Volume 13 - Issue 73
/ January 2024
241
http:// www.amazoniainvestiga.info ISSN 2322- 6307
DOI: https://doi.org/10.34069/AI/2024.73.01.20
How to Cite:
Bondar, Y., Shpak, V., Nabrusko, V., Horbenko, H., & Shyrokova, I. (2024). National security and information in the early modern
state: the case of Ukraine. Amazonia Investiga, 13(73), 241-251. https://doi.org/10.34069/AI/2024.73.01.20
National security and information in the early modern state: the case
of Ukraine
Національна безпека та інформація в ранньомодерній державі: приклад України
Received: December 27, 2023 Accepted: January 29, 2024
Written by:
Yurii Bondar1
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8490-6744
Viktor Shpak2
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7007-0683
Viktor Nabrusko3
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5619-9448
Halуna Horbenko4
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5029-0267
Iryna Shyrokova5
https://orcid.org/0009-0002-3248-396X
Abstract
The system of information support of the
authorities of the Ukrainian early modern state,
as well as implementing internal and external
policies, contributed to protecting Ukrainian
lands from external aggression and the expansion
of Ukrainian interests in the world. The main
purpose of the study is to analyze this statement.
The methodological basis of the research is a
comprehensive analysis of archival sources and
historiography, which is based on the main
principles of historicism and scientific
objectivity. The scientific novelty of this
publication is to prove the hypothesis that
thoughtful information activity in its various
segments was an important component of the
policy of the Ukrainian early-modern state and
contributed to protecting its lands and interests
from foreign encroachments. Conclusions.
Information activity was an important
1
Ph.D. (Politics), Associate Professor, Chair of the Department of Publishing and Editing of the Educational and Scientific Institute
of Journalism of Taras Shevchenko Kyiv National University, Kyiv, Ukraine. WoS Researcher ID: AAS-7537-2020
2
D. Sc. (History), Professor, Professor of the Department of Media Production and Publishing, Faculty of Journalism, Borys
Grinchenko Kyiv Metropolitan University, Kyiv, Ukraine. WoS Researcher ID: AAM-9125-2020
3
Ph.D. (Politics), Associate Professor, docent of the Department of Television and Radio Broadcasting of the Educational and
Scientific Institute of Journalism of Taras Shevchenko Kyiv National University, Kyiv, Ukraine. WoS Researcher ID:
HZH-5492-2023
4
Ph.D. (Pedagogy), Associate Professor, Chair of Faculty of Journalism Borys Grinchenko Kyiv Metropolitan University, Kyiv,
Ukraine. WoS Researcher ID: KFQ-0515-2024
5
Graduate student of the Faculty of Journalism of Borys Grinchenko Kyiv Metropolitan University, Kyiv, Ukraine.
WoS Researcher ID: IRZ-3129-2023
242
www.amazoniainvestiga.info ISSN 2322- 6307
component of the security activities of the
Ukrainian Cossacks and a means of
implementing power policy. The principles and
approaches developed in working with
information will help reveal the secrets of the
Cossacks' information skills and will contribute
to the deepening of interest in the study and
revival of Cossack traditions, which is necessary
both for filling research gaps and for training
specialists in the field.
Keywords: information policy, Cossack
Ukraine, national security, publishing, education.
Introduction
Being at the crossroads of the interests of the East
and the West, the North and the South, Ukraine
has always been and still is in a state of constant
struggle for its security. The modern information
society has revealed many existing problems in
this area. Information wars have become
harbingers and components of political,
economic and, ultimately, military wars.
Under such conditions, the problems of the
provision of society's vital activities, become of
primary importance. The research is designed to
find the details of the formation of Ukrainian
information policy, state formation,
establishment of a national mentality, and
freedom-loving society, which is currently
defending Ukraine and the civilized world from
foreign encroachments.
The early modern Ukrainian state has been
confronted with the insinuations and
encroachments of its neighbors since its
inception. The leaders of Kozak Ukraine
developed and implemented a wide complex of
non-public events aimed at safeguarding national
interests. They created a powerful intelligence
and counterintelligence system, which was one
of the best during the XVI–XVIII centuries.
Taking care of the security of the homeland, the
leaders of the Ukrainian early modern state and
the wider circle of Cossacks obviously
understood the importance of the humanitarian
component in state building, grouping and self-
identification of the Ukrainians of that time. The
education of the population of the region not only
contributed to the development of economic and
military arts, but was also a factor in ensuring the
proper existence and efficiency of the Ukrainian
knighthood during a significant period of its
history.
The object of the research is information policy
as a security component in the times of the
Ukrainian early modern state. The subject of the
research is informational, in particular
publishing, activity, the use of information and
publishing works in state-building processes,
with the aim of ensuring national security. We
assume that well-thought-out information
activity in its various segments was an important
component of the policy of the Ukrainian state,
contributed to its protection from foreign
encroachments, and was an important part
security activities.
The purpose of the study is to analyze and
characterize the system of information support of
the hetman power of early modern Ukraine, its
influence on the implementation of internal and
external policy, which contributed to the
protection of Ukrainian lands from external
aggression and the expansion of Ukrainian
interests in the world.
The basis of an effective system for ensuring the
proper functioning of state institutions and
management is information. Ukrainian Cossacks
knew how to obtain, form and use the necessary
information, which ensured the existence in a
hostile environment of both the sovereign
Zaporizhia Sich and the broader Ukrainian early
modern state, their successful implementation of
politics and military-political actions for several
centuries.
The study consistently shows the state of
educational activity at that time, book publishing
policy, the importance of proclamations,
universals, letters in involving society in state
affairs, the document circulation system, which
ultimately led to the creation by
Hetman Pylyp Orlyk of one of the first European
constitutions, which substantiated the idea of
Ukraine's independence, the declared goal of the
Bondar, Y., Shpak, V., Nabrusko, V., Horbenko, H., Shyrokova, I. / Volume 13 - Issue 73: 241-251 / January, 2024
Volume 13 - Issue 73
/ January 2024
243
http:// www.amazoniainvestiga.info ISSN 2322- 6307
Cossacks is the liberation of Ukraine from the
supremacy of Muscovy.
Literature review
Characterizing the degree of scientific
development of the problems of the Ukrainian
early modern state, we note that, focusing on the
works of predecessors, modern researchers
deepen and expand knowledge about modern
Cossack upbringing, education and culture,
which were important factors in the formation of
the state construction and functioning of the Land
of the Cossacks.
The works of Valery Stepankov (Stepankov,
2004), Viktor Brekhunenko (Brekhunenko,
2014), Oleksiy Putro (Putro, 2008), Ivan Syniak
(Syniak, 2005) and Lubov Histsova,
Liudmyla Demchenko, Tetiana Kuzyk,
Larysa Muravtseva (Histsova et al., 2006), are
devoted to the question of intelligence activity, in
particular the informational component of it, the
role of the leaders of the Cossack state in the
development and implementation of security
policy, including in the field of communication.
The issues of written communication, the
training of Zaporizhia "chancellors", the
functions and role of scribes, who were an
important link in the power vertical, was
considered in the works of, in particular,
D. Yavornytskyi (Yavornytskyi, 1993), I. Syniak
(Syniak, 2005), Yu. Mytsyk (Mytsyk, 1994) and
other scientists. I. Syniak and V. Omel`chuk
(Syniak, 2017) investigate the role of
government in special, in particular
informational, activities during the time of
Hetman K. Rozumovsky. The security aspects of
information policy are also discussed in the
studies of Yu. Bondar (Bondar, 2017) and
V. Shpak (Shpak, 2015).
Many scientists have focused on the study of the
life activities of the leaders of the Ukrainian early
modern state, in particular: Bohdan
Khmelnytskyi (Stepankov, 2013; Krypiakevych,
1961; Storozhenko, 1996; Smoliy & Stepankov,
2003, etc.), Ivan Mazepa (Pavlenko, 2003;
Mytsyk, 2007; Kovalevska, 2008, etc.), Pylyp
Orlyk (Subtelny, 1981; Apanovych, 1993;
Ivanchenko, 1993, etc.), Ivan Vyhovskyi
(Kryvosheia, 2008; Yakovleva, 1998; Horobets,
2011, etc.), Peter Kalnyshevskyi (Hrybovskyi,
2004; Evarnitskiy, 1887; Putro, 2007, etc.) etc.
An attempt to generalize the main aspects of the
formation and evolution of the Ukrainian state
idea, which are considered in an inextricable
connection with the struggle for its
implementation during the 17th – 18th centuries
made historians Valery Smoliy and Valery
Stepankov (Smoliya & Stepankov, 1997).
The source analysis of the selected research topic
shows the presence of certain works related to the
information field, however, they are
fragmentary, they consider either narrow time
frames, or the activities of individual figures, or
individual areas of life. The primary sources are
archival materials, in particular the funds of the
Central State Historical Archive of Ukraine in
Kyiv, the Institute of Manuscripts of the National
Library of Ukraine named after V. Vernadskyi,
the Scientific Library of the National University
"Kyiv-Mohyla Academy", etc. Important data
are kept by letters, reports and denunciations of
the Cossack foreman, the General Military Office
and the Cossack scouts. Together, they make it
possible to find out the importance and quality of
written communication, as well as the role of
Hetmans in the organization of military and
intelligence operations, to establish the forms and
methods of activity, in particular information, to
clarify information about the role of information
in the selection of personnel and in the
organization of various events, as well as to
reveal their effectiveness.
The vast majority of archival materials are
located outside of Ukraine: in Poland, Lithuania,
Sweden, russia, Germany, etc. The current
situation does not allow them to be used to their
full extent, but work on the topic continues, since
there is no comprehensive study of the
information policy of a once powerful state in the
context of national security with emphasis on the
existing problems of the 21st century.
Methodology
Source analysis is applied as a universal
empirical method of researching regularities and
specific features of the development of the
information sphere, in particular, education and
publishing, relying on, firstly, the letters, reports
and denunciations of the Cossack foreman, the
General Military Office, and Cossack
intelligence officers, which make it possible to
clarify the nature of the information activity at
that time. Problem-chronological analysis was
used in the reconstruction of the history of the
development and formation of the foundations of
the state information policy through the study of
the activities of the leaders of the Cossack state,
from Bohdan-Zinoviy Khmelnytskyi to Kyrylo
Rozumovskyi.
The systematic method made it possible to
investigate the evolution of the use of publishing
244
www.amazoniainvestiga.info ISSN 2322- 6307
products as a means of socialization, promotion
of ideas and views, as well as a tool of
information struggle, in the form of a holistic
process that has a historical-progressive
character. When considering the aspects of
foreign policy regarding relations with Poland,
Sweden, the Crimean Khanate, Russia, etc., the
historical-comparative and analogies methods
were used, when various elements of the
information system were compared with
corresponding foreign counterparts.
The historical-comparative method was used to
compare the characteristics of various elements
of the system with corresponding foreign
analogues. The method of historical
hermeneutics is used to reconstruct the attitudes
and assessments of various social groups. Thanks
to the method of cause-and-effect relationships,
the dependence of the state of the national
information field, in particular publishing and
education, on the democracy of society, the
influence of internal and external factors, and
global processes was revealed.
The legitimacy of the research consists in the use
as a primary source base of materials from the
Central State Historical Archive of Ukraine in
Kyiv and other archival institutions, as well as
the preliminary work of Ukrainian and foreign
scientists, which have already been tested by
time.
Results and discussion
Cossack Ukraine was a country of literate people.
Sources report that Zaporizhzhya Sich itself – a
Cossack Christian state that existed for over a
hundred years – had a kind of "book corpus" of
several dozen books that every Cossack had to
read. Zaporozhians read the Holy Scriptures,
spiritual books, many of the soldiers knew not
only Ukrainian, but also Polish, Tatar, and
Turkish languages, could be translators, and
knew the art of negotiation. There were schools
and workshops for the production of books that
contained the acquired knowledge in Khortytsia
and other Cossack settlements.
Important evidence about Cossack Ukraine are
the travel notes of the Syrian archdeacon-
historian Paul of Aleppo (Halebsky) "Travel of
the Patriarch of Antioch Macarius", handwritten
lists of which are kept in London, Paris, St.
Petersburg and Kyiv. (In Kyiv, the manuscript of
the notes is kept in the archive of Professor O.
Pritsak in the Scientific Library of the National
University "Kyiv-Mohyla Academy"
(Halebskyi, 1650). The manuscript appeared in
Ukraine thanks to the efforts of Agathangel
Krymsky, who acquired it during his trip to Syria
in 1896). The author made a trip as part of the
patriarchal delegation, the official purpose of
which was to establish and strengthen religious
and political ties, and the route of which in 1654–
1656 ran from Damascus through Ukrainian
lands to the Muscovite Empire.
Travel notes contain information about the
political and economic situation in the lands
visited by the deputation, customs, culture and
lifestyle of the local population. Starting from
Rashkov and throughout the Hetmanate, the
participants of the trip noticed the general ability
to read and write, even among women, children,
even orphans, knowledge of church service and
hymns (Hrushevs'kyj, 2015, р. 429). The
fascination of Aleppskyi causes by the education
of the nuns of the Ascension Monastery, who are
all "not only literate, but even highly learned...".
About the abbots in Kyiv monasteries, he says
that among them there are "human scientists",
experts in law, philosophers and eloquent
speakers (Arkas, 1994, p. 188).
Aleppskyi connects the large number of literate
people in the "Land of the Cossacks" with the
statist policy of B. Khmelnytskyi, whom he met
twice during his travels (in 1654 in Bohuslav and
in 1656 in Chygyrin).
The Danish ambassador under Peter the Great,
Justus Julius, confirms Aleppskyi's impressions.
Returning home through Ukraine, he writes:
"Inhabitants of Cossack Ukraine live happily, do
whatever they want... They go to church with
prayer books in their hands, while among the
Muscovites, not even the boyars are literate"
(Arkas, 1994, p. 188).
Travelers emphasized the development of
publishing in the Land of the Cossacks. Thus,
after visiting the Kyiv-Pechersk Monastery,
Pavlo Aleppskyi noted: "Near the Church of the
Assumption of the Virgin, there is a beautiful
printing house that serves the whole country. All
the church books come out here - beautifully
printed, in different declensions and in different
colors. Also drawings on large papers – views of
regions, images of saints, scientific research and
so on (Khalebskyi, 1995, p. 66; Arkas, 1994,
p. 188). Here Aleppskyi mentions the printing
house founded in 1615 on the initiative of the
abbot of the Kyiv-Pechersk Monastery of the
Assumption of the Holy Virgin, the energetic
administrator E. Pletenetsky, who, by the way,
came from the Galician Cossack family:
Pletenetskyi's father was the elder of the
Volume 13 - Issue 73
/ January 2024
245
http:// www.amazoniainvestiga.info ISSN 2322- 6307
registered Cossacks, and the future archimandrite
himself, according to some sources, was also a
Cossack until he was ordained a monk. Around
the fraternity and the printing house gathered
writers, cultural figures who formed, according
to I. Ohienko's expression, the "Printing
Academy". All the academicians got along well
in the printing business (Ohiienko,1994,
pp. 407-410).
The publishing policy of the heads of the printing
house had a distinct Ukrainian national character
and was aimed at the spread of Orthodoxy, which
was relevant in the light of the confrontation with
Catholicism and Uniatism. Academicians
insisted on the use of the living Ukrainian
language ("common conversation") in church
services, "because it is necessary for the word to
be understandable, to "edify", to be accepted by
the mind, and not only by the tongue", which was
also embodied in the publishing house
(Hrushevs'kyj, 1996, pp. 48-49). The Cossack
theme was also present in the publishing
repertoire of the printing house. In such works as
"Poems for a pitiful burial... of Pyotr
Konashevich-Sagaidachny" from 1622
(Sakovich, 1992, p. 160-183) (or
"Eucharysterion", published in 1632 (Pochasky,
1992, pp. 222-250), the Zaporozhian Cossacks
were glorified as a model of courage and
patriotism.
Cossacks contributed to publishing, and were
publishers themselves. As, for example, T.
Verbytskyi, a "comrade of the Zaporizhzhya
Army", a wealthy Kyiv burgher and former
employee of the Lavra printing house, who, with
the financial assistance of Metropolitan Y.
Boretskyi, purchased in September 1624 from
the family of another Zaporizhia Cossack, Y.
Putivlts, "that at that time "Behind the
thresholds" was located, for a respectable sum of
200 Lithuanian kip" a yard with a house in Podil,
where he set up his "printing house". The first
book of the new publishing house was
"Chasoslov", later "Bukvar" and "Psalter" were
published. Verbytskyi intended to expand the
possibilities of the printing house, for which he
went to Ostroh, who immediately heard rumors
about a "Zaporozhian printer" who wanted to buy
the remaining equipment of the local printing
house. The trip was not entirely successful – the
local landowner L. Buchaisky imprisoned the
guest, after which he was sent back to Kyiv with
nothing. Later, on behalf of P. Mohyla,
Verbytskyi went to Voloshchyna, where he
organized a new printing house in Dovhoy Pol
(Hrushevs'kyj, 1996, p. 46; Ohiienko, 1994,
pp. 407-410).
Noting the broader context of the national
movement superimposed on the age of the
Cossacks (Y. Isaievych drew attention to the fact
that important events in the history of Ukrainian
book-writing and printing coincided with
milestone events of the Cossacks (Isaievych,
2004. p. 932)), it is worth noting the fraternal
movement – the creation of schools in different
Ukrainian lands, where the national elite who
personified the Ukrainian Renaissance. The first
fraternal school was established in 1586 in Lviv.
In the following years, such schools were
founded in Sambor, Horodok, Przemyśl, Lutsk,
Stryi, Nemyrov, Vinnytsia, Kamianets-Podilskyi
and other cities and villages. They were founded
so that young people "draw knowledge from
native sources"(Khyzhniak, 2004, p. 754).
"Brothers" purposefully carried out the
propaganda of patriotic views, using various
measures and means, primarily publishing, to
form a national worldview among the widest
circles of compatriots. The Cossacks also stood
near the origins of the Kyiv fraternal school – the
predecessor of the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy,
whose students formed the basis of the "educated
class" of military clerks, from which many
writers, translators, and historians emerged.
Thanks to the efforts of educators, education has
become, in the opinion of Z. Khyzhniak, a
component of the mentality of Ukrainians
(Khyzhniak, 2004, p. 765). In the 17th century
the majority of Ukrainians (approximately 60%)
were literate. Schools existed in cities, towns,
villages, at large monasteries and churches.
Higher schools were also founded in Kyiv,
Kremenets, Vinnytsia, Gosh and outside
Ukraine, in particular, a school and a printing
house in Iasy (Moldova) and others cities (Palij,
2013, p. 766; Khyzhniak, 2004, p. 765). The
Cossacks took care of providing schools with the
necessary literature. So, for example, in 1760,
Colonel Ivan Kulyabka from Luben ordered two
thousand primers from Kyiv publishers for the
education of Cossack youth (Kahamlyk, 2008,
p. 192).
One of the most popular in the 17th–18th
centuries. there were historical works that were
distributed mainly in manuscript. Currently,
memoirs are also interesting, in particular the so-
called Lviv Chronicle, Samovidets Chronicle,
diaries, numerous chronographs and chronicles,
including the Cossack chronicles and diaries of
Samiyla Velichka, Hryhoriy Grabyanka, Samiyla
Zorka, Yakov Lyzoguba, and others. Researchers
also pay attention to the formation during the
17th century. of the dum genre – a heroic
historical epic that combined book and oral
246
www.amazoniainvestiga.info ISSN 2322- 6307
elements. Dumas were in the active
"propaganda" arsenal of kobzars, which became
a certain symbol of Cossack culture, entering the
corpus of the so-called Ustyn books – collections
of folklore and other works that were transmitted
orally (Martynova, 2003, p. 305).
Cossacks and "leaflet communication" were
actively used. As early as 1625, written appeals
were spreading in Zaporizhzhya Sich, which
spoke about the tasks of the Ukrainian liberation
movement, in particular, in the matter of
opposing the crown army (Scherbak, 2004,
p. 20-31). Researchers are also talking about a
"proclamation war". On the eve of the next stage
of the Russo-Swedish war, after the anathema of
I. Mazepa, the tsar, writes M. Arkas, sent two
manifestos to the Ukrainian people. In one
respect, the monarch flattered the Ukrainians so
that they would not believe the manifestos and
universals of Charles and Mazepa, because, they
say, there is not a single people in the whole
world who live as easily and freely as the
Ukrainians under the hand of Moscow; in the
second, the king promised not to punish anyone
for not informing about Mazepa's intentions to go
over to the Swedes. Peter I urged Ukrainians not
to be afraid to return to their property. Those who
will not obey, the king will consider traitors and
will take away their positions, signs and property,
punishing them with death, and their women and
children will be sent into exile... About the letter
to the Cossacks from clergymen, written on the
instructions of Peter I, says V Serhijchuk
(Serhijchuk, 2016, p. 161).
I. Mazepa also joined the information war,
sending out circulars where he explained the
reasons that forced him to go against Russia.
"Moscow, he wrote, wants to devastate the cities,
enslave all the elders, turn the Cossacks into
dragoons and soldiers, drive the people to the
Moscow lands across the Volga, and populate
our region with their own people." In the same
way, the colonels – supporters of Mazepa, who
called to disobey the tsarist manifestos and
support the Hetman – distributed pamphlets.
Swedes also spread their appeals in Ukraine,
printing appeals to Ukrainians on a Russian
printing press that happened to be in their
possession. In the postcards, the Swedish king
assured the Ukrainians that he had no intention of
doing evil, but wanted to free them from the
Moscow yoke, and also advised them to obey
Hetman Mazepa. Enraged by such
proclamations, Peter I even issued a decree not to
believe the prints and not to keep them, and to
detain and deliver those who distribute leaflets to
Moscow, for which "royal mercy" was promised
(Arkas, 1994, p. 295-296; Butych, 2006,
p. 411-413).
Proclamations were also used during the
Haydamak movement, evidence of which has
been preserved in foreign intelligence
documents. Polish sources, currently researched
by E. Buket, report that from the middle of the
summer of 1768, after the capture of Colonel M.
Zalizniak by the Moscow army near Umannaya,
proclamations were spread on Ukrainian lands,
which stated that "...a Muscovite is an enemy of
the people, so you should not serve him, because
only by freeing yourself from him, you can get
unlimited freedom." (Butych, 2004, p. 222;
Rolle, 1966, p. 20). Leaflets with a similar
content, distributed in the territories where I.
Bondarenko (under the signature "Cossack
Ivan"), Ya. Sachenko, S. Maiboroda, M. Guba
and other insurgents were active, were quite
effective and intensified the insurgent struggle
(Omel`chuk & Sinyak, 2017, p. 245).
Book collections testify to the place of books in
the life of Cossack Ukraine. Large libraries were
formed at educational institutions and printing
houses in Ostroh, Lviv, Lutsk, Chernihiv,
Kharkiv, Nizhny... The book collection of the
Kyiv-Mohyla collegium was famous for its
collection, where, according to various sources,
more than 12,000 editions of different times and
countries were collected. The special storage
archive consisted of handwritten works – lecture
notes, chronographs, diaries, as well as various
business documents. The library and archive
could be used not only by teachers and students
of the academy, but also by anyone.
Monasteries and churches had their book
collections. Thus, according to the description
from the 18th century, the Intercession Church of
Nova Sich had 120 books of various contents -
from liturgical to historical. Often patrons of
such gatherings were the Cossacks themselves.
In the library, for example, of the Samara Desert-
Mykolaiv monastery, there were publications
donated by the chief of the Velichkiv kuren D.
Miria, the Cossack Biletsky, the last chief of the
Kosh P. Kalnyshevsky, etc. (Arkas, 1994,
p. 333-334; Isaievych, 2004, p. 933; Khyzhniak,
2004, p. 768).
Separately, we can talk about private Cossack
book collections of the XVII–XVIII centuries.
For example, according to sources, the estate of
General Military Judge G. Myloradovych
contained 16,000 books, the Bunchuk comrade
of the Starodub Regiment S. Lukashevich had
12,000 books, Colonel V. Kochubey in Zhuky in
Volume 13 - Issue 73
/ January 2024
247
http:// www.amazoniainvestiga.info ISSN 2322- 6307
Poltava region had 5,000 books etc. One of the
largest and most sophisticated libraries was
collected by I. Mazepa in Baturyn. Remembering
her, the General Scribe, and later Hetman of the
Zaporozhian Army in exile, P. Orlyk wrote:
"...Precious frames with Hetman coats of arms,
the best Kyiv editions, German and Latin
incunabula, many illustrated ancient chronicles.
Not without sighing, in my current poverty, I
remember all the book riches, which were
unmatched in Ukraine...". The "Peresopnytsia
Gospel" was known among the hetman's
gathering. M. Khanenko, the General Military
Coroner in 1741–1760, had a large collection of
various publications. According to stories and
personal diaries, he always had books with him
that he read on the road, and the main library was
set up in one of his estates, let's say in Horodysh.
Books, according to the author of the notes, were
an important element of his communications as
well – Khanenko often gave publications and
exchanged them (Tytova, 1896, p. 151-196).
The aforementioned scribes occupied a place of
honor in Cossack Ukraine. Prominent state and
political figures came from among scribes. So,
the scribe was the first official Hetman of the
Zaporizhzhya Army, B. Khmelnytskyi. I.
Vyhovskyi, who researchers consider the
founder of the Ukrainian secret service, began his
state ascension as a personal, "private" scribe of
the Hetman. He spoke several languages, was an
excellent calligrapher, co-author of important
universals of B. Khmelnytskyi, and "often wrote
them himself at the behest of the hetman." In
1650, Vyhovsky was appointed Military Clerk,
which position he "turned into the most
influential in the Ukrainian government" (Zhytar,
2009, p. 83; Kovalenko, 2007, p. 56).
Already after the death of Khmelnytskyi's patron
and friend, Vyhovskyi was elected Hetman by
the decision of the Chigyryna September Council
in 1657. In the future, Vyhovskyi continued to
take care of the information sphere, including the
Cossack publishing house. This is evidenced, in
particular, by the articles of the Hadiac Treatise
signed by him with Poland in 1658. It stipulates
that in Ukraine "colleges, schools and printing
houses, as many as they are needed, can be freely
founded, freely engage in science and print
various books" (Khyzhniak, 2004, p. 754). One
of the steps of the former scribe's rule was the
termination of the alliance agreement of 1654
between Ukraine and the Muscovite kingdom,
which led to a war with the Muscovites and the
removal of Vyhovsky from power, and later to
his murder.
The Hetman of the Zaporizhzhya Army in exile,
a graduate of the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, P.
Orlyk, who began his rapid career in 1690 as the
cathedral scribe of the Kyiv Metropolitanate, and
then in the Poltava Regiment, also tasted
Pisarsky bread. A capable young clerk attracted
the attention of the Hetman of Zaporizhzhya I.
Mazepa, who in 1702 became the godfather of
Orlyk's eldest son, Hryhor. Soon P. Orlyk
assumed the post of General Clerk of the General
Military Office. Loyal to Mazepa until the end of
his days, Orlyk continued the cause of the
Hetman, becoming the leader of the first
Ukrainian political emigration and the organizer
of Ukrainian liberation struggles. After the
election of the Hetman of the Zaporizhzhya
Army in April 1710, Orlyk published the famous
"Pacts and Constitutions of Laws and Freedoms
of the Zaporizhzhya Army" in Bendery (Orlyk,
2006, p. 5-25). In one of the first European
constitutions, the idea of Ukraine's
independence, the persistence of the Ukrainian
state-building process, and the declared goal of
the Cossacks – the liberation of Ukraine from the
supremacy of Muscovy – were substantiated.
Under P. Orlyk, for the first time since the time
of B. Khmelnytskyi, the Ukrainian issue was
placed at the epicenter of European politics on
the international arena, and an international front
of support for Ukraine's aspirations was created.
One of the important works that attracted the
attention of the community was the manifesto to
the European monarchs "Excerpt of the Rights of
Ukraine", probably written in 1712. In the
treatise, Orlyk outlined his vision of Ukrainian-
Russian relations, pointing out the inexorable
absorption of the Cossack state by Russia.
Calling on European governments to support
Ukraine in its quest for independence, the author
warned that if the Europeans do not interfere in
negative processes, the invasion of the Russians
may eventually spread to other countries, that is,
it is about the security of states (Matiakh, 2004,
p. 444-447).
The Ukrainian word was dangerous for those
who wanted to rule Ukraine. And that is why the
Muscovites, seeing it as a threat to their rule,
limited it in every possible way – politically and
administratively – by banning and repressing it,
subjecting it to censorship (Andrievsky, 1888,
pp. 61-63). Thus, after the destruction of first
Zaporizhzhia, and then the Pozaporizchi sichs,
all property and archives of the Cossacks were
taken to Russia, as a result, many cultural assets
of Cossack Ukraine, including book works, were
lost. With the actual loss of the Ukrainian book,
the Ukrainian society ultimately lost its
248
www.amazoniainvestiga.info ISSN 2322- 6307
statehood, being on the verge of
denationalization.
Conclusions
Ukraine is an ancient state with a rich and
majestic history, however, more than 300 years
of being under colonial Russian oppression
actually erased the true history of their people
from the public information flow of entire
generations of Ukrainians. Practically all
available achievements were kept silent by the
metropolis, and archival materials were either
destroyed or are inaccessible even to the
scientific community. The desire to destroy
Ukraine and the Ukrainian people remains a
dream of the imperial metropolis to this
day.Studies of the history of the Cossack state are
based mainly on the found foreign archival
materials of Warsaw, Krakow, Stockholm,
Munich, etc. and the priceless treasures of the
national archives that have been preserved.
During the days of the Ukrainian early modern
state, the foundations of the vision of the state
information policy, focused on ensuring national
interests in various spheres of life, were formed.
A well-thought-out information policy, the
position and participation of the leaders of
Cossack Ukraine in information processes
contributed to securing national interests and
protecting the state from foreign encroachments.
Publishing was important for Ukrainian
superiors. The publishing centers of Cossack
Ukraine were numerous monasteries, churches
and other religious institutions where printing
houses were organized. A prominent place
among such publishing centers, often initiated by
Cossack elders, belongs to the printing house of
the Kyiv Lavra, which, having absorbed the
achievements of other Ukrainian publishing
schools, as well as the experience of publishing
houses of the European Renaissance, for many
years became the most powerful publishing
center of its time, a trendsetter in Ukrainian
publishing. having determined the direction of its
development.
Literary writers, leading figures of education and
culture gathered around the publishing centers,
who understood publishing, including as a means
of establishing Ukrainianness and statehood.
Representatives of the Cossack community not
only took care of the protection and development
of the Ukrainian publishing industry, but were
often themselves skilled publishers-practitioners
who enriched literature with original works about
the achievements of Ukrainians, contributed to
the spiritual development of readers, the
formation of national consciousness and the
formation of the Ukrainian "educated state".
In the times of the Cossacks, a wide network of
schooling and higher education emerged, various
sciences and arts - philosophy, literature,
linguistics, etc. - developed and spread. The so-
called fraternal movement and, in particular,
fraternal schools, which became the centers of
education of the national elite and, more broadly,
the Ukrainian national worldview, with the help
of enlightenment and publishing activity, wrote
their distinctive page in the development of the
publishing house of Cossack Ukraine.
Evidence of a respectful attitude towards books
in the days of Cossack Ukraine are numerous
libraries and archives that were formed at various
institutions, educational institutions, printing
houses and were centers of enlightenment. The
leaders of Cossack Ukraine also left behind rich
book collections, testifying to the respect for
books and the high education of Ukrainians of
that time. The education of Ukrainians during the
time of the Cossacks was also manifested in the
institute of scribes, which were an important link
in the system of state and public administration
and from which outstanding Ukrainian statesmen
emerged.
The publishing practice of Cossacks provides
examples of the use of publishing products as a
means of socialization, promotion of ideas and
views, as well as a means of informational
struggle. Such use of the publishing house is
typical, in particular, for the periods of the
unfolding of the national liberation struggle of
the 17th and 18th centuries, during armed
confrontations, when propaganda products were
an element of the "information war" and were
used to attract supporters to one's side and for
discredit the opponent.
The cultural achievements of Cossack Ukraine
and subsequent times were subjected to the
destructive influence of imperial Muscovy,
which pursued a policy of Russification,
persecuting independent expressions of national
culture in every possible way. During the entire
period of domination over the Ukrainians, Russia
did everything possible to take away, or at least
blunt, their weapons against enslavement - the
national word and publishing house.
However, Ukrainians found the strength to avoid
the national death that seemed to be looming over
them. Historical justice consisted in the fact that
it was the "semantic code" of the Cossacks that
Volume 13 - Issue 73
/ January 2024
249
http:// www.amazoniainvestiga.info ISSN 2322- 6307
became the lever of a new rise of the Ukrainian
spirit, which sought liberation from the imperial
desire to subjugate Ukrainians mentally by
"dissolving" them in the empire, including with
the help of information policy.
Bibliographic references
Andrievsky, A. A. (1888). Involuntary crime of
the Kyiv magistrate. The case of G.V.K. 1753
about sending to Col. in. cases presented
from the Kyiv magistrate under the well-
known title of decrees and other letters found
in the house of the mayor of Kyiv. deceased
Gerasim Kholyavka. Fund no. 128,
Description 1, file 58. Kyiv, Ukraine: Central
State Historical Archives of Ukraine, pp. 6-8.
Apanovych, O. (1993). Hetmans of Ukraine and
Kosh chieftains of Zaporizhzhya Sich. Kyiv:
Lybid, ISBN 5-325-00062-4 (In Ukranian).
Arkas, M. (1994). History of Ukraine-Russia.
Odesa: Mayak. ISBN 5-7760-0505-1 (In
Ukranian).
Bondar, Yu. (2017). The first information. Early
publishing: the origin and development of
publishing in the process of socio-political
transformations of the ancient world. Kyiv:
Personal. ISBN 978-617-02-0256-7 (In
Ukranian).
Brekhunenko, V. (2014). The Eastern Gate of
Europe. Cossack Ukraine of the middle of the
XVII–XVIII centuries. Kyiv: Tempora.
ISBN: 978-617-569-199-1 (In Ukranian).
Butych, I. (2004). The Haidamat uprisings are a
will without a will. In V. V. Nediak (Ed.).
Ukraine – the Cossack State: Illustrated
History of the Ukrainian Cossacks in 5175
Pictures (pp. 218–222). Kyiv: EMMA. ISBN
966-95-8417-5 (In Ukranian)
Butych, I., & Rynsevych, V. (2006). Universals
of Ivan Mazepa (1687–1709). In two parts.
Part two. Kyiv, L'viv: NTSh. ISBN 966-02-
3872-Х (In Ukranian).
Evarnitskiy, D. (1887). The last Koshevoy
ataman Pyotr Ivanovich Kalnyshevsky.
Novocherkassk: Printing house A.A.
Karaseva. URL:
https://archive.org/details/yavornytsky1887/
mode/2up (In russian Old).
Halebskyi, P. (1650). Journey of Antiochian
Patriarch Macarius. Fund no. 10.
Description 1, file 1. Kyiv, Ukraine:
Scientific Library of the National University
«Kyiv-Mohyla Academy».
Histsova, L. Demchenko, L., Kuzyk, T., &
Muravtseva, L. (2006). Archive of Kosh of
New Zaporizhzhia Sich 1734–1775. Corpus
of documents. In eight volumes. Volume
four. Kyiv: Hrushevsky Institute of Ukrainian
Archeography and Source Studies of the
National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine;
Archaeological Commission of the National
Academy of Sciences of Ukraine; State
Committee of Archives of Ukraine; Central
State Historical Archive of Ukraine. ISBN
966-02-4004-Х (In Ukranian).
Horobets, V. (2011). Vyhovsky. In Yu. Shapoval
(Ed.). Political encyclopedia (p. 99). Kyiv:
Parliamentary Publishing House. ISBN 978-
966-611-818-2 (In Ukranian).
Horska, K., Dosenko, A., Iuksel, G.,
Yuldasheva, L., & Solomatova, V. (2023).
Plataformas de Internet como fuentes
alternativas de información durante la guerra
ruso-ucraniana. Amazonia Investiga, 12(62),
353-360.
https://doi.org/10.34069/AI/2023.62.02.36
Hrushevs'kyj, M. S. (2015). Works. In fifty
volumes. Volume twenty-two: Essays on the
history of the Ukrainian people. L'viv: Svit.
ISBN 978-966-603-923-4 (In Ukranian).
Hrushevs'kyj, M. S. (1996). History of Ukrainian
literature. In six volumes, nine books. Book
one. Kyiv: Lybid'. ISBN 5-325-00671-1 (In
Ukranian).
Hrybovskyi, V. (2004). Kosh chieftain Peter
Kalnyshevskyi. Donetsk: Porogy. URL:
https://acortar.link/giZCKS (In Ukranian)
Isaievych, Ya. (2004). Manuscript book
masterpieces and the art of old prints of the
16th–18th centuries. In V. V. Nediak (Ed.).
Ukraine – the Cossack State: Illustrated
History of the Ukrainian Cossacks in 5175
Pictures (pp. 932–946). Kyiv: EMMA.
ISBN: 966-95841-7-5. (In Ukranian).
Ivanchenko, Yu. (1993). (Ed.). Mazepa:
сollection. Kyiv: Mystetstvo. ISBN 5-7715-
0570-6 (In Ukranian).
Kahamlyk, S. (2008). The light of spirituality and
culture. Kyiv: Nash chas. ISBN 978-966-
1530-07-1 (In Ukranian).
Khalebskyi, P. (1995). Country of the Cossacks.
Kyiv: MSP «Kozaky». ISBN 5-8238-0396-6
(In Ukranian).
Khyzhniak, Z. (2004). Cultural and educational
movement in Ukraine of the 16th–18th
centuries. In V. V. Nediak (Ed.). Ukraine –
the Cossack State: Illustrated History of the
Ukrainian Cossacks in 5175 Pictures (pp.
764–769). Kyiv: EMMA. ISBN: 966-95841-
7-5 (In Ukranian)
Kovalenko, S. (2007). Ukraine under the mace of
Bohdan Khmelnytskyi. Kyiv: Stiks-Ko.
ISBN: 9789669684905 (In Ukranian).
Kovalevska, O. (2008). Ivan Mazepa: in
questions and answers. Kyiv: Tempora.
ISBN 978-966-8201-49-3 (In Ukranian).
250
www.amazoniainvestiga.info ISSN 2322- 6307
Krypiakevych, I. (1961). Documents of Bohdan
Khmelnytskyi (1648-1657). Kyiv: PH
Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR.
URL: https://acortar.link/ijAuwU (In
Ukranian).
Kryvosheia, V. (2008). The Cossack elite of the
Hetmanship. K.: IPiEND named after I. F.
Kuras National Academy of Sciences of
Ukraine. ISBN 978966024850 (In Ukranian).
Martynova, T. (2003). Worldview potential of the
Kobzar epic and its significance for the
spiritual revival of Ukrainians. Kyiv: KyMU.
Pravovi dzherela. ISBN 5-7763-2385-1 (In
Ukranian).
Matiakh, V. (2004). Hetman in exile: Pylyp
Orlyk and the first Constitution of Ukraine in
1710. In V. V. Nediak (Ed.). Ukraine – the
Cossack State: Illustrated History of the
Ukrainian Cossacks in 5175 Pictures
(pp. 444–447). Kyiv: EMMA. ISBN: 966-
95841-7-5 (In Ukranian).
Mytsyk, Yu. (1994). Ivan Vyhovs'kyj. In V. A.
Smolij (Ed.), Owners of the Hetman mace:
historical portraits (pp. 191–237). Kyiv:
Varta. ISBN 966-518-254-4 (In Ukranian).
Mytsyk, Yu. (2007). Ivan Mazepa. Kyiv: [b.v.].
ISBN 978-966-02-4441-2 (In Ukranian).
Ohiienko, I. (1994). History of Ukrainian
printing. Kyiv: Lybid'. ISBN 5-325-00510-3
(In Ukranian).
Omel`chuk, V., & Sinyak, I. (2017). On guard
of the Motherland: the security dimension of
Ukrainian state formation in the second third
of the 18th century. Kyiv: Prometej. (Series
"World traditions of public administration")
ISBN: 978-617-7502-028 (In Ukranian).
Orlyk, P. (2006). Constitution, manifestos and
literary heritage: selected works. Kyiv:
MAUP. ISBN 966-608-626-3 (In Ukranian).
Palij, O. (2013, September 16). How historian
Kostomarov judged the TV presenter and the
Russian diplomat. Den', 164. URL:
https://acortar.link/8T83CK (In Ukranian).
Pavlenko, S. (2003). Ivan Mazepa. Kyiv:
Alternatyvy. ISBN 966-7217-84-1 (In
Ukranian).
Pochasky, S. (1992). Eucharistryon, or
Gratitude... In V. P. Kolosov, V. I. Krekoten
& M. M. Sulima (Eds.), Ukrainian poetry late
16th – mid 17th centuries: Vol. 1. Ukrainian
poetry late 16th – mid 17th centuries (2nd ed.,
pp. 222–250). Kyiv. Naukova dumka. URL:
http://litopys.org.ua/human/hum31.htm (In
Ukranian).
Putro, O. (2008). Hetman Kyrylo Razumovsky
and his era (from the history of Ukrainian
statehood in the 18th century). Kyiv:
DAKKKiM. ISBN 978-966-8683-99-2; 978-
966-452-001-7. URL:
https://acortar.link/RfhAIs (In Ukranian).
Putro, O. (2007). Petro Ivanovych Kalnyshevsky
In V.A. Smoliy (Ed.). Encyclopedia of the
History of Ukraine. In ten volumes. Volume
four. Kyiv: Naukova dumka. ISBN 978-966-
00-0692-8 (In Ukranian).
Rolle, A. (1966). Scary Joseph. In A. Rolle.
Historical stories. In two volumes. Volume
one. Krakiv: Literary Publishing House. (In
Polish).
Sakovich, K. (1992). Poems for the mourning
cellar of the noble knight Pyotr Konashevich-
Sagaidachny. In V. P. Kolosov, V. I.
Krekoten & M. M. Sulima (Eds.), Ukrainian
poetry of the end of the 16th – the middle of
the 17th century: Vol. 1. Ukrainian book
poetry of the end of the 16th – beginning of
the 17th century. (2nd ed., pp. 160–183).
Kyiv: Scientific thought. URL:
http://litopys.org.ua/ukrpoetry/anto37.htm#s
ka2 (In Ukranian).
Scherbak, V. (2004). The genesis and formation
of the Ukrainian Cossacks. In V. V. Nediak
(Ed.). Ukraine – the Cossack State:
Illustrated History of the Ukrainian Cossacks
in 5175 Pictures (pp. 20–31). Kyiv: EMMA.
ISBN: 966-95841-7-5 (In Ukranian).
Serhijchuk, V. (2016). Cathedral memory of
Ukraine. Kyiv: PP Serhijchuk M. I. ISBN
978-966-2911-59-6 (In Ukranian).
Shpak, V. (2015). Publishing business in the
conditions of Ukrainian statehood. Kyiv:
Expres-ob'iava. ISBN 978-966-97450-3-3 (In
Ukranian).
Smoliy, V. A., & Stepankov, V. S. (2003).
Bogdan Khmelnitsky. Kyiv: Alternatyvy.
ISBN 966-7217-76-0. (In Ukranian).
Smoliy, V. A., & Stepankov, V. S. (1997).
Ukrainian state idea of the XVII–XVIII
centuries: problems of formation, evolution,
implementation. Kyiv: Alternatyvy. ISBN
966-7217-00-0. URL :
https://acortar.link/ICNzET (In Ukranian).
Stepankov, V. (2013). Bohdan Khmelnytskyi. In
V.A. Smoliy (Ed.). Encyclopedia of the
History of Ukraine. In ten volumes. Volume
ten. (389-390). Kyiv: Naukova dumka. ISBN
978-966-00-1359-9 (In Ukranian).
Stepankov V. (2004). Intelligence and counter-
intelligence of Hetman Bohdan
Khmelnytskyi. In V. V. Nediak (Ed.).
Ukraine – the Cossack State: Illustrated
History of the Ukrainian Cossacks in 5175
Pictures (pp. 263–267). Kyiv: EMMA.
ISBN: 966-95841-7-5 (In Ukranian).
Storozhenko, I. (1996). Bohdan Khmelnytskyi
and military art in the liberation war of the
Ukrainian people in the middle of the 17th
Volume 13 - Issue 73
/ January 2024
251
http:// www.amazoniainvestiga.info ISSN 2322- 6307
century. In two volumes. Volume one.
Military operations of 1648-1652.
Dnipropetrovsk: Publishing House of DSU.
ISBN 966-551-004-5 (In Ukranian).
Subtelny, O. (1981). The Mazepists. Ukrainian
Separatism in the Early Eighteenth Century.
New York: Columbia University Press.
ISBN 0-914710-81-8. URL:
https://diasporiana.org.ua/wp-
content/uploads/books/8582/file.pdf (In
English).
Syniak, I. (2005). Document circulation of Kosh
of New Zaporizhzhya Sich with the Crimean
Khanate. Cossack heritage, 2, 94-100. ISBN:
966-529-651-3 (In Ukranian).
Syniak, I. (2017). Zaporozhian intelligence in the
days of Novaya Sich (1734–1775). In V.
Omel`chuk (Ed.). Guarding the Motherland:
the security dimension of Ukrainian
statehood in the second third of the 18th
century (261–323). Kyiv: Prometej. ISBN:
978-617-7502-028 (In Ukranian).
Tytova, A. (1896). The diary of Nikolai
Khanenko (1719-1723, 1754). Old Kiev,
54(8–9), 151-196. (In Ukranian).
Yakovleva, T. (1998). The Hetmanate in the
second half of the 50s of the 17th century: the
reasons and the beginning of the Ruina. Kyiv:
Osnovy. ISBN 966-500-041-1 (In Ukranian).
Yavornytskyi, D. I. (1993). History of the
Zaporozhian Cossacks. In three volumes.
Volume three. Kyiv: Naukova dumka. ISBN
5-12-002052-6 (In Ukranian)
Zhytar, P. (2009). From Ukrainian Antiquity.
Chernivtsi: Bukrek. ISBN: 978-966-399-
202-0 (In Ukranian).