<P> Ukrainian writers and intellectuals were inspired by the nationalistic spirit stirring other European peoples existing under other imperial governments . Russia, fearing separatism, imposed strict limits on attempts to elevate the Ukrainian language and culture, even banning its use and study . The Russophile policies of Russification and Panslavism led to an exodus of a number some Ukrainian intellectuals into Western Ukraine, while others embraced a Pan-Slavic or Russian identity . This led to many of the great Russian authors and composers of the 19th century being of Ukrainian origin (notably Nikolai Gogol and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky). </P> <P> Ukraine, which included Crimea, the Kuban, and portions of Don Cossack lands with large Ukrainian populations (along with ethnic Russians, and Jews), tried to break free from Russia after the February 1917 revolution in St. Petersburg . Historian Paul Kubicek states: </P> <Dl> <Dd> Between 1917 and 1920, several entities that aspired to be independent Ukrainian states came into existence . This period, however, was extremely chaotic, characterized by revolution, international and civil war, and lack of strong central authority . Many factions competed for power in the area that is today's Ukraine, and not all groups desired a separate Ukrainian state . Ultimately, Ukrainian independence was short - lived, as most Ukrainian lands were incorporated into the Soviet Union and the remainder, in western Ukraine, was divided among Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Romania . </Dd> </Dl> <Dd> Between 1917 and 1920, several entities that aspired to be independent Ukrainian states came into existence . This period, however, was extremely chaotic, characterized by revolution, international and civil war, and lack of strong central authority . Many factions competed for power in the area that is today's Ukraine, and not all groups desired a separate Ukrainian state . Ultimately, Ukrainian independence was short - lived, as most Ukrainian lands were incorporated into the Soviet Union and the remainder, in western Ukraine, was divided among Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Romania . </Dd>

When did ukraine gain independence from the soviet union