Pacification of Ukrainians in Eastern Galicia (1930)
Encyclopedia
Pacification of Ukrainians refers to the punitive action by police and military of the Second Polish Republic
against the Ukrainian minority in Poland
in September–November 1930 in response to a wave of more than 2,200 acts of sabotage against Polish property in the region. It took place in 16 counties
of southeastern provinces of the country, or eastern Galicia (this area was in the interbellum part of the eastern Lesser Poland
province). Collective punishment meted out on thousands of mostly innocent peasants resulted in exacerbation of animosity between the Polish state and the Ukrainian minority.
and repression of Ukrainian minority in these lands. The use of Ukrainian language
was banned in government agencies in 1924 and support was steadily withdrawn from Ukrainian schools. Polish-Ukrainian relations deteriorated during the Great Depression
, which led to much economic disruption, felt particularly hard in the rural areas. In this atmosphere radical Ukrainian nationalists propagating active resistance to Polish domination found a ready response from Ukrainian youth.
On July 12, 1930, activists of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists
(OUN), together with Ukrainian Military Organization
, began the so-called sabotage action, during which Polish real estates were burned, roads, rail lines and telephone connections were destroyed. The OUN used terrorism and sabotage in order to force the Polish government into reprisals so fierce that they would cause the more moderate Ukrainian groups ready to negotiate with the Polish state to lose support. OUN directed its violence not only against the Poles, but also against all those Ukrainians who wished for a peaceful settlement of the Polish - Ukrainian conflict. In the course of time, local Ukrainians, many of whom saw the Poles as occupiers of their land
, joined the action. Offices of the Polish paramilitary organization Strzelec were burned, as were the stands of the popular trade fairs
in Lwów (Lviv). Government offices and mail trucks were attacked. This situation lasted until September, with some sporadic incidents taking place as late as November. The terror action was limited to Galicia, and did not take place in Volhynia
.
In response, Polish authorities decided to pacify the turbulent province. The decision to carry out the action was made by Marshall Józef Piłsudski in his capacity as Prime Minister of the Second Polish Republic. Recognizing that terrorist actions carried out by the OUN did not amount to an insurrection, Piłsudski ordered a police action, rather than a military one, and deputized the Minister of Interior, Felicjan Sławoj-Składkowski with its organization. Sławoj-Składkowski in turn ordered regional police commanders to prepare for it in the Lwów Voivodeship
, Stanisławów Voivodeship and Tarnopol Voivodeship
. The commander of the planned action was Lwów Voivodeship's chief of police, Czesław Grabowski.
Before the action commenced, around 130 Ukrainian activists, including a few dozen former Sejm
(Polish parliament) deputies were arrested. The action itself began on 14 September 1930, in several villages of Lwów Voivodeship, where the cavalry unit of 14th Regiment of Jazłowiecki Ułans was directed, even though the detailed plan for the action was not established until 18 September.
The main operations with the participation of military units took place in the first half of October.
Overall, the action affected:
Or in total 494 villages. Timothy Snyder and other sources give the figure of 1000 policemen used in the operation, affecting 450 villages.
The pacification involved the search of private homes as well as buildings in which Ukrainian organizations (including the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
) were based. During the search, the buildings, belongings, and property of Ukrainians was destroyed and the inhabitants often beaten and arrested. Several Ukrainian schools (in Rohat, Drohobycz
, Lwów
, Tarnopol
and Stanisławów
) were closed and the Ukrainian Youth Scout organization Plast
was delegalized. On 10 September, five deputies of Ukrainian National Democratic Alliance
were arrested.
The pacification was carried out by first surrounding a village with police units, then calling out the village elder or an administrator of the village. He in turn was informed about the purpose of the operation, and was ordered to give up any weapons or explosives hidden in the village. All villagers were to remain in their houses. Subsequently, the houses of those suspected of cooperation with Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists
were searched, which included the tearing up of floors and ceilings. During the course of the search the furniture and property inside the houses were often destroyed. Policemen found about 100 kilograms of explosives and weapons (1287 rifles, 566 revolvers, 31 grenades). Also, during the searches, physical force was used and many people were publicly whipped. According to Polish historian Władysław Pobóg-Malinowski
, there were no fatalities, while, according to Ukrainian historian P. Mirchuk, 35 Ukrainian civilians died during the pacification. S. Horak estimates the number of victims at 7. Additional punishments included laying special "contributions" on the villages and stationing regiments of cavalry in the village, which had to be fed and quartered by the villages.
A committee of the League of Nations in its response to Ukrainian-Nationalists protest regarding the "pacification" action, while not approving the methods used, stated that it was the Ukrainian extremists themselves who were to be blame for consciously inviting this response by their sabotage activities and maintained that it was not governmental policy of persecution of the Ukrainian people.
Second Polish Republic
The Second Polish Republic, Second Commonwealth of Poland or interwar Poland refers to Poland between the two world wars; a period in Polish history in which Poland was restored as an independent state. Officially known as the Republic of Poland or the Commonwealth of Poland , the Polish state was...
against the Ukrainian minority in Poland
Ukrainian minority in Poland
The Ukrainian minority in Poland is composed of 27,172 people according to the Polish census of 2002. Most of them live in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship , followed by West Pomeranian , Podkarpackie and Pomeranian Voivodeship ....
in September–November 1930 in response to a wave of more than 2,200 acts of sabotage against Polish property in the region. It took place in 16 counties
Powiat
A powiat is the second-level unit of local government and administration in Poland, equivalent to a county, district or prefecture in other countries. The term powiat is most often translated into English as "county", although other terms are also sometimes used...
of southeastern provinces of the country, or eastern Galicia (this area was in the interbellum part of the eastern Lesser Poland
Lesser Poland
Lesser Poland is one of the historical regions of Poland, with its capital in the city of Kraków. It forms the southeastern corner of the country, and should not be confused with the modern Lesser Poland Voivodeship, which covers only a small, southern part of Lesser Poland...
province). Collective punishment meted out on thousands of mostly innocent peasants resulted in exacerbation of animosity between the Polish state and the Ukrainian minority.
Background
Eastern Galicia was incorporated into the Polish republic after the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian empire and the defeat of the short-lived Western Ukrainian People's Republic in 1919. From the outset the Polish government adopted the policy of assimilationCultural assimilation
Cultural assimilation is a socio-political response to demographic multi-ethnicity that supports or promotes the assimilation of ethnic minorities into the dominant culture. The term assimilation is often used with regard to immigrants and various ethnic groups who have settled in a new land. New...
and repression of Ukrainian minority in these lands. The use of Ukrainian language
Ukrainian language
Ukrainian is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses a variant of the Cyrillic alphabet....
was banned in government agencies in 1924 and support was steadily withdrawn from Ukrainian schools. Polish-Ukrainian relations deteriorated during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, which led to much economic disruption, felt particularly hard in the rural areas. In this atmosphere radical Ukrainian nationalists propagating active resistance to Polish domination found a ready response from Ukrainian youth.
On July 12, 1930, activists of 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), together with 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...
, began the so-called sabotage action, during which Polish real estates were burned, roads, rail lines and telephone connections were destroyed. The OUN used terrorism and sabotage in order to force the Polish government into reprisals so fierce that they would cause the more moderate Ukrainian groups ready to negotiate with the Polish state to lose support. OUN directed its violence not only against the Poles, but also against all those Ukrainians who wished for a peaceful settlement of the Polish - Ukrainian conflict. In the course of time, local Ukrainians, many of whom saw the Poles as occupiers of their land
Osadnik
Osadniks was the Polish loanword used in Soviet Union for veterans of the Polish Army that were given land in the Kresy territory ceded to Poland by Polish-Soviet Riga Peace Treaty of 1921 .-Colonization process:Shortly before the battle of Warsaw on August 7, 1920, the Premier of Poland,...
, joined the action. Offices of the Polish paramilitary organization Strzelec were burned, as were the stands of the popular trade fairs
Targi Wschodnie
Targi Wschodnie was a major trade fair in interbellum Poland. It was established in 1921 and held in Lwów , and was designed to attract business people from Poland, Romania and the Soviet Union...
in Lwów (Lviv). Government offices and mail trucks were attacked. This situation lasted until September, with some sporadic incidents taking place as late as November. The terror action was limited to Galicia, and did not take place in Volhynia
Volhynia
Volhynia, Volynia, or Volyn is a historic region in western Ukraine located between the rivers Prypiat and Southern Bug River, to the north of Galicia and Podolia; the region is named for the former city of Volyn or Velyn, said to have been located on the Southern Bug River, whose name may come...
.
In response, Polish authorities decided to pacify the turbulent province. The decision to carry out the action was made by Marshall Józef Piłsudski in his capacity as Prime Minister of the Second Polish Republic. Recognizing that terrorist actions carried out by the OUN did not amount to an insurrection, Piłsudski ordered a police action, rather than a military one, and deputized the Minister of Interior, Felicjan Sławoj-Składkowski with its organization. Sławoj-Składkowski in turn ordered regional police commanders to prepare for it in the Lwów Voivodeship
Lwów Voivodeship
Lwów Voivodeship was an administrative unit of interwar Poland . According to Nazis and Soviets it ceased to exist in September 1939, following German and Soviet aggression on Poland . The Polish underground administration existed till August 1944.-Population:Its capital, biggest and most...
, Stanisławów Voivodeship and Tarnopol Voivodeship
Tarnopol Voivodeship
Tarnopol Voivodeship was an administrative region of interwar Poland with an area of 16,500 km², 17 counties, and capital in Tarnopol...
. The commander of the planned action was Lwów Voivodeship's chief of police, Czesław Grabowski.
Before the action commenced, around 130 Ukrainian activists, including a few dozen former Sejm
Sejm
The Sejm is the lower house of the Polish parliament. The Sejm is made up of 460 deputies, or Poseł in Polish . It is elected by universal ballot and is presided over by a speaker called the Marshal of the Sejm ....
(Polish parliament) deputies were arrested. The action itself began on 14 September 1930, in several villages of Lwów Voivodeship, where the cavalry unit of 14th Regiment of Jazłowiecki Ułans was directed, even though the detailed plan for the action was not established until 18 September.
Forces used in the action
From the 20th to 29 September, 17 companies of police (60 policemen each) were used. Of these, 9 came from the police academy in Mosty Wielkie, 3 from Lwów Voivodeship, 2.5 from Stanisławów Voivodeship, 2.5 from Tarnopol Voivodeship (a total of 1041 policemen and officers).The main operations with the participation of military units took place in the first half of October.
Overall, the action affected:
- Lwów Voivodeship: police action - 206 places in 9 different counties, military action - 78 places in 8 different counties.
- Stanisławów Voivodeship: police action - 56 places in 2 counties, military action - 33 places in one county
- Tarnopol Voivodeship - police action - 63 places in 4 counties, military action - 57 places in 5 counties.
Or in total 494 villages. Timothy Snyder and other sources give the figure of 1000 policemen used in the operation, affecting 450 villages.
Nature of the action
The operation was carried out in three stages. First, a basic edict was issued authorizing a particular action. Second, police units were brought in. Third units of the regular army carried out "operational maneuvers".The pacification involved the search of private homes as well as buildings in which Ukrainian organizations (including the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church , Ukrainska Hreko-Katolytska Tserkva), is the largest Eastern Rite Catholic sui juris particular church in full communion with the Holy See, and is directly subject to the Pope...
) were based. During the search, the buildings, belongings, and property of Ukrainians was destroyed and the inhabitants often beaten and arrested. Several Ukrainian schools (in Rohat, Drohobycz
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...
, Lwów
Lviv
Lviv is a city in western Ukraine. The city is regarded as one of the main cultural centres of today's Ukraine and historically has also been a major Polish and Jewish cultural center, as Poles and Jews were the two main ethnicities of the city until the outbreak of World War II and the following...
, Tarnopol
Ternopil
Ternopil , is a city in western Ukraine, located on the banks of the Seret River. Ternopil is one of the major cities of Western Ukraine and the historical region of Galicia...
and Stanisławów
Ivano-Frankivsk
Ivano-Frankivsk is a historic city located in the western Ukraine. It is the administrative centre of the Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast , and is designated as its own separate raion within the oblast, municipality....
) were closed and the Ukrainian Youth Scout organization Plast
Plast
The Plast National Scout Organization of Ukraine commonly called Ukrainian Plast or simply Plast is the largest Scouting organization in Ukraine.-First Phase: 1911-1920:...
was delegalized. On 10 September, five deputies of Ukrainian National Democratic Alliance
Ukrainian National Democratic Alliance
The Ukrainian National Democratic Alliance, was the largest Ukrainian political party in the Second Polish Republic, active in territory that is currently Western Ukraine. It dominated the mainstream political life of the Ukrainian minority in Poland, which with almost 14% of Poland's population...
were arrested.
The pacification was carried out by first surrounding a village with police units, then calling out the village elder or an administrator of the village. He in turn was informed about the purpose of the operation, and was ordered to give up any weapons or explosives hidden in the village. All villagers were to remain in their houses. Subsequently, the houses of those suspected of cooperation with 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...
were searched, which included the tearing up of floors and ceilings. During the course of the search the furniture and property inside the houses were often destroyed. Policemen found about 100 kilograms of explosives and weapons (1287 rifles, 566 revolvers, 31 grenades). Also, during the searches, physical force was used and many people were publicly whipped. According to Polish historian Władysław Pobóg-Malinowski
Władysław Pobóg-Malinowski
Władysław Pobóg-Malinowski was a Polish soldier, historian and journalist. An officer of the Polish Army, he is best known as a historian and author of numerous books on modern history of Poland. His most notable work is the Modern political history of Poland published in 1956 in London...
, there were no fatalities, while, according to Ukrainian historian P. Mirchuk, 35 Ukrainian civilians died during the pacification. S. Horak estimates the number of victims at 7. Additional punishments included laying special "contributions" on the villages and stationing regiments of cavalry in the village, which had to be fed and quartered by the villages.
A committee of the League of Nations in its response to Ukrainian-Nationalists protest regarding the "pacification" action, while not approving the methods used, stated that it was the Ukrainian extremists themselves who were to be blame for consciously inviting this response by their sabotage activities and maintained that it was not governmental policy of persecution of the Ukrainian people.