Investigation of disorder near Lvov. According to documents of the State Archive of the Russian Federation. 1941

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Annotation/ Аннотация
The article based in source documents at GARF. The article deals with previously un-known details of the Jewish disorder in Zolochev, a town in West Ukraine, in July 1941. In article is found out actual events and specifically the role of OUN in its organizing.
В статье на основании архивных материалов ГАРФ расследуются неизвестные ранее подробности еврейского погрома, который произошел в западно-украинском городе Золочев в начале июля 1941 г. Выясняется роль ОУН в орга-низации погрома.

Keywords / Ключевые слова
Archival documents, GARF, Zolochiv, disorder, Ukrainian nationalists, Jews, World War II, shootings. Архивные документы, ГАРФ, Золочев, погром, украинские националисты, евреи, Вторая мировая война, расстрелы.

The controversial problem in the history of the Ukrainian nationalism is the relation of the Organization of the Ukrainian nationalists (ОUN) to Jews and participation of its members in the Jewish extermination in the Great Patriotic War beginning. In the Western Ukraine the first Jewish extermination have begun practically at once with the war beginning. In June-July 1941 extermination have occurred in 26 Ukrainian cities of Galicia and Volhynia and were terrible disaster for the West Ukrainian Jews. The quantity of victims of July extermination the Western Ukraine by different calculations makes from 12 to 28 thousand Jews. On July, 1st 1941 Germans have entered into a city. Simultaneously in the prison located in the Zolochevsky lock corpses of the killed people have been found out. Employees of People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs before deviation without court have destroyed hundreds prisoners of Zolochevsky prison.

Castle of Zolochev


What was an incitement to Jewish extermination? If to trust witness Tajhman, on the night of July, 3rd head created after arrival of Germans of the Ukrainian National Committee (UNK) to Zolochev, Antonjak, the doctor of city hospital Gelevich have held meeting with creat-ed soon after arrival of Germans Ukrainian «30 » and declared that they have signed on behalf of Ukrainians of Zolochev the requirement to the German authorities to organize extermination in Zolochev. Germans didn't interfere with this undertaking as wanted that Ukrainians have ar-ranged pogrom.


In archives it is not revealed direct proofs of that leaders of UNK were members of OUN, however hardly it is possible to doubt that they had communications with OUN. Premilitary in-structions of OUN ordered destruction of the Soviet active and Jews - supporters of the Soviet power. Besides Ukrainians active participation in extermination and execution of Jews was ac-cepted also by a division the SS-VIKING. Zolochevsky extermination was one of the greatest in the Western Ukraine on number of victims. On July, 3rd at the lock it has been shot nearby 3 000 – 3 200 Jews.


Extermination didn't arise as spontaneous reaction to detection of the killed People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs of bodies of Ukrainians. It became result of the arrangement of the German and Ukrainian parties. The Ukrainian nationalists planned in advance destruction of some number of the Jews suspected of cooperation with communists, but pogrom in such form and with such number of victims wasn't planned.

You can read completely article in the russian historic-archival magazine “The Herald of an Archivist”. Read more about terms of subscription here.

Полностью материал публикуется в российском историко-архивоведческом журнале ВЕСТНИК АРХИВИСТА. Ознакомьтесь с условиями подписки здесь.