Parzymiechy: pacification and the torture of Fr Bonawentura Metler

Fighting and repression

On the first day of the war, Polish soldiers defended the Parzymiechy area. Paweł Żołądek describes fighting with the German 19th Infantry Division and the later searching of houses and cellars by the attackers. Abducted civilians were confined, among other places, in a barn at Grabarze into which grenades were thrown. Those fleeing were shot at. The location of this barn should be stated explicitly, although the event belongs to the history of repression against the inhabitants of Parzymiechy. [1]

The fate of Bonawentura Metler

According to the IPN study, Fr Metler was tied to a horse with a rope and driven through the village. The parish priest, curate Andrzej Danecki and organist Ignacy Sobczak were then taken to Jaworzno and shot. The violence against the clergyman thus preceded the execution itself. There is no need to add unverified details of torture to describe the documented humiliation and harm. [1]

Victims of the locality

In her scholarly study of repression in the Częstochowa region, Katarzyna Jedynak gives 75 people killed in Parzymiechy. She treats Zimnowoda separately. We preserve that division, because combining neighbouring pacifications and assigning the entire result to one village makes later checking of the data more difficult. [2]

Responsibility and testimony

The account of the attack on civilians derives chiefly from residents' accounts collected by researchers. The earlier fighting in the vicinity is context, but does not prove that abducted people took part in shooting at Germans. This article does not present occupation-era accusations as established facts or equate fallen soldiers with civilian victims of the pacification. [1]

Limits of the findings

We do not attribute death by fire to all 75 victims. Grabarze and Jaworzno are identified as separate sites of events connected with the repression in Parzymiechy. [1] [2]

Sources and notes

Footnote markers identify the basis for specific findings. Bibliographic records remain in their original language; the notes indicate how each source is used.

The bibliographic record and source-use note are retained in Polish to preserve the original scholarly citation.

1. Paweł Żołądek. Pacyfikacje wsi Parzymiechy i Zimnowoda. Instytut Pamięci Narodowej.

   opracowanie instytucjonalne · Sekcja „Wkroczenie nieprzyjaciela” · Dostęp: 2026-09-05.

   Use of this source: Represje wobec cywilów, stodoła w Grabarzach, los Metlera, Daneckiego i Sobczaka.

2. Katarzyna Jedynak. Represje niemieckie na ziemi częstochowskiej w czasie II wojny światowej. Instytut Pileckiego, „Studia nad Totalitaryzmami i Wiekiem XX”, 2019.

   opracowanie naukowe · s. 183 (PDF s. 2) · Dostęp: 2026-09-05.

   Use of this source: Bilans 75 ofiar Parzymiech, odrębny od Zimnowody.