THE FIGURE OF VYACHESLAV BUDZYNOVSKY IN UKRAINIAN SOCIAL AND POLITICAL THOUGHT OF THE LATE 19TH – FIRST THIRD OF THE 20TH CENTURY

Abstract

The article comprehensively examines the significance of the figure of Viacheslav Budzynovskyi in the context of the development of Ukrainian socio-political thought from the late nineteenth century to the first third of the twentieth century. Based on a wide range of historiographical sources, as well as a thorough analysis of biographical facts, the study traces the evolution of his political, economic, and national views, identifies the factors that influenced the formation of his worldview, and determines his place within the Ukrainian national movement in Galicia. Particular attention is paid to the period of Budzynovskyi’s formation within the student milieu, his participation in the radical movement, his role in the establishment of the Ruthenian-Ukrainian Radical Party, and his subsequent activity in the Ukrainian National Democratic Party as one of the active representatives of the region’s political life. The paper analyzes Budzynovskyi’s journalistic, publicistic, and literary activities, highlighting their influence on the formation of public opinion and the political culture of Ukrainian society. Considerable attention is devoted to his contribution to the development of economic thought, particularly regarding agrarian relations, economic modernization, and the socio-economic condition of Galicia within the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. The study also examines his parliamentary activity, his participation in the formation of Ukrainian political institutions during the First World War, and analyzes the transformation of his political position in the interwar period. The article substantiates the thesis that Viacheslav Budzynovskyi was one of the key representatives of the generation of the “young radicals,” whose activities contributed to the transition of the Ukrainian national movement from a predominantly cultural orientation to a clearly articulated political program of national independence. It demonstrates the importance of his intellectual legacy for the further development of Ukrainian political thought and outlines перспективні напрями for future research related to his political, economic, and publicistic activity.