Mira Fuchrer ( he, מירה פוכרר; 1920 – 8 May 1943) was a

Polish Jewish The history of the Jews in Poland dates back at least 1,000 years. For centuries, Poland was home to the largest and most significant Ashkenazi Jewish community in the world. Poland was a principal center of Jewish culture, because of the lon ...

activist of the

Jewish resistance movement The Jewish Resistance Movement ( he, תנועת המרי העברי, ''Tnu'at HaMeri HaIvri'', literally ''Hebrew Rebellion Movement''), also called the United Resistance Movement (URM), was an alliance of the Zionist paramilitary organizations H ...

in the

Warsaw Ghetto The Warsaw Ghetto (german: Warschauer Ghetto, officially , "Jewish Residential District in Warsaw"; pl, getto warszawskie) was the largest of the Nazi ghettos during World War II and the Holocaust. It was established in November 1940 by the G ...

during the

occupation of Poland Occupation commonly refers to: * Occupation (human activity), or job, one's role in society, often a regular activity performed for payment *Occupation (protest), political demonstration by holding public or symbolic spaces *Military occupation, t ...

in World War II; member of the Jewish Combat Organization (ŻOB), and resistance fighter during the

Warsaw Ghetto Uprising The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising; pl, powstanie w getcie warszawskim; german: link=no, Aufstand im Warschauer Ghetto was the 1943 act of Jewish resistance in the Warsaw Ghetto in German-occupied Poland during World War II to oppose Nazi Germany' ...

of 1943. Surrounded by the Germans and their

auxiliaries Auxiliaries are support personnel that assist the military or police but are organised differently from regular forces. Auxiliary may be military volunteers undertaking support functions or performing certain duties such as garrison troops, ...

in the ghetto bunker, she refused to surrender and committed suicide with the other members of the Jewish resistance.

Life

Mira Fuchrer was born to

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

parents in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

in 1920. She was active in Hashomer Hatzair youth organization in the interwar period where she met the future commander of ŻOB

Mordechai Anielewicz Mordechai Anielewicz ( he, מרדכי אנילביץ'; 1919 – 8 May 1943) was the leader of the Jewish Fighting Organization ( pl, Żydowska Organizacja Bojowa, ŻOB), which led the Warsaw Ghetto uprising; the largest Jewish insurrection dur ...

. During the Nazi-Soviet

invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland (1 September – 6 October 1939) was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union which marked the beginning of World War II. The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week aft ...

at the onset of World War II, Mira and Mordechai got together and fled to

Wilno Vilnius ( , ; see also #Etymology and other names, other names) is the capital and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the munic ...

in northeastern part of prewar Poland (now

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...

, Lithuania) in September 1939. They returned to Warsaw in January 1940, and began transforming Hashomer Hatzair into the resistance movement. In November of the same year, they joined the fate of other Jewish citizens of Warsaw trapped in the newly formed ghetto. In the

, Mira worked in a small tailor's shop along with her friends Towa Frenkel and Rachel Zilberberg. In 1942, she visited other ghettos in

occupied Poland ' ( Norwegian: ') is a Norwegian political thriller TV series that premiered on TV2 on 5 October 2015. Based on an original idea by Jo Nesbø, the series is co-created with Karianne Lund and Erik Skjoldbjærg. Season 2 premiered on 10 Octobe ...

as a clandestine courier on behalf of ŻOB. During the Ghetto Uprising, which began on 19 April 1943, she fought in the so-called central ghetto sector. On May 8, 1943, she was in a bunker at 18 Mila Street together with Mordechai Anielewicz, Rachel Zilberberg, and a group of about 120 ZOB fighters when the bunker was discovered and surrounded by the Germans.

Arie Wilner Izrael Chaim Wilner, ''nom de guerre'' "Arie" and "Jurek" (November 14, 1917 – May 8, 1943) was a Jewish resistance fighter during World War II, member of the Jewish Fighting Organization's (ŻOB) leadership, a liaison between ŻOB and the Pol ...

was the first to urge the fighters to commit suicide rather than surrender to the Germans. Most of the fighters shot themselves or took poison, including Mira and ZOB commander Mordechai Anielewicz.

Memorial

Mira Fuchrer's name was engraved on the obelisk set at the steps of the memorial known as Anielewicz Mound in 2006. Her name is listed among the 51 names of fighters whose identities were established by postwar historians. In the 2001 television film ''

Uprising Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority. A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and ...

'', she was portrayed by Australian actress

Radha Mitchell Radha Rani Amber Indigo Ananda Mitchell is an Australian actress. She started her career with various appearances on Australian television, including a regular role as Catherine O'Brien in the soap opera ''Neighbours'' (1996–97). Mitchell la ...

References

Bibliography

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fuchrer, Mira 1920 births People who died in the Warsaw Ghetto Warsaw Ghetto Uprising insurgents Jewish Combat Organization members Jewish resistance members during the Holocaust Hashomer Hatzair members People from Warsaw Voivodeship (1919–1939) Polish women in World War II resistance 1943 suicides 1943 deaths People from Warsaw Suicides in Poland Suicides by Jews during the Holocaust Polish Jews who died in the Holocaust Jewish women activists