Inside of the Concentration Camps established by the SS and the Nazis, there were many stories
of bravery and tragedy.
Inside camps such as Bergen-Belsen and Buchenwald, there were many people who risked their lives
to protect other prisoners.
One such example was a priest who volunteered for death in the place of a prisoner who had
a wife and children.
This bravery saved the mans life, but when the Red Army liberated Auschwitz, they learned
of the true horror of the huge and large killing complex.
But one story that emerged from the survivors of Auschwitz was of a couple and two lovers
who together had attempted to escape from the camp, and had actually managed to flee
the gates of Auschwitz.
But they were quickly recaptured, and then were subject to horrific executions and much
mystery surrounds the execution of Mala Zimetbaum, as it is debated that she was subjected to
a truly terrifying ordeal.
Join us today as we look at the Horrific Executions Of the Lovers That Escaped Auschwitz.
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Edward Galinski, who was also known as Edek was a Polish man who was known to have been
a very handsome and brave man who took many risks.
He served despite being young inside of the Polish Army to try and defeat the Nazi Invasion
of his homeland, however he was then arrested and was classed as a political prisoner.
Because of this he was transported to Tarnow Prison, after Poland fell to the Nazis, and
its believed he may have been tortured here for information.
But on the 14th June 1940, he was one of 729 male polish political prisoners who were part
of the first decorations of prisoners to Auschwitz.
At the time it was being used only as a camp for criminals and political prisoners, not
Jewish people and Gypsies.
Here Edward was part of setting up the infrastructure of the camp, and he was assigned to work as
a mechanic and with this he worked with a number of civilians who were also helping
to build Auschwitz and expand the huge complex.
His work as a mechanic allowed him to be taken into different sub camps at Auschwitz, including
the women camp of Birkenau.
There he met Mala Zimetbaum.
Mala was a Polish lady who was very intelligent, and at the age of 24 she was captured by the
Germans on the 22nd July 1942.
It’s believed she was arrested during the Third Raid of Antwerp where many Jews were
being captured inside the Belgian city and were then being transported to transport camps.
Mama was sent to the Mechelen camp, before she was then on the 15th September 1942, placed
on Transport 10 which was heading to Auschwitz.
It took her two days to arrive, and following the selection process she was not selected
to go into the gas chamber, and was then sent into the women’s camp at Birkenau.
Mala Zimetbum spent two years in Auschwitz Birkenau and was assigned the camp inmate
number 19890, and as she was skilled in speaking a number of different languages, including
English, Italian, Polish, German and French, she was forced to work as an interpreter and
a courier.
It was said, ‘In Birkenau, she acted as an interpreter and messenger and as such enjoyed
a certain freedom of movement.’
Because of this she had access to more things than the everyday prisoner, but she even took
part in the resistance inside Auschwitz, and she helped other inmates.
It was said she was, ‘generous and courageous, she had helped many of her companions and
was loved by all of them.’
She stepped in when prisoners would be punished for not working hard enough, and she also
warned prisoners inside of the infirmary when selections were happening, so they could get
out of the hospital and save their lives.
She also passed banned photographs smuggled into the camp from inmates’ family members,
and also got food and medicine for people who needed it.
But when she met Edward Edek Galinski, she fell in love and together the pair came up
with an escape plan to try and flee Auschwitz.
Galinski had planned to escape from Auschwitz before, but together the pair came up with
a plan to escape.
Galinski informed his friends that the pair would escaper together, as a previous plan
relied on stealing SS guard’s uniforms, and this at the time could not be sourced.
It was said that, ‘"In the summer of 1944 [Zimetbaum] decided to escape with Edek, a
Polish political prisoner.
She not only wanted to reconquer her own freedom; she was also planning to document the daily
massacre at Birkenau."
Mala Zimetbaum’s escape mission was based around the fact she wanted to tell the Allies
the true horror of what was happening at Auschwitz with the mass killings, brutal guards and
the gassings.
She believed by doing this she would save the lives of many, and together her and her
boyfriend Galinski planned to escape on the 24th June 1944 which was a Saturday.
They chose this day as there were less guards on duty at the weekend.
On the day of the escape, the couple were initially successful in breaking out of Auschwitz.
Galinski was dressed in an SS uniform, and Zimetbaum was dressed as a prisoner who was
being led to go and work in a different camp.
She managed to get an SS pass and with this, managed to get out of the gates of Auschwitz,
and then they headed for a nearby town.
The pair were probably dreaming of their freedom, but it would not last long.
For two weeks they hid inside of the nearby towns and the mountains, and they were evading
capture.
They were caught on the 6th July 1944 inside of mountains near to the Slovakia border,
and as Mama zimetbaum went into a store to buy bread, she was arrested.
She tried to barter with gold she had stolen from Auschwitz, and a passing German patrol
came past and arrested her.
Galinski who saw this had the chance to try and flee, but as he promised he would not
leave Mala Zimetbaum, he gave himself up and was also arrested.
Now escape attempts at Auschwitz were often met with much brutality.
Collective punishment took place in which prisoners of the same block from the escapee
were sometimes hanged in roll call, and whole barracks were forced to stand in the freezing
cold until the prisoners returned.
The lovers were both taken to Block 11 inside of Auschwitz which was infamous for being
a torture block where punishment was inflicted greatly.
Galinski was placed in a cell with another man, and a friendly SS guard passed notes
between him and Mala.
As Mala Zimetbaum was taken out for exercise, Galinski would sing to her, however escape
attempts were only met with one form of reprisal at Auschwitz.
Galisnki and Zimetbaum were sentenced to death for their escape, and on the 15th September
1944 were to be hanged at the same time in the Mens and Women’s camps.
The pair were forced to go to their deaths for their infringing of the camps rules, and
Galinski it’s believed was executed first and that his death went smoother than Mala’s.
As he was led to the gallows on the roll call yard, an SS official red out the death sentence
and verdict, but before this happened, Galinski jumped into the noose and then was forced
back onto the platform.
He screamed Long Live Poland, and as all the prisoners were forced to watch, they took
their hats off.
He was then hanged and left out as a reminder to the prisoners for some time.
However Mala Zimetbaum would not go down without a fight.
It was reported by Auschwitz Survivors that she had managed to obtain a razor blade from
somewhere.
As she was led to the gallows in the women’s camp, she quickly slashed an artery in one
of her wrists.
As she was bleeding heavily, it’s clear she had not wanted the SS guards to take her
life.
She wanted to have the final say.
There are differing accounts of what happened next.
It was reported by some that she said the women would soon be liberated, and that she
told them to rise up and revolt, saying it was worth risking their lives for freedom.
One SS guard tried to take the razor blade from her, but then Mala slapped the guard
with her bloody hand.
She screamed, ‘I shall die a heroine, but you shall die like a dog.’
But then it was said that, ‘Enraged, other guards immediately came running, a prisoner,
a woman had dared to defy them.’
Some claimed that she actually broke the SS guards arm, but then the camp staff and more
guards jumped on her, beat her savagely and taped her mouth shut.
Maria Mandl, the head of the womens camp who was a sadistic guards then stated that an
order from Berlin had arrived stating that Mala Zimetbaum was to be burned alive inside
the camps Crematoria.
It was said that she was placed on a wheelbarrow, and then was taken to the camp infirmary.
As she was led away beaten and bleeding heavily, she said to the prisoners ‘The day of reckoning
is near,’ and then she tried to speak to more prisoners.
There are differing accounts of what actually killed her.
Some state that she was taken to the camp hospital to stop the bleeding, but actually
died whilst on the cart from bloodloss and the beating she received.
Some say that a guard shot her near to the crematoria, and others said she had poison
and took it before she could be burned alive.
Other accounts claimed that she was in fact burned alive.
The staff of the crematoria cried and prayed as they were forced to burn her, but what
cannot be questioned is the bravery of Mala Zimetbaum.
Edward Galinski and Mama Zimetbaum’s escape attempt was initially successful, and the
pair managed to secure a few weeks of freedom.
However the fact it eventually failed resulted in a certain death sentence.
The SS did not mess around with people who dared to escape the concentration camps, and
because of this they executed the two lovers in brutal fashion in front of hundreds of
prisoners.
Today the pair are remembered as the lovers of Auschwtiz.
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