Petro Konashevych-Sahaidachny (; ; born about 1582 in Kulchytsi, today Sambir Raion – 20 April 1622 in Kyiv) was a Ukrainian Cossack political and civic leader, Hetman of Zaporozhian Cossacks from 1616 to 1622, a military leader of Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth both on land and sea. While being a hetman, he transformed the Cossack Host from an irregular military formation into a regular army. Under his leadership, the Cossacks, the Orthodox clergy and peasants of Ukraine began to emerge as a united nation. His troops played a significant role in the Battle of Khotyn against the Turks in 1621 and Polish Prince Władysław's attempt to gain the throne of Russia in 1618. In 2011 he was canonized in the Orthodox Church of Ukraine as a Right-Believing hetman. On 20 April 2022 he was further declared by Metropolitan Epifaniy patron saint of the military forces of Ukraine. Early life Petro Konashevych was born in Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in the village of Kulchytsy (Przemyśl land) three miles away from Sambir in the Ruthenian Voivodeship into a Ukrainian Eastern Orthodox noble family. His father's surname was Kononovych. He graduated from Ostroh Academy in Volhynia. His school mate was Meletiy Smotrytskyi, author of the Hramatyka book, by which many generations of Ukrainians, Russians, and Belarusians learned the Slavic language grammatics. From an early age he learnt the weapon and horsemanship skills. He joined to the cossacks of Zaporozhian Host and took a part in cossack military expeditions to Moldavia in 1600 and Livonia in 1601. His talent in a military strategy, courage and ability to show leadership under great adversity and hardship were acquired by cossacks leader (otaman) Samiylo Kishka. Later, Sahaidachny moved to Lviv, and after to Kiev, where he became the assistant and tutor of the Kyivan judge I. Aksak family. Career Early Turkish campaign By the end of the 16th century, Sahaidachny traveled to Zaporizhia, where in 1605, he was elected as a kosh otaman of the Zaporozhian Host cossacks. Under his control, the Host participated in campaigns against the Crimean Tatars and the Turks. The Сossacks fleet captured the Turkish fortress Varna, burned and destroyed a strong Turkish navy (10,000 ships). He is famous for his sea sorties on Crimea and Turkey and in 1616 captured Caffa (Feodosia) on the Crimean peninsula, the largest center of the slave trade. He released from slavery many Christian men, women and children. Muscovite campaign In