For more than 350 years, efforts to erase Ukrainian language and culture have unfolded through a series of deliberate policies and brutal campaigns. The notion of Slavic mutuality often ignores this historical oppression, revealing instead a systematic project of Russification and cultural destruction.

Chronology of Russification Policies in Ukraine

18th Century: The Foundations of Suppression

• 1720:Decree of Peter the Great banned printing in Ukrainian and religious books.
• 1729:Peter II ordered government documentation in Ukrainian to be transcribed into Russian.
• 1763:Catherine II forbade teaching in Ukrainian at the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.
• 1764:Catherine II initiated a campaign of Russification in Ukraine.
• 1769:The Russian Church confiscated books using the Ukrainian alphabet and church texts.
• 1775:Zaporozhye Sich was destroyed and Ukrainian schools closed.

19th Century: Intensified Pressure on Ukrainian Identity

• 1804:Russian Empire decreed a complete ban on schools teaching in Ukrainian, accelerating cultural erosion.
• 1832:Ukrainian education was reorganized exclusively in Russian.
• 1847:Increased persecution—including bans on works by Taras Shevchenko and other cultural icons.
• 1862:Closure of Ukrainian Sunday schools for adults.
• 1863:The Valuyev Circular: a secret decree banned Ukrainian literature publication and declared the language nonexistent.
• 1876:Alexander II forbade printing and importing Ukrainian literature, stage performances, and music texts.
• 1881:Public schools and church sermons forbidden to use Ukrainian.
• 1884:Alexander III banned Ukrainian theatre across "Malorussia".
• 1888:Ukrainian language and names barred from official institutions.
• 1892:Translation from Russian into Ukrainian was banned.
• 1895:Publishing Ukrainian children's books was prohibited.

20th Century: Cultural Genocide Intensifies

• 1914, 1916:Russification campaign in Western Ukraine included bans on language, education, and churches.
• 1930s (Stalinist Era):Up to 10 million Ukrainians perished during the Holodomor, a state-engineered famine. Millions of Ukrainian speakers were lost, further severing language and tradition.

The Myth of 'Slavic Brotherhood'

Russian policy has systematically targeted Ukrainian language and culture. These sustained efforts have undone centuries of heritage, revealing the emptiness of the so-called ‘brotherhood’ narrative.

From Peter the Great’s decrees to Stalin’s genocide, every generation has faced policies meant to erase theUkrainian identity. Forced Russification, language bans, and cultural persecution contradict the myth of mutuality among Slavic nations. The historical record exposes a relentless strategy of assimilation and control.

Until these truths are recognized,the idea of Slavic mutuality remains an illusion—one shattered by centuries of deliberate erasure.