Cultural and educational activities of Poles in Kievbetween 1905 and 1918
The present paper focuses on the role of the Kiev Poles in the nation’s life in Ukraine between 1905 and 1918. They were people who set the main directions of the nation’s development, and their actions included cultural and educational projects.
The vast nature of this subject makes the present author focus on just some of its aspects. They are undoubtedly determined by the outbreak of the First World War and the influx of Poles to Kiev from the Kingdom of Poland and Galicia. What changed at the time was not only the attitude of the authorities to the initiatives of the Polish community, but also their scope and rules. Moreover, the war ended the first period of Poles’ activity in Kiev, becoming at the same time a prelude to the next stage, supported by refugees from the various Polish lands, who became actively involved in the life of the Polish community in Kiev. This stage ended with the victory of the February Revolution, which created new conditions for unrestricted Polish activity in the spheres of the nation’s life mentioned above.