However, this percentage can vary significantly between different regions within the same country. In some cases, the gap is substantial, ranging from as high as 80% in one region to 14% in another.
This variation is clearly illustrated by the example of Poland.
Poland has the highest overall percentage of demolished cemeteries identified by ESJF in its research across 11 countries in Central and Eastern Europe – 53%.
The eastern regions and the Warmian-Masurian voivodeship have a predictably high percentage of demolished cemeteries (60% on average). This is most likely explained by the fact that these regions were part of Germany until 1939; Jewish heritage sites in these areas shared the fate of cemeteries and synagogues in Germany.
However, the rest of Poland shows a dramatic difference in the proportion of demolished cemeteries: from an average of 80% in Wielkopolskie voivodeship, Kuyavian-Pomeranian voivodeship, and Pomeranian voivodeship, to 14%-50% on average in the remaining regions, with a clear geographical boundary between the two areas. This may be explained by the different administrative statuses of these territories after German annexation in 1939. While the territories of Pomerania, Kuyavia-Pomerania, and Greater Poland were directly annexed to the Reich, the rest were included in the General Government, a separate administrative unit under German rule. This likely had a different impact on Jewish cemeteries in these regions between 1939 and 1941.
The Podlaskie voivodeship in the north-east has a surprisingly low rate of demolished cemeteries – only 36%. This territory was annexed by the Soviet Union in 1939 and transferred to Germany in 1941 as the Bezirk Bialystok. It may be assumed that during 1939-1941, when the territory was under Soviet rule, Jewish cemeteries were either not demolished or were demolished to a lesser extent.