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=The Leaders of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising =



The Warsaw ghetto uprising would not have been possible without its brave fighters against the Nazis, but it would have been spiritless and disorganized without its leaders and commanders. There were many people who led the Jews to rebel against the Nazis, but there were also leaders who showed the way for people living in fear and in need of advice and comfort. There were smuggling leaders to bring in food to the starving ghetto inhabitants and Rabbis to lead the Jewish congregation and to comfort people living in fear and confusion in the ghetto. There were also leaders of secret underground resistance groups who stood up against the Nazis with whatever they had at hand, whether that was grenades or refusal to give in. There were many commanders and well-known activists in the ghetto that fought the Germans in the uprising.

Some are more well-known than others, but all the people fighting in the rebellion were vital to the overall outcome of the uprising. One man from the uprising, Vladka Meed, was a young resistance fighter, and he led many Jews over the wall to smuggle weapons into the ghetto bullet by bullet. Another young man, Marek Edelman, was an important leader during the uprising, and also one of the few survivors. He died in 2009 at the age of 90. These people played important roles in the uprising, but neither of them gave as much encouragement nor made as much of a difference to the overall outcome of the uprising as Mordechai Anielewicz.

Anielewicz was only 24 years old when he led the uprising against the Nazi oppressors in the Warsaw ghetto. This young man led a life of secrecy, daring, and danger in a variety of secret underground movements. A proud and loyal Jewish young man during World War II, Anielewicz saw it as his duty to protect and encourage his people and lead them to stand up against their oppressors.

Mordechai Anielewicz was born in 1919 to a poor Jewish family in Warsaw. After he had completed secondary school, he joined the Zionist movement ha-Shomer ha-Tsa'ir, where he later distinguished himself as an organizer and leader. By 1940, Anielewicz was a full-time underground activist, setting up youth groups and underground newspapers. In November of 1940, the ghetto’s walls were built and Jews were sent there to live, which was around the time Anielewicz began concentrating on transforming the underground youth movements. He morphed them into an armed resistance movement in response to the construction to the ghetto. He also began creating self-defense organizations in the ghetto. All of his anger at the Germans and fear of being deported fueled his energy and desire for revenge. In November of 1942, Anielewicz was appointed commander of the ZOB (Zydowska Organizacja Bojowa) known as the Jewish Combat Organization. With this power, Anielewicz encouraged and promoted the idea of an uprising. With the help of leaders of smaller organizations and people in the ghetto that wanted to fight back, the uprising took place. Unfortunately, the fighters had only a small amount of weapons and did not stand a chance against the Nazis with their advanced weaponry, but the resistance was successful in making a point that they would not make it easy for the Germans to wipe out the entire Jewish population in Warsaw. Anielewicz was very proud of the people he lead in battle. He wrote the following in a letter to a friend on April 23, 1943 (during the uprising):“Be well, my friend! Perhaps we will see one another again. The most important thing is that my life's dream has come true. Jewish self-defense in the ghetto has been realized. Jewish retaliation and resistance has become a fact. I have been witness to the magnificent heroic battle of the Jewish fighters.”

There were many heroic leaders, including Mordechai Anielewicz, who all proudly resisted the Germans, despite the disadvantages that they had to them. Anielewicz was proud of his fellow Jews and the effort that they made to never give up, along with the other commanders and small resistance leaders. They all made the uprising possible to make an impact on the Nazis, World War II, and even the rest of the world.