UNDER BLACK BANNERS:
Feodosiy Shchus And The Long Fight For Ukrainian Freedom
A masterpiece rediscovered that echoes through time.
In the chaos of revolution, one man's story illuminates a nation's struggle. Nikodym Pliczkowsky's long-lost manuscript resurfaces to challenge everything you thought you knew about Ukraine's fight for independence.
Step into a time machine and witness the birth of a nation through the eyes of those who lived it. This isn't just another history book — it's a visceral journey into the heart of revolution.
- Eyewitness Account: Written by a man who survived the Ukrainian Revolution (1917–1922), the Holodomor, and World War II.
- Unfiltered Narrative: Challenges both Soviet propaganda and Western misconceptions.
- Hidden Figures Revealed: Uncovers the complex legacy of Feodosiy Shchus, the sailor-turned-revolutionary.
Every purchase supports humanitarian aid in Ukraine through OPT charity.
📖 Print Edition
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English Ebook (Streetlib) Ukrainian Ebook (Streetlib)Also available on Kindle, Kobo, Barnes & Noble and other platforms.
About the Book
Under Black Banners is an immersive retelling of Ukraine's years of revolution and struggle for independence in the early 20th century. While fictional in form, the author's status as an eyewitness lends gravity to the events he describes. Told through the eyes of the famous Makhnovist anarchist Feodosiy Shchus, a complicated and ultimately tragic story is delivered with passion and purpose… As Ukraine once again faces an existential struggle along the very same front lines the reader encounters in Under Black Banners, the book's publication is as timely as it is thought-provoking.
— Sean Patterson, author of Makhno and Memory: Anarchist and Mennonite Narratives of Ukraine's Civil War, 1917–1921Pliczkowsky probes questions of local and national identity, autonomy, and ideology. Eyewitness to the Ukrainian Revolution, the Holodomor, and World War II, his account challenges both Soviet propaganda and Western misconceptions about Ukraine's origins as a nation.
Why This Book Matters
As Ukraine once again fights for its freedom, Under Black Banners offers crucial insights into the nation's enduring spirit and historical identity. This eyewitness account directly challenges Russia's current disinformation campaign, which falsely claims Ukraine didn't exist as a distinct entity in 1917.
Pliczkowsky's vivid narrative proves that Ukrainian national awareness and identity were alive and thriving during the revolutionary period, counteracting attempts to erase Ukraine's historical legitimacy. The struggles of yesterday not only echo in today's headlines but provide a powerful rebuttal to those who would deny Ukraine's right to exist.
From the Editor
My grandfather wrote: "The Great Ukrainian Revolution of 1917–1922 was a spontaneous phenomenon that caught Ukrainian political parties and the small conscious Ukrainian intelligentsia unprepared for the grand revolutionary events unfolding under the pressure of the masses."
But make no mistake — the Ukrainian people knew who they were. Outsiders didn't grant our identity; it was forged in the furnace of history, in the hearts and minds of ordinary Ukrainians fighting for their freedom. This book stands as testament to Ukraine's long struggle for independence, a struggle that continues to this day. To understand Ukraine's present, one must confront its past — unvarnished, complex, and undeniably Ukrainian.
"I have raised the heroes of this story from their bloody graves not for judgment or condemnation, not for glorification or justification, but for historical truth – to caution the Ukrainian people against making mistakes in the subsequent struggles for the independence of the Ukrainian state."
— Nikodym Pliczkowsky
Nikodym Pliczkowsky (1905–1992) was a remarkable individual whose life spanned some of the most tumultuous periods in Ukrainian history. Born in southern Ukraine to a family with Zaporizhian Cossack roots, Pliczkowsky's experiences provide a unique lens through which to view the 20th-century struggle for Ukrainian independence.
As a young boy, Pliczkowsky witnessed Ukraine's fight for sovereignty from 1917 to 1922, including the famous Battle of Dibrivka in his hometown. He survived the Holodomor, the man-made famine of the 1930s that claimed millions of Ukrainian lives.
During World War II, he was conscripted into the Red Army, captured by German forces, and narrowly escaped death in the gulags by forging documents to make his way to Australia with his wife and daughter — where he continued the struggle for Ukrainian independence.
Book Excerpt
Shchus: "But you don't understand, Natalka. You don't know the Bolsheviks. They will never forgive us for daring to take up arms for our freedom! They will never forgive us for not wanting to go under their yoke. Sooner or later, they will destroy us if we lay down our arms. They will destroy everyone! They won't spare our women and children… they will drive everyone into the communes and starve them to death… I have no choice, Natalka! either we will win, or… or we will all perish! We will perish, as Shevchenko wrote: 'You will perish, Ukraine, there will not even be a trace left on the earth'… remember, how we read this in the 'Kobzar'?"
Historical Context
- 1917Russian Empire collapses; Ukrainian People's Republic declared.
- 1918–1921Ukrainian War of Independence; Makhnovist movement gains strength.
- 1922Soviet Union formed; Ukraine becomes a Soviet republic.
- 1932–1933The Holodomor — a man-made famine in Soviet Ukraine — kills millions.
- 1930s–50sSoviet repression intensifies: mass arrests, executions, and deportations.
- 2004Orange Revolution: Ukrainians protest election fraud.
- 2013–2014Maidan Revolution: protests lead to ousting of Kremlin-backed President Yanukovych.
- 2014Russia invades and annexes Crimea and eastern Ukraine.
- 2022–presentRussia launches full-scale invasion; fierce Ukrainian resistance and international condemnation.
Get your copy and support a cause!
Every purchase of Under Black Banners supports humanitarian efforts in Ukraine through our charity OPT. Join us in preserving history and shaping the future.
Buy Print (Australia) Buy Ebook (Streetlib) Visit OPT CharityAbout the Editor
Lara Gillespie, granddaughter of Nikodym Pliczkowsky, has taken on the monumental task of editing and publishing her grandfather's life's work. Growing up immersed in her grandfather's vivid tales of Ukraine, the characters of history and the struggles against Soviet oppression, Lara recognised the importance of preserving this history for future generations.
She lived with the author in his last years and watched him typing this tale on his manual Ukrainian typewriter. He completed it before his death on 24th August 1992 — the 1st anniversary of the Independence of Ukraine after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
The manuscript was lost and has been found again in recent years, now finally translated to English and published. Having immersed herself in medical and humanitarian aid for Ukraine through her charity OPT, she realises more than ever the importance of this work and will be donating all the proceeds to Ukrainian aid.
All proceeds go to Ukraine aid.
