Although it feels like events of the Holocaust and WWII have been comprehensively written about in numerous accounts, it’s astounding that new stories continue to emerge which present a different angle on this complex history. Virtually unknown accounts of heroism and tragic defeat continue to emerge and this new biographical account of Polish officer Witold Pilecki is one of the most shocking and heart breaking I’ve ever read. After Poland was occupied and Auschwitz (a former Polish army barracks) was turned into a German prisoner of war camp, Pilecki and other Polish nationalists devised campaigns to resist their invaders and take back their country. One of the things they needed most was information to convey to what would become the Allied countries to convince them to take action and strike against the Nazis. In order to gather proof about war crimes and form a resistance army from the inside, Pileck volunteered to be captured by the Nazis and taken into Auschwitz. Of course, this was long before anyone knew that it would turn into a death camp responsible for over 1.1 million deaths.
Something Fairweather emphasizes frequently in his book is that Pileck was a fairly ordinary man who made such a daring sacrifice out of strong nationalist convictions rather any particular ideological or humanitarian feeling. Yet he boldly faced a magnitude of challenges and outrageous brutality. Witnessing this led him to put himself at dire personal risk time and time again in the hope of ending this horrendous suffering. Unbelievably, many of his reports which were miraculously smuggled out of the camps and made themselves into the hands of Western officials went unheeded. This was primarily because it was viewed as too strategically difficult to try to liberate the inhabitants of Auschwitz. Also some officials questioned the legitimacy of the reports. There was also a hesitancy about prioritizing such action because of anti-Semitic sentiments. Even when it became obvious to Pileck that no help was coming and that any insurrection from within the camps would most likely fail, he raly resistance amongst the downtrodden inmates of the camp and attempt to communicate the truth of what was happening to nations that could fight the Nazis. The author notes that “Witold’s story demonstrates the courage needed to distinguish new evils from old, to name injustice and to implicate ourselves in the plight of others”.
It's very effective how Fairweather balances accounts of Pilecki's personal journey alongside a comprehensive overview of the history of WWII and how Auschwitz evolved into a site of such barbaric horror. Part of what made this book so compelling was the tension of finding out what happened to Pilecki. That his valour has largely been unsung in the history books is part of the tragedy of his life story. I'm grateful that “The Volunteer” has given me a broader understanding of the complicated progression of the war as well as an incredible account of one man's astounding courage.
