Janusz Korczak- The Man Who Chose to Die

Henry Goldszmit/Janussz Korczak

A man with a heart for children, Henryk Goldszmit was born in 1878. His first
book, a satirical on raising children, The Gordian Knot debuted in 1896. Two years after that debut, Goldszmit entered the Ignacy Jan Paderewski Literary Contest where he used a pen name of Janusz Korczak. He wrote for several Polish Newspapers as well as added to his literary library. Goldszmit was born of a Jewish family that had settled into everyday life of the Polish people. He studied and became a pediatrician and had innovated ideas on raising children. He believed and encouraged parents to love and respect their children.

Goldszmit wrote more books about and for children. His reputation grew as a literary writer and he became known in his country by his pen name, Janusz Korczak. In 1911 he became the director of the Dom Sierot Orphanage in Warsaw. What he did with the orphanage was unique from others. He formed a republic with their own Parliament court and newspaper. The children were given tasks and responsibilities as well as rights. He even went so far as to allow the children to choose the topics they would write for the newspaper.

Korczak's orphans

When WWI broke out, Korczak became a military doctor and a lieutenant for the Russian army. Then he served again as a military doctor when the Polish-Soviet War broke out. Only this time, Korczak served under the Polish military.

In 1926 Janusz arranged for his children of the Dom Sierot Orphanage to have their own Polish-Jewish newspaper. He arranged for the children's newspaper to be attached to the daily Polish-Jewish newspaper. During the 1930's he had a radio program where he promoted children's rights.

When war broke out again, it was WWII and Korczak went to enlist again, only this time he was turned down due to his age. The Germans overtook Warsaw and created what was known as the Warsaw Ghetto. Korczak, now headmaster over the orphanage, was forced to move his children and workers to the ghetto. Korczak refusing to leave his children, moved in with them.

Just two years later, in 1942, the Germans came knocking on the orphanage door. They were to gather up the nearly 200 children and dozen staff members and bring them to one of the extermination camps. Korczak was given several chance to leave and escape the execution, but he refused. Again, he would not leave the children alone. Instead, he told them they were taking a trip to the country.

Orphanage

He told the orphans they were going out into the country, so they ought to be cheerful. At last they would be able to exchange the horrible suffocating city walls for meadows of flowers, streams where they could bathe, woods full of berries and mushrooms. He told them to wear their best clothes, and so they came out into the yard, two by two, nicely dressed and in a happy mood. The little column was led by an SS man...

-Wladyslaw Szpilman, The Pianist

It is said that one of the SS recognized him as the author of his favorite books and tried to get him to escape, but Korczak would not leave the children. The children were all dressed in their Sunday best clothes, and each carried their favorite toy as they were loaded on a train. All 192/196 children, 12 staff, and Korczak were taken to their death. Many would die before they even reached their destination from the overcrowding and heat. The ones who did live long enough to step off the train would die that day.

Korczak is a hero who lived what he taught. Many times he was given the opportunity to escape and some attempted to persuade him. How easy it would have been to leave and allow only the staff to accompany the children. A man of integrity, his convictions wouldn't allow it.

He couldn’t very well hear God if he wasn’t listening. He needed to lay his life before God and let him direct it instead of trying to manipulate things to his liking.

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Debbie Lynne Costello is the author of Sword of Forgiveness, Amazon's #1 seller for Historical Christian Romance. She has enjoyed writing stories since she was eight years old. She raised her family and then embarked on her own career of writing the stories that had been begging to be told. She writes in the medieval/renaissance period as well as 19th century. She and her husband have four children and live in upstate South Carolina with their 4 dogs, 4 horses, miniature donkey, and 12 ducks. Life is good!