Vasyl Nedaikasha

Vasyl Denysovych Nedaikasha was born on 21 March 1896 in the village of Hlodosy, Yelysavethrad district, Kherson province (now Kirovohrad region). During the First World War, he was mobilized into the army and promoted to lieutenant. When he heard about the formation of Ukrainianized units, he immediately joined one of them. In late 1917 and spring 1918, he became one of the leaders of the Free Cossacks in his native village of Hlodosy. Soon he found himself in the ranks of the Active Army of the Ukrainian People’s Republic. He was the Commander of the Machine-Gun Company of the 14th Regiment of the Lowland Cossacks of the 5th Peasant Division. In November 1919, on the order of the General Khorunzhyi Yurii
Tiutiunnyk, he returned home to organize peasant uprisings against the Whites and the Reds. In April 1920, at the head of a detachment of his fellow villagers, he joined the Active Army of the Ukrainian People’s Republic, which participated in the First Winter Campaign. The detachment was later renamed the Kurin. V. Nedaikasha commanded it in 1920-1922.

On the instructions of the Partisan Insurgent Staff, headed by Yu. Tiutiunnyk, Vasyl Nedaikasha performed special tasks and repeatedly crossed the border. For a long time, he stayed illegally in Ukraine, collecting intelligence about people’s moods, the political and military situation. In 1927 he moved abroad for good. Given his experience of illegal work on the territory of Ukraine, he was immediately involved in the work of the First (Intelligence) Sector of the II Section of the General Staff of the Ministry of Military Affairs of the State Center of the UPR in exile. During 1928-1934 he was the Head of the Sector. In June 1928, he personally visited Ukraine on an intelligence mission to create an insurgent group.

Niedajkasha had extensive experience of illegal work on the territory of Ukraine, his own view of the activities of the emigrant government and the organization of intelligence, and often strongly defended his principled position. At the same time, his opinions did not always coincide with the vision of this work by other influential figures, which eventually led to his retirement and emigration from Poland to France.

In 1939 he lived in the city of Sancy, taking an active part in the activities of the Ukrainian People’s Union. During the Second World War, together with his former comrades from the Army of the Ukrainian People’s Republic, he initiated Ukrainian volunteers’ joining the French Foreign Legion to fight the German invaders. After the war, he was one of the leaders of the Society of Former Ukrainian Soldiers in France. He passed away on April 18, 1972 in France.