Mykhailo Hrushevsky. History of Ukraine-Rus' Vol. 6: Economic, Cultural, and National Life in the Fourteenth to Seventeenth Centuries

Mykhailo Hrushevsky. History of Ukraine-Rus' Vol. 6: Economic, Cultural, and National Life in the Fourteenth to Seventeenth Centuries. Translated by Leonid Heretz. Myron M Kapral, Consulting Editor and Frank E Sysyn, Series Editor, with the assistance of Uliana M Paicznyk. Edmonton: Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies Press: 2012. lxxii + 619 pp. $119.95. Volume 6 of Mykhailo Hrushevsky's History of Ukraine-Rus, 'which focuses on life in Ukraine between Kyiv and the Cossack Age, was originally published in 1907 from Kyiv. The book offers an interpretation of the period from the fourteenth to the seventeenth centuries as transitional. Hrushevsky was faced with the difficult task of trying to distinguish the Ruthenian/Ukrainian elements within multi-national and changeable boundaries--a process that is key in Hrushevsky's definition of a nation as a people rather than a political unit. At the same time, there are no clear characteristics that delimit the period in question. Rather, the interaction of a variety of economic, cultural, political and religious factors frames the analysis. The first two sections of the book offer a detailed discussion of the changing economic conditions in Eastern and Western Ukraine from the fourteenth to the seventeenth centuries. Hrushevsky argues that the nature of Ukrainian economic life changed dramatically during the Polish-Lithuanian period. Urban commercial centers and urban manufacturing, so important in Old Rus' life, declined rapidly from the thirteenth century, and in particular under Poland-Lithuania. Among other things, this took place in the context of Polish protectionism, noble controls, and competition from Polish cities. On the other hand, village economies grew significantly over the same period. While at the beginning of the era, some parts of the population remained outside the monetary economy, somewhat later forest products and other natural resources were ruthlessly exploited for export. By the end of the period, the export of grain had taken on great significance, especially from northern and western Ukraine. Section III discusses the composition of Ukraine's population by stratum (magnates, nobles, burghers and peasants) as well as by specific region. Here, Hrushevsky examined the ethnic composition of the different orders and the degree to which they retained their national identity in the face of spreading polonization. Especially in the western part of Ukraine, it was assimilation in the face of Polish cultural influences, rather than ethnicity, that proved the more important. And in many cases, burghers and noblemen were the most susceptible. Hrushevsky also discusses everyday ethical and cultural standards, basing his comments on wills, contemporary accounts and religious works. Part IV extends this discussion by providing in-depth information about cultural transitions, the mingling of religious and cultural traditions, the growth of western artistic elements and their merger with Eastern traditions to create a valued Ukrainian style. …

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