10 Hryven Ukrainian-Swedish Politico-Military Alliances

This coin commemorates the 300th anniversary of the 1708 alliance between Hetman Ivan Mazepa and Charles XII of Sweden — a partnership forged in the immediate lead-up to the Battle of Poltava. Mazepa, who had served as Hetman of Left-Bank Ukraine under Peter I for over two decades, defected to the Swedish side in October 1708 hoping to secure Ukrainian autonomy. The gamble failed catastrophically. Charles XII was defeated at Poltava in June 1709, Mazepa died in exile weeks later, and Peter I ordered the destruction of the Hetmanate capital at Baturyn.

Ukraine's decision to issue this coin in 2008 was itself politically charged, rehabilitating Mazepa as a proto-nationalist figure rather than the traitor Russian historiography had long labeled him.