Pastyme With Good Companye

Archives for: February 2008, 02

02/02/08

02:49:17 pm, by

, 134 words

Categories: History In Film & Television, Murder & Mayhem, War And Conflict, European History

Holodomor Ukraine's Genocide

In the early 1930's, Ukraine was the breadbasket of Eastern Europe, had bountiful crops of grain, yet its people were dying of starvation. In order to crush the will of the independent-minded Ukrainian peasants and secure collectivization of all Ukrainian lands, Joseph Stalin ordered an army of ruthless, well-fed Communist Party activists to confiscate all harvested grain and seize all the foodstuffs in the villages. As a result of this genocidal decree, by the end of 1933 nearly 25 percent of the Ukrainian population - over 10 million people, including 3 million children - had perished.

In the face of terror, Ukrainians had little possibility of escaping their horrific fate or even to create another type of life elsewhere. Travel was banned for Ukrainians, keeping them confined in a prison of starvation within their own villages.

Permalink Leave a comment

Welcome to the blog of amateur historians Matthew James Didier and Sue Darroch. Partners in life and in crime, we endeavor to entertain you with snippets from our combined historical research. Past time with good company indeed, as we shall introduce you to Kings and Knaves, Queens and Mistresses, Cons and Heroes, from our collective past......from events well known to those perhaps all but forgotten, we will do our best to bring you interesting historical factoids from around the globe. It is our belief that through understanding our past we will all gain a better perspective on our future.