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This article looks at the connection between the annihilation of the Jews in Poland during the Holocaust (Shoah), the destruction of the hegemonic class of landed gentry during the Stalinist period, and the origins of some characteristics of contemporary Polish society. These characteristics determine major aspects of the current political situation, in particular the symbolic prevalence of right-wing parties and movements. The two major historical events (the Holocaust and the destruction of the nobility) are described as “the sleepwalkers’ revolution.” The dark genealogy of the middle class, the modern Polish bourgeoisie, is described, and the consequences of denying it are analyzed. The denial of responsibility but, at the same time, feelings of guilt and shame account for some of the political choices currently made in Polish politics. The case of Poland seems, to a certain extent, typical of the “bloodlands” of eastern Europe.