
An Ataman from the Zaporozhe Sich (Ilya Repin, 1880)
An “ataman” (“hetman” is incorrect, it is a corrupt Polish usage) was a chieftain of the Cossack host. The Sich was known for its staunch adherence to Orthodoxy, and no one who did not confess the Orthodox faith was allowed to ride with them. On the other hand, it did not matter where a man came from, it did not matter what his race was, it was only sufficient to confess the Orthodox faith full and entire, and to swear vengeance against the Polish occupiers and the Jesuit Unia they imposed on the suffering Little Russian people.
The Cossacks were not a nationality, they were a social caste. They bore special feudal duties to the Russian state, and if you hear fairy tales from Ukrainian nationalist extremists that Tsaritsa Yekaterina suppressed them, it is false. Cossacks existed as a discrete caste until the fall of the empire, and there are many people today who are proud to tell you of their Cossack heritage. Just go to Novocherkassk!
Today, some Galician Uniates try to usurp Cossack imagery and songs in an attempt to legitmatise their claims. That is not true to the historical record. The Cossacks HATED the Unia with all their hearts, and attacked it wherever they found it. The Cossacks were profoundly ORTHODOX, and this should never be forgotten.
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