Published by Chiselbury Publishing in a translation by Marek Sobieralski, the book brings together firsthand accounts by insurgents and civilians who lived through the 63-day battle to liberate Warsaw from German occupation.
It also includes official reports, letters and diary entries, all drawn from the archives of the Karta Foundation, a Polish NGO that documents 20th-century history.
The publisher describes the volume as "a remarkable collection that captures the courage, sacrifice and resilience of a city under siege, an unforgettable account of one of the Second World War's greatest tragedies, and an enduring tribute to the people who fought, suffered and died for the hope of a free Poland."
In a foreword, British historian Norman Davies, whose works on Polish history include Warsaw Rising 44, writes: "This concise collection of testimonies from the Warsaw Rising provides a very valuable addition to existing sources and will be warmly welcomed outside Poland."
"The rich variety of voices—from army commanders and government ministers in London to young nurses and fighters, German officers and fugitives hiding in the ruins—conveys both the complexity of the story and the magnitude of the tragedy," Davies adds.
Military historian and author Jonathan Walker concludes his review of Razing Warsaw by noting that the book ends with accounts of "how the Germans drove the survivors out of the ruins, the houses were looted for any remaining valuables and then all buildings were systematically blown up."
He writes: "Hitler's vengeance had removed the physical remains of the city, though as these remarkable testimonies show, he could never erase the memory of the courageous but doomed resistance."
(mk/gs)