Download UKRAINE: "SECOND AMONG EQUAL"

Lesson 3
Ukraine during the World War II.
Ukraine during the after-war period (1945-1986).
Plan
1.The Second World War in Ukraine.
2. Post-war reconstruction of Ukraine.
3. Destalinization.
4. Dissident movement.
5. Social and economic development in 60-80th years.
6. Chornobyl.
1. The Second World War in Ukraine
Ukrainian SSR in 1940, after the Soviet invasions of
Poland and Romania and before the German invasion of Soviet Union.
Second World War for Ukraine actually started on September 1 1939, when
Germans attacked Poland, and Soviet Union a short time later occupied its eastern
territories. The most cruel and tragic stage of the war began with the attack of Germany
on the USSR on June 22 1941 and continued till the autumn of 1944, when German
forces were turned out from Ukraine. After that Ukrainians consisting of Soviet army
fought with the armies of fascist Germany and its allies half a year more – till May 8
1945, reaching Prague and Berlin. They also actively participated in the defeat of
Japanese Quantune army in the Far East, releasing Manchjuriya and Korea, where the
battle finished on September 2 1945.
Having guarantee of neutrality of the Soviet Union and being sure that allies of
Poland – France and England – were not going to provide real help, Gitler attacked
Poland, initiating the start of the Second World War. On September 17 1939 the Soviet
army went to eastern Poland and occupied almost all territory, settled by Ukrainians and
Belorusians.
In June 1940 the USSR forced Rumania to give back Bessarabiya and Bukovyna.
Such way to the Ukrainian Soviet Republic it was jointed over 7 millions inhabitants of
the Western Ukraine.
Punitive bodies of the USSR arrested and deported Ukrainian political leaders to
the East of Russia. Ukrainian political parties had to be dismissed. From 20 to 30
thousand Ukrainian activists run away to Poland, occupied by the Germans.
It was declared that lands, expropriated from Polish landowners and “given” to
the poorest peasants, were subject to collectivization, about 13 percent really were
collectivized. After that the great majority of peasants finally turned away from new
regime.
At the beginning many representatives of intelligence were impressed, as they
received job in soviet educational and cultural establishments, but they quickly
understood, that became strictly controlled by organization men of regime, and in case
of violation of directions arose threaten of arrest and deportation. Local communists,
which went out from underground and came useful to new regime, helping to expose of
Ukrainian nationalists, supported soviet authorities. Representatives of Soviet Ukraine,
which almost everywhere used Russian language quickly destroyed illusions concerning
their vaunted “Ukrainian”.
In the spring of 1940 the regime opened the mask of democracy and began wileranging repressions – as against the Ukrainians, as against Poles. The most popular and
awful their type was deportation to Siberia and Kazakhstan, where people died by the
whole families.
Ukrainians under the fascist occupation. Movement of Opposition
Flag of Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany to 1943.
In 1939 about 550 thousand of Ukrainians from Lemkivshina and Holemshina
turned out in German occupation zone in the eastern remote area of Poland. Governorgeneral Gans Frank received special order from Hitler to consider this territory German
colony and to give its people only minimum rights.
Adolf Hitler
Ukrainians being deported to Nazi Germany for forced labor, 1942
After the capture of the Carpathian Ukraine and breaking down its government by
Hungarian army, Zacarpathian with 550 thousand Ukrainians formed a part of Hungary.
Hundreds of Ukrainophiles were shot, thousands were arrested, near 30 thousand run
away to the neighboring Galychina.
Soon after coming of Germans, in Ukraine appeared the national movement of
opposition. There also existed underground organizational system of Organization of
Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) and the Bolsheviks in the northern west – Poles, each of
them had own partisan forces. As the large part of Ukraine is steppe, it was not suitable
for partisan war, so partisans were mainly collected in northern west part of the country
– in the forests of Volyn, bogs of Polissya and Carpathians.
Partisans take on the village to drive away a German punitive
expedition.
According to the official data, in the beginning of 1944 on the occupied lands of
Ukraine in general 47 thousand 800 people in the form of partisan detachments and
underground formations struggled with fascist conquers. Detachments of S. Kovpak and
O. Saburov since Novenmber 1942 to March 1943 raided through Northern Ukraine –
from Bryansk forests to Polissya. In May-October 1943 the detachment of Kovpak
executed raid from Putivel through Volyn to Carpathians with the task to cut route of
retreat for fascist, as well as for creation political and psychological effect in Volyn,
where were developing the Ukrainian opposite army and in Galychina.
The first partisan detachments of Ukrainian nationalists arose in Polissay and
Volyn. Local Ukrainian figure Taras Bulba-Borovets formed irregular detachment,
called Polisska Sych (later renamed to Ukrainian revolt Army) with the purpose of
clearing their region from the rests of the Red army. When at the end of 1942 Germans
tried to dismiss his detachment, he led his fighters to forests to struggle with Germans
and with Bolsheviks. In 1942 members of different branches of Organization of
Ukrainian nationalists (OUN) created small elements in Volyn.
Execution of partisans by German soldiers, September 1941
At the end of 1942 OUN decided to form large partisan forces, initiating the
beginning of regular Ukrainian army, which as was considered, would be useful when
Nazi soviet war ended. It was induced by such reasons: first of all, with growing of
German repressions the peasants demanded from OUN to take measures for their
defense, secondly, when at the end of 1942 the soviet partisans began to penetrate from
Belorussia to Western Ukraine, it was necessary that OUN played the role of nation’s
army before it would be done by Bolsheviks.
Due to wide and efficient underground system of OUN, Ukrainian revolt army
(URA) quickly grew in the big, well-organized partisan army, which took control under
the significant parts of Valyn, Polissya and finally Galychina. After releasing the
Ukraine from the fascists, URA till 1956 continued partisan war with soviet regime on
the territory of Western Ukraine.
Return of the soviet power to Ukraine
The decisive crisis arose in the war in 1943: the soviet army began the gigantic
counter-offensive, the main purpose of which was in liberation of the left-bank Ukraine.
During the end of the summer-autumn of 1943 the soviet army under the
command of Ivan Konyev, Mykola Vatutin and Radion Malynovskiy occupied left-bank
and Donbas. On August 23 in result of desperate fight Kharkiv was liberated. In
September-October the Red army broke powerful line of German defense at the Dnieper
and on November 6 entered to Kyiv.
In January 1944 after the short stop almost 2,3 million of Red army began
clearing from Germans right-bank and Crimea.
In July 1944 the soviet army surrounded and broke under the Broad eight German
divisions in the number of 60 thousand people. Among them there were 10 thousand
fighters of Galychina divisions, formed with Ukrainians, which were unlucky to receive
christening with fire in that catastrophic condition. After that victory the soviet forces
quickly passed through Galychina, occupied Lviv and Peremishl, and on Julay 27 Stanislav (now Ivano-Frankivsk city). In September they crossed the Carpathians and
till the October 1944 all ethnic Ukrainian territory appeared in soviet hands.
After liberation of Ukraine for impression of sovereignty of the Ukrainian Soviet
Republic, there were created additional Ukrainian ministries of foreign affairs and
defense. On the high positions in the government were assigned known Ukrainian
figures. In particular, Oleksandr Korniychuk became the minister of foreign affairs, and
sown by the government honors of the commander of the soviet partisans Sidor Kovpak
was assigned the minister of defense. Sensibly weakened control under the cultural
activity of Ukrainians, and the patriotic poem of Volodymir Sosyura “Love Ukraine”
was even rewarded with premium.
Second World War took the lives at least 5,3 million Ukrainians, or one from
every six citizen of Ukraine died in the struggle. 2,3 million Ukrainians were taken out
fro the forced labor in Germany. Completely or partly it were destroyed over 700 big
and small cities and 28 thousand villages, in result of what 10 million people became
homeless. As the war caused in Ukraine more damage, than in any country in Europe,
losses in the economy gained huge measures. Complete or part destruction of over 16
thousand industrial enterprises meant, the loss of the most part of that Ukraine took with
so high price in 1930. It was estimated, that Ukraine lost over 40 percent of its
economy.
In the second part of XX century more and more facts indicated about secret
agreement between the Kremlin and Kyiv, according to which the Ukrainian elite for
support and collaboration was offered the role of junior partner in the government of
soviet empire.
For the Kremlin to get the support of Ukrainians had fundamental
meaning, because they were not only the second large nation, but the only nation in the
USSR, which could be serious opponent of the Russian hegemony.
2. Post-war reconstruction of Ukraine
Over the next decades the Ukrainian republic not only surpassed pre-war levels of
industry and production but also was the spearhead of Soviet power. Ukraine became
the centre of Soviet arms industry and high-tech research. The republic was also turned
into a Soviet military outpost in the cold war, a territory crowded by military bases
packed with the most up-to-date weapons systems.
Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev
The
Khrushchev
era
saw
increased construction of rapidly built, prefabricated apartment complexes.
Such an important role resulted in a major influence of the local elite. Many
members of the Soviet leadership came from Ukraine, most notably Nikita
Khrushchev(a Soviet leader from1953 to 1964) and Leonid Brezhnev (a Soviet leader
from 1964 to 1982), as well as many prominent Soviet sportsmen, scientists and artists.
In 1954, the Russian-populated oblast of Crimea was transferred from the Russian to the
Ukrainian Soviet Republic.
Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev
The products of the rapidly developed high-tech industry in Ukraine were largely
directed for military consumption, similarly to the much of the Soviet economy, and the
supply and quality of consumer goods remained low compared even to the neighboring
countries of the Eastern bloc. A state-regulated system of production and consumption
lead to gradual decreasing of life level and growing “shadowisation” of retail
infrastructure as well as of corruption.
Four years of war had a harmful effect on the Ukrainian economy. Industrial
production of the first post-war year 1945 accounted only a quarter from the level of
1940. Reconstruction of the hard industry swallowed up 85 percent of all investments,
but it was successful: in 1950 industrial production in Ukraine by 15 percent exceeded
the level of 1940. In Western Ukraine, where before war the hard industry had not
existed, the progress impressed especially: industrial production grew 2,3 times. In 1950
Ukraine again became one from the leading industrial countries in Europe. It melted
more iron per man, than Great Britain, Western Germany or France, and according to
coal mining it almost was equal to Western Germany.
But the life level of people improved very slowly. Light industry slightly reached
80 percent of the pre-war level. Currency reform of 1947 devaluated carbovanets and
depreciated personal savings of citizens. The position was complicated by catastrophic
drought and starvation of 1946. The yield of 1950 corresponded only to 60 percent of
1940-year level. At the same time peasants were deprived the land and inventory,
obtained during the war. Nourishing nutrition for a long time remained rare profusion
for Ukrainians.
Started in 1954, project on development the virgin lands of Kazakhstan required
the use of huge labor and material resources, and the big part of those expenses took
Ukraine. Before 1956 thousand tractors and 80 thousand experienced farm hands were
taken from here. Many of them settled there forever. At the same time, every spring
hundred thousand students voluntarily came from Ukraine on season work. Though this
program gave some positive results, it exhausted resources of Ukraine and weakened
agricultural production of the republic.
In spite of drastic changes and grandiose experiments the government did not
manage to reach so quick growing of agricultural production as it was planned. The
Kremlin later on refused to give the peasants sufficient incentives for better labor,
officials in the far Moscow continued to decide, what cultures should cultivate
collective farms, how to sow them, and the peasants were punished by duties for the
tillage of their tiny (but incredibly productive) farm lands.
3. Destalinization
After the death of the dictator Stalin in 1953 new government of the country tried
to receive wider support among the nonrussian nations and especially among
Ukrainians.
At the beginning the Ukrainians reacted on these changes very carefully. It was
sounded one of the first and then repeated several times the accusation of the regime for
the terrible state of the Ukrainian language. Intelligentsia, students, workers and even
partial officials – all repeated the same refrain: special status of the Russian language in
the USSR did not mean, than the Ukrainian language should be discriminated. Such
slogans as: “Let’s protect the Ukrainian language!” and “Let’s speak Ukrainian!”, more
often sounded throughout the republic, especially in the field of the universities’
students.
Making attempts to raise the Ukrainian science and to raise the prestige of the
Ukrainian culture, the intelligentsia suggested to create possibilities in the republic for
the development of such modern branches of knowledge as nuclear investigation and
cybernetic.
In 1957 in Kyiv it was established the computer center, which in 1962
became the Institute of cybernetic and led Ukraine out to the leading position in this
field in the USSR.
Many million of Ukrainians jailed in the Siberian camps of forced labor, received
amnesty and the permission to come back home. This partly liquidation of gigantic
system of concentration camp was precipitated by the row of camp revolts, in particular
in Vokrut in Novorylsk (1953), Karaganda (1954), where the leading role plaid
members of Organization of Ukrainian nationalists and Ukrainian revolt army.
Among the Ukrainian youth expressively grew spirits to be guided in the life by
the rights of individualism. For youth became unbearable the monotone of the soviet
life, old-fashioned manner to dress and very ideological system of studying. In Ukraine
began to appear materialistic and egocentric “Me”- generation (already formed in the
West), very differed from the previous, that gave birth of so violent communists and
nationalists.
4. Dissident movement
During 1960 the part of Ukrainians, living in cities, reached 55 percent. In
Ukraine also grew the quantity of specialists with higher education. Between 1960 and
1970 their quantity doubled from 700 thousands to 1,4 million.
In Ukraine the cultural elite and especially writers made new attempts to wider
measures of creative self-expression. They again wrote about losses, caused by the
soviet regime of Stalin to Ukrainian culture.
Censorship continued strictly regulation of all, that were allowed to read, to see
and to hear. Communist party retained absolute monopoly on the politic power.
Increasing of Ukraine’s meaning of in the USSR and the political success of separate
Ukrainians did not change the fact that interests of Ukraine remained completely
subordinated to the interests of the soviet empire in general.
In 1960-70th years in the USSR arose noticeable occurrence, when the policy of
the government was subject to the open criticism of not large but later on larger quantity
of people, who usually were called dissidents and who demanded wider social, religious
and national rights.
At the beginning the heart of Ukrainian dissidents consisted of so-called “men of
the sixtieth” – new productive generation of writers, who got the acknowledgement. It
included: Lina Kostenko, Vasyl Symonenko, Ivan Drach, Ivan Svitlycnniy, Evgen
Sverstyuk, Mykola Vyngranovskiy, Alla Gorska and Ivan Dzyuba. Later on Vasyl Stus,
Myhaylo Osadchiy, Igor and Irina Kalinets, Ivan Gel and brothers Goryny jointed to
them. Distinctive feature of this group was that its members were exemplary products of
the soviet education and quickly made promising career. Some of them were convinced
communists. Though the dissidents acted mostly in Kyiv and Lviv, they originated from
different parts of Ukraine.
Vasyl Symonenko
Vasyl Stus
The first demonstration of this movement took place at the end 1950th – the
beginning of 1960th, when in the Western Ukraine it was organized several small secret
groups. So-called “group of jurists” at the head of a lawyer Levko Lukyanenko was
distinguished among them. It called to execution of the legal right of Ukraine on going
out of the Soviet Union. After disclosure of these groups their participants were
sentenced to the long period imprisonment.
Levko Lukyanenko
Open dissidents, suspected in “unreliable” views, were dismissed. This wave of
chase, resembling Stalin’s time, traumatized the whole generation of the Ukrainian
intelligentsia and forced many of them to confess and leave the dissident activity.
In November 1976 in Kyiv appeared the Ukrainian Helsinki group. It was led by
the writer Mykola Rudenko – the political commissar in the years of the Second World
War and previous political official.
Mykola Rudenko
His close comrade was the general of the Soviet army Petro Grygorenko –
cavalier of many government honors, who was dismissed and chased for the active
social activity. This group accounted 37 members, different by birth. They supposed
resolving of social problems in following the law in general and respecting personal
rights in particular.
5. Social and economic development in 60-80th
In 1965 in the USSR was performed an attempt of economic reform
implementation, first of all improvement of production management.
But in the
condition of production super centralization the execution of this reform was braked.
Only in 1976-1980 five-year plan, in Ukraine real income per man increased by 15 %.
Wages of workers and officials rose by 75 %.
Putting in order the automate machines and equipment lines promoted intensive
development of hard industry, building, transport field, agriculture and power industry.
Actively developed airplane building and motor-car industry. In general in Ukraine
were accounted over 150 industrial branches. Overall development was executed in
newly created instrument-making industry and space field. Ukrainian RSU in that
period launched in space 400 satellites.
Agriculture like before plaid leading role in the economy of Republic. Ukraine
became food donor for all the USSR, the area plough land in those years accounted 80
% from the total area of republic.
At the low level was social development of villages, and in consequences labor
sources significantly decreased in result of urbanization. On the map of Ukraine were
appearing new and growing old industrial centers, increased the house-building tare.
During 1966-1985 years 4,6 people, mostly youth left Ukrainian villages. Social
structure of republic’s population was changed. If in 1960 peasants accounted a half of
republic’ s population, then in 1985 – it was 1/3.
Implementation of compulsory general secondary education, enlargement of the
system of secondary-special and higher educational institutions in Ukraine assisted to
raising the authority of studying and education and further their development. The
percent of specialists with higher education in Ukraine rapidly grew. Between 1960 and
1970 their quantity doubled – from 700 thousand to 1,4 million and reached the level of
Western Europe countries.
The field of functioning of the Ukrainian language greatly narrowed. Between
1969 and 1980 the share of magazines, issued in Ukrainian, decreased from 46 % to 19
%. Repertory of cinemas was Russian in 99 %. All kinds of art and culture were
ideologized. Artists were accustomed to think not only in artistic manner, but also in
political categories for the image of “developed socialism” achievements.
But in spite of all Ukrainian culture became firmly established. The world got to
know about talented actors: A. Rogovtseva, B. Stupka, A. Gashinskiy, I. Mykolaychuk,
singers D. Gnatyuk, A. Solovyanenko, E. Myrashnichenko. Significant development
was gained by cinematography. Annually in Ukraine released 20 feature films. Among
the most famous films were “Shadows of forgotten ancestors” of S. Poradganov (28
international awards, in particular in 1965 the award of the British academy for the best
foreign film), “White bird with black mark”, author of which – Y. Illyenko – included
to the quantity of a hundred outstanding producers of the world. It also was developing
Ukrainian theatre art.
Also impressed the achievements of the Ukrainian sportsmen, who appeared on
the international arena under the soviet flag. Olympic champions and heroes of the
country were weight-lifter Leonid Dzabotynskiy, gymnasts Polina Astahova and Larisa
Latynina, runner Valeriy Borzov, fighter Oleksander Kolchynskiy. In 1975 under the
management of one of the best trainers in the planet Valeriy Lobanovskiy, the football
club “Dynamo Kyiv” gained a victory in Cup of Cups and playing off Supercup UEFA ,
becoming the strongest football team in the continent. And Ukrainian forward Oleg
Blohin was acknowledged the best football-player in Europe, receiving “Golden ball”.
“Dynamo Kyiv” -- the Cup Winners.
Oleh Blokhin -- the Best European player
1975.
In 1978 it was passed the Constitution of URSR, in which were declared
principles of widening and deepening of the “social democracy” by the means of
energization of the activity of Rada of national deputies, involving the mass to the
participation in state government. It was officially declared that in the USSR was built
“developed socialism”, but the life level of people was much more lower, then in
European countries.
6. Chornobyl
The Chernobyl disaster was a nuclear reactor accident at the Chernobyl Nuclear
Power Plant in Ukraine, then part of the Soviet Union. It is considered to be the worst
nuclear power plant disaster in history and the only level 7 instance on the International
Nuclear Event Scale. It resulted in a severe release of radioactivity following a massive
power excursion which destroyed the reactor. Two people died in the initial steam
explosion, but most deaths from the accident were attributed to radiation.On 26 April
1986 01:23:45 a.m. (UTC+3) reactor number four at the Chernobyl plant, near Pripyat
in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, exploded.
Further explosions and the resulting fire sent a plume of highly radioactive fallout
into the atmosphere and over an extensive geographical area. Four hundred times more
fallout was released than had been by the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.
The nuclear reactor after the disaster. Reactor 4 (image
centre). Turbine building (image lower left). Reactor 3 (centre right)
The plume drifted over extensive parts of the western Soviet Union, Eastern
Europe, Western Europe,and Northern Europe, with light nuclear rain falling as far as
Ireland. Large areas in Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia were badly contaminated, resulting
in the evacuation and resettlement of over 336,000 people. According to official postSoviet data, about 60% of the radioactive fallout landed in Belarus.
Location of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant.
The accident raised concerns about the safety of the Soviet nuclear power
industry as well as nuclear power at all, slowing its expansion for a number of years,
while forcing the Soviet government to become less secretive. The countries of Russia,
Ukraine, and Belarus have been burdened with the continuing and substantial
decontamination and health care costs of the Chernobyl accident. It is difficult to
accurately quantify the number of deaths caused by the events at Chernobyl as over time
it becomes difficult to determine whether a decease was caused by exposure to
radiation.
Zone of Allienation
The 2005 report prepared by the Chernobyl Forum, led by the International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and World Health Organization (WHO), attributed 56
direct deaths (47 accident workers, and nine children with thyroid cancer), and
estimated that there may be 4,000 extra cancer deaths among the approximately 600,000
most highly exposed people.Although the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone and certain
limited areas remain off limits, the majority of affected areas are now considered safe
for settlement and economic activity.
The Sarcophagus, the concrete block surrounding reactor #4
Percentage of people with Ukrainian as their native language according to 2001 census (in regions).
Ukraine produces the
fourth largest number of post-secondary graduates in Europe, while being ranked seventh in
population.
Ethnic Ukrainians in Ukraine (2001)
Ukrainian administrative divisions by monthly salary
About number and composition population of UKRAINE
by data All-Ukrainian population census'2001 data
The peculiarity of the national structure of the population of
Ukraine is its multinational composition. According to All-Ukrainian
population census data, the representatives of more than 130
nationalities and ethnic groups live on the territory of the country.
The data about the most numerous nationalities of Ukraine are
mentioned below:
Total
(thousand
persons)
as % to the
result
2001
as % to
1989
2001
1989
37541.7
77.8
72.7
100.3
8334.1
17.3
22.1
73.4
Belarussians
275.8
0.6
0.9
62.7
Moldavians
258.6
0.5
0.6
79.7
Ukrainians
Russians
Crimean Tatars
248.2
0.5
0.0
in 5.3
times more
Bulgarians
204.6
0.4
0.5
87.5
Hungarians
156.6
0.3
0.4
96.0
Romanians
151.0
0.3
0.3
112.0
Poles
144.1
0.3
0.4
65.8
Jews
103.6
0.2
0.9
21.3
Armenians
99.9
0.2
0.1
in 1.8
times more
Greeks
91.5
0.2
0.2
92.9
Tatars
73.3
0.2
0.2
84.4
Gipsies
47.6
0.1
0.1
99.3
Azerbaijanians
45.2
0.1
0.0
122.2
Georgians
34.2
0.1
0.0
145.3
Germans
33.3
0.1
0.1
88.0
Gagausians
31.9
0.1
0.1
99.9
177.1
0.4
0.4
83.9
Other
The part of Ukrainians in the national structure of population of
region is the largest. it accounts for 3.754.700 people. or 77.8% of
the population. During the years that have passed since the census of
the population ‘1989. the number of Ukrainians has increased by
0.3% and their part among other citizens of Ukraine has increased by
5.1 percentage points.
Russians are the second numerous nation of Ukraine. Since
1989 their number has decreased by 26.6% and at the date of the
census it accounted for 8.334.100 people. The part of Russians in
total population has decreased by 4.8 percentage points and
accounted for 17.3%.
Ukrainian History: Chronological Table
Year/Ce
ntury
839
Event
More info
MAP:
Mention of Rus' in the Bertynsky chronicles
Eastern
associated with the mission to Ludwig I of the
Europe, 250Frankish kingdom.
800
840
Magyars and khazars attacking Kyiv.
853
Askold becomes Kyiv's Prince.
877
Novgorod's Prince Oleh annexes Kyiv, kills
Askold and brings the capital of Rus' from
Novgorod to Kyiv.
890
Pechenegs advancing to Black Sea steppe.
Ugrians (Hungarians) move to Danube.
Prince Oleh travels to Byzantine's capital
907-911 Constantinopol (Ukrainian "Czarhorod") with a big
army and demands an annuity to Kyiv.
945
Prince Ihor signs a treaty with Byzantine
Empire - ready to accept Orthodox Christianity.
957
Princess Olha (Ihor's wife) becomes a ruler of
Kyiv.
Svyatoslav (Olha's son) becomes a Prince of
960-972 Kyiv. He confrontates with Khazars, then attacks
Bulgaria and fights with Byzantine Empire. At the
time Svjatoslav is in the offensive on Bulgaria,
Khazars attack Kyiv. He returns but gets killed in
a skirmish with Pechenegs.
980
Volodymyr The Great becomes a Prince.
988
Official Christianization of Kyiv Rus'.
Volodymyr accepts Orthodoxy and marries
Byzantine Princess Anna.
1015
Death of Volodymyr The Great. Sons are
struggling to rule the country until 1019.
1019
MAP:
Yaroslav The Wise - one of Volodymyr's sons
Kyivan Rus is
becomes a Prince.
11th century
1027
Construction of Svyata Sofia (St. Sophia)
Cathedral.
1054
Death of Prince Yaroslav.
Polovtsi army attack Kyiv state for the first
time.
1068
1098
1099
-
1111
Magyars attack Halychyna.
Kyiv Princes conquer Polovtsi.
1113
Volodymyr Monomakh - the last of great
princes of Kyiv.
1152
Yaroslav Osmomysl becomes a Prince of
Halychyna.
1155
1157
-
1155
1169
-
Suzdal (Russian) Prince Yuriy Dovgoruky
(founder of Moscow) attacks Kyiv and becomes a
prince for a short period of time.
Destruction of Kyiv by Andrey Bogoliubsky,
the Vldimir-Suzdal prince
1187
The word Ukraine (Ukrayina) first used to
describe Kyiv and Halychyna lands.
1223
Ukrainians first battle Tatars in a battle near
Kalko River in treaty with Polovetz - Tatars win.
1238
Danylo Halytsky becomes a Prince of
Halychyna. Next year he unites Halychyna with
Kyiv.
MAP:
Southern Rus
1250.
1240
Tatars capture Kyiv.
1256
Lviv is founded by King Lev.
1320
Yuriy becomes a King of Halychyna.
1330
Yuriy marries Lithuanian Princess, daughter
of Gedymin.
1360s
Lithuanian Prince Olgerd frees Kyivschyna
and Podillya from Tatars. They fell under
Lithuanian control.
1378
Last Halychyna King Volodyslav dies.
1387 XVIII century
1414
1475
1774
Poland rules Halychyna.
Prince Fedir Koryatovych of Mukachevo.
-
1490
Crimea (Krym)
Empire's rule.
under
Turkish
(Osman)
First mentioning of cossacks (kozaks).
(More)
1550
Dmytro Vyshnyvetsky establishes a fortress
of Zaporizhzhya (Zaporizhia).
1569
Lyublinska Uniya (Lublin Union) - All
Ukrainian territory under Lithuanian rule (except
Polissia and Beresteyshchyna) transfers to
Poland.
1576
Foundation of Ostroh Academy
University-like school in Eastern Europe.
-
MAP:
Ukrainian
lands after
1569
first
1590
First Kozak uprisings (Kostynsky, Mazyvako).
1596
Union of Brest (Beresti) - beginning of
religious struggles.
1608
MAP:
Ukrainian
lands 1400
Fall of Ostroh Academy.
MAP:
1610
1622
-
Het'man Sahaydachny is a het'man (the
arch) of Zaporizka Sich.
Zaporizka
Sich
1630
Kozak uprising against Poland.
Petro Mohyla establishes a Collegium in
Kyiv.
1637
Beginning of liberation of Ukraine from Polish
rule headed by kozak het'man Bohdan
Khmelnytsky
1648
Bohdan Khmel'nytsky signs Pereyaslav treaty
with Muscovy
1654
1657
-
Het'man Petro Doroshenko.
Establishment of Russian control under the
right-bank kozaks.
1685
Kyiv
Orthodox
Church
Metropolitan
(Patriarkhat) becomes a division of Muscovite
Metropolitan.
-
Het'man Ivan Mazepa - period of palingenecy
of Kozak state.
1708
Treaty had been signed between Ukraine
and Sweden.
1709
Battle in Poltava (Ukraine). Russians defeat
Swedish-Ukrainian army and execute Kozak
troops after the surrender of Swede army
1709
Death of Ivan Mazepa.
1710
Pylyp Orlyk becomes a het'man.
Russians prohibit the use of Ukrainian
language - still preferred by Ukrainians.
1720
1722
(more)
Two het'mans in Ukraine. Het'man of the Left
bank of Dnipro - in coalition with Russia; het'man
from right bank - against Russia.
1670
1687
1709
(more
info)
Swedish-Ukrainian coalition against Russia.
1663
1665
1676
MAP:
Kozak state
after 1649
-
First het'man of Ukraine appointed by
MAP:
Ukrainian
lands after
1667
1727
1734
1744
1745
Russian Czar.
Het'man Danylo Apostol's uprising on the
Right Bank (Haydamaky).
Construction of St. George Cathedral in Lviv.
Oleksa Dovbush - legendary Ukrainian hero.
1764
Abolition of
(Zapiriz'ka Sich).
1765
Slobodzhanschyna
control.
1772
Russian, German and Austrian empires
divide parts of Poland among themselves.(First
division) Halychyna falls under Austrian control.
1775
Second division of Poland. Austria annexes
Bukovyna
1775
1787
Zaporizhzhya
falls
Het'manate
under
Russian
Zaporizka Sich destroyed by Russians.
Russians rebuild a village of Kodak into a city
and name it after queen Ekaterina II
(Katerynoslav). During Ukrainian Republic of
1917 - 1920 the city was renamed into Sicheslav
("In Honour of Sich"). In 1924 communists gave it
a present name - Dnipropetrovsk (Combination of
words "Dnipro" (main Ukrainian river) and
"Petrovskij" (The last name of major of city, a
Stalinist)).
1789
Establishment of Mykolayiv (Nikolayev)
1780
End of Het'manate.
1794
Establishment of Odesa (Odessa).
1793
1798
Transfer of lands on the Right Bank to Russia
from Poland excluding Halychyna, Bukovyna,
Volyn and a part of Polissya, already annexed by
Austria.
Ivan Kotlyarevsky publishes "Eneyida".
MAP:
Ukrainian
lands around
1750
MAP:
1831
Repnev attempts to renew kozak army.
1834
Establishment of The University of Kyiv.
1840
Taras Shevchenko's first publication of
"Kobzar", probably the most popular book in
Ukrainian.
1861
First
railroad
(Peremyshl - Lviv).
1861
1863
1890
on
Ukrainian
Dnipro
Ukraine
around 1850
territory
Abolition of slavery in Russia.
Ukrainian language is officially prohibited to
use by Russian government.
First Ukrainian Political Party (Halytska)
1905
Annulment of restrictions on the usage of
Ukrainian language in Russian empire.
1917
Revolution in Russia. Ukrainian writer and
historian Mykhaylo Hrushevsky becomes the
president of newly proclaimed Ukrainian state
(Ukrayinska Narodna Respublika). The power of
the new government is very weak, Russian
czarists, communists and Germans try to conquer
Ukraine again. Symon Petlyura becomes a
commanders of Ukrainian armed forces.
President signs a treaty with Germans, but it was
annulled in 1919 in Brest, Belorussia, where
Germany signed a treaty with Communist Russia.
Ukrainian lands are united after Western
Ukrainian Republic and Ukrainian republic unite.
1918
MAP:
Austrian
empire
breaks
up.
Newly
Western
established West-Ukrainian Republic is annexed
Ukraine 1772by Czechoslovakia and Romania.
1914
1921
Formation of Soviet Socialist Republic of
Ukraine.
1929
Collectivization starts. All lands that belonged
to Ukrainian farmers are taken away and put into
MAP:
Ukrainian
lands 19141919
MAP:
Ukraine in
a large "kolhosps" (co-operative farms.) People, interwar years
who didn't want to give their land away are
(more)
arrested and murdered.
19331934
Artificial Famine in Ukraine, caused by
Stalin's policy. At least three million people die in
result.
19391940
Annexation of Western Ukraine by Soviet
Union according to a secret treaty with Nazi
Germany.
(more)
MAP:
Ukraine during
WW2
19411944
19431944
German occupation of Ukraine. Ukrainian
Insurgent Army (UPA). SS Division "Galizien".
(more on
UPA)
(Ukrainian
Russians return. Massive immigration to the
s in
west (England, France, Canada, USA.)
Saskatchewan,
Canada)
19451947
Discrimination and murders of Ukrainian
population in Poland by Polish army and police.
19451955
Continued fight for liberation of Ukraine in the
western regions.
1950's
Illegal anti-communist literature begins to
appear.
1986
Nuclear reactor explosion in Chernobyl,
Ukraine.
1980's
National movement for the liberation of
Ukraine "Rukh" is formed.
1990
Human chain
independence.
1990
1991
(more on
division
"Galizien")
protests
for
Ukrainian
Ukrainian sovereignty is proclaimed.
Ukrainian independence is proclaimed.
Elections of Parliament (Verkhovna Rada) and
(picture)
(more)
the President Leonid Kravchuk.
1994
Ukraine signs an treaty with NATO
1996
Constitution is proclaimed.
(the text of
constitution)
References:
1. Декларація про державний суверенітет України. Прийнята Верховною Радою
Української РСР 16 липня 1990 року. - К. 1991.
2. Акт проголошення незалежності України, прийнятий Верховною Радою
України 24 серпня 1991 року. - К. 1991.
3. Конституція України. Прийнята на п'ятій сесії Верховної Ради України 28
червня 1996 року. - К. 1996.
4. Крип'якевич І. П. Історія України. - Львів, 1990.
5. Полонська-Василенко Н. Історія України. Т. 1-2.-К. 1992.
6. Andrew Wilson. The Ukrainians: Unexpected Nation. Yale University Press;
2nd edition (2002).
7. Anna Reid. Borderland: A Journey Through the History of Ukraine. London, Orion
Books; 4th impression (1998, preface 2003).
8. Mykhailo Hrushevsky. History of Ukraine-Rus’ in 9 volumes.
9. Orest Subtelny. Ukraine: A History. Toronto: University of Toronto Press (1988).
10. Paul Robert Magocsi. A History of Ukraine. Toronto: University of Toronto Press
(1996).