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Soon after the beginning of the First World War on July 28th, 1914, Russia invaded the Austrian province of Galicia on August 19th of that year. Russian troops routed their Austrian opponents, advancing 280-300 kilometers into Austrian territory and capturing most of eastern Galicia. The principal city, Lemberg (known today as Lviv) fell to the Russian forces on September 3rd. Eastern Galicia had a population of approximately 4.8 million people Ruthenians made up approximately 65% of the population while Poles made up 22% of the population. It was the last large Eastern Slavic territory and the last former integral part the medievel state of Kievan Rus to be integrated into the Russian Empire, the self-proclaimed successor state to Kievan Rus. Russia would control and administer this territory from September 1914 until the Russian forces were driven out in June 1915.

Background

The territory of eastern Galicia had once been an integral part of the medieval state of Kievan Rus before existing as an independent kingdom and principality until 1349. From the mid 14th century until 1772 it had been ruled by Poland. Following the First Partition of Poland in 1772 it became a part of the Austrian Empire. The Austrian government emancipatd the Ukrainan peasants from serfdom, introduced a rudimantary educational system, raised the status of Ukrainian Catholic priests in a way that made them equal to Roman Catholic priests. These reforms insured the loyalty of most of the Ukrainian population to the Austrian state. When the Austrian Empire was reorganized as Austria–Hungary eastern Galicia continued to be under Austria's jurisdiction and remained this way until the Empire's collapse following World War I.

According to the 1900 Austrian census Eastern Galicia had a population of 4.8 million people, of whom approximately 65% were Ukrainian, 22% Polish and 13% Jewish. Rivalries between the ethnic groups and between political factions within those ethnic groups would shape the occupation policies of the Russian administration.

Although a minority, prior to World War I the Poles wielded considerable political power due to their domination of the province prior to Austrian rule and the near monopoly of power within the local government. Much of the land was owned by Polish aristocrats and Poles were a majority of the population in the territory's largest city and cultural capital, Lviv.

Historically, the Ukrainians of eastern Galicia had had an ideological rivalry between Ukrainophiles - people who considered themselves to be part of the Ukrainian nation - and Russophiles - those who believed that Ukraine was an artificial creation and that they were part of the Russian nation. Russophiles dominated western Ukrainian society in the mid 19th century but by the beginnning of the First World War had been eclipsed by the Ukrainophiles. No longer widely popular within their own community, they depended on support from Russia (such as from the Galician-Russian Benevolent Society based in St. Petersburg) and from Polish aristocrats who used their movement to split Ukrainian society. This support notwithstanding, both Russophiles and Ukrainophiles were opposed to the Poles whom they considered to be historical oppressors. However, the Russophiles were loyal to Russia and hoped that the war would bring about the integration of eastern Galicia with Russia while the Ukrainophiles, in contrast, were loyal to Austria and hoped that the war would bring about a dismemberment of the Russian Empire and the emergence of an independent Ukraine in its territory. Both factions within the Ukrainian community were bitterly opposed to each other.

Galicia's Jews, seeing the Hapsburg dynasty as their protectors and considering the Russian state to be antisemitic, were generally quite loyal to the Austrian during the war.

Former Russian Interior Minister Pyotr Durnovo was an outspoken opponent of the annexation of eastern Galicia. Writing in February 1914, he claimed that the people had for the most part lost all connection to the Russian fatherland, and that in addition to a "negligable handfull" of Russophile Ukrainian Galicians, Russia would take in large amounts of Poles, Jews, and Ukrainophile Ukrainians. Durnovo wrote that currently Ukrainian separatism was not a threat to Russia but that annexing a territory with many Ukrainian nationalists could plant seeds within Russia for a dangerous movement and that this might have unexpected consequences. Despite this warning, most Russian political figures across the political spectrum supported annexing eastern Galicia. Mikhail Rodzianko, chairman of the State Duma, decalred that war against a common enemy would unite all nationalities within Russia, a sentiment echoed by the liberal politican Alexander Kerensky.

Russian Rule

In his first orders to the Russian troops crossing into eastern Galicia, General Aleksei Brusilov, commander of the Russian forces, proclaimed "We are entering Galicia, which despite its being a constituent part of Austria-Hungary, is a Russian land from time immemorial, populated, after all, by Russian people (russkim zhe narodom). Russian Grand Duke Nicholas issued a manifesto proclaiming that the people of Galicia were brothers who had "languished for centuries under a foreign yoke" and urged them to "raise the banner of United Russia."

Initially, Russian policies in eastern Galicia were largely formulated by General Aleksei Brusilov and by Army Chief of Staff Nikolai Ianushkevich. The first governor General was Sergei Sheremetev. He cooperated closely with Poles loyal to Russia and pursued a pro-Polish policy that included the opening of Polish schools. This aroused the outrage of local Russophiles who successfully pushed for his removal. He was replaced by count Georgiy Bobrinsky, who would govern eastern Galicia for approximately nine months until the Russian retreat in June 1915.

Political Organization

General Brusilov's initial orders were for Austrian laws to remain in effect and for Austrian officials to continue their duties - in the name of the Russian emperor instead of the Austrian emperor - as long as they would not be suspected of possible treason to the new Russian authorities. Nevertheless this proved difficult, due to the fact that many Austrian officials had fled, and because the loyalty to Russia of those who remained was in doubt. Initially local Galician Russophiles were used to staff positions. However, in time the bureaucracy came to be staffed overwhelmingly by officlals transferred in from neighboring regions of the Russian Empire. As often happens in such reassignments, the bureaucrats of the neighboring regions took advantage of the opportunity to transfer out those with the elast amount of ability, experience, education as well as those who caused trouble. As a result, in addition to understaffing the Russian administration in Galicia suffred from poor quality in personnel. Many of the transferees belonged to right-wing Russian antionalist parties who espoused anti-Semitism as well as hostility towards Ukrainians and Poles.

In the fall of 1914, Lviv, Ternopil and Chernivtsi regions were designated as separate guberniyi.

Educational Policy

In mid September 1914 all schools in eastern Galicia were temporarily shut down pending the introduction of Russian-language instruction. The Russian government then subsidized special Russian-language courses for Galician teachers. Maria Lokjhvitskaya-Skalon, the founder of several educational institutions in St. Petersburg, arrived in Galicia to help in this effort by organizing courses in the Russian language, Russian literature and Russian history. Much of the work involved in Russifying the schools was coordinated by the Galician-Russian Benevolent Society. Scholarships were set up for Galician "Russophile comrades" who wanted to attend Russian-language universities.

Religious Policy

Soon after Russian soldiers crossed into eastern Galicia, the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church met in a special session to discuss how to organize "Russian population" of Galicia's religious life. Evlogii, the archbishop of Volynia and Zhytomir, was appointed to lead the Orthodox movement in Galicia. The ultimate Russian goal with respect to the Ukrainian Catholic Church that dominated Ukrainian religious life in eastern Galicia was its liquidation. The popular head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky, perceived as a "father figure" by most Galician Ukrainians, was arrested and exiled to Russia. This arrest resulted in diplomatic protests from the Vatican, from Russia's Western allies and from the United States. Nicholas II issued a decree forbidding forceful conversion from Uniatism to Orthodoxy, except in cases where 75% of the parishioners approved. However, hundreds of Ukrainian Catholic priests were exiled to Russia and replaced by Orthodox priests, who then urged the parishioners to convert to Orthodoxy. Local Russian authorities werre so zealous in converiting the Galicians to Orthodoxy that army chief Russian Grand Duke Nicholas complained that ammunition trians desperately needed by the Russian army were commandeered for the purpose of transporting Orthodox priests into Galicia. More than anything else, Russian policy against the Ukrainian Catholic Church contributed to turning Galician peasants and even Russophiles against the Russian cause.

Policies toward local nationalities

The Russian authorities referred to the local majority as Galician Russians and actively opposed those who maintained a Ukrainian orientation. Thousand of Ukrainian political and cultural figures were arrested and deported. All Ukrainian bookstores were closed and a ban was instituted on Ukrainian-language works printed abroad. Local Russophiles played a significant role in identifying those in the Ukrainian population who could be considered traitors to the Russian authorities.

East Galicia's Jewish population were assumed by the Russian authorities to be loyal to Austria and were therefore treated as potential spies and traitors. The Jewish community's publications were censored, and Jews faced arrest and deportation. Jews were taken as hostages in order to prevent spying within the community. In February 1915 the Russian authorities banned Jews from moving into eastern Galicia and banned all publication and correspondence in the Yiddish language.

Reaction

The behavior of the Russian authorities was so heavy-handed that it was denounced as a "European scandal" in the Russian Duma by the Russian statesman Pavel Milyukov. Throughout 1914 and 1915, Jewish newspapers throughout Austria vividly described Russian policy as barbaric and described, frequently with exaggeration, gruesome details of Russian atrocities against Jews. Zionists in particular identified Jewish and Austrian aims against the common Russian enemy.

Aftermath

When Austria regained Galicia in June 1915, most of the remaining Russophiles and their families retreated alongside the Russian army in fear of reprisals. "Galician Russians" were granted exemptions by the Russian government to the traditional 5 year residency requirement for Russian citizenship, and approximately 25,000 of them were resettled near Rostov-on-Don. In addition, many Jews and ethnic Germans were accused of being spies and deported east. The flood of refugees was so great that they blocked the roads, interfering with Russian military movements. Among the Russophiles who stayed in Galicia, the Austrians arrested and sentenced to death approximately thirty noted Russophiles, including two members of parliament, Dmytro Markov and Volodymyr Kurylovich (their sentences were commuted to life imprisonment and they were released in 1917)., as well as Metodyj Trochanovskij. Kost Levitsky, a prominent Ukrainophile leader and the future president of the West Ukrainian National Republic, appeared as a prosecutor during the trials against the Russophiles.

After the Austrian return to Galicia, Austrian then-crown Prince Karl I praised Galicia's Jews for their patriotism during the Russian occupation.

Following the evacuation of the Russian administration from Galicia to Kiev, Governor General's Bobrinsky's staff conducted a review of their policies in order to identify mistakes that they had made. The review concluded that the main source of difficulties was the "low educational and moral levels" of Russian officials sent to Galicia and that the pace of educationa and cultural reforms was too quick and too brutal. Russian newspapers in Kiev concurred, and appealed for greater tolerance of Galicia's language, religion and culture.

Notes

1. ^ Mark Von Hagen. (2007). War in a European borderland: occupations and occupation plans in Galicia . Seattle: University of Washington Press. pg. 19
2. ^ Ivan Lysiak Rudnytsky, John-Paul Himka. (1981). Rethinking Ukrainian History. Edmonton, Alberta: Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies Press.
3. ^ Timothy Snyder. (2003). The Reconstruction of Nations. New Haven: Yale University Press. pg. 123
4. Arthur Ruppin, Margaret Bentwich. (1913). The Jews of Today. New York: H. Holt and Company pg.96
5. Mark Von Hagen. (2007). War in a European borderland: occupations and occupation plans in Galicia . Seattle: University of Washington Press. pp.10-18
6. ^ Marsha Rozenblit. (2004) Reconstructing a National Identity: The Jews of Habsburg Austria during World War I. New York: Oxford University Press
7. Ukraine on the Road to Freedom, published by the Ukrainian National Committee of the United States, 1919. pp.41-42
8. ^ Mark Von Hagen. (2007). War in a European borderland: occupations and occupation plans in Galicia . Seattle: University of Washington Press. pp.37-42
9. ^ Paul Robert Magosci. (1996) Ukraine" a History. Tornto: University of Toronto Press, pg. 465
10. Bohdan Bociurkiw. (1989). Sheptytskyi and the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church Under the Soviet Occupation of 1939–1941, pp. 101–123. Taken from Morality and Reality: The Life and Times of Andrei Sheptytskyi, edited by [[Paul Robert Magocsi. Edmonton Canada: Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies, University of Alberta
11. Lviv Eparchy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. History: "Pod Russkoy vlastyu (1914–1915 gg.)" ("Under Russian Rule (1914–1915)"), retrieved on April 22, 2007.
12. ^ Mark von Hagen. "War, loyalties and identities in the Russian Empire. (1998). Chapter in the book Russia in the Age of Wars, 1914-1955. Edited by Silvio Pons, Andrea Romano, Fondazione Giangiacomo Feltrinelli. Published by Feltrinelli Editore. pg. 17
13. Aviel Roshwald. (2001).Ethnic nationalism and the fall of empires Routledge Press. pg.91
14. Subtelny 1986.
15. Magosci 1996, p 466.
16. Mark Von Hagen. (2007). War in a European borderland: occupations and occupation plans in Galicia . Seattle: University of Washington Press. pp.72-86

See also

Soviet annexation of Western Ukraine, 1939–1940

• History of Ukraine
• Austro-Hungarian Empire and World War I
• History of Russia
• History of Poland