The
Cossack Hetmanate emerged in
central Ukraine in the 17th century but was partitioned between Russia and Poland before being absorbed by the
Russian Empire in the late 19th century.
Ukrainian nationalism developed and, following the
Russian Revolution in 1917, the short-lived
Ukrainian People's Republic was formed. The
Bolsheviks consolidated control over much of the former empire and established the
Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, which became a
constituent republic of the
Soviet Union in 1922. In the early 1930s, millions of Ukrainians died in the
Holodomor, a
human-made famine. During
World War II, Ukraine was
occupied by Germany and endured
major battles and atrocities, resulting in 7 million civilians killed, including
most Ukrainian Jews.