Roman Daszkewycz

Biography Early life and education Roman-Mykola Dashkevych was born on 6 December 1892 to a noble family from the Korybut clan. His father Ivan Dashkevych served as a priest in the village of Tustanovychi near Drohobych, and his possessions included a number of oil wells, allowing him to provide Roman and his sisters a good education. He attended gymnasium in Peremyshl (now Przemyśl) and later studied law at Lviv University. During his student years, Roman became involved in the Ukrainian political movement in Galicia, and travelled on foot to visit the grave of Taras Shevchenko in Kaniv. With the financial support of his father, Roman organized a branch of the Sich society in Lviv, aiming to prepare local Ukrainian youth for the oncoming war using the freedom struggle of Ukrainian Cossacks as an inspiration. Sich succeeded in attracting into its rows not only members of the intelligentsia, but also suburban workers, which allowed it to attain a mass character.

Later life and death Following the Soviet occupation of Lviv, Roman emigrated, while his wife and son stayed in Lviv. Dashkevych spent his later years in exile in Europe, expecting an imminent war against the Soviet Union. He died in Kufstein, Austria, in 1975 and was reburied in Lychakiv Cemetery, Lviv in 2006.

After Ukraine regained its independence, a memorial plaque to Roman Dashkevych was installed in Lviv. The modern 26th Artillery Brigade of Ukraine is named in his honor.

Gallery