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| About holidays in Ukraine & Kiev |
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The Ukraine is one of the largest countries in Eastern
Europe and has a population of about 50 million. The natural and
historic-cultural potential of Ukraine cannot be overestimate, from
miles of beautiful coastlines and the Carpathians mountains to the
Dnipro River and the coastline of Crimea. Whether you’re
deciding to try one of our Kiev tailor made city break packages or
to escape for a weekend break holiday in Kiev, Ukraine will be the
ideal holiday destination. Some of the Ukraine’s most remarkable
attractions are the Kyivan Cave Monastery, St. Sophia's Cathedral;
the historical centre of Lviv and of course its stunning capital.
Tourists have a possibility to get acquainted with the history and
culture of Ukraine from very ancient to modern times. Without a
doubt the Ukraine’s historical cities and villages are the countries
national riches. More than 500 cities in this vast country have a
history that spans over 900 years. There are well over 150,000 of
monuments of historical importance & interest to tourists. There are
so many delightful Ukrainian holiday experiences to be had, from
scenic countryside villages to hiking in the mountains, you’ll find
Ukraine holidays will spoil you for choice. Book your Kyiv short
breaks with the Ukraine travel specialists. A weekend city break
in Kyiv must be experienced. Ukraine is a fascinating land full of
diverse culture and heritage that is able to reveal new sides of
interest upon each visit.
The Ukrainian history has experienced many civilizations
over the centuries including Cimmerians, Scythians, Taurians,
Sarmatians, Goths and Greeks. These have all added to the cultural
enrichment of the country. This section gives a brief account of
Ukraine’s fascinating history, please read on:
Legend has, there was a royal family of three brothers & one
sister: Kie, Shchek, Khoriv & Lebid and after losing there homelands
to invaders, they were searching for a place to make a new
settlement. Once arriving at the beautiful blue Dnipro River, they
instantly knew this would be there new home. Kie's brothers and
sister decided to name the new city Kiev in honor of their strong
and brave elder brother, King Kie, in 482 A.D. Archaeological
excavations show the evidence that there were the settlements of the
mesolith age (10 thousands years B.C.), neolith age (5 thousands
years B.C.), early Iron age and Slav settlements. From the 8th
century the territory of Kyiv and it’s population began to increase
rapidly and it was during this period that the city transformed into
one of the largest trade centres of Eastern Europe.
Kiev maintained
wide foreign and commercial trade links due to it’s position in the
middle of trade routes between the Vikings and Greeks. In 988 Prince Volodymyr introduced Christianity in Kievan Rus as the official
religion. By the 11th century Kyiv was one of the famous centres of
civilization in the Christian world. After the death of Prince
Volodymyr in 1125, the Kievan Rus state disintegrated and it wasn’t
till much later in the 14th century, that the Ukraine started to
revive and become a modern city. During the 15th century, Ukrainian
troops struggled to fend off both Polish and Lithuanian armies and
seeked military assistance from the Russian Czar. And in 1654 the
union with Russia was adopted in Pereyaslav. Ukraine plunged into a
long period of domination by the Russian Empire. Despite repression
and severe Czarist rule, in 17th century Kyiv still managed to be
the economic and cultural Centre of Ukrainian lands. On January 22,
1918, the Ukrainian Central Rada, led by the famous historian
Mychaylo Hrushevsky proclaimed Ukraine’s independence.
Unfortunately, this Union was short lived. After the defeat of the
West Ukrainian and East Ukrainian armies forced out of Kyiv by the
Red army, Ukraine became the part of the Soviet Union. Under the
Soviet Power, and especially during Stalin’s times, the most
prominent Ukrainian scientists, writers, artists, engineers,
military men, representatives of intelligentsia perished in the
Gulag camps. During the World War II Kyiv was heavily destroyed. For
72 days in 1941 the city was heroically defended. On September 19,
1941, Nazi troops entered Kiev.
The Nazis also built two
concentration camps for civilians and PAW's near the capital. As the
German Army swept east across Ukraine it included German
Einsatzgruppen with 500 to 1,000 men which were special mobile
killing squads ordered to carry out ‘The Final Solution’ of killing
all Jews. Ukraine had been the major part of the Jewish Pale of
Settlement in the Russian Empire and in the 19th century probably
had the most Jews of any country in the world. Within a few days of
capturing Ukrainian cities like Lutsk, Zhitomir and Berdichev in the
Summer of 1941 thousands of Jews were killed. A total of 600,000
Ukrainian Jews perished. Towards the end of WWII , according to
Soviet Ukraine, the retreating Germans ‘razed and burned over 28,000
villages and 714 cities and towns, leaving 10,000,000 people without
shelter’. The direct damage to the Ukrainian national economy caused
by the fascist Nazi German occupation came to 285,000,000,000 rubles.
This was about $60,000,000,000 (U.S. pre-war dollars). Kiev was
liberated on November 6,1943, by Soviet troops. Soon after
celebrating the defeat of Hitler's Germany, Ukraine learned that
‘liberation’ by the Soviet Army meant a different kind of
dictatorship. New waves of Stalinist terror again tore at the
Ukrainian social fabric, with more executions and mass exiles to the
Gulag. The Kremlin intensified its policy of ‘Russification’,
barring the Ukrainian language from government, education and
courts. The Chernobyl disaster of April 26, 1986 was the next major
event to have changed the life of Ukraine and its capital Kyiv.
Chernobyl caused tens of thousands of deaths and health related
problems, and inflicted enormous ecological and economic damage.
However, Chernobyl served to rock the Communist Party establishment
with political fallout as the facts behind bureaucratic ineptitude,
negligence, disregard for the ordinary citizens and cover-up emerged
and began to stir the minds of the people. On August 24, 1991
Verkhovna Rada (Supreme Council) of Ukraine proclaimed the
Declaration of Independence. On December 1, 1991 in a nation-wide
referendum, 93% of Ukraine’s citizens voted for an independent
Ukraine and since that significant day, Kiev has been the capital of
the independent State Ukraine. However, the only way to truly
discover Ukraine’s fascinating history, culture and general way of
life is to book a citybreak holiday there. Contact the Kiev
Travel experts or browse through our on-line city break deals in
Kiev and luxury short kyiv break packages. |
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