Marek Edelman
Marek Edelman (Yiddish: מאַרעק עדעלמאַן; 1919/1922 – October 2, 2009) was a Polish political and social activist and cardiologist. Edelman was the last surviving leader of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. Long before his death, he was the last one to stay in the Polish People's Republic despite harassment by the Communist authorities.
Marek Edelman | |
|---|---|
Marek Edelman at around the time of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising | |
| Born | 1919 or 1922 Homel, Ukrainian People's Republic, or Warsaw, Poland |
| Died | October 2, 2009 (aged 90 or 87) Warsaw, Poland |
| Buried | |
| Allegiance | General Jewish Labour Bund Żydowska Organizacja Bojowa Armia Ludowa |
| Years of service | 1942–1944 |
| Rank | Deputy commander (ŻOB) |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Awards | French Legion of Honor Order of the White Eagle Yale University, honorary doctorate |
Before World War II, he was a General Jewish Labour Bund activist. During the war he co-founded the Jewish Combat Organization (ŻOB). He took part in the 1943 Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, becoming its leader after the death of Mordechaj Anielewicz. He also took part in the citywide 1944 Warsaw Uprising.
After the war, Edelman remained in Poland and became a noted cardiologist. From the 1970s, he collaborated with the Workers' Defence Committee and other political groups opposing Poland's Communist regime. As a member of Solidarity, he took part in the Polish Round Table Talks of 1989. Following the peaceful transformations of 1989, he was a member of various centrist and liberal parties. He also wrote books documenting the history of wartime resistance against the Nazi German occupation of Poland.