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One-day course on the Holodomor at the Imperial War Museum
Date: Tuesday 4 November 2025
The Foundation for the History of Totalitarianism invites teachers of History and Politics to participate in this unique course. The subject will be the Holodomor, the man-made famine in Ukraine in 1932–33, which caused nearly four million people to starve to death.
Learning about this subject will enhance understanding of the Soviet Union and enrich the teaching of this subject. The Holodomor is increasingly recognised as one of the major events of 20th century history. The death toll was on a massive scale, showing the lengths to which the Soviet Union was prepared to go to assert its control over Ukraine – an event with echoes in the present time.
The course will take place in the Imperial War Museum in the Orpen Boardroom. Participants will have free access to the Imperial War Museum at the conclusion of the course. Two specialists in the history of the time will present sessions, one of whom will be Dr Daria Mattingly, one of the leading experts on the Holodomor who assisted Anne Applebaum in the writing of Red Famine, the authoritative book on the subject. The second academic is Sophia Iwaniuk. John Jefferies, Head of Politics at Warwick School, will host the conference. A representative of the Ukrainian Embassy will make a short address.
In all the sessions, participants will be welcome to ask questions and discuss the issues which arise. The conference will start by uncovering the historical background of relations between the Soviet Union and Ukraine prior to the Holodomor. Then there will be a session on the Holodomor itself led by Dr Daria Mattingly. Then we will examine how this major event was covered up and denied for decades and – even now – is denied by some.
Lunch will have a Ukrainian theme.
Then there will be a panel discussion with both the academics. This session, in particularly, will provide plenty of opportunity for participants to interact with and question the specialists.
In the final session, teachers will be equipped with a lesson plan, which they can use or adapt for use in the classroom.
The conference is likely to appeal to GCSE and A Level history teachers – especially those who teach Soviet history. It could also be valuable to Politics and PSHE/Citizenship teachers because of the issues the Holodomor raises such as national self-determination, colonialism of a less-recognised sort and democracy.
The cost of the day will be £195 but to ensure that cost is not a barrier we have obtained funding so that we can offer reduced or complimentary places on request. This course is an exceptional opportunity. It is perhaps the first course on the Holodomor that has ever been offered in Britain.
The full details of the sessions are below. Please feel free to ask any questions about the course by emailing us at contact@historyoftotalitarianism.com.
This session will explore the history of relations between the Soviet Union and Ukraine, particularly between the end of the First World War and the start of the Holodomor.
This session will be led by Dr Daria Mattingly, joint editor of The Holodomor in Global Perspective (2025). Daria is one of the foremost experts on the Holodomor. She will incorporate some of her most recent research on the subject. An excerpt from one of her articles is on this website here.
Why has this extraordinary event been so little-known? This session will explore the story of denial and suppression. The Soviet Union did all it could to stop the world knowing about the Holodomor. Certain brave British journalists – Gareth Jones and Malcolm Muggeridge for the Guardian – did all they could to make the famine known. But they were resisted and even denounced by American journalists, the most notorious of whom was Walter Duranty. The Second World War and the Cold War both had an influence on the cover-up. More recently, contemporary events seem to have changed the willingness of some people to look at this major event in European history.
The academics will discuss issues raised by the Holodomor and participants will be able to raise any questions they like. Possible issues for this session include:
A ready-made lesson plan will be presented. This plan starts with the story of the Welsh journalist Gareth Jones and how he went to Ukraine and saw for himself what was happening there. The plan which teachers can take away will include PowerPoint slides and a video.
This session will explore the history of relations between the Soviet Union and Ukraine, particularly between the end of the First World War and the start of the Holodomor.
This session will be led by Dr Daria Mattingly, joint editor of The Holodomor in Global Perspective (2025). Daria is one of the foremost experts on the Holodomor. She will incorporate some of her most recent research on the subject. An excerpt from one of her articles is on this website here: xxxx
Why has this extraordinary event been so little-known? This session will explore the story of denial and suppression. The Soviet Union did all it could to stop the world knowing about the Holodomor. Certain brave British journalists – Gareth Jones and Malcolm Muggeridge for the Guardian – did all they could to make the famine known. But they were resisted and even denounced by American journalists, the most notorious of whom was Walter Duranty. The Second World War and the Cold War both had an influence on the cover-up. More recently, contemporary events seem to have changed the willingness of some people to look at this major event in European history.
The academics will discuss issues raised by the Holodomor and participants will be able to raise any questions they like. Possible issues for this session include:
A ready-made lesson plan will be presented. This plan starts with the story of the Welsh journalist Gareth Jones and how he went to Ukraine and saw for himself what was happening there. The plan which teachers can take away will include PowerPoint slides and a video.
Telling the truth about history honours the victims, acknowledges their suffering, and highlights the heroism of those who resisted these totalitarian crimes. Memorialization also promotes accountability for despots whose policies impose catastrophes, with contempt for the humanity of those affected…The history of the Holodomor also reminds us of our common responsibility to defend the cause of humanity and our shared respect for human life.
GOV.UK 2023
The brigade had pitchforks, and they came to every house searching for bread. They used crowbars to come inside. Then they went to all the barns trying to find any buried bread.
Petro Mohalat, 1927.
Fear of death loomed over the cottage, for they had not enough potatoes to last until the next crop. … I set forth again further towards the south and heard the villagers say, “We are waiting for death.”
Gareth Jones, The Daily Express, April 6, 1933
