This article discusses the 'history of
Lithuania' and of the
Lithuanians.
Before statehood
Balts in the 12th century
The first people arrived to the territory of modern Lithuania in the
10th millennium BC after glaciers had retreated and the last
glacial period had ended. According to historian
Marija Gimbutas, the people came from two directions: from the
Jutland Peninsula and from present-day Poland. They brought two different cultures as evidenced by the tools they used. They were travelling hunters and did not form more stable settlements. In the
8th millennium BC the climate became much warmer and forests developed. The people started to gather berries and mushrooms from the forests and fish in the local rivers and lakes. They travelled less. During the 6th–5th millennium BC people domesticated various animals, the houses became more sophisticated and could shelter larger families. Agriculture came late, only in the 3rd millennium BC because there were no efficient tools to cultivate the land. At the same time crafts and trade started to form. The
Indo-European people came around 2500 BC and the identity of the
Balts formed about 2000 BC.
Baltic tribes
The first
Lithuanians, or 'Liths', were a branch of an ancient group known as the
Balts, whose tribes also included the original
Prussian and
Latvian people. The Baltic tribes were not directly influenced by the Roman empire, but the tribes did maintain close trade contacts (see
Amber Road).
Lithuanians have built a nation that has endured for most of the past ten centuries, while Latvians acquired statehood in the 20th century and Prussian tribes disappeared in the 18th century. The first known reference to Lithuania as a nation ('Litua') comes from the annals of the monastery of
Quedlinburg dated
February 14,
1009.
In the present day the two remaining Baltic nationalities are
Lithuanians and
Latvians, but there have, in the past, been more such nationalities/tribes; some of which nationalities have merged into the Lithuanian and Latvian nationalities (e.g.
Samogitians), while others have been completely destroyed (e.g.
Prussians).
Towards the creation of single state
During the
11th century Lithuanian territories were included into the list of lands paying tribute to
Kievan Rus', but by the
12th century, the Lithuanians were plundering neighbouring territories themselves. The military and plundering activities of the Lithuanians triggered a struggle for power in Lithuania which began the formation of early statehood, and was a precondition of the founding of the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania.
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
Pagan Lithuania
Main articles: History of Lithuania (1219–1295)
The Pope
Innocent IV bull regarding Lithuania's placement under the jurisdiction of the
Bishop of Rome, Mindaugas baptism and coronation
In the early
13th century two
German religious orders, the
Teutonic Knights and the
Livonian Brothers of the Sword, conquered much of the area that is now
Estonia and
Latvia, in addition to parts of
Lithuania. In response, a number of small
Baltic tribal groups united under the rule of
Mindaugas (''Myndowe'') and soundly defeated the
Livonians at
Å iauliai in the
battle of the Sun in 1236. In 1250 Mindaugas signed an agreement with the Teutonic Order and in 1251 was baptized in their presence by the bishop of
Chełmno (in
Chełmno Land.) On
6 July 1253, Mindaugas was crowned as
King of Lithuania and state was proclaimed as
Kingdom of Lithuania. However, Mindaugas was later murdered by his nephew
Treniota which resulted in great unrest and a return to
paganism. In
1241,
1259 and 1275 the kingdom was ravaged by raids from the
Golden Horde.
In 1316,
Gediminas, with the aid of colonists from Germany, began restoration of the land. The brothers
Vytenis and Gediminas united various groups into one Lithuania.
Gediminas extended Lithuania to the east by challenging the
Mongols who, at that time,
controlled Russia. Through alliances and conquest the Lithuanians gained control of significant parts of the territory of
Rus. This area included most of modern
Belarus and the
Ukraine and created a massive Lithuanian state that stretched from the
Baltic Sea to the
Black Sea.
When Gediminas was slain, his son
Algirdas (Olgierd) suppressed the monasteries, but Algirdas's son,
Jogaila (Jagiello), again made overtures to the Teutonic Order and concluded a secret treaty with them. His uncle
Kęstutis took him prisoner and a civil war ensued. Kęstutis was eventually captured, imprisoned and put to death, but Kęstutis's son
Vytautas escaped.
Nowadays Lithuanian paganism is practised by Ancient Baltic faith community '
Romuva'.
Christian Lithuania
Main articles: Christianization of Lithuania
St. Nicholas, the oldest church in Lithuania built before 1387
was strongly urged by the
Poles to marry
Jogaila who had become the Grand Duke of Lithuania in 1377 and for the good of
Christianity, Jadwiga consented and married Jogaila three days after he was baptized. Jogaila and Lithuanians in general favoured this marriage as the alliance with Poland gave them a powerful ally against the constant threat of Germany (especially the
Teutonic Order based in
Prussia) and
Muscovy from the east.
On
February 2,
1386, the Polish Parliament (
Sejm) elected
Jogaila as King of
Poland. This meant that Lithuania and
Poland shared the same ruler, but Lithuania remained a separate country and continued to be ruled by the
Grand Duke of Lithuania. Before Jogaila was Crowned as a king of Poland, the second and the final
Christianization of Lithuania was carried out.
Lithuania remained sovereign state but the highest
social class in
Lithuanian nobility became increasingly influenced by Christian culture and language and the countries grew closer. Many cities were granted the German system of laws (
Magdeburg Rights), with the largest of these being
Vilnius, which since 1322 was the capital city of Grand Duchy of Lithuania.
Lithuanian Renaissance
Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the 15th century
In the 16th century, when many educated
Lithuanians came back from studies abroad,
Grand Duchy of Lithuania was boiling with active cultural life, sometimes referred to as
Lithunanian Renaissance (not to be confused with
Lithuanian national Renaissance in 19th century).
At the time Italian architecture was introduced in Lithuanian cities, and
Lithuanian literature written in Latin flourished. Also at the time emerged first handwritten and printed texts in the
Lithuanian language, and began the formation of written Lithuanian language.
Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth (1569–1795)
Main articles: Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Main articles: History of Poland (1569–1795)
Outline of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth with its major subdivisions as of
1619, superimposed on present-day national borders
With the
Lublin Union of 1569 Poland and Lithuania formed a new state: the Republic of Both Nations (commonly known as Poland-Lithuania or the
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth; Polish: ''Rzeczpospolita Obojga Narodow'', Lithuanian: ''Abiejų Tautų Respublika'').
Polonization and Lithuanian authonomy
Main articles: Polonization
Following the union,
Polonization of Lithuanian life, especially of state institutions, became stronger. Under the influence of the Lithuanian upper classes and the church, who used
Polish language, also lower levels of the nobility and gentry and the majority of non-Jewish inhabitants of the two larger towns, Vilnius and
Grodna, began to use the
Polish language more frequently. In 1696 Polish became an official state language, replacing the previous
Ruthenian languages.
Despite the Union and integration of the two countries, for nearly two centuries Lithuania continued to exist as the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, retaining separate laws as well as an Army and a Treasury.
Partitions
Main articles: Partitions of Poland
The
Constitution of May 3,
1791, agreed by the
Sejm abolished the division of Poland and Lithuania. However,
partitions of Poland in 1772, 1793 and 1795 saw Lithuania divided between
Russia and
Prussia and Lithuania ceased to exist as a distinct entity for more than a century.
Under Imperial Russia (1795–1914)
Modern Lithuania in Russian Empire (1867–1914)
Lithuania in Russian Empire (1835)
Domination of Russia
Following the third partition, the
Russian Empire controlled the majority of Lithuania, including
Vilnius which with 250,000 inhabitants was the third largest city in the Empire after
Moscow and
Saint Petersburg.
In the early years of the
19th century, there were signs that Lithuania might be allowed some separate recognition by the Empire.
Napoleon's invasion
These hopes were soon to be dashed, particularly subsequent to
1812, when Lithuanians eagerly welcomed
Napoleon's
French army as liberators. After the French army's withdrawal, Tsar
Nicholas I began an intensive program of
Russification. The south-western part of Lithuania included in Prussia in 1795 and in the short-lived
Duchy of Warsaw in 1807 became a part of the Russian-controlled
Kingdom of Poland in
1815, while the rest of Lithuania continued to be administered as a Russian province.
Uprisings
The Lithuanians and Poles revolted twice, in 1831 and
1863, but both attempts failed. In 1864 the Lithuanian language and the Latin alphabet were banned in junior schools. Lithuanias resisted the
Russification by arranging printing abroad and smuggling the books in by ''
knygnešiai''.
Lithuanian national revival
Under late Russian occupation, the native language of Lithuania was reborn after many years of dormancy.
Because many of
Lithuanian nobles were
Polonized and only the poor and middle classes used Lithuanian (but some of the latter also tended to use Polish for "prestige"), Lithuanian was not considered a prestigious language. There were even expectations that the language would become extinct, as more and more territories in the east were Slavicized, and more people used Polish or Russian in daily life. The only place where Lithuanian was considered to be more prestigious and worthy of books and such was German-controlled
Lithuania Minor. Even here,
an influx of German immigrants threatened the native language and culture.
The revival started among poor people, then continued with the wealthy, beginning with the release of Lithuanian newspapers,
Aušra and
Varpas, then with the writing of poems and books in Lithuanian. These writings glorified the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania, depicting the nation with power and many heroes.
This revival spearheaded the independence movement, with various organisations opposing Russian influence. Russian policy became harsher in response and there are known to have been strikes against Catholic churches, while a ban of the Lithuanian press still continued.
World War I (1914–1918)
Despite Russian attempts to integrate Lithuania by the end of the 19th century Lithuania had developed a growing
nationalist movement. During the Russia-wide revolutionary upsurge of 1905 a congress (''Seimas'') of Lithuanian representatives in
Vilnius on
5 December 1905 demanded provincial autonomy. During
World War I Lithuania's occupation by Germany (
1915) and the subsequent collapse of the Russian imperial government led to the
proclamation of an independent republic (
February 16,
1918) under German control, and full independence upon Germany's surrender (November 1918). From July,
1918, until November of that year,
Monaco-born
King Mindaugas II was pronounced the titular
monarch of the
Kingdom of Lithuania, until the country's
parliament opted for a
republican form of government.
Independent interwar Lithuania (1918–1940)
Freedom wars (1918–1922)
Main articles: Lithuanian Wars of Independence
The term "Freedom wars" refers to the three wars Lithuania was fighting to defend its territory from various powers: Bolsheviks, Bermontians and Poles; each of these powers had their own reasons for fighting Lithuania.
The Bolsheviks were attacking Lithuania from the east to try to prevent it regaining its independence. Such actions succeeded in some other states, such as
Georgia,
Belarus and the
Ukraine, which were also briefly independent but had fallen under USSR rule again soon after the civil war in
Russia ended. However, in Lithuania they managed to take only the eastern side of country before the government in the
temporary capital Kaunas managed to take the upper side in war and the Bolsheviks were thrown off. In the first and most critical phase of war with bolsheviks Lithuania's independence was defended with the help of Saxon volunteers from
Germany. Number of fallen Lithuanian and German soldiers was equal.
Bermontians were
Russian troops who were taken as
POWs by
Germany in
World War I and then released on the promise that they would help fight the
communists in the
Russian civil war. Instead, led by
Pavel Bermont-Avalov, they decided to attack the newly-independent states of
Lithuania and
Latvia, to which Germany had granted independence. The Bermontians managed to take considerable territories in western Lithuania (
Samogitia). In Latvia, they managed to take the capital
Riga. Despite having to fight the communists at the same time in the east, Lithuania gathered enough forces and started to win territories back from the Bermontians. The Bermontians were finally crushed near
Radviliškis, a major railway centre, where they were put into trains and sent to Russia.
The newly regained independence of both Lithuania and Poland produced a prolonged border dispute involving
Vilnius (), which Lithuania claimed as its historic capital, but which had only 3% of Lithuanian population. This led to the
Polish-Lithuanian War. Simultaneously, the territories were claimed by the
Soviet Union, but the Soviets were defeated by the Poles. Eventually, in October
1920, during the later stages of
Polish-Soviet war, Polish
irregular forces occupied Vilnius and most of the disputed areas which in the meantime were transferred by reteating Soviets to Lithuanians. Polish forces were soon withdrawn and the puppet
Republic of Central Lithuania state was established in the territory.
Democratic Lithuania (1922–1926)
Lithuania became a democratic state briefly, with a president elected for 3 years by parliament and a parliament elected by the people.
The Vilnius region
Main articles: Vilnius region
The Polish-Lithuanian dispute over Vilnius remained unresolved. A state of war was maintained through all the democratic period of interwar Lithuania because of this. In the Vilnius region, elections were held on
January 8 1922. While the elections were free, they have been criticised for not encompassing the whole
Vilnius region and thus excluding some Lithuanian-dominated territories. Initially both Poland and Lithuania attempted to win the support of various groups living in this multicultural territory side-by-side, but eventually most of the Lithuanians and Jews boycotted the elections anyway. Still enough people voted for them to be considered valid. The elected parliament soon decided to join Poland and dissolve
Central Lithuania.
The Polish
Sejm accepted the law proposed by the Central Lithuanian parliament on
March 22,
1922 and the
Conference of Ambassadors confirmed it on
March 15 1923. The Lithuanian government in
Kaunas (which was designed as
temporary capital with
Vilnius remaining capital according to Lithuanian constitution) refused to accept Poland's annexation of the Vilnius district and maintained a formal state of war. Lithuanian claim over the area was based on the fact that the area was historically Lithuanian, and therefore Lithuania had more rights to the multicultural area where Poles, Lithuanians, Belarusians and Jews were the majority in different areas.
The KlaipÄ—da region
Main articles: KlaipÄ—da region
Vilnius was not the only city whose possession was in dispute.
Klaipėda (German language name Memel was predominant in official use until 1923) had been founded by the Livonian Order in 1252. In 1328 it became Prussian and much of the population from the 15th–16th century were bilingual Lithuanian/German speakers and considered themselves members of the Prussian state. The
Memelland district, including the city of Klaipeda, was made a separate territory under French occupation in 1920 as part of the
Treaty of Versailles. In this area, 50.8% of population were Lithuanians (predominantly rural people), while 43.8% were Germans (including most of urban elite). Lithuania took advantage of the
Ruhr Crisis and supported the
Klaipėda Revolt in the area in January 10–15
1923, leading to its incorporation as an autonomous district of Lithuania in May
1924.
Authoritarian regime (1926–1938)
Following a succession of conservative governments, Lithuania's first elected government of the left (June
1926) was overthrown in a military
coup d' etat in December 1926.
Antanas Smetona, first president of Lithuania, resumed office as president, but with dictatorial powers, while
Augustinas Voldemaras that later was leader of the far-right
Iron Wolf movement served as
Prime Minister. After Voldemaras was removed from his office in September
1929, Smetona continued to direct Lithuania's political affairs until 1940.
Polish ultimatum to re-establish diplomatic relationship, 1938
It had long been the opinion of Lithuanian high-ranking army officers that the enemies of Poland and Lithuania were the same and the broken diplomatic relations with Poland should be restored.
[1] In 1938, after a border incident in which one Polish soldier was killed, Poland presented an ultimatum to Lithuania to re-establish the relations. A period of 24 hours was set for a response, at the end of which Poland would declare war if Lithuania did not renew diplomatic relations. Knowing that it was weaker at the time and that under such circumstances there would be no support from other countries, Lithuania accepted the ultimatum and it was signed by representatives of both states in
Tallinn,
Estonia. After that, several quiet protests happened in Lithuania. Positive effects of the ultimatum included treaties about railway transport, postal exchange, and other means of communication, finally allowing the population to exchange letters and place phone calls across the borders. Although Lithuania officially continued to claim Vilnius as its capital, with diplomatic relations re-established due to the ultimatum, antagonism between the two states over the region reduced and the
Vilnius Liberation Union was also closed.
German ultimatum (Lithuania loses KlaipÄ—da region), 1939
The National Socialist Party, which was ideologically similar to the German
Nazi Party, gained a large voice in the city's politics. In the 1938 election, the National Socialists won the majority of seats and negotiated a settlement to hand over
KlaipÄ—da to Germany. A majority of the town's Jewish population, foreseeing this change in the cards, had already fled the area.
Following the loss of KlaipÄ—da, General
Stasys Raštikis visited Warsaw between
May 12 and 13, suggesting a military alliance with Poland. However, the Polish government treated his proposition lightly and lost a small, but potentially important, ally.
World War II (1939–1945)
The deal with the Soviets (Soviet armies are based in Lithuania), 1939
In August 1939,
Nazi Germany and the
Soviet Union signed an agreement (the
Ribbentrop-Molotov pact), with secret clauses assigning spheres of influence in the area of the
Baltic Sea. Lithuania was initially assigned to the German sphere of influence, but when Lithuania refused to ally with Nazi Germany in the attack on Poland, it was transferred to the Soviets in another secret pact later that year.
The city of
Vilnius was occupied by the Red Army and later transferred to Lithuania together with only one fifth of the
Vilnius region and the Soviets established their military presence within the country.
First Soviet occupation (1940–1941)
The occupation and annexation
Despite having a non-aggression pact signed and in force, Soviet Russia gave Lithuania an ultimatum in 1940. It demanded the removal and imprisonment of several key Lithuanian politicians under the pretext of a supposed kidnapping of Russian border guards (it is alleged that the incident was staged by the Russians themselves). The Soviets sought military units in the Lithuanian territory.
Unlike
Finland, Lithuania did not defend itself and there was debate whether to accept the ultimatum. President
Antanas Smetona opposed it and said that Lithuania should fight, while some members of the government decided that it should be accepted, assuming that Lithuania would have lost a war against Russia in any case. Some also claimed that it would be worthy to lose more than half of the population if that would save freedom, but even with those sacrifices, stopping the Soviets was doubtful. In the end, the ultimatum was accepted.
Antanas Smetona left Lithuania afterwards to show that the occupation was illegal and Soviet military forces (15 divisions, about 150,000 soldiers) crossed the Lithuanian border on
June 15,
1940, with the military of Lithuania being ordered not to resist.
With the support of Soviet military forces, a new government loyal to the Soviets was formed. The new government consisted mainly of known Lithuanians (such as poets or singers), supposedly to be more popular for ordinary people. Government members were nominated according to the orders of
Vladimir Dekanozov, the Soviet envoy in Lithuania. Dekanozov named
Justas Paleckis, a Lithuanian leftist who was not yet a member of the Communist Party, as Prime Minister. The selection of prime minister was not carried out according to the procedures foreseen in the Lithuanian constitution. Aided by specialists sent in from Moscow, Dekanozov worked through the Lithuanian Communist Party, headed by
Antanas SnieÄkus, while the cabinet of ministers, headed by Paleckis, served an administrative function.
This temporary government was in office for a very short period, and on July 14–15, 1940, elections to the so-called
People's Parliament were organized. However, only the collaborationist
Communist Party of Lithuania could nominate candidates, with its leaders being returned from Moscow or released from prisons. People were threatened to attend the elections, but results were still falsified. On
July 21,
1940, the "People parliament" declared Lithuania's will to join the Soviet Union and on
August 3,
1940, the Supreme Council of the USSR "admitted" Lithuania into the Soviet Union. The process of annexation was formally over and The
Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic was created.
Soviet actions
Soviet activists, with the help of local communists, started nationalisation of property. The
Communist Party of Lithuania which actually had only a few Lithuanians in its ranks came into rule and the government which was made of popular people was dissolved.
In June of 1941 the USSR deported approximately 35,000 Lithuanians to Siberia and other parts of Russia. Several thousand were killed in more than 40 massacres that occurred in various places of Lithuania (for example,
Rainiai massacre, which although it is far from the largest one, is quite well known). Additionally, positions of two ethnic groups, which had collaborated in the creating of a Lithuanian state, Lithuanians and Jews, separated. Lithuanians were frightened and astonished by the inhuman deportations and massacres and watched for any possibility of liberation, while the Jewish population preferred Russian occupation to Nazi rule. This situation was used by Nazi propaganda a week later and may have influenced the behavior of some Lithuanians during Nazi occupation. Russian occupation was short, but it did lots of damage.
The
Lithuanian Activist Front, an underground organisation led by
Kazys Å kirpa was formed and when Germany started war on Soviet Union, the organisation used the opportunity to declare independence.
Independent Lithuania (1941)
Main articles: Lithuanian 1941 independence
On
June 22,
1941,
Hitler invaded the
Soviet Union. Independence was declared with the expectation that the Soviets would weaken and wouldn't have enough strength to hold Lithuania. On
June 24th of
1941,
Juozas AmbrazeviÄius, a member of the
Lithuanian Activist Front (''Lietuvos aktyvistų frontas'', LAF), became prime minister. The retreating Soviet forces massacred Lithuanian political prisoners in
Rainiai Massacre.
The leader of the LAF was
Kazys Å kirpa, who was in
Berlin, away from Soviet occupation. However, the Germans did not let him leave because Nazi Germany did not want an independent Lithuania and planned for it to be a part of its occupied territories. The new government asked people via radio not to loot and to remain in place with the retreat of Soviet army, and declared Lithuania independent again.
At this time the government tried to negotiate with
Germany to allow Lithuanian independence. German troops had entered Lithuania, but for propaganda purposes and other reasons, they did not immediately dissolve the government of Lithuania (and this created a false belief among some Lithuanians that Germans would permit Lithuania to stay independent or at least autonomous).
However, with time Germans gradually stripped the Lithuanian government of its powers; Lithuania, having no regular army, was unable to resist because of the huge disparity of strength and ultimately the Germans annexed Lithuania. The government, no longer having any real power, dissolved itself on
August 7th, 1941. The Lithuanian Activist Front was subsequently banned by the German authorities.
German occupation (1941–1944)
German actions
People soon have realized that the Nazis had no plans for independent or even autonomous Lithuania and, in fact, they viewed the natives as second-class citizens. Germany added a small part of southern Lithuania to be ruled directly by Germany (
BalstogÄ— county), while to the Lithuanian part of
Ostland some more lands from
Vilnius region were attached (
AÅ¡mena,
Svyriai, etc.), lands which previously weren't given to Lithuania by the Soviets. Lithuania however lost its independence fully and economic conditions were harsh, especially in cities and towns (in villages people were at least able to grow food for themselves).
Resistance
The importation of thousands of German farmers to work the natives' lands, along with the dismissal of the Lithuanian government, soon produced a vigorous resistance movement. The resistance movement, however, was not united — the majority fought for the independent Lithuania, but another group, known as the
Soviet partisans, which mainly consisted of Russians, Belarusians and Jews and operated in the eastern Lithuania, fought for the incorporation of Lithuania into the
Soviet Union, while the Polish
Armia Krajowa, which operated in the eastern Lithuania as well, fought for the incorporation of that part of Lithuania into the Polish state which they hoped to liberate. The
Soviet partisans committed massacres (for example, the
Koniuchy massacre) and sacked towns and villages
[ Genocid.]. The Armia Krajowa forces committed at least one massacre of Lithuanian village
Dubingiai (Dubinki), killing 27 people as an answer to the massacre of 37 people by Lithuanian police members in the Polish village of
Glinciškės (Glinciszki). Under such circumstances, the relations of different partisan groups were strained.
Armia Krajowa for example was fighting not only against the Nazis, but in addition to that against the Lithuanian police,
Local Lithuanian Detachment, and the
Soviet partisans.
Partisans moved through the woods and countryside, attacking German positions and supply lines.
Relation of German forces and Lithuanians
There was substantial cooperation between the German forces and some Lithuanians. The
Lithuanian Activist Front group formed five police companies to restore order in the country. Later, the units around Kaunas were incorporated into the Tautos Darbo Apsauga (National Labour Guard) and in Vilnius the Lietuvos Savisaugos Dalys (Lithuanian Self Defence). These were then joined into the Policiniai Batalionai (Lithuanian Police Battalions) called by the Germans the
Schutzmannschaft, with a total of 8,388 men by August, 1942. Another infamous unit was the
Lithuanian Secret Police (Saugumo policija).
Despite the fact that the purpose of their creation was different, these Lithuanian units have had some participation in the Holocaust, especially within
Lithuania (including the areas of
Vilnius region that are now in
Belarus). It is alleged that in October and November 1941 Lithuanian Schutzmannschaft Battalion 2 participated in the killing of 19,000 Jews,
[ US DoJ.], the Schutzmannschaft 7th company was involved in the murder of 9,200 Jews in 1942 and Lithuanian Schutzmannschaft Battalion 254E killed at least 1,800 Jews in the course of a single action in 1943
[ Vill.].
The SS division, however, was not established in Lithuania as the Lithuanian general
Povilas PlechaviÄius dismissed his forces upon finding out that the Nazi regime was planning to turn them into an SS division.
[ World War II, Washington University.]
There was also resistance to German occupation, and Lithuanians who risked their own lives to save Jews. 504 Lithuanians are recognized as
Righteous Among the Nations for their efforts.
[ Google Books.]
While there has been some Lithuanian involvement in the
Holocaust, Lithuanians and Jews had been living together in relatively peace and harmony for hundreds of years. During that time Vilnius had become a major centre of European Jewish culture.
The Holocaust
Before the
Holocaust, Lithuania was home to 160,000 Jews, and was one of the great centers of Jewish theology, philosophy, and learning which preceded even the times of the
Gaon of Vilna. By 1941, fleeing refugees (mostly from Poland), had increased the number of Jews in the country to 250,000. After the German occupation in 1941, Nazis encouraged
pogroms against the Jewish population; according to German documentation, between the 25th and 26th of June, 1941, "about 1,500 Jews were eliminated by the Lithuanian partisans. Many Jewish synagogues were set on fire; on the following nights of 25th and 26th of June another 2,300 were killed."
[ Einsatzgruppen Archives.]
Between June and July of 1941, detachments of German
Einsatzgruppe A, together with Lithuanian auxiliaries, started large scale mass shootings of Jews, and by November of 1941, many had been killed in places like
Paneriai (
Ponary massacre). The surviving 40,000 Jews were concentrated in the Vilnius, Kaunas,
Å iauliai, and
Å venÄionys ghettos, and in
concentration camps, where many died of starvation or disease. In 1943, the ghettos were either destroyed by the Germans or turned into concentration camps, and 5,000 Jews were deported to the
extermination camps. At the end of the war, only 10% of Lithuania's Jews survived.
Return of Soviet authority
In the summer of
1944, the Red Army reached eastern Lithuania, while the city of
Vilnius was captured by the
Home Army during the ill-fated
Operation Ostra Brama. By January
1945, the Russians captured
KlaipÄ—da, on the
Baltic coast. The USSR subsequently reclaimed Lithuania as a Soviet republic, with the agreement of the
United States and
Britain (see
Yalta and
Potsdam Agreements.)
In the Soviet Union (1944–1990)
Stalinism
The mass deportation campaigns of 1941–52 exiled 29,923 families to
Siberia and other remote parts of the
Soviet Union. Official statistics state that more than 120,000 people were deported from Lithuania during this period, while some sources estimate the number of political prisoners and deportees at 300,000. In response to these events, an estimated several tens of thousands of resistance fighters participated in unsuccessful partisan warfare against the Soviet regime from 1944. The last partisan was killed in combat in 1965. Soviet authorities encouraged immigration of non-Lithuanian workers, especially Russians, as a way of integrating Lithuania into the Soviet Union and to encourage industrial development. This period has a dedicated
Grūtas theme park.
Rebirth (1988–1990)
Main articles: Singing Revolution #Lithuania
Until mid-
1988, all political, economic, and cultural life was controlled by the
Lithuanian Communist Party (LCP). Lithuanians as well as people in two other
Baltic republics distrusted the Soviet regime even more than people in other regions of the Soviet state, and gave their own specific and active support to Gorbachev's program of social and political reforms by Lithuanians. Under the leadership of intellectuals, the Lithuanian reform movement "
Lietuvos persitvarkymo sÄ…jÅ«dis" (the Reform Movement of Lithuania) was formed in midÂ1988 and declared a program of democratic and national rights, winning nationwide popularity. Inspired by SÄ…jÅ«dis, the Lithuanian
Supreme Soviet passed constitutional amendments on the supremacy of Lithuanian laws over Soviet legislation, annulled the 1940 decisions on proclaiming Lithuania a part of the USSR, legalized a multi-party system, and adopted a number of other important decisions, including the return of the national state symbols — the
flag and the
anthem. A large number of LCP members also supported the ideas of Sąjūdis, and with Sąjūdis support,
Algirdas Brazauskas was elected First Secretary of the Central Committee of the LCP in 1988. In 1989, on the
23 August, 50 years after
Molotov-Ribbentrop pact, in order to draw the world's attention to the fate of the Baltic nations, Latvians, Lithuanians and Estonians joined hands in a human chain that stretched 600 kilometres from Tallinn, to RÄ«ga, to Vilnius. That human chain was called the
Baltic Way. In December
1989, the Brazauskas-led LCP declared its independence from the
Communist party of the Soviet Union and became a separate party, which after it renamed itself in 1990 the
Lithuanian Democratic Labor Party.
Independent modern Lithuania (1990–2007)
Struggle for independence (1990–1991)
Election of Sąjūdis and independence declaration, 1990
In 1990, Sąjūdis-backed candidates won the elections to the Lithuanian Supreme Soviet. On
March 11,
1990, the
Supreme Soviet (or, more precisely, the
Supreme Council of Lithuania) proclaimed the restitution of Lithuanian independence, becoming the first of the Soviet republics to declare national rights. The Supreme Council of Lithuania also appointed leaders of the state and adopted the Provisional
Fundamental Law (temporary
constitution) on this day and the
Lithuanian SSR ceased to exist.
Vytautas Landsbergis became the head of the state and
Kazimiera PrunskienÄ— led the Cabinet of Ministers.
On
March 15 the U.S.S.R. demanded revocation of the act and began employing political and economic sanctions against Lithuania. Soviet military was used to seize a couple of public buildings. Also, it showed its force by driving its tanks through the streets of Vilnius. The Lithuanians, inspired by their government, protested against Soviet actions in a non-violent manner.
January events, 1991
Main articles: January Events
On
January 10,
1991, U.S.S.R. authorities seized the main publishing house and other premises in
Vilnius and attempted to suppress the elected government by sponsoring a so called "''National Salvation Committee''". Three days later, the Soviets forcibly took over the
TV tower, killing 14 unarmed civilians and injuring 700. The self-styled National Salvation Committee declared the Government overthrown, but capturing of houses of the Supreme Council and the Government never followed. Moscow failed to act further to crush the Lithuanian independence movement in light of widespread world criticism and a dearth of local popular support. The Lithuanian government continued to work.
During the national
plebiscite on
February 9 more than 90% of those who took part in the voting (and 76% of all eligible voters) voted in favor of an independent, democratic Lithuania. Led by tenacious
Vytautas Landsbergis, Lithuanian leadership continued to labor for Western
diplomatic recognition of its independence.
The Soviet Foreign Ministry had called the validity of that and other Lithuanian elections of the time into question, particularly given the strong support that
Algirdas Brazauskas commanded in the
Seimas. Meanwhile, Soviet military and security forces continued forced conscription, occasional seizure of buildings, attacks on customs posts, and a few killings of customs and police officials.
Recognition of independence, 1991
During the
Soviet coup attempt of 1991, Soviet military troops took over several communications and other government facilities in Vilnius and other cities, but returned to their barracks when the coup failed. The Lithuanian Government banned the Communist Party and ordered confiscation of its property. Independence was finally recognized by Russia in September of 1991, several months after the referendum.
Building the new state (1991–1996)
Political developments
As in many other formerly Soviet countries, popularity of the liberating movement (
Sąjūdis in this case) was diminishing, due to people's overly high expectations that the country would immediately become rich when it became capitalist, which understandably did not happen. Due to the change towards a market economy some indicators, e.g. employment (which was near 100% during Soviet times due to
underemployment), fell. At the time the
Lithuanian Communist Party renamed itself
Democratic Labour Party of Lithuania (LDDP) and ran against Sąjūdis in 1992 elections. Sąjūdis failed at those elections, and LDDP won the majority, although the did not have enough power to change the constitution. This was not expected, and LDDP had even less candidates in their lists than they got seats in parliament, therefore, according to the law, the unused seats were distributed among other political parties according to the percentages of votes. LDDP did not go the radical way back as, for example, the
Belarusians did, and more or less continued building the independent state. Leftist policies however also proved to be wrong for the time, and in the elections of 1996 rightist
Homeland Union won the majority of seats. Homeland Union has been established by
Vytautas Landsbergis, leader of
Sąjūdis, when it was seen that Sąjūdis needed reform. Sąjūdis remained as a public organisation, slowly diminishing and losing its importance. Although it exists today, it is not involved in politics any longer.
Privatization
It was decided that the state would have a market economy and therefore organizations like shops and flats, which were owned by government and leased to people, were to be privatised. Because people did not have money, the government issued
investment vouchers of varying amounts to everybody, which could be used to privatise things such as real estate. Privatisation of companies was performed in auctions where the one who could offer the most cheques would win. People cooperated in groups to have a larger amount to offer and the privatisation campaign in Lithuania, unlike
Russia, did not create a small group of very wealthy and powerful people. This was probably because the privatisation started with small organizations, and not large enterprises such as
telecoms or
airlines, which were done much later and some are still left unprivatised (and then already a monetary model was chosen for privatisation instead of a cheque-based one).
Privatisation however created a problem by people who were new to business acquiring some factories which were thriving previously and being unable to make them continue prospering. Others claim however that the fate of these factories was already sealed anyway because they were uneconomical and could only have been working under the planned economy of the Soviet Union.
Russian troop withdrawal (1991–1994)
Despite Lithuania's achievement of complete independence, sizable numbers of Russian forces remained in its territory. Withdrawal of those forces was one of Lithuania's top foreign policy priorities. Lithuania and Russia signed an agreement on
September 8,
1992, calling for Russian troop withdrawals by
August 31,
1993, which took place on time.
Forming the military
The first military of the reborn country were the
Lithuanian volunteers, who first took an oath at the Supreme Council of Lithuania soon after the independence declaration. Later
SKAT was formed from them. However, when the
LDDP (former communists) came to power in 1992, the position of the volunteers was weakened, according to them on purpose, by not giving them enough weaponry, financing nor uniforms. This led to the
Coup of the Volunteers, but with time the situation calmed down, and Lithuanian military built itself to the common standard with an
air force,
navy and
land army.
SKAT remained too, and interwar paramilitary organisations such as
Lithuanian Riflemen's Union,
Young Riflemen, and
Lithuanian Scouts were re-created. However, riflemen's organisations do not have the power or support they enjoyed in interwar Lithuania.
Forming the monetary system
Lithuania's monetary system was to be based on
Litas, the currency used during the interwar republic of Lithuania. The name Litas derives from the name
Lithuania (the other Baltic State,
Latvia, has similarly-named currency
Lats). The currency was to be introduced quickly, immediately after
Russian ruble, however it did not happen and Russia did not support the use of Roubles in Lithuania. Therefore a temporary currency,
talonas, was introduced (commonly called ''VagnorkÄ—'' or ''VagnorÄ—lis'' because
Gediminas Vagnorius was prime minister during its introduction). This currency however was very simple, easily counterfeited, and also was subject to heavy inflation. There were two versions of talonas, a large note and then a small note, the smaller notes were being released to change the large banknotes when they lost their value, but it was later controversially decided that the large banknotes would regain value again.
Eventually Litas was issued (printed outside Lithuania), and it was decided to peg it to the
United States dollar and later to the
Euro. Some possible affairs and conspiracy theories exist about the issue of litas. Since then except for the first few years and up until joining the
European Union, inflation in Lithuania has been among the lowest in
Europe.
Lithuania in the European Union (2004-present)
In October 2002, Lithuania was invited to join the
European Union and one month later to join
NATO; it became a member of both in
2004. The
Lithuanian Military began a programme of modernisation and integration with NATO forces.
[[1]] It has been noted that since Lithuania joined the
EU there has been significant emigration to both the
UK and
Ireland.
Notes
1. Robert A. Vitas, The Polish-Lithuanian Crisis of 1938. Events Surrounding the Ultimatum, Lituanus — Lithuanian Quarterly Journal of Arts and Sciences; Vol. 30, No.2 — Summer 1984; ISSN 0024-5089
Bibliography
★ Zigmantas Kiaupa, et al. ''The History of Lithuania Before 1795'' (Vilnius: Lithuanian Institute of History, 2000).
See also
★
Lithuania
★
Central Lithuania
★
History of Vilnius
★
Baltic region
★
Baltic Germans
★
History of Poland
★
History of Russians in Lithuania
★
Law of Lithuania
★
Territorial changes of the Baltic States
External links
★
Pages and Forums on the Lithuanian History
★
Zenonas Langaitis virtual Old Radio museum — Old Radios from Lithuania,Europa,past USSR.
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