Batkivtsi is a small village nestled among the forests and rolling hills of southern Volyn that has almost disappeared from the map of inhabited settlements. Despite its picturesque scenery and rich history, only one permanent resident lives here today, while most of the old farmsteads have long been abandoned.
During the Second World War and the post-war period, the area surrounding Batkivtsi became one of the operational regions of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA). The dense forests of the Mizoch Ridge provided natural shelter for insurgent units, while the surrounding villages formed part of the Ukrainian underground network. It was in this area that, in November 1943, the First Conference of the Subjugated Peoples of Eastern Europe and Asia took place—an event of considerable importance in the history of the Ukrainian liberation movement.
At the entrance to the village stands a memorial dedicated to the Unknown Soldiers of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army. It commemorates insurgents who gave their lives for Ukraine’s independence but whose names remain unknown. The monument symbolises the memory of thousands of participants in the liberation struggle whose lives were inseparably connected with the forests of Volyn.
Today, Batkivtsi is a place of silence, where nature is gradually reclaiming abandoned homes, erasing the traces of former settlement while inviting reflection on the region’s history and the legacy of Ukraine’s struggle for independence.