ABSTRACT
In the period 1917-1920 a weak and divided Ukrainian national movement was unable to seize the chance created by the collapse of the Romanov and Habsburg empires and establish an independent Ukrainian nation-state. On 24 August 1991 the supreme soviet of the Ukrainian SSR declared national independence by 346 votes to one, a decision subsequently endorsed by a 90.3 per cent vote in the national referendum of 1 December 1991. Despite the enormous difference in outcome, however, the two periods had more in common than is immediately apparent. The nearunanimity of the two votes in 1991 masked severe underlying ethno-linguistic and regional cleavages in Ukraine, which were either first revealed by the events of 19171920 or are in considerable part their long-term consequence.
