Semen Goruk
Ukrainian military commander
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Semen Vasyliovych Goruk (Ukrainian: Семе́н Васильович Ґору́к; 13 September 1873 – 1920) was a Ukrainian military commander who served as General Bulawa of the Ukrainian Galician Army, a rank equivalent to Chief of the General Staff, from 6 November 1918 to 10 December 1918. He was later captured by the Red Army and sent to Solovki prison camp, where he was executed.
Semen Goruk | |
|---|---|
Goruk in 1918 | |
| Native name | Семен Васильович Ґорук |
| Nickname | Sen Goruk |
| Born | 13 September 1873 |
| Died | 1920 (aged 46–47) |
| Allegiance | |
Branch | |
Service years | 1914–1920 |
Rank | Otaman |
| Unit |
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Conflicts | |
| Alma mater | University of Lviv |
Biography
Semen Vasyliovych Goruk was born on 13 September 1873 in the town of Sniatyn in what was then the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria within Austria-Hungary.[1] He graduated from a gymnasium in Kolomyia, and later from the University of Lviv. Prior to the outbreak of World War I he was a member of Ukrainian nationalist groups, including Young Ukraine and the Christian-Civic Party, and he was one of the main organisers of the Sokol movement in Galicia.[2]
Following the beginning of the First World War, he joined the Austro-Hungarian Armed Forces, becoming a kurin commander within the Ukrainian Sich Riflemen. He fought at the Battle of Makivka,[3] as well as during battles at Lysonia[4] and Dniestr and Zolota Lypa.[5]
On 30 September 1916, he was captured by the Imperial Russian Army.[1] He would remain a prisoner of war until Russia's withdrawal, at which point he was repatriated to Austria-Hungary. He helped command the 1918 November Uprising that ultimately led to the creation of the West Ukrainian People's Republic, and became the first General Bulawa (chief of staff) of the Ukrainian Galician Army.[6] He was released from his duties as General Bulawa on 10 December 1918, when he moved to the Secretariat of Military Affairs as a personnel officer. He was promoted on 1 January 1919 to an otaman, equivalent to the rank of major.[1]
In April 1920, during the Kiev offensive, Goruk was captured by the Red Army and sent to Solovki prison camp.[1] He was later executed.[7]