Conclusion

Stepan Bandera was raised by a Greek Catholic priest who struggled for a Ukrainian state, and who inspired his son to continue the fight. For Stepan, unlike his father, nationalism was more important than religion. In his high school years Bandera read such nationalist and racist writers as Mikhnovs’kyi and Dontsov. In 1928 he began to study in Lviv but on account of his political and terrorist activities never completed his studies. He rapidly rose through the ranks of the OUN, and in June 1933 became the official leader of the homeland executive of the OUN. As the head of the propaganda apparatus, Bandera had already demonstrated himself to be a talented organizer and a very dedicated nationalist. The policies of the homeland executive radicalized during his leadership; more and more people, amongst them Ukrainians and OUN members accused of betrayal, were executed, frequently on Bandera’s initiative.

Bandera’s worldview can be reconstructed from the books and papers that he read, the groups and organizations to which he belonged, the acts which he conducted, and the speeches which he delivered. This analysis shows that Bandera must have internalized the ideology of the OUN, and of Dontsov and other contemporary fascist and far-right thinkers. Bandera’s worldview was shaped by numerous far-right values and concepts including ultranationalism, fascism, racism, and antisemitism; by fascination with violence; by the belief that only war could establish a Ukrainian state; and by hostility to democracy, communism, and socialism. Like other young Ukrainian nationalists he combined extremism with religion and used religion to sacralize politics and violence.