Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic
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| Lietuvos Tarybų Socialistinė Respublika (Lithuanian) Литовская Советская Социалистическая Республика (Russian) Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic |
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| Capital | Vilnius | ||||
| Official language | Lithuanian and Russian | ||||
| Established In the USSR: - Since - Until |
July 21, 1940 August 3, 1940 March 11, 1990 |
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| Area - Total - Water (%) |
Ranked 11th in the USSR 65,200 km² negligible |
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| Population - Total - Density |
Ranked 11th in the USSR 3,689,779 (1989) 56.6/km² |
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| Time zone | UTC + 3 | ||||
| Anthem | Anthem of Lithuanian SSR | ||||
| Medals |  Order of Lenin |
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The Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic (Lithuanian: Lietuvos Tarybų Socialistinė Respublika; Russian: Литовская Советская Социалистическая Республика Litovskaya Sovetskaya Sotsalisticheskaya Respublika), also known as the Lithuanian SSR for short, was one of the republics that made up the former Soviet Union. It was established after Soviet Occupation of Lithuania in 1940 and existed to 1990 (although there was a failed attempt to establish government in Lithuania by Bolshevik military force in 1918-1919).
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[edit] History
[edit] Bolshevik attempts to seize the power
The Lithuanian SSR was first proclaimed on December 16, 1918, by the First Congress of the Lithuanian Communist Party supported by bolshevik armed forces. It failed to create a de facto government with any popular support, contrary to the the Council of Lithuania, that formed National Cabinet of Lithuania. Two months later on February 27, 1919, it was joined by the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic to form the Lithuanian-Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (LBSSR, or "Litbel"), which existed for only six months, until August 25, 1919. A treaty was signed, the Soviet-Lithuanian Treaty of 1920, between the Soviets and the re-established Lithuanian State. It has been suggested that the Soviet defeat in the Polish-Soviet War prevented the Soviets from invading Lithuania and turning it into a Soviet republic in the interwar period.[1]
[edit] World War II and occupation
Later, the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact of (August 1939), between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, stated that Lithuania was to be included into the German "sphere of influence", but after the World War II broke out in September 1939 was amended to transfer Lithuania to the Soviet sphere in exchange for Lublin and parts of the Warsaw province of Poland, originally ascribed to the Soviet Union, but by that time already occupied by German forces. The Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic was established on on July 21, 1940 (after communist rule was forced upon Lithuania following the Soviet invasion of June 15, 1940). On August 3, 1940, a communist government, which had been hastily formed, announced that the Lithuanian SSR would become a part of the Soviet Union, i.e. the 14th constituent republic of the USSR. Its territory was subsequently invaded and occupied by Nazi Germany in 1941, but with the German reverse of its military fortunes and eventual retreat, Soviet rule was re-established there in July 1944.
[edit] Legal status
The United States, United Kingdom, and other western powers considered the occupation of Lithuania by the USSR illegal, citing the Stimson Doctrine, in 1940, but recognized all borders of the USSR at post-World War II conferences. In spite of this, the United States refused to recognize the annexation of Lithuania or the other Baltic States, by the Soviet Union, at any time of the existence of the USSR.
In addition to the human and material losses suffered due to war, several waves of deportations affected Lithuania. During the mass deportation campaign of June 14-18, 1941, about 12,600 people were deported to Siberia without investigation or trial, 3,600 people were imprisoned, and more than 1,000 were killed.[2] After the Lithuanian SSR was re-established in 1944, an estimated 120,000 to 300,000 Lithuanians were either killed or deported to Siberia and other remote parts of the Soviet Union.[2]
The Lithuanian SSR was renamed the Republic of Lithuania again, and on March 11, 1990, all legal ties of sovereignty were cut with the Soviet Union as Lithuania declared the restitution of its independence. The government of the USSR recognised Lithuania's independence on September 6, 1991.
[edit] Economy
In comparison with other parts of the USSR its economy fared better and today Lithuania remains one of the wealthiest of the formerly Soviet-controlled states[citation needed].
The economy in Lithuania was relatively good. During Stalin's purges starvation was relatively low. Most people had food and water, and many people were able to obtain economic prosperity. The average standard of living was high.
There was economic downturn when Khrushchev came to power and instigated his reforms. Lithuania faced economic downturn unseen anywhere else in the Soviet Union. Poverty became rampant, and food became very scarce.[3]
[edit] Trivia
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Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones. |
A minor planet 2577 Litva discovered in 1975 by a Soviet astronomer Nikolai Stepanovich Chernykh is named after the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic.[4]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Alfred Erich Senn, The Formation of the Lithuanian Foreign Office, 1918-1921, Slavic Review, Vol. 21, No. 3. (Sep., 1962), pp. 500-507.: "A Bolshevik victory over the Poles would have certainly meant a move by the Lithuanian communists, backed by the Red Army, to overthrow the Lithuanian nationalist government... Kaunas, in effect, paid for its independence with the loss of Vilna."
Alfred Erich Senn, Lietuvos valstybes... p. 163: "If the Poles didn't stop the Soviet attack, Lithuania would fell to the Soviets... Polish victory costs the Lithuanians the city of Wilno, but saved Lithuania itself."
Antanas Ruksa, Kovos del Lietuvos nepriklausomybes, t.3, p.417: "In summer 1920 Russia was working on a communist revolution in Lithuania... From this disaster Lithuania was saved by the miracle at Vistula."
Jonas Rudokas, Józef Piłsudski - wróg niepodległości Litwy czy jej wybawca? (Polish translation of a Lithuanian article) "Veidas", 25 08 2005: [Piłsudski] "defended both Poland and Lithuanian from Soviet domination" - ^ a b Background Note: Lithuania. United States Department of State (2008). Retrieved on 2008-05-08.
- ^ The Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania by David James Smith P. 145
- ^ Dictionary of Minor Planet Names - p. 210
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