Since time immemorial, it has been customary for people to erect monuments in honor of revered personalities. At first, gods were considered as such, then rulers of states. And later, monuments began to be erected by commanders, writers, poets, etc. In short, those who, in the opinion of the people, deserve this honor. What distinguished Bogdan Khmelnitsky, and for what monuments were erected to him in several cities at once? From this article you will learn about what kind of person this is, as well as about the monuments to Bogdan Khmelnitsky in Kiev, Donetsk and Simferopol.
Who is it?
Bogdan Khmelnitsky is a hetman who lived in the 17th century. He was the leader of the Zaporozhye army, which was located on the territory of the modern city of the same name (in the southeast of Ukraine). At that time, that was the name of the whole region that was beyond the thresholds of the Dnieper. This is where its name comes from.
For this territory, characterized by a favorable climate and fertile soil, there has always been a struggle with neighboring states. Namely, with modern Poland and the Russian Empire. Therefore, the region has always been distinguished by a special political situation, enjoyed the protection of one country or another. However, the people who lived here always sought independence, they wanted to throw off the yoke of oppression by rulers alien to them. It is understandable, because the main part of the population of Zaporozhye was made up of runaway peasants who were looking for personal freedom. This very freedom was offered to them by Bogdan Khmelnitsky.
Rise of Bohdan Khmelnitsky
At one time he was in the service of the Polish king Vladislav the Fourth. According to some reports, the commander spoke in one of the battles and on the side of the French Cardinal Mazarin. However, realizing that the Zaporizhzhya people were oppressed and people were forced to experience oppression (both in matters of religion and in terms of using their native language), Khmelnitsky decided to fight for independence from the Commonwealth, in which Ukraine was then in power. Speaking against the Polish king of the Crimean Tatars, headed by Khan Islam Third Girey, the commander conducted a large-scale war, in which not only the military took part - both the peasants and the townspeople supported the uprising.
As a result of the Liberation War of the Ukrainian and Belarusian peoples, into which the rebellion of the Cossacks of the Zaporizhzhya Sich, the Left Bank of the Dnieper, the Zaporizhzhya Sich and Kiev freed themselves from the national oppression of the Polish government.
And in 1654 Hetmanism led by Bogdan Khmelnitsky voluntarily became part of the Russian Empire. For services to the people in many cities of Ukraine, monuments to this hetman were erected.
Monument to Bogdan Khmelnitsky in Kiev
We begin our review of the monuments to the hetman from the capital of Ukraine. In addition, it is the oldest monument to Bohdan Khmelnitsky. The sculpture was installed on the central (Sofia) square of the city of Kiev in 1888. This event was timed to the ninetieth anniversary of the baptism of Russia. However, the idea of creating a monument arose long behind this. In the 1840s historian Nikolai Kostomarov came up with this initiative. The famous sculptor Mikhail Mikeshin undertook the work. Moreover, his initial idea was different from the monument to Bogdan Khmelnitsky that we see now. Largely due to lack of funds raised, and also because the first option contained anti-Jewish and anti-Polish motives. Therefore, the project was revised.
The long-awaited installation
In 1879, a bronze statue of Bohdan Khmelnitsky was cast at the Byrd St. Petersburg plant. But she did not immediately take her rightful place. Until 1885, Khmelnitsky was forced to stand in the courtyard of the State Chambers. The reason for this was the lack of money for the pedestal. Only when his cheaper project was developed, the monument was finally erected on a stone hill, the material for which was donated by the leadership of the Kiev fortress. Since then, as if stopping the horse on a gallop, a brave and decisive hetman, who once liberated his native country from oppression and disrespect for Polish authorities, flaunts on Sophia Square.
Nowadays, the monument to Bogdan Khmelnitsky is considered one of the symbols of Kiev.
Other sculptures
Less well-known, but no less significant monuments to Bogdan Khmelnitsky in Donetsk and Simferopol also deserve attention. Both of them were established in 1954 in honor of the centenary of the Pereyaslav Treaty, according to which Ukraine voluntarily became part of the Russian Empire.
In Donetsk, as in Kiev, the hetman is depicted on horseback. The commander has a mace in his hand, symbolizing Khmelnytsky’s readiness to defend his people. Ten years later, in Ukraine, the regional center of the Donetsk region, a reinforced concrete copy of the Donetsk sculpture was installed.
The monument to Bogdan Khmelnitsky in Simferopol is distinguished primarily by the fact that it is only a bust of the commander who holds in his hand a scroll with the inscription "With Russia forever," which means the unification of Ukraine and Russia.