The Secret State Series #2
Story of a Secret State stands as one of the most poignant and inspiring memoirs of World War II and the Holocaust. With elements of a spy thriller, documenting his experiences in the Polish Underground, and as one of the first accounts of the systematic slaughter of the Jews by the German Nazis, this volume is a remarkable testimony of one man's courage and a nation's struggle for resistance against overwhelming oppression.
Karski was a brilliant young diplomat when war broke out in 1939 with Hitler's invasion of Poland. Taken prisoner by the Soviet Red Army, which had simultaneously invaded from the East, Karski narrowly escaped the subsequent Katyn Forest Massacre. He became a member of the Polish Underground, the most significant resistance movement in occupied Europe, acting as a liaison and courier between the Underground and the Polish government-in-exile. He was twice smuggled into the Warsaw Ghetto, and entered the Nazi's Izbica transit camp disguised as a guard, witnessing first-hand the horrors of the Holocaust.
Karski's courage and testimony, conveyed in a breathtaking manner in Story of a Secret State, offer the narrative of one of the world's greatest eyewitnesses and an inspiration for all of humanity, emboldening each of us to rise to the challenge of standing up against evil and for human rights. This definitive edition—which includes a foreword by Madeleine Albright, a biographical essay by Yale historian Timothy Snyder, an afterword by Zbigniew Brzezinski, previously unpublished photos, notes, further reading, and a glossary—is an apt legacy for this hero of conscience during the most fraught and fragile moment in modern history.
Karski was a brilliant young diplomat when war broke out in 1939 with Hitler's invasion of Poland. Taken prisoner by the Soviet Red Army, which had simultaneously invaded from the East, Karski narrowly escaped the subsequent Katyn Forest Massacre. He became a member of the Polish Underground, the most significant resistance movement in occupied Europe, acting as a liaison and courier between the Underground and the Polish government-in-exile. He was twice smuggled into the Warsaw Ghetto, and entered the Nazi's Izbica transit camp disguised as a guard, witnessing first-hand the horrors of the Holocaust.
Karski's courage and testimony, conveyed in a breathtaking manner in Story of a Secret State, offer the narrative of one of the world's greatest eyewitnesses and an inspiration for all of humanity, emboldening each of us to rise to the challenge of standing up against evil and for human rights. This definitive edition—which includes a foreword by Madeleine Albright, a biographical essay by Yale historian Timothy Snyder, an afterword by Zbigniew Brzezinski, previously unpublished photos, notes, further reading, and a glossary—is an apt legacy for this hero of conscience during the most fraught and fragile moment in modern history.
Jan Karski was born in ód , Poland, in 1914.
He received a degree in Law and Diplomatic Science in 1935 and served as a liaison officer of the Polish Underground during World War II. He carried the first eyewitness report of the Holocaust to a mostly unbelieving West, meeting with President Roosevelt in 1943 to plead for Allied intervention. Story of a Secret State was originally published in 1944, becoming a bestseller and Book of the Month Club selection. After the war, Karski earned his PhD at Georgetown University, where he served as a distinguished professor in the School of Foreign Service for forty years. He died in Washington, DC, in 2000. Karski has been recognized as Righteous Among the Nations by Yad Vashem. In 2012, he was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by our President.
"His wartime saga as officer, as Soviet prisoner, as escapee, in the hands of the Gestapo, and as a Polish Underground activist and courier, is beyond remarkable. In a world today where words such as 'courage' and 'heroism' have been so overused—applied freely from sports to entertainment to politics as to be rendered practically meaningless—Jan Karski was the rare human being who embodied both."
He received a degree in Law and Diplomatic Science in 1935 and served as a liaison officer of the Polish Underground during World War II. He carried the first eyewitness report of the Holocaust to a mostly unbelieving West, meeting with President Roosevelt in 1943 to plead for Allied intervention. Story of a Secret State was originally published in 1944, becoming a bestseller and Book of the Month Club selection. After the war, Karski earned his PhD at Georgetown University, where he served as a distinguished professor in the School of Foreign Service for forty years. He died in Washington, DC, in 2000. Karski has been recognized as Righteous Among the Nations by Yad Vashem. In 2012, he was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by our President.
"His wartime saga as officer, as Soviet prisoner, as escapee, in the hands of the Gestapo, and as a Polish Underground activist and courier, is beyond remarkable. In a world today where words such as 'courage' and 'heroism' have been so overused—applied freely from sports to entertainment to politics as to be rendered practically meaningless—Jan Karski was the rare human being who embodied both."
"In the words of James Russell Lowell's rousing hymn:
'Once to every man and nation, comes the moment to decide, in the strife of truth with falsehood, for the good or evil side.' Perhaps more than most of us, Jan Karski faced such a choice in the starkest of possible terms, and made his decision as courageously as one could. . . . Jan Karski was a patriot and a truth teller; may his words always be read and his legacy never forgotten.
"Secret State is an indispensable and compelling historical document of World War II and the Holocaust, written by a supremely courageous humanitarian."
"Secret State is an indispensable and compelling historical document of World War II and the Holocaust, written by a supremely courageous humanitarian."
The Secret State Series #2:
The Secret State #2 “No Longer a Poland” by Jan Karski: Highlights and excerpts by PL Sturgis:
The Secret state Series 1: “The Underground” by Jan Karski:
Introduction: During my four and a half months absence while captured by the Russians and the the Germans, Conditions in Poland had changed considerably. The first few conversations made me conscious of the fact that the consolidation of the underground had practically been achieved. The movement had crystallized into the major organization: The coalition of the four largest political parties;
1) The Peasants
2) The Socialist
3) The Christian Labor
4) The Nationalist.
This was the official military organization which had been recognized by the government as a military unit enjoying equal rights with the Polish Army in France. The most important need for that third party was to unite and agree on a chief delegate. The government was not interested in the personality of the candidate, nor his political affiliation, nor was he to become involved in party representation. The government would confirm the appointment of any individual who possessed authority and had the confidence of the population.
(hmmmm? 1940 sounds familiar in 2017)
The Polish underground State to which Karski belonged was under the authority of the Polish government in London. He admitted that besides this organization there were other organizations carrying on their activities under the direct influence of Moscow. Being the first active member of the Polish Underground and in the fortunate position to publish some aspect of its story, he hoped that it would encourage others to relate their experiences and that out of such narratives the free people all over the world would be able to form an objective opinion as to how the Polish people reacted during the years of German conquest.
Daily Bites of The Secret State Series #2:
“No Longer a Poland”
Bite #14,Willfully Trapped:
by Jan Karski :
The next two weeks were far from pleasant. Time hung heavily on my hands. I read a little from the library of my landlady and looked around the apartment. Everywhere around me I saw poverty and despair. German arrogance and terror effected everyone with nervousness and depression. After two weeks of this chafing existence I was delighted to see Dziepatowski. He was very cheerful. After inquiring about my health and behavior in the last two weeks he sat down relaxing and casually asked if there was anyone in the next room? After I informed him that the apartment was empty he smiled at me and said, “You know, Jan? I have trapped you.”
I smiled nervously. “Really? “ If so, it was a comfortable little trap!. “I don’t mean this apartment.” He rose and advancing to where I was standing put his hand on my arm in a friendly manner and in a confidential fashion he delivered a little lecture. “Jan, I’m going to talk to you because I know you to be an honorable, courageous man, and a good citizen. You are now a member of our Polish Underground. I brought you in and you have accepted our documents and assistance. The organization tries to play square, however. You have the option of devoting your services to it or returning to your normal life.” He paused for a moment and ran his fingers through his hair and then grasping my arm more firmly he continued:
“I must also tell you that if you should turn informer or make any attempt to betray us you will be shot.” Listening to him my spirits soared. This is what I have been waiting for. A task; an occupation; something to take me out of the morbid vacuum I had been living! I told him I had escaped from the Russian and German armies with one thought in mind: to join the Polish Army. “You are already in the Army” he said. We talked about various things for a while. He left and returned in two days with instructions to meet him at an address in the heart of Warsaw.
I smiled nervously. “Really? “ If so, it was a comfortable little trap!. “I don’t mean this apartment.” He rose and advancing to where I was standing put his hand on my arm in a friendly manner and in a confidential fashion he delivered a little lecture. “Jan, I’m going to talk to you because I know you to be an honorable, courageous man, and a good citizen. You are now a member of our Polish Underground. I brought you in and you have accepted our documents and assistance. The organization tries to play square, however. You have the option of devoting your services to it or returning to your normal life.” He paused for a moment and ran his fingers through his hair and then grasping my arm more firmly he continued:
“I must also tell you that if you should turn informer or make any attempt to betray us you will be shot.” Listening to him my spirits soared. This is what I have been waiting for. A task; an occupation; something to take me out of the morbid vacuum I had been living! I told him I had escaped from the Russian and German armies with one thought in mind: to join the Polish Army. “You are already in the Army” he said. We talked about various things for a while. He left and returned in two days with instructions to meet him at an address in the heart of Warsaw.
(to be continued) ....
(To be continued )
Daily Bites of The Secret State Series #2 “No Longer a Poland”
by Jan Karski 1944 :
“From The Secret State”
Series 2
#16 The Headquarters:
#17 The Death of Dziepatowski:
#18 Those Who Knuckled Under:
#19 The German Raid in Warsaw:
#20 A Separate Class of Victims:
#21 My First Underground Mission:
#22 Facing Hitler Banners:
#23 De Germanizing Poznan:
#24 Purge of Polish Population:
#25 Forced From their own Home:
#26 Uniting the Scattered Remnants:
#27 My Second Mission:
#28 An Official Coalition:
#29 The Hunters and the Hunted:
#30 Rescuing Jews from Germany:
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To be Continued in the Next Daily Bites of “The Secret State Series #2”
"FIGHTING FOR FREEDOM AND LIBERTY"
Stand Up To Government Corruption and Hypocrisy
NEVER FORGET THE SACRIFICES
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