The photo of young Bronisława Orłowska and the loving dedication to her father on the back correspond to many similarly themed messaged that forced laborers sent to their families. Showing themselves in innocent poses and relatively well-dressed, the images include small details, such as here the letter “P” badge visible on the upper left shoulder, which testify to the fact that the depicted individual was a forced laborer. In her dedication she also made direct reference to the ongoing war that separated her from her father. She had been taken prisoner as a 16-year-old in 1941 during a raid in Warsaw and had been deported to Styria to perform forced labor.
The memories of the married Bronisława Lichniak, recorded much later, give indication of the danger that the girl faced in 1943 in Albersdorf. She had fled and found “a hiding place with a farmer in the village of Albersdorf who was a womanizer. After a certain period of time, he became insistent and tried to seduce me. I fled for second time.” Today it is not clear what she meant by the words “womanizer,” “insistent,” and “seduced” and what actually happened. However, it is likely that she was a victim of sexual assault by the farmer, a fate suffered by many female forced laborers, especially those who worked in agriculture.
Due to her repeated escapes, she put herself in great danger. If discovered, this could have been punished by imprisonment in a camp.
She was one of over 20 million people from all over Europe, who had to perform forced labor for Germany under National Socialism.
