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Witold Pilecki was a Polish hero born in the Russian Empire on May 13, 1901. His family lived near the Finnish border and was fairly wealthy/noble. Witold attended a Polish school as a youth. Witold Pilecki fought for Poland's independence from the Soviet Union (Polish-Soviet War). After the Polish-Soviet War, he returned to a normal life. Witold Pilecki got married to a school teacher and had two children. Then, in 1939 he joined the army again and he was mobilised against the German Invasion.

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In 1939 Witold Pilecki joined an anti-Nazi resistance movement called the Tajna Armia Polska, a branch of the Armia Krajowa ("The Polish home-army"). The mission of Witold Pilecki's group was to get inside information about German prisoners of war camps. The specific camp they were assigned to study was in the small town of Oswiecim, Auschwitz, where many Polish officials randomly disappeared to never return. Many people suspected that the citizens and officials were sent to Germany for forced labor but it had never been proven.

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Witold Pilecki came up with a plan to personally enter the death/work camp of Auschwitz to research and decipher what Auschwitz was like and where the Polish citizens were disappearing. Pilecki additionally wanted to uncover the truth and organize a resistance inside of Auschwitz itself. To enter Auschwitz, Pilecki purposely walked into a German security sweep in the city of Warsaw, Poland. Witold Pilecki was seized and herded into a truck at the train station. His main goals were to expose the truth, help prisoners, and successfully enter and escape the camp.

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As part of the plan, Witold Pilecki would escape Auschwitz and write a report on his life there. Pilecki dreamed of starting an uprising inside Auschwitz, however, when many Polish prisoners of war were moved to other camps to make room for Jews, he knew it was time to escape. Since the Polish men in Pileckis network were moved, an uprising was no longer an option.

Around Easter of 1943, he organized a night shift at a bakery outside of Auschwitz for himself and two other men. When the guard watching them fell asleep, they ran out the door as guards fired their guns. The men ran all night until they reached a small town where they could stay. Witold Pilecki then snuck himself into the city of Warsaw (which was heavily guarded) and met with the Polish Home Army to tell them about his experiences.

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Once Witold Pilecki escaped Auschwitz he migrated back to the city of Warsaw to meet up with the Polish Home Army. He met with the leaders of the resistance organization and told them of the gruesome tactics used in the camps. The stories were so horrible that some people didn't believe that the Germans were capable of doing such a thing. The Polish knew that the camps were bad but they did not realize how extreme the camps were. After living in Auschwitz for two years and seven months Witold could not return to his normal life after the trauma.

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Witold continued to work with the Polish Home Army and he fought in the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising of 1944. Due to the loss in the uprising Pilecki was imprisoned in a POW(Prisoners of War) camp in Germany. Once the camp was liberated he was sent to Italy where he joined the Polish Armed Forces. This is also where Pilecki wrote his famous report about Auschwitz. On May 8, 1947, Witold Pilecki was captured by the Communist Polish Authorities. They claimed he was a spy and that he was planning to assassinate Polish police. There was an unfair trial for Pilecki and he didn't even get to testify. Pilecki was eventually executed with a shot to the head on May 25, 1948 in Mokotow Prison.

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After being transported for days, Witold Pilecki finally entered the work/death camp, Auschwitz. Shortly after arriving Pilecki became Inmate 4859 (his tattoo number). Auschwitz was built to hold mostly political prisoners from Poland. Witold shared the stories of the merciless beatings prisoners would receive while completing everyday tasks. Prisoners were beaten for going to the bathroom, bathhouse, and lifting a brick too slowly. Many people tried to kill themselves in Auschwitz to escape the torture. He also reported how poison gas was tested on Soviet prisoners of war which led to the building of crematories and mass Jewish slaughters. Additionally, Roma and Sinti prisoners were used to conduct sterilization experiments, where many died. In Auschwitz, some dogs were trained to attack prisoners' throats on command. Additionally, he revealed that 700 Polish political officers were tightly packed into a room and were gassed.

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Witold Pilecki had many impacts on the lives of fellow prisoners and he provided helpful intel for the Polish Army. With the help from other inmates, Witold was able to create a secret organization within Auschwitz. The organization was made up of mostly Polish political prisoners of war. Additionally, the organization built a radio transmitter from smuggled parts where they were able to communicate with the Polish Home Army. With the help of the radio transmitter, Pilecki was able to notify the army of camp conditions and the number of deaths. Witold Pilecki's organization planned many escapes for inmates in serious danger. Furthermore, Witold helped spread information and news throughout Auschwitz that the inmates would have never learned. Pilecki was also able to inspire others to keep going even through the terrific conditions.

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Informational Website - Holocaust Memorial Day Trust (Witold Pilecki)

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Informational Website - Holocaust Memorial Day Trust (Witold Pilecki)

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The only known voluntary inmate of Auschwitz, who spent two and a half years gathering intelligence from within the camp.

The game which I was now playing in Auschwitz was dangerous. This sentence does not really convey the reality; in fact, I had gone far beyond what people in the real world would consider dangerous...

You can download the PDF version of Witold Pilecki's life story here
Witold Pilecki (pronounced Vitold Piletski) is a celebrated hero in Poland. Yet his incredible story and the extent of his sacrifice remained buried for over 40 years after his execution. Pilecki is the only inmate known to be voluntarily imprisoned at Auschwitz, the notorious concentration and death camp. After his escape, he wrote a 100-page report on camp life.

Pilecki was born on 13 May 1901 to patriotic Polish Catholic parents in Olonets - a small town in what was then the Russian Empire. After serving in the Polish Army, he settled in Lida (then in Poland, now in Belarus). He married a local school teacher Maria Ostrowska in 1931 and had two children, Andrzej and Zofia. Pilecki ran the family farm and enjoyed painting and writing poetry.

In August 1939, Pilecki was called up to defend Poland against the Nazi invasion. Following the defeat, Pilecki made his way to Warsaw to fight with the Polish underground resistance (the Home Army) against Nazi occupation.

In August 1940, a group of Polish political opponents were imprisoned in Auschwitz. Soon after, telegrams arrived to inform inmates' families of their deaths. This sparked the suspicion of the Polish underground and Pilecki volunteered to investigate.

On 19 September 1940, Pilecki intentionally allowed himself to be arrested by the Nazis. He was detained nearby for two days with an estimated 1,800 Polish political prisoners before being transported to Auschwitz. He remained there for the next two and a half years as prisoner 4859.

Pilecki's mission was to raise the morale of Polish political prisoners by bringing news from outside the camp, as well as to report on camp conditions to the Home Army in Warsaw. In October 1940, Pilecki successfully sent out his first report with a released inmate. It reached the Polish Government-in-exile in March 1941, who passed it onto the Allies.

At the time of Pilecki's internment, Auschwitz was a concentration camp intended to hold predominantly political prisoners from Poland. He witnessed the changing demographic and horrifying treatment of each persecuted group. His reports described the early experiments conducted on Soviet prisoners of war, who were murdered with poisonous gas. This laid the foundations for the mass-murder of many Jews in the purpose-built gas chambers and crematoria. Pilecki describes the pain suffered by the Roma and Sinti prisoners undergoing sterilisation experiments against their will; many died from their injuries.

Pilecki quickly found fellow members of the Polish underground and began to create a secret organisation within Auschwitz. The organisation ran at great risk. They built a radio transmitter from smuggled parts. Through this transmitter, Pilecki reported on camp conditions and the number of deaths until the risk of discovery became too high.

Pilecki's bravery and will-power cannot be overstated. In his report he describes the hunger as 'the hardest battle of [his] life'. He harboured doubts during stays in the lice-ridden hospital ward suffering from Pneumonia and Typhus. He was overwhelmed by his mission at times, but refused to admit it to his colleagues in case it damaged their morale.

Initially, Pilecki's organisation took a strong stance against escape attempts, owing to the group punishment inflicted on the inmates left behind. However, once group punishment was abandoned, the organisation actively assisted escapees. On one occasion, Pilecki gave up his own planned escape route through the sewers to an inmate in more imminent danger.

Pilecki eventually escaped in April 1943. Key members of his organisation had been shipped to other camps and Pilecki's transfer was imminent. Pilecki and his two companions had only one night to carry out the complicated plan they had designed together. Failure would result in a public execution by hanging. They successfully removed the bolts from a heavy door whilst the guards' backs were turned. The three escapees journeyed for 100km on foot before they could rest in relative safety. It took them a week.

Pilecki rested at a colleague's parents' home before visiting the nearest member of the Home Army. After three and a half months, and still no action taken by the Home Army to liberate Auschwitz, Pilecki returned to Warsaw.

He fought in the Warsaw Uprising of 1944 but their defeat led to Pilecki's imprisonment in POW camps in Germany. Here, he earned the nickname 'Daddy' from younger inmates, who he looked after.

When the camps were liberated at the end of the war, Pilecki was sent to Italy where he joined the Polish Armed Forces. Whilst here he wrote his comprehensive report on his time in Auschwitz, now known as Witold's Report. Despite his relative safety in Italy, Pilecki returned once again to Warsaw to gather intelligence on the newly established Polish Communist government. The Nazis had been overthrown, but so had the Polish Government-in-exile. To Pilecki and the Home Army, Poland was still not free, but subservient to their Soviet liberators.

Pilecki was captured by the Communist Polish authorities on 8 May 1947. Accused of spying and of planning to assassinate key figures in the Polish police, he was coerced and tortured to sign his 'confession'.

Pilecki stood an unfair trial where he was not permitted to testify, nor were there any defending witnesses. The trial was a sham - a deterrent to any other would-be opposition to the Communist regime. He was subsequently found guilty and executed on 25 May 1948 in Mokotow prison with a shot to the back of his head.

In 1990, shortly after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the Communist regime in Poland, Pilecki was finally exonerated posthumously and recognised for his actions during World War Two.
For more information:

Learn more about Nazi persecution of other groups

Read more about Witold Pilecki in The Auschwitz Volunteer: Beyond Bravery by Witold Pilecki, Jarek Garlinski (Translator), Michael Schudrich (Foreword)

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Holocaust Memorial Day Trust | Witold Pilecki

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The only known voluntary inmate of Auschwitz, who spent two and a half years gathering intelligence from within the camp.

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An image captured of part of the Polish Home Army

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The entrance of the work/death camp Auschwitz, thousands of people died before getting to walk out these gates. The German gate says "Work sets you free"

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A photograph of Witold Pilecki taken after he became "Prisoner 4859".

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A statue created in honor of Witold Pileckis legacy 

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An image of Captain Witold Pilecki in the Polish Army

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A page from Witold Pilecki's 100 page report about Auschwitz, named "Witold's report"

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The 1943 Polish flag is a perfect symbol to represent Witold Pilecki's life. Pilecki dedicated many years of his life to protect his home country. Not only was Pilecki part of the Polish armed forces, he also entered a death camp and survived to help the Polish Army. Additionally, while living in Auschwitz Pilecki did everything he could to protect his fellow Polish inmates. Witold Pilecki showed true dedication to his country.

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Witold Pilecki - a man who risked his life resisting both the Nazis and the Communists.

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"I tried to live in a way so that when my hour of death comes, I will be happy rather than afraid".

This quote by Witold Pilecki shows how he lived life to the fullest and stood up for what was right. By the end of his life, Witold was able to look back and say that he was able to make a difference, which made him happy. This should be a goal that everyone aspires to reach.

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"A man fighting for his life could do more than he ever imagined he could"

This quote by Witold Pilecki shows that if you have true focus and desperation you can achieve your goals. Witold Pilecki showed this when in Auschwitz he was fighting for his life yet everyday he lived longer than he expected. If you keep going throughout life and never give up you can achieve more than ever expected.

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One song that represents the idea of resistance is the song "Resilient" by Katy Perry. This song talks about pushing through the dark times even when you are really struggling. The lyric "Born to be brilliant, you'll see me grow right through the cracks" emphasizes how everyone has a purpose and can do great things. Witold Pilecki was extremely resilient and never gave up even through the dark times.

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Katy Perry - Resilient (The Smile Video Series)

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Witold Pilecki gave up his own escape route to an inmate in greater danger

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Witold Pilecki had a daily mantra "You're not giving up" which helped him keep working even when he struggled. This mantra even inspired inmates around him to do the same.