Maksym Kryvonis

Maksym Kryvonis
Statue of Kryvonis in the monument “Heroes of the Liberation War of the Ukrainian People 1648–1654” in Zhovti Vody
Nickname(s)Perebyinis
BornAround 1600
DiedNovember 1648
Zamość, Belz Voivodeship, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
Allegiance Zaporozhian Host
Years of service1648
RankColonel
CommandsLysianka Regiment
Cherkasy Regiment
Korsun Regiment
Bila Tserkva Regiment
Uman Regiment
Battles / wars
ChildrenOleksandr Kryvonosenko [uk]

Maksym Kryvonis (Ukrainian: Максим Кривоніс, Polish: Maksym Krzywonos; literally means "crooked-nose") was one of the Cossack leaders and a commander of the Ukrainian peasants against the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. For the first time in the history of Lviv, during the siege of the city his regiment captured the Vysokyi Zamok Castle, which was defended by the strong Polish–Lithuanian garrison. Kryvonis was one of the most important figures during the Khmelnytskyi Uprising in 1648.

Origins

Contemporary woodcut of Kryvonis's likeness (probably a Polish caricature)[1]

The question about his origins remains unresolved. A Polish pamphlet published in 1648 claimed that he was a serf of the Nemyrych family[2] (a hypothesis favoured by Soviet historiography). However, a German source about a meeting with Kryvonis in 1648 says that he is of Scottish origin ("ein gebohrenen Schott")[3] In this case his real name may well have been not a nickname based on his crooked or broken nose, but a translation of his Scottish family name Cameron.

Khmelnytsky Uprising

Kryvonis was one of the most effective generals of the Uprising. He was awarded the rank of colonel of Cherkasy Regiment. His actions in Korsun and Pylyavtsi battles in 1648 led to crushing Cossack victories over the Polish armies. His actions against prince Jeremi Wiśniowiecki at Makhnivka and Starokostiantyniv were less successful.

Also there are different accounts of Kryvonis's demise: killed (shot) during the siege of Lviv, assassinated (poisoned) by Jesuits, killed by orders of Bohdan Khmelnytsky who loathed him, or perished of plague during the siege of Zamość in 1648.

Literature

Kryvonis (Polish: Maksym Krzywonos) was also a character in With Fire and Sword, a novel by Nobel-winning 19th-century Polish author Henryk Sienkiewicz. In the 1999 movie based on the novel he was played by Maciej Kozłowski.

References

  1. ^ "ПОВСТАННЯ БОГДАНА ХМЕЛЬНИЦЬКОГО" [BOHDAN KHMELNYTSKY REBELLION] (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on 2 June 2022.
  2. ^ Документы об освободительной войне украинского народа 1648-1654 г.г., Киев, Наукова Думка, 1965, p.70: "Nie gniewajac na siebie wlasnego dziedzica... cnego Niemierzyca" "Do not make your master, honorable Nemyrych, angry".
  3. ^ Дмитро НАЛИВАЙКО "ОЧИМА ЗАХОДУ: Рецепція України в Західній Європі XI-XVIII ст.", КИЇВ — «Основи» — 1998, http://litopys.org.ua/ochyma/ochrus4.htm. German anonymous pamphlet "On the new rebellion of Cossacks against Poland", 1649, possibly by polish general of German origin Christopher Houvaldt. D.Nalyvayko, however, is skeptical on the matter of Scottish origins of Kryvonis.
  • Крипякевич, Іван (1936). Ukrainian: ІСТОРІЯ УКРАЇНСЬКОГО ВІЙСЬКА, romanized: Istoriya Ukrainskoho Viyska. Kviv: Видання Івана Тиктора.