Filip Konowal
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Filip Konowal VC ( uk, Пили́п Миронович Конова́л; ''Pylyp Myronovych Konoval''; 25 March 1887 – 3 June 1959) was a highly decorated
Ukrainian Canadian Ukrainian Canadians ( uk, Українські канадці, Україноканадці, translit=Ukrayins'ki kanadtsi, Ukrayinokanadtsi; french: Canadiens d'origine ukrainienne) are Canadian citizens of Ukrainian descent or Ukrainian-born p ...
soldier. He is the first Canadian Corps member not born in the
British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts e ...
(and the only Ukrainian) to be awarded the
Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...
, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy given to
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
and Commonwealth forces. He was also entitled to the Cross of St George, 4th Class. He is the patron of Royal Canadian Legion Branch 360 (Konowal Branch) in
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
.


First World War

Konowal was born to a peasant family on 25 March 1887 in Kutkivtsi, in the
Podolia Governorate The Podolia Governorate or Podillia Governorate (), set up after the Second Partition of Poland, was a governorate (''gubernia'', ''province'', or ''government'') of the Russian Empire from 1793 to 1917, of the Ukrainian People's Republic from 1 ...
of the
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
(now
Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
) near the border with
Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
. At an early age, he worked as a mason alongside his father. He married Hanna (?-1932/33) in 1908. They had a daughter, Marichka. Soon after his marriage, he decided to join the Imperial Russian Army, where he served as an instructor in hand-to-hand combat. After demobilization, Konowal returned home and took up work as a feller in
Siberia Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive region, geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a ...
, before accepting a job with a Canadian company in 1913. Departing from
Vladivostok Vladivostok ( rus, Владивосто́к, a=Владивосток.ogg, p=vɫədʲɪvɐˈstok) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai, Russia. The city is located around the Golden Horn Bay on the Sea of Japan, c ...
, Konowal crossed the
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to
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,
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, and continued working as a feller, gradually making his way east. By the beginning of 1914, Konowal had lost his job as a feller and ended up working a series of odd jobs until the outbreak of
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. On 12 July 1915, Konowal enlisted in the 77th Canadian Infantry Battalion, and on 19 June 1916, left Halifax for
Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...
. After arriving in England, Konowal was promoted to acting
corporal Corporal is a military rank in use in some form by many militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. The word is derived from the medieval Italian phrase ("head of a body"). The rank is usually the lowest ranking non- ...
and was transferred to the 47th (British Columbia) Battalion of the
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. In August 1916, the 4th Division arrived in France, and took part in the assault on Vimy Ridge in April 1917. From 22 to 24 August 1917, during the Battle of Hill 70 in
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,
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, he was recognized for conspicuous gallantry in the face of the enemy and awarded the
Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...
.Stewart, Charles H.: ''Overseas – The Linages and Insignia of the Canadian Expeditionary Force 1914–1919'', page 25. Little & Stewart Publishing, 1970. Konowal's medal was personally presented by
King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...
, and he was promoted to sergeant.


Victoria Cross citation

The citation was published in a supplement to the '' London Gazette'' of 23 November 1917 (dated 26 November 1917):
No. 144039 A./Cpl. Filip Konowal, Can. Inf. For most conspicuous bravery and leadership when in charge of a section in attack. His section had the difficult task of mopping up cellars, craters and machine-gun emplacements. Under his able direction all resistance was overcome successfully, and heavy casualties inflicted on the enemy. In one cellar he himself bayonetted three enemy and attacked single-handed seven others in a crater, killing them all. On reaching the objective, a machine-gun was holding up the right flank, causing many casualties. Cpl. Konowal rushed forward and entered the emplacement, killed the crew, and brought the gun back to our lines. The next day he again attacked single-handed another machine-gun emplacement, killed three of the crew, and destroyed the gun and emplacement with explosives. This non-commissioned officer alone killed at least sixteen of the enemy, and during the two days' actual fighting carried on continuously his good work until severely wounded.


Post-war

On 19 July 1919, Konowal accompanied Leontiy Diedek, a friend and fellow veteran, to a particularly rough area in Hull, Quebec. The two men went for dinner at a restaurant; Diedek left early in order to look at some bicycles at the home of William Artich, an 'Austrian' bootlegger and bicycle salesman. Konowal became aware of a commotion and went to investigate. A fight had started between Artich and Diedek. By the time Konowal arrived, Diedek had been viciously beaten and Artich was armed with a knife. Konowal managed to gain control over the weapon and killed Artich with a single stab to the chest. Konowal did not attempt to flee the scene; when police came, the First World War veteran stated, "I've killed fifty-two of them, that makes the fifty-third." Veterans rallied to his cause and raised enough money to bail Konowal in October 1919; the trial ended up being postponed three times, finally beginning in 1921. After extensive tests, it was discovered that Konowal had serious medical problems stemming from his war wounds: pressure on his brain was increasing and his condition was continually deteriorating. Medical experts unanimously agreed that a wartime gunshot wound to the head was likely making Konowal mentally unstable, causing flashbacks to the war's battles. The jury agreed and he was found not guilty by reason of insanity, then institutionalized for seven years. By the end of this period, his condition had improved dramatically, and he was released from a Montreal mental hospital in 1928. He eventually found employment as a caretaker at the
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...
in Ottawa, with the help of a military associate. When Prime Minister
William Lyon Mackenzie King William Lyon Mackenzie King (December 17, 1874 – July 22, 1950) was a Canadian statesman and politician who served as the tenth prime minister of Canada for three non-consecutive terms from 1921 to 1926, 1926 to 1930, and 1935 to 1948. A L ...
saw the colours of a Victoria Cross ribbon on Konowal while he was at work, King arranged for him to be reassigned to a lifetime job in King's personal office. Unfortunately, tragedy struck once again when Konowal attempted to contact his family: his wife had died during the
Soviet famine of 1932–1933 The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
(the Holodomor) and his daughter was nowhere to be found, though it was later reported she survived and left descendants. Konowal married a French-Canadian woman, Juliette Leduc-Auger (1901–1987), in 1934 and adopted her two sons, Roland and Albert. In 1956, he joined 300 other Victoria Cross recipients in London for events celebrating the honour's centennial, hosted by then British Prime Minister Anthony Eden and Queen Elizabeth II. Konowal died in 1959 at Hull,
Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
, aged 72. He was buried at Notre Dame de Lourdes Cemetery, Ottawa, under a headstone in section A, lot 502.


Honours

In addition to the Victoria Cross, he was also awarded the
British War Medal The British War Medal is a campaign medal of the United Kingdom which was awarded to officers and men of British and Imperial forces for service in the First World War. Two versions of the medal were produced. About 6.5 million were struck in si ...
(1914–1920), Victory Medal (1914–1919),
George VI Coronation Medal The King George VI Coronation Medal was a commemorative medal, instituted to celebrate the coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. Issue This medal was awarded as a personal souvenir of King George VI's coronation. It was awarded to t ...
(1937), Elizabeth II Coronation Medal (1953), and was entitled to the Cross of St George, 4th Class, from Russia. The Royal Canadian Legion Branch 360 (Konowal Branch) in
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
made him its patron in 1953. In 1996, Konowal's headstone was replaced by an upright marker, and memorial plaques were unveiled: * in the Cartier Square drill hall of the
Governor General's Foot Guards The Governor General's Foot Guards (GGFG) is the senior reserve infantry regiment in the Canadian Army. Located in Ottawa at the Cartier Square Drill Hall, the regiment is a Primary Reserve infantry unit, and the members are part-time soldiers. ...
in Ottawa * at St. John the Baptist Ukrainian Catholic Church, 952 Green Valley Crescent in Ottawa * at Legion Branch 360 (Konowal Branch) in Toronto – transferred to the care of the Ukrainian National Federation, Toronto Branch in 2007 after Branch No. 360 was shut down by Dominion Command * at the
Royal Westminster Regiment The Royal Westminster Regiment (commonly referred to as the Westies) is a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Army. It is currently part of the 3rd Canadian Division's 39 Canadian Brigade Group and is based in New Westminster, Brit ...
's armoury (Konowal's
regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscript ...
) in
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,
B.C BC most often refers to: * Before Christ, a calendar era based on the traditionally reckoned year of the birth of Jesus of Nazareth * British Columbia, the westernmost province of Canada * Baja California, a state of Mexico BC may also refer to: ...
– stolen since replaced with a stone marker * on a cairn at Selo Ukraina Memorial Park, near Dauphin,
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. * in 2000, at Konowal's place of birth, Kutkivtsi,
Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
. * On 22 August 2005, a bas relief of Konowal was unveiled at Lens, France * On 8 April 2017 the Battle of Hill 70 Memorial was unveiled at Loos-en-Gohelle, France, the central pathway named the Konowal Walk. * On 10 May 2017, a feature documentary on Filip Konowal's life, Konowal: the man behind the medal, was premiered on
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. It was produced and directed by
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and received a Platinum Remi Award at the Houston Worldfest 2017


The Victoria Cross decoration

The
Canadian War Museum The Canadian War Museum (french: link=no, Musée canadien de la guerre; CWM) is a national museum on the country's military history in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The museum serves as both an educational facility on Canadian military history, in ad ...
in Ottawa purchased Konowal's Victoria Cross and other medals in 1969. The decoration went missing sometime in the 1970s, apparently stolen, and was sold to an antique shop along with some Hawaiian coins in the mid-1990s. The shop owner believed the decoration was a fake, as it was inscribed with "For Valour" – evidently not realizing that all VCs awarded to Canadians had the English motto. (The source of confusion was the fact that a new Canadian VC was introduced into the Canadian Honours System in 1993, bearing the Latin motto ''Pro Valore''). The decoration was rediscovered when the shop owner offered it to the Jeffrey Hoare Auction House in
London, Ontario London (pronounced ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River, approximate ...
in April 2004. A British collector discovered the auction and notified Lubomyr Luciuk, co-author of a booklet about Konowal, who took steps to have the decoration secured.Lubomyr Luciuk,
The prodigal medal returns
, in ''Ukrainian Weekly''.
It was recovered by the police and returned to permanent display at the War Museum on 23 August 2004, 87 years after it was awarded.


References


Bibliography

* * Lubomyr Y. Luciuk and Ron Sorobey. ''Konowal: a Canadian Hero'', 2nd ed. Kingston, Ontario: Kashtan Press for the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 360, 2000. . * Mitch Potter (13 October 2007)
Village honours our valiant soldier: Victoria Cross winner in WWI never learned Ukrainian wife, child survived Stalin's purges
. ''TheStar.com''. URL accessed 13 October 2007. * Ron Sorobey.
Filip Konowal, VC: The Rebirth of a Canadian Hero
'. *Lubomyr Luciuk, "A Canadian Hero: Corporal Filip Konowal, VC and the Battle of Hill 70," Kingston, Ontario: Kashtan Press, 2017. .


External links


Filip Konowal, V.C.
Biography by Lubomyr Y. Luciuk and Ron Sorobey
Legion Magazine Article on Filip Konowal

Filip Konowal's digitized service file

Feat of Corporal Konoval. Officer who glorified Ukraine
Om TV (YouTube). 1 February 2016 {{DEFAULTSORT:Konowal, Filip 1887 births 1959 deaths People from Khmelnytskyi Oblast People from Kamenets-Podolsky Uyezd Emigrants from the Russian Empire to Canada Imperial Russian Army personnel Canadian Expeditionary Force soldiers Canadian military personnel of the Russian Civil War Canadian World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross People acquitted by reason of insanity People acquitted of murder Canadian Army soldiers Canadian military personnel of World War I Royal Westminster Regiment Burials at Notre-Dame Cemetery (Ottawa)