jasiński’s memory.
“For Poles he became a symbol of our resistance to Soviet aggression, and that is how we should remember him,” he says.
