Filipp Orlyk Ukrainian statesman Date of Birth: 11.10.1672 Country: Ukraine

1. Early Life and Education
2. Ghetman Service
3. Exile and Hetmanship
4. Failed Campaigns and Diplomatic Efforts
5. Literary and Political Legacy

Early Life and Education

Filip Orlik, a Ukrainian statesman,was born into a family of Czech nobles. His father, Stepan Orlik, was a Catholic who fought in the Polish-Ottoman War and died in 1673. His mother, Irina, was from the Malakhovsky family, Orthodox landowners in Kosiuta. Filip was baptized into Orthodox Christianity as a child.

Orlik received his education at a Jesuit college in Vilnius and later at the prestigious Kyiv-Mohyla Academy (1692 or 1694), where he excelled in theology and philosophy. He became proficient in multiple languages, including Polish, Swedish, French, Bulgarian, Serbian, Italian, German, Greek, Latin, and Ancient Greek.

Ghetman Service

After graduating from the academy, Orlik served as a secretary in the Kyiv Spiritual Consistory. In 1698, he joined the service of Hetman Ivan Mazepa, zunächst as a clerk. By 1706, he had risen to the rank of General Clerk, managing the affairs of the Ghetman's military chancellery.

Orlik became a staunch supporter of Mazepa's policies, including the decision to switch sides to Swedish King Charles XII during the Russo-Swedish War. He played a key role as one of Mazepa's chief diplomats, being privy to the plan as early as 1707.

Exile and Hetmanship

Following the Swedish army's defeat at Poltava in 1709, Orlik fled with Mazepa to the Ottoman territory of Bender. After Mazepa's death, the remaining loyal Cossack officers elected Orlik as Hetman of Right-Bank Ukraine on April 5, 1710.

During these elections, Orlik's "Pacts and Constitution of the Rights and Liberties of the Zaporizhian Host" (known as the Constitution of Pylyp Orlyk) was proclaimed. This document recognized the protectorate of Charles XII over Ukraine and established a system of governance based on the authority of the Ghetman and a General Rada.

Failed Campaigns and Diplomatic Efforts

In 1711, Orlik's supporters, led by Kostia Gordiyenko, attempted an invasion of Right-Bank Ukraine. However, the Tatars withdrew their support, forcing the Cossacks to retreat to Bender. In 1712, Orlik drafted the "Code of Ukrainian Laws" and the "Manifesto to European Governments."

After the end of the Russo-Turkish War in 1714, Orlik was forced to leave Bender and seek refuge in Sweden. He later lived in Austria, the Czech Republic, and finally returned to Turkish territory in 1722. He continued to consider himself Ghetman and hoped to secure foreign intervention to liberate Ukraine from Russian rule.

Literary and Political Legacy

Orlik was a prolific writer, authoring works such as "Alcides of Russia" (1695), "Hypomenes of Sarmatia" (1698), and the "Diary of a Traveler" (1720-1733). He received recognition in Ukraine, with a prize and a street in Kyiv bearing his name.

Despite his efforts to gain international support for Ukraine, Orlik's ultimate goal of achieving independence from Russia remained elusive. In Russian historical tradition, he is often portrayed as a traitor, while in Ukrainian history, his role as a champion of Ukrainian sovereignty is celebrated.