Maria was born on 20 December 1930 on the ‘Osada Karłowicze’ military settlement in Polesie. She had two elder siblings: Wladyslawa and Stanislaw. The Germans invaded Poland from the west on 1 September 1939, and the Russians invaded from the east on 17 September 1939. They divided Poland between them. In the Russian-controlled area, the plan to ethnically-cleanse the area soon took effect with the first of four mass deportations to Siberia that were carried out in 1940 and 1941.

 

On 10 February 1940 her family was deported to the Nucht-Oziero forced labour camp in Archangelsk, Siberia. Both her parents died there. In June 1941, Germany turned on its ally, Russia. Stalin then quickly changed tactics and allied himself with the west so that the allies could help him defeat the Germans. This led to the signing of the Sikorski-Majewski agreement that called for the freeing of Poles imprisoned in POW camps and labour camps in the USSR, and the formation of a Polish Army in the southern USSR.

 

The news of this ‘amnesty’ did not reach every camp, but where it did become known, families soon made plans to make their way south to join the army. For most, this meant walking thousands of kilometers and only occasionally getting on a train for part of the journey.  Many did not make it, and those who did were emaciated skeletons by the time they got there.

 

General Anders oversaw the army, and he tried hard to get the Russians to provide the food and equipment they had promised. When this became increasingly impossible, he negotiated the right to evacuate the army to Persia, where the British would provide what was needed.

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Anders insisted on taking as many of the civilians that had reached the army as possible. There were 2 mass evacuations: in March/April 1942, and in September 1942. Then Stalin changed his mind and closed the borders. Those who had not been evacuated were now stuck in the USSR.

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The evacuation took place by ship over the Caspian Sea to Pahlavi in Persia (now Iran). The ships that were used were oil tankers and coal ships, and other ships that were not equipped to handle passengers. They were filthy and lacked even the necessities, like water and latrines. The soldiers and civilians filled these ships to capacity for the 1–2-day trip. When there were storms, the situation got even worse – with most of the passengers suffering sea sickness.

 

Maria and her siblings were evacuated with the Polish orphanage. Her brother Stanislaw joined the Cadets and left for Palestine, while she and Wladyslawa spent five years in the Valivade Polish camp in India. She recalled these years with affection and gratitude, where their carers managed to create a substitute family atmosphere.

Contrary to today’s refugee camps around the world, the Polish refugee camps were equipped with schools – elementary, middle school, high school, and a technical school; a YMCA with sports and recreational facilities and a reasonable library; a cinema covered by a roof on stilts but without walls; and an open-air theatre. There was a co-op bakery, and a co-op store sold a modest supply of sundries along with foodstuffs from the settlement’s impressive farm. Established to make the settlement as self-sufficient as possible, the farm accomplished this with great success, combining crops native to Africa as well as – climate permitting – old favourites from Poland.

 

In 1947, together with Wladyslawa, she arrived in England to join Stanislaw who had arrived there with the Polish 2nd Corps. She finished her education in Stowell Park and became Mrs. Juralewicz in November 1948.  She raised two children: Grazyna and Bernadeta. The family settled in Rochdale, where Maria was a pillar of Polonia social and organisational activities.

She belonged to the Parish and was actively involved in the Catholic Action, the Polish Combatants’ Association, the Association of the Families of the Eastern Borderlands, and the Polish Circle from India. She was the Headteacher of the Polish Saturday School and Chairperson of the Polish Catholic Youth Association. She organised commemorative events and performances, sewed national costumes, and was a local correspondent to the Polish Daily.

Maria passed away in in North Devon on 19 June 2015 at the age of 85 years.

 

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Copyright: Juralewicz family

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