12 Facts About Pavlo Shandruk

Pavlo Feofanovych Shandruk was a general in the army of the Ukrainian National Republic, a colonel of the Polish Army, and a prominent general of the Ukrainian National Army, a military force that fought against the Soviet Union under Nazi German command at the close of World War II.

Pavlo Shandruk completed his studies in 1911 at the Nizhyn Institute majoring in history and languages and later underwent postgraduate studies at the Alexandrovsk Military Academy in Moscow.

Pavlo Shandruk was successively in command of the Zaporozhian Independent Rifle Battalion, the 9th Infantry Regiment, and the 1st Recruit Regiment of the Ukrainian National Army.

Pavlo Shandruk testified for Symon Petliura at Schwartzbard trial along with Mykola Shapoval and Oleksandr Shulhin.

In 1937, Pavlo Shandruk started working as a double agent for both Nazi Germany and Poland.

Pavlo Shandruk began working for the intelligence section of the Gestapo and denounced numerous Polish ex-officers and partisans who were hiding from the Germans.

In February 1945, Pavlo Shandruk accepted the position of the head of the Ukrainian National Committee and simultaneously became the commander of the newly formed Ukrainian National Army into which all Ukrainian formations who had fought on the German side on the Eastern front were merged.

Shortly before the surrender of German, Pavlo Shandruk sent his adjutant, sent Colonel Smovski-Rayevski to establish contact with US intelligence for a merging of forces and a continuation of hostilities against the Soviet Union.

However, Pavlo Shandruk's adjutant was arrested and he was forced to disband his army.

Pavlo Shandruk penned a number of works regarding military history in Ukrainian, Polish, and English, among them Arms of Valor.

Pavlo Shandruk was decorated with Polish Virtuti Militari order for his performance in Polish Army during the 1939 defensive war.

Pavlo Shandruk became a full member of the Shevchenko Scientific Society in 1948.