ACTIVITIES OF THE UKRAINIAN REGIONAL COMMITTEE FOR AID TO REFUGEES IN LVIV (1916–1917)

Abstract

The article examines the activities of the Ukrainian Committee for Refugee Relief in Lviv during 1916–1917 as a significant example of civic self-organization in wartime conditions. It explores the development of the committee’s administrative structure, its cooperation with the Governor’s Office, local authorities, and charitable institutions. The organizational structure of the committee became increasingly complex – evolving from a small initiative group into a multi-branch system with separate sections for food supply, refugee assistance, record keeping, address tracing, and employment mediation. The main areas of work included providing refugees with essential supplies, organizing food distribution, producing clothing and footwear, offering pastoral care, and facilitating the repatriation of displaced persons to Galicia. The study highlights difficulties caused by bureaucratic obstacles, financial delays, and the overall exhaustion of Austro-Hungarian resources in the final years of the war. Despite these challenges, the committee fulfilled an important mediating role between the authorities and the population, exemplifying social solidarity and civic initiative. Its activities reflected the growing social maturity of the Ukrainian community in Lviv and contributed to the emergence of a tradition of public service and responsibility under crisis conditions.