Krzysztof Markiewicz ''

nom de guerre A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

'' Czort, was an officer of

Polish underground The Polish Underground State ( pl, Polskie Państwo Podziemne, also known as the Polish Secret State) was a single political and military entity formed by the union of resistance organizations in occupied Poland that were loyal to the Gover ...

resistance movement during World War II in the rank of ''

podporucznik ''Podporuchik'' ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, потпоручник, potporučnik, cs, podporučík, pl, podporucznik, russian: подпору́чик, bg, подпоручик, sk, podporučík) is the most Junior officer in some Slavic armed forces, an ...

'' (Second Lieutenant) of the AK Okręg Wołyń cooperating with the Polish

Bataliony Chłopskie Bataliony Chłopskie (BCh, Polish ''Peasants' Battalions'') was a Polish World War II resistance movement, guerrilla and partisan organisation. The organisation was created in mid-1940 by the agrarian political party People's Party and by 19 ...

partisans in the defence of Volhynia. He was brutally murdered as a

peace envoy Peace is a concept of societal friendship and harmony in the absence of hostility and violence. In a social sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict (such as war) and freedom from fear of violence between individuals or groups. ...

on 10 July 1943 by the

Ukrainian Insurgent Army The Ukrainian Insurgent Army ( uk, Українська повстанська армія, УПА, translit=Ukrayins'ka povstans'ka armiia, abbreviated UPA) was a Ukrainian nationalist paramilitary and later partisan formation. During World ...

(UPA) during the massacres of Poles.

Circumstances surrounding murder

The Polish peace envoy representing AK and BCh arrived on 7–8 July 1943 in the village of Kustycze. Sent without military escort by peace advocate Kazimierz Banach of the

Government Delegation for Poland The Government Delegation for Poland ( pl, Delegatura Rządu Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej na Kraj) was an agency of the Polish Government in Exile during World War II. It was the highest authority of the Polish Secret State in occupied Poland and was ...

, the envoy included notable poet and BCh officer

Zygmunt Rumel Zygmunt Jan Rumel (22 February 1915 – 10 July 1943) was a Polish poet and, during World War II, underground officer of the Bataliony Chłopskie partisans in the Wolhynia Region of the Second Polish Republic. Rumel's poetic talent was acknowled ...

fluent in Polish and Ukrainian, Krzysztof Markiewicz from AK, and the horse carriage driver Witold Dobrowolski. They were met by warlord Jusif Stelmaszczuk – wrote Ratter – (Stelmaschuk; see Юрій Стельмащук, '' uk'') who arrested them on the spot. After three days of extreme torture, they were executed on 11 July 1943 by having their limbs ripped apart by horses in a medieval style. The public torture execution of Lieutenant Krzysztof Markiewicz in Kustycze near Turzysk occurred one day before the largest assault on the Polish civilian targets, launched at dusk on 11 July 1943 by the

death squads A death squad is an armed group whose primary activity is carrying out extrajudicial killings or forced disappearances as part of political repression, genocide, ethnic cleansing, or revolutionary terror. Except in rare cases in which they are ...

OUN-UPA The Ukrainian Insurgent Army ( uk, Українська повстанська армія, УПА, translit=Ukrayins'ka povstans'ka armiia, abbreviated UPA) was a Ukrainian nationalist paramilitary and later partisan formation. During World ...

aided by Ukrainian nationalists. In total, some 125 villages were attacked on that day across the counties of

Horochów Horokhiv (, , yi, ארכעוו ''Arkhev'', ) is a town in Volyn Oblast, Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Horokhiv Raion. Population: History The first written mention of it was in 1240 in the Hypatian Codex. From 1795 until t ...

Włodzimierz Wołyński Volodymyr ( uk, Володи́мир, from 1944 to 2021 Volodymyr-Volynskyi ( uk, Володи́мир-Воли́нський)) is a small city located in Volyn Oblast, in north-western Ukraine. It is the administrative centre of the Volodymyr R ...

and

Kowel Kovel (, ; pl, Kowel; yi, קאוולע / קאוולי ) is a city in Volyn Oblast (province), in northwestern Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Kovel Raion (district). Population: Kovel gives its name to one of the oldest runi ...

, with 10 more in 14–15 July, and 37 more in 16–18 July 1943.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Markiewicz, Krzysztof 1943 deaths Home Army members Massacres of Poles in Volhynia Ukrainian Insurgent Army