Fedorovych Uprising

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The Fedorovych Uprising (Polish: Powstanie Fedorowicza) was a rebellion headed by Taras Fedorovych against the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1630.

[edit] The uprising

In March 1630, Fedorovych became the leader of a Cossack and peasant revolt, which became known as the Fedorovych Uprising. Dissatisfied with the conditions of the 1625 Treaty of Kurukove (also known as the Treaty of Lake Kurukowe) signed earlier by Doroshenko, which restricted the number of registered Cossacks to only six thousand, the remaining forty thousand Cossacks who were unregistered, joined the resistance.

The uprising was ignited by the continually increasing enserfment and exploitation of Ukrainian peasantry by mostly Polish or polonized szlachta (nobility) of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth as well as the imposition of Catholicism on the unwilling Ukrainians, who have been traditionally Eastern Orthodox.

About ten thousand rebels proceeded from the Zaporizhian Sich towards the upper Dnieper territories, overrunning the Polish forces stationed there. The rebels captured and executed the Hetman of registered Cossacks Hryhoriy Chorny for his pro-Polish stance and support of the Union of Brest, and subsequently came to agreement on new leadership by nominating Fedorovych for the position of Hetman.

Fedorovych addressed the Ukrainian commoners with several Universals calling upon everyone to join his uprising against the Polish usurpers. The turbulence spread over the nearby territories, with many Cossacks and peasants rising against the local Polish nobles as well as wealthy Jewish landowners who, despite their limited involvement in the local power structure, were also resented, and thereby included as part of the oppressor/exploiter grouping.

As clashes increased, casualties rose on both sides. After victory at Korsun over the Polish army sent against them, the rebel Cossacks controlled a large territory that included Korsun, Pereiaslav, Kaniv as well as other cities, with Pereiaslav becoming their main base.

In response to their successes, a large Polish army led by Stanisław Koniecpolski was sent to confront the Cossacks. The army, strengthened by German mercenary forces, was harassed by the rebels, and, in turn, plundered and massacred Lysianka, Dymer and several other Ukrainian settlements, then crossed the Dnieper where they were met by the rebels, both front and rear, as more Ukrainians rose in what became an area-wide rebellion against the Poles. The skirmishes around Pereiaslav lasted three weeks until the 25 May [O.S. 15 May] 1630 indecisive battle at Pereiaslav. Koniecpolski laid siege to the Cossack stronghold, but lacking the support of artillery and infantry, he could not break its walls; the Cossacks, however, were lacking supplies and agreed to negotiations.

[edit] Negotiations

Fedorovych's military successes forced Koniecpolski to initiate negotiations with the Cossack leadership (Starshyna), which concluded with the 1630 Treaty of Pereiaslav. Many of the demands of the non-registered Cossacks and Fedorovych, their leader, were discarded in the treaty by other Cossack Starshyna. The main requirement voiced by Fedorovych and his supporters—that the Cossack privileges routinely guaranteed to the limited number of registered Cossacks should be granted to all runaway peasants who claimed Cossackdom—was rejected and, according to a narrow compromise, the Cossack register was enlarged from six to eight thousand. In return, Koniecpolski demanded that Fedorovych be delivered into Polish custody.

Fedorovych, uncertain of the decision that would have been reached, over his head, by the "compromising" faction of Cossack leadership, left Pereiaslav along with other Cossacks dissatisfied with the agreement and headed for the Cossack stronghold of Zaporizhian Sich. Meanwhile, the Cossack leadership faction inclined to a compromise with Poland, elected Timofiy Orendarenko whose Hetmanship was confirmed with Koniecpolski's agreement. Fedorovych, disgruntled with this turn of events, tried to raise the Cossack masses to start a new uprising, but the energy for such an undertaking was no longer forthcoming.