On 3 August 1946, the District Military Court in Gdańsk sentenced Danuta Siedzikówna, better known by her underground alias ‘Inka’, to death. Before she was captured by officers of the communist secret police, she had served as a medic in the squadrons of the 5th Vilnius Cavalry Brigade of the Home Army.

She had been involved in the independence underground since late 1943. Arrested in June 1945, she was freed from a prison convoy by soldiers of the aforementioned unit, commanded by Major Zygmunt Szendzielarz, codenamed “Łupaszka”. She then decided to join his unit, specifically as a medic.

On 20 July 1946, she was recaptured by the secret police in an exposed safe house in Wrzeszcz (now a district of Gdańsk). Held as a special prisoner, she was subjected to brutal and humiliating interrogations. Despite this, the UB torturers failed to extract from her any testimony incriminating “Inka’s” comrades from the “Łupaszka” unit.

The sentence handed down to Danuta Siedzikówna was unlawful even under Stalinist law. At the time of sentencing, ‘Inka’ was still a minor and was therefore not subject to the maximum penalty.

For those seeking further information:
P. Kozłowski, Zygmunt Szendzielarz ‘Łupaszko’ 1910–1951, Warsaw 2011
D. Kuciński, Archive of the Cursed Soldiers, vol. 11: Danuta Siedzikówna ‘Inka’, Warsaw 2016
Danuta Siedzikówna ‘Inka’. We Remember!, ed. Fr. J. Wąsowicz, Kraków 2021