Radomyshl | Zhytomyr

/ Leonid M., born in 1930: "They dug six pits one close to another. In one pit they threw Jewish cloths and belongings. The Jews were shot in other five pits." © Victoria Bahr - Yahad-In Unum Aleksandr P., born in 1932, saw a shooting of Jewish men in August 1941 © Victoria Bahr - Yahad-In Unum Kostyantyn S., born in 1932: "Straight after German’s arrival the Jews were confined to the ghetto. They were shot in autumn". © Victoria Bahr - Yahad-In Unum Leonid M. pointing the killing place of Jewish men © Victoria Bahr - Yahad-In Unum Yahad-In Unum’s research team during the interview © Victoria Bahr - Yahad-In Unum The execution site of Jewish victims © Victoria Bahr - Yahad-In Unum The execution site of Jewish children. © Victoria Bahr - Yahad-In Unum

Execution of Jews in Radomyshl

5 Execution site(s)

Kind of place before:
Pine forest
Memorials:
Yes
Period of occupation:
1941-1943
Number of victims:
3,000-4,000

Witness interview

Leonid M., born in 1930, evokes: "There was no fence, but the street was guarded by the police. The curfew was established and nobody could walk around in the evening. All Jews were forced to wear white armbands with the star of David and a letter “S” on them. They could not leave the street even to go to the market to buy food. They had to stay home.
YIU: Did the children also wear the armbands?
L: No, they didn’t. But they were watched over so they could not leave the territory of the district." (Eyewitness N°1743, interviewed in Radomyshl, on June 08, 2013)

Soviet archives

"Gendarmerie and Gestapo started mass arrests of the Jewish population. When the Jewish population from Radomyshl was arrested, the Gendarmerie first took the men to the ravine, 1km out of town, and shot them in the field. Women and children were shot after. As for the men, they were put in trucks and took to the edge of the forest, situated outside the town, where the pits had already been dug by the Germans." [Deposition of Yefrem V., born in 1876, an employee of savings bank, made on May, 1945, RG-22.002M.7021-60/309]

German archives

“All the people were arrested with the help of policemen under the direction of W. and the Germans. They were gathered in the yard in front of the police station by the SS unit, and the transporting started. The police yard was very well guarded. There were several thousand people arrested and with their bags. That day in August of 1941, there were eight trucks to transport the people. Two were provided by the fabric factory and other companies, and another four belonged to the Gendarmerie, two of which were covered – the so-called “SS commando’s black crows”. [Deposition of Aleksander K., a former policeman in Radomychl district, made on July 18, 1947, B162-7323]

Historical note

Radomychl is located 48 km (30 miles) northeast of Zhytomyr. According to the census made in 1939, 2.348 Jews were living in the town which represented 20% of all population. The town was occupied by German army in the middle of July 1941.

Holocaust by bullets in figures

In August 1941, few weeks after the occupation, the Germans established an open ghetto for the Jews. On August 5, 1941, the first Aktion against 113 Jews was carried out by Sondercommando 4a. One day later, the second Aktion was carried out by the same detachment. In all, during those two Aktions 276 Jews were executed. On September 6, 1941, Sondercommando 4a in collaboration with Ukrainian police shot 1.107 adults and 561 children in the forest during the ghetto liquidation Aktion.

Jewishgen

Go to the Townpage on JewishGen Ukraine SIG website

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