Polish culture during World War II Polish culture during World War II was suppressed by the occupying powers of Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union , both of whom were hostile to Poland ' s people and cultural heritage . Policies aimed at cultural genocide resulted in the deaths of thousands of scholars and artists , and the theft and destruction of innumerable cultural artifacts . The " maltreatment of the Poles was one of many ways in which the Nazi and Soviet regimes had grown to resemble one another " , wrote British historian Niall Ferguson . The occupiers looted and destroyed much of Poland ' s cultural and historical heritage , while persecuting and murdering members of the Polish cultural elite . Most Polish schools were closed , and those that remained open saw their curricula altered significantly . Nevertheless , underground organizations and individuals – in particular the Polish Underground State – saved much of Poland ' s most valuable cultural treasures , and worked to salvage as many cultural institutions and artifacts as possible . The Catholic Church and wealthy individuals contributed to the survival of some artists and their works . Despite severe retribution by the Nazis and Soviets , Polish underground cultural activities , including publications , concerts , live theater , education , and academic research , continued throughout the war . Background . In 1795 Poland ceased to exist as an sovereign nation and throughout the 19th century remained partitioned by degrees between Prussian , Austrian and Russian empires . Not until the end of World War I was independence restored and the nation reunited , although the drawing of boundary lines was , of necessity , a contentious issue . Independent Poland lasted for only 21 years before it was again attacked and divided among foreign powers . On 1 September 1939 , Germany invaded Poland , initiating World War II , and on 17 September , pursuant to the Molotov - Ribbentrop Pact , Poland was invaded by the Soviet Union . Subsequently Poland was partitioned again – between these two powers – and remained under their occupation for most of the war . By 1 October , Germany and the Soviet Union had completely overrun Poland , although the Polish government never formally surrendered , and the Polish Underground State , subordinate to the Polish government - in - exile , was soon formed . On 8 October , Nazi Germany annexed the western areas of pre - war Poland and , in the remainder of the occupied area , established the General Government . The Soviet Union had to temporarily give up the territorial gains it made in 1939 due to the German invasion of the Soviet Union , but permanently re - annexed them after winning them back in mid - 1944 . Over the course of the war , Poland lost over 20 % of its pre - war population amid an occupation that marked the end of the Second Polish Republic . Destruction of Polish culture . German occupation . Policy . Germany ' s policy toward the Polish nation and its culture evolved during the course of the war . Many German officials and military officers were initially not given any clear guidelines on the treatment of Polish cultural institutions , but this quickly changed . Immediately following their invasion of Poland , in September 1939 the Nazi German government implemented the first stages ( the " small plan " ) of " Generalplan Ost " . The basic policy was outlined by the Berlin Office of Racial Policy in a document titled " Concerning the Treatment of the Inhabitants of the Former Polish Territories , from a Racial - Political Standpoint " . Slavic people living east of the pre - war German border were to be Germanized , enslaved or eradicated , depending on whether they lived in the territories directly annexed into the German state or in the General Government . Much of the German policy on Polish culture was formulated during a meeting between the governor of the General Government , Hans Frank , and Nazi Minister of Propaganda Joseph Goebbels , at Łódź on 31 October 1939 . Goebbels declared that " The Polish nation is not worthy to be called a cultured nation " . He and Frank agreed that opportunities for the Poles to experience their culture should be severely restricted : no theaters , cinemas or cabarets ; no access to radio or press ; and no education . Frank suggested that the Poles should periodically be shown films highlighting the achievements of the Third Reich and should eventually be addressed only by megaphone . During the following weeks Polish schools beyond middle vocational levels were closed , as were theaters and many other cultural institutions . The only Polish - language newspaper published in occupied Poland was also closed , and the arrests of Polish intellectuals began . In March 1940 , all cultural activities came under the control of the General Government ' s Department of People ' s Education and Propaganda ( " Abteilung für Volksaufklärung und Propaganda " ) , whose name was changed a year later to the " Chief Propaganda Department " ( " Hauptabteilung Propaganda " ) . Further directives issued in the spring and early summer reflected policies that had been outlined by Frank and Goebbels during the previous autumn . One of the Department ' s earliest decrees prohibited the organization of all but the most " primitive " of cultural activities without the Department ' s prior approval . Spectacles of " low quality " , including those of an erotic or pornographic nature , were however an exception — those were to be popularized to appease the population and to show the world the " real " Polish culture as well as to create the impression that Germany was not preventing Poles from expressing themselves . German propaganda specialists invited critics from neutral countries to specially organized " Polish " performances that were specifically designed to be boring or pornographic , and presented them as typical Polish cultural activities . Polish - German cooperation in cultural matters , such as joint public performances , was strictly prohibited . Meanwhile , a compulsory registration scheme for writers and artists was introduced in August 1940 . Then , in October , the printing of new Polish - language books was prohibited ; existing titles were censored , and often confiscated and withdrawn . That the Nazis promoted pornography in Poland - or anywhere else - is disputed by those who point out that Nazi Germany banned pornography on February 23 , 1933 ( Richard Plant , The Pink Triangle ) and that Hitler , in Mein Kampf , saw pornography as inextricably connected to world Jewry ' s plan to corrupt the Aryan race . Czeslaw Madajczyk ' s book , the alleged source of the " Polish porn " claim , is not available in English . In 1941 , German policy evolved further , calling for the complete destruction of the Polish people , whom the Nazis regarded as " subhuman " ( " Untermensch en " ) . Within ten to twenty years , the Polish territories under German occupation were to be entirely cleared of ethnic Poles and settled by German colonists . The policy was relaxed somewhat in the final years of occupation ( 1943 – 44 ) , in view of German military defeats and the approaching Eastern Front . The Germans hoped that a more lenient cultural policy would lessen unrest and weaken the Polish Resistance . Poles were allowed back into those museums that now supported German propaganda and indoctrination , such as the newly created Chopin museum , which emphasized the composer ' s invented German roots . Restrictions on education , theater and music performances were eased . Given that the Second Polish Republic was a multicultural state , German policies and propaganda also sought to create and encourage conflicts between ethnic groups , fueling tension between Poles and Jews , and between Poles and Ukrainians . In Łódź , the Germans forced Jews to help destroy a monument to a Polish hero , Tadeusz Kościuszko , and filmed them committing the act . Soon afterward , the Germans set fire to a Jewish synagogue and filmed Polish bystanders , portraying them in propaganda releases as a " vengeful mob . " This divisive policy was reflected in the Germans ' decision to destroy Polish education , while at the same time , showing relative tolerance toward the Ukrainian school system . As the high - ranking Nazi official Erich Koch explained , " We must do everything possible so that when a Pole meets a Ukrainian , he will be willing to kill the Ukrainian and conversely , the Ukrainian will be willing to kill the Pole . " Plunder . In 1939 , as the occupation regime was being established , the Nazis confiscated Polish state property and much private property . Countless art objects were looted and taken to Germany , in line with a plan that had been drawn up well in advance of the invasion . The looting was supervised by experts of the " SS " - " Ahnenerbe " , " Einsatzgruppen " units , who were responsible for art , and by experts of " Haupttreuhandstelle Ost " , who were responsible for more mundane objects . Notable items plundered by the Nazis included the Altar of Veit Stoss and paintings by Raphael , Rembrandt , Leonardo da Vinci , Canaletto and Bacciarelli . Most of the important art pieces had been " secured " by the Nazis within six months of September 1939 ; by the end of 1942 , German officials estimated that " over 90 % " of the art previously in Poland was in their possession . Some art was shipped to German museums , such as the planned " Führermuseum " in Linz , while other art became the private property of Nazi officials . Over 516 , 000 individual art pieces were taken , including 2 , 800 paintings by European painters ; 11 , 000 works by Polish painters ; 1 , 400 sculptures , 75 , 000 manuscripts , 25 , 000 maps , and 90 , 000 books ( including over 20 , 000 printed before 1800 ) ; as well as hundreds of thousands of other objects of artistic and historic value . Even exotic animals were taken from the zoo s . Destruction . Many places of learning and culture — universities , schools , libraries , museums , theaters and cinemas — were either closed or designated as " " Nur für Deutsche " " ( For Germans Only ) . Twenty - five museums and a host of other institutions were destroyed during the war . According to one estimate , by war ' s end 43 % of the infrastructure of Poland ' s educational and research institutions and 14 % of its museums had been destroyed . According to another , only 105 of pre - war Poland ' s 175 museums survived the war , and just 33 of these institutions were able to reopen . Of pre - war Poland ' s 603 scientific institutions , about half were totally destroyed , and only a few survived the war relatively intact . Many university professors , as well as teachers , lawyers , artists , writers , priests and other members of the Polish intelligentsia were arrested and executed , or transported to concentration camps , during operations such as " AB - Aktion " . This particular campaign resulted in the infamous " Sonderaktion Krakau " and the massacre of Lwów professors . During World War II Poland lost 39 % to 45 % of its physicians and dentists , 26 % to 57 % of its lawyers , 15 % to 30 % of its teachers , 30 % to 40 % of its scientists and university professors , and 18 % to 28 % of its clergy . The Jewish intelligentsia was exterminated altogether . The reasoning behind this policy was clearly articulated by a Nazi " gauleiter " : " In my district , [ any Pole who ] shows signs of intelligence will be shot . " As part of their program to suppress Polish culture , the German Nazis attempted to destroy Christianity in Poland , with a particular emphasis on the Roman Catholic Church . In some parts of occupied Poland , Poles were restricted , or even forbidden , from attending religious services . At the same time , church property was confiscated , prohibitions were placed on using the Polish language in religious services , organizations affiliated with the Catholic Church were abolished , and it was forbidden to perform certain religious songs — or to read passages of the Bible — in public . The worst conditions were found in the Reichsgau Wartheland , which the Nazis treated as a laboratory for their anti - religious policies . Polish clergy and religious leaders figured prominently among portions of the intelligentsia that were targeted for extermination . To forestall the rise of a new generation of educated Poles , German officials decreed that the schooling of Polish children would be limited to a few years of elementary education . Reichsführer - SS Heinrich Himmler wrote , in a memorandum of May 1940 : " The sole purpose of this schooling is to teach them simple arithmetic , nothing above the number 500 ; how to write one ' s name ; and the doctrine that it is divine law to obey the Germans . . . I do not regard a knowledge of reading as desirable . " Hans Frank echoed him : " The Poles do not need universities or secondary schools ; the Polish lands are to be converted into an intellectual desert . " The situation was particularly dire in the former Polish territories beyond the General Government , which had been annexed to the Third Reich . The specific policy varied from territory to territory , but in general , there was no Polish - language education at all . German policy constituted a crash - Germanization of the populace . Polish teachers were dismissed , and some were invited to attend " orientation " meetings with the new administration , where they were either summarily arrested or executed on the spot . Some Polish schoolchildren were sent to German schools , while others were sent to special schools where they spent most of their time as unpaid laborers , usually on German - run farms ; speaking Polish brought severe punishment . It was expected that Polish children would begin to work once they finished their primary education at age 12 to 15 . In the eastern territories not included in the General Government ( " Bezirk Bialystok " , " Reichskommissariat Ostland " and " Reichskommissariat Ukraine " ) many primary schools were closed , and most education was conducted in non - Polish languages such as Ukrainian , Belorussian , and Lithuanian . In the " Bezirk Bialystok " region , for example , 86 % of the schools that had existed before the war were closed down during the first two years of German occupation , and by the end of the following year that figure had increased to 93 % . The state of Polish primary schools was somewhat better in the " General Government " , though by the end of 1940 , only 30 % of prewar schools were operational , and only 28 % of prewar Polish children attended them . A German police memorandum of August 1943 described the situation as follows : In the " General Government " , the remaining schools were subjugated to the German educational system , and the number and competence of their Polish staff was steadily scaled down . All universities and most secondary schools were closed , if not immediately after the invasion , then by mid - 1940 . By late 1940 , no official Polish educational institutions more advanced than a vocational school remained in operation , and they offered nothing beyond the elementary trade and technical training required for the Nazi economy . Primary schooling was to last for seven years , but the classes in the final two years of the program were to be limited to meeting one day per week . There was no money for heating of the schools in winter . Classes and schools were to be merged , Polish teachers dismissed , and the resulting savings used to sponsor the creation of schools for children of the German minority or to create barracks for German troops . No new Polish teachers were to be trained . The educational curriculum was censored ; subjects such as literature , history and geography were removed . Old textbooks were confiscated and school libraries were closed . The new educational aims for Poles included convincing them that their national fate was hopeless , and teaching them to be submissive and respectful to Germans . This was accomplished through deliberate tactics such as police raids on schools , police inspections of student belongings , mass arrests of students and teachers , and the use of students as forced laborers , often by transporting them to Germany as seasonal workers . The Germans were especially active in the destruction of Jewish culture in Poland ; nearly all of the wooden synagogues there were destroyed . Moreover , the sale of Jewish literature was banned throughout Poland . Polish literature faced a similar fate in territories annexed by Germany , where the sale of Polish books was forbidden . The public destruction of Polish books was not limited to those seized from libraries , but also included those books that were confiscated from private homes . The last Polish book titles not already proscribed were withdrawn in 1943 ; even Polish prayer books were confiscated . Soon after the occupation began , most libraries were closed ; in Kraków , about 80 % of the libraries were closed immediately , while the remainder saw their collections decimated by censors . The occupying powers destroyed Polish book collections , including the Sejm and Senate Library , the Przedziecki Estate Library , the Zamoyski Estate Library , the Central Military Library , and the Rapperswil Collection . In 1941 , the last remaining Polish public library in the German - occupied territories was closed in Warsaw . During the war , Warsaw libraries lost about a million volumes , or 30 % of their collections . More than 80 % of these losses were the direct result of purges rather than wartime conflict . Overall , it is estimated that about 10 million volumes from state - owned libraries and institutions perished during the war . Polish flag s and other symbols were confiscated . The war on the Polish language included the tearing down of signs in Polish and the banning of Polish speech in public places . Persons who spoke Polish in the streets were often insulted and even physically assaulted . The Germanization of place names prevailed . Many treasures of Polish culture – including memorials , plaques and monuments to national heroes ( e . g . , Kraków ' s Adam Mickiewicz monument ) – were destroyed . In Toruń , all Polish monuments and plaques were torn down . Dozens of monuments were destroyed throughout Poland . The Nazis planned to level entire cities . Censorship and propaganda . The Germans prohibited publication of any regular Polish - language book , literary study or scholarly paper . In 1940 , several German - controlled printing houses began operating in occupied Poland , publishing items such as Polish - German dictionaries and antisemitic and anticommunist novels . An aim of German propaganda was to rewrite Polish history : studies were published and exhibitions were held , claiming that Polish lands were in reality Germanic ; that famous Poles , including Nicolaus Copernicus , Veit Stoss and Chopin , were ethnic Germans . Censorship at first targeted books that were considered to be " serious " , including scientific and educational texts and texts that were thought to promote Polish patriotism ; only fiction that was free of anti - German overtones was permitted . Banned literature included maps , atlases and English - and French - language publications , including dictionaries . Several non - public indexes of prohibited books were created , and over 1 , 500 Polish writers were declared " dangerous to the German state and culture " . The index of banned authors included such Polish authors as Adam Mickiewicz , Juliusz Słowacki , Stanisław Wyspiański , Bolesław Prus , Stefan Żeromski , Józef Ignacy Kraszewski , Władysław Reymont , Stanisław Wyspiański , Julian Tuwim , Kornel Makuszyński , Leopold Staff , Eliza Orzeszkowa and Maria Konopnicka . Mere possession of such books was illegal and punishable by imprisonment . Door - to - door sale of books was banned , and bookstores — which required a license to operate — were either emptied out or closed . Poles were forbidden , under penalty of death , to own radios . The press was reduced from over 2 , 000 publications to a few dozen , all censored by the Germans . All pre - war newspapers were closed , and the few that were published during the occupation were new creations under the total control of the Germans . Such a thorough destruction of the press was unprecedented in contemporary history . The only officially available reading matter was the propaganda press that was disseminated by the German occupation administration . Cinemas , now under the control of the German propaganda machine , saw their programming dominated by Nazi German movies , which were preceded by propaganda newsreels . The few Polish films permitted to be shown ( about 20 % of the total programming ) were edited to eliminate references to Polish national symbols as well as Jewish actors and producers . Several propaganda films were shot in Polish , although no Polish films were shown after 1943 . As all profits from Polish cinemas were officially directed toward German war production , attendance was discouraged by the Polish underground ; a famous underground slogan declared : " " Tylko świnie siedzą w kinie " " ( " Only pigs attend the movies " ) . A similar situation faced theaters , which were forbidden by the Germans to produce " serious " spectacles . Indeed , a number of propaganda pieces were created for theater stages . Hence , theatrical productions were also boycotted by the underground . In addition , actors were discouraged from performing in them and warned that they would be labeled as collaborators if they failed to comply . Ironically , restrictions on cultural performances were eased in Jewish ghettos , given that the Germans wished to distract ghetto inhabitants and prevent them from grasping their eventual fate . Music was the least restricted of cultural activities , probably because Hans Frank regarded himself as a fan of serious music . In time , he ordered the creation of the Orchestra and Symphony of the General Government in its capital , Kraków . Numerous musical performances were permitted in cafes and churches , and the Polish underground chose to boycott only the propagandist operas . Visual artists , including painters and sculptors , were compelled to register with the German government ; but their work was generally tolerated by the underground , unless it conveyed propagandist themes . Shuttered museums were replaced by occasional art exhibitions that frequently conveyed propagandist themes . The development of Nazi propaganda in occupied Poland can be divided into two main phases . Initial efforts were directed towards creating a negative image of pre - war Poland , and later efforts were aimed at fostering anti - Soviet , antisemitic , and pro - German attitudes . Soviet occupation . After the Soviet invasion of Poland ( beginning 17 September 1939 ) that followed the German invasion that had marked the start of World War II ( beginning 1 September 1939 ) , the Soviet Union annexed the eastern parts ( " " Kresy " " ) of the Second Polish Republic , comprising and a population of 13 . 299 million . Hitler and Stalin shared the goal of obliterating Poland ' s political and cultural life , so that Poland would , according to historian Niall Ferguson , " cease to exist not merely as a place , but also as an idea " . The Soviet authorities regarded service to the prewar Polish state as a " crime against revolution " and " counter - revolutionary activity " and arrested many members of the Polish intelligentsia , politicians , civil servants and academics , as well as ordinary persons suspected of posing a threat to Soviet rule . More than a million Polish citizens were deported to Siberia , many to " Gulag " concentration camps , for years or decades . Others died , including over 20 , 000 military officers who perished in the Katyn massacre s . The Soviets quickly Sovietized the annexed lands , introducing compulsory collectivization . They proceeded to confiscate , nationalize and redistribute private and state - owned Polish property . In the process , they banned political parties and public associations and imprisoned or executed their leaders as " enemies of the people " . In line with Soviet anti - religious policy , churches and religious organizations were persecuted . On 10 February 1940 , the NKVD unleashed a campaign of terror against " anti - Soviet " elements in occupied Poland . The Soviets ' targets included persons who often traveled abroad , persons involved in overseas correspondence , Esperantists , philatelists , Red Cross workers , refugees , smugglers , priests and members of religious congregations , the nobility , landowners , wealthy merchants , bankers , industrialists , and hotel and restaurant owners . Stalin , like Hitler , strove to decapitate Polish society . The Soviet authorities sought to remove all trace of the Polish history of the area now under their control . The name " Poland " was banned . Polish monuments were torn down . All institutions of the dismantled Polish state , including the Lwów University , were closed , then reopened , mostly with new Russian directors . Soviet communist ideology became paramount in all teaching . Polish literature and language studies were dissolved by the Soviet authorities , and the Polish language was replaced with Russian or Ukrainian . Polish - language books were burned even in the primary schools . Polish teachers were not allowed in the schools , and many were arrested . Classes were held in Belorussian , Ukrainian and Lithuanian , with a new pro - Soviet curriculum . As Polish - Canadian historian Piotr Wróbel noted , citing British historians M . R . D . Foot and I . C . B . Dear , majority of scholars believe that " In the Soviet occupation zone , conditions were only marginally less harsh than under the Germans . " In September 1939 , many Polish Jews had fled east ; after some months of living under Soviet rule , some of them wanted to return to the German zone of occupied Poland . All publications and media were subjected to censorship . The Soviets sought to recruit Polish left - wing intellectuals who were willing to cooperate . Soon after the Soviet invasion , the Writers ' Association of Soviet Ukraine created a local chapter in Lwów ; there was a Polish - language theater and radio station . Polish cultural activities in Minsk and Wilno were less organized . These activities were strictly controlled by the Soviet authorities , which saw to it that these activities portrayed the new Soviet regime in a positive light and vilified the former Polish government . The Soviet propaganda - motivated support for Polish - language cultural activities , however , clashed with the official policy of Russification . The Soviets at first intended to phase out the Polish language and so banned Polish from schools , street signs , and other aspects of life . This policy was , however , reversed at times — first before the elections in October 1939 ; and later , after the German conquest of France . In the autumn of 1940 , the Poles of Lwów observed the 85th anniversary of Adam Mickiewicz ' s death . Soon , however , Stalin decided to re - implement the Russification policies . He reversed his decision again , however , when a need arose for Polish - language pro - Soviet propaganda following the German invasion of the Soviet Union ; as a result Stalin permitted the creation of Polish forces in the East and later decided to create a communist People ' s Republic of Poland . Many Polish writers collaborated with the Soviets , writing anti - Polish , pro - Soviet propaganda . They included Jerzy Borejsza , Tadeusz Boy - Żeleński , Kazimierz Brandys , Janina Broniewska , Jan Brzoza , Teodor Bujnicki , Leon Chwistek , Zuzanna Ginczanka , Halina Górska , Mieczysław Jastrun , Stefan Jędrychowski , Stanisław Jerzy Lec , Tadeusz Łopalewski , Juliusz Kleiner , Jan Kott , Jalu Kurek , Karol Kuryluk , Leopold Lewin , Anatol Mikułko , Jerzy Pański , Leon Pasternak , Julian Przyboś , Jerzy Putrament , Jerzy Rawicz , Adolf Rudnicki , Włodzimierz Słobodnik , Włodzimierz Sokorski , Elżbieta Szemplińska , Anatol Stern , Julian Stryjkowski , Lucjan Szenwald , Leopold Tyrmand , Wanda Wasilewska , Stanisław Wasilewski , Adam Ważyk , Aleksander Weintraub and Bruno Winawer . Other Polish writers , however , rejected the Soviet persuasions and instead published underground : Jadwiga Czechowiczówna , Jerzy Hordyński , Jadwiga Gamska - Łempicka , Herminia Naglerowa , Beata Obertyńska , Ostap Ortwin , Tadeusz Peiper , Teodor Parnicki , Juliusz Petry . Some writers , such as Władysław Broniewski , after collaborating with the Soviets for a few months , joined the anti - Soviet opposition . Similarly , Aleksander Wat , initially sympathetic to communism , was arrested by the Soviet NKVD secret police and exiled to Kazakhstan . Underground culture . Patrons . Polish culture persisted in underground education , publications , even theater . The Polish Underground State created a Department of Education and Culture ( under Stanisław Lorentz ) which , along with a Department of Labor and Social Welfare ( under Jan Stanisław Jankowski and , later , Stefan Mateja ) and a Department for Elimination of the Effects of War ( under Antoni Olszewski and Bronisław Domosławski ) , became underground patrons of Polish culture . These Departments oversaw efforts to save from looting and destruction works of art in state and private collections ( most notably , the giant paintings by Jan Matejko that were concealed throughout the war ) . They compiled reports on looted and destroyed works and provided artists and scholars with means to continue their work and their publications and to support their families . Thus , they sponsored the underground publication ( " bibuła " ) of works by Winston Churchill and Arkady Fiedler and of 10 , 000 copies of a Polish primary - school primer and commissioned artists to create resistance artwork ( which was then disseminated by Operation N and like activities ) . Also occasionally sponsored were secret art exhibitions , theater performances and concerts . Other important patrons of Polish culture included the Roman Catholic Church and Polish aristocrats , who likewise supported artists and safeguarded Polish heritage ( notable patrons included Cardinal Adam Stefan Sapieha and a former politician , Janusz Radziwiłł ) . Some private publishers , including Stefan Kamieński , Zbigniew Mitzner and the Ossolineum publishing house , paid writers for books that would be delivered after the war . Education . In response to the German closure and censorship of Polish schools , resistance among teachers led almost immediately to the creation of large - scale underground educational activities . Most notably , the Secret Teaching Organization ( " Tajna Organizacja Nauczycielska , TON " ) was created as early as in October 1939 . Other organizations were created locally ; after 1940 they were increasingly subordinated and coordinated by the TON , working closely with the Underground ' s State Department of Culture and Education , which was created in autumn 1941 and headed by Czesław Wycech , creator of the TON . Classes were either held under the cover of officially permitted activities or in private homes and other venues . By 1942 , about 1 , 500 , 000 students took part in underground primary education ; in 1944 , its secondary school system covered 100 , 000 people , and university level courses were attended by about 10 , 000 students ( for comparison , the pre - war enrollment at Polish universities was about 30 , 000 for the 1938 / 1939 year ) . More than 90 , 000 secondary - school pupils attended underground classes held by nearly 6 , 000 teachers between 1943 and 1944 in four districts of the General Government ( centered around the cities of Warsaw , Kraków , Radom and Lublin ) . Overall , in that period in the General Government , one of every three children was receiving some sort of education from the underground organizations ; the number rose to about 70 % for children old enough to attend secondary school . It is estimated that in some rural areas , the educational coverage was actually improved ( most likely as courses were being organized in some cases by teachers escaped or deported from the cities ) . Compared to pre - war classes , the absence of Polish Jewish students was notable , as they were confined by the Nazi Germans to ghettos ; there was , however , underground Jewish education in the ghettos , often organized with support from Polish organizations like TON . Students at the underground schools were often also members of the Polish resistance . In Warsaw , there were over 70 underground schools , with 2 , 000 teachers and 21 , 000 students . Underground Warsaw University educated 3 , 700 students , issuing 64 masters and 7 doctoral degrees . Warsaw Politechnic under occupation educated 3 , 000 students , issuing 186 engineering degrees , 18 doctoral ones and 16 habilitation s . Jagiellonian University issued 468 masters and 62 doctoral degrees , employed over 100 professors and teachers , and served more than 1 , 000 students per year . Throughout Poland , many other universities and institutions of higher education ( of music , theater , arts , and others ) continued their classes throughout the war . Even some academic research was carried out ( for example , by Władysław Tatarkiewicz , a leading Polish philosopher , and Zenon Klemensiewicz , a linguist ) . Nearly 1 , 000 Polish scientists received funds from the Underground State , enabling them to continue their research . The German attitude to underground education varied depending on whether it took place in the General Government or the annexed territories . The Germans had almost certainly realized the full scale of the Polish underground education system by about 1943 , but lacked the manpower to put an end to it , probably prioritizing resources to dealing with the armed resistance . For the most part , closing underground schools and colleges in the General Government was not a top priority for the Germans . In 1943 a German report on education admitted that control of what was being taught in schools , particularly rural ones , was difficult , due to lack of manpower , transportation , and the activities of the Polish resistance . Some schools semi - openly taught unauthorized subjects in defiance of the German authorities . Hans Frank noted in 1944 that although Polish teachers were a " mortal enemy " of the German states , they could not all be disposed of immediately . It was perceived as a much more serious issue in the annexed territories , as it hindered the process of Germanization ; involvement in the underground education in those territories was much more likely to result in a sentence to a concentration camp . Print . There were over 1 , 000 underground newspapers ; among the most important were the " Biuletyn Informacyjny " of Armia Krajowa and " Rzeczpospolita " of the Government Delegation for Poland . In addition to publication of news ( from intercepted Western radio transmissions ) , there were hundreds of underground publications dedicated to politics , economics , education , and literature ( for example , " Sztuka i Naród " ) . The highest recorded publication volume was an issue of " Biuletyn Informacyjny " printed in 43 , 000 copies ; average volume of larger publication was 1 , 000 – 5 , 000 copies . The Polish underground also published booklets and leaflets from imaginary anti - Nazi German organizations aimed at spreading disinformation and lowering morale among the Germans . Books were also sometimes printed . Other items were also printed , such as patriotic posters or fake German administration posters , ordering the Germans to evacuate Poland or telling Poles to register household cats . The two largest underground publishers were the Bureau of Information and Propaganda of Armia Krajowa and the Government Delegation for Poland . Tajne Wojskowe Zakłady Wydawnicze ( Secret Military Publishing House ) of Jerzy Rutkowski ( subordinated to the Armia Krajowa ) was probably the largest underground publisher in the world . In addition to Polish titles , Armia Krajowa also printed false German newspapers designed to decrease morale of the occupying German forces ( as part of Action N ) . The majority of Polish underground presses were located in occupied Warsaw ; until the Warsaw Uprising in the summer of 1944 the Germans found over 16 underground printing presses ( whose crews were usually executed or sent to concentration camps ) . The second largest center for Polish underground publishing was Kraków . There , writers and editors faced similar dangers : for example , almost the entire editorial staff of the underground satirical paper " Na Ucho " was arrested , and its chief editors were executed in Kraków on 27 May 1944 . ( " Na Ucho " was the longest published Polish underground paper devoted to satire ; 20 issues were published starting in October 1943 . ) The underground press was supported by a large number of activists ; in addition to the crews manning the printing presses , scores of underground couriers distributed the publications . According to some statistics , these couriers were among the underground members most frequently arrested by the Germans . Under German occupation , the professions of Polish journalists and writers were virtually eliminated , as they had little opportunity to publish their work . The Underground State ' s Department of Culture sponsored various initiatives and individuals , enabling them to continue their work and aiding in their publication . Novels and anthologies were published by underground presses ; over 1 , 000 works were published underground over the course of the war . Literary discussions were held , and prominent writers of the period working in Poland included , among others , Krzysztof Kamil Baczyński , Leslaw Bartelski , Tadeusz Borowski , Tadeusz Boy - Żeleński , Maria Dąbrowska , Tadeusz Gajcy , Zuzanna Ginczanka , Jarosław Iwaszkiewicz , future Nobel Prize winner Czesław Miłosz , Zofia Nałkowska , Jan Parandowski , Leopold Staff , Kazimierz Wyka , and Jerzy Zawieyski . Writers wrote about the difficult conditions in the prisoner - of - war camps ( Konstanty Ildefons Gałczyński , Stefan Flukowski , Leon Kruczkowski , Andrzej Nowicki and Marian Piechała ) , the ghettos , and even from inside the concentration camp s ( Jan Maria Gisges , Halina Gołczowa , Zofia Górska ( Romanowiczowa ) , Tadeusz Hołuj , Kazimierz Andrzej Jaworski and Marian Kubicki ) . Many writers did not survive the war , among them Krzysztof Kamil Baczyński , Wacław Berent , Tadeusz Boy - Żeleński , Tadeusz Gajcy , Zuzanna Ginczanka , Juliusz Kaden - Bandrowski , Stefan Kiedrzyński , Janusz Korczak , Halina Krahelska , Tadeusz Hollender , Witold Hulewicz , Ferdynand Antoni Ossendowski , Włodzimierz Pietrzak , Leon Pomirowski , Kazimierz Przerwa - Tetmajer and Bruno Schulz . Visual arts and music . With the censorship of Polish theater ( and the virtual end of the Polish radio and film industry ) , underground theaters were created , primarily in Warsaw and Kraków , with shows presented in various underground venues . Beginning in 1940 the theaters were coordinated by the Secret Theatrical Council . Four large companies and more than 40 smaller groups were active throughout the war , even in the Gestapo ' s Pawiak prison in Warsaw and in Auschwitz ; underground acting schools were also created . Underground actors , many of whom officially worked mundane jobs , included Karol Adwentowicz , Elżbieta Barszczewska , Henryk Borowski , Wojciech Brydziński , Władysław Hańcza , Stefan Jaracz , Tadeusz Kantor , Mieczysław Kotlarczyk , Bohdan Korzeniowski , Jan Kreczmar , Adam Mularczyk , Andrzej Pronaszko , Leon Schiller , Arnold Szyfman , Stanisława Umińska , Edmund Wierciński , Maria Wiercińska , Karol Wojtyła ( who later became Pope John Paul II ) , Marian Wyrzykowski , Jerzy Zawieyski and others . Theater was also active in the Jewish ghettos and in the camps for Polish war prisoners . Polish music , including orchestras , also went underground . Top Polish musicians and directors ( Adam Didur , Zbigniew Drzewiecki , Jan Ekier , Barbara Kostrzewska , Zygmunt Latoszewski , Jerzy Lefeld , Witold Lutosławski , Andrzej Panufnik , Piotr Perkowski , Edmund Rudnicki , Eugenia Umińska , Jerzy Waldorff , Kazimierz Wiłkomirski , Maria Wiłkomirska , Bolesław Woytowicz , Mira Zimińska ) performed in restaurants , cafes , and private homes , with the most daring singing patriotic ballads on the streets while evading German patrols . Patriotic songs were written , such as " Siekiera , motyka " , the most popular song of occupied Warsaw . Patriotic puppet shows were staged . Jewish musicians ( e . g . Władysław Szpilman ) and artists likewise performed in ghettos and even in concentration camps . Although many of them died , some survived abroad , like Alexandre Tansman in the United States , and Eddie Rosner and Henryk Wars in the Soviet Union . Visual arts were also practiced underground . Cafes , restaurants and private homes were turned into galleries or museums ; some were closed , with their owners , staff and patrons harassed , arrested or even executed . Polish underground artists included Eryk Lipiński , Stanisław Miedza - Tomaszewski , Stanisław Ostoja - Chrostowski , and Konstanty Maria Sopoćko . Some artists worked directly for the Underground State , forging money and documents , and creating anti - Nazi art ( satirical poster s and caricature s ) or Polish patriotic symbols ( for example kotwica ) . These works were reprinted on underground presses , and those intended for public display were plastered to walls or painted on them as graffiti . Many of these activities were coordinated under the Action N Operation of Armia Krajowa ' s Bureau of Information and Propaganda . In 1944 three giant ( 6 m , or 20 ft ) puppets , caricatures of Hitler and Benito Mussolini , were successfully displayed in public places in Warsaw . Some artists recorded life and death in occupied Poland ; despite German bans on Poles using cameras , photographs and even films were taken . Although it was impossible to operate an underground radio station , underground auditions were recorded and introduced into German radios or loudspeaker systems . Underground postage stamps were designed and issued . Since the Germans also banned Polish sport activities , underground sport clubs were created ; underground football matches and even tournaments were organized in Warsaw , Kraków and Poznań , although these were usually dispersed by the Germans . All of these activities were supported by the Underground State ' s Department of Culture . Warsaw Uprising . During the Warsaw Uprising ( August – October 1944 ) , people in Polish - controlled territory endeavored to recreate the former day - to - day life of their free country . Cultural life was vibrant among both soldiers and the civilian population , with theaters , cinemas , post offices , newspapers and similar activities available . The 10th Underground Tournament of Poetry was held during the Uprising , with prizes being weaponry ( most of the Polish poets of the younger generation were also members of the resistance ) . Headed by Antoni Bohdziewicz , the Home Army ' s Bureau of Information and Propaganda even created three newsreels and over of film documenting the struggle . Eugeniusz Lokajski took some 1 , 000 photographs before he died ; Sylwester Braun some 3 , 000 , of which 1 , 500 survive ; Jerzy Tomaszewski some 1 , 000 , of which 600 survived . Culture in exile . Polish artists also worked abroad , outside of occupied Europe . Arkady Fiedler , based in Britain with the Polish Armed Forces in the West wrote about the 303 Polish Fighter Squadron . Melchior Wańkowicz wrote about the Polish contribution to the capture of Monte Cassino in Italy . Other writers working abroad included Jan Lechoń , Antoni Słonimski , Kazimierz Wierzyński and Julian Tuwim . There were artists who performed for the Polish forces in the West as well as for the Polish forces in the East . Among musicians who performed for the Polish II Corps in a " Polska Parada " cabaret were Henryk Wars and Irena Anders . The most famous song of the soldiers fighting under the Allies was the " Czerwone maki na Monte Cassino " ( The Red Poppies on Monte Cassino ) , composed by Feliks Konarski and Alfred Schultz in 1944 . There were also Polish theaters in exile in both the East and the West . Several Polish painters , mostly soldiers of the Polish II Corps , kept working throughout the war , including Tadeusz Piotr Potworowski , Adam Kossowski , Marian Kratochwil , Bolesław Leitgeber and Stefan Knapp . Influence on postwar culture . The wartime attempts to destroy Polish culture may have strengthened it instead . Norman Davies wrote in " God ' s Playground " : " In 1945 , as a prize for untold sacrifices , the attachment of the survivors to their native culture was stronger than ever before . " Similarly , close - knit underground classes , from primary schools to universities , were renowned for their high quality , due in large part to the lower ratio of students to teachers . The resulting culture was , however , different from the culture of interwar Poland for a number of reasons . The destruction of Poland ' s Jewish community , Poland ' s postwar territorial changes , and postwar migrations left Poland without its historic ethnic minorities . The multicultural nation was no more . The experience of World War II placed its stamp on a generation of Polish artists that became known as the " Generation of Columbuses " . The term denotes an entire generation of Poles , born soon after Poland regained independence in 1918 , whose adolescence was marked by World War II . In their art , they " discovered a new Poland " – one forever changed by the atrocities of World War II and the ensuing creation of a communist Poland . Over the years , nearly three - quarters of the Polish people have emphasized the importance of World War II to the Polish national identity . Many Polish works of art created since the war have centered around events of the war . Books by Tadeusz Borowski , Adolf Rudnicki , Henryk Grynberg , Miron Białoszewski , Hanna Krall and others ; films , including those by Andrzej Wajda ( " A Generation " , " Kanał " , " Ashes and Diamonds " , " Lotna " , " A Love in Germany " , " Korczak " , " Katyń " ) ; TV series ( " Four Tank Men and a Dog " and " Stakes Larger than Life " ) ; music ( " Powstanie Warszawskie " ) ; and even comic books – all of these diverse works have reflected those times . Polish historian Tomasz Szarota wrote in 1996 :