---
title: "Warsaw"
description: "Discover the full story of WWII with timelines, veteran accounts, and in-depth coverage of events like the Holocaust and D-Day. Explore the history that shaped our world."
url: "https://www.normandy1944.info/holocaust/the-ghettos/warsaw"
date: "2026-08-08T16:37:35+00:00"
language: "en-GB"
---

![History of the warsaw ghetto in occupied Poland during WW2](https://www.normandy1944.info/images/holocaust/ghettos/warsaw/warsaw-ghetto-jews-marching-into-the-ghetto.jpg)

# History of Warsaw

Ghetto initiated on October 12, 1940

Approximately 92000 people murdered

 ![](https://www.normandy1944.info/media/yootheme/cache/32/D-Day-normandy-beyond-Jodenster-32c9fec7.png?src=images/jews/D-Day-normandy-beyond-Jodenster.png&thumbnail=550,579,&hash=3d6ad4d5)

 ![Living behind barbed wire](https://www.normandy1944.info/media/yootheme/cache/78/warsaw-ghetto-living-behind-barbed-wire-78154451.jpg?src=images/holocaust/ghettos/warsaw/warsaw-ghetto-living-behind-barbed-wire.jpg&thumbnail=800,528,&hash=2ce4e9ca)Living behind barbed wire

 ![Members of the Jewish Security Services](https://www.normandy1944.info/media/yootheme/cache/87/warsaw-ghetto-members-jewish-security-service-87f6f55f.jpg?src=images/holocaust/ghettos/warsaw/warsaw-ghetto-members-jewish-security-service.jpg&thumbnail=800,528,&hash=c276ac0c)Members of the Jewish Security Services

 ![Supervisor logs the dead in 1942](https://www.normandy1944.info/media/yootheme/cache/74/warsaw-ghetto-members-logging-the-dead-1942-7433e9a5.jpg?src=images/holocaust/ghettos/warsaw/warsaw-ghetto-members-logging-the-dead-1942.jpg&thumbnail=800,528,&hash=62b992c3)Supervisor logs the dead in 1942

 ![Arrested after the ghetto uprising of 1943](https://www.normandy1944.info/media/yootheme/cache/19/warsaw-ghetto-members-arrested-after-uprising-1943-19fc041e.jpg?src=images/holocaust/ghettos/warsaw/warsaw-ghetto-members-arrested-after-uprising-1943.jpg&thumbnail=800,528,&hash=2c082d53)Arrested after the ghetto uprising of 1943

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##  History of Warsaw ghetto

The **Warsaw Ghetto** in **Warsaw, Poland**, was the largest Jewish ghetto established by **Nazi Germany** during the [**Holocaust**](https://www.normandy1944.info/holocaust) in **World War II**. During the ghetto's three-year existence, malnutrition, disease and deportations to concentration and extermination camps reduced the population from an estimated **450,000** to **37,000** people. Exactly how many people stayed in the ghetto is unknown, estimates vary between **450,000** and **560,000**. In **1943** the **Warsaw Ghetto Uprising** took place here, one of the first mass uprisings against the Nazis occupying Europe.

### Creation of the ghetto

Plans to isolate the Jewish population of **Warsaw** and its suburbs surfaced immediately after the **German occupation of Poland** in **1939**. In **1939** the **German General Government** was not yet fully organized and there was a difference of interest of the three main parties: the civilian government, the **German Army** and the **SS**. Due to these circumstances, the **Jewish Council (Judenrat)** in Warsaw, headed by **Adam Czerniaków**, had managed to delay the establishment of the ghetto by a year, mainly by pointing out to the military the value of Jews as workers. The Ghetto was located in a part of Warsaw where many Jews had traditionally lived; the Jewish quarter. Non-Jews had to leave the neighborhood, Jews who did not live in the neighborhood had to leave their homes and settle in the ghetto. The closure of the ghetto in **Warsaw** took place on **November 16, 1940**. The decision delineating its area was issued by the head of the **Warsaw district** of the **General Government**, **Dr. Ludwig Fischer**, **October 2, 1940**.

### Daily life inside the ghetto

Despite the incredible rigors of everyday life, the **Judenrat** and the youth movements managed to set up various institutes and organizations to meet the different needs of the residents. The biggest problems were overcrowding, hunger and inactivity. In response, the **Judenrat** took on the responsibility of allocating housing - an average of **seven people per room** - while charities like **CENTOS** set up kitchens where free soup was distributed: at one point, **two-thirds** of the ghetto's population was making soup. For a short time, the **Judenrat** was also allowed to establish **four primary schools** for the children of the ghetto, but there was also an extensive underground school system of the various youth movements, offering all levels (often disguised as kitchen), and the system even organized college-level courses on Sundays.

The **Judenrat** was also responsible for the hospitals and orphanages in the ghetto. One orphanage, run by the pediatrician and author **Janusz Korczak**, was set up as a model democracy, the **Children's Republic**. These and other orphanages were evacuated in **1942** and their residents were transferred to **Treblinka**. Cultural life consisted of a lively press in three languages (**Yiddish**, **Polish** and **Hebrew**), religious activities, and lectures, concerts, theatrical performances and exhibitions. In many cases the performers were prominent figures in Polish cultural life during the war. One of the most notable cultural efforts in the ghetto was that of historian **Emmanuel Ringelblum** and his group **Oyneg Shabbos**, who collected documents from people of all ages and positions to create a history of social life in the ghetto. In total, an estimated **50,000 documents** were collected. These documents were hidden in three separate groups, two of which have been found and have provided an indispensable insight into life in the ghetto.

### German Governor General Hans Frank

The **Warsaw Ghetto** was placed under command of the **German Governor General Hans Frank** on **October 16, 1940**. The **Judenrat** was given administrative control of the ghetto, they had to carry out the orders of the Germans. When it was founded, the population of the ghetto was estimated at about **380,000 people**, which was about **30%** of the population of **Warsaw**. The ghetto occupied **2.4%** of **Warsaw's** territory, making the ghetto overcrowded from the start. Nazis built a wall around the ghetto on **November 16, 1940**, cutting it off from the outside world. The Germans and the **Polish police** monitored who went in and out of the ghetto, in the ghetto law enforcement was in the hands of Germans, the **Polish police** and some **2,000** German-appointed Jews, the **Jüdischer Ordnungsdienst**.

> In the year and a half following the ghetto's establishment, Jews from smaller towns and villages were brought into the ghetto. Despite this increase, the population remained about the same and even decreased in **1942** because many inhabitants of the ghetto died of diseases (mainly **typhus**) and malnutrition.

### Annihilation of the ghetto

In **early 1942**, at the **Wannsee Conference**, the Nazis decided to destroy the Jews of Europe. The first sentence of the **'final solution'** (**Endlosung der Judenfrage**) was **Operation Reinhard**, which aimed to destroy all **Polish Jews**. Construction of **Treblinka extermination camp** began in **May 1942** and was completed in **July 1942**, when the large-scale destruction of the **Warsaw Ghetto** was about to begin. On **July 22, 1942**, the **Judenrat** was informed that all Jews would be deported **'to the east'**.

> There were also groups of Jews who would initially be spared, these were Jews who worked in German factories, Jewish hospital staff, members of the **Judenrat** and their families, and members of the **Jewish police force** and their families.

The **Jewish police** were ordered to deliver **6,000 Jews** to the train station (known as the **Umschlagplatz**) every day. Failure to do so would lead to the immediate execution of **100 hostages**, including **Czerniaków's** wife. **Czerniaków** tried to convince the Germans to reconsider their plans, also asked them to at least spare the children and if that was not possible, at least spare the orphans of the ghetto. However, the Germans did not heed **Czerniaków's** plea, after which **Czerniaków** committed suicide on **July 23, 1942**. **Czerniaków** left a letter in which he wrote:

> "I can no longer take this. My deed will prove to everyone what the good is to to do".

On **July 23**, members of the **Jewish resistance** gathered, but decided not to resist because they still believed that the Jews were being sent to labor camps.

### Mass deportations

The mass deportations of the residents, as ordered on **July 22**, began. In the next **52 days** (until **September 21**), about **300,000 people** were transported to the **Treblinka extermination camp**. Initially, the **Jewish police** were responsible for the deportations, in **July**

**64,606 Jews** were sent to the extermination camps. From **August**, the Germans took a more direct role in the deportations, ensuring that **135,000 Jews** were deported in **August** alone. In that same day, **35,885 Jews** were deported, **2,648** were shot in the ghetto and **60 Jews** committed suicide. After **September 10**, about **55,000 to 60,000 Jews** continued to live in the ghetto. These people were either working in German factories or living hidden in the ghetto. Over the next **six months**, the remnants of several political organizations were brought together under the name **ŻOB (Jewish Combat Organization)**, led by **Mordechaj Anielewicz**, with **220-500 members**; **250-450** others were organized in the **Żydowski Związek Wojskowy (ŻZW)** (**Jewish Warriors' Union**).

> The members of these groups had no illusions about the plans of the Germans and chose to resist rather than be deported. Their weapons consisted mainly of pistols, homemade grenades, Molotov cocktails and a handful of rifles and submachine guns.

### The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising and the Destruction of the Ghetto

On **January 18, 1943**, the first armed resistance took place when the Germans began the second eviction of the ghetto. The **Jewish fighters** had some success: the deportation stopped after **four days** and the **ŻOB** and the **ŻZW** took control of the ghetto. They built dozens of combat posts and took action against **Jewish collaborators**. Over the next **three months**, all the residents of the ghetto prepared for what would be the final battle. This last battle began the day before **Passover**, **April 19, 1943**. Jewish fighters fired at German patrols from alleys, sewers, homes and even burning buildings. Grenades were also thrown at Germans. The Nazis responded by blowing up houses block by block and arrested every Jew they got their hands on, these Jews were all later killed. Significant resistance ended on **April 23**, the uprising ended on **May 16**. About **7,000 Jewish fighters** were killed in the fighting and another **6,000** were burned alive or gassed in bunkers. The remaining **50,000 people** were sent to death camps, most of them to **Treblinka**.

### Mordechai Anielewicz: The Flame of Resistance in the Warsaw Ghetto

**Mordechai Anielewicz** (**1919 – May 8, 1943**) stands as one of the most heroic and enduring symbols of **Jewish resistance** during the [**Holocaust**](https://www.normandy1944.info/holocaust). Born in the small town of **Wyszków, Poland**, in **1919**, Anielewicz grew up during a time of mounting tension and growing antisemitism in Europe. As a young man, he joined **Hashomer Hatzair**, a **Zionist-socialist youth movement** that instilled in him a belief in Jewish self-determination, education, and social justice. When **Nazi Germany** invaded **Poland** in **1939**, many Jews fled or were forcibly deported. But **Anielewicz** chose to stay, determined to organize and support the **Jewish underground resistance**. As the situation worsened and Jews were confined to ghettos, he traveled through occupied **Poland**, encouraging defiance and building a network of fighters. In the summer of **1942**, the **Warsaw Ghetto** experienced one of its darkest moments the mass deportation of over **250,000 Jews** to the **Treblinka extermination camp**.

The scale of the atrocity galvanized what remained of the Jewish community. In response, **Anielewicz** became the leader of the newly formed **Żydowska Organizacja Bojowa (ŻOB)**, or **Jewish Combat Organization**. Under his leadership, the **ŻOB** began preparing for armed resistance — smuggling weapons, training young fighters, and coordinating with other underground movements. The culmination of these efforts came on **April 19, 1943**, when German forces entered the **Warsaw Ghetto** to deport its remaining inhabitants. Instead of surrendering, **Anielewicz** and his small band of fighters launched a bold and unprecedented rebellion. Despite being vastly outgunned and outnumbered, the resistance held off German troops for nearly **a month**.

The **Warsaw Ghetto Uprising** became the largest act of **Jewish resistance** during **World War II**. Tragically, on **May 8, 1943**, **Mordechai Anielewicz** and many of his comrades died in a bunker at **18 Mila Street**, likely choosing suicide over capture as German forces closed in. Though the uprising was eventually crushed, its moral and symbolic victory was profound. It shattered the myth of Jewish passivity and inspired future resistance movements across Europe. **Anielewicz's** legacy endures as a beacon of bravery, defiance, and sacrifice. In **Israel**, a kibbutz named **Yad Mordechai** honors his memory, alongside streets and monuments bearing his name, including **Mount Anielewicz**. His story continues to be taught around the world as a testament to the human spirit's refusal to surrender to tyranny.

> **Mordechai Anielewicz** did not live to see liberation, but his courage left a permanent mark on history. He remains one of the most revered figures of the **Holocaust**, a young man who chose to fight, and who became the face of **Jewish resistance** against the Nazis.

###  Warsaw in numbers

#### 460000

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#### 92000

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#### 307000

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 ![](https://www.normandy1944.info/media/yootheme/cache/65/d-day-normandy-beyond-warsaw-ghetto-rounded-up-6537a41e.jpg?src=images/holocaust/ghettos/warsaw/d-day-normandy-beyond-warsaw-ghetto-rounded-up.jpg&thumbnail=300,200,&hash=0cab66f8)Rounded up for work

 ![](https://www.normandy1944.info/media/yootheme/cache/77/d-day-normandy-beyond-warsaw-ghetto-indentity-check-770a476d.jpg?src=images/holocaust/ghettos/warsaw/d-day-normandy-beyond-warsaw-ghetto-indentity-check.jpg&thumbnail=300,200,&hash=27a5c4c8)Papers and identity checks

 ![](https://www.normandy1944.info/media/yootheme/cache/b2/d-day-normandy-beyond-warsaw-Mordechaj-Anielewicz-b22810a5.jpg?src=images/holocaust/ghettos/warsaw/d-day-normandy-beyond-warsaw-Mordechaj-Anielewicz.jpg&thumbnail=300,300,&hash=04359207)Mordechaj Anielewicz stands as one of the most heroic and enduring symbols of Jewish resistance during uprising

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#####  Location map

 ![](https://www.normandy1944.info/templates/yootheme/assets/images/consent_placeholder_map.svg) ![](https://www.normandy1944.info/templates/yootheme/assets/images/consent_icon_openstreetmap.svg)OpenStreetMap service required
to load this map.

 ![](https://www.normandy1944.info/templates/yootheme/assets/images/consent_icon_openstreetmap.svg)OpenStreetMap service required
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######  Location: Warsaw, Poland

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 [ Visit the official memorial ](https://1943.pl/en/)

Laste updated on: 08 August 2026

 SS Gruppenführer Jürgen Stroop commanded the complete destruction of the Warsaw Ghetto, ordering it to be systematically burned and demolished, building by building. In the aftermath, 57.065 Jewish survivors (men, women, and children) were either executed on site or deported to extermination camps.

###  Liberation of Warsaw

On **August 1, 1944**, the Polish Home Army (Armia Krajowa), loyal to the Polish government-in-exile in London, launched the **Warsaw Uprising** in a bid to liberate the city from German control before the Soviets arrived. The uprising was meant to assert Polish sovereignty and prevent a Soviet-backed communist regime from taking over. However, the Soviet advance stalled on the eastern bank of the **Vistula**, and the **Red Army did not intervene**. This led to controversy and accusations that the Soviets deliberately halted their offensive to allow the Germans to crush the uprising and eliminate the non-communist Polish resistance.

> The Warsaw Uprising lasted 63 days, during which Polish fighters and civilians were subjected to a devastating German counteroffensive. By early October 1944, the uprising was defeated. The Germans systematically destroyed large parts of the city in retribution, and Warsaw was left in ruins.

### Soviet regrouping

Over the next few months, the Red Army regrouped and prepared for a renewed offensive. On **January 12, 1945**, Soviet forces launched the Vistula Oder Offensive, a massive assault aimed at pushing German forces out of Poland and moving toward Berlin. The offensive quickly overwhelmed the weakened German defenses. On January 17, 1945, Soviet troops of [**Marshal Georgy Zhukov’s**](https://www.normandy1944.info/home/commanders/life-and-death-of-georgy-zhukov) **1st Belorussian Front** entered **Warsaw**. The city, nearly deserted and heavily damaged, was taken with little resistance. The Germans had already begun retreating in the face of the overwhelming Soviet advance. Warsaw was now under Soviet control.

While the liberation ended Nazi occupation, it also marked the beginning of Soviet domination in Poland. The Polish government-in-exile was sidelined, and a communist government loyal to Moscow was installed. For many Poles, liberation from one totalitarian regime was followed by the imposition of another.

> Nevertheless, the liberation of Warsaw on January 17, 1945, remains a significant milestone. It ended the Nazi grip on the city and opened the path for the final push toward Berlin, which would bring the war in Europe to a close just months later.

Text partially derived from from ushmm.org

 ![Soviet and Polish forces fly the national flag over Warsaw](https://www.normandy1944.info/images/holocaust/ghettos/warsaw/d-day-normandy-beyond-liberation-warsaw-soviets.jpg)

Soviet and Polish forces fly the national flag over Warsaw

######  Perpetrators of the Warsaw ghetto

 ![Governor Ludwig Fischer](https://www.normandy1944.info/media/yootheme/cache/41/d-day-normandy-beyond-Warsaw-Ludwig-Fischer-410d84e2.jpg?src=images/holocaust/ghettos/warsaw/d-day-normandy-beyond-Warsaw-Ludwig-Fischer.jpg&thumbnail=400,250,&hash=6ada9001)

###### Governor Ludwig Fischer

Governor Warsaw District

Died on March 8,1947

 ![SS Kommissar Heinz Auerswald](https://www.normandy1944.info/media/yootheme/cache/c6/d-day-normandy-beyond-Warsaw-German-Commissioner-Heinz-Auerswald-c62b5798.jpg?src=images/holocaust/ghettos/warsaw/d-day-normandy-beyond-Warsaw-German-Commissioner-Heinz-Auerswald.jpg&thumbnail=400,250,&hash=0fdfafeb)

###### SS Kommissar Heinz Auerswald

Commissioner Warsaw Ghetto

Died on December 5, 1970

 ![SS Oberführer Ferdinand von Sammern-Frankenegg](https://www.normandy1944.info/media/yootheme/cache/79/d-day-normandy-beyond-Warsaw-SS-Oberfu%CC%88hrer-Ferdinand-Sammern-Frankenegg-79bc0d38.jpg?src=images/holocaust/ghettos/warsaw/d-day-normandy-beyond-Warsaw-SS-Oberfu%CC%88hrer-Ferdinand-Sammern-Frankenegg.jpg&thumbnail=400,250,&hash=bfd733c3)

###### SS Oberführer Ferdinand von Sammern-Frankenegg

SS and Police Leader of Warsaw

Died on April 30, 1947

 ![SS Gruppenführer Jürgen Stroop](https://www.normandy1944.info/media/yootheme/cache/bb/d-day-normandy-beyond-Warsaw-SS-Gruppenfu%CC%88hrer-Ju%CC%88rgen-Stroop-bb2ff8d9.jpg?src=images/holocaust/ghettos/warsaw/d-day-normandy-beyond-Warsaw-SS-Gruppenfu%CC%88hrer-Ju%CC%88rgen-Stroop.jpg&thumbnail=400,250,&hash=ac9e8d86)

###### SS Gruppenführer Jürgen Stroop

SS and Police Leader of Warsaw

Died on March 6, 1952

 ![SS Sturmbannführer  Hermann Höfle](https://www.normandy1944.info/media/yootheme/cache/b4/d-day-normandy-beyond-Warsaw-SS-Sturmbannfu%CC%88hrer-Hermann-Ho%CC%88fle-b44556f1.jpg?src=images/holocaust/ghettos/warsaw/d-day-normandy-beyond-Warsaw-SS-Sturmbannfu%CC%88hrer-Hermann-Ho%CC%88fle.jpg&thumbnail=400,250,&hash=5e3674ea)

###### SS Sturmbannführer Hermann Höfle

Resettlement Commissioner

Died on August 21, 1962

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