5th MARCH OF REMEMBRANCE IN MEMORY OF THE VICTIMS OF GERMAN CRIMES IN THE PALĘDZKO-ZAKRZEWSKIE FORESTS

On Friday, 13 October 2023, the 5th March of Remembrance in Memory of the Victims of German Crimes took place in the Palędzko-Zakrzewskie forests. The event was organised by the Association of Dopiewiec Enthusiasts "My Polacy" - Sami Swoi. The event was held under the honorary patronage of, among others, the Director of the Jan Karski Institute of War Losses, Prof. Konrad Wnęk. The march aimed, among other things, to disseminate knowledge about German crimes in the Warta Country, and to introduce onto the maps of the Collective Memory of the Polish Nation, the war crimes of German genocide against Poles in the forests of Palędzie and Dąbrówka near Zakrzewo.

The first executions in the Palędzie and Dąbrówka Forests took place as early as 13 October 1939. In the death pits, the entire elite of Wielkopolska, including clergymen, teachers, railwaymen, landowners, scouts, Wielkopolska insurgents and social activists, were killed using the method used at Katyn, i.e. murder by being shot in the back of the head.

It is estimated that the Germans murdered at least 4,500 Polish citizens in the Palędzko-Zakrzewskie forests during World War II. It is not possible to determine the exact number of the murdered due to the Germans masking the scene of their crimes as part of the exhumation action "1005" in 1944. The victims were exhumed and burnt. Lists of the victims were also destroyed.

The march started with a mass in the Clergy Quarters.

The participants then marched to the Forgotten Graves Quarter and the Seven Graves Quarter, from there they proceeded to the Monument for Students, where the main ceremonies took place. The Bel Canto Choir sang at the event.

Wreaths and candles were placed at the Monument for Students, and tributes were paid to the memory of the thousands of Polish victims of German crimes against the Polish people during World War II.