Bohdan Khmelnytsky: legend and man

Petro Kraliuk (born 1958) - Doctor of Philosophy, Professor, First Vice-Rector of the National University "Ostroh Academy". He is the author of numerous works on the history of Ukrainian culture, including its philosophical thought. He created his own concept of the history of Ukrainian philosophy, which differs from the generally accepted one. He is also known for his historical journalism on the pages of The Day, the Mirror of the Week and the website of Radio Liberty. He is the author of a number of books ("Six Days", "Knight and Death", "Dioptra", "Discovery of Paradise", "Cossack Mythology of Ukraine: Creators and Epigones"), where he gives a somewhat unusual view of the role of elites and Cossacks in history.

This book is about Hetman Bohdan-Zinovy Khmelnytsky. But this is not a traditional biography. The author in the first part talks about how the image of this Cossack leader was interpreted in Ukrainian, Polish, Russian, Jewish, Turkish and Tatar cultures. It shows how the mythologizing of this historical figure took place. The second part of the book is an attempt to present an unmythologized biography of Khmelnytsky, to reflect his activities both in a broad geopolitical context and in the context of events in the Ukrainian lands of the first half and middle of the XVII century. The question of what real consequences Khmelnytsky region had for Ukrainian lands and for Europe in general is also considered.