Anna Wasilewska

Anna Wasilewska (born circa 1894, died 16 August 1945 in Zucielec) was a Polish farmer and resident of the village of Zucielec, near Trzcianne. She, along with her husband and sons, was honored with the Righteous Among the Nations medal. She was murdered, likely by members of the anti-communist underground, shortly after the end of World War II.

Biography

Hiding Jews Anna Wasilewska grew up in poverty and without parents. During World War II, together with her husband Jan and their sons Stanisław, Kazimierz, and Jerzy, she ran a farm in the village of Zucielec near Trzcianne.

In 1942, when the German occupiers began liquidating the ghettos in the Białystok District, she and her husband agreed to shelter Jewish escapees. Shortly thereafter, the Wasilewski family provided refuge for brothers Zvi and Dawid Mroczkowski (whom Jan knew through their father and grandfather), as well as Marja (Maśka) Fiszko. All of them had escaped from the ghetto in Trzcianne. At first, they stayed in the hosts’ home. In testimony given after the war to Yad Vashem, Zvi Mroczkowski emphasized the kindness that the Wasilewski family showed him and his brother every day.

Over time, the fact that the Wasilewski family was hiding Jews became known to local residents. One of the neighbors informed the Ordnungspolizei. However, they were saved by a distant relative working at the local Gendarmerie post as an interpreter, who managed to convince the Germans that the informer had come to the post to ask permission to slaughter a pig. At another point, partisans reportedly arrived at the farm demanding that the Jews be handed over, but Anna firmly refused. Meanwhile, 21-year-old Maśka Fiszko returned to Trzcianne and lived in one of the rooms in her family home, which had been taken over by a Polish family during the occupation. She did not demand the return of the property. However, not long after, while returning from a visit to the Wasilewski family, she was abducted and murdered by local Poles.

Death On 18 April 1945, armed attackers stormed the Wasilewski household. Kazimierz Wasilewski later described them as a "gang" or "partisans". Anna and her sons were beaten, and their farm was thoroughly looted. According to Kazimierz's account, the assailants were searching for gold or money, which they believed the family must have received from the Jews they had hidden. They also declared that the attack and beating were a "punishment" for sheltering Jews. – asking for help in recovering the stolen horses. Additionally, according to the accounts of Trzcianne residents, referenced by Mirosław Tryczyk in his book, Anna allegedly identified one of the attackers during a mass when he appeared in church wearing a shirt stolen from her deceased husband. She publicly accused him of the attack and threatened to report the incident to the Security Office if the stolen horses were not returned.

Fearing another attack, the Wasilewski family began sleeping outside their home for a time, but this did not prevent the ensuing tragedy. According to the Wasilewski brothers, Father Mikulski refused to give her a Catholic funeral, supposedly as punishment for identifying the attackers after the first assault. Ultimately, under pressure from her extended family, he agreed to bless the coffin, but did not allow it to be brought into the church nor accompanied it to the cemetery.

On 31 May 1988, Anna Wasilewska was posthumously awarded the Righteous Among the Nations medal. The same honor was bestowed upon her husband and three sons.