Kaunas (; ; also see
other names
Other often refers to:
* Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy
Other or The Other may also refer to:
Film and television
* ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack
* ''The Other'' (1930 film), ...
) is the second-largest
city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
in
Lithuania
Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
after
Vilnius
Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...
and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the largest city and the centre of a
county
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
in the
Duchy of Trakai
Duchy of Trakai was a subdivision of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania during the 14th and early 15th centuries. The Duke of Trakai was an important position held either by the Grand Duke of Lithuania himself or his second-in-command.
History
After th ...
of the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire of Austria. The state was founded by Li ...
and
Trakai Palatinate since 1413. In the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
, it was the capital of the
Kaunas Governorate
Kovno Governorate ( rus, Ковенская губеpния, r=Kovenskaya guberniya; lt, Kauno gubernija) or Governorate of Kaunas was a governorate ('' guberniya'') of the Russian Empire. Its capital was Kaunas (Kovno in Russian). It was forme ...
from 1843 to 1915.
During the
interwar period
In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the World War I, First World War to the beginning of the World War II, Second World War. The in ...
, it served as the
temporary capital of Lithuania
The temporary capital of Lithuania ( lt, Laikinoji sostinė) was the official designation of the city of Kaunas in Lithuania during the interwar period. It was in contrast to the declared capital in Vilnius, which was part of Poland from 1920 u ...
, when
Vilnius
Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...
was
seized and controlled by
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
between 1920 and 1939. During that period Kaunas was celebrated for its rich cultural and academic life, fashion, construction of countless
Art Deco
Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...
and Lithuanian National Romanticism architectural-style buildings as well as popular furniture, the interior design of the time, and a widespread
café
A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non-ca ...
culture.
The city interwar architecture is regarded as among the finest examples of European Art Deco and has received the
European Heritage Label
The European Heritage Label is a recognition awarded by the European Union to buildings, documents, museums, archives, monuments or events which are seen as milestones in the creation of today's Europe. The program is managed by the European Commis ...
. It contributed to Kaunas being named as the first city in Central and Eastern Europe to be designated as a
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
City of Design. Kaunas has been selected as the
European Capital of Culture for 2022, together with
Esch-sur-Alzette
Esch-sur-Alzette (; lb, Esch-Uelzecht ; german: Esch an der Alzette or ''Esch an der Alzig'') is the second city of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and the country's second-most populous commune, with a population of 35,040 inhabitants, . It lies ...
,
Luxembourg
Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
and
Novi Sad
Novi Sad ( sr-Cyrl, Нови Сад, ; hu, Újvidék, ; german: Neusatz; see below for other names) is the second largest city in Serbia and the capital of the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It is located in the southern portion of the Pan ...
,
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
.
The city is the capital of
Kaunas County
Kaunas County ( lt, Kauno apskritis) is one of ten counties of Lithuania
The territory of Lithuania is divided into 10 counties ( Lithuanian: singular ''apskritis'', plural ''apskritys''), all named after their capitals. The counties are ...
, and the seat of the Kaunas city municipality and the
Kaunas District Municipality
Kaunas District Municipality (''Kauno rajono savivaldybė'') is one of 60 municipalities in Lithuania. The seat of the municipality is the city of Kaunas, which does not belong to the municipality but is a separate administrative unit. It surroun ...
. It is also the seat of the
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kaunas
The Archdiocese of Kaunas ( la, Archidioecesis Kaunensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Lithuania. The episcopal see is in Kaunas, the second-largest city in Lithuania. The archdiocese's moth ...
. Kaunas is located at the confluence of the two largest Lithuanian rivers, the
Nemunas
The Neman, Nioman, Nemunas or MemelTo bankside nations of the present: Lithuanian: be, Нёман, , ; russian: Неман, ''Neman''; past: ger, Memel (where touching Prussia only, otherwise Nieman); lv, Nemuna; et, Neemen; pl, Niemen; ...
and the
Neris
The river Neris () or Viliya ( be, Ві́лія, pl, Wilia ) rises in northern Belarus. It flows westward, passing through Vilnius (Lithuania's capital) and in the south-centre of that country it flows into the Nemunas (Neman), at Kaunas, as ...
, and is near the
Kaunas Reservoir
Kaunas Reservoir ( lt, Kauno marios, Kaunas Lagoon, Kaunas Sea) is the largest Lithuanian artificial lake, created in 1959 by damming the Nemunas River near Kaunas and Rumšiškės. It occupies 63.5 square kilometers, which is about 0.1% of the to ...
, the largest body of water in the whole of Lithuania.
As defined by Eurostat, the population of Kaunas functional urban area, which stretches beyond the city limits, is estimated at 383,764 (as of 2017), while according to statistics of Kaunas territorial health insurance fund, there are 447,946 permanent inhabitants (as of 2022) in Kaunas and
Kaunas district
Kaunas District Municipality (''Kauno rajono savivaldybė'') is one of 60 municipalities in Lithuania. The seat of the municipality is the city of Kaunas, which does not belong to the municipality but is a separate administrative unit. It surround ...
municipalities combined.
Etymology
The city's name is of
Lithuanian
Lithuanian may refer to:
* Lithuanians
* Lithuanian language
* The country of Lithuania
* Grand Duchy of Lithuania
* Culture of Lithuania
* Lithuanian cuisine
* Lithuanian Jews as often called "Lithuanians" (''Lita'im'' or ''Litvaks'') by other Jew ...
origin and most likely derives from a
personal name
A personal name, or full name, in onomastic terminology also known as prosoponym (from Ancient Greek πρόσωπον / ''prósōpon'' - person, and ὄνομα / ''onoma'' - name), is the set of names by which an individual person is known ...
.
Before Lithuania regained independence, the city was generally known in English as ''Kovno'', the traditional
Slavicized
Slavicisation or Slavicization, is the acculturation of something Slavic into a non-Slavic culture, cuisine, region, or nation. To a lesser degree, it also means acculturation or adoption of something non-Slavic into Slavic culture or terms. Th ...
form of its name. The Polish name is ' ; the
Belarusian
Belarusian may refer to:
* Something of, or related to Belarus
* Belarusians, people from Belarus, or of Belarusian descent
* A citizen of Belarus, see Demographics of Belarus
* Belarusian language
* Belarusian culture
* Belarusian cuisine
* Byelor ...
name is , ' . An earlier Russian name was ', although ' has been used since 1940. The
Yiddish
Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ver ...
name is ', and the names in
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
include ' and '. The city and its
elderates also have names in other languages (see
Names of Kaunas in other languages and
names of Kaunas elderates in other languages).
Folk history
A 16th century legend claims, that Kaunas was established by the Romans in
ancient times
Ancient history is a time period from the beginning of writing and recorded human history to as far as late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the Sumerian cuneiform script. Ancient history cov ...
. These Romans were supposedly led by a patrician named Palemon, who had three sons: Barcus, Kunas and Sperus.
Palemon fled from
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
because he feared the mad Emperor
Nero
Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68), was the fifth Roman emperor and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 un ...
. Palemon, his sons and other relatives travelled to Lithuania. After Palemon's death, his sons divided his land. Kunas got the land where Kaunas now stands. He built a fortress near the confluence of the
Nemunas
The Neman, Nioman, Nemunas or MemelTo bankside nations of the present: Lithuanian: be, Нёман, , ; russian: Неман, ''Neman''; past: ger, Memel (where touching Prussia only, otherwise Nieman); lv, Nemuna; et, Neemen; pl, Niemen; ...
and
Neris
The river Neris () or Viliya ( be, Ві́лія, pl, Wilia ) rises in northern Belarus. It flows westward, passing through Vilnius (Lithuania's capital) and in the south-centre of that country it flows into the Nemunas (Neman), at Kaunas, as ...
rivers and the city that grew up there was named after him. A suburban region in the vicinity is named "Palemonas".
Coat of arms
![Greater Coat of Arms of Kaunas](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/Greater_Coat_of_Arms_of_Kaunas.svg)
On 30 June 1993, the historical
coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...
of Kaunas city was re-established by a special
presidential
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
* President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese fu ...
decree. The coat of arms features a white
aurochs
The aurochs (''Bos primigenius'') ( or ) is an extinct cattle species, considered to be the wild ancestor of modern domestic cattle. With a shoulder height of up to in bulls and in cows, it was one of the largest herbivores in the Holocen ...
with a golden cross between its
horns Horns or The Horns may refer to:
* Plural of Horn (instrument), a group of musical instruments all with a horn-shaped bells
* The Horns (Colorado), a summit on Cheyenne Mountain
* ''Horns'' (novel), a dark fantasy novel written in 2010 by Joe Hill ...
, set against a deep red background. The aurochs was the original heraldic symbol of the city, established in 1400. The heraldic seal of Kaunas, introduced in the early 15th century during the reign of Grand Duke Vytautas, is the oldest city heraldic seal known in the territory of the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire of Austria. The state was founded by Li ...
. The current
emblem
An emblem is an abstract or representational pictorial image that represents a concept, like a moral truth, or an allegory, or a person, like a king or saint.
Emblems vs. symbols
Although the words ''emblem'' and '' symbol'' are often use ...
was the result of much study and discussion on the part of the Lithuanian
Heraldry
Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known branch ...
Commission, and realized by the artist
Raimondas Miknevičius Raimondas is a masculine Lithuanian given name. Notable people with the name include:
*Raimondas Rumšas (born 1972), Lithuanian cyclist
*Raimondas Vainoras (born 1965), Lithuanian footballer
*Raimondas Vilčinskas (born 1977), Lithuanian cyclist
* ...
. An aurochs has replaced a
wisent
The European bison (''Bison bonasus'') or the European wood bison, also known as the wisent ( or ), the zubr (), or sometimes colloquially as the European buffalo, is a European species of bison. It is one of two extant species of bison, along ...
, which was depicted in the
Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
-era emblem that was used since 1969.
Blazon: ''Gules, an
aurochs
The aurochs (''Bos primigenius'') ( or ) is an extinct cattle species, considered to be the wild ancestor of modern domestic cattle. With a shoulder height of up to in bulls and in cows, it was one of the largest herbivores in the Holocen ...
passant guardant argent ensigned with a cross Or between his horns.''
Kaunas also has a greater coat of arms, which is mainly used for purposes of Kaunas city representation. The sailor, three golden balls, and
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
text ''"Diligite justitiam qui judicatis terram"'' (
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
: Cherish justice, you who judge the earth
) in the greater coat of arms refers to
Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas of Myra, ; la, Sanctus Nicolaus (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greeks, Greek descent from the maritime city of Myra in Asia Minor (; modern-da ...
, patron saint of merchants and seafarers, who was regarded as a heavenly guardian of Kaunas by Queen
Bona Sforza
Bona Sforza d'Aragona (2 February 1494 – 19 November 1557) was Queen of Poland and Grand Duchess of Lithuania as the second wife of Sigismund I the Old, and Duchess of Bari and Rossano by her own right. She was a surviving member of ...
.
History
Early history
According to the
archeological excavations, the richest collections of
ceramics
A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...
and other artifacts found at the confluence of the
Nemunas
The Neman, Nioman, Nemunas or MemelTo bankside nations of the present: Lithuanian: be, Нёман, , ; russian: Неман, ''Neman''; past: ger, Memel (where touching Prussia only, otherwise Nieman); lv, Nemuna; et, Neemen; pl, Niemen; ...
and the
Neris
The river Neris () or Viliya ( be, Ві́лія, pl, Wilia ) rises in northern Belarus. It flows westward, passing through Vilnius (Lithuania's capital) and in the south-centre of that country it flows into the Nemunas (Neman), at Kaunas, as ...
rivers are from the
second
The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds ...
and
first millennium
File:1st millennium montage.png, From top left, clockwise: Depiction of Jesus, the central figure in Christianity; The Colosseum, a landmark of the once-mighty Roman Empire; Kaaba, the Great Mosque of Mecca, the holiest site of Islam; Chess, a n ...
BC. During that time, people settled in some territories of the present Kaunas: the confluence of the two
longest rivers of Lithuania area,
Eiguliai
Eiguliai is neighorhood in the city of Kaunas, Lithuania. Eiguliai elderate encompass Eiguliai, Kleboniškis and part of Kalniečiai neighbourhoods. Elderate itself is located on the left bank of the Neris River. The distance from Eiguliai neighb ...
, Lampėdžiai, Linkuva, Kaniūkai, Marvelė, Pajiesys, Romainiai,
Petrašiūnai
Petrašiūnai is a neighborhood in the eastern part of the Lithuanian city of Kaunas. Part of larger Petrašiūnai elderate which also consists with Amaliai, Palemonas and Naujasodis neighorhoods. In 2006 it occupied about 28.46 km², with a ...
, Sargėnai, and Veršvai sites.
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
![Vytautas the Great Monument](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dc/Vytautas_the_Great_Monument_.jpg)
A settlement had been established on the site of the current Kaunas old town, at the confluence of two large rivers, at least by the 10th century AD. Kaunas is first mentioned in written sources in 1361 when the brick
Kaunas Castle
Kaunas Castle is a medieval castle in Kaunas, the second-largest city in Lithuania. Archeological evidence suggests that it was originally built during the mid-14th century, in the Gothic style. Its site is strategic – a rise on the banks o ...
was constructed. In 1362, the
castle was captured after a siege and destroyed by the
Teutonic Order
The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians on ...
. Commander
Vaidotas
Vaidotas ( fl. 1362) was a son of Kęstutis, Grand Duke of Lithuania. In reliable historical sources he is mentioned only twice: as defender of Kaunas Castle in 1362 and as ruler of Navahrudak. Due to very limited information, his life is subject ...
of the Kaunas castle
garrison
A garrison (from the French ''garnison'', itself from the verb ''garnir'', "to equip") is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a mil ...
, with 36 men, tried to break through but was taken prisoner. It was one of the largest and important military victories of the Teutonic Knights in the 14th century against the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire of Austria. The state was founded by Li ...
.
The Kaunas castle was rebuilt at the beginning of the 15th century.
In 1408, the town was granted
Magdeburg rights
Magdeburg rights (german: Magdeburger Recht; also called Magdeburg Law) were a set of town privileges first developed by Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor (936–973) and based on the Flemish Law, which regulated the degree of internal autonomy within ...
by
Vytautas the Great
Vytautas (c. 135027 October 1430), also known as Vytautas the Great ( Lithuanian: ', be, Вітаўт, ''Vitaŭt'', pl, Witold Kiejstutowicz, ''Witold Aleksander'' or ''Witold Wielki'' Ruthenian: ''Vitovt'', Latin: ''Alexander Vitoldus'', O ...
and became a centre of Kaunas Powiat in
Trakai Voivodeship
lt, Trakų vaivadija pl, Województwo trockie
, conventional_long_name = Trakai Voivodeship
, common_name = Trakai
, subdivision = Voivodeship
, nation = Grand Duchy of Lithuania (1413–1569)
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (1569–1795)
, year_ ...
in 1413. Vytautas ceded Kaunas the right to own the scales used for weighing the goods brought to the city or packed on site, wax processing, and woolen cloth-trimming facilities. The power of the self-governing Kaunas was shared by three interrelated major institutions: ''vaitas'' (the
Mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...
), the
Magistrate
The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judici ...
(12
lay judge A lay judge, sometimes called a lay assessor, is a person assisting a judge in a trial. Lay judges are used in some civil law jurisdictions. Lay judges are appointed volunteers and often require some legal instruction. However, they are not perman ...
s and 4
burgomaster
Burgomaster (alternatively spelled burgermeister, literally "master of the town, master of the borough, master of the fortress, master of the citizens") is the English form of various terms in or derived from Germanic languages for the chief m ...
s), and the so-called
Bencher
A bencher or Master of the Bench is a senior member of an Inn of Court in England and Wales or the Inns of Court in Northern Ireland, or the Honorable Society of King's Inns in Ireland. Benchers hold office for life once elected. A bencher can ...
s' Court (12 persons). Kaunas began to gain prominence, since it was at an intersection of
trade route
A trade route is a logistical network identified as a series of pathways and stoppages used for the commercial transport of cargo. The term can also be used to refer to trade over bodies of water. Allowing goods to reach distant markets, a sing ...
s and a
river port
An inland port is a port on an inland waterway, such as a river, lake, or canal, which may or may not be connected to the sea. The term "inland port" is also used to refer to a dry port.
Examples
The United States Army Corps of Engineers publ ...
. In 1441 Kaunas joined the
Hanseatic League
The Hanseatic League (; gml, Hanse, , ; german: label=Modern German, Deutsche Hanse) was a medieval commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in Central and Northern Europe. Growing from a few North German to ...
, and Hansa merchant office
Kontor
A ''kontor'' () was a foreign trading post of the Hanseatic League.
In addition to the major ''kontore'' in London (the Steelyard), Bruges, Bergen (Bryggen), and Novgorod (Peterhof), some ports had a representative merchant and a warehouse.
...
was opened—the only one in the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire of Austria. The state was founded by Li ...
. By the 16th century, Kaunas also had a public school and a hospital and was one of the best-formed towns in the whole country.
In 1665, the Russian army attacked the city several times, and in 1701 the city was occupied by the
Swedish Army
The Swedish Army ( sv, svenska armén) is the land force of the Swedish Armed Forces.
History
Svea Life Guards dates back to the year 1521, when the men of Dalarna chose 16 young able men as body guards for the insurgent nobleman Gustav Vas ...
during the
Great Northern War
The Great Northern War (1700–1721) was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swedi ...
. The
bubonic plague
Bubonic plague is one of three types of plague caused by the plague bacterium (''Yersinia pestis''). One to seven days after exposure to the bacteria, flu-like symptoms develop. These symptoms include fever, headaches, and vomiting, as well a ...
struck the area in 1657 and 1708, killing many residents. Fires destroyed parts of the city in 1731 and 1732.
Russian Empire
![Kaunas Priest Seminary, Kaunas, Lithuania - Diliff](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/42/Kaunas_Priest_Seminary%2C_Kaunas%2C_Lithuania_-_Diliff.jpg)
After the
third and final partition of the Polish–Lithuanian state in 1795, the city was taken over by the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
and became a part of
Vilna Governorate
The Vilna Governorate (1795–1915; also known as Lithuania-Vilnius Governorate from 1801 until 1840; russian: Виленская губерния, ''Vilenskaya guberniya'', lt, Vilniaus gubernija, pl, gubernia wileńska) or Government of V ...
. During the
French invasion of Russia
The French invasion of Russia, also known as the Russian campaign, the Second Polish War, the Army of Twenty nations, and the Patriotic War of 1812 was launched by Napoleon Bonaparte to force the Russian Empire back into the continental block ...
in 1812, the
Grand Army
Grand may refer to:
People with the name
* Grand (surname)
* Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor
* Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist
* Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper
Places
* Grand, Oklahoma
* Grand, Vosges, village and commu ...
of
Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
passed through Kaunas twice, devastating the city both times. A hill fort mound in Kaunas is named Napoleon's Hill.
To prevent possible easy access through the city and protect the western borders of Russia, the
Kovno Fortress was built. It is still visible throughout the town.
Kovno Governorate
Kovno Governorate ( rus, Ковенская губеpния, r=Kovenskaya guberniya; lt, Kauno gubernija) or Governorate of Kaunas was a governorate ('' guberniya'') of the Russian Empire. Its capital was Kaunas (Kovno in Russian). It was formed ...
, with a centre in Kovno (Kaunas), was formed in 1843. In 1862, a railway connecting the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
and
Imperial Germany
The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...
was built, making Kaunas a significant railway hub with one of the first
railway tunnels
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
in the Empire, completed in 1861. In 1898 the first
power plant
A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electrical grid.
Many pow ...
in Lithuania started operating.
After the unsuccessful
January Uprising
The January Uprising ( pl, powstanie styczniowe; lt, 1863 metų sukilimas; ua, Січневе повстання; russian: Польское восстание; ) was an insurrection principally in Russia's Kingdom of Poland that was aimed at ...
against the Russian Empire, the tsarist authority moved the Catholic Seminary of
Varniai
Varniai (; Samogitian language, Samogitian: ''Varnē''; pl, Wornie) is a city in the Telšiai County, western Lithuania. In the Middle Ages the city was known as Medininkai (Samogitian language, Samogitian: ''Medėninkā'').
It was established ...
, prominent bishop
Motiejus Valančius
Motiejus Kazimieras Valančius ( pl, , also known by his pen-name ''Joteika'' and ''Ksiądz Maciek''; 1801–1875) was a Catholic Bishop of Samogitia, historian and one of the best known Lithuanian/Samogitian writers of the 19th century.
Biogr ...
and
Samogitian diocese
The Archdiocese of Kaunas ( la, Archidioecesis Kaunensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Lithuania. The episcopal see is in Kaunas, the second-largest city in Lithuania. The archdiocese's ...
institutions to Kaunas, where they were given the former Bernardine Monastery Palace and
St. George the Martyr Church. Only selected
noblemen
Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The characterist ...
were permitted to study in the Seminary, with the only exception being peasant son
Antanas Baranauskas
Antanas Baranauskas ( la, Antonius Baranovski, pl, Antoni Baranowski; 17 January 1835 – 26 November 1902) was a Lithuanian poet, mathematician and Catholic bishop of Sejny. Baranauskas is best known as the author of the Lithuanian poem '' An ...
, who illegally received the nobleman documents from
Karolina Praniauskaitė. He began lectures using the
Lithuanian language
Lithuanian ( ) is an Eastern Baltic language belonging to the Baltic branch of the Indo-European language family. It is the official language of Lithuania and one of the official languages of the European Union. There are about 2.8 millio ...
, rather than Russian, and greatly influenced the spirit of the seminarians by narrating about the
ancient Lithuania and especially its earthwork mounds. Later, many of the Seminary students were active in Lithuanian
book smuggling
Lithuanian book smugglers or Lithuanian book carriers ( lt, knygnešys, plural: lt, knygnešiaĩ, label=none) transported Lithuanian language books printed in the Latin alphabet into Lithuanian-speaking areas of the Russian Empire, defying a ba ...
; its chief main objective was to resist the
Russification policy.
Kaunas Spiritual Seminary finally became completely Lithuanian when in 1909 professor
Jonas Mačiulis-Maironis
Maironis (born Jonas Mačiulis, ; – 28 June 1932) was a Lithuanians, Lithuanian Roman Catholic priest and the greatest and most-known Lithuanian poet, especially of the period of the Lithuanian press ban. He was called the Bard of Lithuanian Na ...
became the rector of the Seminary, and replaced use of the Polish language for teaching with the Lithuanian language.
Prior to the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Kaunas, like many cities in
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russ ...
, had a significant Jewish population. According to the
Russian census of 1897
The first general census of the population of the Russian Empire in 1897 (Russian alphabet#Letters eliminated in 1917–18, pre-reform Russian: ) was the first and only nation-wide census performed in the Russian Empire (the Grand Duchy of Fi ...
, Jews numbered 25,500, 35.3% of the total of 73,500. The population was recorded as 25.8% Russian, 22.7% Polish, 6.6% Lithuanian. It established numerous schools and synagogues and were important for centuries to the culture and business of the city.
During the
Imperial Russian Army
The Imperial Russian Army (russian: Ру́сская импера́торская а́рмия, tr. ) was the armed land force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian Ar ...
's
Great Retreat
The Great Retreat (), also known as the retreat from Mons, was the long withdrawal to the River Marne in August and September 1914 by the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) and the French Fifth Army. The Franco-British forces on the Western Fr ...
of
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
,
Paul von Hindenburg
Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg (; abbreviated ; 2 October 1847 – 2 August 1934) was a German field marshal and statesman who led the Imperial German Army during World War I and later became President of Germany fro ...
's
German Tenth Army occupied Kaunas in August 1915.
Interwar Lithuania
![Communists with the Lithuanian Army soldiers](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Communists_with_the_Lithuanian_Army_soldiers.jpg)
After
Vilnius
Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...
was occupied by the
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...
in 1919, the
Government of the Republic of Lithuania
The Government of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Vyriausybė), officially the Government of the Republic of Lithuania (''Lietuvos Respublikos Vyriausybė'', abbreviated ''LRV''), is the cabinet of Lithuania, exercising executive power in the countr ...
established its main base in Kaunas during the
Lithuanian Wars of Independence
The Lithuanian Wars of Independence, also known as the Freedom Struggles ( lt, Laisvės kovos), refer to three wars Lithuania fought defending its independence at the end of World War I: with Bolshevik forces (December 1918 – August 1919), Berm ...
. Later, after the capital, Vilnius, had been annexed by the
Second Polish Republic
The Second Polish Republic, at the time officially known as the Republic of Poland, was a country in Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe that existed between 1918 and 1939. The state was established on 6 November 1918, before the end of ...
, Kaunas became the
temporary capital of Lithuania
The temporary capital of Lithuania ( lt, Laikinoji sostinė) was the official designation of the city of Kaunas in Lithuania during the interwar period. It was in contrast to the declared capital in Vilnius, which was part of Poland from 1920 u ...
.
It would hold this position until 28 October 1939, when the
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...
handed Vilnius over to Lithuania after its
invasion of Poland
The invasion of Poland (1 September – 6 October 1939) was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union which marked the beginning of World War II. The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week aft ...
. The
Constituent Assembly of Lithuania
The Constituent Assembly of Lithuania ( lt, Steigiamasis Seimas) was the first parliament of the independent state of Lithuania to be elected in a direct, democratic, general, secret election. The Assembly assumed its duties on 15 May 1920 and w ...
first met in Kaunas on 15 May 1920. It passed some important laws, particularly on land reform, on the national currency, and adopted a new constitution. The military
coup d'état
A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...
took place in Kaunas on 17 December 1926. It was largely organized by the military, especially general
Povilas Plechavičius
Povilas Plechavičius (1 February 1890 – 19 December 1973) was an Imperial Russian and then Lithuanian military officer and statesman. In the service of Lithuania he rose to the rank of General of the army in the interwar period. He is best kn ...
, and resulted in the replacement of the
democratically elected
An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office.
Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated ...
Government and President
Kazys Grinius
Kazys Grinius (, 17 December 18664 June 1950) was the third President of Lithuania, and held that office from 7 June 1926 to 17 December 1926. Previously, he had served as the fifth Prime Minister of Lithuania, from 19 June 1920 until his resignat ...
with a conservative
nationalist
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...
authoritarian Government
Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political '' status quo'', and reductions in the rule of law, separation of powers, and democratic ...
led by
Antanas Smetona
Antanas Smetona (; 10 August 1874 – 9 January 1944) was a Lithuanian intellectual and journalist and the first President of Lithuania from 1919 to 1920 and again from 1926 to 1940, before its occupation by the Soviet Union. He was one of the m ...
.
Shortly afterwards, tension between Antanas Smetona and
Augustinas Voldemaras
Augustinas Voldemaras (16 April 1883 – 16 May 1942) was a Lithuanian nationalist political figure. He briefly served as the country's first prime minister in 1918 and continued serving as the minister of foreign affairs until 1920, representing ...
, supported by the
Iron Wolf Association, arose seeking to gain authority. After the
unsuccessful coup attempt in June 1934, Voldemaras was imprisoned for four years and received an amnesty on condition that he leave the country.
During the
interwar period
In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the World War I, First World War to the beginning of the World War II, Second World War. The in ...
, Kaunas was nicknamed as the ''Little Paris'' because of its rich cultural and academic life, fashion,
Art Deco
Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...
architecture, Lithuanian National Romanticism architectural style buildings as well as popular furniture, interior design of the time and widespread
café
A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non-ca ...
culture.
The interim capital and the country itself also had a
Western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
standard of living with sufficiently high salaries and low prices. At the time, qualified workers there were earning very similar
real wages
Real wages are wages adjusted for inflation, or, equivalently, wages in terms of the amount of goods and services that can be bought. This term is used in contrast to nominal wages or unadjusted wages.
Because it has been adjusted to account f ...
to workers in
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
,
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
and
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, the country also had a surprisingly high
natural increase in population of 9.7 and the
industrial production
Industrial production is a measure of output of the industrial sector of the economy. The industrial sector includes manufacturing, mining, and utilities. Although these sectors contribute only a small portion of gross domestic product (GDP), the ...
of Lithuania increased by 160% from 1913 to 1940.
Between the
World Wars
A world war is an international conflict which involves all or most of the world's major powers. Conventionally, the term is reserved for two major international conflicts that occurred during the first half of the 20th century, World WarI (1914 ...
, industry prospered in Kaunas, which was the largest city in Lithuania. Under the direction of Mayor
Jonas Vileišis
Jonas Vileišis (January 3, 1872 – June 1, 1942) was a Lithuanian lawyer, politician, and diplomat.
Early life and career
Vileišis was born in Mediniai, near Pasvalys. In 1892 he graduated from the Šiauliai Gymnasium. During 1892-1894, he ...
(1921–1931) Kaunas grew rapidly and was extensively modernised. A water and waste water system, costing more than 15 million Lithuanian litas, was put in place, the city expanded from , more than 2,500 buildings were built, plus three modern bridges over the Neris and Nemunas rivers. All of the city's streets were paved, horse-drawn transportation was replaced with modern bus lines, new suburbs were planned and built (
Žaliakalnis
Žaliakalnis (literally, "the green hill") is an Elderships of Lithuania, elderate in Lithuania's second largest city, Kaunas. Žaliakalnis is located north of the old town and the city center area, between the Neris and Girstupis valleys. It is on ...
neighbourhood in particular), and new parks and squares were established.
The foundations of a
social security system
Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specifical ...
were laid, three new schools were built, and new
public libraries
A public library is a library that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also civil servants.
There are five fundamenta ...
, including the
Vincas Kudirka
Vincas Kudirka (; – ) was a Lithuanian poet and physician, and the author of both the music and lyrics of the Lithuanian national anthem, "". He is regarded in Lithuania as a national hero. Kudirka used the pen names V. Kapsas, Paežeri ...
library, were established. Vileišis maintained many contacts in other
European cities
This list ranks metropolitan areas in Europe by their population according to three different sources; it includes metropolitan areas that have a population of over 1 million.
Sources
List includes metropolitan areas according only studies of ...
, and as a result, Kaunas was an active participant in European urban life.
The city also was a particularly important centre for the
Lithuanian Armed Forces
The Lithuanian Armed Forces () are the military of Lithuania. The Lithuanian Armed Forces consist of the Lithuanian Land Forces, the Lithuanian Naval Force and the Lithuanian Air Force. In wartime, the Lithuanian State Border Guard Service (whi ...
. In January 1919, during the
Lithuanian Wars of Independence
The Lithuanian Wars of Independence, also known as the Freedom Struggles ( lt, Laisvės kovos), refer to three wars Lithuania fought defending its independence at the end of World War I: with Bolshevik forces (December 1918 – August 1919), Berm ...
, the
War School of Kaunas
War School of Kaunas ( lt, Kauno karo mokykla) was a military school for junior officers in Kaunas, the temporary capital of Lithuania. It was established in January 1919 during the Lithuanian Wars of Independence copying the example of Russian 4- ...
was established and started to train soldiers who were soon sent to the front to strengthen the fighting
Lithuanian Armed Forces
The Lithuanian Armed Forces () are the military of Lithuania. The Lithuanian Armed Forces consist of the Lithuanian Land Forces, the Lithuanian Naval Force and the Lithuanian Air Force. In wartime, the Lithuanian State Border Guard Service (whi ...
. Part of the Lithuanian
armoured vehicles
Military vehicles are commonly armoured (or armored; see spelling differences) to withstand the impact of shrapnel, bullets, shells, rockets, and missiles, protecting the personnel inside from enemy fire. Such vehicles include armoured fighting ...
military unit was moved to
Žaliakalnis
Žaliakalnis (literally, "the green hill") is an Elderships of Lithuania, elderate in Lithuania's second largest city, Kaunas. Žaliakalnis is located north of the old town and the city center area, between the Neris and Girstupis valleys. It is on ...
, armed with advanced and brand new tanks, including the famous
Renault FT
The Renault FT (frequently referred to in post-World War I literature as the FT-17, FT17, or similar) was a French light tank that was among the most revolutionary and influential tank designs in history. The FT was the first production tank to ...
,
Vickers-Armstrong
Vickers-Armstrongs Limited was a British engineering conglomerate formed by the merger of the assets of Vickers Limited and Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Company in 1927. The majority of the company was nationalised in the 1960s and 1970s, w ...
Model 1933 and Model 1936.
In May 1919, the
Lithuanian Aircraft State Factory was founded in
Freda Freda may refer to:
* Frida (given name), also spelled ''Freda''
* Freda (surname)
* Freda (character) from The Lord of the Rings film trilogy
* Ford Freda, a motor vehicle introduced in the Japanese market in 1995
* Freda Sandstone, a member of t ...
to repair and to supply the army with
military aircraft
A military aircraft is any fixed-wing or rotary-wing aircraft that is operated by a legal or insurrectionary armed service of any type. Military aircraft can be either combat or non-combat:
* Combat aircraft are designed to destroy enemy equipm ...
. It was considerably modernized by
Antanas Gustaitis
Antanas Gustaitis (March 26, 1898 – October 16, 1941) was an officer in the Lithuanian Armed Forces who modernized the Lithuanian Air Force, which at that time was part of the Lithuanian Army. He was the architect or aeronautical engineer who ...
and started to build Lithuanian ANBO military aircraft. The exceptional discipline and regularity caused the
Lithuanian Air Force
The Lithuanian Air Force or LAF ( lt, Lietuvos karinės oro pajėgos, abbreviated as ''LK KOP'') is the military aviation branch of the Lithuanian armed forces. It is formed from professional military servicemen and non-military personnel. Units ...
to be an example for other military units. The
ANBO 41 was far ahead of the most modern foreign reconnaissance aircraft of that time in structural features, and most importantly in speed and in rate of climb.
In 1934–1935, the
first mass trial of the Nazis in Europe was held in Kaunas in which the
convicted
In law, a conviction is the verdict reached by a court of law finding a defendant guilty of a crime. The opposite of a conviction is an acquittal (that is, "not guilty"). In Scotland, there can also be a verdict of "not proven", which is consid ...
were sentenced to imprisonments in a
heavy labor prison and to
capital punishment
Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...
.
At the time, Kaunas had a
Jewish population
As of 2020, the world's "core" Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewis ...
of 35,000–40,000, about one quarter of the city's total population.
Jews made up much of the city's commercial, artisan, and professional sectors. Kaunas was a centre of Jewish learning, and the
yeshiva in Slobodka (
Vilijampolė
Vilijampolė is a neighborhood in the city of Kaunas, Lithuania, located on the right bank of the Neris River and the Nemunas River, near their confluence. Part of a larger which consists of Vilijampolė, , , and neighorhoods, and covers 1,720 h ...
) was one of Europe's most prestigious institutes of higher Jewish learning. Kaunas had a rich and varied
Jewish culture
Jewish culture is the culture of the Jewish people, from its formation in ancient times until the current age. Judaism itself is not a faith-based religion, but an orthoprax and ethnoreligion, pertaining to deed, practice, and identity. Jewi ...
. There were almost 100 Jewish organizations, 40 synagogues, many Yiddish schools, 4 Hebrew
high schools
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
, a
Jewish hospital, and scores of Jewish-owned businesses.
It was also an important
Zionist
Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after ''Zion'') is a nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is known in Je ...
centre.
Initially prior to
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Lithuania declared
neutrality. However, on 7 October 1939, the Lithuanian delegation departed to
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
, where it later had to sign the
Soviet–Lithuanian Mutual Assistance Treaty
The Soviet–Lithuanian Mutual Assistance Treaty ( lt, Lietuvos-Sovietų Sąjungos savitarpio pagalbos sutartis) was a bilateral treaty signed between the Soviet Union and Lithuania on October 10, 1939. According to provisions outlined in the tre ...
because of the unfavorable situation. The treaty resulted in five Soviet military bases with 20,000 troops established across Lithuania in exchange for Lithuania's historical capital Vilnius. According to the Lithuanian Minister of National Defence
Kazys Musteikis
Kazys Musteikis (November 22, 1894 – June 6, 1977) was a Lithuanian military brigadier general, Lithuanian Minister of National Defence in 1938–1940.
Biography
On September 1939 in the beginning of the Invasion of Poland and the World War ...
, Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs
Juozas Urbšys
Juozas Urbšys (29 February 1896 – 30 April 1991) was a prominent interwar Lithuanian diplomat, the last head of foreign affairs in independent interwar Lithuania,Gerhard L. Weinberg. A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II. 1994 p.94 ...
initially told that Lithuanians refused
Vilnius Region
Vilnius Region is the territory in present-day Lithuania and Belarus that was originally inhabited by ethnic Baltic tribes and was a part of Lithuania proper, but came under East Slavic and Polish cultural influences over time.
The territory ...
as well as the Russian garrisons, but the nervous
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secreta ...
replied, "No matter if you take Vilnius or not, the Russian garrisons will enter Lithuania anyway". He also informed Juozas Urbšys about the
Soviet–German secret protocols and showed maps of the spheres of influence. Two of the military bases with thousands of Soviet soldiers were established close to Kaunas in
Prienai
Prienai () is a city in Lithuania situated on the Nemunas River, south of Kaunas. In 2011 the city had 9,867 inhabitants. The name of the city is a derivative from a surname ''Prienas''. Pociūnai Airport is associated with the city.
History
...
and
Gaižiūnai
Gaižiūnai is a village in Jonava district municipality, Lithuania. It is situated on the Taurosta River, tributary of Neris, about southeast of Jonava and northeast of Kaunas. The railroad from Šiauliai forks into Kaunas and Vilnius near the ...
. Despite regaining the beloved historical capital, the Presidency and the Government remained in Kaunas.
On 14 June 1940, just before midnight, the last meeting of the Lithuanian government was held in Kaunas. During it, the
ultimatum presented by the Soviet Union was debated. President
Antanas Smetona
Antanas Smetona (; 10 August 1874 – 9 January 1944) was a Lithuanian intellectual and journalist and the first President of Lithuania from 1919 to 1920 and again from 1926 to 1940, before its occupation by the Soviet Union. He was one of the m ...
categorically declined to accept most of the ultimatum's demands, argued for military resistance and was supported by Kazys Musteikis,
Konstantinas Šakenis,
Kazimieras Jokantas Kazimieras is a Lithuanian form of the masculine name Casimir. Its female form is Kazimiera. Its diminutive forms are Kazys and Kaziukas.
Notable people with this name include:
*Eugenijus Kazimieras Jovaiša (born 1940), Lithuanian painter
*Kazim ...
, however the Commander of the Armed Forces
Vincas Vitkauskas
Vincas Vitkauskas (4 October 1890 – 3 March 1965) was a Lithuanian general. He became commander of the Lithuanian Army after the resignation of Stasys Raštikis in January 1940. In this capacity, Vitkauskas opposed armed resistance to the Sovi ...
, Divisional General
Stasys Raštikis
Stasys Raštikis (September 13, 1896 – May 3, 1985) was a Lithuanian military officer, ultimately obtaining the rank of divisional general. He was the commander of the Lithuanian Army from September 21, 1934, to April 23, 1940.
During World War ...
,
Kazys Bizauskas
Kazys Bizauskas (14 February 1893,https://www.lrs.lt/sip/portal.show?p_r=35532&p_k=1&p_t=168619 Pāvilosta, Courland Governorate – 26 June 1941) was a Lithuanian statesman, diplomat, author, and one of the twenty signatories of the Act of ...
,
Antanas Merkys
Antanas Merkys (; 1 February 1887 – 5 March 1955) was the last Prime Minister of independent Lithuania, serving from November 1939 to June 1940. When the Soviet Union presented an ultimatum to Lithuania demanding that it accept a Soviet ga ...
and most of the Lithuanian government members decided that it would be impossible, especially the previously-stationed Soviet soldiers, and accepted the ultimatum. On that night before officially accepting the ultimatum, the Soviet forces executed the Lithuanian border guard near the
Byelorussian SSR
The Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR, or Byelorussian SSR; be, Беларуская Савецкая Сацыялістычная Рэспубліка, Bielaruskaja Savieckaja Sacyjalistyčnaja Respublika; russian: Белор ...
border. In the morning, the Lithuanian Government resigned, and the president left the country to avoid the fate of the Soviets' puppets and in the hope of forming a
government-in-exile
A government in exile (abbreviated as GiE) is a political group that claims to be a country or semi-sovereign state's legitimate government, but is unable to exercise legal power and instead resides in a foreign country. Governments in exile u ...
.
Soon the
Red Army flooded Lithuania through the
Belarus–Lithuania border
The Belarus–Lithuania border is an international border almost in length between the Republic of Belarus ( CIS member) and the Republic of Lithuania ( EU member). It is an external border of the European Union as well as the western borde ...
with more than 200,000 soldiers and took control of the most important cities, including Kaunas where the heads of state resided. The Lithuanian Armed Forces were ordered not to resist, and the
Lithuanian Air Force
The Lithuanian Air Force or LAF ( lt, Lietuvos karinės oro pajėgos, abbreviated as ''LK KOP'') is the military aviation branch of the Lithuanian armed forces. It is formed from professional military servicemen and non-military personnel. Units ...
remained on the ground. At the time, the Lithuanian Armed Forces had 26,084 soldiers (of which 1,728 officers) and 2,031 civil servants. While the
Lithuanian Riflemen's Union
The Lithuanian Riflemen's Union (LRU, lt, Lietuvos šaulių sąjunga), also referred to as Šauliai ( lt, šaulys for ''rifleman''), is a paramilitary non-profit organisation supported by the State. The activities are in three main areas: milita ...
, subordinate to the army commander, had over 62,000 members, of which about 70% were farmers and agricultural workers.
After the occupation, the Soviets immediately took brutal action against the high-ranking officials of the state. Both targets of the ultimatum,
Minister of the Interior
An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...
Kazys Skučas
Kazys Skučas (3 March 1894 in Mauručiai, Marijampolė district – 30 July 1941 in the Butyrka prison) was a Lithuanian politician and General of the Lithuanian Army. Skučas was the last Minister of the Interior of independent Lithuania. He wa ...
and the Director of the State Security Department of Lithuania
Augustinas Povilaitis
Augustinas Povilaitis (24 February 1900 in Pašventys, Jurbarkas district – 12 July 1941 in Moscow) was a captain of the Lithuanian Army and Director of the State Security Department of Lithuania. Together with Minister of the Interior Kazys Sku ...
, were transported to Moscow and later executed.
Antanas Gustaitis
Antanas Gustaitis (March 26, 1898 – October 16, 1941) was an officer in the Lithuanian Armed Forces who modernized the Lithuanian Air Force, which at that time was part of the Lithuanian Army. He was the architect or aeronautical engineer who ...
,
Kazys Bizauskas
Kazys Bizauskas (14 February 1893,https://www.lrs.lt/sip/portal.show?p_r=35532&p_k=1&p_t=168619 Pāvilosta, Courland Governorate – 26 June 1941) was a Lithuanian statesman, diplomat, author, and one of the twenty signatories of the Act of ...
,
Vytautas Petrulis
Vytautas Petrulis (born February 3, 1890 in Katelišės, near Vabalninkas; executed in 1942, near Uchta, RSFSR) was a Lithuanian politician, one of the main figures in the Lithuanian Christian Democratic Party, and an accountant. He is often n ...
,
Kazimieras Jokantas Kazimieras is a Lithuanian form of the masculine name Casimir. Its female form is Kazimiera. Its diminutive forms are Kazys and Kaziukas.
Notable people with this name include:
*Eugenijus Kazimieras Jovaiša (born 1940), Lithuanian painter
*Kazim ...
,
Jonas Masiliūnas
Jonas may refer to:
Geography
* Jonas, Netherlands, Netherlands
* Jonas, Pennsylvania, United States
* Jonas Ridge, North Carolina, United States
People with the name
* Jonas (name), people with the given name or surname Jonas
* Jonas, one of ...
,
Antanas Tamošaitis
Antanas is a Lithuanian masculine given name derived from Antonius that is equivalent to Anthony in Lithuania. It may refer to:
*Antanas Andrijauskas (born 1948), Lithuanian philosopher
*Antanas Bagdonavičius (born 1938), Lithuanian rower and Ol ...
also faced that fate, and President
Aleksandras Stulginskis
Aleksandras Stulginskis (26 February 1885 – 22 September 1969) was the second President of Lithuania (1920–1926). Stulginskis was also acting President of Lithuania for a few hours later in 1926, following a military coup that was led ...
,
Juozas Urbšys
Juozas Urbšys (29 February 1896 – 30 April 1991) was a prominent interwar Lithuanian diplomat, the last head of foreign affairs in independent interwar Lithuania,Gerhard L. Weinberg. A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II. 1994 p.94 ...
,
Leonas Bistras
Leonas Bistras (20 October 1890 in Liepāja – 17 October 1971 in Kaunas) was one of the most prominent Lithuanian politicians of the interwar period. A Christian Democrat, he rose to the peak of his career in 1925, when he was appointed as the P ...
,
Antanas Merkys
Antanas Merkys (; 1 February 1887 – 5 March 1955) was the last Prime Minister of independent Lithuania, serving from November 1939 to June 1940. When the Soviet Union presented an ultimatum to Lithuania demanding that it accept a Soviet ga ...
,
Pranas Dovydaitis
Pranas Dovydaitis (; 2 December 1886 – 4 November 1942) was a Lithuanian politician, Prime Minister of Lithuania, teacher, encyclopedist, editor, and professor.
Biography
Pranas Dovydaitis was born in Marijampolė County, Runkiai and at ...
,
Petras Klimas
Petras Klimas (, 23 February 1891 - 16 January 1969) was a Lithuanian diplomat, author, historian, and one of the twenty signatories of the Act of Independence of Lithuania.
Klimas attended law school at the University of Moscow. After graduatin ...
,
Donatas Malinauskas
Donatas Malinauskas (; 1877 in Krāslava, Latvia – November 30, 1942 in Altai Krai, Russia) was a Lithuanian politician and diplomat, and one of twenty signatories to the Act of Independence of Lithuania.
Malinauskas was born to a Lithuania ...
and
thousands of others were deported.
Stasys Raštikis
Stasys Raštikis (September 13, 1896 – May 3, 1985) was a Lithuanian military officer, ultimately obtaining the rank of divisional general. He was the commander of the Lithuanian Army from September 21, 1934, to April 23, 1940.
During World War ...
, persuaded by his wife, secretly crossed the German border. After realizing this,
NKVD
The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (russian: Наро́дный комиссариа́т вну́тренних дел, Naródnyy komissariát vnútrennikh del, ), abbreviated NKVD ( ), was the interior ministry of the Soviet Union.
...
started terror against the Raštikis family. His wife was separated from their one-year-old daughter and brutally interrogated at
Kaunas Prison
Kaunas Prison ( lt, Kauno tardymo izoliatorius) is a prison in the center of Kaunas, second largest city of Lithuania. As of 2007, it houses approximately 300 prisoners and employs around 230 prison guards. Most prisoners are there under tempora ...
, his old father Bernardas Raštikis, three daughters, two brothers and sister were deported to
Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part of ...
.
Soldiers,
officers
An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...
,
senior officers and
generals
A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry.
In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED On ...
of the Lithuanian Army and LRU members, who were seen as a threat to the occupiers, were quickly arrested, interrogated and released to the reserve, deported to the
concentration camp
Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simply ...
s or executed, which made many, trying to avoid that fate, join the
Lithuanian partisan
The Lithuanian partisans () were partisans who waged a guerrilla warfare in Lithuania against the Soviet Union in 1944–1953. Similar anti-Soviet resistance groups, also known as Forest Brothers and cursed soldiers, fought against Soviet rule ...
forces. The army itself was initially renamed the
Lithuanian People's Army
The Lithuanian People's Army ( lt, Lietuvos liaudies kariuomenė) were short-lived armed forces of Lithuania and the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic following the Soviet occupation of Lithuania in June 1940. The army was formed by the ...
but was later reorganised into the
29th Rifle Corps of the Soviet Union.
Soviet occupation and June Uprising
In June 1940, the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
occupied
' (Norwegian: ') is a Norwegian political thriller TV series that premiered on TV2 on 5 October 2015. Based on an original idea by Jo Nesbø, the series is co-created with Karianne Lund and Erik Skjoldbjærg. Season 2 premiered on 10 October 2 ...
and
annexed
Annexation (Latin ''ad'', to, and ''nexus'', joining), in international law, is the forcible acquisition of one state's territory by another state, usually following military occupation of the territory. It is generally held to be an illegal act ...
Lithuania in accordance with the
Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact
, long_name = Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
, image = Bundesarchiv Bild 183-H27337, Moskau, Stalin und Ribbentrop im Kreml.jpg
, image_width = 200
, caption = Stalin and Ribbentrop shaking ...
.
Vladimir Dekanozov
Vladimir Georgievich Dekanozov (russian: Влади́мир Гео́ргиевич Декано́зов; born Ivan Vasilyevich Protopopov; June 1898 – 23 December 1953) was a Soviet senior state security operative and diplomat.
Biography Early ...
, a Soviet emissary from Moscow, gained effective power in Lithuania. Shortly afterwards, on 17 June 1940 the puppet
People's Government of Lithuania
The People's Government of Lithuania ( lt, Liaudies vyriausybė) was a puppet cabinet installed by the Soviet Union in Lithuania immediately after Lithuania's acceptance of the Soviet ultimatum of June 14, 1940. The formation of the cabinet was su ...
was formed, which consistently destroyed Lithuanian society and political institutions and opened the way for the
Communist Party
A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of ''The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. A ...
to establish itself. To establish the legitimacy of the government and design the plans of Lithuania's "legal accession to the USSR", on 1 July, the
Seimas
The Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublikos Seimas), or simply the Seimas (), is the unicameral parliament of Lithuania. The Seimas constitutes the legislative branch of government in Lithuania, enacting laws and amendmen ...
of Lithuania was dismissed, and elections to the puppet
People's Seimas
The People's Seimas ( lt, Liaudies Seimas) was a puppet legislature organized in order to give legal sanction the occupation and annexation of Lithuania by the Soviet Union. After the Soviet ultimatum in June 1940, a new pro-Soviet government wa ...
were announced. The controlled (passports had imprints) and falsified elections to the People's Seimas were won by the Lithuanian Labour People's Union, which obeyed the occupiers' proposal to "ask" the Soviet authorities to have Lithuania admitted to the Soviet Union.
![Session of the Provisional Government of Lithuania](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/93/Session_of_the_Provisional_Government_of_Lithuania.jpg)
After the occupation, the
Lithuanian Diplomatic Service
The Diplomatic Service of the Republic of Lithuania is the part of the governmental service tasked with enforcing the foreign policy set by the President, the Parliament, and the Government of the Republic of Lithuania. The head of the service is t ...
did not recognize the new occupiers' authority and started the diplomatic liberation campaign of Lithuania.
In 1941,
Kazys Škirpa
Kazys Škirpa (18 February 1895 – 18 August 1979) was a Lithuanian military officer and diplomat. He is best known as the founder of the Lithuanian Activist Front (LAF) and his involvement in the attempt to establish Lithuanian independen ...
,
Leonas Prapuolenis
Leonas Prapuolenis (9 June 1913 – 23 July 1972) was a Lithuanian public figure, commander and leader of the June Uprising of 1941 in Lithuania.
Born to a family of affluent farmers in Suvalkija, Prapuolenis was an active member of the Ateiti ...
,
Juozas Ambrazevičius and their supporters, including the former Commander of the Lithuanian Army General
Stasys Raštikis
Stasys Raštikis (September 13, 1896 – May 3, 1985) was a Lithuanian military officer, ultimately obtaining the rank of divisional general. He was the commander of the Lithuanian Army from September 21, 1934, to April 23, 1940.
During World War ...
, whose whole family was deported to
Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part of ...
, began organizing an uprising.
After realizing the reality of the repressive and brutal Soviet rule, in the early morning of 22 June 1941 (the first day when the
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
attacked the Soviet Union), Lithuanians began the
June Uprising, which was organized by the
Lithuanian Activist Front
The Lithuanian Activist Front or LAF () was a short-lived, far-right underground resistance organization established in 1940 after Lithuania was incorporated by the Soviet Union. The goal of the organization was to liberate Lithuania and re-estab ...
, in Kaunas, where its main forces were concentrated. The uprising soon expanded to
Vilnius
Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...
and other locations. Its main goal was not to fight the Soviets but to secure the city from the inside (secure organizations, institutions, enterprises) and declare independence. By the evening of 22 June, the Lithuanians had controlled the
Presidential Palace, post office, telephone and telegraph, and radio station. Control of Vilnius and most of the rest of Lithuanian territory was also shortly taken over by the rebels.
Multiple Red Army divisions stationed around Kaunas, including the brutal
1st Motor Rifle Division NKVD responsible for the
June deportation
The June deportation ( et, juuniküüditamine, lv, jūnija deportācijas, lt, birželio trėmimai) was a Population transfer in the Soviet Union, mass deportation by the Soviet Union of tens of thousands of people from the Soviet occupation of t ...
, and the puppet
Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic
The Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic (Lithuanian SSR; lt, Lietuvos Tarybų Socialistinė Respublika; russian: Литовская Советская Социалистическая Республика, Litovskaya Sovetskaya Sotsialistiche ...
regime commanders were forced to flee into the
Latvian SSR
The Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic (Latvian SSR), also known as Soviet Latvia or simply Latvia, was a federated republic within the Soviet Union, and formally one of its 16 (later 15) constituent republics. The Latvian Soviet Socialist Rep ...
through the
Daugava
, be, Заходняя Дзвіна (), liv, Vēna, et, Väina, german: Düna
, image = Fluss-lv-Düna.png
, image_caption = The drainage basin of the Daugava
, source1_location = Valdai Hills, Russia
, mouth_location = Gulf of Riga, Baltic Se ...
River. The commander of the Red Army's
188th Rifle Division colonel Piotr Ivanov reported to the
11th Army Staff that during the retreat of his division through Kaunas "local counterrevolutionaries from the shelters deliberately fired on the Red Army, the detachments suffering heavy losses of soldiers and military equipment". About 5,000 occupants were killed in Lithuania.
On 23 June 1941 at 9:28 am ''
Tautiška giesmė
"" (; literally "The National Hymn") is the national anthem of Lithuania, also known by its opening words, "" (official translation of the lyrics: "Lithuania, Our Homeland", literally: "Lithuania, Our Fatherland"), and as "" ("The National Anthem ...
'', the
national anthem
A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and European n ...
of Lithuania, was played on the radio in Kaunas. Many people listened to the Lithuanian national anthem with tears in their eyes. From Kaunas radio broadcasts, Lithuania learned that the rebellion was taking place in the country, the insurgents took Kaunas and the Proclamation of the Independence Restoration of Lithuania and the list of the
Provisional Government
A provisional government, also called an interim government, an emergency government, or a transitional government, is an emergency governmental authority set up to manage a political transition generally in the cases of a newly formed state or f ...
were announced by
Leonas Prapuolenis
Leonas Prapuolenis (9 June 1913 – 23 July 1972) was a Lithuanian public figure, commander and leader of the June Uprising of 1941 in Lithuania.
Born to a family of affluent farmers in Suvalkija, Prapuolenis was an active member of the Ateiti ...
. The message was being repeated several times in different languages. The Provisional Government hoped that
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
would re-establish Lithuanian independence or at least allow some degree of autonomy (similar to the
Slovak Republic
Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...
), was seeking the protection of its citizens and did not support the
Nazis
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...
'
Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
policy.
However, the Provisional Government did little to stop the anti-Jewish violence encouraged by the Nazis and the anti-Semitic leadership of the
Lithuanian Activist Front
The Lithuanian Activist Front or LAF () was a short-lived, far-right underground resistance organization established in 1940 after Lithuania was incorporated by the Soviet Union. The goal of the organization was to liberate Lithuania and re-estab ...
.
[Sužiedėlis, Saulius.]
The Burden of 1941
. ''Lituanus'' Lithuanian Quarterly Journal of Arts and Sciences, Volume 47, No. 4 (Winter 2001).
Minister of National Defence General
Stasys Raštikis
Stasys Raštikis (September 13, 1896 – May 3, 1985) was a Lithuanian military officer, ultimately obtaining the rank of divisional general. He was the commander of the Lithuanian Army from September 21, 1934, to April 23, 1940.
During World War ...
met personally with the
Wehrmacht
The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previous ...
generals to discuss the situation.
He approached the Kaunas War Field Commandant General
Oswald Pohl
Oswald Ludwig Pohl (; 30 June 1892 – 7 June 1951) was a German SS functionary during the Nazi era. As the head of the SS Main Economic and Administrative Office and the head administrator of the Nazi concentration camps, he was a key figure in ...
and the Military Command Representative General
Karl von Roques
Karl von Roques (7 May 1880 – 24 December 1949) was a German general and war criminal during the Second World War, who commanded the Army Group Rear Area behind Army Group South. Following the war, Roques was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment ...
by trying to plead for him to spare the Jews, but they replied that the
Gestapo
The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe.
The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organi ...
is handling those issues and that they could not help. Furthermore, in the beginning of the occupation, the prime minister of the Provisional Government of Lithuania,
Juozas Ambrazevičius, convened the meeting in which the ministers participated together with the former President
Kazys Grinius
Kazys Grinius (, 17 December 18664 June 1950) was the third President of Lithuania, and held that office from 7 June 1926 to 17 December 1926. Previously, he had served as the fifth Prime Minister of Lithuania, from 19 June 1920 until his resignat ...
, Bishop
Vincentas Brizgys and others. Ministers expressed distress at the atrocities being committed against the Jews but advised only that "despite all the measures which must be taken against the Jews for their Communist activity and harm done to the
German Army
The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the ''Luftwaf ...
, partisans and individuals should avoid public executions of Jews".
According to the Lithuanian-American Holocaust historian Saulius Sužiedėlis, "none of this amounted to a public scolding which alone could have persuaded at least some of the Lithuanians who had volunteered or been co-opted into participating in the killings to rethink their behavior." Lithuanian police battalions formed by the Provisional Government were eventually enlisted by the Nazis to help carry out the
Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
.
In the first issue of the daily ''Į laisvę'' (Towards Freedom) newspaper, the Independence Restoration Declaration was published, which had been previously announced on the radio. It stated that "The established Provisional Government of revived Lithuania declares the restoration of the Free and Independent State of Lithuania. The young Lithuanian state enthusiastically pledges to contribute to the organization of Europe on a new basis in front of the whole world innocent conscience. The Lithuanian Nation, exhausted from the terror of the brutal
Bolsheviks
The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...
, decided to build its future on the basis of national unity and social justice." and signatures.
On 24 June 1941, tank units of the Red Army in
Jonava
Jonava ( ; pl, Janów; german: Janau) is the ninth largest city in Lithuania with a population of .
It is located in Kaunas County in central Lithuania, north east of Kaunas, the second-largest city in Lithuania. It is served by Kaunas Internat ...
were ordered to retake Kaunas. The rebels radioed the Germans for assistance. The units were bombed by the
Luftwaffe
The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...
and did not reach the city. It was the first coordinated Lithuanian–German action. The first German scouts, lieutenant Flohret and four privates, entered Kaunas on 24 June and found it in friendly hands. A day later the main forces marched into the city without obstruction and almost as if they were on parade.
Nazi occupation
![Wehrmacht in Liberty Avenue, Kaunas](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cd/Wehrmacht_in_Liberty_Avenue%2C_Kaunas.jpg)
On 26 June 1941 the German
Oberkommando der Wehrmacht ordered the rebel groups to disband and disarm. Two days later Lithuanian guards and patrols were also relieved of their duties. Already in July, in a conversation the
Tilsit
Sovetsk (russian: Сове́тск; german: Tilsit; Old Prussian: ''Tilzi''; lt, Tilžė; pl, Tylża) is a town in Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia, located on the south bank of the Neman River which forms the border with Lithuania.
Geography
Sov ...
Nazi
Gestapo
The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe.
The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organi ...
agent
Dr Heinz Gräfe
The H. J. Heinz Company is an American food processing company headquartered at One PPG Place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company was founded by Henry J. Heinz in 1869. Heinz manufactures thousands of food products in plants on six contine ...
clearly stated to
Stasys Raštikis
Stasys Raštikis (September 13, 1896 – May 3, 1985) was a Lithuanian military officer, ultimately obtaining the rank of divisional general. He was the commander of the Lithuanian Army from September 21, 1934, to April 23, 1940.
During World War ...
that the
Provisional Government
A provisional government, also called an interim government, an emergency government, or a transitional government, is an emergency governmental authority set up to manage a political transition generally in the cases of a newly formed state or f ...
was formed without German knowledge. Such a form, although not having anything against individuals, is unacceptable to the Germans. The current Provisional Government should be transformed into a National Committee or Council under the German military authority. The
Nazi Germans did not recognize the new Provisional Government, but they did not take any action to dissolve it. The Provisional Government, not agreeing to continue to be an instrument of the German occupiers, disbanded itself on 5 August 1941 after signing a protest for the Germans action of suspending the Lithuanian Government powers. Members of the Provisional Government then went as a body to the Garden of the
Vytautas the Great War Museum
The Vytautas the Great War Museum ( lt, Vytauto Didžiojo karo muziejus) is a museum in Kaunas, Lithuania. It was built in Art Deco and early functionalism style.
Originally it was established in 1921 by Vladas Nagevičius but later it was deci ...
, where they laid a wreath near the
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
A Tomb of the Unknown Soldier or Tomb of the Unknown Warrior is a monument dedicated to the services of an unknown soldier and to the common memories of all soldiers killed in war. Such tombs can be found in many nations and are usually high-prof ...
in the presence of numerous audience. The
Sicherheitsdienst
' (, ''Security Service''), full title ' (Security Service of the ''Reichsführer-SS''), or SD, was the intelligence agency of the SS and the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany. Established in 1931, the SD was the first Nazi intelligence organization ...
confiscated the pictures of the wreath-laying ceremony, thinking that it could be dangerous for the
German occupation policy in Lithuania. On 17 July 1941 the German civil administration was established. The government's powers were taken over by the new occupants.
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
established the
Reichskommissariat Ostland
The Reichskommissariat Ostland (RKO) was established by Nazi Germany in 1941 during World War II. It became the civilian occupation regime in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and the western part of Byelorussian SSR. German planning documents initia ...
in the
Baltic states
The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, ...
and much of Belarus, and the administrative centre for Lithuania (''
Generalbezirk Litauen
Generalbezirk Litauen ( lt, Lietuvos generalinė sritis, ) was one of the four administrative subdivisions of ''Reichskommissariat Ostland'', the 1941-1945 civilian occupation regime established by Nazi Germany for the administration of the three ...
'') was in Kaunas ruled by a Generalkommissar
Adrian von Renteln file:Adrian von Renteln.jpg, Theodor Adrian von Renteln
Theodor Adrian von Renteln (15 September 1897 – 1946 (disputed)) was an activist and politician in Nazi Germany. During World War II, he was General Commissioner of ''Generalbezirk Litauen'' ...
.
Jewish community of Kaunas
Jews began settling in Kaunas in the second half of the 17th century. They were not allowed to live in the city, so most of them stayed in the
Vilijampolė
Vilijampolė is a neighborhood in the city of Kaunas, Lithuania, located on the right bank of the Neris River and the Nemunas River, near their confluence. Part of a larger which consists of Vilijampolė, , , and neighorhoods, and covers 1,720 h ...
settlement on the right bank of the
Neris
The river Neris () or Viliya ( be, Ві́лія, pl, Wilia ) rises in northern Belarus. It flows westward, passing through Vilnius (Lithuania's capital) and in the south-centre of that country it flows into the Nemunas (Neman), at Kaunas, as ...
river. Jewish life in Kaunas was first disrupted when the Soviet Union occupied Lithuania in June 1940. The occupation was accompanied by arrests, confiscations, and the elimination of all free institutions. Jewish community organizations disappeared almost overnight. Soviet authorities confiscated the property of many Jews, while hundreds were exiled to
Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part of ...
.
![Japonistikos centras](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/da/Japonistikos_centras.JPG)
As the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
began, there were 30,000 Jews living in Kaunas, comprising about 25% of the city's population. When the Soviet Union took over Lithuania in 1940, some
Jewish Dutch residents in Lithuania approached the Dutch consul
Jan Zwartendijk
Jan Zwartendijk (29 July 1896 – 14 September 1976) was a Dutch businessman and diplomat. As director of the Philips factories in Lithuania and part-time acting consul of the Dutch government-in-exile, he supervised the writing of 2,345 visas f ...
to get a visa to the
Dutch West Indies
The Dutch Caribbean (historically known as the Dutch West Indies) are the territories, colonies, and countries, former and current, of the Dutch Empire and the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Caribbean Sea. They are in the north and south-wes ...
. Zwartendijk agreed to help them and Jews who had fled from German-occupied Poland also sought his assistance. In a few days, with the help of aides, Zwartendijk produced over 2,200 visas for Jews to
Curaçao
Curaçao ( ; ; pap, Kòrsou, ), officially the Country of Curaçao ( nl, Land Curaçao; pap, Pais Kòrsou), is a Lesser Antilles island country in the southern Caribbean Sea and the Dutch Caribbean region, about north of the Venezuela coast ...
. Then refugees approached
Chiune Sugihara
was a Japanese diplomat who served as vice-consul for the Japanese Empire in Kaunas, Lithuania. During the Second World War, Sugihara helped thousands of Jews flee Europe by issuing transit visas to them so that they could travel through Japan ...
, a Japanese consul, who gave them a transit visa through the USSR to
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
, against the disapproval of his government. This gave many refugees an opportunity to leave Lithuania for the
Russian Far East
The Russian Far East (russian: Дальний Восток России, r=Dal'niy Vostok Rossii, p=ˈdalʲnʲɪj vɐˈstok rɐˈsʲiɪ) is a region in Northeast Asia. It is the easternmost part of Russia and the Asian continent; and is admini ...
via the
Trans-Siberian Railway
The Trans-Siberian Railway (TSR; , , ) connects European Russia to the Russian Far East. Spanning a length of over , it is the longest railway line in the world. It runs from the city of Moscow in the west to the city of Vladivostok in the ea ...
. The fleeing Jews were refugees from
German-occupied Western Poland and
Soviet-occupied Eastern Poland, as well as residents of Kaunas and other Lithuania territories. The Sugihara House, where he was previously issuing transit visas, currently is a museum and the Centre For Asian Studies of
Vytautas Magnus University
Vytautas Magnus University (VMU) ( lt, Vytauto Didžiojo universitetas (VDU)) is a public university in Kaunas, Lithuania. The university was founded in 1922 during the interwar period as an alternate national university.
Initially it was known ...
.
Following
Hitler's invasion of the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, Soviet forces fled from Kaunas. Both before and during the German occupation starting 25 June, the
anti-Communists
Anti-communism is political and ideological opposition to communism. Organized anti-communism developed after the 1917 October Revolution in the Russian Empire, and it reached global dimensions during the Cold War, when the United States and the ...
, encouraged by the anti-Semitic leadership of the Berlin-based
Lithuanian Activist Front
The Lithuanian Activist Front or LAF () was a short-lived, far-right underground resistance organization established in 1940 after Lithuania was incorporated by the Soviet Union. The goal of the organization was to liberate Lithuania and re-estab ...
(LAF),
began to attack Jews, blaming them for the Soviet repressions, especially along Jurbarko and Kriščiukaičio streets.
The LAF's manifesto-type essay "What Are the Activists Fighting for?" states: "The Lithuanian Activist Front, by restoring the new Lithuania, is determined to carry out an immediate and fundamental purging of the Lithuanian nation and its land of Jews ...". Nazi authorities took advantage of the
Lithuanian TDA Battalions The Lithuanian TDA Battalions ( lt, Tautinio darbo apsaugos batalionas) or TDA, were paramilitary units organized in June–August 1941 by the Provisional Government of Lithuania at the onset of Operation Barbarossa. Members of the TDA were known by ...
and established a concentration camp at the
Seventh Fort
The Seventh Fort or VII Fort is a defensive fortification built in Žaliakalnis district of Kaunas, Lithuania, during implementation of the first phase of the construction of the Kaunas Fortress. It is located near the Hospital of Lithuanian ...
, one of the city's ten historic forts, and 4,000 Jews were rounded up and murdered there. The
Kaunas pogrom
The Kaunas pogrom was a massacre of Jews living in Kaunas, Lithuania, that took place on 25–29 June 1941; the first days of Operation Barbarossa and the Nazi occupation of Lithuania. The most infamous incident occurred at the garage of NKVD Kau ...
was a massacre of Jewish people living in Kaunas that took place on 25–29 June 1941; the first days of the
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...
and of Nazi occupation of Lithuania. Prior to the construction of the
Ninth Fort
The Ninth Fort ( lt, Devintas Fortas) is a stronghold in the northern part of Šilainiai elderate, Kaunas, Lithuania. It is a part of the Kaunas Fortress, which was constructed in the late 19th century. During the occupation of Kaunas and th ...
museum on the site, archaeologists unearthed a mass grave and personal belongings of the Jewish victims. The
Ninth Fort
The Ninth Fort ( lt, Devintas Fortas) is a stronghold in the northern part of Šilainiai elderate, Kaunas, Lithuania. It is a part of the Kaunas Fortress, which was constructed in the late 19th century. During the occupation of Kaunas and th ...
ress has been renovated into a memorial for the wars and is the site where nearly 50,000 Lithuanians were killed during Nazi occupation. Of these deaths, over 30,000 were Jews.
Soviet administration
![Vytauto Didžiojo karo muziejus (aut](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Vytauto_Did%C5%BEiojo_karo_muziejus_%28aut._A._U%C5%BEbalis%29.jpg)
Beginning in 1944, the
Red Army began offensives that eventually led to the reconquest of all three of the Baltic states.
Kaunas again became the major centre of resistance against the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
. From the very start of the
Lithuanian partisans
The Lithuanian partisans () were partisans who waged a guerrilla warfare in Lithuania against the Soviet Union in 1944–1953. Similar anti-Soviet resistance groups, also known as Forest Brothers and cursed soldiers, fought against Soviet rule ...
war, the most important partisan districts were based around Kaunas.
Although
guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare in which small groups of combatants, such as paramilitary personnel, armed civilians, or Irregular military, irregulars, use military tactics including ambushes, sabotage, Raid (military), raids ...
ended by 1953, Lithuanian opposition to Soviet rule did not. In 1956 people in the Kaunas region supported the
uprising in Hungary by rioting. On
All Souls' Day
All Souls' Day, also called ''The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed'', is a day of prayer and remembrance for the faithful departed, observed by certain Christian denominations on 2 November. Through prayer, intercessions, alms and ...
in 1956, the first public anti-Soviet protest rally took place in Kaunas: citizens burned candles in the Kaunas military cemetery and sang national songs, resulting in clashes with the Militsiya.
On 14 May 1972, 19-year-old
Romas Kalanta
Romas Kalanta (22 February 1953 – 14 May 1972) was a 19-year-old Lithuanian high school student known for his public self-immolation protesting Soviet regime in Lithuania. Kalanta's death provoked the largest post-war riots in Lithuania and in ...
, having proclaimed "Freedom for Lithuania!", immolated himself in the garden of the
Musical Theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...
, after making a speech denouncing the Soviet suppression of national and religious rights. The event broke into a politically-charged riot, which was forcibly dispersed by the
KGB
The KGB (russian: links=no, lit=Committee for State Security, Комитет государственной безопасности (КГБ), a=ru-KGB.ogg, p=kəmʲɪˈtʲet ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)əj bʲɪzɐˈpasnəsʲtʲɪ, Komitet gosud ...
and
Militsiya
''Militsiya'' ( rus, милиция, , mʲɪˈlʲitsɨjə) was the name of the police forces in the Soviet Union (until 1991) and in several Eastern Bloc countries (1945–1992), as well as in the non-aligned SFR Yugoslavia (1945–1992). The ...
. It led to new forms of resistance:
passive resistance
Nonviolent resistance (NVR), or nonviolent action, sometimes called civil resistance, is the practice of achieving goals such as social change through symbolic protests, civil disobedience, economic or political noncooperation, satyagraha, const ...
all around Lithuania. The continuous oppression of the
Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
and its resistance caused the appearance of the ''
Chronicle of the Catholic Church in Lithuania
The ''Chronicle of the Catholic Church in Lithuania'' ( lt, Lietuvos katalikų bažnyčios kronika or ''LKB kronika'') was the longest-running and best-known samizdat periodical in the Lithuanian SSR, one of the republics of the Soviet Union. Follo ...
''. In strict conspiracy, Catholic priest
Sigitas Tamkevičius
Sigitas Tamkevičius (born 7 November 1938) is a Lithuanian prelate and Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church and Archbishop emeritus of Kaunas.
Pope Francis raised him to the rank of cardinal on 5 October 2019.
Biography
He graduated from se ...
(now the
Archbishop Metropolitan of Kaunas) implemented this idea and its first issue was published in the Alytus district on 19 March 1972. The Kronika started a new phase of resistance in the life of
Lithuania's Catholic Church and of all Lithuania fighting against the occupation by making known to the world the violation of the human rights and freedoms in Lithuania for almost two decades. On 1 November 1987, a non-sanctioned rally took place near the
Kaunas Cathedral Basilica
Cathedral Basilica of apostles St. Peter and St. Paul of Kaunas ( lt, Kauno Šv. apaštalų Petro ir Povilo katedra bazilika) is a Roman Catholic cathedral basilica in Kaunas, Lithuania.
History
The exact date when the first Gothic style churc ...
, where people gathered to mark famous Lithuanian poet
Maironis
Maironis (born Jonas Mačiulis, ; – 28 June 1932) was a Lithuanian Roman Catholic priest and the greatest and most-known Lithuanian poet, especially of the period of the Lithuanian press ban. He was called the Bard of Lithuanian National Reviv ...
' 125th-birthday anniversary. On 10 June 1988, the initiating group of the Kaunas movement of
Sąjūdis
Sąjūdis (, "Movement"), initially known as the Reform Movement of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Persitvarkymo Sąjūdis), is the political organisation which led the struggle for Lithuanian independence in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It was es ...
was formed. On 9 October 1988, the
Flag of Lithuania
The national flag of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos vėliava) consists of a horizontal Triband (flag), tricolour of yellow, green, and red. It was adopted on 25 April 1918 during Lithuania's first period of independence (in the 20th century) from 191 ...
was raised above the tower of the
Military Museum Military Museum may refer to museums of military and war, or specific museums including:
* Aldershot Military Museum, in Aldershot, England
* Athens War Museum, in Athens, Greece
* Base Borden Military Museum, Borden, Ontario, Canada
* California ...
.
Kaunas, along with Vilnius, became the scene of nearly constant demonstrations as the Lithuanians, embarked on a process of self-discovery. The bodies of Lithuanians who died in
Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part of ...
n exile were brought back to their homeland for reburial, and the anniversaries of deportations as well as the important dates in
Lithuanian history began to be noted with speeches and demonstrations. On 16 February 1989 Cardinal
Vincentas Sladkevičius
Vincentas Sladkevičius, M.I.C. (20 August 1920 – 28 May 2000) was a Lithuanian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Kaunas from 1989 to 1996, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1988.
Biography
Vincenta ...
, for the first time, called for the independence of Lithuania in his sermon at the Kaunas Cathedral. After the services, 200,000 persons gathered in the centre of Kaunas to participate in the dedication of a new monument to freedom to replace the monument that had been torn down by the Soviet authorities after
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.
Restored independence
After World War II Kaunas became the main industrial city of Lithuania; it produced about a quarter of Lithuania's industrial output.
After the
proclamation of Lithuanian independence in 1990, Soviet attempts to suppress the rebellion focused on the
Sitkūnai Radio Station. They were defended by the citizenry of Kaunas.
Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...
said
Holy Mass
The Mass is the central liturgical service of the Eucharist in the Catholic Church, in which bread and wine are consecrated and become the body and blood of Christ. As defined by the Church at the Council of Trent, in the Mass, "the same Christ ...
for the faithful of the
Archdiocese of Kaunas
The Archdiocese of Kaunas ( la, Archidioecesis Kaunensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Lithuania. The episcopal see is in Kaunas, the second-largest city in Lithuania. The archdiocese's moth ...
at the Kaunas Cathedral Basilica and held a meeting with the young people of Lithuania at the
S. Darius and S. Girėnas Stadium
S is the nineteenth letter of the English alphabet.
S may also refer to:
History
* an Anglo-Saxon charter's number in Peter Sawyer's, catalogue Language and linguistics
* Long s (ſ), a form of the lower-case letter s formerly used where "s ...
, during his visit to Lithuania in 1993.
Kaunas natives
Vytautas Landsbergis
Vytautas Landsbergis (born 18 October 1932) is a Lithuanian politician and former Member of the European Parliament. He was the first Speaker of Reconstituent Seimas of Lithuania after its independence declaration from the Soviet Union. He has ...
and
Valdas Adamkus
Valdas Adamkus (; born Voldemaras Adamkavičius; 3 November 1926) is a Lithuanian-American politician, diplomat and civil engineer. He served as the 5th and 7th President of Lithuania from 1998 to 2003 and again from 2004 to 2009.
Adamkus' ...
became the
Head of state
A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...
in 1990, and, respectively, in 1998 and 2004. Since the restoration of independence, substantially improving air and land transport links with
Western Europe
Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's countries and territories vary depending on context.
The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the ancient Mediterranean ...
have made Kaunas easily accessible to foreign tourists. Kaunas is famous for its basketball club,
Žalgiris, which was founded in 1944 and was one of the most popular nonviolent expressions of resistance during its struggle with the
CSKA Moscow
CSKA Moscow (russian: ЦСКА Москва) is a Russian sports club based in Moscow. It was created in 1911 in the Russian Empire on base of OLLS (Skiing Society, founded 1901). Later, during the Soviet Union, Soviet era, it was a central piece ...
. In 2011, the largest indoor arena in the
Baltic states
The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, ...
was built and was named
Žalgiris Arena
Žalgiris Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New Town of Kaunas, Lithuania. The arena is located on an island of the Nemunas River. It is the largest indoor arena in the Baltics. The arena's maximum possible seating capacity for basketba ...
. Kaunas hosted finals of the
EuroBasket 2011
EuroBasket 2011 was the 37th men's EuroBasket, European Basketball Championship, held by FIBA Europe. The competition was hosted by Lithuania. This was the second time EuroBasket had been held in Lithuania, the country having also hosted t ...
. In March 2015, Kaunas's interwar buildings received the
European Heritage Label
The European Heritage Label is a recognition awarded by the European Union to buildings, documents, museums, archives, monuments or events which are seen as milestones in the creation of today's Europe. The program is managed by the European Commis ...
. On 10 January 2017, Kaunas's interwar modern architecture was included in the
UNESCO World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
Tentative List. On 29 March 2017, Kaunas was named
European Capital of Culture of 2022. On 28 September 2017, the winner of the M. K. Čiurlionis Concert Centre architectural competition was announced and the centre is planned to be completed by 2022, close to the
Vytautas the Great Bridge
Vytautas the Great Bridge, also known as Aleksotas Bridge before 1930 and from 1940 until 23 February 2008, crosses the Nemunas River to connect Aleksotas and Old Town in Kaunas, Lithuania. Its length exceeds 256 meters, and its width is of 16 ...
.
Geography
![Oak forest park](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/57/Oak_forest_park.JPG)
The city covers 15,700
hectare
The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is a ...
s. Parks, groves, gardens,
nature reserve
A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...
s, and agricultural areas occupy 8,329 hectares. The city follows in suit of the country and is lowland.
Administrative divisions
Kaunas is divided into the following
elderships:
Climate
Kaunas has a
humid continental climate
A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...
(
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
Dfb) with an average annual temperature of approximately .
Despite its northern location, the climate in Kaunas is relatively mild compared to other locations at similar latitudes, mainly because of the
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain.
The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...
. Because of its latitude, Kaunas has 17 hours of daylight in midsummer but only around 7 hours in midwinter. The
Kazlų Rūda
Kazlų Rūda () is a city in Lithuania. It is located north from Marijampolė. The city is surrounded by forests, but a railway line crosses the city and divides it into almost equal parts. Former Soviet Army Kazlų Rūda airbase is northeast o ...
Forest, west of Kaunas, creates a
microclimate
A microclimate (or micro-climate) is a local set of atmospheric conditions that differ from those in the surrounding areas, often with a slight difference but sometimes with a substantial one. The term may refer to areas as small as a few squ ...
around the city, regulating humidity and temperature of the air, and protecting it from strong westerly winds.
Summers in Kaunas are warm and pleasant with average daytime high temperatures of and lows of around , but temperatures could reach on some days. Winters are relatively cold, and sometimes snowy with average temperatures ranging from , and rarely drop below . Spring and autumn are generally cool to mild.
Religion
Prominent religious features of Kaunas include:
![Kaunas Cathedral, Kaunas, Lithuania - Diliff](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/59/Kaunas_Cathedral%2C_Kaunas%2C_Lithuania_-_Diliff.jpg)
*
Vytautas' Church, one of the oldest churches in Lithuania and the oldest in Kaunas
*
St. Gertrude Church in Kaunas
*
Kaunas Cathedral Basilica
Cathedral Basilica of apostles St. Peter and St. Paul of Kaunas ( lt, Kauno Šv. apaštalų Petro ir Povilo katedra bazilika) is a Roman Catholic cathedral basilica in Kaunas, Lithuania.
History
The exact date when the first Gothic style churc ...
, the largest
Gothic
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
building in Lithuania, with a late
Baroque
The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
interior
*
St. George's Church, which was rumoured to have been turned into a
dance studio
A dance studio is a space in which dancers learn or rehearse. The term is typically used to describe a space that has either been built or equipped for the purpose.
Overview
A dance studio normally includes a smooth floor covering or, if used fo ...
during the Soviet occupation
*
Pažaislis monastery
Pažaislis is a neighborhood ("territory") of Kaunas, Lithuania, within its Petrašiūnai eldership. It includes the Pažaislis Monastery.
History
The name Pažaislis is Lithuanization of Polish name , literally meaning "by Zajście", i.e. locat ...
, an impressive complex in
Baroque style
The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
*
St. Francis Xavier Church
*
Neo-Byzantine
Neo-Byzantine architecture (also referred to as Byzantine Revival) was a revival movement, most frequently seen in religious, institutional and public buildings. It incorporates elements of the Byzantine style associated with Eastern and Orthod ...
church of St. Michael the Archangel
*
Christ's Resurrection Church with an unfolding panoramic view of the city
*
Kaunas Synagogue
Kaunas Synagogue ( lt, Kauno choralinė sinagoga) is one of two operating choral synagogues in Lithuania. It is located in Centras eldership, Kaunas. The Neo-Baroque synagogue was built in 1872. In 1902, before the Holocaust in Lithuania, it w ...
*
Kaunas Mosque
Kaunas Mosque ( lt, Kauno Mečetė) is the only mosque in the city and district of Kaunas, one of only four mosques in Lithuania as well as the only brick mosque in Lithuania and the Baltic countries. It is in Centras eldership, Tatars Street 6 ...
Culture
![M](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/71/M._K._Ciurlionis_National_Art_Museum_%282018%29.jpg)
Kaunas is a city centered around culture. The
Old Town
In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins after thorough renovations. There are ma ...
of Kaunas is located at the confluence of the Nemunas and Neris Rivers where old architectural monuments and other historical buildings are located. Located to the East of the Old Town is the city's New Town, which started developing in 1847 and got its name when it became a distinct part of the city.
Central Kaunas is defined by two pedestrian streets: the 2-km-long
Laisvės alėja
Laisvės Alėja (literally Liberty Boulevard or Liberty Avenue) is a prominent pedestrian street in the city of Kaunas, Lithuania. It stretches between the St. Michael the Archangel's Byzantine-style church to the Central Post Office and ...
(Liberty Avenue), a central street of the city, lined by
linden trees
''Tilia'' is a genus of about 30 species of trees or bushes, native throughout most of the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The tree is known as linden for the European species, and basswood for North American species. In Britain and Ireland they ...
and decorated with flower beds.
The
Old Town
In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins after thorough renovations. There are ma ...
is the historical center of Kaunas. The streets in Old Town have been turned to pedestrian sidewalks, so it is best to tour the place by foot. Prominent features of the Old Town include
Kaunas Castle
Kaunas Castle is a medieval castle in Kaunas, the second-largest city in Lithuania. Archeological evidence suggests that it was originally built during the mid-14th century, in the Gothic style. Its site is strategic – a rise on the banks o ...
, the
Town Hall
In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...
, and the historical
Presidential Palace. The Town Hall in Kaunas played an important role in the Medieval Times as a center for trade, festivals, and criminals were brought here for punishment. The Town Hall was originally built with wooden frames, however, after numerous fires in 1542 they began to construct buildings with stone. The stone buildings, however, also burned down so the Town Hall that stands today was constructed in a more advanced way, which took from 1771 to 1780. The Town Hall is still a center of culture today, it holds weddings and is the home of the Museum of Ceramics.
Other historical, cultural features of Kaunas include:
![Zaliakalnio funikulierius 2006-06-17](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/07/Zaliakalnio_funikulierius_2006-06-17.jpg)
*
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
A Tomb of the Unknown Soldier or Tomb of the Unknown Warrior is a monument dedicated to the services of an unknown soldier and to the common memories of all soldiers killed in war. Such tombs can be found in many nations and are usually high-prof ...
,
Eternal flame
An eternal flame is a flame, lamp or torch that burns for an indefinite time. Most eternal flames are ignited and tended intentionally, but some are natural phenomena caused by natural gas leaks, peat fires and coal seam fires, all of which can ...
, and Statues of
Lithuanian national renaissance
The Lithuanian National Revival, alternatively the Lithuanian National Awakening or Lithuanian nationalism ( lt, Lietuvių tautinis atgimimas), was a period of the history of Lithuania in the 19th century at the time when a major part of Lithuanian ...
figures are located in the Vienybės square in front of the
War museum
A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these i ...
*
Kaunas Fortress
Kaunas Fortress ( lt, Kauno tvirtovė, russian: Кοвенская крепость, german: Festung Kowno) is the remains of a fortress complex in Kaunas, Lithuania. It was constructed and renovated between 1882 and 1915 to protect the Russian ...
, one of the largest defensive structures in Europe, occupying 65 km2 (25 sq mi), a 19–20th century military fortress, which includes a
Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
site of the
Ninth Fort
The Ninth Fort ( lt, Devintas Fortas) is a stronghold in the northern part of Šilainiai elderate, Kaunas, Lithuania. It is a part of the Kaunas Fortress, which was constructed in the late 19th century. During the occupation of Kaunas and th ...
*
House of Perkūnas
The House of Perkūnas is one of the most original and Gothic secular buildings, located in the Old Town of Kaunas, Lithuania. Originally built by Hanseatic merchants and served as their office from 1440 until 1532, it was sold in the 16th cent ...
*
Interbellum
In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the First World War to the beginning of the Second World War. The interwar period was relativel ...
functionalism architecture
In architecture, functionalism is the principle that buildings should be designed based solely on their purpose and function.
This principle is a matter of confusion and controversy within the profession, particularly in regard to modern archite ...
complexes
* Two
funicular
A funicular (, , ) is a type of cable railway system that connects points along a railway track laid on a steep slope. The system is characterized by two counterbalanced carriages (also called cars or trains) permanently attached to opposite en ...
s –
Žaliakalnis Funicular Railway
Žaliakalnis (literally, "the green hill") is an elderate in Lithuania's second largest city, Kaunas. Žaliakalnis is located north of the old town and the city center area, between the Neris and Girstupis valleys. It is one of the largest resid ...
and the
Aleksotas Funicular Railway
Aleksotas Funicular ( lt, Aleksoto funikulierius) is a funicular railway located in Aleksotas elderate of Kaunas, Lithuania. The funicular constructed on the right bank of the Nemunas River was officially opened on 6 December 1935. The track of th ...
* Lithuanian open-air Ethnographic Museum displaying the heritage of Lithuanian rural life in a vast collection of authentic resurrected buildings is situated east of Kaunas on the bank of
Kaunas Reservoir
Kaunas Reservoir ( lt, Kauno marios, Kaunas Lagoon, Kaunas Sea) is the largest Lithuanian artificial lake, created in 1959 by damming the Nemunas River near Kaunas and Rumšiškės. It occupies 63.5 square kilometers, which is about 0.1% of the to ...
in a town of
Rumšiškės
Rumšiškės is a Lithuanian town (population 1,700), situated east of Kaunas on the northern bank of Kaunas Reservoir. Southern part of the town (including the birthplace of Lithuanian poet Jonas Aistis) is now under the waters of the artificia ...
*
Kaunas Cultural Centre of Various Nations
Kaunas Cultural Centre of Various Nations is a cultural and educational institution intended to preserve the cultural identities of national minorities and encourage their positive integration into the Lithuanian society. The institution promotes ...
Museums
![LAM 2008-09 Anbo-1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a4/LAM_2008-09_Anbo-1.jpg)
Kaunas is often called a city of museums, because of the abundance and variety of them. The museums in Kaunas include:
* the
War Museum of Vytautas the Great
The Vytautas the Great War Museum ( lt, Vytauto Didžiojo karo muziejus) is a museum in Kaunas, Lithuania. It was built in Art Deco and early functionalism style.
Originally it was established in 1921 by Vladas Nagevičius but later it was de ...
* the
M. K. Čiurlionis National Art Museum
The M. K. Čiurlionis National Art Museum is a group of museums based in Kaunas, Lithuania. It is primarily dedicated to exhibiting and publicizing the works of the painter and musician M.K. Čiurlionis (1875–1911).
The museum was founded in ...
, commemorating the work of the early 20th century
avant-garde
The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...
artist
M. K. Čiurlionis who sought to combine painting and music into a single
artistic medium
Arts media is the material and tools used by an artist, composer or designer to create a work of art, for example, "pen and ink" where the pen is the tool and the ink is the material. Here is a list of types of art and the media used within tho ...
* the
Žmuidzinavičius Museum
Žmuidzinavičius Museum ( lt, Žmuidzinavičiaus muziejus), also known as the Devil Museum (''Velnių muziejus''), is a museum in Kaunas, Lithuania, dedicated to collecting and exhibiting sculptures and carvings of devils from all over the world ...
(best known as the ''Devils' Museum''), which houses a collection of more than two thousand sculptures and carvings of
devil
A devil is the personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conceptions of t ...
s from all over the world, most of them of folk provenance. Of particular interest are the
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
and
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secreta ...
devils, together doing the dance of death over a playground littered with human bones
*
Lithuanian Aviation Museum
The Lithuanian Aviation Museum is located in Kaunas, Lithuania. The museum was officially opened in 1983. The permanent collection of the museum contains more than 18 000 displays of different fields of technology. The major part of the collectio ...
*
Museum of the History of Lithuanian Medicine and Pharmacy
The Museum of the History of Lithuanian Medicine and Pharmacy ( lt, Lietuvos medicinos ir farmacijos istorijos muziejus ) is located in a restored 16th-century building at the Town Hall Square in the Old Town of Kaunas, Lithuania. It moved to ...
*
Historical Presidential Palace, displaying exhibits from the
interwar
In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the First World War to the beginning of the Second World War. The interwar period was relativel ...
period
*
Kaunas Museum for the Blind The Kaunas Museum for the Blind ( lt, Muziejus neregiams) in Kaunas, Lithuania opened in 2005. It was the first museum for the blind in the Baltic States and one of the first in Eastern Europe.
The museum, located in the catacombs underneath St. M ...
*
Maironis Lithuanian Literature Museum
*
Kaunas Picture Gallery
The Kaunas Picture Gallery is an art museum based in Kaunas, Lithuania
Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three ...
*
Mykolas Žilinskas Art Gallery
The Mykolas Žilinskas Art Gallery is an art museum based in Kaunas, Lithuania, which is a branch of the M. K. Čiurlionis National Art Museum
The M. K. Čiurlionis National Art Museum is a group of museums based in Kaunas, Lithuania. It is prim ...
*
Povilas Stulga Museum of Lithuanian Folk Instruments
The Povilas Stulga Museum of Lithuanian Folk Instruments ( lt, Povilo Stulgos lietuvių tautinės muzikos instrumentų muziejus) is located in the Old Town of Kaunas, Lithuania. Its permanent collection contains Lithuanian and international musical ...
*
Tadas Ivanauskas Zoological Museum
The Tadas Ivanauskas Zoological Museum was established in Kaunas, Lithuania, in 1919 by Tadas Ivanauskas (1882–1970).
The museum collects and exhibits various animals: hunting trophies, Taxidermy, stuffed animals, Insect collecting, insect col ...
*
Sugihara house-museum
* The so-called ''ab'' underground
printing house
In publishing, printers are both companies providing printing services and individuals who directly operate printing presses.
Printers can include:
*Newspaper printers, often owned by newspaper publishers
*Magazine printers, usually independe ...
was a part of the
nonviolent resistance
Nonviolent resistance (NVR), or nonviolent action, sometimes called civil resistance, is the practice of achieving goals such as social change through symbolic protests, civil disobedience, economic or political noncooperation, satyagraha, cons ...
press during the Soviet times. Now it is the branch of Kaunas War Museum, located north of Kaunas in a small Saliu village, near the town of
Domeikava
Domeikava is a village in the Kaunas district municipality, located north of Kaunas city municipality. Area surrounding Domeikava has some of Lithuania's most fertile and productive soil.
Domeikavos Gimnazija
Domeikavos Gimnazija is a school ...
. Although the ''AB'' printing house worked regularly, it was never detected by
KGB
The KGB (russian: links=no, lit=Committee for State Security, Комитет государственной безопасности (КГБ), a=ru-KGB.ogg, p=kəmʲɪˈtʲet ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)əj bʲɪzɐˈpasnəsʲtʲɪ, Komitet gosud ...
. It was included into the Registry of Immovable Cultural Heritage Sites of Lithuania in 1999.
* The apartments of some famous Kaunas natives, including
Paulius Galaunė
Paulius Galaunė (January 25, 1890 in Pagelažiai near Ukmergė – October 18, 1988 in Kaunas) was a Lithuanian art historian, museum curator, and graphic artist. He was one of the first professional museum curators in Lithuania and was well-pub ...
,
Adam Mickiewicz
Adam Bernard Mickiewicz (; 24 December 179826 November 1855) was a Polish poet, dramatist, essayist, publicist, translator and political activist. He is regarded as national poet in Poland, Lithuania and Belarus. A principal figure in Polish Ro ...
,
Juozas Grušas Juozas Grušas (November 16, 1901, Žadžiūnai-Kalniškiai, Kovno Governorate – May 21, 1986, Kaunas) was a Lithuanian writer, editor, dramatist and playwright.
Biography
Grušas' first inspirational teacher was the Lithuanian poet Jovaras, ...
,
Balys Sruoga
Balys Sruoga (February 2, 1896, in , Kovno Governorate – October 16, 1947, Vilnius) was a Lithuanian poet, playwright, critic, and literary theorist.
Early life
He contributed to cultural journals from his early youth. His works were publishe ...
,
Juozas Tumas-Vaižgantas
Juozas Tumas also known by the pen name Vaižgantas (20 September 1869 – 29 April 1933) was a Lithuanian Roman Catholic priest and an activist during the Lithuanian National Revival. He was a prolific writer, editor of nine periodicals, univers ...
,
Salomėja Nėris
Salomėja Bačinskaitė-Bučienė, mostly known by her pen name Nėris (; 17 November 1904 – 7 July 1945) was a Lithuanian poet.
Biography
Salomėja was born in Kiršai, Suwałki Governorate (current district of Vilkaviškis). She graduated ...
,
Juozas Zikaras
Juozas Zikaras (November 18, 1881 – November 10, 1944) was a Lithuanian sculptor and artist, who created the design for pre-war Lithuanian litas coins. He is considered to be one of the first professional Lithuanian sculptors.
Biography
He was ...
,
Vincentas Sladkevičius
Vincentas Sladkevičius, M.I.C. (20 August 1920 – 28 May 2000) was a Lithuanian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Kaunas from 1989 to 1996, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1988.
Biography
Vincenta ...
have been turned into public museums.
Theaters
![Kaunas National Philharmonic Society](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/56/Kaunas_National_Philharmonic_Society.jpg)
Kaunas is notable for the diverse culture life. Kaunas Symphony Orchestra is the main venue for classical music concerts. There is an old
circus
A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicyclist ...
tradition in Kaunas. There was established static circus in the Vytautas park of Kaunas in the beginning of the 19th century. The only professional circus organisation in Lithuania, the Baltic Circus, was founded in Kaunas in 1995. Kaunas theatres play an important role in Lithuanian society. There are at least seven professional theatres, many amateur theatres, ensembles and abundant groups of art and sports. Some of the best examples of cultural life in Kaunas are theatres of various styles:
*
Kaunas State Drama Theatre
The National Kaunas Drama Theatre is the biggest theatre in Kaunas, and one of the oldest functioning theatres in Lithuania. There are six different creative spaces for events in the Kaunas Drama Theatre.
History
Its beginnings date to the 1 ...
*
Kaunas State Musical Theatre
The Kaunas State Musical Theatre is a musical theatre in Kaunas, Lithuania. It was established on November 27, 1940, in the former State Theatre hall adjoining the Laisvės Alėja. For some time, it mostly presented operettas.
The building
The ...
*
Kaunas Pantomime Theatre
Kaunas pantomime theatre ( lt, Kauno pantomimos teatras) is pantomime theatre in Kaunas, Lithuania. Theatre was established in 1968. Founder and leader of Kaunas Pantomime theatre was artistic director Kestutis Adomaitis (1948–1996). Kaunas Mun ...
*
Kaunas Chamber Theatre
*
Kaunas Dance Theatre Aura
Kaunas Dance Theatre Aura is the professional theatre of contemporary dance based in Kaunas, Lithuania.
History
Dance Theatre Aura first started as an amateur dance group back in 1980. It was founded by the current theatre director Birutė Letuk ...
*
Kaunas State Puppet Theatre
Kaunas State Puppet Theatre ( lt, Kauno valstybinis lėlių teatras) is a puppet theatre in Kaunas, Lithuania. The professional theatre was established in 1958. Each theatrical season it offers to the spectators twenty puppet performances, and 4 ...
Cityscape
Urbanism and architecture
The city plan is mixed. The rectangular
old town
In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins after thorough renovations. There are ma ...
at the confluence of the
Nemunas
The Neman, Nioman, Nemunas or MemelTo bankside nations of the present: Lithuanian: be, Нёман, , ; russian: Неман, ''Neman''; past: ger, Memel (where touching Prussia only, otherwise Nieman); lv, Nemuna; et, Neemen; pl, Niemen; ...
and the
Neris
The river Neris () or Viliya ( be, Ві́лія, pl, Wilia ) rises in northern Belarus. It flows westward, passing through Vilnius (Lithuania's capital) and in the south-centre of that country it flows into the Nemunas (Neman), at Kaunas, as ...
rivers is rich in valuable buildings and their complexes. During the
Gothic period
Gothic art was a style of medieval art that developed in Northern France out of Romanesque art in the 12th century AD, led by the concurrent development of Gothic architecture. It spread to all of Western Europe, and much of Northern, Southern and ...
, the
Kaunas Castle
Kaunas Castle is a medieval castle in Kaunas, the second-largest city in Lithuania. Archeological evidence suggests that it was originally built during the mid-14th century, in the Gothic style. Its site is strategic – a rise on the banks o ...
(13th–16th centuries),
Old Kaunas Ducal Palace
The Old Kaunas Ducal Palace is a building complex in Kaunas Old Town, at the corner of Aleksoto and Muitinės Streets. It was a psychiatric hospital, but is now owned by the Kaunas Academy of Arts institute.
History
The palace, which was ruine ...
(15th century),
Church of Vytautas the Great
Church of Vytautas the Great or the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary ( lt, Vytauto Didžiojo bažnyčia) is a Roman Catholic church in the Old Town of Kaunas, Lithuania, and is one of the oldest churches in the city and an import ...
(beginning of the 15th century; also known as the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary),
Church of Saint Nicholas (late 15th century),
St. George's Church and the Bernardine Monastery (1472),
Church of St. Gertrude (15th–16th centuries; also has
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...
elements),
Kaunas Cathedral Basilica
Cathedral Basilica of apostles St. Peter and St. Paul of Kaunas ( lt, Kauno Šv. apaštalų Petro ir Povilo katedra bazilika) is a Roman Catholic cathedral basilica in Kaunas, Lithuania.
History
The exact date when the first Gothic style churc ...
(construction began in the 15th century; later was reconstructed and expanded),
Kaunas Town Hall
The Town Hall of Kaunas () stands in the middle of the Town Hall Square at the heart of the Old Town, Kaunas, Lithuania.The structure dates from the 16th century. It houses a Museum of Ceramics.
History
The Town Hall is distinguished by its slend ...
(construction began in 1542; later gained late
Baroque
The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
and early
Classicism
Classicism, in the arts, refers generally to a high regard for a classical period, classical antiquity in the Western tradition, as setting standards for taste which the classicists seek to emulate. In its purest form, classicism is an aestheti ...
forms),
House of Perkūnas
The House of Perkūnas is one of the most original and Gothic secular buildings, located in the Old Town of Kaunas, Lithuania. Originally built by Hanseatic merchants and served as their office from 1440 until 1532, it was sold in the 16th cent ...
(late 15th century – early 16th century), residential houses in the Town Hall Square, Vilnius and Kurpių Streets were built.
The ensemble of the
Church of the Holy Trinity and the Bernardine monastery (started in the late 16th century), the so-called Napoleonic House (16th century) has Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and
Mannerist
Mannerism, which may also be known as Late Renaissance, is a style in European art that emerged in the later years of the Italian High Renaissance around 1520, spreading by about 1530 and lasting until about the end of the 16th century in Italy, ...
architecture features.
The Renaissance remains of Kaunas defensive fortifications have survived (2nd half of the 17th century).
One of the most famous monuments of Baroque architecture is the ensemble of
Pažaislis Church and Monastery (started in 1667, architects G. Frediani, C. Puttini, P. Puttini).
Other Baroque style buildings:
Kaunas Lutheran Holly Trinity Church (1683; in 1862 Romanticism style bell tower was built, its architect was J. Woller),
Corpus Christi Church (1690, in 1866 was reconstructed to an Orthodox church gained
Byzantine forms),
Church of St. Francis Xavier (1720; towers were built in 1725); Baroque and Classicism elements: the ensemble of the
Church of the Holy Cross (1690) and the Carmelite Monastery (1777),
Siručiai Palace
The Maironis Lithuanian Literature Museum ( lt, Maironio lietuvių literatūros muziejus) is located in the Siručiai Palace of Kaunas, Lithuania. The place where it is established was built in 1742 by Kaunas city court foreman Simonas Sirutis and ...
(18th century; also known as
Maironis
Maironis (born Jonas Mačiulis, ; – 28 June 1932) was a Lithuanian Roman Catholic priest and the greatest and most-known Lithuanian poet, especially of the period of the Lithuanian press ban. He was called the Bard of Lithuanian National Reviv ...
House, from 1936 is used as the
Maironis Lithuanian Literature Museum).
Forms of classicist architecture are typical in the
Aukštoji Freda Manor (early 19th century), post station building complex (early 19th century; architect J. Poussier).
Notable buildings of the
Historicism
Historicism is an approach to explaining the existence of phenomena, especially social and cultural practices (including ideas and beliefs), by studying their history, that is, by studying the process by which they came about. The term is widely u ...
period in Kaunas are:
Kaunas State Musical Theatre
The Kaunas State Musical Theatre is a musical theatre in Kaunas, Lithuania. It was established on November 27, 1940, in the former State Theatre hall adjoining the Laisvės Alėja. For some time, it mostly presented operettas.
The building
The ...
(1892; architect J. Golinevičius; was expanded in the 20th century),
St. Michael the Archangel Church (
Neo-Byzantine
Neo-Byzantine architecture (also referred to as Byzantine Revival) was a revival movement, most frequently seen in religious, institutional and public buildings. It incorporates elements of the Byzantine style associated with Eastern and Orthod ...
style; architect K. Limarenko), brick style Saulės Gymnasium building (1913; engineer F. Malinovskis, later E. A. Frykas),
Kaunas Fortress
Kaunas Fortress ( lt, Kauno tvirtovė, russian: Кοвенская крепость, german: Festung Kowno) is the remains of a fortress complex in Kaunas, Lithuania. It was constructed and renovated between 1882 and 1915 to protect the Russian ...
(1889).
![Kinas Romuva](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2b/Kinas_Romuva.JPG)
In the first half of the 20th century, when Kaunas became the
temporary capital of Lithuania
The temporary capital of Lithuania ( lt, Laikinoji sostinė) was the official designation of the city of Kaunas in Lithuania during the interwar period. It was in contrast to the declared capital in Vilnius, which was part of Poland from 1920 u ...
in 1919, the city was extensively modernized and thousands of new buildings were built. From 1918 to 1940 more than 12.000 construction permits were issued in Kaunas, which was an extremely rapid growth for a relatively small-scale city (90.000 inhabitants) that fundamentally changed the city's character.
Neoclassicism
Neoclassicism (also spelled Neo-classicism) was a Western cultural movement in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that drew inspiration from the art and culture of classical antiquity. Neoclassicism was ...
prevailed in the 3rd decade of the 20th century (
Kaunas School of Arts
Kaunas School of Arts ( lt, Kauno meno mokykla) was a public art school, which operated from 1922 to 1940 in Kaunas, Lithuania. At the time, it was the only operating art school in Lithuania.
References
Arts
The arts are a very wi ...
, built in 1923,
Bank of Lithuania
The Bank of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos bankas) is the central bank of the Republic of Lithuania. The Bank of Lithuania is a member of the European System of Central Banks. The chairman of the bank is Gediminas Šimkus. Until 2015, the Bank of Li ...
building, built in 1928,
Palace of Justice and the Parliament
Kaunas State Philharmonic ( lt, Kauno valstybinė filharmonija) is located in the former Palace of Justice and the Parliament ( lt, Lietuvos Teisingumo ir Seimo rūmai). The building was designed by the engineer and architect Edmund Fryk.
History ...
with
Art Deco
Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...
elements, built in 1930) and a search for the Lithuanian national style was typical (e.g. residential house of ''Ragutis'' factory, built in 1925).
The styles of Classicism and
Modernism
Modernism is both a philosophy, philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western world, Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new fo ...
intertwined in buildings built in the beginning of 1930s (e.g. Faculty of Medicine at
Vytautas Magnus University
Vytautas Magnus University (VMU) ( lt, Vytauto Didžiojo universitetas (VDU)) is a public university in Kaunas, Lithuania. The university was founded in 1922 during the interwar period as an alternate national university.
Initially it was known ...
, built in 1933, now belongs to the
Lithuanian University of Health Sciences
Lithuanian University of Health Sciences ( lt, Lietuvos sveikatos mokslų universitetas, LSMU) is a medical school in Kaunas, Lithuania. The present-day Lithuanian University of Health Sciences is a consolidation of two institutions of higher educ ...
,
Vytautas the Great War Museum
The Vytautas the Great War Museum ( lt, Vytauto Didžiojo karo muziejus) is a museum in Kaunas, Lithuania. It was built in Art Deco and early functionalism style.
Originally it was established in 1921 by Vladas Nagevičius but later it was deci ...
and
M. K. Čiurlionis National Art Museum
The M. K. Čiurlionis National Art Museum is a group of museums based in Kaunas, Lithuania. It is primarily dedicated to exhibiting and publicizing the works of the painter and musician M.K. Čiurlionis (1875–1911).
The museum was founded in ...
, built in 1936), while Modernism and national style intertwined in the
Kaunas Central Post Office
Kaunas Central Post Office ( lt, Kauno centrinis paštas) is a post office
A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling po ...
(architect F. Vizbaras), built in 1932,
Kaunas Garrison Officers' Club Building
Kaunas Garrison Officers' Club Building ( lt, Kauno įgulos karininkų ramovė) is a building in Kaunas, Lithuania. At construction cost of over 1.27 million Lithuanian litas, it was one of the most luxurious buildings built in interwar Lithuania. ...
(architect S. Kudokas and others), built in 1937.
The most notable
Rationalism
In philosophy, rationalism is the epistemological view that "regards reason as the chief source and test of knowledge" or "any view appealing to reason as a source of knowledge or justification".Lacey, A.R. (1996), ''A Dictionary of Philosophy' ...
style buildings in Kaunas are:
Christ's Resurrection Church (construction began in 1933, but it was converted into a radio factory from 1952 and so it was returned to the believers only in 1990 and was reconstructed in 2005), palaces of ''Pienocentras'' (architects
Vytautas Landsbergis-Žemkalnis
Vytautas Landsbergis-Žemkalnis (10 March 1893 – 21 May 1993) was a Lithuanian architect most active in interwar Lithuania (1926–1939). He was the father of Vytautas Landsbergis, the first Lithuanian head of state after independence from th ...
, K. Reisonas), ''Pažangos'' with
Art Deco
Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...
decoration elements (architect F. Vizbaras),
Physical Culture
Physical culture, also known as Body culture, is a health and strength training movement that originated during the 19th century in Germany, the UK and the US.
Origins
The physical culture movement in the United States during the 19th century ...
(architect V. Landsbergis‑Žemkalnis, now belongs to the
Lithuanian Sports University
Lithuanian Sports University or LSU is a university in Kaunas, Lithuania, specializing in sports, physical activities, and physiology. It is headquartered in Žaliakalnis neighbourhood, in close proximity to the Kaunas Sports Hall and the S. Dar ...
), ''Prekybos, pramonės ir amatų'' (1938, architect V. Landsbergis‑Žemkalnis), ''Taupomųjų kasų'' (1939; architects A. Funkas, B. Elsbergas, A. Lukošaitis; now is the primary building of Kaunas City Municipality);
Church of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus (1938; architect A. Šalkauskis), Military Research Laboratory for the Lithuanian Ministry of National Defense (1938; architect V. Landsbergis‑Žemkalnis; now Faculty of Chemical Technology at
Kaunas University of Technology
Kaunas University of Technology (abbreviated as KTU, ) is a public research university located in Kaunas, Lithuania. Established in 1922, KTU has been one of the top centers of Lithuanian science education. According to Lithuanian National Univ ...
),
Kaunas Clinics complex (1939; French architect U. Cassan),
Kaunas Sports Hall
Kaunas Sports Hall ( lt, Kauno sporto halė), also known as the S. Darius and S. Girėnas Hall is the second largest arena of Kaunas, Lithuania. It is the first arena built in the residential Žaliakalnis neighbourhood of Kaunas specially for ...
(1939; engineer A. Rozenbliumas),
Pasaka Cinema
Pasaka Cinema ( lt, Pasakos kino teatras) is an Art Deco style former cinema
Cinema may refer to:
Film
* Cinematography, the art of motion-picture photography
* Film or movie, a series of still images that create the illusion of a moving ima ...
(1939),
Romuva Cinema
Romuva Cinema ( lt, Romuvos kino teatras) is the oldest still operational movie theater in Lithuania. The building was designed by the architect Nikolajus Mačiulskis and was completed on April 13, 1940. In 2015, the building was one of 44 objec ...
(1940), residential houses complex in V. Putvinskio Street (formed in 1928–1937).
In 2021, an application has been submitted to the
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
World Heritage Centre in order to include the Kaunas modernist architecture into the List of
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
s.
After
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
buildings of pseudoclassical forms were built (e.g.
Kaunas railway station
Kaunas railway station ( lt, Kauno geležinkelio stotis) is a Lithuanian Railways central passenger railway station in Kaunas. It is located at the eastern edge of Central Kaunas, Lithuania. Kaunas railway station was included into the Registry o ...
, built in 1953), complex engineering structures (
Kaunas Hydroelectric Power Plant
The Kaunas Hydroelectric Power Plant, located on the Nemunas River about southeast of central Kaunas, Lithuania, was completed in 1960. Its dam created the Kaunas Reservoir. Owned by Lietuvos Energija, it operates in conjunction with the Kruon ...
, built in 1960). From the 7th decade of the 20th century Modernism style buildings were further developed. New residential areas were built (e.g.
Kalniečiai Polyclinic
Kalniečiai Park
Kalniečiai is a neighborhood of the Lithuanian city of Kaunas. In 2005, its population was 12,000 in an area of 78,39 ha. In Kalniečiai is a Kaunas VDU Rasos Gymnasium with 110 employees and Polyclinic (VšĮ ''Kauno ...
, completed in 1985), public buildings (e.g. Industrial Construction Design Institute, 1966, House for Political Education (now part of
Vytautas Magnus University
Vytautas Magnus University (VMU) ( lt, Vytauto Didžiojo universitetas (VDU)) is a public university in Kaunas, Lithuania. The university was founded in 1922 during the interwar period as an alternate national university.
Initially it was known ...
), 1976), shopping malls (e.g. Girstupis, 1975, Vitebskas, 1980, Kalniečių, 1986), shops (Viešnagė, 1982, Merkurijus, 1983), galleries (e.g.
Kaunas Picture Gallery
The Kaunas Picture Gallery is an art museum based in Kaunas, Lithuania
Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three ...
, 1978,
Mykolas Žilinskas Art Gallery
The Mykolas Žilinskas Art Gallery is an art museum based in Kaunas, Lithuania, which is a branch of the M. K. Čiurlionis National Art Museum
The M. K. Čiurlionis National Art Museum is a group of museums based in Kaunas, Lithuania. It is prim ...
, 1989), educational institutions (e.g. Faculty of Light Industry at Kaunas University of Technology, 1983).
In the late 20th century and early 21st century, buildings were built in Kaunas based on the projects of architects V. Adomavičius (e.g. Ąžuolynas Sports Center Complex, 2003), G. Jurevičius (e.g. Peugeot, Toyota, Lexus, Honda car showrooms), A. Kančas (e.g. Aleksotas Church of St. Casimir, 1997, company Kraft Foods Lietuva administrative and laboratory buildings complex, 2001, shopping and entertainment center Akropolis, 2007), A. Karalius (building materials salon Iris, 2002, block of flats ''Aušros namai'', 2005), D. Paulauskienė (e.g. Catherine's Monastery, 2000) E. Miliūnas (e.g.
Žalgiris Arena
Žalgiris Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New Town of Kaunas, Lithuania. The arena is located on an island of the Nemunas River. It is the largest indoor arena in the Baltics. The arena's maximum possible seating capacity for basketba ...
, 2001), G. Janulytė‑Bernotienė (e.g. Library and Health Sciences Information Center of
Lithuanian University of Health Sciences
Lithuanian University of Health Sciences ( lt, Lietuvos sveikatos mokslų universitetas, LSMU) is a medical school in Kaunas, Lithuania. The present-day Lithuanian University of Health Sciences is a consolidation of two institutions of higher educ ...
, 2007, Center for Science Studies and Business of Kaunas University of Technology Santakos Valley, 2013), G. Balčytis (e.g. Kaunas Bus Station reconstruction, 2017), G. Natkevičius (e.g. Moxy Kaunas Center Hotel),
A. Kaušpėdas, V. Klimavičius, D. Laurinaitienė.
Parks, leisure, and cemeteries
![Jiesios piliakalnis 2007-06-09](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f7/Jiesios_piliakalnis_2007-06-09.JPG)
The city of Kaunas has a number of parks and public open spaces. It devotes 7.3% of its total land acreage to parkland.
Ąžuolynas
Ąžuolynas (literally, "Oak Grove") is a public park in Lithuania's second largest city, Kaunas, in the Žaliakalnis elderate. The park covers about 84 hectares and is the largest urban stand of mature oaks in Europe. Vydūnas Alley serves as ...
(literally, "Oak Grove") park is a main public park in the heart of Kaunas. It covers about 63 hectares and is the largest urban stand of mature oaks in Europe. To protect the unique lower landscape of
Kaunas Reservoir
Kaunas Reservoir ( lt, Kauno marios, Kaunas Lagoon, Kaunas Sea) is the largest Lithuanian artificial lake, created in 1959 by damming the Nemunas River near Kaunas and Rumšiškės. It occupies 63.5 square kilometers, which is about 0.1% of the to ...
, its natural ecosystem, and cultural heritage
Kaunas Reservoir Regional Park
Kauno Marios Regional Park was established in 1992 with the purpose to protect the unique lower landscape of Kaunas Reservoir, its natural ecosystem, and cultural heritage. It covers the total of 101.73 km² (water - 51.45 km², forests ...
was established in the eastern edge of Kaunas in 1992. By the initiative of a prominent Lithuanian zoologist
Tadas Ivanauskas
Tadas Ivanauskas (December 16, 1882 – June 1, 1970) was a Lithuanian zoologist and biologist, and one of the founders of Vytautas Magnus University.
Biography
He was born in Lebiodka Manor (today in Belarus) as a third child of Leonard Iwanowsk ...
and biologist
Constantin von Regel the
Botanical Garden
A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...
was founded in 1923. It serves not only as a recreational area for public, but also serves as a showcase for local plant life, and houses various research facilities. In addition, Kaunas is home to
Kaunas Zoo
Lithuanian Zoological Garden ( lt, Lietuvos zoologijos sodas) previously known as Kaunas' Zoological Garden (''Kauno zoologijos sodas'') is the oldest scientific zoo in Lithuania. It is located in an Ąžuolynas oak grove park in the south-wester ...
, the only state-operated
zoo
A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility in which animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for Conservation biology, conservation purposes.
The term ''zoological g ...
in all of Lithuania.
Lithuania's premiere last resting place formally designated for graves of people influential in national history, politics, and arts is
Petrašiūnai Cemetery
Petrašiūnai Cemetery ( lt, Petrašiūnų kapinės) is Lithuania's premiere last resting place formally designated for graves of people influential in national history, politics, arts, and science.
Location
Petrašiūnai Cemetery is located abo ...
in Kaunas. It is also the burial site of some
signatories of the 1918 Act of Independence. There are four old
Jewish cemeteries
A Jewish cemetery ( he, בית עלמין ''beit almin'' or ''beit kvarot'') is a cemetery where Jews are buried in keeping with Jewish tradition. Cemeteries are referred to in several different ways in Hebrew, including ''beit kevarot'' ...
within city limits.
On 23 September 2018,
Pope Francis
Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...
visited Kaunas'
Santakos Park as part of a tour of the Baltic states.
Economy
Kaunas Mint
The Kaunas Mint ( lt, Kauno monetų kalykla) was a Lithuanian mint which produced coins in Kaunas that operated between 1665 and 1667 and again between 1936 and 1939.
History
The mint was founded on 17 October 1665, during the reign of Grand Duke ...
produced coins of the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire of Austria. The state was founded by Li ...
from 17 October 1665 to 15 January 1667 during the reign of Grand Duke
John II Casimir Vasa
John II Casimir ( pl, Jan II Kazimierz Waza; lt, Jonas Kazimieras Vaza; 22 March 1609 – 16 December 1672) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1648 until his abdication in 1668 as well as titular King of Sweden from 1648 ...
. While during the
interwar period
In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the World War I, First World War to the beginning of the World War II, Second World War. The in ...
, another
Kaunas Mint
The Kaunas Mint ( lt, Kauno monetų kalykla) was a Lithuanian mint which produced coins in Kaunas that operated between 1665 and 1667 and again between 1936 and 1939.
History
The mint was founded on 17 October 1665, during the reign of Grand Duke ...
was established in 1936 and produced coins of the Republic of Lithuania.
Kaunas is a large center of
industry
Industry may refer to:
Economics
* Industry (economics), a generally categorized branch of economic activity
* Industry (manufacturing), a specific branch of economic activity, typically in factories with machinery
* The wider industrial sector ...
, trade, and
services
Service may refer to:
Activities
* Administrative service, a required part of the workload of university faculty
* Civil service, the body of employees of a government
* Community service, volunteer service for the benefit of a community or a pu ...
in Lithuania. The most developed industries in Kaunas are amongst the food and beverage industries, textile and light industries, chemical industry, publishing and processing, pharmaceuticals, metal industry, wood processing and furniture industry. Recently
information technology
Information technology (IT) is the use of computers to create, process, store, retrieve, and exchange all kinds of data . and information. IT forms part of information and communications technology (ICT). An information technology system (I ...
and
electronics
The field of electronics is a branch of physics and electrical engineering that deals with the emission, behaviour and effects of electrons using electronic devices. Electronics uses active devices to control electron flow by amplification ...
have become part of the business activities taking place in Kaunas. In addition, the city also has large
construction
Construction is a general term meaning the art and science to form objects, systems, or organizations,"Construction" def. 1.a. 1.b. and 1.c. ''Oxford English Dictionary'' Second Edition on CD-ROM (v. 4.0) Oxford University Press 2009 and com ...
industry which includes, but is not limited to commercial, housing and road construction.
Primary foreign investors in Kaunas are companies from the Sweden, United States, Finland, Estonia, Denmark, and Russia.
Head offices of several major International and Lithuanian companies are located in Kaunas, including largest
Generic Pharmaceuticals
A generic drug is a pharmaceutical drug that contains the same chemical substance as a drug that was originally protected by chemical patents. Generic drugs are allowed for sale after the patents on the original drugs expire. Because the active ch ...
producer in Lithuania "
Sanitas
AB "Sanitas" is one of the oldest and largest pharmaceutical companies in Lithuania. The company produces and markets non-proprietary medicinal products – injection preparations, tablets, capsules, eye drops. It was acquired by Valeant Pharmac ...
", producer of sportswear AB "
Audimas
Audimas is the largest sportswear manufacturer and one of the market leaders in the development, design, and manufacture of sports and active lifestyle apparel in the Baltic States.
History
The joint-stock company Audimas was established in 1931 ...
", one of the largest construction companies "
YIT
YIT Oyj is the largest Finnish and significant North European construction company. YIT is headquartered in Helsinki and its stock is listed on Nasdaq Helsinki Oy. YIT develops and builds apartments, business premises and entire areas. YIT is al ...
Kausta", JSC "Senukai", largest producer in Lithuania of strong alcoholic drinks JSC "
Stumbras
AB Stumbras is the oldest and largest producer of strong alcoholic drinks in Kaunas, Lithuania. The company began operations in 1906. It is also the largest exporter of strong alcoholic beverages and one of the biggest taxpayers in Lithuania. T ...
", Finnish capital brewery JSC "
Ragutis
Volfas Engelman is an alcoholic beverages manufacturer in Kaunas, Lithuania.
The establishment of brewery Volfas Engelman dates back to the 19th century. Today the brewery produces beer, cider, alcoholic mixed drinks, kvass and energy drinks. ...
", JSC "
Fazer
Fazer () is one of the largest corporations in the Finnish food industry. The company was founded by Karl Fazer in 1891, as a "French-Russian confectionery" in central Helsinki. Today, it employs over ten thousand people across Finland, Sweden, R ...
Gardesis", JSC "
Stora Enso
Stora Enso Oyj (from sv, Stora and fi, Enso ) is a manufacturer of pulp, paper and other forest products, headquartered in Helsinki, Finland. The majority of sales takes place in Europe, but there are also significant operations in Asia and S ...
Packaging", producer of pharmaceuticals, and the only producer of
homoeopathic
Homeopathy or homoeopathy is a pseudoscientific system of alternative medicine. It was conceived in 1796 by the German physician Samuel Hahnemann. Its practitioners, called homeopaths, believe that a substance that causes symptoms of a dis ...
medicines in Lithuania JSC "Aconitum". Its geographic location causes Kaunas to be considered one of the largest logistics centres in Lithuania. The largest wholesale, distribution and logistics company in Lithuania and Latvia JSC "Sanitex", as well as a subsidiary of material handling and logistics company
Dematic
Dematic is an American supplier of materials handling systems, software and services. With a growth rate of 21.2% in 2021 Dematic was listed as the world's second-largest materials handling systems supplier with a revenue of 3.2 billion USD. The c ...
in the Baltics have been operated in Kaunas. Currently, Kaunas Public Logistics Centre is being built by the demand of national state-owned
railway
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
company
Lithuanian Railways
Lithuanian Railways ( lt, Lietuvos geležinkeliai), abbreviated LTG, is the national state-owned railway company of Lithuania. It operates most of the railway network in the country.
During 2020, Lithuanian Railways transported 3.34 m ...
.
The "Margasmiltė" company currently has been working on a project that concerns exploitation of Pagiriai
anhydrite
Anhydrite, or anhydrous calcium sulfate, is a mineral with the chemical formula CaSO4. It is in the orthorhombic crystal system, with three directions of perfect cleavage parallel to the three planes of symmetry. It is not isomorphous with the ...
deposit. The project includes mining of anhydrite, a mine with underground warehouses, building the overground transport terminal, as well as an administrative building. The Pagiriai anhydrite deposit is located south from the downtown of Kaunas, at a distance to the southwest from the
Garliava
Garliava (), is a city in Lithuania, considered a suburb of Kaunas. Garliava is located south from the Centras (Kaunas), center of Kaunas and has a territory of 3,65 km2. In 1809 Józef Godlewski built a Holy Trinity church and named it '' ...
town. The resources of thoroughly explored anhydrite in the Pagiriai deposit amount to 81.5 million tons.
The Lithuanian Central Credit Union—national
cooperative federation A co-operative federation or secondary co-operative is a co-operative in which all members are, in turn, co-operatives.
Historically, co-operative federations have predominantly come in the form of co-operative wholesale societies and co-operative ...
for
credit unions
A credit union, a type of financial institution similar to a commercial bank, is a member-owned nonprofit financial cooperative. Credit unions generally provide services to members similar to retail banks, including deposit accounts, provision ...
established in 2001, is located in Kaunas. At present the Lithuanian Central Credit Union has 61 members.
There are also some innovative companies located in Kaunas, such as leading wholesaler of computer components, data storage media "ACME group", internet and TV provider, communications JSC "Mikrovisata group", developer and producer original products for TV and embedded technologies JSC "Selteka". Joint Lithuanian-German company "Net Frequency", based in Kaunas, is a multimedia and technology service provider. Kaunas is also home to R&D department of
Dassault Systemes
Dassault Group (; also GIM Dassault or Groupe Industriel Marcel Dassault SAS) is a French group of companies established in 1929 with the creation of Société des Avions Marcel Bloch (now Dassault Aviation) by Marcel Dassault, and led by son Se ...
producing world-leading modeling tools software
CATIA
CATIA (, an acronym of computer-aided three-dimensional interactive application) is a multi-platform software suite for computer-aided design (CAD), computer-aided manufacturing (CAM), computer-aided engineering (CAE), 3D modeling and Product lif ...
. A
LED
A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor Electronics, device that Light#Light sources, emits light when Electric current, current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy i ...
lighting assembly plant was opened in Kaunas by South Korean company LK Technology in February 2011. JSC "Baltic car equipment" is one of the leaders in Baltic countries, in the field of manufacturing electronic equipment for automobiles. It also specialises in development of new
telemetry
Telemetry is the in situ data collection, collection of measurements or other data at remote points and their automatic data transmission, transmission to receiving equipment (telecommunication) for monitoring. The word is derived from the Gr ...
, data base creation,
mobile payment
A mobile payment, also referred to as mobile money, mobile money transfer and mobile wallet, is any of various payment processing services operated under financial regulations and performed from or via a mobile device, as the cardinal class of d ...
projects.
Kaunas Free Economic Zone
The Kaunas Free Economic Zone (FEZ) or Kaunas FEZ ( lt, Kauno laisvoji ekonominė zona) is a free economic zone
Free economic zones (FEZ), free economic territories (FETs) or free zones (FZ) are a class of special economic zone (SEZ) desig ...
established in 1996 has also attracted some investors from abroad, including the development of the new 200 MW
Cogeneration Power Plant
Cogeneration or combined heat and power (CHP) is the use of a heat engine or power station to generate electricity and useful heat at the same time.
Cogeneration is a more efficient use of fuel or heat, because otherwise- wasted heat from elect ...
project, proposed by the Finnish capital company
Fortum
Fortum Oyj is a Finnish state-owned energy company located in Espoo, Finland. In addition to Finland, it focuses on Germany and other countries in Central Europe, Great Britain, Russia and the Nordic region. Fortum operates power plants, inc ...
Heat Lithuania. Before its disestablishment,
Air Lithuania
Air Lithuania ( lt, Aviakompanija Lietuva, literally: ''Air Company "Lithuania"'') was a regional airline based in Kaunas in Lithuania. It operated scheduled and charter flights, provided cargo services and aircraft rental. Its main bases were Ka ...
had its head office in Kaunas.
Kaunas Hydroelectric Power Plant
The Kaunas Hydroelectric Power Plant, located on the Nemunas River about southeast of central Kaunas, Lithuania, was completed in 1960. Its dam created the Kaunas Reservoir. Owned by Lietuvos Energija, it operates in conjunction with the Kruon ...
is the largest one in Lithuania.
Some notable changes are under construction and in the stage of disputes. The construction of a new landmark of Kaunas—the
Žalgiris Arena
Žalgiris Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New Town of Kaunas, Lithuania. The arena is located on an island of the Nemunas River. It is the largest indoor arena in the Baltics. The arena's maximum possible seating capacity for basketba ...
—began in the autumn of 2008. It was completed in August 2011. Currently discussions are underway about the further development of the
Vilijampolė
Vilijampolė is a neighborhood in the city of Kaunas, Lithuania, located on the right bank of the Neris River and the Nemunas River, near their confluence. Part of a larger which consists of Vilijampolė, , , and neighorhoods, and covers 1,720 h ...
district on the right bank of the
Neris
The river Neris () or Viliya ( be, Ві́лія, pl, Wilia ) rises in northern Belarus. It flows westward, passing through Vilnius (Lithuania's capital) and in the south-centre of that country it flows into the Nemunas (Neman), at Kaunas, as ...
River and the
Nemunas River
The Neman, Nioman, Nemunas or MemelTo bankside nations of the present: Lithuanian: be, Нёман, , ; russian: Неман, ''Neman''; past: ger, Memel (where touching Prussia only, otherwise Nieman); lv, Nemuna; et, Neemen; pl, Niemen; ...
, near their confluence.
In October 2017, an automotive parts and technologies manufacturer
Continental AG
Continental AG, commonly known as Continental or colloquially as Conti, is a German multinational automotive parts manufacturing company specializing in tires, brake systems, interior electronics, automotive safety, powertrain and chassis compo ...
decided to invest over 95 million
euro
The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...
s to build a new factory in Kaunas, which is the largest direct investment from a foreign country.
Kaunas is also known for its
programmer
A computer programmer, sometimes referred to as a software developer, a software engineer, a programmer or a coder, is a person who creates computer programs — often for larger computer software.
A programmer is someone who writes/creates ...
s, as they developed a
software
Software is a set of computer programs and associated documentation and data. This is in contrast to hardware, from which the system is built and which actually performs the work.
At the lowest programming level, executable code consists ...
for the American billionaire
Robert Pera
Robert J. Pera (born March 10, 1978) is the founder of Ubiquiti Networks, Inc. a global communications technology company that Pera took public in 2011. In October 2012, Pera also became the owner of the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketb ...
's
Ubiquiti Networks
Ubiquiti Inc. (formerly Ubiquiti Networks, Inc.) is an American technology company founded in San Jose, California, in 2003. Now based in New York City, Ubiquiti manufactures and sells wireless data communication and wired products for enterpris ...
product NanoStation, therefore the company established a
R&D division Ubiquiti Networks Europe in Kaunas.
Demographics
1897 Russian census
The first general census of the population of the Russian Empire in 1897 ( pre-reform Russian: ) was the first and only nation-wide census performed in the Russian Empire (the Grand Duchy of Finland was excluded). It recorded demographic data as ...
revealed the following linguistic composition in the city (by
mother tongue
A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tongu ...
, out of 70,920):
![Kauno musulmonu mecete1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a0/Kauno_musulmonu_mecete1.2007-04-06.jpg)
#
Yiddish
Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ver ...
25,052 – 35%
#
Russian language
Russian (russian: русский язык, russkij jazyk, link=no, ) is an East Slavic languages, East Slavic language mainly spoken in Russia. It is the First language, native language of the Russians, and belongs to the Indo-European langua ...
18,308 – 26%
#
Polish language
Polish (Polish: ''język polski'', , ''polszczyzna'' or simply ''polski'', ) is a West Slavic language of the Lechitic group written in the Latin script. It is spoken primarily in Poland and serves as the native language of the Poles. In a ...
16,112 – 23%
#
Lithuanian language
Lithuanian ( ) is an Eastern Baltic language belonging to the Baltic branch of the Indo-European language family. It is the official language of Lithuania and one of the official languages of the European Union. There are about 2.8 millio ...
4,092 – 6%
#
German language
German ( ) is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and Official language, official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Ita ...
3,340 – 5%
#
Tatar
The Tatars ()[Tatar]
in the Collins English Dictionary is an umbrella term for different 1,084 – 2%
# Other 2932 – 4%
According to the official census of 1923, there were 92,446 inhabitants in Kaunas:
![Sinagoga Zamenhofo 7](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5a/Sinagoga_Zamenhofo_7.JPG)
*
Lithuanians
Lithuanians ( lt, lietuviai) are a Baltic ethnic group. They are native to Lithuania, where they number around 2,378,118 people. Another million or two make up the Lithuanian diaspora, largely found in countries such as the United States, Uni ...
– 58.9% (54,520)
*
Jews
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
– 27.1% (25,044)
*
Poles
Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, who share a common history, culture, the Polish language and are identified with the country of Poland in Ce ...
– 4.5% (4,193)
*
Germans
, native_name_lang = de
, region1 =
, pop1 = 72,650,269
, region2 =
, pop2 = 534,000
, region3 =
, pop3 = 157,000
3,322,405
, region4 =
, pop4 = ...
– 3.5% (3,269)
*
Russians
, native_name_lang = ru
, image =
, caption =
, population =
, popplace =
118 million Russians in the Russian Federation (2002 ''Winkler Prins'' estimate)
, region1 =
, pop1 ...
– 3.2% (2,914)
*
Belarusians
, native_name_lang = be
, pop = 9.5–10 million
, image =
, caption =
, popplace = 7.99 million
, region1 =
, pop1 = 600,000–768,000
, region2 =
, pop2 ...
– 0.2% (171)
*
Latvians
Latvians ( lv, latvieši) are a Baltic ethnic group and nation native to Latvia and the immediate geographical region, the Baltics. They are occasionally also referred to as Letts, especially in older bibliography. Latvians share a common Latvi ...
– 0.1% (123)
* Other – 2.4% (2,212)
Today, with almost 94% of its citizens being ethnic
Lithuanians
Lithuanians ( lt, lietuviai) are a Baltic ethnic group. They are native to Lithuania, where they number around 2,378,118 people. Another million or two make up the Lithuanian diaspora, largely found in countries such as the United States, Uni ...
, Kaunas is one of the most Lithuanian cities in the country.
Ethnic composition in 2011, out of a total of 315,933:
#
Lithuanians
Lithuanians ( lt, lietuviai) are a Baltic ethnic group. They are native to Lithuania, where they number around 2,378,118 people. Another million or two make up the Lithuanian diaspora, largely found in countries such as the United States, Uni ...
– 93.6%
#
Russians
, native_name_lang = ru
, image =
, caption =
, population =
, popplace =
118 million Russians in the Russian Federation (2002 ''Winkler Prins'' estimate)
, region1 =
, pop1 ...
– 3.8%
#
Ukrainians
Ukrainians ( uk, Українці, Ukraintsi, ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe. The native language of the Ukrainians is Ukrainian language, Ukrainian. The majority ...
– 0.4%
#
Poles
Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, who share a common history, culture, the Polish language and are identified with the country of Poland in Ce ...
– 0.4%
#
Belarusians
, native_name_lang = be
, pop = 9.5–10 million
, image =
, caption =
, popplace = 7.99 million
, region1 =
, pop1 = 600,000–768,000
, region2 =
, pop2 ...
– 0.2%
# Other – 1.6%
Ethnic composition As of the last census in 2021, out of a total population of 298,753:
#
Lithuanians
Lithuanians ( lt, lietuviai) are a Baltic ethnic group. They are native to Lithuania, where they number around 2,378,118 people. Another million or two make up the Lithuanian diaspora, largely found in countries such as the United States, Uni ...
– 94.4%
#
Russians
, native_name_lang = ru
, image =
, caption =
, population =
, popplace =
118 million Russians in the Russian Federation (2002 ''Winkler Prins'' estimate)
, region1 =
, pop1 ...
– 2.9%
#
Ukrainians
Ukrainians ( uk, Українці, Ukraintsi, ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe. The native language of the Ukrainians is Ukrainian language, Ukrainian. The majority ...
– 0.3%
#
Poles
Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, who share a common history, culture, the Polish language and are identified with the country of Poland in Ce ...
– 0.4%
#
Belarusians
, native_name_lang = be
, pop = 9.5–10 million
, image =
, caption =
, popplace = 7.99 million
, region1 =
, pop1 = 600,000–768,000
, region2 =
, pop2 ...
– 0.2%
# Other – 1.4%
Municipality council
Kaunas city municipality
Kaunas (; ; also see other names) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the largest city and the centre of a county in the Duchy of Trakai ...
council is the governing body of the Kaunas city municipality and is responsible for municipality laws. The council is composed of 41 members (40 councillors and a mayor) all directly elected for four-year terms.
The council is the member of the
Association of Local Authorities in Lithuania
Association may refer to:
*Club (organization), an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal
*Trade association, an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry
*Voluntary associatio ...
.
Mayors
* 1995–1997 – Vladas Katkevičius (
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
)
* 1997 –
Alfonsas Andriuškevičius
Alfonsas Andriuškevičius (born November 18, 1940, in Vilkaviškis, Lithuania) is a poet and art historian. He received the Lithuanian National Prize in 2007 for essay ''Rašymas dūmais'' (''Writing with Smoke'', 2004) and collection of art c ...
(
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
)
* 1997–2000 – Henrikas Tamulis (
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
)
* 2000 –
Vytautas Šustauskas
Vytautas Šustauskas (19 March 1945 – 21 June 2023) was a Lithuanian politician who was leader of the Union of the Fighters for Lithuania (''Kovotojų už Lietuvą sąjunga'') political party.
Šustauskas died on 21 June 2023, at the age of ...
(
Liberty Union)
* 2000 – Gediminas Budnikas (
Liberty Union)
* 2001–2002 – Erikas Tamašauskas (
Liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
)
* 2002–2003 – Giedrius Donatas Ašmys (
Social Democrat
Social democracy is a Political philosophy, political, Social philosophy, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocati ...
)
* 2003–2007 – Arvydas Garbaravičius (
Liberal-Centrist)
* 2007–2011 –
Andrius Kupčinskas (
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
)
* 2011 –
Rimantas Mikaitis Rimantas (shortened as Rimas) is a masculine Lithuanian given name. The feminine form of the name is Rimantė. Notable people with the name include:
*Rimantas Astrauskas (b. 1955), physicist, ecologist, and signatory of the 1990 Act
* Rimantas Jon ...
(
Liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
)
* 2011–2015 Andrius Kupčinskas (
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
)
* since 2015 –
Visvaldas Matijošaitis
Visvaldas Matijošaitis (born 1957) is a Lithuanian politician and the current mayor of Kaunas.
External links
BiographyGeriausias šalies meras Matijošaitis
1957 births
Living people
Mayors of places in Lithuania
Politicians from ...
(
Vieningas Kaunas)
Transportation
Airports
Kaunas International Airport (KUN) is the second-busiest airport in Lithuania and
fourth-busiest airport in the Baltic states. In 2016, it handled 740,448 passengers (in addition to 2,488 tons of cargo), down from the peak of 872,618 passengers in 2011. An Irish
low-cost airline
A low-cost carrier or low-cost airline (occasionally referred to as '' no-frills'', ''budget'' or '' discount carrier'' or ''airline'', and abbreviated as ''LCC'') is an airline that is operated with an especially high emphasis on minimizing op ...
Ryanair
Ryanair is an Irish ultra low-cost carrier founded in 1984. It is headquartered in Swords, Dublin, Ireland and has its primary operational bases at Dublin and London Stansted airports. It forms the largest part of the Ryanair Holdings family ...
announced Kaunas Airport as their 40th base and first in
Central Europe
Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the area' ...
in February 2010. The smaller
S. Darius and S. Girėnas Airport, established in 1915, is located about south of the city centre. It is one of the oldest still functioning
airport
An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...
s in Europe used for tourism and
air sports
The term "air sports" covers a range of aerial activities, including air racing, aerobatics, aeromodelling, hang gliding, human-powered aircraft, parachuting, paragliding and skydiving.
Recognized and regulated air sports
Many air sports ...
purposes and now hosts the
Lithuanian Aviation Museum
The Lithuanian Aviation Museum is located in Kaunas, Lithuania. The museum was officially opened in 1983. The permanent collection of the museum contains more than 18 000 displays of different fields of technology. The major part of the collectio ...
.
Highways
Kaunas is served by a number of major motorways.
European route
The international E-road network is a numbering system for roads in Europe developed by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). The network is numbered from E1 up and its roads ...
E67 is a
highway
A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-access ...
running from
Prague
Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...
in the Czech Republic to
Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
in Finland by way of Poland, Kaunas Lithuania,
Riga
Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...
(Latvia), and
Tallinn
Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...
(Estonia). It is known as the
Via Baltica
European route E 67 is an E-road running from Prague in the Czech Republic to Estonia and by ferry to Finland. It goes via Prague, Wrocław, Warsaw, Kaunas, Panevėžys, Riga, Tallinn, Helsinki.
The route is known as the Via Baltica ...
between
Warsaw
Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...
and Tallinn, a distance of . It is the most important road connection between the
Baltic states
The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, ...
. Kaunas also is linked to
Vilnius
Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...
to its east and
Klaipėda
Klaipėda (; ; german: Memel; pl, Kłajpeda; russian: Клайпеда; sgs, Klaipieda) is a city in Lithuania on the Baltic Sea coast. The capital of the eponymous county, it is the third largest city and the only major seaport in Lithuan ...
, on the
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain.
The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...
, via the
A1 motorway and
Daugavpils
Daugavpils (; russian: Двинск; ltg, Daugpiļs ; german: Dünaburg, ; pl, Dyneburg; see other names) is a state city in south-eastern Latvia, located on the banks of the Daugava River, from which the city gets its name. The parts of the c ...
(Latvia), via
E262(
A6) highway.
Bridges
![Kaunas at night](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/Kaunas_at_night.jpg)
The construction of the Kaunas Railway Tunnel and Railway Bridge across the Nemunas river helped move goods from the eastern part of
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
west to the
German Empire
The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...
and Kaunas grew rapidly in the second part of the 19th century. The oldest part of Kaunas was connected with
Žaliakalnis
Žaliakalnis (literally, "the green hill") is an Elderships of Lithuania, elderate in Lithuania's second largest city, Kaunas. Žaliakalnis is located north of the old town and the city center area, between the Neris and Girstupis valleys. It is on ...
neighbourhood in 1889. The city increased once more when it was connected by bridges with
Aleksotas
The Aleksotas elderate ( lt, Aleksoto Seniunija) is an elderate in the southern section of the city of Kaunas, Lithuania, bordering the left bank of the Nemunas River. Its population in 2006 was 21,694. The elderate borders Vilijampolė and Centr ...
and
Vilijampolė
Vilijampolė is a neighborhood in the city of Kaunas, Lithuania, located on the right bank of the Neris River and the Nemunas River, near their confluence. Part of a larger which consists of Vilijampolė, , , and neighorhoods, and covers 1,720 h ...
districts in the 1920s.
">
Since Kaunas is located at the confluence of two rivers, there were 34 bridges and viaducts built in the city at the end of 2007, including:
*
Vytautas the Great Bridge
Vytautas the Great Bridge, also known as Aleksotas Bridge before 1930 and from 1940 until 23 February 2008, crosses the Nemunas River to connect Aleksotas and Old Town in Kaunas, Lithuania. Its length exceeds 256 meters, and its width is of 16 ...
, connecting
Old Town
In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins after thorough renovations. There are ma ...
with
Aleksotas
The Aleksotas elderate ( lt, Aleksoto Seniunija) is an elderate in the southern section of the city of Kaunas, Lithuania, bordering the left bank of the Nemunas River. Its population in 2006 was 21,694. The elderate borders Vilijampolė and Centr ...
across the
Nemunas
The Neman, Nioman, Nemunas or MemelTo bankside nations of the present: Lithuanian: be, Нёман, , ; russian: Неман, ''Neman''; past: ger, Memel (where touching Prussia only, otherwise Nieman); lv, Nemuna; et, Neemen; pl, Niemen; ...
*
M. K. Čiurlionis Bridge
M. K. Čiurlionis Bridge is a bridge in Kaunas, Lithuania. It crosses the Nemunas River to connect Freda ( Aleksotas district) and Kaunas City center. The bridge is 475 meters in length and 29.4 meters in width. It carries six lanes of automobile ...
, an automotive bridge across the Nemunas
*
Lampėdžiai Bridge across the Nemunas that serves as western
bypass of Kaunas
*
Petras Vileišis Bridge
Petras Vileišis Bridge formerly known as Vilijampolė Bridge is a bridge connecting Kaunas Old Town and Vilijampolė, Lithuania. It is the last bridge over the Neris River before its mouth. Its length exceeds 291 metres, width 14 metres. The b ...
, connecting
Old Town
In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins after thorough renovations. There are ma ...
with
Vilijampolė
Vilijampolė is a neighborhood in the city of Kaunas, Lithuania, located on the right bank of the Neris River and the Nemunas River, near their confluence. Part of a larger which consists of Vilijampolė, , , and neighorhoods, and covers 1,720 h ...
across the
Neris
The river Neris () or Viliya ( be, Ві́лія, pl, Wilia ) rises in northern Belarus. It flows westward, passing through Vilnius (Lithuania's capital) and in the south-centre of that country it flows into the Nemunas (Neman), at Kaunas, as ...
River
*
Varniai Bridge
Varnių Bridge ( lt, Varnių tiltas) is a bridge across the Neris River, that connects Vilijampolė and Žaliakalnis districts of Kaunas, Lithuania. It was built in 1983. The bridge is 328 meters long and approximately 25 meters wide. It carrie ...
, connecting
Žaliakalnis
Žaliakalnis (literally, "the green hill") is an Elderships of Lithuania, elderate in Lithuania's second largest city, Kaunas. Žaliakalnis is located north of the old town and the city center area, between the Neris and Girstupis valleys. It is on ...
with Vilijampolė across the Neris River
*
The Green railway bridge, built in 1862
Railways
![Žaliakalnis funicular](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/%C5%BDaliakalnis_funicular.jpg)
Kaunas is an important railway hub in Lithuania. First railway connection passing through Kaunas was constructed in 1859–1861 and opened in 1862.
[http://www.litrail.lt/wps/portal/!ut/p/c1/pZDBDoIwDIafhQcw7TY3uI4EBUJGwpwiF8KBmCUCHozPL-jJA-Vge2q-fG3-QgNzj93L37qnn8buDjU0qj1GokwOKUcsQo1cytyauGRxijO_rnOnCLvKN2zDKDthpF1Z_sdtEYuN3JflU6rFldL45dRnCC5OjPYNzT_pqf1Lvh9eRplCXsiz1ft5DBWYdBp6sP0Ij8E5V6PPfLbTOgjeA3OhEw!!/dl2/d1/L2dJQSEvUUt3QS9ZQnB3LzZfRzgzT0VGSDIwMEw3QTAyNTVKU05CTzFSVjQ!/ History of Lithuanian Railways. Construction of First Railways. Retrieved on 7 April 2011.] It consisted of
Kaunas Railway Tunnel
Kaunas railway tunnel ( lt, Kauno geležinkelio tunelis) is one of the two railway tunnels existing in Lithuania and the only railway tunnel operating in the Baltic states. Passenger trains are operating between Vilnius and Kaunas through this tu ...
and the
Railway Bridge
A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whic ...
across the Nemunas river.
Kaunas Railway Station
Kaunas railway station ( lt, Kauno geležinkelio stotis) is a Lithuanian Railways central passenger railway station in Kaunas. It is located at the eastern edge of Central Kaunas, Lithuania. Kaunas railway station was included into the Registry o ...
is an important hub serving direct passenger connections to Vilnius and Warsaw as well as being a transit point of
Pan-European corridors I and IX. Some trains run from
Vilnius
Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...
to
Šeštokai
Šeštokai is a small town in southern Lithuania.
Infrastructure
The town is a transport hub as it hosts Šeštokai Intermodal Terminal and has dual gauge track as well as break-of-gauge for the 1435 mm standard gauge and 1520 mm broad gaug ...
, and, Poland, through Kaunas. International route connecting
Kaliningrad
Kaliningrad ( ; rus, Калининград, p=kəlʲɪnʲɪnˈɡrat, links=y), until 1946 known as Königsberg (; rus, Кёнигсберг, Kyonigsberg, ˈkʲɵnʲɪɡzbɛrk; rus, Короле́вец, Korolevets), is the largest city and ...
, Russia and
Kharkiv
Kharkiv ( uk, wikt:Харків, Ха́рків, ), also known as Kharkov (russian: Харькoв, ), is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine.[Standard gauge
A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), International gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge and European gauge in Europe, and SGR in Ea ...]
Rail Baltica
Rail Baltica (also known as Rail Baltic in Estonia) is a high-speed railway under construction between Warsaw, Poland and Tallinn, Estonia, with further connections to Finland via Baltic Sea cruiseferries or the proposed Helsinki–Tallinn Tunne ...
railway section from
Šeštokai
Šeštokai is a small town in southern Lithuania.
Infrastructure
The town is a transport hub as it hosts Šeštokai Intermodal Terminal and has dual gauge track as well as break-of-gauge for the 1435 mm standard gauge and 1520 mm broad gaug ...
to Kaunas was completed in 2015.
Hydrofoil
There used to be a
hydrofoil
A hydrofoil is a lifting surface, or foil, that operates in water. They are similar in appearance and purpose to aerofoils used by aeroplanes. Boats that use hydrofoil technology are also simply termed hydrofoils. As a hydrofoil craft gains sp ...
route serving
Nida port through Nemunas and across
Curonian Lagoon
The Curonian Lagoon (or Bay, Gulf; russian: Куршский залив, lt, Kuršių marios, pl, Zalew Kuroński, german: Kurisches Haff, lv, Kuršu joma) is a freshwater lagoon separated from the Baltic Sea by the Curonian Spit. Its surfac ...
. It has been repeatedly discontinued and reopened, so the most current status is unclear. The company still exists and have its boats in working condition.
Public transportation
![Trolleybus in Kaunas, Solaris Trollino 12 (2019)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/Trolleybus_in_Kaunas%2C_Solaris_Trollino_12_%282019%29.jpg)
The public transportation system is managed by ''Kauno viešasis transportas'' (KVT).
There are 14
trolleybus
A trolleybus (also known as trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tramin the 1910s and 1920sJoyce, J.; King, J. S.; and Newman, A. G. (1986). ''British Trolleybus Systems'', pp. 9, 12. London: Ian Allan Publishing. .or troll ...
routes, 43
bus
A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...
routes.
In 2007 new electronic monthly tickets began to be introduced for public transport in Kaunas. The monthly
E-ticket
An electronic ticket is a method of ticket entry, processing, and marketing for companies in the airline, railways and other transport and entertainment industries.
Airline ticket
E-tickets in the airline industry were devised in about 1994, and ...
cards may be bought once and might be credited with an appropriate amount of money in various ways including the Internet. Previous paper monthly tickets were in use until August 2009.
Kaunas is also one of the major river ports in the
Baltic States
The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, ...
and has two
pier
image:Brighton Pier, Brighton, East Sussex, England-2Oct2011 (1).jpg, Seaside pleasure pier in Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th century.
A pier is a raised structure that rises above a body of ...
s designated for tourism purposes and located on the banks of
Nemunas
The Neman, Nioman, Nemunas or MemelTo bankside nations of the present: Lithuanian: be, Нёман, , ; russian: Неман, ''Neman''; past: ger, Memel (where touching Prussia only, otherwise Nieman); lv, Nemuna; et, Neemen; pl, Niemen; ...
river and
Kaunas Reservoir
Kaunas Reservoir ( lt, Kauno marios, Kaunas Lagoon, Kaunas Sea) is the largest Lithuanian artificial lake, created in 1959 by damming the Nemunas River near Kaunas and Rumšiškės. It occupies 63.5 square kilometers, which is about 0.1% of the to ...
—the largest Lithuanian
artificial lake
A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation.
Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...
, created in 1959 by damming the
Nemunas
The Neman, Nioman, Nemunas or MemelTo bankside nations of the present: Lithuanian: be, Нёман, , ; russian: Неман, ''Neman''; past: ger, Memel (where touching Prussia only, otherwise Nieman); lv, Nemuna; et, Neemen; pl, Niemen; ...
near Kaunas and
Rumšiškės
Rumšiškės is a Lithuanian town (population 1,700), situated east of Kaunas on the northern bank of Kaunas Reservoir. Southern part of the town (including the birthplace of Lithuanian poet Jonas Aistis) is now under the waters of the artificia ...
.
In 2015, ''Kauno autobusai'' bought four
Van Hool AGG300
The Van Hool AGG300 is a 25-metre long bi-articulated bus produced by Van Hool NV at their Belgian facility in Koningshooikt.
In the 1990s two prototypes were built, one of these vehicles still remains in service in Liège, and the other (ex- ...
to serve the mostly populated 37th route. These are the longest buses used in the
Baltic states
The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, ...
. The bus station in Kaunas underwent reconstruction for six months and reopened on 23 January 2017. It is the largest and most modern bus station in Lithuania. In 2017, ''Kauno autobusai'' began planning to cardinally upgrade the trolleybuses and buses park till the end of 2019. The new Mercedes-Benz minibuses were introduced on 2 September 2019. The first new trolleybuses Škoda 26Tr Solaris were publicly introduced on 30 September 2019. In November 2019, ''Kauno autobusai'' signed a contract for 100 new model units of
MAN Lion's City
The MAN Lion's City is a range of low-floor and low-entry public buses built by German truck and bus manufacturer MAN Truck & Bus (previously MAN Nutzfahrzeuge) since 1996 primarily for the European market, but is also available in chassis-on ...
12
hybrid electric bus
A hybrid electric bus is a bus that combines a conventional internal combustion engine propulsion system with an electric propulsion system. These type of buses normally use a Diesel-electric powertrain and are also known as hybrid Diesel-elect ...
es, which replaced over half of city's old buses.
Kaunas public transport has a
mobile app
A mobile application or app is a computer program or software application designed to run on a mobile device such as a phone, tablet, or watch. Mobile applications often stand in contrast to desktop applications which are designed to run on d ...
''Žiogas'' ( en, Grasshopper) which allow to purchase and activate digital tickets using a
smartphone
A smartphone is a portable computer device that combines mobile telephone and computing functions into one unit. They are distinguished from feature phones by their stronger hardware capabilities and extensive mobile operating systems, whic ...
.
After reaching the E-ticket card's monthly fee (28 Eur), the remaining trips are free of charge until the end of the month.
Kaunas has two funiculars:
Žaliakalnis Funicular and
Aleksotas Funicular
Aleksotas Funicular ( lt, Aleksoto funikulierius) is a funicular railway located in Aleksotas elderate of Kaunas, Lithuania. The funicular constructed on the right bank of the Nemunas River was officially opened on 6 December 1935. The track of th ...
. Both are from 1930s.
Aleksotas Funicular
Aleksotas Funicular ( lt, Aleksoto funikulierius) is a funicular railway located in Aleksotas elderate of Kaunas, Lithuania. The funicular constructed on the right bank of the Nemunas River was officially opened on 6 December 1935. The track of th ...
works every day from 7am to 7pm (a break from 12pm to 1pm).
Žaliakalnis Funicular works from Monday to Friday from 8am to 5pm
Sports
![Žalgiris Arena interior 18 Aug 2011](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c1/%C5%BDalgiris_Arena_interior_18_Aug_2011.jpg)
Sports in Kaunas have a long and distinguished history. The city is home to a few historic clubs such as: LFLS Kaunas, LFLS Kaunas football club (est. 1920), LFLS Kaunas baseball club (est. 1922), Granitas Kaunas (handball club, EHF European League, EHF Cup champions in 1987), Žalgiris basketball club (est. 1944, EuroLeague champions in 1999).
Kaunas is home to some historic venues such as: the main stadium of the city—S.Dariaus ir S.Girėno Stadium, S.Dariaus ir S.Girėno Sporto Centras (total capacity after renovation 15,315), which is also the home stadium for soccer clubs from Kaunas and the Lithuanian national football team established in 1923, and
Kaunas Sports Hall
Kaunas Sports Hall ( lt, Kauno sporto halė), also known as the S. Darius and S. Girėnas Hall is the second largest arena of Kaunas, Lithuania. It is the first arena built in the residential Žaliakalnis neighbourhood of Kaunas specially for ...
, completed in 1939 for the Eurobasket 1939, Third European Basketball Championship. S.Dariaus and S.Girėno Stadium is also used as the only large athletics (sport), athletics stadium in Lithuania.
Ice hockey was first played in Lithuania in 1922. The first Lithuania Hockey League, Lithuanian ice hockey championship composed of four teams (LFLS, KSK, Kovas, and Macabi) was held in Kaunas, in 1926.
In July 1938 Kaunas, together with
Klaipėda
Klaipėda (; ; german: Memel; pl, Kłajpeda; russian: Клайпеда; sgs, Klaipieda) is a city in Lithuania on the Baltic Sea coast. The capital of the eponymous county, it is the third largest city and the only major seaport in Lithuan ...
(where sailing and rowing competitions were held), hosted the Lithuanian National Olympiad that gathered the Lithuanian athletes from all around the world.
The university status Lithuanian Academy of Physical Education, founded during the Interwar period, is the only state-supported institution of tertiary physical education in Lithuania. The National Football Academy of Lithuania, National Football Academy—the national centre for the training of the best Lithuanian young players of association football, football was established in Kaunas in 2006.
BC Žalgiris is based in Kaunas. Žalgiris is considered as one of Europe's strongest basketball clubs and plays in the EuroLeague. Žalgiris plays its home games at
Žalgiris Arena
Žalgiris Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New Town of Kaunas, Lithuania. The arena is located on an island of the Nemunas River. It is the largest indoor arena in the Baltics. The arena's maximum possible seating capacity for basketba ...
, the largest indoor arena in the Baltics. The arena, which aside from sports also hosts concerts, was built in time for the EuroBasket 2011, European Basketball Championship of 2011 and hosted the tournament's EuroBasket 2011 knockout stage, knockout stage. The arena is used to host sports games as well as concerts. The city is also the birthplace or childhood home of many of the country's top basketball stars, among them Arvydas Sabonis, Šarūnas Marčiulionis, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Linas Kleiza, Donatas Motiejūnas and Šarūnas Jasikevičius.
The first golf club "Elnias" in Lithuania was opened in Kaunas in 2000.
Nemuno žiedas is the only in Lithuania motor racing circuit, situated in Kačerginė, a small town near Kaunas.
A yacht club operates in the
Kaunas Reservoir Regional Park
Kauno Marios Regional Park was established in 1992 with the purpose to protect the unique lower landscape of Kaunas Reservoir, its natural ecosystem, and cultural heritage. It covers the total of 101.73 km² (water - 51.45 km², forests ...
.
A round of the UIM F2 World Championship is held by the site of the old Kaunas Lagoon pier every year. The powerboat race is organised by Edgaras Riabko who also competes in the event.
Kaunas was one of the host cities for the 2020 FIFA Futsal World Cup.
Education
![Kauno klinikos 2006 07 23](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/eb/Kauno_klinikos_2006_07_23.jpg)
Kaunas is often referred to as a city of students; there are about 50,000 students enrolled in its University, universities. The first parochial school in Kaunas was mentioned in 1473. A four-form Society of Jesus, Jesuit school was opened in Kaunas in 1649. It was reorganized into a college in 1653.
The oldest still functioning institution of higher education is Kaunas Priest Seminary, established in 1864.
Other institutes of higher education are:
*
Vytautas Magnus University
Vytautas Magnus University (VMU) ( lt, Vytauto Didžiojo universitetas (VDU)) is a public university in Kaunas, Lithuania. The university was founded in 1922 during the interwar period as an alternate national university.
Initially it was known ...
founded in 1922 as the University of Lithuania and renamed Vytautas Magnus in 1930.
* Kaunas University of Applied Sciences (''Kaunas College'')
*
Lithuanian University of Health Sciences
Lithuanian University of Health Sciences ( lt, Lietuvos sveikatos mokslų universitetas, LSMU) is a medical school in Kaunas, Lithuania. The present-day Lithuanian University of Health Sciences is a consolidation of two institutions of higher educ ...
*
Kaunas University of Technology
Kaunas University of Technology (abbreviated as KTU, ) is a public research university located in Kaunas, Lithuania. Established in 1922, KTU has been one of the top centers of Lithuanian science education. According to Lithuanian National Univ ...
– the largest technical university in the Baltic States
*
Lithuanian Sports University
Lithuanian Sports University or LSU is a university in Kaunas, Lithuania, specializing in sports, physical activities, and physiology. It is headquartered in Žaliakalnis neighbourhood, in close proximity to the Kaunas Sports Hall and the S. Dar ...
* Aleksandras Stulginskis University
* Vilnius University, Vilnius University Kaunas Faculty
* Mykolas Romeris University, Mykolas Romeris University Faculty of Public Security
* Vilnius Academy of Art Kaunas Faculty of Art
* The Santaka Valley – Integrated Science, Studies and Business Centre (Valley)
Kaunas has also a large number of public and private education in Lithuania, basic and secondary schools, as well as kindergartens and nurseries. Kaunas also has numerous libraries. The most important is the Kaunas County Public Library. It was established as the Central Library of Lithuania in 1919. A part of its collection was transferred to Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania in 1963. Now the Kaunas County Public Library holds more than 2.2 million volumes in its collection and functions as a Legal deposit, depository library of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
Annual events
![Hansos dienos](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/af/Hansos_dienos_.jpg)
Kaunas is best known for the Kaunas Jazz Festival, International Operetta Festival, Photo Art Festival "Kaunas photo" or Pažaislis Music Festival, which usually run from early June until late August each year. The open-air concerts of the historical 49-bell Carillon of Kaunas are held on weekends. Probably the longest established festival is the International Modern Dance Festival, which first ran in 1989.
* Kaziuko mugė, Kaziukas Fair Kaunas fork (beginning of March)
* International open-air "Kaunas Jazz Festival" (April–May)
* Kauno Miesto Diena, Day of Kaunas city (middle of May)
* Pažaislis music festival (June–August)
* Traditional folk music competition Grok, Jurgeli, "Play, Jurgelis" (November)
* Christmas tree lighting (end of November)
Significant depictions in popular culture
* Kaunas is one of the starting towns of Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Lithuania in the turn-based strategy game ''Medieval II: Total War: Kingdoms#Teutonic campaign, Medieval II: Total War: Kingdoms''.
* Some scenes of HBO's miniseries ''Chernobyl (miniseries), Chernobyl'' were filmed in Kaunas.
* HBO's Catherine the Great (miniseries), miniseries ''Catherine the Great'', featuring Helen Mirren, was also filmed in the Pažaislis Monastery in Kaunas.
* The 2018 historical drama film ''Ashes in the Snow'' is partly based in 1941 in Kaunas.
Notable residents
Twin towns – sister cities
Kaunas is Sister city, twinned with:
* Białystok, Poland
* Brescia, Italy
* Brno, Czech Republic
* Cava de' Tirreni, Italy
* Ferrara, Italy
* Grenoble, France
*
Kharkiv
Kharkiv ( uk, wikt:Харків, Ха́рків, ), also known as Kharkov (russian: Харькoв, ), is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine.[Riga
Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...]
, Latvia
* Rishon LeZion, Israel
* San Martín, Buenos Aires, San Martín, Argentina
* Tampere, Finland
* Tartu, Estonia
* Toruń, Poland
* Växjö Municipality, Växjö, Sweden
* Vestfold og Telemark, Norway
* Vestland, Norway
* Wrocław, Poland
* Xiamen, China
* Yaotsu, Gifu, Yaotsu, Japan
Honours
A minor planet 73059 Kaunas, discovered by Lithuanian astronomers Kazimieras Černis and Justas Zdanavičius, in 2002, is named after the city of Kaunas.
See also
*''Das Vort'', defunct newspaper
References
External links
*
*
Tourist Information Centre of Kaunas regionKaunas Travel Guide*
*
{{Authority control
Kaunas,
Capitals of Lithuanian counties
Cities in Lithuania
Cities in Kaunas County
Former national capitals
Holocaust locations in Lithuania
Kovensky Uyezd
Magdeburg rights
Municipalities administrative centres of Lithuania
Municipalities of Kaunas County
Trading posts of the Hanseatic League
Trakai Voivodeship