Białystok during World War II endured two occupations and suffered extensive human and physical devastation. The war broke in September 1939, when Nazi Germany invaded Poland on the 1st of September followed by the Soviet Union on the 17th of September. At that time, Białystok was the capital of Białystok Voivodeship in the Second Polish Republic. The city changed hands several times during the war. Initially occupied by German forces in early September 1939, it was soon transferred to Soviet control when the Red Army entered on September 20, in line with the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact. The city, together with the surrounding territories was then annexed to the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic and it became the capital of Belastok Region. During this period it passed through a massive Sovietization process which included installation of Soviet political system, nationalization of the economic sectors and adaptations of Soviet economic models, tight censorship and deportations to the Soviet Union. In June 1941, during Operation Barbarossa, the city was occupied again by the German Army and it became the capital of Bialystok District. The German occupation further continued severe repression and exploitation, culminating in the establishment of the Białystok Ghetto. Following a failed uprising in August 1943, the remaining Jewish population was deported to the Treblinka extermination camp. German repression and exploitation of the city continued but by 1944, following a series of losses in major battles, the front came closer to the city, when in July 1944, shortly before they retreated, the Germans set in fire large part of the city center. On July 27, 1944, the Soviets entered the city. While in the first days of the renewed Soviet occupation, it was uncertain whether the city would become part of Poland or the Soviet Union by the end of August it was decided by the Soviet Union to hand over the city to Poland. By the time the war ended in May 1945 Białystok had undergone a dramatic transformation with 80% of the city's buildings destroyed (especially in the city center), its industrial potential fell by 74%, its once thriving large Jewish community vanished and the overall population fell from approximately 100,000 in 1938 to fewer than 50,000.
Background At the turn of March and April 1939, Białystok intensified preparations to protect its population from potential bombings and gas attacks. Citizens received training in self-defense, while plans for trenches and shelters were developed. Specialized services were established, including alarm, communications, fire, rescue-medical, and technical units. Alongside scouts, various organizations contributed to these efforts, such as the Airborne and Antigas Defence League, the Polish Red Cross, the , the and the Riflemen's Association. The local newspaper Echo Białostockie provided instructions on how to respond during an air raid. In late July, a large-scale project began to dig anti-aircraft trenches across the city, particularly in the downtown area, near the two railway stations and the military barracks. Citizens also supported national defense initiatives by contributing to arms purchases for the Polish Army. For instance, employees of the Plywood State Factory in Dojlidy, employing over 400 people, bought a heavy machine gun for the Polish Armed Forces. funded the purchase of a heavy machine gun for the armed forces. Additionally, money was raised for the National Defense Fund and the Maritime Defense Fund. On the eve of war, tensions increased due to a surge in espionage and sabotage, straining relations with the local German community. As a result, public gatherings among the German population were banned starting May 13.
On August 27, just days before the war broke out, the Citizens' Committee for the Defence of the Homeland was formed. Led by local parson Aleksander Chodyko, the committee included representatives from the Camp of National Unity, the Polish Socialist Party, and the Polish People's Party. The committee was divided into sections: one assisted the families of reservists, another supported soldiers, and a third handled propaganda efforts via newspapers and loudspeakers installed on town halls, the NCO military officers' club on Sienkiewicza Street, the balcony of the Municipal Library, and other key locations. Two additional sections were assigned to help with provisioning and shelter construction.
On August 31, Military field Hospital No. 303 was opened in the Teachers' Seminary next to Branicki Palace on Mickiewicza Street. The hospital had 300 beds and was staffed by 11 military doctors. As the number of wounded increased, additional patients were moved to the .
Onset of the war
On 1 September 1939, Germany invaded Poland marking the start of World War II. German bomber squadrons flew over Białystok Voivodeship, dropping the first bombs on military barracks and near the Białystok railway station, killing a woman near Wronia Street. From September 4, the Citizen Guard (), established by the city president Seweryn Nowakowski, was operating in the city, tasked with supporting and replacement functions for the police and the army which were evacuated. The local press reported on the successes of the Polish Forces and even the air raids of Polish Air Force on Berlin. Only the information about the entry into East Prussia of cavalry squadrons supported by horse artillery proved to be true. The frontline around Białystok remained relatively calm, with skirmishes mainly around Myszyniec and Grajewo.
Białystok’s air raid alarm system functioned efficiently. Coloured shields were displayed on the tower of St. Roch Church to signal alarms, and factory sirens and gongs were used throughout the city. The Municipal Citizens' Committee for Social Self-Help with several sections began its work, and the became the Polish Soldier's House. From September 4, the Civil Guard (), established by city president Seweryn Nowakowski, was operating in the city, tasked with supporting and replacement functions for the state police and the army which were evacuated. Some conscripts were sent to patrol the city to deter looting and enforce order, punishing shopkeepers who inflated prices. When the war broke, voivode of Białystok Voivodeship, Henryk Ostaszewski, ordered partial evacuation of state offices and institutions from Białystok. After September 11, the Citizens' Guard fully assumed the duties of the evacuated State Police. On the night of September 10–11, many officials, including Ostaszewski, left the city, and selected archives were taken with them.
According to the Polish defense plans, Białystok was not intended for defense, and the military units located in the city took positions far from their garrison. The following units remained in the city: the marching battalion of the 42nd Infantry Regiment, the marching squadrons of the Podlaska Cavalry Brigade and Suwałki Cavalry Brigade, the marching platoon of the 14th Horse Artillery Divizion at the barracks in Bema street with two cannons, guard unit no. 32, machine gun company no. 38 and anti-aircraft battery no. 5. Around September 10, the began forming, incorporating the cavalry squadrons. The infantry units, no longer in contact with their parent regiments, were still quartered in the barracks.
However, reports from the Narew River prompted a decision to resist: Lieutenant Colonel Zygmunt Szafrankowski (commander of the District Command of Supplements and at the same time the oldest rank officer in Białystok) and Captain Tadeusz Kosiński (chief of staff) decided to mount a defense using marching and reserve units along with retreating soldiers from Narew. They had at their disposal primarily the marching battalion of the 42nd Infantry Regiment and the incomplete guard battalion No. 33. Other sub-units were added, Infantry arrived from near Wizna were gathered as well as two squadrons of the 2nd Grochow Uhlan Regiment from Suwałki.
The defensive line created by the assembled units stretched from Dojlidy and Nowe Miasto, through Wysoki Stoczek, to Pietraszi: Uhlans from two squadrons of the 2nd Regiment were placed in Białostoczek and Pietrasze, guard battalion No. 32 was deployed in Nowe Miasto, and the center of defense was the hills of Wysokie Stoczek manned by the marching battalion of the 42nd Infantry Regiment commanded by Lieutenant and chief of staff Antoni Malecki. In addition, the city's defenders were supported by a company of heavy machine guns and one artillery platoon In total, the Polish defense force numbered about 900 soldiers.
On September 11, Military field hospital no. 303 was evacuated by train and the most seriously injured, approximately two hundred people, were transferred to civilian hospitals. Combat contact between German and Polish units defending the Narew River crossing near Żółtki established on September 13. The defense command took up a position near the city slaughterhouse, at the intersection of Hetmańska and Żółtkowska Streets. On the evening of September 14, the bridge over the Biała River in Bacieczki was blown up.
On the morning of September 15, German forces launched multiple assaults on the central section of the Polish positions in the area of the Marczuk and Wysoki Stoczek districts in several waves. The Polish forces were ordered to fight until 12:00. On 14:00. Polish troops were ordered to hold their ground until noon. After hours of intense fighting and repelling four waves of attacks, the two squadrons of the 2nd Grochow Uhlan Regiment, then the 42nd Regiment companies retreated towards the area of the train station and St. Roch's Church, where they assembled and then left through Piłsudskiego, Rynek Kościuszki, Kilińskiego, Żwirki i Wigury streets further (some units not before late evening) to the east towards Wołkowysk (following the war it was transferred to Byelorussian SSR). while other units headed towards Zielona and from there in the direction of Vilnius. Captain Kosiński seriously wounded in the battles and died later that day in a hospital in Warszawska street. Overall, the number of Polish casualties is estimated at several dozens, and from September 1 to 16, approximately 100 soldiers who died in local hospitals were buried at the Military Cemetery in Zwierzyniecki Forest.
On 15 September, Białystok was occupied by the "Lötzen" Fortress Brigade under General Otto-Ernst Ottenbacher. The Germans limited themselves to establishing the Military City Command, which ordered the surrender of all weapons and ammunition and the disbandment of the Citizens' Guard. A curfew and various restrictions were introduced. However, no civil administration was created, because these areas were to be occupied by the Soviets. Within a few days, a dozen or so Jewish residents were murdered. A transit camp for prisoners of war was set up in Primary School No. 1. On September 20, Wehrmacht soldiers executed eight people in the school’s courtyard for "disobedience". Between September 20 and 21, Einsatzgruppe IV arrived in Białystok and began carrying out atrocities against the civilian population.
Soviet occupation