The sunrises and sunsets

Markowa - big villaege near Lancut, presently southern Poland. Befere the Second World War happy and loving Ulm familiy lives in this picteresque place, almost paradise - hilly landscape, idyllic countryside.

Jozef was born in 1900, his beautiful wife - Wiktoria - in 1912, they have six children. Jozef is passionate about photography, gardening, breeding bees; he is also catholic social activist, obatins many rewards for his inventions in the field of agriculture.

In 1931 Markowa has 4.442 inhabitants, among them 120 Jews.

The Second World War begins. Paradise and idyll are gone. German occupational government starts “Endlossung” (”Final Solution”), in other words - the extermination of Jews. Jozef and Wiktoria Ulm give shelter to two Jewish families. Shall family from Lancut, 5 men who manged to escape from their native town and reach Ulm’s house in Markowa. And Ulm’s neighbours - Golda and Layka Goldman with her little daughter.

21th March 1944, war is coming to the end; quiet day, evening, four carts with officials of German Gandarmerie approach the Ulm’s house. They burst into it, in the attic the kill the three Jews, the Ulm family and other Jews take outside. First they shoot two Jewish sisters and daughter one of them, after a while kill Jozef and Wiktoria, their children start crying and screaming, the policemen think what to do with small children. The German officer - Eilert Dieken - resolves to shoot them too. Stasia, Basia, Wladziu, Franus, Antos, Marysia share their parents’ fate. Later on it turns out that Wiktoria Ulm was pregnant, unborn child was also killed together with her.

Beyond a reasonable doubt someone must have denounced them to German Gandarmerie.

During one eveining and night German policemen killed 17 persons.

Poland was the only country in Europe during the Second World War where giving the shelter or any help to Jews was punished wiht death penalty. In spite of such severe punishment many Poles dared to help Jews who were sentenced to death by the German Nazis. The medals the Righteous Among the Nations awarded by Yad Vashem obtained 19 706 persons, among them 5 733 were Poles.