Anna Szatkowska
Encyclopedia
Anna Szatkowska was a World War II
member of the Polish Home Army which she joined at the age of 16 to help in liberating Warsaw
from German occupation. She served as first-aider. Sixty years later, she decided to describe her experience in a book, La Maison brulée.
. In Górki, at Poland's southern frontier, she lived with brother, parents and grand-parents in a mansion in relative affluence. The situation changed dramatically when World War II began on 1 September 1939 and the family had to leave Górki in search for a safe haven.
Initially, Szatkowska continued her schooling in a boarding-school for girls, but in 1944, aged 16, she signed up with the Polish underground army, and she was accepted into the Ewa-Maria patrol, which consisted of seven young girls, first-aiders. The Warsaw Uprising
started on 1 August 1944, and lasted for 63 days until crushed by the Germans - while the Red Army stood waiting on the other side of the Vistula
river.
In October 1944, Szatkowska began writing down her experiences from memory, together with Ewa Orlikowska, the former head of her patrol. Sixty years later, these notes served as a basis of her commemorative book. After the end of the War, a communist regime began to establish itself in Poland under Soviet supremacy. In June 1945, Zofia Kossak was called in for an interview by the new Polish Minister of the Interior, who was Jewish. She anticipated the worst, but he advised her strongly to leave the country immediately for her own protection as he knew what the government would do to anti-communists. He also knew from his brother, Adolf Berman
, what Zofia had done personally and through Żegota
, to save the lives of thousands of Jews, and so he saved Zofia and Anna.
Anna Szatkowska began her university education in Ireland and finished it in Fribourg
, Switzerland. She became a teacher. In 1951, she married Jean-Marie Rosset, a Swiss national; they had four children. Rosset died in 1960, in a traffic accident. In 1971, she married Jean Bugnon. She is now known as Anna Rosset-Bugnon. They live in Cugy, Fribourg
.
For decades, she chose not to talk about her wartime experiences. However the insistent questions of her grand-children convinced her finally to write her memories down in French. Later she translated her book into Polish. The book starts before World War II; it has a day by day account of the Warsaw Upraising and finishes in 1960s.
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
member of the Polish Home Army which she joined at the age of 16 to help in liberating Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
from German occupation. She served as first-aider. Sixty years later, she decided to describe her experience in a book, La Maison brulée.
Biography
Anna Szatkowska was the daughter of Roman Catholic writer and resistance fighter Zofia Kossak-SzczuckaZofia Kossak-Szczucka
Zofia Kossak-Szczucka was a Polish writer and World War II resistance fighter. She co-founded the wartime Polish organization Żegota, set up to assist Poland's Jews in escaping the Holocaust...
. In Górki, at Poland's southern frontier, she lived with brother, parents and grand-parents in a mansion in relative affluence. The situation changed dramatically when World War II began on 1 September 1939 and the family had to leave Górki in search for a safe haven.
Initially, Szatkowska continued her schooling in a boarding-school for girls, but in 1944, aged 16, she signed up with the Polish underground army, and she was accepted into the Ewa-Maria patrol, which consisted of seven young girls, first-aiders. The Warsaw Uprising
Warsaw Uprising
The Warsaw Uprising was a major World War II operation by the Polish resistance Home Army , to liberate Warsaw from Nazi Germany. The rebellion was timed to coincide with the Soviet Union's Red Army approaching the eastern suburbs of the city and the retreat of German forces...
started on 1 August 1944, and lasted for 63 days until crushed by the Germans - while the Red Army stood waiting on the other side of the Vistula
Vistula
The Vistula is the longest and the most important river in Poland, at 1,047 km in length. The watershed area of the Vistula is , of which lies within Poland ....
river.
In October 1944, Szatkowska began writing down her experiences from memory, together with Ewa Orlikowska, the former head of her patrol. Sixty years later, these notes served as a basis of her commemorative book. After the end of the War, a communist regime began to establish itself in Poland under Soviet supremacy. In June 1945, Zofia Kossak was called in for an interview by the new Polish Minister of the Interior, who was Jewish. She anticipated the worst, but he advised her strongly to leave the country immediately for her own protection as he knew what the government would do to anti-communists. He also knew from his brother, Adolf Berman
Adolf Berman
-Biography:Born in Warsaw under the Russian Empire , Berman attended the University of Warsaw, where he earned a PhD in philosophy...
, what Zofia had done personally and through Żegota
Zegota
"Żegota" , also known as the "Konrad Żegota Committee", was a codename for the Polish Council to Aid Jews , an underground organization of Polish resistance in German-occupied Poland from 1942 to 1945....
, to save the lives of thousands of Jews, and so he saved Zofia and Anna.
Anna Szatkowska began her university education in Ireland and finished it in Fribourg
Fribourg
Fribourg is the capital of the Swiss canton of Fribourg and the district of Sarine. It is located on both sides of the river Saane/Sarine, on the Swiss plateau, and is an important economic, administrative and educational center on the cultural border between German and French Switzerland...
, Switzerland. She became a teacher. In 1951, she married Jean-Marie Rosset, a Swiss national; they had four children. Rosset died in 1960, in a traffic accident. In 1971, she married Jean Bugnon. She is now known as Anna Rosset-Bugnon. They live in Cugy, Fribourg
Cugy, Fribourg
Cugy is a municipality in the district of Broye in the canton of Fribourg in Switzerland. On January 1, 2005 Cugy incorporated the formerly independent municipality of Vesin.-Geography:...
.
For decades, she chose not to talk about her wartime experiences. However the insistent questions of her grand-children convinced her finally to write her memories down in French. Later she translated her book into Polish. The book starts before World War II; it has a day by day account of the Warsaw Upraising and finishes in 1960s.