During the Second World War, Kraków – some way from the front – served as the seat of the General Government. The city attracted numerous representatives of the occupying army, the SS and police, as well as being an attractive place to seek work and conduct business by German civilians. Who were these “ordinary” Germans – where did they come from, what did they do? These questions will be answered by the exhibition at the Oskar Schindler’s Enamel Factory.
Not many memorabilia of the Germans and their time in Kraków have been preserved, so the organisers are mainly relying on photos and archive materials. The snapshots reveal the workings of the Generalgouvernement, and the policies and propaganda aimed at Poles and their own citizens, as well as recalling the daily realities of the occupiers, living in a different country with a different culture, during the war and ruled by the rigours of a totalitarian state. (Dorota Dziunikowska, “Karnet” monthly)
