Ivan Bohun
Encyclopedia
Ivan Bohun (died 1664) was a Ukrainian Cossack
colonel. Close associate and friend of Bohdan Khmelnytsky
, he opposed both the pacts with Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
(Treaty of Hadziacz of 1658) and with Tsardom of Russia
(Treaty of Pereyaslav
of 1654).
family.He took part in the Khmelnytsky Uprising
against Polish
rule in Ukraine
. In June of 1651 he was elected colonel of troops of Bratslav
and took part in the Battle of Berestechko
against Polish troops led by King Jan II Casimir
, which the Cossacks lost. Surviving the defeat he regathered his forces and in June of 1652 took part in the battle of Batih
. In this instance the Cossacks were successful; the Polish commander Marcin Kalinowski
was killed and the future hetman
Stefan Czarniecki
barely escaped with his life. The Polish defeat was complete and allowed the Cossack forces to start a successful offensive and effectively gain control over large parts of Ukraine. Until 1657 Ivan Bohun also led his forces in minor skirmishes against Polish forces, notably at Bratslav
and Uman
. He also fought against the Crimean Tatars
who had switched sides in the effect of the Treaty of Zboriv
of 1649 (they were initially allied with the Cossacks but supported the Commonwealth in later year).
Initially Bohun opposed the Treaty of Pereyaslav
of 1654. After the Battle of Konotop
, Ivan Bohun led an armed pro-Russian
uprising against his former ally near Konotop
Ivan Vyhovsky
and defeated his army in the autumn of 1659.
After being captured by the Poles in 1663, Bohun was offered freedom in exchange for taking part in a new military campaign against the Tsardom of Russia
. During the retreat after the disastrous Siege of Hlukhiv
Bohun was executed by a firing squad for handing over important military information to the besieged Russian garrison.
in a novel With Fire and Sword
and Jerzy Hoffman
's movie with the same name where character Jurko Bohun was loosely based on him. Ivan Bohun is also well described in Bohun
, a modern, historical novel about Polish-Cossack wars, written by Jacek Komuda
.
His death is still commemorated annually in Lviv
.
Zaporozhian Host
The Zaporozhian Cossacks or simply Zaporozhians were Ukrainian Cossacks who lived beyond the rapids of the Dnieper river, the land also known as the Great Meadow in Central Ukraine...
colonel. Close associate and friend of Bohdan Khmelnytsky
Bohdan Khmelnytsky
Bohdan Zynoviy Mykhailovych Khmelnytsky was a hetman of the Zaporozhian Cossack Hetmanate of Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth . He led an uprising against the Commonwealth and its magnates which resulted in the creation of a Cossack state...
, he opposed both the pacts with Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...
(Treaty of Hadziacz of 1658) and with Tsardom of Russia
Tsardom of Russia
The Tsardom of Russia was the name of the centralized Russian state from Ivan IV's assumption of the title of Tsar in 1547 till Peter the Great's foundation of the Russian Empire in 1721.From 1550 to 1700, Russia grew 35,000 km2 a year...
(Treaty of Pereyaslav
Treaty of Pereyaslav
The Treaty of Pereyaslav is known in history more as the Council of Pereiaslav.Council of Pereyalslav was a meeting between the representative of the Russian Tsar, Prince Vasili Baturlin who presented a royal decree, and Bohdan Khmelnytsky as the leader of Cossack Hetmanate. During the council...
of 1654).
Biography
Bohum was born in Ukrainian SzlachtaSzlachta
The szlachta was a legally privileged noble class with origins in the Kingdom of Poland. It gained considerable institutional privileges during the 1333-1370 reign of Casimir the Great. In 1413, following a series of tentative personal unions between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of...
family.He took part in the Khmelnytsky Uprising
Khmelnytsky Uprising
The Khmelnytsky Uprising, was a Cossack rebellion in the Ukraine between the years 1648–1657 which turned into a Ukrainian war of liberation from Poland...
against Polish
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...
rule in Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
. In June of 1651 he was elected colonel of troops of Bratslav
Bratslav
Bratslav |Breslov]] as the name of a Hasidic group, which originated from this town) is a townlet in Ukraine, located in the Nemyriv Raion of Vinnytsia Oblast, by the Southern Bug river. It is a medieval European city having dramatically lost its importance during 19th-20th centuries...
and took part in the Battle of Berestechko
Battle of Berestechko
The Battle of Berestechko was fought between rebellious Zaporozhian Cossacks, led by Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky, aided by their Crimean Tatar allies, and a Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth army under King John II Casimir. It was the largest land battle of 17th century.Lasting from June 28 to June 30,...
against Polish troops led by King Jan II Casimir
John II Casimir of Poland
John II Casimir was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania during the era of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, Duke of Opole in Upper Silesia, and titular King of Sweden 1648–1660. In Poland, he is known and commonly referred as Jan Kazimierz. His parents were Sigismund III Vasa and...
, which the Cossacks lost. Surviving the defeat he regathered his forces and in June of 1652 took part in the battle of Batih
Battle of Batoh
The Battle of Batoh was a battle in 1652 in which Polish forces under Marcin Kalinowski were defeated by Cossacks commanded by Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky. About 8,000 Polish soldiers were taken prisoners and massacred after the battle, including Samuel Jerzy Kalinowski, Zygmunt Przyjemski, Jan...
. In this instance the Cossacks were successful; the Polish commander Marcin Kalinowski
Marcin Kalinowski
Marcin Kalinowski Field Crown Hetman, was a Polish magnate and nobleman , Kalinowa coat of arms. Son of fallen at the battle of Cecora Walenty Aleksander Kalinowski. He began his studies in Poland and continued his education at the University of Leuven...
was killed and the future hetman
Hetman
Hetman was the title of the second-highest military commander in 15th- to 18th-century Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which together, from 1569 to 1795, comprised the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, or Rzeczpospolita....
Stefan Czarniecki
Stefan Czarniecki
Stefan Czarniecki or Stefan Łodzia de Czarnca Czarniecki Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth general and nobleman. Field Hetman of the Crown of the Polish Kingdom. He was a military commander, regarded as a Polish national hero...
barely escaped with his life. The Polish defeat was complete and allowed the Cossack forces to start a successful offensive and effectively gain control over large parts of Ukraine. Until 1657 Ivan Bohun also led his forces in minor skirmishes against Polish forces, notably at Bratslav
Bratslav
Bratslav |Breslov]] as the name of a Hasidic group, which originated from this town) is a townlet in Ukraine, located in the Nemyriv Raion of Vinnytsia Oblast, by the Southern Bug river. It is a medieval European city having dramatically lost its importance during 19th-20th centuries...
and Uman
Uman
Uman is a city located in the Cherkasy Oblast in central Ukraine, to the east of Vinnytsia. The city rests on the banks of the Umanka River at around , and serves as the self-governing administrative center of the Umanskyi Raion ....
. He also fought against the Crimean Tatars
Crimean Tatars
Crimean Tatars or Crimeans are a Turkic ethnic group that originally resided in Crimea. They speak the Crimean Tatar language...
who had switched sides in the effect of the Treaty of Zboriv
Treaty of Zboriv
The Treaty of Zboriv was signed on August 17, 1649, after the Battle of Zboriv when the Crown forces of about 25,000 led by king John II Casimir of Poland clashed against a combined force of Cossacks and Crimean Tatars, led by hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky and khan İslâm III Giray of Crimea...
of 1649 (they were initially allied with the Cossacks but supported the Commonwealth in later year).
Initially Bohun opposed the Treaty of Pereyaslav
Treaty of Pereyaslav
The Treaty of Pereyaslav is known in history more as the Council of Pereiaslav.Council of Pereyalslav was a meeting between the representative of the Russian Tsar, Prince Vasili Baturlin who presented a royal decree, and Bohdan Khmelnytsky as the leader of Cossack Hetmanate. During the council...
of 1654. After the Battle of Konotop
Battle of Konotop
The Battle of Konotop or Battle of Sosnivka was fought between a coalition led by the Hetman of Ukrainian Cossacks Ivan Vyhovsky and cavalry units of the Russian Tsardom, led by Semyon Pozharsky and Semyon Lvov, on June 29, 1659 near the town of Konotop, Ukraine, during the Polish-Russian War...
, Ivan Bohun led an armed pro-Russian
Tsardom of Russia
The Tsardom of Russia was the name of the centralized Russian state from Ivan IV's assumption of the title of Tsar in 1547 till Peter the Great's foundation of the Russian Empire in 1721.From 1550 to 1700, Russia grew 35,000 km2 a year...
uprising against his former ally near Konotop
Konotop
Konotop is a city in northern Ukraine within the Sumy Oblast. Konotop is the center of the Konotop Raion , and is located about 129 km from Sumy, the Oblast capital. It is host to Konotop air base.-History:...
Ivan Vyhovsky
Ivan Vyhovsky
Ivan Vyhovsky was a hetman of the Ukrainian Cossacks during three years of the Russo-Polish War . He was the successor to the famous hetman and rebel leader Bohdan Khmelnytsky...
and defeated his army in the autumn of 1659.
After being captured by the Poles in 1663, Bohun was offered freedom in exchange for taking part in a new military campaign against the Tsardom of Russia
Tsardom of Russia
The Tsardom of Russia was the name of the centralized Russian state from Ivan IV's assumption of the title of Tsar in 1547 till Peter the Great's foundation of the Russian Empire in 1721.From 1550 to 1700, Russia grew 35,000 km2 a year...
. During the retreat after the disastrous Siege of Hlukhiv
Siege of Hlukhiv
The siege of Hlukhiv was one of the final events of the Russo-Polish War of 1654–1667. The army of king Jan II Casimir, numbering 90,000 men, unsuccessfully besieged the Russo-Ukrainian garrison of Hlukhiv and finally retreated under pressure from the Russian army of prince Grigory Romodanovsky...
Bohun was executed by a firing squad for handing over important military information to the besieged Russian garrison.
Legacy
Ivan Bohun became a popular Ukrainian folk hero, immortalized by Henryk SienkiewiczHenryk Sienkiewicz
Henryk Adam Aleksander Pius Sienkiewicz was a Polish journalist and Nobel Prize-winning novelist. A Polish szlachcic of the Oszyk coat of arms, he was one of the most popular Polish writers at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, and received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1905 for his...
in a novel With Fire and Sword
With Fire and Sword
With Fire and Sword is a historical novel by the Polish author Henryk Sienkiewicz, published in 1884. It is the first volume of a series known to Poles as the Trilogy, followed by The Deluge and Fire in the Steppe , also translated as Colonel Wolodyjowski...
and Jerzy Hoffman
Jerzy Hoffman
Jerzy Hoffman is a Polish film director and screenwriter. He is the father of early Macintosh development team member Joanna Hoffman.-Selected filmography:*Battle of Warsaw 1920...
's movie with the same name where character Jurko Bohun was loosely based on him. Ivan Bohun is also well described in Bohun
Bohun
-The Anglo-Norman Bohun family:* Eleanor de Bohun elder sister and co-heiress of Mary de Bohun* Henry de Bohun, 1st Earl of Hereford , a Norman-English nobleman...
, a modern, historical novel about Polish-Cossack wars, written by Jacek Komuda
Jacek Komuda
Jacek Lech Komuda is a Polish writer and historian. He specialized in the period of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and History of Poland , and is the author of several novels and short stories of fantasy/historical novel genre. He is a co-author of the Dzikie Pola role-playing game, and script...
.
His death is still commemorated annually in Lviv
Lviv
Lviv is a city in western Ukraine. The city is regarded as one of the main cultural centres of today's Ukraine and historically has also been a major Polish and Jewish cultural center, as Poles and Jews were the two main ethnicities of the city until the outbreak of World War II and the following...
.
External links
- About Ivan Bohun (in Ukrainian)
- "Ukraine have not forgotten: 350th Anniversary of Battle of Batih Took Place without Tatars and Poles", Zerkalo nedeliZerkalo NedeliZerkalo Nedeli , usually referred to in English as the Mirror Weekly, is one of Ukraine’s most influential analytical newspapers published weekly in Kiev, the nation's capital. It was founded in 1994, and as of 2006 its print circulation was 57,000. It offers political analysis, original...
(Mirror Weekly), June 1–7, 2002, available online in Russian and in Ukrainian. - Bohun, Ivan, in online Russian Biographical Dictionary (in Russian)
- Ivan Bohun at the Encyclopedia of Ukraine