Born in Poltava, Petlyura was a socialist leader of Ukraine's unsuccessful fight for independence following the Russian revolutions of 1917; he was briefly President during the Civil War period. After the Soviet Red Army invaded and a Bolshevik-affiliated government was established in most of Ukraine, Simon Petlyura escaped to France.
Simon Petlyura was assassinated by a Jewish student. He is buried in the Cimetière de Montparnasse, Paris, France.