The Cult of Roman Shukhevych in Ukraine: Myth Making with Complications

Abstract

Ukrainian president Viktor Iushchenko's posthumous designation of Roman Shukhevych (1907-1950), the supreme commander of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (upa) as a Hero of Ukraine in 2007 triggered intense, and polarized debates in Ukraine and abroad, about Second World War-era Ukrainian nationalism and its place in history. Particularly sensitive are Roman Shukhevych's whereabouts in 1940-1943, when he served in German uniform, as a Hauptmann, or captain, in the battalion Nachtigall in 1941 thereafter, in 1942-1943 in Schutzmannschaft battalion 201, taking part in 'anti-partisan operations' in occupied Belarus. This article analyzes the controversy regarding the memory of Roman Shukhevych.