A Deceptive Journey
On October 23, 1943, about 1,700 Polish Jews arrived at Auschwitz-Birkenau, believing they were being sent to Switzerland in a prisoner exchange. Among them was Franceska Mann, a renowned Polish-Jewish ballerina from Warsaw. The group was led into an area near the gas chambers under the pretense of disinfection. Mann, 26 years old, was among those ordered to undress.
Gunfire in the Camp
According to eyewitness accounts, including a report submitted to the Nuremberg Tribunal, Mann seized a pistol—believed to be that of SS officer Josef Schillinger—and fired. She shot Schillinger in the stomach; he later died of his wounds. She then wounded another SS officer, Wilhelm Emmerich. The gunfire triggered chaos.
The Response
The alarm was raised. SS reinforcements arrived, led by camp commandant Rudolf Höss. Reports say the women who had not yet entered the gas chamber were either gunned down or forced inside. The precise sequence of events remains unclear due to conflicting testimonies.
Conflicting Claims
While the Auschwitz Museum confirms the shooting took place, the identity of the shooter is not officially verified. Franceska Mann is the most widely cited name, but some sources dispute this, claiming she was killed a year earlier in Warsaw.
