1918 Central Powers occupation of Ukraine

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In 1918, Germany and Austria-Hungary occupied Ukraine after signing the Brest-Litovsk treaty with the Ukrainian People’s Republic (UPR). Ukraine’s Central Rada had declared independence from Bolshevik Russia on January 22, 1918, and the Central Powers wanted Ukraine’s grain and other resources and to use the country as leverage in peace talks with the Bolsheviks.

From February to March, German and Austro-Hungarian forces, totaling about 450,000 soldiers, moved into Ukraine with Ukrainian units. They helped push Bolshevik forces out of major cities, and Kyiv was entered by German and UPR troops in March 1918. The occupying powers framed their presence as aiding Ukraine rather than a formal occupation, though they controlled the territory and its economy.

On April 29, 1918, with German backing, Pavlo Skoropadskyi led a coup and established the Ukrainian State as a Hetmanate, replacing the Central Rada. The German and Austro-Hungarian troops now operated as an occupying force, aimed at extracting resources and stabilizing the country for their war needs. Peasant unrest grew as grain and other goods were requisitioned and the regime protected the interests of landowners.

An important economic agreement was signed on April 23, 1918. Ukraine agreed to supply the Central Powers with large amounts of grain, eggs, and other goods, in exchange for agricultural machinery, fuel, and other supplies. The Germans and Austro-Hungarians began to directly intervene in internal Ukrainian affairs, and the regime faced opposition from many Ukrainians.

By late 1918, Germany and Austria-Hungary were collapsing. In November, they began to withdraw their troops. The anti-Hetman uprising led by the Directorate of Ukraine toppled Skoropadskyi within weeks, and the Ukrainian People’s Republic was restored in early December 1918.

Around the same time, new developments unfolded in western Ukraine. Lviv proclaimed the West Ukrainian People’s Republic in November 1918, but Polish forces soon intervened, leading to conflict. The Kyiv-based Ukrainian People’s Republic briefly united with the West Ukrainian state in January 1919, but the Central Powers’ defeat left Ukraine vulnerable to renewed battles with Bolshevik Russia and other powers.