The following publication, aimed at unveiling the tragic history of the Ulma family who has had secretly concealed, the members of Jewish families (Szall and Goldman), is a result of the research conducted by the Institute of National Remembrance. Additionally, thanks to the resources of the Institute of Strategic Studies, the IPN was able to gather hundreds of photographs from Józef Ulma’s collection, which were scattered among the villagers of Markowa and the neighboring towns. The book “The Righteous and their world” constitutes as the beginning of the new publishing series, devoted to the stories of people and the organizations, which have sacrificed themselves for the sake of salvaging Jews during the II World War. This work, possesses all characteristic of a “case study”. Nevertheless the primary subject of interest for the author, was in fact not as much the heroic Ulma family as the entire community of the Markowa village, which the Ulma’s were a significant part of. The research carried out, has also allowed for the discovery of other, unknown to this day, cases of Jews, being concealed by the villagers of Markowa. It has been uncovered that at least some 25 Poles of Jewish ethnicity were hidden in the town, out of which 17 managed to live through the entire occupation. The tragedy of Ulmas didn’t cause a breakdown in the much spontaneous process of setting up shelters, for the Jewish inhabitants of Markowa. In spite of the news of the tragedy, other families kept on risking their lives and the lives of their closest, for the sake of protecting the Jews.
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