Full biography of Stepan Bandera

January 1, 1909 in the village of Stary Ugryniv in Galicia was born Stepan Andreevich Bandera - an ideologist and one of the founders of the nationalist movement of Ukraine. His activities still cause fierce controversy, although more than 56 years have passed since the murder of the politician. To help understand the secret of the attractiveness of his ideology to some, Stepan Bandera's biography may be.

A family

His parents were people who sincerely believed and were closely associated with the Greek Catholic (Uniate) church. Stepan's father, Andrei Mikhailovich, served as a village priest and actively promoted the ideas of Ukrainian nationalism. In 1919 he was even elected to the National Council of ZUNR, and then he fought in the troops of Denikin. After the Civil War, Andrei Mikhailovich returned to his native village and continued his service as a village priest.

Stepan's mother, Miroslava Vladimirovna, also came from the clergyman's family. That is why the children, and there were six of them, were brought up in the spirit of values important for the parents and devotion to the ideas of Ukrainian nationalism.

Biography of Stepan Bandera: childhood

The family lived in a small house, which they provided the leadership of the church. According to the testimony of contemporaries, who are familiar with the biography of Stepan Bandera, he grew up obedient and devout boy. At the same time, in the gymnasium, he tried to form a strong-willed quality, for example, pouring cold water in the winter, than he earned a joint disease for the rest of his life.

To enter the gymnasium, Stepan left his parents' house rather early and moved to Stary town to visit his grandparents. It was there that he acquired the first experience of political activity and showed himself as a man with excellent organizational skills. Thus, Bandera participated in the activities of various political organizations, including the Union of Ukrainian Nationalist Youth.

After graduating from high school, Stepan returned to Ugryniv, started organizing young nationalists and even created a local choir.

Becoming the leader of the nationalist movement

Entering in 1929 in the Polytechnic School of the city of Lviv, Stepan Bender continues his political activities.

It was a difficult period. As the discontent with the Polish authorities grows in the radical part of society, the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists is more and more active. It deals with terrorist acts, its militants attack postal trains and liquidate political opponents. And, as a response to the terror and protests, massive repression of the authorities begins.

In the thirties, Bandera, who had previously been primarily engaged in propaganda, became one of the most active leaders of the OUN. He is repeatedly subjected to short-term arrests, mainly for the dissemination of anti-Polish literature. By the way, the biography of Stepan Bandera during this period also contains many dark pages. In particular, according to some sources, in 1932 he under the guidance of German specialists was trained in a special intelligence school in Danzig.

However, Bandera's work at important posts in the OUN was relatively short-lived. In 1934, he was arrested, and then sentenced to hanging for the preparation of the murder of Bronislaw Peracki - Polish Interior Minister. True, the death penalty was later replaced with a life imprisonment.

Activities during the German occupation

In 1939, after Poland was captured by Germany, Bandera Stepan, whose biography continues to arouse the interest of researchers of the history of Eastern Europe in the 20th century, escapes from prison. He seeks to restore his influence in the leadership of the OUN and continue the struggle for the ideals of Ukrainian nationalism, but faces a number of problems.

As you know, Galicia and Volyn, who were originally the centers of struggle for the creation of sovereign Ukraine, at that time found themselves in the USSR, and nationalist activity there became difficult. Moreover, there was no unity at the top of the OUN. Supporters of one of its leaders, Andrei Miller, advocated an alliance with fascist Germany.

Such a possibility categorically rejects Bandera, who understands that the political leadership of the invaders will never agree to the sovereignty of Ukraine.

Disagreements reach open clashes. Confrontation between the factions of the OUN encourages Bender to engage in recruiting armed groups. Relying on them, he at the rally in Lviv in 1941 proclaims the creation of an independent state of Ukraine.

In Germany

The reaction of the occupation authorities did not take long. Stepan Bandera, whose brief biography is familiar to every Ukrainian student, along with his comrade-in-arms Yaroslav Stetsko, was arrested by the Gestapo, and they were sent to Berlin. Employees of the German special services offered the OUN leader cooperation and support. In exchange for this, he had to abandon the propaganda of Ukrainian independence. He did not accept this proposal and ended up in the concentration camp of Sachsenhausen, where he stayed until 1944.

However, in fairness it must be said that there he was in fairly comfortable conditions and even had the opportunity to meet with his wife. Moreover, Bandera, while in Sachsenhausen, wrote and sent home articles and documents of political content. For example, he is the author of the brochure "The Struggle and Activities of the OUN (B) during the War," in which he pays attention to the role of acts of violence, including ethnic violence.

According to some historians, the biography of Stepan Bandera in the period from 1939 to 1945 requires more careful study. In particular, according to some sources, he actively collaborated with the Abwehr and was engaged in the preparation of reconnaissance groups, without refusing, however, his ideological convictions.

After the war

After the defeat of fascism Bandera Stepan, whose biography was repeatedly subjected to "rewriting" to please certain political forces, remained in West Germany and settled in Munich, where his wife and children arrived. He continued active political activity as one of the leaders of the OUN, many of whose members also moved to Germany or were released from the camps. Bandera's supporters stated that it was necessary to elect him as the lifelong leader of the organization. However, those who believed that the activities of nationalist-minded associations should be directed on the territory of Ukraine did not agree with this. As the main argument in favor of their position, they pointed out that, only being on the spot, one can soberly assess the situation, which has radically changed during the war years.

In an effort to expand the number of his supporters, Stepan Bandera (the biography is briefly presented above) became the initiator of the organization ABN - the Anti-Bolshevik People's Bloc headed by Yaroslav Stetsko.

In 1947, the nationalists completely disowned the OUN, and he was elected its leader.

Death

It's time to tell about the last page, which ended biography of Stepan Bandera. According to the most common version, he was killed by an employee of the NKVD Bogdan Stashinsky. It happened in 1959, on October 15. The killer was waiting for the politician in the entrance of the house and shot him in the face with a gun with a syringe containing cyanide potassium. Bender died in an ambulance, caused by neighbors, and did not regain consciousness.

Other Versions of Murder

But is Stepan Bandera (biography, photo of which is presented above) really killed by an agent of the Soviet secret services? There are many versions. Firstly, on the day of the murder of Bandera, for some reason, he released his bodyguards. Secondly, from the point of view of its importance at this time, Bandera was no longer a danger as a political figure. At least for the USSR. And the NKVD did not need the martyrdom of a prominent nationalist in the past. Thirdly, Stashinsky was sentenced to a rather mild punishment - 8 years in prison. By the way, having gone to freedom, he disappeared.

According to a lesser known version, Bandera was killed by someone from his former associates or a representative of the Western special services, which is most likely.

The fate of family members

Stepan Bandera's father was arrested by the NKVD on May 22, 1941 and shot two weeks after the attack of the Nazis on the Soviet Union. His brother Alexander lived in Italy for a long time. At the beginning of the war, he came to Lvov, was arrested by the Gestapo and died in the concentration camp of Auschwitz. Another brother of Stepan Bandera, Vasily, was also an active figure in the Ukrainian nationalist movement. In 1942, he was sent to Auschwitz by German occupation forces and killed by Polish caretakers.

Crimes

Today in Ukraine there are a lot of people who respect Stepan Bandera almost as a saint. The desire for independence of their homeland is noble, but nationalism never stops praising its people. He always needs to prove his superiority by humiliating his neighbor, or worse, by destroying him physically. In particular, many European and Russian historians believe the evidence of Bandera's involvement in the Volyn massacre, when thousands of Poles and Catholic Armenians, whom the Bandera people considered "second Jews", were killed.

Bandera Stepan, whose biography, crimes and labors require serious study, - the person is ambiguous, but, undoubtedly, not ordinary. His name now continues to be a symbol of the nationalist movement and inspires some hot and, let's say, not quite clever, heads to commit such horrendous acts as shooting at residential areas of their own cities.