History of Ukraine

PrehistoricUkraine,as a part of thePontic steppeinEastern Europe,played an important role in Eurasian cultural events, including the spread of theChalcolithicandBronze Ages,Indo-European migrations,and thedomestication of the horse.

A part ofScythiain antiquity, Ukraine was largely settled byGreuthungi,Getae,Goths,andHunsin theMigration Period,whilesouthern parts of Ukrainewere previously colonized byGreeksand thenRomans.In theEarly Middle Agesit was also a site ofearly Slavicexpansion. The hinterland entered into written history with the establishment of the medieval state ofKievan Rus',which emerged as a powerful nation but disintegrated during theHigh Middle Ages,andwas destroyedby theMongol Empirein the 13th century.

During the 14th and 15th centuries, present-day Ukrainian territories came under the rule of four external powers: theGolden Horde,theCrimean Khanate,theGrand Duchy of Lithuaniaand theCrown of the Kingdom of Poland.The latter two would then merge into thePolish–Lithuanian Commonwealthfollowing theUnion of KrewoandUnion of Lublin.Meanwhile, theOttoman Empireemerged as a major regional power in and around theBlack Sea,through protectorates like the Crimean Khanate, as well as directly-administered territory.

After a 1648 rebellion of theCossacksagainst the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth,HetmanBohdan Khmelnytskyagreed to theTreaty of Pereyaslavin January 1654. The exact nature of the relationship established by this treaty between theCossack Hetmanateand Russia remains a matter of scholarly controversy.The agreement precipitated theRusso-Polish War of 1654–67and the failedTreaty of Hadiach,which would have formed aPolish–Lithuanian–Ruthenian Commonwealth.In consequence, by theTreaty of Perpetual Peace,signed in 1686, the eastern portion of Ukraine (east of theDnieper River) was to come under Russian rule,146,000rubleswere to be paid to Poland as compensation for the loss ofright-bank Ukraine,and the parties agreed not to sign a separate treaty with the Ottoman Empire.The treaty was strongly opposed in Poland and was not ratified by thePolish–Lithuanian Sejmuntil 1710.The legal legitimacy of its ratification has been disputed.According toJacek Staszewski,the treaty was not confirmed by a resolution of the Sejm until its1764 session.

During theGreat Northern War,HetmanIvan Mazepaallied withCharles XII of Swedenin 1708. However, theGreat Frost of 1709greatly weakened the Swedish army. Following theBattle of Poltavalater in 1709, there was a diminishment in Hetmanate power, culminating with the disestablishment of the Cossack Hetmanate in the 1760s and the destruction of theZaporozhian Sichin the 1770s. Following thePartitions of Poland(1772–1795) and the Russian conquest of the Crimean Khanate, theRussian EmpireandHabsburg Austriawere in control of all the territories that constitute present-day Ukraine for over a hundred years.Ukrainian nationalismdeveloped in the 19th century.

Achaotic periodof warfare ensued after theRussian Revolutionsof 1917, as well asa simultaneous warin the formerKingdom of Galicia and Lodomeriafollowing the dissolution of theHabsburg monarchyafterWorld War I.TheSoviet–Ukrainian War(1917–1921) followed, in which theBolshevikRed Armyestablished control in late 1919.The Ukrainian Bolsheviks, who had defeated thenational governmentinKiev,established theUkrainian Soviet Socialist Republic,which on 30 December 1922 became one of the foundingrepublics of the Soviet Union.Initial Soviet policy on theUkrainian languageandUkrainian culturemade Ukrainian theofficial languageof administration and schools. Policy in the 1930s turned toRussification.In 1932 and 1933, millions of people in Ukraine, mostly peasants, starved to death in a devastatingfamine,known as theHolodomor.It is estimated that 6 to 8 million people died from hunger in the Soviet Union during this period, of whom 4 to 5 million were Ukrainians.

After the Soviet Union andNazi Germanyinvaded Polandin September 1939, the Ukrainian SSR's territoryexpandedwestward.Axisarmiesoccupied Ukrainefrom 1941 to 1944. DuringWorld War II,elements of theUkrainian Insurgent Armyfought for Ukrainian independence against both Germany and the Soviet Union, while other elementscollaborated with the Nazis,assisting them in carrying outthe Holocaust in Ukraineand theiroppression of Poles.In 1953,Nikita Khrushchev,ethnicRussianformer head of theCommunist Party of Ukraine,succeeded as head of theCommunist Party of the Soviet Unionandenabled more political and cultural freedom,which led to aUkrainian revival.In 1954 the republic expanded to the south with thetransfer of Crimeafrom Russia. Nevertheless, political repressions against poets, historians and other intellectuals continued, as in all other parts of the USSR.

Ukraine became independent when theSoviet Union dissolvedin 1991. This started a period of transition to amarket economy,in which Ukraine suffered an eight-yearrecession.Subsequently however, the economy experienced a high increase inGDP growthuntil it plunged during theGreat Recession.

A prolonged political crisis began on 21 November 2013, when presidentViktor Yanukovychsuspended preparations for the implementation ofan association agreementwith theEuropean Union,instead choosing to seek closer ties withRussia.This decision resulted in theEuromaidanprotests and later, theRevolution of Dignity.Yanukovych was then impeached by the Ukrainian parliament in February 2014. On 20 February, theRusso-Ukrainian Warbegan when Russian forcesentered Crimea.Soon after, pro-Russianunrestenveloped the largelyRussophoneeasternandsouthernregions of Ukraine, from where Yanukovych had drawn most of his support. Aninternationally unrecognized referendumin the largely ethnic RussianUkrainian autonomous regionofCrimeawas held and Crimea wasde facto annexed by Russiaon 18 March 2014. TheWar in Donbasbegan inDonetskandLuhanskoblasts of Ukraine involving the Russian military. The war continued until 24 February 2022, when Russia launched a majorinvasionof much of the country.

Prehistory

Paleolithic period

See also:Ukrainian stone stelae

1.4 million year old stone tools fromKorolevo,westernUkraine,are the earliest securely dated hominin presence in Europe.Settlement in Ukraine by members of the genusHomohas been documented into distantPaleolithicprehistory.TheNeanderthalsare associated with the Molodova archaeological sites (45,000–43,000 BC), which include amammoth bone dwelling.The earliest documented evidence ofmodern humansare found inGravettiansettlements dating to 32,000 BC in the Buran-Kaya cave site of theCrimean Mountains.

Neolithic and Bronze Age

Extent of theChalcolithicYamna or "pit grave" culture,3rd millennium BC

In the lateNeolithictimes, theCucuteni-Trypillian Cultureflourished from about 4,500–3,000 BC.TheCopper Agepeople of theCucuteni-Trypillian Cultureresided in the western part, and theSredny Stog Culturefurther east, succeeded by the earlyBronze AgeYamna( "Kurgan") culture of thePontic steppes,and by theCatacomb culturein the 3rd millennium BC.

• 
  Cucuteni-Trypilliapottery
• 
  Maidanetske,Cucuteni-Trypillia culture, 3800 BC
• 
  Yamnayastone stele, c. 2600 BC

Antiquity

Scythian settlement, Greek colonization, and Roman domination

Main articles:Bosporan Kingdom,Greeks in pre-Roman Crimea,andRoman Crimea

A goldstaterofBosporankingTiberius Julius Sauromates II,his bust depicted on theobversewith theGreeklegend "BACΙΛΕΩC CΑΥΡΟΜΑΤΟΥ",and on the reverse the heads ofRoman emperorsSeptimius SeverusandCaracalla,dated 198 or 199 AD

During theIron Age,these peoples were followed by theDaciansas well asnomadic peopleslike theCimmerians(archaeologicalNovocherkassk culture),ScythiansandSarmatians.TheScythiankingdom existed here from 750 to 250 BC.In theScythian campaignofDarius the Greatin 513 BC, theAchaemenid Persianarmy subjugated severalThracian peoples,and virtually all other regions along the European part of theBlack Sea,such as parts of nowadaysBulgaria,Romania,Ukraine, andRussia,before it returned toAsia Minor.

The goddessDemeterin aGreekfrescofromPanticapaeumin theBosporan Kingdom,1st century AD,Crimea

Greekscolonized Crimeaandother coastal areas of Ukrainein the 7th or 6th century BC during theArchaic period.Theculturally GreekBosporan Kingdomthrived until it was invaded and occupied by theGothsandHunsin the 4th century AD.From 62 to 68 AD theRoman Empirebriefly annexed the kingdom under EmperorNerowhen he deposed theBosporan kingTiberius Julius Cotys I.Afterwards the Bosporan Kingdom was made into aRomanclient statewith aRoman militarypresence during the middle of the 1st century AD.

Arrival of the Goths and Huns

Further information:Migration Period

In the 3rd century AD, theGothsmigratedinto the lands of modernUkrainearound 250–375 AD, which they calledOium,corresponding to the archaeologicalChernyakhov culture.TheOstrogothsstayed in the area but came under the sway of theHunsfrom the 370s. North of the Ostrogothic kingdom was theKiev culture,flourishing from the 2nd–5th centuries, when it was also overrun by the Huns. After they helped defeat the Huns at thebattle of Nedaoin 454, the Ostrogoths were allowed by the Romans to settle inPannonia.Along with otherancient Greekcolonies founded in the 6th century BC on the northeastern shore of theBlack Sea,the colonies ofTyras,Olbia,andHermonassacontinued asRomanandByzantine(Eastern Roman) cities until the 6th century AD.Gothic influence waned by the end of the 5th century AD, when theEastern Roman Empirereaffirmed its control and influence over the region.TheHunnic kingGordasruled the Bosporan kingdom in the early 6th century AD and maintained good relations with Eastern Roman emperorJustinian I,but the latter invaded and occupied the country once Gordas was killed in a revolt in 527 AD.As late as the 12th century AD theEastern Roman emperorsclaimed dominion over the territory ofCimmerian Bosporos.

Early Slavs

Main article:Early Slavs

Further information:Slavic migrations to Southeastern Europe

Archaeological cultures associated withproto-Slavsandearly Slavs:Chernoles culture(before 500 BC),Zarubintsy culture(300 BC to AD 100),Przeworsk culture(300 BC to AD 400),Prague-Korchak horizon(6th to 7th century, Slavic expansion)

With the power vacuum created with the end of Hunnic and Gothic rule,Early Slavs,in the aftermath of theKiev culture,began to expand over much of the territory that is nowUkraineduring the 5th century, and beyond to theBalkansfrom the 6th century.Although the origins of theEarly Slavsare not known for certain, many theories suggest they may have originated nearPolesia.

In the 5th and 6th centuries, theAntesUnion (a tribal federation) is generally regarded to have been located in the territory of what is now Ukraine. The Antes were the ancestors ofUkrainians:White Croats,Severians,Polans,Drevlyans,Dulebes,Ulichians,andTiverians.Migrations from Ukraine throughout theBalkansestablished manySouth Slavicnations. Northern migrations, reaching almost toLake Ilmen,led to the emergence of theIlmen Slavs,Krivichs,andRadimichs,the groups ancestral to theRussians.After aPannonian Avarraid in 602 and the collapse of the Antes Union, most of these peoples survived as separate tribes until the beginning of the second millennium.

Middle Ages

Early Middle Ages

In the 7th century, the territory of modern Ukraine was the core of the state of theBulgars(often referred to asOld Great Bulgaria) with its capital city ofPhanagoria.At the end of the 7th century, most Bulgar tribes migrated in several directions and the remains of their state were absorbed by theKhazars,a semi-nomadic peoplefromCentral Asia.

The Khazars founded theKhazar kingdomnear theCaspian Seaand theCaucasus.The kingdom included westernKazakhstanand parts ofCrimea,easternUkraine,southernRussiaandAzerbaijan.The Khazars dominated enough of thePontic–Caspian steppesuch that there was aPax Khazaricain terms of trade, which allowed long distance trade to occur in safety, including groups like theRadhaniteJews who traded as far as China toTabriz,as well as the trade networks that surroundedVolga Bulgaria.This attracted other traders such as theVikingsin theViking Agewho would foundKievan Rus'.

Kievan Rus'

Main article:Kievan Rus'

Overseas GuestsbyNicholas Roerich,1901

It is uncertain how the state ofKievan Rus'came to be, but theVarangiannoblemanOleh the Wiseis generally credited with having established a principality at the city of Kiev somewhere around the year 880.Kiev had already been established,but its origins are nebulous as well. According to archaeologists and historians such asPetro Tolochko(2007), Slavic settlement existed from the end of the 5th century in the area that later developed into the city.Kiev may have paid tribute to theKhazarsbefore Oleh conquered it.Tolochko and other scholars also theorise that 'Kiev was not the center of any particular tribe but the intertribal center of a vast realm'; critical analysis of thePrimary Chronicle,De Administrando Imperioand other sources suggests it may have been a cosmopolitan urban home to Slavic and non-Slavic groups, such as Scandinavian Varangians and Finno-Ugric peoples.Slavic peoples that were reportedly native to Ukraine includedPolans(or Polianians),Drevlyans,Severians,Ulichs,Tiverians,White CroatsandDulebes,but their precise identity and interrelationships are difficult to establish and verify, as the sources are vague, contradictory and at times inaccurate.

Kievan Rus' at its height

In the 10th and 11th century, Kiev became one of the richest commercial centres ofEurope,and the Kievan Rus' empire around it steadily expanded.Initially a benefactor of theworship of Slavic deitiessuch asPerun,Volodimer Iconverted toOrthodox Christianityin the 980s, tying the realm into a political and ecclesiastical alliance with theByzantine Empire.The reign ofYaroslav the Wise(r. 1019–1054) is generally regarded its zenith. Kievan Rus' was never a fully centralized state, but rather a loose aggregation of principalities ruled by members of theRurik dynasty.In theLate Middle Ages,it became known in the rest of Europe asRuthenia(the Latin name for Rus'), especially for western principalities of Rus' after theMongol invasion.

Christianisation

Main article:Christianization of Kievan Rus'

Further information:History of Christianity in Ukraine

The baptism ofPrincess OlhainConstantinople.A miniature from theRadziwiłł Chronicle.

WhileChristianityhad made headway into the territory of modernUkrainebefore the first ecumenical council, theCouncil of Nicaea(325) (particularly along the Black Sea coast, with the clearest evidence being theChristianization of the Crimean Goths) and, in western Ukraine during the time of the Empire ofGreat Moravia,the formal governmental acceptance of Christianity in Rus' occurred in 988. The major promoter of theChristianization of Kievan Rus'was the Grand-DukeVladimir the Greatwhose grandmother,Princess Olga,was a Christian. Later the Kievan ruler,Yaroslav Ipromulgated theRusskaya Pravda(Truth of Rus') which continued through the Lithuanian period of Rus'.

In 1322,Pope John XXIIestablished adioceseinCaffa(modern day Feodosia), which broke apart the Diocese ofKhanbaliq(modern day Beijing), the only Catholic presence in the Mongol lands. For a few centuries it was the main see over an area from the Balkans toSarai.

Disintegration of Kievan Rus' and Mongol invasion

Conflict among the various principalities of Rus', in spite of the efforts of Grand PrinceVladimir Monomakh,led to decline, beginning in the 12th century. In Rus' propria, the Kiev region, the nascent Rus' principalities ofHalych and Volhyniaextended their rule. In the north, the name ofMoscowappeared in the historical record in thePrincipality of Suzdal,which gave rise to the nation of Russia. In the north-west, thePrincipality of Polotskincreasingly asserted the autonomy ofBelarus.Kiev was sacked by thePrincipality of Vladimir(1169) in the power struggle between princes and later byCumanandMongolraiders in the 12th and 13th centuries, respectively. Subsequently, all principalities of present-day Ukraine acknowledged dependence upon the Mongols (1239–1240). In 1240, theMongols sacked Kiev.

Galicia-Volhynia

Main article:Galicia-Volhynia

Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia in the 13th–14th centuries

Asuccessor stateto theKievan Rus'on part of the territory of today'sUkrainewas thePrincipality of Galicia-Volhynia.Previously,Vladimir the Greathad established the cities ofHalychandVolodymyras regional capitals. The region was inhabited by theDulebe,TiverianandWhite Croattribes.Initially both Volhynia and Galicia were separate principalities, ruled by descendants ofYaroslav the Wise(Galicia byRostislavichdynasty, and Volhynia initially byIgorevichand eventually byIziaslavichdynasty).During the ruleYaroslav Osmomysl(1153-1187) Galicia extended to the Black Sea.Rulers of both principalites were trying to extend the rule over another. It was finally achieved byRoman the Great(1197-1205), who not only united both Galicia and Volhynia, but also extended his rule to Kiev for a short period of time.

His death was followed by a period of turmoil that lasted until his sonDanielregained the throne in 1238. Daniel managed to rebuild his father's state, including Kiev. Daniel paid tribute to the Mongol khan, who appointed him baskak, responsible for collecting tribute from the Rus princes. In 1253 he was crowned by a papal delegation "King of Rus'"(Latin:rex Russiae); previously, the rulers of Rus' were termed "Grand Dukes"or" Princes. "

Late Middle Ages

Main articles:Genoese colonies,Grand Duchy of Lithuania,andCrown of the Kingdom of Poland

From the 13th century, the many parts of the coast of present-day Ukraine were dominated by theRepublic of Genoa,which created numerouscoloniesaround the Black Sea, most of them situated in today'sOdesa Oblast.The Genoese colonies were well fortified, and there were garrisons in the fortresses and were used by the Genoese republic mainly for the purpose of dominating trade in the Black Sea. Genoa's dominance in the region would last until the 15th century.

During the 14th century,PolandandLithuaniafought wars against theMongolinvaders, and eventually most of Ukraine passed to the rule of Poland and Lithuania. More particularly,Red Ruthenia,and part ofVolhyniaandPodoliabecame part of Poland. King of Poland adopted the tile of "lord and heir of Ruthenia" (Latin:Russiae dominus et Heres). Lithuania took control ofPolotsk,Volhynia,Chernihiv,and Kiev followingBattle of Blue Waters(1362/63), and the rulers of Lithuania then adopted the title of ruler of Rus'.

After the downfall ofKievan Rus'andGalicia–Volhynia,their political, cultural and religious life continued under Lithuanian control.Ruthenian aristocrats, for example, theOlelkovich,joined the governing class of theGrand Duchy of Lithuaniaas members of thegrand duke'sprivy council,senior military leaders, and administrators.DespiteLithuanianbeing the native language of the ruling class, the main written languages within the Grand Duchy of Lithuania wereLatin,Old Church Slavonic,as well asRuthenian,with East Slavonic Chancery being replaced byPolishin theearly modern period.

Eventually, Poland took control of the southwestern region. Followingthe union between Poland and Lithuania,Poles,Germans,LithuaniansandJewsmigrated to the region, forcing Ukrainians out of positions of power they shared with Lithuanians, with more Ukrainians being forced into Central Ukraine as a result of Polish migration,polonization,and other forms of oppression against Ukraine and Ukrainians, all of which started to fully take form.

In 1490, due to increased oppression of Ukrainians at the hands of the Polish, a series of successful rebellions was led by UkrainianPetro Mukha,joined by other Ukrainians, such as earlyCossacksandHutsuls,in addition to Moldavians (Romanians). Known asMukha's Rebellion,this series of battles was supported by the Moldavian princeStephen the Great,and it is one of the earliest known uprisings of Ukrainians against Polish oppression. These rebellions saw the capture of several cities ofPokuttya,and reached as far west asLviv,but without capturing the latter.

The 15th-century decline of theGolden Hordeenabled the foundation of theCrimean Khanate,which occupied present-day Black Sea shores and southernsteppes of Ukraine.Until the late 18th century, the Crimean Khanate maintained a massiveslave tradewith theOttoman Empireand theMiddle East,exporting about 2 million slaves from Russia and Ukraine over the period 1500–1700.It remained a vassal state of the Ottoman Empire until 1774, when it was finally dissolved by theRussian Empirein 1783.

Early modern period

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth

See also:History of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (1569–1648)

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.

Kingdom of Poland

After theUnion of Lublinin 1569 and the formation of thePolish–Lithuanian CommonwealthUkraine fell under the Polish administration, becoming part of theCrown of the Kingdom of Poland.The period immediately following the creation of the Commonwealth saw a huge revitalisation in colonisation efforts. Many new cities and villages were founded & links between different Ukrainian regions, such asHalych LandandVolhyniawere greatly extended.

New schools spread the ideas of theRenaissance;Polish peasants arrived in great numbers and quickly became mixed with the local population; during this time, most Ukrainian nobles becamepolonisedand converted toCatholicism,and while mostRuthenian-speakingpeasants remained within theEastern Orthodox Church,social tension rose. Some of the polonized mobility would heavily shape Polish culture, for example,Stanisław Orzechowski.

Control of the territory of Ukraine in 1600

Ruthenian peasants who fled efforts to force them intoserfdomcame to be known asCossacksand earned a reputation for their fierce martial spirit. Some Cossacks wereenlisted by the Commonwealth as soldiersto protect the southeastern borders of Commonwealth fromTatarsor took part in campaigns abroad (likePetro Konashevych-Sahaidachnyin the battle ofKhotyn1621). Cossack units were also active in wars between thePolish–Lithuanian CommonwealthandTsardom of Russia.Despite the Cossack's military usefulness, the Commonwealth,dominatedby itsnobility,refused to grant them any significant autonomy, instead attempting to turn most of the Cossack population intoserfs.This led to an increasing number ofCossack rebellionsaimed at the Commonwealth.

Size and population of the voidoveships in the 16th century

Voivodeship		Square kilometers	Population (est.)
Galicia		45,000	446,000
Volhynia		42,000	294,000
Podilia		19,000	98,000
Bratslav		35,000	311,000
Kiev		117,000	234,000
Belz(two regions)	Kholm	19,000	133,000
	Pidliassia	10,000	233,000

Cossack era

French map of Ukraine ("Carte d'Ukranie"), by Beauplan (1600-1673), cartographer. (South at the top)

See also:History of the Cossacks

The 1648 UkrainianCossack(Kozak) rebellion orKhmelnytsky Uprising,which started an era known as theRuin(inPolish historyas theDeluge), undermined the foundations and stability of the Commonwealth. The nascent Cossack state, theCossack Hetmanate,usually viewed as precursor of Ukraine,found itself in a three-sided military and diplomatic rivalry with theOttoman Turks,who controlled the Tatars to the south, the Commonwealth of Poland and Lithuania, and theTsardom of Russiato the East.

Reply of the Zaporozhian CossacksbyIlya Repin

TheZaporozhian Host,in order to leave thePolish–Lithuanian Commonwealth,sought a treaty of protection with Russia in 1654.This agreement was known as thePereiaslav Agreement.Commonwealth authorities then sought compromise with the Ukrainian Cossack state by signing theTreaty of Hadiachin 1658, but—afterthirteen years of incessant warfare—the agreement was later superseded by the 1667 Polish–RussianTruce of Andrusovo,which divided Ukrainian territory between the Commonwealth and Russia. Under Russia, the Cossacks initially retained official autonomy in theHetmanate.

Territory gained after theKhmelnytsky Uprising.

For a time, they also maintained a semi-independent republic inZaporizhzhiaand a colony on the Russian frontier inSloboda Ukraine.Thus, whileright-bank Ukrainebelonged to thePolish–Lithuanian Commonwealthuntil late 1793,left-bank Ukrainehad been incorporated intoTsardom of Russia.1657–1686 was the period characterised bycontinuous strife, civil war, and foreign intervention by neighbours of Ukraine.In 1672,Podoliawas occupied by the TurkishOttoman Empire,whileKievandBraclavcame under the control ofHetmanPetro Doroshenkountil 1681, when they were also captured by the Turks, but in 1699 theTreaty of Karlowitzreturned those lands to the Commonwealth.

In 1686, theMetropolitanate of Kievwasannexed by the Moscow Patriarchatethrough the Synodal Letter of theEcumenical Patriarch of ConstantinopleDionysius IV.

Ukrainian culture had great influence on the Russian tsardom after Ukraine's incorporation. At the end of the 17th century and the beginning of the 18th century, the "Ukrainian school" dominated Russian literature.Ukrainian-born clerics such asTheophan ProkopovichandStefan Yavorsky,both alumni of theKyiv-Mohyla Academy,played an important role in thechurch reform of Peter the Greatand were among the first presidents of theMost Holy Synod.At the time when the empire was proclaimed in 1721, the ideologists of the autocracy and empire were often Ukrainians.

18th-century Ukraine

During the 18th century, Russian tsarist rule over central Ukraine gradually replaced "protection". Sporadic Cossack uprisings were now aimed at the Russian authorities, but eventually petered out by the late 18th century, resulting in the final disbandment ofZaporozhian Sichin 1775.

Cossack Mamayand theHaidamakahang a Jew by his heels. Ukrainian folk art, 19th century

Meanwhile, in theright-bank Ukraine,ascorvéeobligations and the abuse of power by Polish magnates and nobles and theirJewishstewards in Ukraine increased, bands ofhaidamaksplundered and burned towns and nobles' estates, killing nobles, Roman Catholic andUniateclerics, and Jews. Major uprisings took place in 1734, 1750, and the largest – usually referred to asKoliyivschyna– in 1768.

Most of Ukraine fell to theRussian Empireunder the reign ofCatherine the Great;theCrimean Khanatewasannexed by Russiain 1783, following theEmigration of Christians from Crimea in 1778,and in 1793 right-bank Ukraine was annexed by Russia in theSecond Partition of Poland.

Modern history

Main article:Modern history of Ukraine

19th century

Taras Shevchenkoself-portrait, 1840

Ukraine under the reign ofAlexander I(1801–1825) saw Russian presence only involving the imperial army and its bureaucracy, but by the reign ofNicholas I(1825–1855), Russia had by then established a centralized administration in Ukraine. After suppressing theNovember Uprisingof 1830, the tsarist regime instituted Russification policies on theRight Bank.

The 1861emancipationgreatly impacted Ukrainians as 42% of them were serfs. During the late 19th century, heavy taxes, rapid population growth and lack of land impoverished the peasantry. However thesteppe regionsmanaged to produce 20% of world production of wheat and 80% of the empire's sugar. Later, industrialization arrived with the first railway track constructed in 1866. Ukraine's economy by now was integrated into the Russian imperial system and it saw much urban development.

Ukrainian national revivalmovement dates from the end of the 18th century when modernUkrainian literaturebegan, foremostly the works ofIvan Kotliarevsky.The prominentUkrainian-languageauthors of the 19th century wereTaras Shevchenko,Mykhailo KotsiubynskyandLesya Ukrainkain the Russian Empire andIvan FrankoinAustria-Hungary.

Russian government, fearing separatism, imposed strict limits on attempts to elevate the Ukrainian language and culture, even banning its use and study: in 1863, theValuev Circularbanned the use of Ukrainian in religious and educational literature, in 1876, theEms Ukazoutlawed Ukrainian-language publications outright, as well as the import of texts published abroad in Ukrainian, the use of Ukrainian in theatrical productions and public readings, the use of Ukrainian in schools.TheRussophilepolicies ofRussificationandPanslavismled to an exodus of a number of Ukrainian intellectuals (such asMykhailo DrahomanovandMykhailo Hrushevsky) into the Austrian Western Ukraine. However, many Ukrainians accepted their fate in theRussian Empireand some were able to achieve great success there.

The board and members of theShevchenko Scientific Societycelebrating the 100th anniversary of the publication ofIvan Kotliarevsky'sEneida,Lviv,31 October 1898: Sitting in the first row: Mykhaylo Pavlyk,Yevheniya Yaroshynska,Natalia Kobrynska,Olha Kobylianska,Sylvester Lepky, Andriy Chaykovsky, Kost Pankivsky. In the second row: Ivan Kopach,Volodymyr Hnatiuk,Osyp Makovej,Mykhailo Hrushevsky,Ivan Franko,Oleksandr Kolessa,Bohdan Lepky.Standing in the third row: Ivan Petrushevych,Filaret Kolessa,Yossyp Kyshakevych,Ivan Trush,Denys Lukianovych,Mykola Ivasyuk.

The fate of the Ukrainians was far different under theAustrian Empirewhere they found themselves in the pawn position of the Russian–Austrian power struggle for Central and Southern Europe. Unlike in Russia, most of the elite that ruledGaliciawere of Austrian or Polish descent, with the Ruthenians being almost exclusively kept in peasantry. During the 19th century,Russophiliawas a common occurrence among the Slavic population, but the mass exodus of Ukrainian intellectuals escaping from Russian repression in Eastern Ukraine, as well as the intervention of Austrian authorities, caused the movement to be replaced byUkrainophilia,which would then cross over into the Russian Empire. The 2.4 million Ukrainians under theHabsburg Empirelived in easternGaliciaand consisted mainly of the peasantry (95%) with the remainder being priestly families. The Galician nobility were majoritively Poles or Polonized Ukrainians. Development here lagged behind Russian-ruled Ukraine and was one of the poorest regions in Europe.

The rise in national consciousness arose in the 19th century, with representation of the intelligentsia declining among the nobles and increasing towards commoners and peasants, they saw a process of nation-building to improve national rights and social justice but was uncovered soon after by the tsarist authorities. After the1848 revolutions,Ukrainians established theSupreme Ruthenian Council,demanding autonomy, they also opened the first Ukrainian-language newspaper (Zoria halytska).

20th century

Further information:Collectivization in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist RepublicandOperation Vistula

Russian Revolution and War of Independence

1917Ukrainian People's Republicpropaganda poster:Our enemies will vanish like dew in the sun; We too shall rule in our country.

Main articles:Ukraine during World War I,Ukrainian War of Independence,andUkraine after the Russian Revolution

Further information:Polish–Ukrainian WarandUkrainian–Soviet War

See also:Ukrainian War of Independence,Ukrainian–Soviet War,andPolish–Ukrainian War

When World War I and a series of revolutions across Europe, including theOctober Revolutionin Russia, shattered many existing empires such as theAustrianandRussianones, people of Ukraine were caught in the middle. Between 1917 and 1919, several separate Ukrainian republics manifested independence, theMakhnovshchina,theUkrainian People's Republic,theUkrainian State,theWest Ukrainian People's Republic,and numerousBolshevik revkoms.

Historian Paul Kubicek says:

Between 1917 and 1920, several entities that aspired to be independent Ukrainian states came into existence. This period, however, was extremely chaotic, characterized by revolution, international and civil war, and lack of strong central authority. Many factions competed for power in the area that is today’s Ukraine, and not all groups desired a separate Ukrainian state. Ultimately, Ukrainian independence was short-lived, as most Ukrainian lands were incorporated into the Soviet Union and the remainder, in western Ukraine, was divided among Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Romania.

Territorial evolution of theUkrainian SSR1919–1954. Russian East bank ofKalmiusriver (Eastern Donbass, part ofDon Host Oblast) gained in 1920, partially (OkrugTaganrogandShakhty) returned back in 1924;Polish Volhyniagained (1939);Transnistrialost (1940);Transcarpatiagained (1945);Romanian islandsgained (1948);Crimea gained(1954).

Canadian scholarOrest Subtelnysays:

In 1919 total chaos engulfed Ukraine. Indeed, in the modern history of Europe no country experienced such complete anarchy, bitter civil strife, and total collapse of authority as did Ukraine at this time. Six different armies-– those of the Ukrainians, the Bolsheviks, the Whites, the Entente [French], the Poles and the anarchists – operated on its territory. Kiev changed hands five times in less than a year. Cities and regions were cut off from each other by the numerous fronts. Communications with the outside world broke down almost completely. The starving cities emptied as people moved into the countryside in their search for food.

The area stabilized with the creation of Soviet Ukraine in 1921, which became one of the founding republics of the USSR on 30 December 1922.

Depopulation in 1929–1933, including during theHolodomor

TheSoviet famine of 1930–33,now known as theHolodomor,left millions dead in the Soviet Union, the majority of them Ukrainians not only in Ukraine but also in Kuban and former Don Cossack lands.

World War II

See also:Reichskommissariat UkraineandThe Holocaust in Ukraine

The Second World War began on 1 September 1939, when Hitler invaded the Western part of Poland. Sixteen days later, the Soviet Uniontook most of Eastern Poland.Nazi Germanywithits alliesinvaded the Soviet Unionin 1941. Between 4.5 and 6 million Ukrainians fought in the Soviet Army against the Nazis.Some Ukrainians initially regarded theWehrmachtsoldiers as liberators from Soviet rule, while others formed apartisan movement.Some elements of theUkrainian nationalistunderground formed aUkrainian Insurgent Armythat fought both Soviet forces and the Nazis. Others collaborated with the Germans. The pro-Polish trend in the Ukrainian national movement, declaring loyalty to theSecond Polish Republicand in return demandingautonomyfor Ukrainians (e.g.Ukrainian National Democratic Alliance), became marginalized, mainly due to its rejection by the Polish side, where supporters offorced assimilationof Ukrainians into Polish culture dominated.Some 1.5 million Jews were murdered by the Nazis during their occupation.In Volhynia, Ukrainian fighters committed amassacreagainst up to 100,000 Polish civilians.Residual small groups of the UPA-partizans acted near the Polish and Soviet border as long as to the 1950s.Galicia,Volhynia,South Bessarabia, Northern Bukovina,andCarpathian Rutheniathat were annexed as a result of theMolotov–Ribbentrop Pactin 1939 were added to the Ukrainian SSR.

Post-war Ukrainian SSR

Location of the Ukrainian SSR (yellow) within theSoviet Unionin 1954–1991

See also:Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, Post-war years: 1945–1953

After World War II, some amendments to the Constitution of theUkrainian SSRwere accepted, which allowed it to act as a separate subject ofinternational lawin some cases and to a certain extent, remaining a part of the Soviet Union at the same time. In particular, these amendments allowed the Ukrainian SSR to become one of the founding members of theUnited Nations(UN) together with the Soviet Union and theByelorussian SSR.This was part of a deal with theUnited Statesto ensure a degree of balance in theGeneral Assembly,which, the USSR opined, was unbalanced in favor of the Western Bloc. In its capacity as a member of the UN, the Ukrainian SSR wasan elected memberof theUnited Nations Security Councilin 1948–1949 and 1984–1985. TheCrimean Oblastwas transferredfrom theRSFSRto the Ukrainian SSR in 1954.

The town ofPripyat, Ukrainewas the site of theChernobyl disaster,which occurred on 26 April 1986, when a nuclear plant exploded. The fallout contaminated large areas of northern Ukraine and even parts ofBelarus.This spurred on a local independence movement called theRukhthat helped expedite the break-up of the Soviet Union during the late 1980s.

Independent Ukraine (since 1991)

Ukrainian President Leonid Kravchuk andPresident of the Russian FederationBoris Yeltsinsigned theBelavezha Accords,dissolving the Soviet Union,8 December 1991

Main article:Declaration of Independence of Ukraine

Further information:Yulia Tymoshenko,Viktor Yushchenko,Viktor Yanukovych,andLeonid Kuchma

Thecoat of arms of Ukraine,adopted 19 February 1992, show thetryzubor "trident", a design proposed in 1917 byMykhailo Hrushevskyifor theUkrainian People's Republic,ultimately based on a symbol stamped on Kievan coins byVladimir the Great.

With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Ukraine became an independent state, formalised with areferendum in December 1991.On 21 January 1990, over 300,000 Ukrainiansorganized ahuman chainfor Ukrainian independence betweenKievandLviv.Ukraine officiallydeclared itself an independent country on 24 August 1991,when the communist Supreme Soviet (parliament) of Ukraine proclaimed that Ukraine would no longer follow the laws of USSR and only the laws of the Ukrainian SSR, de facto declaring Ukraine's independence from the Soviet Union. On 1 December, voters approved areferendum formalizing independence from the Soviet Union.Over 90% of Ukrainian citizens voted for independence, with majorities in every region, including 56% inCrimea.The Soviet Union formally ceased to exist on 26 December, when the presidents of Ukraine, Belarus and Russia (the founding members of the USSR) met inBiałowieża Foresttoformally dissolvethe Union in accordance with the Soviet Constitution. With this, Ukraine's independence was formalized de jure and recognized by the international community.

The blue-and-yellowFlag of Ukrainewas introduced on 28 January 1992, based on a flag used in theUkrainian War of Independencein 1917/18.

Also on 1 December 1991, Ukrainian voters in theirfirst presidential electionelectedLeonid Kravchuk.During his presidency, theUkrainian economyshrank by more than 10% per year (in 1994 by more than 20%).The presidency (1994–2005) of the 2nd President of Ukraine,Leonid Kuchma,was surrounded by numerous corruption scandals and the lessening of media freedoms, including theCassette Scandal.During Kuchma's presidency, the economy recovered, withGDPgrowth at around 10% a year in his last years in office.

Orange Revolution and Euromaidan

Main articles:Orange Revolution,Euromaidan,andRevolution of Dignity

In 2004, Kuchma announced that he would not run for re-election. Two major candidates emerged in the2004 presidential election.Viktor Yanukovych,the incumbent Prime Minister, supported by both Kuchma and by the Russian Federation, wanted closer ties with Russia. The main opposition candidate,Viktor Yushchenko,called for Ukraine to turn its attention westward and aim to eventually join the EU.

Orange-clad demonstrators gather in theIndependence SquareinKyiv

In the runoff election, Yanukovych officially won by a narrow margin, but Yushchenko and his supporters alleged that vote rigging and intimidation cost him many votes, especially in eastern Ukraine. A political crisis erupted after the opposition started massive streetprotests in Kiev and other cities( "Orange Revolution" ), and theSupreme Court of Ukraineordered the election results null and void. A second runoff foundViktor Yushchenkothe winner. Five days later, Yanukovych resigned from office and his cabinet was dismissed on 5 January 2005.

During the Yushchenko term,relations between Russia and Ukraineoften appeared strained as Yushchenko looked towards improvedrelations with theEuropean Unionand less toward Russia.In 2005, a highly publicizeddispute over natural gas priceswith Russia caused shortages in many European countries that were reliant on Ukraine as a transit country.A compromise was reached in January 2006.

By the time of thepresidential election of 2010,Yushchenko andYulia Tymoshenko— allies during the Orange Revolution— had become bitter enemies.Tymoshenko ran for president against both Yushchenko and Viktor Yanukovych, creating a three-way race. Yushchenko, whose popularity had plummeted,persisted in running, and many pro-Orange voters stayed home.In the second round of the election, Yanukovych won the run-off ballot with 48% to Tymoshenko's 45%.

During his presidency (2010–2014), Yanukovych and hisParty of Regionswere accused of trying to create a "controlled democracy" in Ukraine and of trying to destroy the main opposition partyBloc Yulia Tymoshenko,but both have denied these charges.One frequently cited example of Yanukovych's attempts to centralise power wasthe 2011 sentencing of Yulia Tymoshenko,which has been condemned by Western governments as potentially being politically motivated.

2014Euromaidanprotests inKyiv

In November 2013, President Yanukovych did not sign theUkraine–European Union Association Agreementand instead pursued closer ties with Russia.This move sparkedprotests on the streets of Kyivand, ultimately, theRevolution of Dignity.Protesters set up camps inKyiv'sMaidan Nezalezhnosti(Independence Square),and in December 2013 and January 2014 protesters startedtaking over various government buildings,first in Kyiv, and later inWestern Ukraine.Battles between protesters and policeresulted in about 80 deaths in February 2014.

Following the violence, the Ukrainian parliament on 22 February voted to remove Yanukovych from power (on the grounds that his whereabouts were unknown and he thus could not fulfil his duties), and to free Yulia Tymoshenko from prison. On the same day, Yanukovych supporterVolodymyr Rybakresigned as speaker of the Parliament, and was replaced by Tymoshenko loyalistOleksandr Turchynov,who was subsequently installed as interim President.Yanukovych had fled Kyiv, and subsequently gave a press conference in the Russian city ofRostov-on-Don.

Western Integration

Further information:Ukraine–European Union relationsandUkraine–NATO relations

On 1 January 2016, Ukraine joined theDCFTAwith the EU. Ukrainian citizens were grantedvisa-free travelto theSchengen Areafor up to 90 days during any 180-day period on 11 June 2017, and the Association Agreement formally came into effect on 1 September 2017.Significant achievements in the foreign policy arena include support for anti-Russian sanctions, obtaining a visa-free regime with the countries of theEuropean Union,and better recognition of the need to overcome extremely difficult tasks within the country. However, the old local authorities did not want any changes; they were cleansed of anti-Maidan activists (lustration), but only in part. The fight against corruption was launched, but was limited to sentences of petty officials and electronic declarations, and the newly establishedNABUandNACPwere marked by scandals in their work. Judicial reform was combined with the appointment of old, compromised judges. The investigation of crimes against Maidan residents was delayed. In order to counteract the massive globalRussian anti-Ukrainian propagandaof the "information war", theMinistry of Information Policywas created, which for 5 years did not show effective work, except for the ban onKaspersky Lab,Dr.Web,1С,Mail.ru,Yandexand Russian social networksVKontakteorOdnoklassnikiand propaganda media. In 2017, the president signed the law "On Education", which met with opposition from national minorities, and quarreled with theGovernment of Hungary..

On 19 May 2018, Poroshenko signed a Decree which put into effect the decision of the National Security and Defense Council on the final termination of Ukraine's participation in the statutory bodies of theCommonwealth of Independent States.As of February 2019, Ukraine minimized its participation in the Commonwealth of Independent States to a critical minimum and effectively completed its withdrawal. The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine did not ratify the accession, i.e. Ukraine has never been a member of the CIS.

On 6 January 2019, inFener,a delegation of theOrthodox Church of Ukrainewith the participation of President of Ukraine Petro PoroshenkoreceivedaTomosonautocephaly.The Tomos was presented to the head of the OCU,Metropolitan Epiphanius,during a joint liturgy with theEcumenical Patriarch.The next day, Tomos was brought to Ukraine for a demonstration atSt. Sophia Cathedral.On 9 January, all members of theSynodof theConstantinople Orthodox Churchsigned the Tomos during the scheduled meeting of the Synod.

On 21 February 2019, theConstitution of Ukrainewas amended, with the norms on the strategic course of Ukraine for membership in theEuropean UnionandNATObeing enshrined in the preamble of the Basic Law, three articles and transitional provisions.

On 21 April 2019,Volodymyr Zelenskyywas elected president in the second round of the presidential election. Earlyparliamentary electionson 21 July allowed the newly formed pro-presidentialServant of the People partyto win an absolute majority of seats for the first time in the history of independent Ukraine (248).Dmytro Razumkov,the party's chairman, was elected speaker of parliament. The majority was able to form a government on 29 August on its own, without forming coalitions, and approvedOleksii Honcharukas prime minister.On 4 March 2020, due to a 1.5% drop in GDP (instead of a 4.5% increase at the time of the election), the Verkhovna Rada firedHoncharuk's governmentandDenys Shmyhalbecame the new Prime Minister.

On 28 July 2020, inLublin,Lithuania,Polandand Ukraine created theLublin Triangleinitiative, which aims to create further cooperation between the three historical countries of thePolish–Lithuanian Commonwealthand further Ukraine's integration and accession to theEUandNATO.

On 17 May 2021, theAssociation Triowas formed by signing a joint memorandum between theForeign Ministers of Georgia,MoldovaandUkraine.Association Trio is tripartite format for the enhanced cooperation, coordination, and dialogue between the three countries (that have signed the Association Agreement with the EU) with theEuropean Unionon issues of common interest related toEuropean integration,enhancing cooperation within the framework of theEastern Partnership,and committing to the prospect of joining the European Union.

At the June2021 Brussels Summit,NATO leaders reiterated the decision taken at the2008 Bucharest Summitthat Ukraine would become a member of the Alliance with the Membership Action Plan (MAP) as an integral part of the process and Ukraine's right to determine its own future and foreign policy without outside interference.

Ukraine was originally preparing to formally apply forEU membershipin 2024, but instead signed an application for membership in February 2022.

Russo-Ukrainian War

Main articles:Russo-Ukrainian War,Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation,andRussian invasion of Ukraine

War in Donbas,PervomaiskCity, July 2014

In March 2014, theAnnexation of Crimea by the Russian Federationoccurred. Though official results of areferendumon Crimean reunification with Russia were reported as showing a large majority in favor of the proposition, the vote was organized under Russian military occupation and was denounced by the European Union and theUnited Statesas illegal.

The Crimean crisis was followed bypro-Russian unrestineast Ukraineandsouth Ukraine.In April 2014 Ukrainian separatistsself-proclaimedtheDonetsk People's RepublicandLugansk People's Republicand heldreferendumson 11 May 2014; the separatists claimed nearly 90% voted in favor of independence.Later in April 2014, fighting between theUkrainian armyandpro-Ukrainian volunteer battalionson one side, and forces supporting the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics on the other side, escalated into thewar in Donbas.By December 2014, more than 6,400 people had died in this conflict, and according toUnited Nationsfigures it led to over half a million people becominginternally displacedwithin Ukraine and two hundred thousand refugees to flee to (mostly)Russiaand other neighboring countries.During the same period, political (including adoption ofthe law on lustrationandthe law on decommunization) and economic reforms started.On 25 May 2014,Petro Poroshenkowas elected presidentin the first round of the presidential election. By the second half of 2015, independent observers noted that reforms in Ukraine had considerably slowed down,corruptiondid not subside, and theeconomy of Ukrainewas still in a deep crisis.By December 2015, more than 9,100 people had died (largely civilians) in the war in Donbas,according to United Nations figures.

President Zelenskyy with members of the Ukrainian army on 18 June 2022

On 2 February 2021, a presidential decree banned the television broadcasting of the pro-Russian TV channels112 Ukraine,NewsOne and ZIK.The decision of the National Security and Defense Council and the Presidential Decree of 19 February 2021 imposed sanctions on 8 individuals and 19 legal entities, including Putin's pro-Russian politician andPutin'sgodfatherViktor Medvedchukand his wife Oksana Marchenko.

TheKerch Strait incidentoccurred on 25 November 2018 when theRussianFederal Security Service(FSB)coast guardfired upon and captured threeUkrainian Navyvessels attempting to pass from theBlack Seainto theSea of Azovthrough theKerch Straiton their way to the port ofMariupol.

Throughout 2021,Russian forces built up along theRussia-Ukraine Border,in occupied Crimea and Donbas, and in Belarus.On 24 February 2022, Russian forcesinvadedUkraine.Russia quickly occupied much of theeastandsouthof the country, but failed to advance past the city ofMykolaivtowardsOdesa,and were forced to retreat from thenorthafter failing to occupyKyiv,Chernihiv,Sumy,andKharkiv.After failing to gain further territories and being driven out ofKharkiv Oblastby a fast-pacedUkrainian counteroffensive,Russia officially annexed theDonetsk People's Republicand theLuhansk People's Republic,along with most of theKhersonandZaporizhzhia Oblastson 30 September. The invasion was met withinternational condemnation.TheUnited Nations General Assemblypasseda resolutioncondemning the invasion and demanding a full Russian withdrawal in March 2022. TheInternational Court of Justiceordered Russia to suspend military operations and theCouncil of Europeexpelled Russia. Many countriesimposed sanctionson Russia and its ally Belarus, and providedhumanitarianandmilitary aid to Ukraine.TheBaltic statesall declared Russia aterrorist state.Protests occurredaround the world, along with mass arrests ofanti-war protesters in Russia,which also enacted a law enabling greatermedia censorship.Over 1,000companies closed their operationsin Russia and Belarus as a result of the invasion.

On the eve of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the country wasthe poorest in Europe,a handicap whose cause was attributed to highcorruptionlevelsand the slow pace ofeconomic liberalizationandinstitutional reform.Russia's invasion of the country damaged Ukraine's economy and future prospects of improvement to such an extent, that the GDP of the country was projected to shrink by as much as 35% in its first year alone after the invasion.

National historiography

Further information:Ukrainian National Revival,Ukrainian nationalism,Ukrainophilia,Russophilia,All-Russian nation,andPan-Slavism

Knowledge about Ukraine in other parts of the world came chiefly from Russian secondary sources until relatively recently. After the second half of the seventeenth century, when Muscovy and later the Russian Empire came to control much of Ukrainian territory, Russian writers included Ukraine as part of Russian history. This included referring to medievalKievan Rus'as "Kievan Russia" and itsOld East Slavicculture and inhabitants as "Kievan Russian" or "Old Russian". Later Ukraine or its parts were called "Little Russia","South Russia "," West Russia "(with Belarus), or"New Russia"(the Black Sea coast and southeasternsteppe). But parts of Ukraine beyond Russia's reach were calledRutheniaand its peopleRuthenians.The names chosen to refer to Ukraine and Ukrainians have often reflected a certain political position, and sometimes even to deny the existence of Ukrainian nationality.The Russian point-of-view of Ukrainian history became the prevailing one in Western academia, and although the bias was identified as early as the 1950s, many scholars of Slavic studies and history believe significant changes are still necessary to correct the Moscow-centric view.

The scholarly study of Ukraine's history emerged from romantic impulses in the late 19th century whenGerman Romanticismspread to Eastern Europe. The outstanding leaders wereVolodymyr Antonovych(1834–1908), based in Kiev, and his studentMykhailo Hrushevsky(1866–1934).The first serious challenge to the Russian view of Ukraine was Hrushevsky's 1904 article "The Traditional Scheme of 'Russian' History and the Problem of the Rational organization of the History of the Eastern Slavs".For the first time full-scale scholarly studies based on archival sources, modern research techniques, and modern historical theories became possible. However, the demands of government officials—Tsarist, to a lesser degree Austro-Hungarian and Polish, and later Soviet—made it difficult to disseminate ideas that ran counter to the central government. Therefore, exile schools of historians emerged in central Europe and Canada after 1920.

Strikingly different interpretations of the medieval state of Kievan Rus' appear in the four schools of historiography within Ukraine:Russophile,Sovietophile,Eastern Slavic, andUkrainophile.In the Soviet Union, there was a radical break after 1921, led byMikhail Pokrovsky.Until 1934, history was generally not regarded as chauvinistic, but was rewritten in the style ofMarxist historiography.National "pasts" were rewritten as social and national liberation for non-Russians, and social liberation for Russians, in a process that ended in 1917. Under Stalin, the state and its official historiography were given a distinct Russian character and a certain Russocentrism. Imperial history was rewritten such that non-Russian love caused an emulation and deference to "join" the Russian people by becoming part of the (tsarist) Russian state, and in return, Russian state interests were driven by altruism and concern for neighboring people.Russophile and Sovietophile schools have become marginalized in independent Ukraine, with the Ukrainophile school being dominant in the early 21st century. The Ukrainophile school promotes an identity that is mutually exclusive of Russia. It has come to dominate the nation's educational system, security forces, and national symbols and monuments, although it has been dismissed as nationalist by Western historians. The East Slavic school, an eclectic compromise between Ukrainophiles and Russophilism, has a weaker ideological and symbolic base, although it is preferred by Ukraine's centrist former elites.

Many historians in recent years have sought alternatives to national histories, and Ukrainian history invited approaches that looked beyond a national paradigm. Multiethnic history recognises the numerous peoples in Ukraine;transnational historyportrays Ukraine as a border zone for various empires; andarea studiescategorises Ukraine as part of East-Central Europe or, less often, as part of Eurasia.Serhii Plokhyargues that looking beyond the country's national history has made possible a richer understanding of Ukraine, its people, and the surrounding regions.since 2015, there has been renewed interest in integrating a "territorial-civic" and "linguistic-ethnic" history of Ukraine. For example, the history of theCrimean Tatarsand the more distant history of theCrimeapeninsula is now integrated into Ukrainian school history. This is part of the constitutionally mandated "people of Ukraine" rather than "Ukrainian people". Slowly, the histories of Poles and Jews are also being reintegrated. However, due to the current political climate caused by territorial sovereignty breaches by Russia, the role of Russians as "co-host" has been greatly minimized, and there are still unresolved difficult issues of the past, for example, the role of Ukrainians during the Holodomor.

After 1991, historical memory was a powerful tool in the political mobilization and legitimation of the post-Soviet Ukrainian state, as well as the division of selectively used memory along the lines of the political division of Ukrainian society. Ukraine did not experience the restorationist paradigm typical of some other post-Soviet nations, for example thethree Baltic countries—Lithuania,Latvia,andEstonia,although the multifaceted history of independence, theOrthodox Church in Ukraine,Soviet-era repressions,mass famine,and World War II collaboration were used to provide a different constitutive frame for developing Ukrainian nationhood. Thepolitics of identity(which includes the production of history textbooks and the authorization of commemorative practices) has remained fragmented and tailored to reflect the ideological anxieties and concerns of individual regions of Ukraine.

Canadian historiography on Ukraine

In Soviet Ukraine, twentieth-century historians were strictly limited in the range of models and topics they could cover, with Moscow insisting on an officialMarxistapproach. However, émigréUkrainians in Canadadeveloped an independent scholarship that ignored Marxism, and shared the Western tendencies in historiography.George W. SimpsonandOrest Subtelnywere leaders promoting Ukrainian studies in Canadian academe.The lack of independence in Ukraine meant that traditional historiographical emphases on diplomacy and politics were handicapped. The flourishing of social history after 1960 opened many new approaches for researchers in Canada; Subtelny used themodernizationmodel. Later historiographical trends were quickly adapted to the Ukrainian evidence, with special focus on Ukrainian nationalism. The new cultural history,post-colonial studies,and the "linguistic turn"augmenting, if not replacingsocial history,allowed for multiple angles of approach. By 1991, historians in Canada had freely explored a wide range of approaches regarding the emergence of anational identity.After independence, a high priority in Canada was assisting in the freeing of Ukrainian scholarship from Soviet-Marxist orthodoxy—which downplayed Ukrainian nationalism and insisted that true Ukrainians were always trying to reunite with Russia. Independence from Moscow meant freedom from an orthodoxy that was never well suited to Ukrainian developments. Scholars in Ukraine welcomed the "national paradigm" that Canadian historians had helped develop. Since 1991, the study of Ukrainiannation-buildingbecame an increasingly global and collaborative enterprise, with scholars from Ukraine studying and working in Canada, and with conferences on related topics attracting scholars from around the world.

See also

• Politics of Ukraine
• Ruthenia
• Kievan Rus
• History of Christianity in Ukraine
• History of the Soviet Union
• List of Ukrainian rulers

Bibliography

Main article:Bibliography of Ukrainian history

Surveys and reference

• Encyclopedia of Ukraine(University of Toronto Press, 1984–93) 5 vol; fromCanadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies,partly online as theInternet Encyclopedia of Ukraine.
• Ukraine: A Concise Encyclopedia.ed by Volodymyr Kubijovyč; University of Toronto Press. 1963; 1188pp
• Allen, W. E. D.(1963).The Ukraine: a history.Russell & Russell. p. 404.OCLC578666051.
• Bilinsky, YaroslavThe Second Soviet Republic: The Ukraine after World War II(Rutgers UP, 1964)
• Doroshenko, Dmytro,History of the Ukraine.Institute Press (Edmonton, Alberta), 1939:Online.
• Hrushevsky, Mykhailo.A History of Ukraine(1986 [1941]).
• Hrushevsky, Mykhailo.History of Ukraine-Rus'in 9 volumes (1866–1934). Available online in Ukrainian as"Історія України-Руси"(1954–57).Translated into English(1997–2014).
• Ivan Katchanovski;Kohut, Zenon E.;Nebesio, Bohdan Y.; and Yurkevich, Myroslav.Historical Dictionary of Ukraine.Second edition (2013). 968 pp.
• Kubicek, Paul.The History of Ukraine(2008)excerpt and text search
• Liber, George.Total wars and the making of modern Ukraine, 1914–1954(U of Toronto Press, 2016).
• Magocsi, Paul R.(2010) [1996].A History of Ukraine: The Land and Its Peoples(2nd rev. ed.). Toronto: University of Toronto Press.ISBN9781442610217.
• Manning, Clarence,The Story of the Ukraine.Georgetown University Press,1947:Online.
• Plokhy, Serhii(2006).The Origins of the Slavic Nations: Premodern Identities in Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus.Cambridge University Press.ISBN9781139458924.
• Plokhy, Serhii (2015).The Gates of Europe: A History of Ukraine.Basic Books.ISBN978-0465050918.
• Reid, Anna.Borderland: A Journey Through the History of Ukraine(2003)ISBN0-7538-0160-4
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Topical studies

• Kononenko, Konstantyn.Ukraine and Russia: A History of the Economic Relations between Ukraine and Russia, 1654–1917(Marquette University Press 1958)
• Luckyj, George S.Towards an Intellectual History of Ukraine: An Anthology of Ukrainian Thought from 1710 to 1995.(1996)
• Shkandrij, Myroslav.Ukrainian Nationalism: Politics, Ideology, and Literature, 1929–1956(Yale University Press; 2014) 331 pages; Studies the ideology and legacy of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists Especially by Dmytro Dontsov, Olena Teliha, Leonid Mosendz, Oleh Olzhych,Yurii Lypa,Ulas Samchuk, Yurii Klen, and Dokia Humenna.

1930s, World War II

• Applebaum, Anne.Red Famine: Stalin's War on Ukraine(2017); 496 pponline review
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• Brandon, Ray, andWendy Lower,eds.The Shoah in Ukraine: History, Testimony, Memorialization.(2008). 378 pp.online review
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• Gross, Jan T.Revolution from Abroad: The Soviet Conquest of Poland's Western Ukraine and Western Belorussia(1988).
• Kostiuk, Hryhory.Stalinist Rule in the Ukraine.Frederick A. Praeger, Inc., New York, 1960 (156 pp.):Online.
• Kudelia, Serhiy. "Choosing Violence in Irregular Wars: The Case of Anti-Soviet Insurgency in Western Ukraine,"East European Politics and Societies(2013) 27#1 pp 149–181
• Lower, Wendy.Nazi Empire-Building and the Holocaust in Ukraine.U. of North Carolina Press, 2005. 307 pp.
• Manning, Clarence,Ukraine under the Soviets.Bookman Associates, New York, 1953 (219 pp.):Online.
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• Redlich, Shimon.Together and Apart in Brzezany: Poles, Jews, and Ukrainians, 1919–1945.Indiana U. Press, 2002. 202 pp.
• Zabarko, Boris, ed.Holocaust In The Ukraine,Mitchell Vallentine & Co, 2005. 394 pp.

Recent history

• Aslund, Anders, and Michael McFaul.Revolution in Orange: The Origins of Ukraine's Democratic Breakthrough(2006)
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• Paul D'Anieri (1999).Politics and Society in Ukraine.Avalon.ISBN9780813335384.
• Dimarov, Anatoliyet al.A Hunger Most Cruel: The Human Face of the 1932–1933 Terror-Famine in Soviet Ukraine(2002)excerpt and text search
• Askold Krushelnycky.An Orange Revolution: A Personal Journey Through Ukrainian History.(2006).ISBN0-436-20623-4.320 pages.
• Kutaisov, Aleksandr.Ukraina(1918).
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Historiography and memory

See also:List of Slavic studies journals

• von Hagen, Mark(1995). "Does Ukraine Have a History?".Slavic Review.54(3): 658–673.doi:10.2307/2501741.ISSN0037-6779.WikidataQ113708200.
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• Hrushevskyi, Mykhailo(1904). "The traditional scheme of 'Russian' history and the problem of a rational organization of the history of the East Slavs".Articles on Slavistics(in Ukrainian).1, 2(55, 2): 35–42, 355–364.WikidataQ28703759.
• Kasianov, Georgiy, andPhilipp Ther,eds.Laboratory of Transnational History: Ukraine and Recent Ukrainian Historiography(Central European University Press 2009)
• Krawchenko, Bohdan."Ukrainian studies in Canada."Nationalities Papers6.1 (1978): 26–43.
• Plokhy, Serhii,ed. (2016).The Future of the Past: New Perspectives on Ukrainian History.Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute.ISBN978-1-932650-16-7.WikidataQ116456399.
• Plokhy, Serhii(2021).Quo Vadis Ukrainian History?.pp. 1–14.doi:10.2307/J.CTV2902B86.6.ISBN978-0-674-26882-1.WikidataQ116456336.{{cite book}}:|journal=ignored (help)
• Reid, Anna."Putin's War on History: The Thousand-Year Struggle Over Ukraine"Foreign Affairs(May/June 2022) 101#1 pp 54–63.excerpt
• Smith-Peter, Susan (1 April 2022)."What do Scholars of Russia owe Ukraine?".Jordan Center for the Advanced Study of Russia.Jordan Center for the Advanced Study of Russia.WikidataQ116456099.
• Subtelny, Orest."The Current State of Ukrainian Historiography".Journal of Ukrainian Studies.18(1–2): 33–54.ISSN0228-1635.WikidataQ116456077.
• Velychenko, Stephen,National history as cultural process: a survey of the interpretations of Ukraine's past in Polish, Russian, and Ukrainian historical writing from the earliest times to 1914(Edmonton, 1992)
• Velychenko, Stephen,Shaping identity in Eastern Europe and Russia: Soviet-Russian and Polish accounts of Ukrainian history, 1914–1991(London, 1993)
• Verstiuk, Vladyslav. "Conceptual Issues in Studying the History of the Ukrainian Revolution."Journal of Ukrainian Studies24.1 (1999): 5–20
• Wade, Rex A."The Revolution At Ninety-(One): Anglo-American Historiography Of The Russian Revolution Of 1917"Journal of Modern Russian History and Historiography1.1 (2008): vii-42.
• Yekelchyk, Serhy."Studying the Blueprint for a Nation: Canadian Historiography of Modern Ukraine."East/West: Journal of Ukrainian Studies5.1 (2018).

Teaching and study guides

• John Vsetecka, "Integrating Scholarship on Ukraine into Classroom SyllabiLet Ukraine Speak: Integrating Scholarship on Ukraine into Classroom Syllabii".
• Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute, "Teaching and Studying Ukraine: List of Resources".

Primary sources in English

• Luckyj, George S.Towards an Intellectual History of Ukraine: An Anthology of Ukrainian Thought from 1710 to 1995.(1996)

Ukrainian language

• Essays on History on Ukraine
  • Volume 1 by Natalia Yakovenko,"From the Earliest Times until the End of the 18th Century"
  • Volume 2:Ярослав Грицак (Yaroslav Hrytsak) (1996).Формування модерної української нації XIX-XX ст. (Formation of the Modern Ukrainian Nation in the late 19th–20th centuries).Kyiv:Генеза (Heneza).ISBN966-504-150-9..Availableonline.
• "Ukraine: Briefly about Her Past and PresentArchived11 April 2016 at theWayback Machine",inWelcome to Ukraine,2003, 1.
• Alexander F. TsvirkunHistory of Ukraine.7 class electronic textbooks. Kyiv., 2005 (co-authored withValentin A.Savelii)
• Alexander F. TsvirkunE-learning course. History of Ukraine.Journal Auditorium,Kyiv 2010

External links

• Media related toHistory of Ukraineat Wikimedia Commons
• History of Ukraine: Primary Documents (weblist)
• History of Ukraine:10 complete books
• Ukrainian history overviewpublished inDen'(in Ukrainian).