Flags Over the Warsaw Ghetto

by Moshe Arens

The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising has become a symbol of heroism throughout the world. A short time before the uprising began, Pawel Frenkel addressed a meeting of the Jewish Military fighters: Of course we will fight with guns in our hands, and most of us will fall. But we will live on in the lives and hearts of future generations and in the pages of their history.... We will die before our time but we are not doomed. We will be alive for as long as Jewish history lives! On the eve of Passover, April 19, 1943, German forces entered the Warsaw ghetto equipped with tanks, flame throwers, and machine guns. Against them stood an army of a few hundred young Jewish men and women, armed with pistols and Molotov cocktails. Who were these Jewish fighters who dared oppose the armed might of the SS troops under the command of SS General Juergen Stroop? Who commanded them in battle? What were their goals? In this groundbreaking work, Israel s former Minister of Defense, Prof. Moshe Arens, recounts a true tale of daring, courage, and sacrifice that should be accurately told out of respect for and in homage to the fighters who rose against the German attempt to liquidate the Warsaw ghetto, and made a last-ditch fight for the honor of the Jewish people. The generally accepted account of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising is incomplete. The truth begins with the existence of not one, but two resistance organizations in the ghetto. Two young men, Mordechai Anielewicz of the Jewish Fighting Organization (ZOB), and Pawel Frenkel of the Jewish Military Organization (ZZW), rose to lead separate resistance organizations in the ghetto, which did not unite despite the desperate battle they were facing. Included is the complete text of The Stroop Report translated into English.

Genres: History, Holocaust, Nonfiction, World War II, Historical, Poland

419 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 2011

Reviews

[Meaghan · Rating 4 out of 5]

(I got this book free from LibraryThing Early Reviewers.) Whew! Just when you think you know everything... I've read many books about the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising but this really opened my eyes.

The accepted story is this: After years of oppression and starvation the Jews of Warsaw, realizing they were all condemned to die, decided to at least take a few Nazis out with them. They formed the ZOB (Jewish Fighting Organization), started a bloody rebellion and went down in history as heroes for all time.

However, as Dr. Arens says in this astonishing book, it's not as simple as that: there were actually TWO rebel organizations, the ZOB and the ZZW (Jewish Military Union), each waging their own personal fight against the Nazis. They were roughly equal in terms of their size and impact -- in fact, the ZZW, which was actually lead by trained soldiers, might have been the better of the two. But the ZZW got the shaft in the history books. Whereas several ZOB fighters survived to write memoirs, all of the ZZW's leaders and senior commanders were killed in the Uprising. The ZOB people, wanting to claim all the credit for themselves, said very little about the other organization and, when they did they tended to disparage it. Marek Edelman, for example, called them "porters, smugglers and thieves." I have read so many Holocaust books but before this one had never even heard of the ZZW -- though the name of their leader, Pawel Frankel, rings a bell.

You might think that the idea of two military organizations both fighting against an enemy determined to kill them all, but refusing to join forces, was pretty stupid. And it was. But the ZOB and ZZW were separated on pre-war ideological grounds. The ZOB, which was founded by Jewish Socialist youth leaders, refused to accept fighters who weren't already members of one of the many Jewish youth groups; the ZZW would take anybody. It all seems silly to me. Like splitting Democrats and Republicans into separate military units.

The books begins slowly, and it would be hard to understand without prior knowledge of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. So many people were mentioned, and acronyms: ZOB, ZZW, ZKK, ZKN, PLAN, IZL, AK, AL, that it's hard to keep them all straight. (There's an index of acronyms in the back though.) But for serious students of the Holocaust in Poland, this is a can't miss.

[Amiad · Rating 4 out of 5]

תיאור היסטורי מפורט של מרד גטו ורשה עם דגש על הפעילות של תנועת אצ"י הרווזיוניסטית שבדרך כלל פחות מפורסמת.

ספר מעניין, חשוב וכואב על הרקע למרד, המלחמה, המוות, הגבורה וגם הפוליטיקה שמסביב. עצוב לקרוא על הנזק המועט שהמרד גרם לגרמנים, על הוויכוחים הפוליטיים הבלתי רלוונטיים ועל ההשכחה של אצ"י.

[ManOfLaBook.com · Rating 5 out of 5]

Flags Over the War­saw Ghetto: The Untold Story of the War­saw Ghetto Upris­ing by Moshe Arens is an impor­tant non-fiction book about this famous event. The book is by no means an intro­duc­tory text book on the sub­ject and should not be treated as such as the reader must have some prior knowl­edge of these his­tor­i­cal events.

Moshe Arens, for­mer Ambas­sador to the U.S., Israeli Defense Min­is­ter and For­eign Min­is­ter, tells the story of the upris­ing in War­saw Ghetto which the his­tory books have missed. Inter­est­ingly enough, the upris­ing started on the eve of the Jew­ish hol­i­day of Passover, a hol­i­day known as cel­e­brat­ing liberation.

More than any­thing, the book tells of the inabil­ity of humans to set aside ide­o­log­i­cal dif­fer­ences to fight a com­mon enemy. The book chron­i­cles how two groups of Jews were pre­vented by ide­ol­ogy to join and fight the Nazi mur­der machine. The two orga­ni­za­tions were the Jew­ish Fight­ing Orga­ni­za­tion (ZOB), led by Mordechai Anielewicz, and the Jew­ish Mil­i­tary Orga­ni­za­tion (ZZW), led by Pawel Frenkel didn’t real­ize that dur­ing that time, their ide­o­log­i­cal dif­fer­ences were largely irrelevant.

Arens states that the dif­fer­ent groups were also divided among them­selves. Reli­gious and sec­u­lar Jews, nation­al­ists and assim­i­la­tion­ists as well as Zion­ists and anti-Zionists. Even the Zion­ist move­ment was torn apart from within by the main­stream labor group and the mil­i­tant Revi­sion­ists who were fol­low­ers of Zeev Jabotin­sky – a rift that began at the World Zion­ist Con­gress in 1931 and became worst after the assas­si­na­tion of Labor Zion­ist leader Chaim Arlozo­roff on a Tel Aviv beach in 1933. The left and right move­ments of Zion­ism per­sists to this day, Arens notes, but the paral­y­sis it caused for the two groups to work together even at the height of the uprising.

Mind you this was on the eve of the great­est mass mur­der in world history.

In the book, Arnes states over and over that his main pur­pose is the give credit to the ZZW whose con­tri­bu­tion has been either down­played or over­looked because the major­ity of the peo­ple to tell the story were ZOB sur­vivors whose per­sonal expe­ri­ence didn’t include the ZZW. The senior com­man­ders of the ZZW all fell in bat­tle, the sur­vivors of the ZOB wanted to give credit to their friends.

The nar­ra­tive is clear, vivid and fast paced. The amount of doc­u­ments Arnes exam­ines are amaz­ing. The book includes excel­lent notes, cita­tions and appen­dices which fans of his­tory would truly appre­ci­ate includ­ing the full trans­lated text of the daily reports and sum­mary reports of Brigade­fuehrer Jüer­gen Stroop, the Nazi com­man­der nom­i­nated by Himm­ler to end the revolt and “clear” War­saw Ghetto of all Jews, as well as the Wies­baden Report.

The need to unite under dif­fi­cult con­di­tions is a theme which res­onates through­out the book. This theme is impor­tant to study and remem­ber not only for Jews, but for all.

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[Danny · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found that, if measured as a work of historical scholarship, Flags over the Warsaw Ghetto is disappointing. But I'll begin with my positive feelings about the book.

In a vacuum, Arens has provided an important service by praising those unsung heroes of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, who have, as a result of historical and political circumstances, slipped through the cracks. Many individuals acted heroically before the German Nazis and each one should be remembered for his and her sacrifice and contribution to the greater good. In an ideological sense, Arens's work is remarkable.

But no book is written in a vaccuum. I'm neither an historian nor an expert in Holocaust history (although I do have a bachelors degree in Jewish history which should count for something), so I'll leave that sort of review for Dariusz Libionka and Laurence Weibaum who are indeed professionals in this regard (see their book review in Jewish Political Studies Revew).

Arens's personal background is probably the most significant factor here. On one leg: He is an engineer by trade (MIT and CalTech trained) turned politician (Likud - a right-of-center political party in Israel), and is Jewish. He was born in eastern Europe and his family narrowly escaped WWII when they emigrated to the U.S. in 1939. Arens grew up in the ranks of the Beitar youth movement which falls - by any account - on the right side of the political spectrum. The question of how far right is a matter of interpretation. For anyone who read this book, Beitar is the youth movement associated with the IZL Jewish militant group, with Vladimir Jabotinsky, and with Menachem Begin. The version of history portrayed by Arens is intended to restore Beitar/IZL's rightful place among the ranks of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising's heroes.

And with this background, I'll list a few issue that I have with this book.

1. Throughout the book, Arens seems to have a bone to pick with all of the other Jewish political groups that were active in Poland before and during WWII generally, and with the socialist Zionist groups in particular. As a general theme, he laments the chronic disunity which plagued these political groups, and in his introduction, he states explicitly that everyone was at fault for this problem. Howevwer, this is no more than a thin veil hiding his true feelings; the remaining chapters of the book are defined by their incessant backhanded vilification all other Jewish groups for alienating the ZZW (IZL's Polish military organization), while the ZZW remained the downtrodden outcast (some variation of a tragic hero?) that was innocent and just never seemed to break into the "cool kids" club. The emotion that guides this narrative seems angry, which gives it a disingenuous feel. However, when the author's narrative informs the reader that history has been incorrect in remembering the ZOB (the not-ZZW Jewish fighting force) as the main revolutionary group that always planned ahead and was consistently first on the scene (that the ZOB and ZZW should share this spotlight), this feels more balanced and believable. But this leads me into my next issue with the book.

2. The author's narrative is severely lacking in sources. If the author intends to reverse the trajectory of seven decades of well-sourced research, then his work should be inundated with references. Moreover, I take issue his heavy reliance on first-hand accounts (which, prima facie, is completely reasonable) because he does so uncritically. The individuals who gave their accounts of what happened in Warsaw during those years did so long after the uprising, after they aged, and in the context of polemical historical review. Now, Arens might respond with the same claim he makes in the book's introduction - the lack of extant sources severely inhibits the historian from succeeding in his or her job, which is why this work makes use of so few sources. This is also problematic however, since, for the purposes of historical scholarship, a lack of resources cannot serve as the basis of a positive reconstruction of events -- that would make such a reconstruction fundamentally speculative. A lacking source which one might expect to exist but doesn't can be used as supportive evidence, but to build a narrative on an absent source (and here I refer to the sources that do not exist since most, if not all, of the ZZW's leadership and main fighters perished during the uprising) is to build a narrative on shaky foundations. The narrative may be correct, but it is difficult to believe.

3. The last issue that I'll touch upon relates to the author's approach to ZOB sources. He claims that ZOB members who later recounted what happened to them during the uprising or who left other kinds of primary sources behind (diary entries, letters, etc.) purposefully left out mention of the ZZW in order to erase them from the story and keep the heroes' spotlight to themselves. I guess that's possible, but anyone who has engaged in Jewish historical scholarship through the review of primary sources knows that this understanding of ZOB sources is off. If ZOB sources follow the pattern set forth in other Jewish historical sources from the last 3,000 years, then the ZOB's disdain for the ZZW would be evidenced by polemical statements and eristic references to the ZZW -- not by the ZZW's absence from those sources.

Again, I say all of this with the caveat that I am not an historian of the Holocaust. It could very well be that Arens is correct in his assessment and that we should be reviewing the veracity - or, at least, the accuracy - of society's current narrative of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. The events of his story seem to add up (despite the literary license he seems to take in his interpretation of those events), and, like most things in life, the truth is probably somewhere in the middle. Therefore, this book is probably worth reading and is CERTAINLY worth a proper peer review by professional historians. That being said, I take what is written therein with a (large) grain of salt.

[Philip Mann · Rating 4 out of 5]

The common joke is that ask three Jews a question and you'll get four opinions. In most cases it stays a joke. But in this case, it was a heart-rending tragedy.
The author gives us the political background to the days before and during WW2. There were Jewish activist groups across the spectrum, including a range of left wing groups, from socialist Zionist to hard line Soviet communist. Some wanted to improve Jewish life in Poland and Russia, others wanted to devote all their resources to founding a Jewish state in mandatory Palestine.
There were in fact several Zionist groups, one religious group, and Betar, the revisionist group of Jabotinsky. They stood alone, ostracised as fascists for their willingness to use force. Thus when the time came to unite against a truly evil enemy in the form of Nazi Germany, their pitifully weak resources were split along several fault lines. Coupled with the German known use of mass retribution and successful concealment of their goal, Jewish resistance was doomed from the start. Politics also meant that a good portion of whatever help was given, in the form of funds raised from the US, was split between establishing the state of Israel and helping the valiant few to fight for their lives in Poland.
There is a lot to weep for in this account. But there is also an uplifting message, as delivered by the fighters own words. The Jewish fighting spirit was never dimmed, regardless of the odds. Going back to the Roman wars and now in the misery of Warsaw, the Jews never gave up hope. That message alone makes this book a worthwhile and rewarding read.

[Joel Mack · Rating 5 out of 5]

Moshe Arens has emerged as a pioneer historian in his account of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. He is the first historian to try and tell of the events, involvement and roles played by the two major Jewish resistance fighting organisations (the ZOB and the ZZW), with no other motive than to try and paint a picture of what actually happened. Previous accounts have either been written about either one organization or the other, or more importantly about the ZOB, while completely ignoring the major role of the ZZW. This is due to the intense political rivalry that existed and irreconcilable differences between the two organizations even though they were fighting for the same common cause. It was also due the fact that only fighters from the ZOB survived after the war resulting in them purposely ignoring the role of the ZZW when giving their accounts of events. Arens even questions as to why they could not unite and fight as a unified resistance organisation.

The book begins with life in Warsaw pre-1935 outlining the roles of the major Jewish underground organizations in Poland, while also touching on events in Vilna. Some of the movements were trying to recruit Jews to Palestine and set up a Jewish homeland - the most noteworthy being the IZL headed by Jabotinsky - while others were intent on supporting the war effort of the Polish resistant movements against the Germans. Preparations for the uprising as well as a detailed account of the uprising are discussed in details before Arens aims at trying to "Setting the Record Straight". Also included as appendices are Jurgen Stroop's `Daily Reports' and his `Summary Report', both of which were written at the time of the Uprising, as well as the `Wiesbaden Report' written by Stroop some 3 years later while apprehended by American forces. Most useful is a map of the ghetto - which I kept referring to - with the bunkers clearly marked in which the ZOB and ZZW hid and organised their resistance against the Nazis.

In conclusion Arens' account of the events retelling the bravery of both resistance groups is a thoroughly comprehensive read and of major historical value. It is written from a neutral standpoint, using many poignant sources. He manages to bring the book to life, while still maintaining it's value as a historical piece, making it a compelling must-read for anyone interested in expanding their knowledge of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was really impressed with this book because it really did cover the "untold story". I have read about the Warsaw Ghetto uprising before and I did not realize there were really two fighting forces in the ghetto. The author's objective is to really bring the second group, the ZZW (Jewish Military Union), into the light. Some of the reason the ZZW has not been covered is that many did not survive. The other resistance group, the ZOB, wrote the memoirs and therefore the history of this time period.

This book starts off a bit slow, but that is because the author is providing a background for the reader as well as information of how the two organizations started. There is an appendix which includes Juergen Stropop's Daily Reports, which is one of the most important primary documents during this time period.

This book adds to the historical conversation so I believe anyone who wants a full picture of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising will definitely need to pick up this book.

[Michael Cargill · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting read for people interested in this sort of thing.

As with so many books about the holocaust, it can make for some strange reading. The way the Nazis nonchalantly speak about exterminating an entire race of people is disturbing.

I bought the Kindle version of this, and the formatting is rather poor.

[Leo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book sets about to put the record straight about the contribution the right-wing Zionist party, the Revisionists, played in the Warsaw ghetto uprising. The left-wing Jewish Fighting Organisation or ZOB as they came to be called, have until recently taken all the credit for the heroics of the uprising. ZOB consisted of mostly socialists of varying ideologies who loathed the Revisionists, considering them fascists, especially because their youth movement dressed in brown uniforms not dissimilar to the Hitler Youth. The Revisionists were much closer in ideology to present day Israeli governments and it was factions of their organisation who fought the British in Palestine. However, none of their high ranking members survived the ghetto battles so they had no voice when the narrative of the Warsaw ghetto uprising was being constructed after the war. The socialists took all the credit and in some quarters accused the Revisionists of being more of a lawless hindrance than a help. This brilliantly researched book argues that the Revisionists were actually more instrumental in initially holding back the German forces than ZOB, a thesis with which the German commander, General Stroop concurs when he identifies the building where the Revisionists were concentrated as the fulcrum of the Jewish resistance.
An excellent read for anyone interested in the Warsaw ghetto uprising.

[Asher · Rating 5 out of 5]

ספר חשוב שמתאר את החלק של סיפור של גיטו וורשה שבדך-כלל לא מספרים.

בלי לגרוע מהסיפור הידוע, הסיפור על שנאת-חינם של חלקים הארגונים היהודים בוורשה אפילו בצל האיום של השמדה הוא מסביר הרבה על ההתנהגות של אלמנטים בפוליטיקה של היום.

[Itay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Revealing account of a little-known part of the right-wing resistance movement in the Warsaw Ghetto uprising

[Julie Waldman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an extremely difficult read, not because it wasn't well written, it was, but because it really detailed how once again our lack of unity damaged us in so many ways.

[Alexandria Fanjoy Silver · Rating 5 out of 5]

This might be one of the best Holocaust non-fiction books on the market.

[Eyalwe · Rating 5 out of 5]

תיעוד מעניין של מאורעות מרד גטו וארשה מזוית ביתריסטית.

[Nicole "Coley" Klem]

While there are many books written on the uprising in the Warsaw Ghetto, this particular volume stands on its own as very important. The Jew­ish Fight­ing Orga­ni­za­tion (ZOB) typically gets credit for the uprising, but this book pushes into light the role the Jew­ish Mil­i­tary Orga­ni­za­tion (ZZW) played as well. Arens' book finally shows the bravery of ALL the people who stood up to fight back against the Nazi war machine. Arens also shows that (amazingly!!) people can't seem to set aside their own beliefs and politics in order to fight a common enemy.

[Seth J. Vogelman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Correcting the historical record distorted by party politics.