Marcelė Kubiliūtė (July 28, 1898, Tindžiuliai, now in

Rokiškis district municipality Rokiškis District Municipality is one of 60 municipalities in Lithuania. Structure District structure: * 3 cities – Obeliai, Pandėlys and Rokiškis; * 9 towns – Čedasai, Duokiškis, Juodupė, Jūžintai, Kamajai, Panemunėlis, P ...

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 ...

– June 13, 1963,

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 a

n public figure, active in press, education and military areas. She is the only Lithuanian woman awarded all major Lithuanian orders. After the second Soviet occupation of Lithuania in 1944, Kubiliūtė remained working in a library. On August 17, 1944 she was arrested by

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. ...

. For nine months, she was continuously interrogated, held in 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 ...

cellars starving. Later she was transferred to

Lukiškės Prison Lukiškės Prison ( lt, Lukiškių tardymo izoliatorius kalėjimas; pl, Więzienie na Łukiszkach or simply ''Łukiszki''; be, Лукішкі) was a prison in the center of Vilnius, Lithuania, near the Lukiškės Square. Construction Backg ...

. On July 7, 1946,

Special Council of the NKVD Special Council of the USSR NKVD (Особое совещание при НКВД СССР, ОСО) was created by the same decree of Sovnarkom of July 10, 1934 that introduced the NKVD itself. By the decree, the Special Council was endowed with th ...

sentenced her to 5 years in exile. Till 1949 she lived in exile in

Tyumen Tyumen ( ; rus, Тюмень, p=tʲʉˈmʲenʲ, a=Ru-Tyumen.ogg) is the administrative center and largest city of Tyumen Oblast, Russia. It is situated just east of the Ural Mountains, along the Tura River. Fueled by the Russian oil and gas indu ...

, later in

Akmola Region Akmola Region ( kz, Ақмола облысы, translit=Aqmola oblysy; russian: Акмолинская область, Akmolinskaya oblast) is a centrally located region of Kazakhstan. Its capital is Kokshetau. The national capital, Astana, is en ...

. After the expiration of the time of exile on September 30, Kubiliūtė departed to Lithuania where she was sheltered by

Jonas Biliūnas Jonas Biliūnas (11 April 1879 – 8 December 1907) was a Lithuanian writer, poet, and a significant contributor to the national awakening of Lithuania in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Biography Early life Biliūnas was born near A ...

' widow, Julija Biliūnienė. However, the

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

acquired in exile has undermined health. Kubiliūtė was buried in the

Rasos Cemetery Rasos Cemetery ( lt, Rasų kapinės, pl, cmentarz Na Rossie, be, Могілкі Росы) is the oldest and most famous cemetery in the city of Vilnius, Lithuania. It is named after the Rasos district where it is located. It is separated in ...

next to the Lithuanian volunteers, whom she herself with her friend Elžbieta Matulionytė buried in 1920.

Decorations

*1928: Grand Cross of Commander of the

Order of the Cross of Vytis The Order of the Cross of Vytis ( lt, Vyčio Kryžiaus ordinas) is a Lithuanian presidential award conferred for heroic defence of Lithuania's freedom and independence. November 23 is a holiday in honour of the Order of the Cross of Vytis. His ...

of second degree *1928: Officer's Cross of the

Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas The Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas is the Lithuanian Presidential Award which was re-instituted to honour the citizens of Lithuania for outstanding performance in civil and public offices. Foreign nationals may also be awarded this O ...

*1930: Knight's Cross of the

Order of Vytautas the Great The Order of Vytautas the Great is the Lithuanian Presidential Award.''Lietuvos Respublikos Konstitucija. 84 straipsnis''. Priimta 1992 It may be conferred on the heads of Lithuania and foreign states, as well as their citizens, for distinguished ...

*1938: Commander's Cross of the Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas

References

*"Dek, širdie, ant amžinojo aukuro...": Marcelės Kubiliūtės 100-sioms gimimo metinėms (1898 07 28 – 1963 06 13) paminėti, ed. Nastazija Kairiūkštytė,

Lithuanian Institute of History The Lithuanian Institute of History ( lt, Lietuvos istorijos institutas) is a state-funded research institution in Lithuania. Governed by national law, it is the country's main institution of history research, concentrating mostly on the history of ...

, Vilnius, 1999 1898 births 1963 deaths Commander's Crosses of the Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas Recipients of the Order of Vytautas the Great Commander's Grand Crosses of the Order of the Cross of Vytis Lithuanian activists Lithuanian educators Lithuanian journalists Lithuanian military personnel 20th-century journalists Burials at Rasos Cemetery {{lithuania-politician-stub