Polish Legation in Havana Poselstwo Rzeczpospolitej Polskiej w Hawanie (A. 62)

Identifier
irn44127
Language of Description
English
Alt. Identifiers
  • 2011.185
  • RG-59.081
Dates
1 Jan 1935 - 31 Dec 1948
Level of Description
Item
Languages
  • Polish
  • Spanish
Source
EHRI Partner

Extent and Medium

942 digital images (4 files), PDF (Multi)

1 DVD-ROM, 4 3/4 in.

Creator(s)

Biographical History

Rząd Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej na uchodźstwie (Government of the Republic of Poland in Exile) was established after Germany and the Soviet Union occupied Poland in September 1939. The Polish government-in-exile was first based in Paris, but moved to London after the French army surrendered to the Germans in the mid-1940s. The Allied powers accepted the government-in-exile as the legitimate representative of the Polish people soon after it was created. The Polish government allied itself with the Allied powers, as its members believed that only a total military victory over Germany would restore Poland's independence and freedom. The government-in-exile led the Polish war effort throughout World War II, and amassed its own land, air, and naval forces. In addition, it commanded the largest underground army of the war, the Armia Krajowa (the Polish Home Army). In 1942, reports about the mass murder of Jews in Poland reached London. At that point, the Polish government-in-exile made several public declarations on the subject, and officially demanded that the Allied powers stop the Germans from continuing their campaign to murder Jews, and other individuals they deemed undesirable. From December 1942 onward, the government-in-exile backed the rescue work of Zegota, which offered aid to Jews throughout occupied Poland.

Archival History

Instytut Polski i Muzeum im. Gen. Sikorskiego w Londynie

Acquisition

Forms part of the Claims Conference International Holocaust Documentation Archive at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. This archive consists of documentation whose reproduction and/or acquisition was made possible with funding from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany.

Source of acquisition is the Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum, London, England. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Archives received selected records in September 2011.

Scope and Content

Contains selected records from the Havana consulate of the Polish Government-in-Exile, including a list of Polish citizens (mostly of Jewish origin), 1935-1946; as well as other records relating to applications for entry visas to Cuba, primarily from Polish Jews, 1946-1947.

System of Arrangement

Name list is in alphabetical order, remaining documents grouped in series by year, and then alphabetic within each series [?]

Conditions Governing Reproduction

Copyright Holder: Instytut Polski i Muzeum im. Gen. Sikorskiego w Londynie

Corporate Bodies

Subjects

Genre

This description is derived directly from structured data provided to EHRI by a partner institution. This collection holding institution considers this description as an accurate reflection of the archival holdings to which it refers at the moment of data transfer.