"Gut versteckt ist besser wie gedeckt”. The Jews of Radomsko in the face of the ghetto liquidation

Abstract

The ghetto in Radomsko was established in December 1939. During its almost three-year existence more than 20,000 Jews lived there. In October 1942, as part of Operation “Reinhardt,” the deportation of the ghetto inhabitants began, which led to their extermination. This article aims to reconstruct the situation in the ghetto in Radomsko on the eve of the beginning of the deportations in 1942. The author tries to answer the question regarding the inhabitants’ level of awareness of the approaching threat. Based on the survivors' testimonies, an attempt is made to determine to what extent the Jews of Radomsko knew about the process and actual purpose of the deportation, as their reaction to the news and actions they took were based on their growing understanding of Operation “Reinhardt.”