During the German occupation, almost every major Polish city had a building in which the secret state police had their headquarters. From afar, they aroused terror and were often colloquially referred to as “torture houses”, because political prisoners were held, interrogated, beaten and bestially tortured there. Many detainees never left the torture chambers alive. In Zakopane, such a place was called the “Podhale’s torture chamber”. Here, the headquarters of the Gestapo commissariat was located in a pre-war villa with the graceful name “Palace”.

The brick, imposing villa still stands today at 7 Chałubińskiego St. In 1930, it served as a guesthouse. Previously, a wooden building stood in its place, which was consumed by fire in 1928. The owner of the “Palace” was Dr Włodzimierz Schneider.

After the outbreak of the Second World War, the Germans settled in the villa in October 1939, changing the name of the street to Tatra Strasse (Tatrzanska), and the following plaque was hung on the building: Commandant of the Security Police and Security Service in the Krakow District. Border Police Commissariat in Zakopane. Then, quite quickly, the cellars were adapted for prison cells by fixing bars in the windows.

About 40 people worked at the Gestapo headquarters. Prisoners were kept in 6 cells and in a dark cell, where they were handcuffed to the walls.

In total, about 2,000 Poles passed through the Gestapo prison, of whom 300-400 were killed on the spot. The inmates were shot mainly at the back of the building. One of the German victims was 23-year-old Helena Marusarzówna – before the war an outstanding Polish ski champion and mountaineer. The Gestapo arrested her on suspicion of belonging to the Union for Armed Struggle and working underground as a liaison officer. Marusarzówna was tortured in many prisons, including Muszyna, Nowy Sącz, Tarnów and Krakow. She did not betray anyone and was shot to death in 1941.

Another young prisoner who was sent to this terrible place was 18-year-old Helena Błażusiak. Years later, her inscription was found in her cell: “Mother, don’t cry, don’t… Heavenly Precious Queen, always support me. Hail Mary”. This text, years later, inspired the composer Henryk Górecki to write the ‘Symphony of Sorrowful Songs’.

After the end of the Second World War, the “Palace” was adopted by the Soviet and Communist services, the NKVD and the Security Office, for their purposes. Once again, the torture of Poles began there …