The Holocaust in the Ukraine


Figure 1.--Jews were killed throughout the Ukraine in large and small actions. The killers here about to shoot these Jewish men and a boy look to be Ukranians rather than Germans.

The Ukraine at the time of World War II was part of the Soviet Union. The Holocaust unfolded in the Ukraine much as it did in the Soviet Union as a whole. Estimates suggest that at the time of World War II that the Jewish populstion in the Ukraine totaled about 1,5 million people (1939). This was a substantial portion of the Soviet Jewish population. While substantial, it was only about 3 percent of the overall Ukranian population. The large Jewish population was the result of the Ukraine being part of the Tsaist Pale of Settlement. This was part of a policy designed to keep Jews out of Russia itself. After the NAZI invasion (June 1941), the Soviets evacuated large number of individuals east out of harms way, estimates rin up to 3.5 million people. Those evacuated included government and Party officials, scientists, skilled workers, and other educated individuals. As the NAZI armies made more progress in the northern and central sectors of the front, there was more time in the south (meaning the Ukraine) for the evacuations to take place. The reason there was less progress in the south is that a subsantial portion of Soviet armor had been deployed in the south. It is unclear just how many Jews were evacuated, but estimates suggest about half to two-thirds of Ukranian Jews were able to reach safety to the east. [Reitlinger p. 251.] Behind the combat forces which swept east were the NAZI Einsatzgruppen C and D. YThese were especially trained units of 500 to 1,000 men who were mobile killing squads with orders to kill Jews. As soon as a city was secured, the Einsatzgruppen began rounding up and killing Jews. Major actions were conducted at Lutsk, Zhitomir and Berdichev. The Romanian Army which participated in the invasion also participated in the killing of Jews. The killoing continued throughout the summer of 1941. They suceeded in killing about 0.6 million Ukraniamn Jews. SS Standartfuehrer Paul Blobel was particularly diligent in carrying out his orders. He commanded Sonderkommando 4A, Einsatzgruppe C. And he participated in the the huge killing operation at Kiev. The killing was conducted at Babyn Yar (Babi Yar) (September 29-30, 1941). Blobel's unit reported killing killed 33,771 Jews in only 2 days. That was about half of the 70,000 Jews killed at Babi Yar. Blobel was tried after the War at Nuremberg and hanged in Landsberg Prison (June 8, 1951). This was where Hitler had been jailed after the Beer Hall Putch and wrote Mein Kampf. The Ukranians are often accused of cooperating with the NAZIs in the killing of Jews. We are not yet able to assess these charges. There is substantial reason for these charges. It is, however, a more complicated issue than often presented. One author focusng on the Ukraine provides a nuanced discussion. [Berkhoff] The Jews of course were only the first step. Overall NAZI plans called for large-scale killing of Ukranians as well as deportations and servitude for those not killed. There were actions against the Ukranians although not on the industrial scale of the Jewish Holocaust. (We will never know for sure what would have happened to the Ukranians had the NAZIs won the War but almost certainly there would have been horendous actions.) There were collaborators of course in every country. Wether there wetre more in the Ukraine than other countries we are not sure. It is true that there was a great deal of anti-Soviet feeling among Ukranian nationalists many if whom saw Jews as supportive of both Communism and the Soviet regime. Miltia groups sometimes referred to as Ukranian Police did aid the NAZIs both in actiins against the Jews, but in anti-Partisan operations. The composition of these units, however, was not entirely ethnic Ukranines, but included Poles, Volksdeutsche, While Russians, and Russians.

Ukranian Jews

Both the boundaries of the Ukraine and the people ruling the area have changed markedly over time. The attitidues toward Jews has varied significantly. Jewish history in the Ukraine began with the Khazars (6th century AD). The Kazar Empire became a major power, controling what is now the Ukraine as well as adjacent areas (8-10th centuries). Jews from Christian Europe (especially Byzantium) sought refuge in the Kazar Empire. The royal family evetually adopted Judaism. As a result, the Ukraine developed on of the largest Jewish communities in Europe. Lithuania-Poland conquered the Ukraine (14th century). An expanding Russian Tsarist Empire defeated the Poles and seized he Ukraine and susequentkly Lithuania and large areas pf Poland. The Germans seized much of the Ukraine in World War I and were in the process of creating a satellite state when the Western Allies cracked the Western Front and forced the Germans to request an armistice (November 1918). In the mean time the Russian Revolutioin broke out and the Ukraine became on of the battlefields in the resulting Civil War (1919-21). The Blolsheviks managed to gain control of much of the Ukraine. The new Polish state in a war with the Bolsheciks manahged to gain control of areas of Beylorusia and the wesern Ukraine.

World War II

The Ukraine at the time of World War II was part of the Soviet Union. The Holocaust unfolded in the Ukraine much as it did in the Soviet Union as a whole. Estimates suggest that at the time of World War II that the Jewish populstion in the Ukraine totaled about 1,5 million people (1939). This was a substantial portion of the Soviet Jewish population. While substantial, it was only about 3 percent of the overall Ukranian population. The large Jewish population was the result of the Ukraine being part of the Tsarist Pale of Settlement. This was part of a policy designed to keep Jews out of Russia itself.

Operation Barbarossa: Army Group South (June 1941)

After the NAZI invasion (June 1941), the Soviets evacuated large number of individuals east out of harms way, estimates rin up to 3.5 million people. Those evacuated included government and Party officials, scientists, skilled workers, and other educated individuals. As the NAZI armies made more progress in the northern and central sectors of the front, there was more time in the south (meaning the Ukraine) for the evacuations to take place. The reason there was less progress in the south is that a subsantial portion of Soviet armor had been deployed in the south. It is unclear just how many Jews were evacuated, but estimates suggest about half to two-thirds of Ukranian Jews were able to reach safety to the east. [Reitlinger p. 251.]

NAZI Einsatzgruppen C and D

Behind the German and Romanian combat forces which swept east were the NAZI Einsatzgruppen C and D. These were especially trained units of 500 to 1,000 men who were mobile killing squads with orders to kill Jews. Two groups were assigned to Army GroupnSouth because of the large numbers of Jews in the Ukraine. As soon as a city was secured, the Einsatzgruppen began rounding up and killing Jews. Major actions were conducted at Lutsk, Zhitomir and Berdichev. The Romanian Army which participated in the invasion also participated in the killing of Jews. The killing continued throughout the summer of 1941. They suceeded in killing about 0.6 million Ukranian Jews. SS Standartfuehrer Paul Blobel was particularly diligent in carrying out his orders. He commanded Sonderkommando 4A, Einsatzgruppe C. And he participated in the the huge killing operation at Kiev. After seizing the city, the Germans immediately began killing Jews. The major killing action was conducted at Babyn Yar (Babi Yar) (September 29-30, 1941). This was a huge ravine outside the city. Blobel's unit reported killing killed 33,771 Jews in only 2 days. That was about half of the 70,000 Jews killed at Babi Yar. Blobel was tried after the War at Nuremberg and hanged in Landsberg Prison (June 8, 1951). This was where Hitler had been jailed after the Beer Hall Putch and wrote Mein Kampf.

Ukranian Cities

The Ukraine had several cities with large Jewish populations. The western Ukraine was part of the Pale of sellmenent. The eastern Ukraine was outside of it and thus Jews were not permitted to settle there. This began to change in the late-18th century and in the 19th century substantial Jewish popultions began to develop even in the eastern Ukraine. Geography was a major factor in the Ukranian Holocaust. Jews in the west had little opportunity to survive. The Germans and Romanians over ran the villages and towns very quickly. The population was surprised and there was little chance of surviving. Further east, many Jews were able to escape east before the Germans arrived. Eventually all the Ukraine was overrun. The Germans were determined to kill the Ukranian Jews as soon as possible and thus the approach was different than that pursued in Poland duting the 1939 campaign. There would be no substantial ghettoes like those established in Poland. Much of the killing went on quickly in the countryside in towns and villages. The Jewish population was substntial in several cities. The killing provess was different in each city, but the pattern was essentialy the same. There is a detailed historical record of what occurred in cities like Kiev, Kharkov, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Odessa, Zaporizhzhya, L'viv, and other cities.

Ukranian Complicity

The Ukranians are often accused of cooperating withbthe NAZIs in the killing of Jews. We are not yet able to assess these charges. There is substantial reason for these charges. It is, however, a more complicated issue than often presented. One author focusng on the Ukraine provides a nuanced discussion. [Berkhoff] There were collaborators of course in every country. Whether there wete more in the Ukraine than other countries we are not sure. It is true that there was a great deal of anti-Soviet feeling among Ukranian nationalists many if whom saw Jews as supportive of both Communism and the Soviet regime. Miltia groups sometimes referred to as Ukranian Police did aid the NAZIs both in actions against the Jews, but in anti-Partisan operations. The composition of these units, however, was not entirely ethnic Ukranines, but included Poles, Volksdeutsche, While Russians, and Russians.

Ukranian Guards

Many Holocaust accounts refer to Ukranian guards at NAZI concentration camps. They were noted at both labor camps and the death camps. The labor camps were ocated all over NAZI occupied Europe. The death camps were located in Poland or modern Belarus. It is notable that there were no Polish guards. The guards were often either Ukranians or Balts overseen by German SS officers an non-commissioned officers. Many Holocaust survivors describe Ukranian guards. [Moulson] The question arises, just who were these Ukranian guards and how were they recruited. We note one source which claims that the Ukranian guards were mostly Volksdeutsch. The author claims that they were 'valued for their German racial "purity" and ethnicity, loyalty to Germany, and ability to speak eastern European languages of the victims, e.g. Ukrainian, Polish, Russian.' We are not sure that this was the case. Readers need to be careful about such claims because many commentators have hiden agendas. Some Ukranians desire to deflect charges of complicity. We doubt, for example, that race-conscious NAZIs would have mixed Volk Volksdeutsch and ethnic Ukranians. The best know Ukranian guard was John Demjanjuk, an ethnic Ukranian. The Germans had different sources of Ukranians for recruitment. Occupied Poland had a Ukranian minority which felt oppressed by the pre-War Polish Government. Some of these Ukranians were willing to work with the Germans in the hope the Germans would establish an independent Ukranian state. And the Germans pursued policies that favored the Ukranians because they were useful in the occupation. Alexander Huryn was an ethnic Ukranian living in Poland who after the War emigrated to Britain. He claims the Germans forced him into service. (As far as we can tell, the SS never forced any German or non-German to be a camp guard.) Many more Ukranians were available when the Germans occupied the Ukraine (June-August 1941). Represive German policies in the Ukraine itself, however, made recruitment more difficuklt than in Poland. A third source of Ukranians were Red Army POWs, available in vast numbers because of the early successes of Barbarossa. Demjanjuk is an example of a captured Red Army soldier.

NAZI Ukranian Policies

The Jews of course were only the first step in the NAZI master plan to remake the ethnic composition of the Ukraine. The overall NAZI plan called for large-scale killing of Ukranians as well as deportations or servitude for those not killed. There were actions against the Ukranians although not on the industrial scale of the Jewish Holocaust. (We will never know for sure what would have happened to the Ukranians had the NAZIs won the War but almost certainly there would have been horendous actions.) Generalplan Ost evisioned the killing of Ukranians on a massive scale.

Sources

Berkhoff, Karel C. Harvest of Despair: Life and Death in Ukraine Under Nazi Rule.

Moulson, Geir. "Ukrainian guards worse than Nazis, survivor says," World Winnipeg Free Press (December 23, 2009).

Reitlinger, Gerald. The House Built on Sand (London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1960), 459 p.





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Created: 5:28 AM 5/16/2008
Last updated: 9:12 AM 9/23/2016