The Warsaw Uprising: A City's Sacrifice

By August 1944, the Soviet army was approaching Warsaw. The Polish Home Army, the underground resistance, decided to act. They wanted to liberate their capital before the Soviets arrived. They believed the Soviets would help. They were wrong. On August 1, 1944, 50,000 Polish fighters attacked the German garrison. Initially, they seized much of the city. But the Germans reacted with savage brutality. They brought in reinforcements, including units of the SS and police. They used tanks, artillery, and air support against the insurgents. The Soviets watched from across the Vistula River. Stalin ordered them to stop. He wanted the Polish resistance destroyed. He wanted Poland to be dominated by communists after the war. The Germans proceeded to systematically destroy Warsaw. Building by building, street by street. They massacred civilians by the tens of thousands. The Home Army fought for 63 days. They ran out of food, water, ammunition. They fought from sewers, from basements, from the rubble of buildings that no longer existed. Finally, they surrendered. The Germans deported the survivors to camps and destroyed what remained of the city. Over 200,000 Poles died, mostly civilians. Warsaw was 85 percent destroyed. When the Soviets finally entered in January 1945, there was nothing left but ashes.