One week before the 80th anniversary of the Ulma family's death on 24 March, a memorial to the Polish family from Markowa in the district of Lancut who were murdered by the Nazis during the Second World War has been dedicated at Gräfinthal Monastery. During the German occupation of Poland, the couple Jozef and Wiktoria Ulma hid two Jewish families despite the threat to their lives in order to save them from the Holocaust. A betrayal cost them all their lives.
Firstly, the guests, including a delegation from Poland and Ukraine, experienced a Holy Mass in the chapel in Gräfinthal, celebrated by Auxiliary Bishop Stanislaw Jamrozek from Przemysl and Father Peter from the local Benedictine priory in Gräfinthal. The powerful Collegium Vocale from Blieskastel under the direction of Christian von Blohn provided many a goosebump-inducing moment. Afterwards, nine apple trees - one for each member of the Ulma family - were dedicated in the monastery garden.
It was a particular concern of District Administrator Dr Theophil Gallo to erect this memorial. As part of the beatification of the Ulma family on 10 September 2023 in the Polish partner district of Lancut, District Administrator Dr Gallo discussed his request with District Administrator Adam Kryszton, who was very impressed by the idea of a parallel memorial in the Saarpfalz district. The Gräfinthal Monastery in the municipality of Mandelbachtal proved to be predestined, as the grave of Anna Leszczynska, the daughter of the Polish-Lithuanian King Stanislaus I Leszczynski, is located there. The two Benedictine brothers Peter and William did not need much convincing.
During the visit of a Saarland delegation led by Minister President Anke Rehlinger in November 2023, Wladyslaw Ortyl, Marshal of the Foothills of the Carpathians Voivodeship, presented the Minister President and District Administrator Dr Theophil Gallo with an apple tree from the Ulma family's garden during a wreath-laying ceremony at the Ulma family museum. As part of the "You shall recognise them by their fruit" campaign, the apple trees are an extraordinarily symbolic reminder of Jozef Ulma, his wife Wiktoria and their seven young children. Wiktoria Ulma was in the last month of her pregnancy at the time of her murder.
"The apple trees completed the picture of the memorial site. Nine trees were to be planted in the monastery garden - for Jozef and Wiktoria Ulma and for their seven children. We realised this together and I am very grateful for today. I would like to thank everyone who has contributed to this. The symbolism that now emanates from this place will become all the more important the more contemporary witnesses pass away who can give an authentic account of what actually happened. Unfortunately, we also have many people among us who deny or deny what happened.
trivialise and trivialise. It is our responsibility to honour their memory out of respect for the countless people who suffered from war, terror and persecution. The Ulma family is representative of them. The 'Homburg Alliance', which we formed two years ago and in which several districts of the Podkarpackie Voivodeship, as well as districts from Ukraine, are also involved, has made the culture of remembrance a permanent task. This also includes educating our young people in particular about what happened," explained District Administrator Dr Gallo.
In her speech, Minister President Anke Rehlinger emphasised: "With the memorial, we are erecting a living memorial to the Ulma family, who were executed for their humanity and charity. The memory of the terrible past and the warning never to allow the suffering of National Socialism to happen again unites us in close solidarity. The trees planted today will be a growing memorial to our shared history with Poland and our responsibility for peaceful coexistence in Europe."
Bishop Stanislaw Jamrozek, Marshal Wladysław Ortyl, Consul Anita Mikolajczak, Head of the Consulate of the Republic of Poland in Cologne, and District Administrator Adam Kryszton spoke words of deep respect and gratitude for the friendly German-Polish relations that are cultivated and intensified through the partnerships between the Saarpfalz district and Saarland.
Afterwards, name tags were symbolically placed in front of the trees, which were arranged in a long row: by Prime Minister Anke Rehlinger for the mother Wictoria Ulma (31 and a quarter years old); by Maria Vermeulen, Mayor of Mandelbachtal, for the youngest child who was born at the shooting and remained without a name; by Consul Anita Mikolajczak for Maria Ulma (she was 18 months old); by Bishop Stanislaw Jamrozek for Antoni Ulma (two and three quarters years old); by Father Petrus for Franciszek Ulma (he would have been four years old a month later); by Marshal Wladyslaw Ortyl for Wladyslaw Ulma (five years and three months old); by Piotr Pilch, Vice-Marshal of the Podkarpackie Voivodeship, for Barbara Jadwiga Ulma (six years and five months); by Adam Kryszton for Stanislawa Ulma (seven years and eight months); and by District Administrator Dr Theophil Gallo for her father. Theophil Gallo for the father Jozef Ulma (44 years).
District Administrator Dr Theophil Gallo is delighted when many people share in the memory of the Ulma family by visiting this unique memorial in the Gräfinthal monastery garden, experiencing how the trees bear fruit and helping to ensure that charity and humanity shape the lives of future generations.
Information on the district partnerships and the European work of the Saarpfalz district can be obtained from the head of the European staff unit and European representative of the Saarpfalz district, Dr Violetta Frys, by calling (06841) 104-8273 or sending an e-mail to [email protected] or [email protected].