Ukraine means Borderland and these borders have been changed innumerable times. The Scythians dominated this land from the 7th to 4th century BC to all the land north of the Black Sea. The Scythians were excellent gold workers and their artifacts have been found from the Caucauses to Hungary and east to Kiev and St. Petersburg.
During the 4th and 2nd centuries BC, the Sarmations displaced the Scythians.
In the 2nd Century AD the Ostrogoths, a Germanic tribe overran Ukraine and in about 370 AD, Huns overcame the German tribes and setup their own empire in the western steppes. In the 6th and 7th centuries, the Slavs took over the lands of the Huns and spread in all directions from the Carpathian Mountains north into Poland.
From the 6th Century the Scandinavians began exploring and set up trading posts east of the Baltic. Olek of Novograd declared himself ruler of Kiev. The Nordic lords in time were assimilated by the Ukrainians. Volodymyr, a prince accepted Christianity and in 988 AD founded the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. Later it spawned the Russian Orthodox Church.
By the 11th and 12th Centuries, the Kievian Rus began to splinter. In 1169 Kiev was sacked and 70 years later Mongols overcame Kiev and became rulers. In 1203 Prince Roman Volynian overcame his rivals and founded the first Ukrainian state.
In the mid 14th Century Poland and Lithuanian Kingdoms overran Ukrainian soil and ended the short period of self-determination.
Tartars and Turks were next to control Ukraine from 1520 until the 18th century. Cossacks of Ukraine became strong and often fought the invaders and were in control of many sections from 1520 into the 18th Century.
In 1660 war broke out between Poland and Russia as to whom should control Ukraine. Russia gained control in 1662 and in 1668 Russia gained control of Kiev. Russia absorbed Ukraine in 1772-95.
Following World War I and the death of the Czar, Russia was weakened and Ukraine won independence in 1918, only to lose it to Poland as a protectorate, then to lose again to Russia in 1920. In 1922 Ukraine became a Soviet Founder of the Communist Regime. In 1930-33, Stalin began his starvation program in which 5-7 million died of starvation, 1 million intellectuals and politicians, 270 churches destroyed or torn down, 12 million sent to labor camps, whole Ukrainian villages were transported to Siberia. Ukrainians were forbid speaking the Ukrainian language, forbid use of Ukrainian literature, forbid use of Ukrainian songs and customs. Robert Conquest in his book “The Harvest of Sorrow” (page 306) states his estimate of the death toll in Stalin’s Program:
persons dead 1930-37 11 million
arrested in this period and dying 3.5 million
in camps later 1 million
of these
dead as a result of de-Kulakization 6.5 million
died in the Kazakh catastrophe 1 million
in the famine 5 million
in the N. Caucasus 1 million
elsewhere 1 million
In World War II all of the Ukraine was occupied by Germany for 2 years. When they left they destroyed the whole of the country, taking with them train-cars of topsoil into Germany. Dead of war were 6 million Ukrainians.
In August 1991, Ukraine became its own country1. Many nations throughout history all tried to break the Ukrainian spirit and all failed. The people of Ukraine became a strong willed group and once again freedom belongs to them. Our hope and prayer is that Ukraine will be able to prove itself and may freedom be theirs always.
- Stephen would of course be shocked at the situation post 2014.
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