Jerzy and Renata Zisman's marriage confirmation

This document was issued on 13th June 1952, by the Court in Cracow. It is the marriage confrmation for my partner Renata Zisman, nee Springut and her former husband Jerzy Zisman. They had only a ritual marriage in Plaszow camp in 1943, which hadn't been registered with any document.

Renata was 18 when the war started. She was seeing Jerzy Sussman, a friend from Zywiec. He came round to her house a lot. Renata's father didn't like his visiting her, but he came anyway. During the war Renata and her family were sent to the Cracow ghetto. When her parents were taken away to Belzec on 28th October 1942, Jerzy looked after Renata and her sister Elzbieta. From the ghetto the two girls were both sent to the camp in Plaszow. While she was in the camp [in Plaszow] Renata managed to cross the wires into the men's barrack. There, before witnesses, she and Jerzy Sussman were married. After that there was kogiel mogiel [made of egg and sugar, the symbolic wedding party, cause they didn't have anything else], but Renata didn't say who ate it. And that was the end of the whole ceremony. I don't know who married them.

Later on Renata found her husband, who was in a group of returnees from the camp. They went back to Zywiec together. After selling the family home they returned to Cracow. Because they didn't have any documents confirming their marriage in Plaszow, a ketubbah hadn't been drawn up, after the war they had to have their marriage confirmed by the courts.