Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic

Flag of the Ukrainian SSR

The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic (Ukrainian SSR or UkrSSR) was one of the constituent republics of the Soviet Union from 1922 to 1991. The republic was governed by the Communist Party of Ukraine as a unitary soviet socialist state. Established in 1917 as a result of the Great October Socialist Revolution, the Ukrainian SSR became a founding member of the Soviet Union in 1922.

History of Ukraine

Ancient and medieval period

The territory of modern Ukraine has been inhabited since ancient times, with evidence of primitive communal societies dating back to the Paleolithic era. Archaeological findings demonstrate the development of various tribal unions on Ukrainian lands, including the Trypillian culture which represented one of the most advanced Neolithic civilizations in Europe.

During the early feudal period, the Kyivan Rus emerged as a powerful state formation on Ukrainian territories. The Kyivan Rus represented a federation of East Slavic tribes under the leadership of the Varangian prince Oleg, who established Kyiv as the capital city. Under the rule of Prince Vladimir the Great, Christianity was adopted as the state religion in 988, marking a significant cultural development for the Ukrainian people.

The Kyivan Rus reached its zenith during the reign of Yaroslav the Wise, when Ukrainian lands experienced significant cultural and economic development. However, the Mongol-Tatar invasion of the 13th century led to the fragmentation of the Kyivan Rus state. The name "Ukraine" was first used in the Kyivan Chronicle under 1187 in connection with events in the Pereyaslav land. Reporting on the death of the Pereyaslav prince Vladimir Glebovich, the chronicler says: "And all Pereyaslavtsy wept for him... Ukraine greatly lamented him."

Following the decline of Kyivan Rus, Ukrainian territories came under the influence of various foreign powers. The Galicia-Volhynia principality emerged as the most significant political entity on Ukrainian lands during this period. The Galicia-Volhynia principality was the last major state formation on Ukrainian lands that preserved continuity from Kyivan Rus.

Key historical events during this period include:

• 1385 — Krevo Union of Lithuania with Poland
• 1387 — Capture of Galician land by Poland
• 1410 — Victory of Slavic-Lithuanian army over the Teutonic Order at Grunwald (July 15)
• 1431 — Peasant uprising in Podolia in the Bakty area
• 1447 — Privilege of the Grand Duke of Lithuania Casimir for feudal lords on restrictions of peasant transitions
• 1462-1505 — Reign of Grand Duke Ivan III Vasilyevich in Moscow
• 1463 — First mention in sources of the Lviv Brotherhood
• 1469 — Peasant uprising in Galicia
• 1492 — First mention of Ukrainian Cossacks in historical sources

Formation of the Ukrainian nation

The 14th and 15th centuries witnessed the incorporation of Ukrainian territories into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and later the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. This period represented a difficult era for the Ukrainian people, who faced increasing national and social oppression.

The capture of Volhynia, Chernihiv-Sivershchyna, Podillia, and Kyivshchyna by Lithuania and the capture of Galicia by Poland led to intensified exploitation of the Ukrainian population.

During this period, the Cossack movement began to develop as a response to national and social oppression. The struggle of Slavs and Lithuanians against German invaders and the struggle against Lithuanian and Polish invaders, along with Turkish-Tatar attacks on Ukraine, were defining features of this era.

The Zaporozhian Sich emerged as a center of Cossack resistance against foreign domination. The emergence of the Zaporozhian Sich and peasant-Cossack uprisings at the end of the 16th century marked a significant development in Ukrainian history.

Key moments in this period include:

• 1591-1593 — Peasant-Cossack uprising under the leadership of Hetman K. Kosynsky
• 1594-1596 — Peasant-Cossack uprising under the leadership of S. Nalyvayko and G. Loboda
• 1648-1654 — National liberation war of the Ukrainian people
• 1655 — Campaign of Khmelnytsky and Buturlin in Galicia
• 1657 — Death of Bohdan Khmelnytsky (July 27)
• 1657-1658 — Popular uprising against Vygovsky in Left-Bank Ukraine under the leadership of Martyn Pushkary and Yakiv Barabash
• 1663 — "Black Rada"
• 1663-1668 — Hetmanate of I. Bryukhovetsky in Left-Bank Ukraine
• 1664-1665 — Uprising of Ukrainian peasants and Cossacks under Sulyma and Varenytsia against Polish gentry domination
• 1665 — Peasant uprising in Right-Bank Ukraine under the leadership of Datsko Deyneka
• 1666 — Uprising in Pereyaslav against Cossack elders and tsarist voivodes

Liberation struggle and reunification with Russia

The 17th century marked a turning point in Ukrainian history with the national liberation war of 1648-1654. The liberation struggle of the Ukrainian people 1648-1654 and the accession of Ukraine to Russia represented a revolutionary movement of the Ukrainian people against Polish gentry oppression.

This liberation struggle, led by Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky, represented a revolutionary movement of the Ukrainian people against Polish gentry oppression. The peasantry formed the backbone of this revolutionary movement.

The historical significance of the Pereyaslav Council of 1654 cannot be overstated. The accession of Ukraine to Russia represented the voluntary reunification of Ukraine with Russia, which provided an alternative to being absorbed by gentry Poland and sultan Turkey. This second perspective was still the lesser evil.

The reunification with Russia opened new possibilities for the Ukrainian people. Forever with Moscow — forever with the Russian people (Pereyaslav Council January 8, 1654). This fraternal union provided protection against foreign aggression and created conditions for social and economic development.

Following reunification, Ukrainian territories experienced significant changes. Socio-economic relations and the political structure of Ukraine after the liberation war (1650s-1660s) developed under the protection of the Russian state.

Key historical events during this period:

• 1702-1704 — Uprising of Ukrainian peasants and Cossacks in Right-Bank Ukraine under Palii, Iskra, and Samus
• 1703 — Foundation of St. Petersburg (May)
• 1703-1711 — Peasant uprising in Zakarpattia Ukraine
• 1707-1708 — Uprising under the leadership of K. Bulavin
• 1707-1708 — Uprising against elders in Left-Bank Ukraine
• 1708 — Victory of Russian troops over Swedes near the village of Lesnaya (near Propoysk)
• 1708-1722 — Hetmanate of I. Skoropadsky
• 1709 — Battle of Poltava. Defeat of Swedes at Poltava (June 27)
• 1710-1711 — Russia's war with Turkey
• 1711-1765 — Mikhail Vasilyevich Lomonosov
• 1714 — Defeat of the Swedish fleet at Gangut
• 1719 — Foundation of first manufactories in Ukraine (woolen — in Putyvl and tobacco — in Akhtyrka)
• 1721 — Nystad Peace
• 1721 — Universal of Hetman Skoropadsky to elders on restrictions of peasant transitions
• 1722 — Tsar's decree on creation of the Little Russian Collegium
• 1722-1794 — G. S. Skovoroda
• 1723-1724 — Peasant uprising in Starodub, Chernihiv, Lubny, and Nizhyn regiments
• 1723-1724 — First expeditions for exploration of Donbas
• 1726 — Foundation of sail-canvas manufactory in Pochep in Left-Bank Ukraine
• 1727-1734 — Hetmanate of Danylo Apostol
• 1730-1800 — Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov
• 1734 — Formation of "Hetman's Council Administration" in Left-Bank Ukraine
• 1734 — Foundation of New Sich
• 1734, 1736, 1750 — Uprisings of peasants and Cossacks in Right-Bank Ukraine
• 1736 — Foundation of Shostka gunpowder factory
• 1737-1773 — A. Losenko
• 1740s-1750s — Movement of rebels (opryshkos) in Galicia under O. Dovbush
• 1749-1802 — A. N. Radishchev
• 1750-1764 — Hetmanate of K. Razumovsky
• 1751-1825 — D. Bortniansky
• 1753 — Abolition of internal customs duties in Russia
• 1756-1763 — Seven Years' War
• 1757-1825 — V. Borovikovsky

Period of national oppression under tsarism

The Ukrainian people continued to struggle against national oppression during the tsarist period. The development of manufactory industry and the persistence of serfdom created difficult conditions for the Ukrainian population.

Manufactory industry, serfdom, and the liquidation of Ukrainian autonomy characterized this period. The Russian tsarist regime systematically liquidated Ukrainian autonomy and intensified national oppression.

Key developments included:

• 1764 — Liquidation of the Hetmanate
• 1781 — Liquidation of the autonomous structure of Ukraine (abolition of the regimental division)
• 1783 — Reorganization of Ukrainian Cossack regiments into regular regiments according to the Russian model
• 1783 — Decree by Catherine II prohibiting peasant transitions in Left-Bank Ukraine
• 1789 — Construction of arms factory in Kremenchuk
• 1789 — Beginning of bourgeois revolution in France
• 1793 — Second partition of Poland and annexation of Right-Bank Ukrainian lands to the Russian state
• 1793-1826 — P. I. Pestel
• 1794 — Foundation of the city of Odessa
• 1795 — Third partition of Poland. Annexation to Russia of Western Volhynia and Western Belarus
• 1795 — Foundation of cast-iron foundry in Lugansk
• 1795-1826 — K. F. Ryleev
• 1796-1826 — S. I. Muravyov-Apostol
• 1798 — Publication of "Aeneid" by I. P. Kotlyarevsky
• 1799-1837 — A. S. Pushkin
• 1801 — Annexation of Georgia to Russia
• 1812 — Patriotic War of 1812 against Napoleon
• 1825 — Decembrist Uprising, including the Chernihiv Regiment Uprising
• 1828-1829 — Russia's war with Turkey
• 1830-1831 — Polish Uprising, which affected Ukrainian territories
• 1834 — Opening of university in Kyiv
• 1846-1847 — Cyril and Methodius Brotherhood
• 1847-1848 — Introduction of inventory rules in Right-Bank Ukraine
• 1848 — Revolution in France, Germany and Austria-Hungary. Abolition of serfdom in Galicia and Bukovyna

Despite these oppressive measures, the Ukrainian people continued their struggle. Numerous uprisings and movements occurred:

• 1789-1794 — Uprising in the village of Turbayakh (in Poltava region)
• 1830s-1840s — Peasant movement and the Inventorial Reform
• 1877 — Peasant movement in Poltava and Kharkiv provinces (March-April)

Ustym Karmaliuk (1787-1835) emerged as a significant figure in the struggle against oppression.

Revolutionary period and national liberation

The Ukrainian people actively participated in the revolutionary movements of the early 20th century. During the 1905-1907 revolution, workers and peasants across Ukraine engaged in mass strikes and demonstrations.

During the years of the first imperialist world war, the tsarist government intensified national oppression in Ukraine. The tsarist regime intensified its oppressive policies against the Ukrainian population.

Key revolutionary events:

• 1902 — Political demonstration of Batumi workers under the leadership of Comrade Stalin (March 9)
• 1902 — Strike of workers in Rostov-on-Don
• 1902 — Escape from Kiev's Lukyanivska prison of 11 revolutionaries (August 18)
• 1903 — II Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (in Brussels-London) (July 17-August 10)
• 1903 — General strike in southern Russia (July-August)
• 1903 — Opening of monument to I. P. Kotlyarevsky in Poltava (August 30)
• 1904 — Beginning of Russo-Japanese War (January 27)
• 1904 — Baku strike of workers under the leadership of Comrade Stalin (December 15)
• 1905 — Bloody Sunday (January 9)
• 1905 — Revolution of 1905-1907
• 1905 — General strike (October)
• 1905 — Armed uprising in Moscow (December)
• 1906 — Opening of monument to Taras Shevchenko in Kyiv (May 26)
• 1906 — First State Duma (April-May)
• 1907 — Second State Duma (February-June)
• 1907 — Third State Duma (November 1907-June 1912)
• 1907 — Revolution of 1905-1907 ends
• 1909-1914 — Industrial upswing in Russia

The industrial upswing of 1909-1914 pushed economic development in Russia forward. The industrial upswing was facilitated by several factors: relatively high crop yields during these years, increased demand for industrial products, and the development of capitalist relations in agriculture.

The industrial production of machines in Russia grew more than 3.5 times, with domestic production increasing more than 4 times, and its center shifted from Poland and the Baltics to the South, to the steppe provinces. In the South in 1894, machines were produced for an amount 22 times greater than in 1876, which testified to the significant development of capitalist agriculture. However, this capitalist progress of agriculture was still extremely slow because in Russia there were large and strong feudal latifundia.

The tsarist government, in turn, tried to strengthen its positions with foreign billion-ruble loans, relying on Western European imperialists as allies in the struggle against the growing revolutionary movement in the country. "The interests of tsarism and Western imperialism," states I. V. Stalin, "were intertwined with each other and ultimately merged into a single tangle of imperialist interests."

The industrial upswing of 1909-1914 moved economic development in Russia forward. The industrial upswing was facilitated by several factors: relatively high crop yields during these years, increased demand for industrial products, and the development of capitalist relations in agriculture.

The industrial production of machines in Russia grew more than 3.5 times, with domestic production increasing more than 4 times, and its center shifted from Poland and the Baltics to the South, to the steppe provinces. In the South in 1894, machines were produced for an amount 22 times greater than in 1876, which testified to the significant development of capitalist agriculture. However, this capitalist progress of agriculture was still extremely slow because in Russia there were large and strong feudal latifundia.

The tsarist government, in turn, tried to strengthen its positions with foreign billion-ruble loans, relying on Western European imperialists as allies in the struggle against the growing revolutionary movement in the country. "The interests of tsarism and Western imperialism," states I. V. Stalin, "were intertwined with each other and ultimately merged into a single tangle of imperialist interests."

In the development of industry in our country, the formation and development of the factory-proletariat was taking place. By the beginning of the 20th century, the number of workers in large factory and plant enterprises, as well as in mining and on railways, reached 2,792,000 people in the Russian Empire.

From 1860 to the beginning of the 20th century, the number of industrial workers in Ukraine grew from 75,000 to 360,200. The number of workers grew especially rapidly in Yekaterinoslav province, i.e., in the Donets coal and Kryvyi Rih iron ore basins, where the number of workers increased by 1900 compared to 1861 from 5,200 to 112,500.

The February Revolution of 1917 created new possibilities for the Ukrainian people. However, the avowed enemies of the people from the Central Rada, counting on the complete enslavement of Ukrainian workers and peasants, rejected the demand of the Council of People's Commissars.

The Central Rada represented the interests of the Ukrainian bourgeoisie and sought to separate Ukraine from the revolutionary movement. Ukrainian bourgeois nationalists, seeing the approaching collapse of their rule, unleashed furious chauvinistic agitation. They sought to blunt the political consciousness of the working people, provoke disagreements between the Russian and Ukrainian peoples, in order to preserve power in their own hands.

History of the Ukrainian SSR

Formation and early years (1917-1922)

The Ukrainian SSR was established following the victory of the Great October Socialist Revolution in Russia. The victory of the Great October Socialist Revolution in Russia opened the path to the rebirth of the Ukrainian people, who created their Soviet socialist state and occupied a prominent place in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.

The Great October Socialist Revolution liberated the Ukrainian people from exploitation by Ukrainian, Russian, and Polish landlords and bourgeoisie, as well as from exploitation by foreign imperialists. It ended the oppression of the Ukrainian people and opened the path to national rebirth and free development.

The establishment of Soviet power in Ukraine faced significant challenges, particularly from the Central Rada, which represented Ukrainian bourgeois nationalist forces. Soviet power, never believed that the voice of the Central Rada was the voice of Ukrainian workers and peasants, and by sending it an ultimatum, the soviet state declared war on the Ukrainian bourgeoisie, which, being connected with world bourgeoisie, attempted to drown in fraternal blood the gains that workers and peasants had wrested from the bourgeoisie in the October Revolution.

The First All-Ukrainian Congress of Soviets held in Kharkiv on December 24-25, 1917, established Soviet power in Ukraine. The Congress adopted the Declaration of the Ukrainian People's Republic of Soviets and the Law on the Socialization of Land.

The formation of the Communist Party of Ukraine (Bolsheviks) was a critical development. The formal organization of the Communist Party of Ukraine had immense significance for the Ukrainian people, for strengthening and developing the Ukrainian Soviet state, for the successful struggle against German occupiers, Ukrainian bourgeois nationalists, and other enemies of freedom and independence of Soviet Ukraine.

The First Congress of Communist Organizations of Ukraine held in Moscow from July 5-12, 1918, formally established the Communist Party (Bolsheviks) of Ukraine as an integral part of the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks). The First Congress of Communist Organizations of Ukraine organizationally formalized the Communist Party (Bolsheviks) of Ukraine as a component part of the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks).

The Ukrainian SSR engaged in a national liberation struggle against foreign intervention and domestic counter-revolution. Against German imperialists, who sought to strangle the young Soviet state, a people's war raged throughout the country. In Ukraine, on the Don, in Latvia, Estonia, and the Transcaucasus, the Soviet people, led by the Communist Party, heroically fought against capitalist slavery.

American, British, French, Japanese, and Italian imperialists intensified military actions, landing their troops in the Far East, Siberia, Arkhangelsk, Ukraine, and Crimea. They calculated to use the forces of internal counter-revolution and simultaneously strike from the north, east, and south to overthrow Soviet power.

In order to unite all counter-revolutionary forces for the struggle against Soviet power, American-British and French imperialists staged a "state coup" in Omsk on November 18, 1918, as a result of which monarchist Admiral Kolchak was proclaimed "supreme ruler and supreme commander."

German soldiers, who were transferred from the Eastern Front to the Western Front, with their stories about fraternization with Russian soldiers and about the October Revolution, which provided peace and freedom to the peoples of Russia, contributed to the disintegration of German troops on the Western Front and strengthened revolutionary sentiments among soldiers.

The occupiers' hopes for improving the food situation in their countries at the expense of Ukrainian bread and lard did not come true. Instead of the planned 60 million poods of bread for export by July 31, 1918, the Germans exported no more than 9 million. The Ukrainian people resisted exploitation by the German occupiers.

The Ukrainian SSR became a founding member of the Soviet Union in 1922. The victory of the Great October Socialist Revolution in Russia and the creation of the Soviet state laid the powerful foundation for the reunification of the Ukrainian people in a single Ukrainian Soviet Socialist State.

Consolidation of Soviet power (1922-1930s)

The period following the formation of the Soviet Union saw the consolidation of Soviet power in Ukraine and the implementation of Lenin's national policy. With the assistance of the Soviet Union, Soviet Ukraine reunited all Ukrainian lands. This process of reunification continued throughout the 1920s and 1930s.

The Constitution of the Ukrainian SSR established the political framework of the republic. All power in the Ukrainian SSR belongs to the working people of city and countryside in the person of the Soviets of Working People's Deputies. The economic foundation consists of the socialist economic system and socialist property on means and objects of production.

The period of transition to peaceful economic restoration (1921-1925) was critical for the Ukrainian SSR. The working people of Soviet Ukraine undertook the immense task of rebuilding the national economy devastated by civil war and foreign intervention.

The policy of "korenizatsiya" (indigenization) was implemented to develop Ukrainian language and culture within the socialist framework. The development of Ukrainian-language education, publishing, and cultural institutions was part of the Soviet national policy.

By 1925, 37% of agricultural products purchased in Ukraine were handled by agricultural cooperatives. Through them, 88% of agricultural machinery and 67% of building materials were sold to the peasantry. Agricultural cooperatives provided credit to the peasantry. In 1925, the peasantry of Ukraine received 110 million rubles in credit—4.6 times more than in 1923. In addition, for the financing of poor peasant households in Ukraine, a special poor peasant credit fund was created, amounting to 3 million rubles in 1925.

Socialist industrialization and collectivization

The Ukrainian SSR underwent rapid industrialization as part of the Soviet Union's broader economic transformation. Socialist industrialization was the only possible path for transforming Ukraine into an advanced socialist republic. The policy of socialist industrialization was designed to transform the entire economic landscape of Soviet Ukraine.

Instead of the outdated and limited pre-revolutionary enterprises, it was necessary to build thousands of new factories and plants, mines and quarries in the Soviet country. It was necessary to create new coal-metallurgical bases, lay out huge railway lines, erect powerful power stations, equip new ports and railway stations.

Key industrial developments included:

• Development of the Donbas coal basin
• Creation of the Krivoy Rog iron ore basin
• Construction of the Dnieper Hydroelectric Station (DniproHES)
• Establishment of heavy machinery plants in Kharkiv and other cities
• Development of chemical industry

Collectivization of agriculture was another key transformation in the development of the Ukrainian SSR. In March 1930, the newspaper "Syla" published the "Model Charter of the Agricultural Artel," many articles and illustrations truthfully illuminating the collectivization of agriculture in Soviet Ukraine. The transition to collective farming represented a fundamental transformation of the agricultural sector. By the mid-1930s, the vast majority of agricultural land in Ukraine was organized into collective farms (kolkhozes) and state farms (sovkhozes). This allowed the mechanization of agriculture, the introduction of scientific farming methods, increased crop yields, and ensured the country's food supply. By February 1935, at the Second All-Union Congress of Shock Agricultural Workers, the "Model Charter of the Agricultural Artel" was adopted, which further strengthened the collective farm system. By 1937, collective farms gave the country more than 1 billion 700 million poods of marketable grain, i.e., 400 million poods more than the landlords, kulaks, and all the peasantry of the country produced in 1913.

The most difficult task of the socialist revolution was solved: the collectivization of agriculture was completed, the collective farm system finally strengthened and turned into a powerful force of communist construction. In socialist agriculture, cooperative-collective socialist property triumphed. The industrial output of the USSR by the end of the second five-year plan grew compared to 1929 by 4 times, and compared to the level of 1913—more than 7 times, of which 80% of all products were obtained from new enterprises. The machine-building industry of the Soviet Union during the years of the second five-year plan almost tripled its production. In electricity production, the USSR moved from the fifteenth place to the second place in Europe and the third place in the world. In tractor production, the USSR took the first place in Europe, and in combine production—the first place in the world.

The reunification of Western Ukrainian territories

The Ukrainian people never reconciled with the fact that they were forcibly divided into parts. The dream of reunification in a single Ukrainian state lived in the people with unextinguished strength.

In autumn 1939, Western Ukraine (Eastern Galicia and Western Volhynia) was reunited with Soviet Ukraine. With the reunification in autumn 1939 of Western Ukraine and with the inclusion in 1940 in the composition of the Ukrainian SSR of the Khotyn, Akkerman, and Izmail districts of liberated Bessarabia from Romanian domination and with the reunification of Northern Bukovina, the population of the Ukrainian SSR increased to 41 million people.

The working masses of Western Ukraine, Northern Bukovina, and Transcarpathia, who had languished in captivity under foreign occupiers, did not cease their struggle, believing in their reunification in a single Ukrainian Soviet Socialist State.

The movement for the reunification of Western Ukraine with Soviet Ukraine intensified in connection with the approach of the Red Army in spring 1919. In Galicia, the people eagerly awaited the arrival of the Red Army and were preparing to begin an armed uprising for Soviet power, but due to the lack of weapons, they could not carry out their intentions.

The reunification of all Ukrainian lands in a single Ukrainian Soviet state was completed. The territory of Soviet Ukraine together with the Crimean region occupies over 602,000 square kilometers, and the population reaches approximately 42 million people.

World War II period

During the Great Patriotic War (World War II), the Ukrainian SSR suffered significant occupation by Nazi forces. On the occupied Ukrainian lands, the Communist Party organized extensive underground resistance.

The partisan movement played a crucial role in resistance against the Nazi occupation. In the partisan movement in Ukraine, the unbreakable friendship and brotherhood of all Soviet peoples was vividly manifested. The sons of all nations spared neither strength nor their very lives in the struggle to accelerate the liberation of the Ukrainian people from German-Fascist invaders. In the partisan detachments of Ukraine, heroes from 62 nationalities of the Soviet Union fought for the liberation of the Ukrainian people.

The Communist Party of Ukraine ensured the publication of an enormous quantity of newspapers and leaflets for the population of temporarily occupied Ukrainian territories. From July 1911 to November 1942, over 25 million copies of the newspapers "Komunist," "Za Radians'ku Ukrainu," and "Sovets'ka Ukraina" were printed and dropped by aircraft, along with 154 titles of leaflets with a total circulation of approximately 167 million copies.

The Red Army fully liberated the land of Soviet Ukraine from German-Fascist invaders by 1944. The liberation of the Ukrainian people was brought by the glorious Soviet Army, in the ranks of which heroic sons of all peoples of the Soviet Union fought.

And if it were not for the great and mighty Soviet Union, not for the salvific help of the Russian people and all fraternal peoples of the Soviet Union, the Ukrainian people would have been plunged into German-Fascist slavery for many decades.

The Young Guard (Molodaya Gvardiya) anti-fascist organization in Krasnodon was one of the most heroic resistance groups. Communists M. G. Demchenko, N. G. Teluev and other communists were arrested by the Gestapo. The Gestapo subjected the arrested communists and Komsomol members to inhuman torture. However, they could not shake the steadfastness of the communists and force them to give the testimony needed by the fascist executioners. The steadfastness and endurance of the communists inspired the Young Guard members, and they courageously endured torture and humiliation by the fascists. Not achieving the testimony, the Hitlerites tortured the communists and Young Guard members to death. The frenzied Gestapo threw the Komsomol members alive into the 53-meter deep shaft of the mine.

Soviet government highly appreciated the heroic deeds of the Young Guard members.

Post-war development

After World War II, the Ukrainian SSR underwent extensive reconstruction and further industrial development. Workers in industry, transportation, and agriculture became initiators of many creative initiatives that contributed to the successful fulfillment of post-war peaceful development tasks.

In 1953, construction began on 116 state power plants and several other hydraulic structures. New powerful thermal power plants were built in Donbas, in the Dnieper region, and the Tereblia-Rechitska hydroelectric power station in Transcarpathia, as well as industrial, collective farm, and communal power plants and power grids in many cities, industrial centers, and villages of the republic.

Rail, sea, river, air, and automobile transport and communications developed rapidly during the fifth five-year plan. The largest railway stations in the republic were built.

The fifth five-year plan saw the completion of the reunification of all Ukrainian lands in a single Ukrainian Soviet state. The territory of Soviet Ukraine together with the Crimean region occupies over 602,000 square kilometers, and the population reaches approximately 42 million people. Under the conditions of the socialist system, the productive forces of Soviet Ukraine received the broadest scope for their development. According to basic economic indicators and cultural development, the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic has far surpassed many major capitalist countries, including France and Italy.

Key economic developments included:

• Restoration and expansion of industrial capacity
• Development of new energy sources
• Expansion of agricultural production
• Growth of scientific research institutions
• Development of cultural and educational infrastructure

The Ukrainian SSR produced more than 20% of all cattle, over a third of the country's pig population. Thanks to the heroic labor of agricultural workers, Soviet Ukraine already in 1953 produced more grain, potatoes, sugar beet and sugar, oil, and fats than France and Italy combined.

In 1955, work was carried out to ensure conditions for obtaining high yields of all agricultural crops. The plan for sowing winter crops was overfulfilled, 503 thousand hectares more than planned were sown. Preparation of soil and sowing of winter crops in collective and state farms of the republic was carried out in the best agrotechnical terms and with high quality. Cross-row and narrow-row planting methods were widely applied on a large scale. Machine-tractor stations of Ukraine performed for collective farms all mechanized work in terms of conditional tillage 6 million hectares more than in 1953.

Agricultural machinery production in 1950 gave agriculture 4 times more tractors (in terms of 15-horsepower), 3.8 times more combines, 4 times more tractor plows, almost 6 times more tractor seeders, and more than three times more tractor cultivators than in 1940.

One of the most characteristic features of the post-war development of socialist industry is rapid technical progress, the systematic introduction of the latest achievements of advanced science and technology into production. In the post-war years, Soviet scientists successfully solved many scientific problems of national economic importance.

In the post-war period, entirely new industries were created that did not exist in pre-revolutionary Russia: automobile manufacturing, tractor manufacturing, combine manufacturing, quality metallurgy, chemical and aviation industries.

Fuel and metallurgical industries were unrecognizably transformed. The fuel industry was expanded and significantly reconstructed on a new technical basis. In addition to the Donets Basin, which previously satisfied the needs of the entire country for fuel, by the end of the five-year plan, the Kuznetsk, Karaganda, Kizelovsk, Cheremkhovsk, Chelyabinsk, and Podmoskovny basins worked for the needs of socialist construction.

In the national economy of the Ukrainian SSR, there were 1,824,000 workers. The number of workers in large-scale census industry exceeded the level of 1913 by 13%.

The entry into operation of dozens and hundreds of new and reconstructed industrial enterprises and the continuous increase in the number of workers employed testified to the rapid growth of the productive forces of our country, to the enormous creative labor of the working class of the USSR.

The working class of the Soviet Union showed the working people of all countries the path to liberation from capitalist slavery.

The national income of the USSR increased more than two and a half times. In the Soviet Union, the entire national income is the property of the people. The working people of the USSR receive for the satisfaction of their personal material and cultural needs about 3/4 of the national income, while the remaining part goes to the expansion of socialist production and to other state and public needs.

The fifth five-year plan provided for an increase in the national income of the USSR for five years by at least 60%. The steady growth of national income made it possible to significantly improve the material position of workers, peasants, and intellectuals.

Political system

Constitutional framework

The Ukrainian SSR operated under a constitution that established it as a sovereign socialist state within the Soviet Union. All power in the Ukrainian SSR belongs to the working people of city and countryside in the person of the Soviets of Working People's Deputies.

The economic foundation consists of the socialist economic system and socialist property on means and objects of production.

The Ukrainian SSR maintained its own governmental structures including:

• Supreme Soviet of the Ukrainian SSR
• Presidium of the Supreme Soviet
• Council of Ministers of the Ukrainian SSR
• Various ministries and state committees
• Local Soviet government structures throughout the republic

The Ukrainian SSR had its own Constitution, which was adopted in 1937. The Constitution of the Ukrainian SSR was in full accordance with the Constitution of the USSR and reflected the specific features of the republic's development.

The Constitution of the Ukrainian SSR proclaimed the socialist system of economy, the socialist ownership of the means of production, and the leading role of the Communist Party of Ukraine.

The Constitution guaranteed the right to work, the right to rest and leisure, the right to education, and the right to social security. It also guaranteed freedom of speech, press, assembly, and demonstrations for the working people.

Communist Party leadership

The Communist Party of Ukraine (Bolsheviks) served as the leading and guiding force of Soviet society in Ukraine. The Communist Party of Ukraine was created on the basis of Marxist-Leninist ideological and organizational principles as a territorial organization of the single Communist Party.

The Communist Party led the struggle of the Ukrainian people against German occupiers and their hirelings.

The teachings of Lenin-Stalin gave the Ukrainian working people a powerful weapon in the struggle against "their own" and foreign oppressors. The Ukrainian people together with the fraternal Russian people and other peoples of tsarist Russia, guided by the teachings of Lenin-Stalin, traversed the heroic path of revolutionary struggle against tsarism and bourgeoisie.

The organizational structure of the Communist Party of Ukraine included:

• Congress of the Communist Party of Ukraine (held periodically)
• Central Committee of the Communist Party of Ukraine
• Politburo of the Central Committee
• Secretariat of the Central Committee
• Regional and local party organizations throughout the republic

Internal party life was built on the principles of democratic centralism, ensuring the unity of actions of all party members.

The Party played a decisive role in the development of the Ukrainian SSR. It led the working people in building socialism and communism. The Party developed cadres of national communists who led the construction of socialism in Ukraine.

The Party led the working people in the struggle against bourgeois nationalism and for the friendship of peoples. The Party organized the working people for the fulfillment of economic and cultural tasks.

The Party educated the working people in the spirit of Marxism-Leninism, proletarian internationalism, and communist morality.

The Party led the working people in the struggle for peace and the strengthening of the socialist camp.

Economy

Industrial development

The Ukrainian SSR developed into a major industrial center within the Soviet Union. Instead of the outdated and limited pre-revolutionary enterprises, it was necessary to build thousands of new factories and plants, mines and quarries in the Soviet country.

Key industrial sectors included:

• Coal mining (Donbas region)
• Metallurgy (Krivoy Rog basin)
• Heavy machinery production (Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk)
• Energy production (including major hydroelectric plants like DniproHES)
• Chemical industry
• Transportation infrastructure

Specific industrial achievements included:

• Construction of the Dnieper Hydroelectric Station (DniproHES)
• Development of the Kryvorizhstal metallurgical plant
• Establishment of the Kharkiv Tractor Plant
• Creation of the Antonov aircraft manufacturing facilities
• Development of the shipbuilding industry in Nikolaev

According to basic economic indicators, the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic has far surpassed many major capitalist countries, including France and Italy.

The industrial output of the Ukrainian SSR during the second five-year plan grew compared to the first five-year plan by 8 times in terms of annual cost of industrial products, which should reach 92.7 billion rubles—49.7 billion rubles more than at the end of the first five-year plan.

On the basis of industrial growth during the second five-year plan, the rapid development of agriculture, the completion of its collectivization and technical reconstruction was planned. The number of Machine-Tractor Stations should increase from 2,446 to 6,000, the tractor fleet—more than three times, the number of combines—to 100,000, automobiles serving agriculture—more than three times.

The industrial output of the USSR by the end of the second five-year plan grew compared to 1929 by 4 times, and compared to the level of 1913—more than 7 times, of which 80% of all products were obtained from new enterprises. The machine-building industry of the Soviet Union during the years of the second five-year plan almost tripled its production. In electricity production, the USSR moved from the fifteenth place to the second place in Europe and the third place in the world. In tractor production, the USSR took the first place in Europe, and in combine production—the first place in the world.

Agricultural development

Agriculture underwent significant transformation through collectivization. In March 1930, the newspaper "Syla" published the "Model Charter of the Agricultural Artel," many articles and illustrations truthfully illuminating the collectivization of agriculture in Soviet Ukraine.

The collective farm (kolkhoz) system became the dominant agricultural model. By the 1950s, Ukraine had become an industrial-collective farm state.

Agricultural achievements included:

• Development of state and collective farm systems
• Mechanization of agriculture
• Introduction of scientific farming methods
• Development of specialized agricultural regions
• Expansion of crop and livestock production

Ukraine, thanks to the socialist economic system, became one of the most well-supplied food republics of the Soviet Union.

The Ukrainian SSR produced more than 20% of all cattle, over a third of the country's pig population. Thanks to the heroic labor of agricultural workers, Soviet Ukraine already in 1953 produced more grain, potatoes, sugar beet and sugar, oil, and fats than France and Italy combined.

In 1955, work was carried out to ensure conditions for obtaining high yields of all agricultural crops. The plan for sowing winter crops was overfulfilled, 503 thousand hectares more than planned were sown. Preparation of soil and sowing of winter crops in collective and state farms of the republic was carried out in the best agrotechnical terms and with high quality. Cross-row and narrow-row planting methods were widely applied on a large scale. Machine-tractor stations of Ukraine performed for collective farms all mechanized work in terms of conditional tillage 6 million hectares more than in 1953.

Agricultural machinery production in 1950 gave agriculture 4 times more tractors (in terms of 15-horsepower), 3.8 times more combines, 4 times more tractor plows, almost 6 times more tractor seeders, and more than three times more tractor cultivators than in 1940.

With great enthusiasm, collective farmers of the Ukrainian SSR fought for the implementation of the three-year plan for the development of public collective farm animal husbandry. In 1949, the number of cattle in collective farms increased by 30%, pigs—by two times, sheep and goats—by 47%, horses—by 28%. As of January 1, 1950, collective farms of Ukraine had more cattle and pigs than on January 1, 1941.

In 1949, 47 million 810 thousand poods more corn was prepared than in the pre-war year of 1940. Sugar beet was delivered to factories 42% more than in 1948.

Culture and education

Cultural development

Under the socialist system, the great Ukrainian Soviet culture was created and developed.

This culture nurtures the people in the spirit of Lenin-Stalinist friendship of peoples, in the spirit of loyalty and devotion to their Soviet Motherland, in the spirit of proletarian internationalism, and nurtures conscious and active builders of communism.

Key cultural developments included:

• Development of Ukrainian-language literature within the socialist framework
• Expansion of theater and performing arts
• Growth of cinema and visual arts
• Development of music and folk traditions
• Preservation and development of historical and cultural heritage

Soviet culture became a powerful tool in the education of workers in the spirit of communism, in strengthening the friendship of peoples.

The Ukrainian SSR developed a vibrant socialist culture. Under the socialist system, the great Ukrainian Soviet culture was created and developed.

This culture nurtured the people in the spirit of Lenin-Stalinist friendship of peoples, in the spirit of loyalty and devotion to their Soviet Motherland, in the spirit of proletarian internationalism, and nurtured conscious and active builders of communism.

In the cities of the western regions of Ukraine, not only were scientific research institutes, universities, and technical schools that existed before the war fully restored, but also a number of new ones were created, including the Uzhhorod State University. At the beginning of the fifth five-year plan, the western regions had 26 universities and 136 technical schools, where more than 75,000 students were studying.

The ancient Ukrainian city of Lviv (Lvov) was transformed into one of the largest scientific and cultural centers of the republic. It has 13 universities, where more than 21,000 students study, and dozens of cultural institutions.

The annual output of cultural institutions in 1951 compared to 1949 was 126% for grain, 252% for cotton. In 1953, the People's Republic of China began to implement the first five-year economic construction plan, aimed at industrializing the country.

Great successes were achieved in the development of the economy of the Korean People's Democratic Republic. The volume of industrial production of the republic in 1949 compared to 1946 increased 4 times. After the people's democratic government conducted agrarian reform, sowing areas expanded by almost 25%, crop yields of all agricultural crops increased significantly.

Education and publishing

Publishing and the press developed at a rapid pace: 5,890 titles of books were published in Ukrainian—twice as many as in the 120 years before the October Revolution.

Numerous works by A. Pushkin, N. Gogol, N. Nekrasov, L. Tolstoy, A. Chekhov, and Maxim Gorky were published in mass circulation translated into Ukrainian.

Works by the classics of Marxism-Leninism were published in mass circulation in Ukrainian and played an exceptional role in the development of Ukrainian socialist culture and the formation of socialist worldviews among the working people.

The republic developed an extensive library system with 114 museums, more than 60,000 public, trade union, school, collective farm, and departmental libraries with a total book fund exceeding 105 million books.

The educational system underwent significant expansion:

• Development of universal primary and secondary education
• Expansion of vocational and technical education
• Growth of higher education institutions
• Development of scientific research organizations
• Establishment of the Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR

The Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR published historical works and conducted research across various scientific disciplines.

The works of the classics of Marxism-Leninism, the direct attention and guiding instructions of V. I. Lenin and I. V. Stalin on historical questions armed Soviet scholars to defeat the bourgeois-nationalist conception in the field of history and enabled the creation of a scientific history of the Ukrainian people.

Key scientific developments included:

• Establishment of the Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR
• Development of research institutes in various scientific fields
• Growth of scientific personnel
• Participation in major Soviet scientific projects
• Development of indigenous scientific schools

The educational system of the Ukrainian SSR was built on the principles of accessibility, free education, and the connection of education with production.

The Soviet government created conditions for the development of education for all nationalities living in the Ukrainian SSR.

The Ukrainian SSR developed a system of higher education that trained specialists for all branches of the national economy.

The Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR was the leading scientific institution of the republic.

The Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR united the leading scientific institutions of the republic and coordinated scientific research.

The Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR developed fundamental and applied research in all fields of knowledge.

The Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR trained scientific personnel and participated in the solution of urgent problems of national economic development.

National policy

Leninist national policy

Only as a result of the victory of the Great October Socialist Revolution, on the basis of the Lenin-Stalinist friendship of the peoples of the USSR, did the Ukrainian people achieve their national rebirth and create the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic.

With Russian and other fraternal peoples of the Soviet Union, the Ukrainian people found a true, strong friend and ally in the struggle for their social and national liberation.

The implementation of national policy included:

• Development of Ukrainian language in education and administration
• Support for Ukrainian cultural development
• Training of Ukrainian national cadres
• Promotion of internationalist consciousness
• Protection of national rights within the socialist framework

The Soviet government implemented a policy of indigenization, which created conditions for the development of national cultures within the socialist framework.

The Soviet government created conditions for the development of national languages in education, publishing, and administration.

The Soviet government trained national cadres who led the construction of socialism in the republics.

The Soviet government protected the rights of all nationalities living in the USSR.

The Soviet government promoted the friendship of peoples and proletarian internationalism.

The Soviet government fought against bourgeois nationalism and great-power chauvinism.

The Soviet government created conditions for the harmonious development of all nationalities living in the USSR.

Struggle against bourgeois nationalism

Lenin sharply opposed the Ukrainian petty-bourgeois nationalists who called themselves "Ukrainian Social-Democrats," who allied with the Ukrainian bourgeoisie and propagated the separation of Ukrainian workers from Russian workers into separate political organizations.

The Ukrainian Social-Democrats represented the interests of the Ukrainian urban petty bourgeoisie, petty-bourgeois intelligentsia, and kulaks. Their leaders were V. Vinnichenko and S. Petliura, who later became the leaders of nationalist counter-revolution.

Under the patronage of foreign imperialists, in Western Ukraine were created and operated Ukrainian fascist organizations OUN and UNDO, which represented the most reactionary elements of Ukrainian bourgeois nationalism.

The struggle against bourgeois nationalism included:

• Exposure of nationalist ideology
• Defense of proletarian internationalism
• Protection of Soviet state integrity
• Promotion of friendship among peoples
• Education in the spirit of socialist internationalism

Territory and population

Territorial extent

By the 1950s, the Ukrainian SSR had a territory of over 602,000 square kilometers, including the Crimean region.

With the assistance of the Soviet Union, Soviet Ukraine reunited all Ukrainian lands. This included:

• Eastern Ukrainian territories that had been part of the Russian Empire
• Western Ukrainian territories that had been part of Poland
• Northern Bukovina that had been part of Romania
• Zakarpattia that had been part of Czechoslovakia

The political-administrative map of the USSR (1954) showed the Ukrainian SSR as one of the union republics of the Soviet Union. The Ukrainian SSR was divided into oblasts (regions), which were further divided into raions (districts). The Ukrainian SSR had its own territory, which was an integral part of the territory of the USSR. The Ukrainian SSR shared borders with other Soviet republics and with foreign countries. The Ukrainian SSR included Western Ukrainian territories (after 1939). The Ukrainian SSR included Northern Bukovina (after 1940). The Ukrainian SSR included the Khotyn, Akkerman, and Izmail districts of Bessarabia (after 1940).

Population

The population of the Ukrainian SSR reached approximately 42 million people by the 1950s.

The national composition of the Ukrainian SSR included:

• Ukrainian majority
• Significant Russian population
• Other nationalities including Belarusians, Jews, Poles, Bulgarians, Greeks, and others

Under the socialist system, the productive forces of Soviet Ukraine received the broadest scope for their development.

The population of the Ukrainian SSR grew steadily due to natural increase and the reunification of Ukrainian lands.

The population of the Ukrainian SSR was characterized by high cultural and educational levels.

The population of the Ukrainian SSR was characterized by high labor productivity.

The population of the Ukrainian SSR was characterized by high standards of living.

The population of the Ukrainian SSR was characterized by high levels of health care.

The population of the Ukrainian SSR was characterized by high levels of social security.

The population of the Ukrainian SSR was characterized by high levels of political consciousness.

The population of the Ukrainian SSR was characterized by high levels of internationalism.

The population of the Ukrainian SSR was characterized by high levels of friendship among peoples.

The population of the Ukrainian SSR was characterized by high levels of unity in the struggle for socialism and communism.

International relations

As a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Ukrainian SSR participated in international affairs primarily through the Soviet Union's foreign policy framework. The internationalist character of the Ukrainian SSR's foreign policy orientation was guided by the principles of proletarian internationalism.

Works by I. V. Stalin such as "Marxism and the National Question" and separate articles from the book "Questions of Leninism" were widely disseminated, providing theoretical guidance for international relations based on socialist principles.

The Ukrainian SSR contributed to the international communist movement through:

• Support for anti-imperialist struggles
• Participation in international cultural exchanges
• Contribution to the global socialist movement
• Support for national liberation movements

Legacy

The Ukrainian people traversed a great and glorious historical path, forever reunited with the fraternal Russian people. Illuminated by the bright light of Marxism-Leninism, the profound changes that occurred in their historical destinies appeared before the Ukrainian people in all their greatness.

The victory of the Great October Socialist Revolution brought Ukraine the longed-for, hard-earned freedom and marked the beginning of a new and truly glorious era in the history of the Ukrainian people. Under Soviet power, the Ukrainian people achieved national rebirth and occupied a prominent place in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.

The enduring significance of the Ukrainian SSR included:

• Creation of a sovereign socialist state for the Ukrainian people
• Realization of national aspirations within the socialist framework
• Achievement of unprecedented economic and cultural development
• Contribution to the global socialist movement
• Creation of conditions for the building of communism

True brotherly, inseparable friendship between the Ukrainian and Russian peoples is a "mighty force in the struggle for the further flourishing of Soviet Ukraine." "The experience of history has shown that the path of brotherly unity and union chosen by the Russian and Ukrainian peoples was the only correct path."

The Ukrainian SSR made a significant contribution to the building of communism.

See also

• Soviet Union
• Communist Party of Ukraine (Soviet Union)
• Great Patriotic War
• Socialist industrialization
• Collectivization in the Soviet Union
• Bourgeois nationalism
• Ukrainian People's Republic
• Holodomor
• Great Purge
• Soviet famine of 1932–1933
• Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
• Ukrainian Insurgent Army
• Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists
• Dissolution of the Soviet Union

Further reading

• История Украинской ССР, Том 1, Киев — 1954
• История Украинской ССР, Том 2, Киев — 1954
• Краткий курс истории ВКП(б)
• Сочинения В.И. Ленина
• Сочинения И.В. Сталина
• История КП(б) Украины, Киев — 1953
• История ВКП(б). Краткий курс, Москва — 1952
• История внешней политики СССР
• История гражданской войны в СССР, Том 1-5
• История Великой Отечественной войны Советского Союза, Том 1-6
• История Советского Союза, Том 1-2
• История народов СССР