Dmytro Hrytsai
Encyclopedia
Dmytro Hrytsai was a leader in the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists
and a general in the Ukrainian Insurgent Army.
in Drohobych
(then part of eastern Poland) and became a member of the Ukrainian Military Organization
(UVO). In 1928 he matriculated in the Lviv University
Department of Physics and Mathematics. He did not graduate, being called to military service in the Polish Army. He completed officers' school with distinction.
In this period of his life he joined the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists
(OUN). From 1933 he directed the OUN Executive's military department. In 1934 he was arrested by the Polish police and was held for over two years at the Bereza Kartuska prison
.
After his release, he resumed his studies at Lwów University.
In 1939 he was again incarcerated at Bereza Kartuska, but was released after Poland had been overrun by Germany
and the Soviet Union
.
In 1940–41 Hrytsai was a member of the OUN Revolutionary Directorate and took part in the second Great OUN Congress. In 1941–43 he actively participated in partisan operations against Nazi German forces. From 1941 he headed the OUN's Military Staff, working to discover the German command's tactical plans, creating weapons and supply depots, and training officer cadres for a Ukrainian army.
In 1943 Hrytsai was arrested by the German Gestapo
, but was freed by a Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) attack on the prison. He directed UPAs General Staff. In 1945 he became UPA Chief of Staff and received the rank of general.
In 1945 together with OUN Directorate member Taras Maivski, while carrying out assignments for the Ukrainian Chief Council of Liberation, he fell into a Czech police trap while crossing the Czech-German border. After being tortured, he was executed at the Prague prison.
Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists
The Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists is a Ukrainian political organization which as a movement originally was created in 1929 in Western Ukraine . The OUN accepted violence as an acceptable tool in the fight against foreign and domestic enemies particularly Poland and Russia...
and a general in the Ukrainian Insurgent Army.
Life
Born in Galicia, Hrytsai graduated from gymnasiumGymnasium (school)
A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...
in Drohobych
Drohobych
Drohobych is a city located at the confluence of the Tysmenytsia River and Seret, a tributary of the former, in the Lviv Oblast , in western Ukraine...
(then part of eastern Poland) and became a member of the Ukrainian Military Organization
Ukrainian Military Organization
The Ukrainian Military Organization was a Ukrainian resistance and sabotage movement active in Poland's Eastern Lesser Poland during the years between the world wars...
(UVO). In 1928 he matriculated in the Lviv University
Lviv University
The Lviv University or officially the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv is the oldest continuously operating university in Ukraine...
Department of Physics and Mathematics. He did not graduate, being called to military service in the Polish Army. He completed officers' school with distinction.
In this period of his life he joined the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists
Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists
The Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists is a Ukrainian political organization which as a movement originally was created in 1929 in Western Ukraine . The OUN accepted violence as an acceptable tool in the fight against foreign and domestic enemies particularly Poland and Russia...
(OUN). From 1933 he directed the OUN Executive's military department. In 1934 he was arrested by the Polish police and was held for over two years at the Bereza Kartuska prison
Bereza Kartuska prison
The Bereza Kartuska detention camp was a Polish prison, principally for political prisoners of the sanacja regime, that was operated in 1934–39 at Bereza Kartuska in the former Polesie Province ....
.
After his release, he resumed his studies at Lwów University.
In 1939 he was again incarcerated at Bereza Kartuska, but was released after Poland had been overrun by Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
.
In 1940–41 Hrytsai was a member of the OUN Revolutionary Directorate and took part in the second Great OUN Congress. In 1941–43 he actively participated in partisan operations against Nazi German forces. From 1941 he headed the OUN's Military Staff, working to discover the German command's tactical plans, creating weapons and supply depots, and training officer cadres for a Ukrainian army.
In 1943 Hrytsai was arrested by the German Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
, but was freed by a Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) attack on the prison. He directed UPAs General Staff. In 1945 he became UPA Chief of Staff and received the rank of general.
In 1945 together with OUN Directorate member Taras Maivski, while carrying out assignments for the Ukrainian Chief Council of Liberation, he fell into a Czech police trap while crossing the Czech-German border. After being tortured, he was executed at the Prague prison.