The War Museum invites you to a lecture-discussion dedicated to the Day of the Creation of the Ukrainian Sich Riflemen Legion. The speaker for the event will be Ivan Stychynskyi, a historian, ethnologist, PhD, and staff member of the Ukrainian Institute of National Remembrance.
The outbreak of the First World War became a turning point for the Ukrainian national movement and opened up opportunities for the revival of its own armed forces. On 6 August 1914, the Supreme Ukrainian Council and the Ukrainian Combat Board proclaimed the creation of the Ukrainian Sich Riflemen Legion within the Austro-Hungarian army.
The Ukrainian Sich Riflemen Legion took part in battles against the Russian army in the Carpathians and in Podillia, and its combat experience became the foundation for the formation of the Sich Riflemen regiment led by Yevhen Konovalets, which played an important role in the liberation struggle of 1917–1920.
At the same time, the first pro-Ukrainian national military formations emerged within the army of the Russian Empire during the First World War. In 1917, this process grew into a large-scale Ukrainisation of units of the Russian army, which enabled the Central Council to begin building its own national armed forces. The creation of combat-ready Ukrainian units became a key factor that made the proclamation of independence of the Ukrainian People’s Republic possible and provided resources for further resistance against both Bolshevik and White Guard aggression.
Ivan Stychynskyi will explain why the Austro-Hungary and Russian Empire agreed to the creation of national volunteer formations; examine the features of the formation and composition of the Ukrainian Sich Riflemen Legion, and how the experience gained within the Ukrainian Sich Riflemen Legion influenced the success of the November Uprising of 1918 and the proclamation of the West Ukrainian People’s Republic.
A special part of the lecture will be the topic of military everyday life. You will learn how soldiers adapted trenches for living, how the culture of the field kitchen was formed, and what technological solutions in equipment helped them survive and endure.
Admission to the event is free. We look forward to seeing you!
