THE EVOLUTION OF UKRAINE’S IMAGE IN GREAT BRITAIN DURING THE FIRST WORLD WAR

Abstract

Every nation needs an external assistance if it hopes to gain and build its own state. However, such support is not possible without some well-formed image of this country or territory in the intellectual and political circles of the state that demonstrates nation fighting for independence. Therefore, it seems important to trace the evolution of Ukraine’s image in the intellectual discourse of one of the most powerful countries in the world, namely the United Kingdom. The article deals with the evolution of the image of Ukraine in the intellectual discourse of the British Empire during the First World War. The analysis is based upon a wide range of English-language sources, primarily scientific works of English-speaking intellectuals of the British Empire of that time, who tried to analyse the current situation in Cental and Eastern Europe (J. Raffalovich, A. Toynbee, R. Seton-Watson) and also Ukrainian emigrants, who wanted to inform British public with the Ukrainian vision of events (V. Stepankivsky). All this happened against the backdrop of the attempts of the representatives of the Ukrainian national liberation movement to convey their position to the world, as well as the competition of other states and politically ideological concepts for the right to control Ukrainian lands. Changes in the perceptions of the British intellectuals about Ukraine are influenced by various geopolitical factors, and a general assessment of the awareness of the British elites about the Ukrainian issue is made.