Bogdan Hmelnitskiy Statesman and military leader, hetman of Ukraine Date of Birth: 01.12.1595 Country: Ukraine

Biography of Bohdan (Zinoviy) Khmelnytsky

Bohdan (Zinoviy) Khmelnytsky (c. 1595, probably Chyhyryn - August 6, 1657, Chyhyryn) was a Ukrainian statesman and military leader who served as the Hetman of Ukraine in 1648. He was born into a family of Polish nobility with Ukrainian roots. Khmelnytsky received his education at a Jesuit college in Lviv while maintaining his Orthodox faith. He participated in the Polish-Turkish War of 1620-21 and was captured by the Turks for two years. Upon his return to Ukraine, he joined the registered Cossack army and took part in the popular uprisings of 1637-1638. He held various positions, including military clerk and Chyhyryn sotnik.

In the mid-1640s, Khmelnytsky began preparing for an uprising against Polish domination in Ukraine. In 1647, he was arrested but soon escaped and fled to the Zaporozhian Sich. In January 1648, the Liberation War of the Ukrainian people (1648-1654) began under Khmelnytsky's leadership. During the war, he served as a military commander, diplomat, and organizer of Ukrainian statehood. Khmelnytsky achieved victories at the Battle of Yellow Waters, the Battle of Korsun in 1648, and the Battle of Pilavtsi. In 1648, he sent a letter to Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich requesting that Ukraine be placed under Russian rule, and in early 1649, he made a repeated request.

After the resumption of hostilities with Poland, Ukrainian forces under Khmelnytsky's command won the Battle of Zboriv in 1649. However, a betrayal by his Crimean Khan ally forced him to conclude the Zboriv Treaty with Poland in 1649. After the defeat of the Cossack troops at the Battle of Berestechko, the harsh Bila Tserkva Treaty was signed in 1651. The armed struggle of the Ukrainian people under Khmelnytsky's leadership continued and led to the defeat of the Polish army at the Battle of Batih in 1652.

Following the decision of the Russian government to reunite Ukraine with Russia, Khmelnytsky led the Pereyaslav Council in 1654, which ceremonially confirmed this act. Khmelnytsky remained at the head of the Hetmanate until his death.