Stanislovas Feliksas Didžiulis (1850–1927) was a Lithuanian bibliophile and book collector. His collection is estimated at 1,000 titles which made it the largest collection of Lithuanian and Lithuania-related books during the

Lithuanian press ban The Lithuanian press ban () was a ban on all Lithuanian language publications printed in the Latin alphabet, in force from 1865 to 1904, within the Russian Empire, which controlled Lithuania proper at the time. Lithuanian-language publications t ...

. The only son of local

Lithuanian nobles The Lithuanian nobility () or ''szlachta'' of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (, ) was historically a legally privileged hereditary elite class in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth (including during period of foreign r ...

, Didžiulis received only partial high school education at the

Panevėžys Gymnasium Panevėžys () is the fifth-largest List of cities in Lithuania, city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, eighth-most-populous city in the Baltic States. it occupies with 89,100 inhabitants. As defined by Eu ...

before it was closed after the failed

Uprising of 1863 The January Uprising was an insurrection principally in Russia's Kingdom of Poland that was aimed at putting an end to Russian occupation of part of Poland and regaining independence. It began on 22 January 1863 and continued until the last in ...

. He became passionate about collecting Lithuanian books even though post-1864 books were illegal in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

. He supported

Lithuanian book smugglers Lithuanian book smugglers or Lithuanian book carriers (, singular: ) smuggled Lithuanian language books printed in the Latin alphabet into Lithuanian-speaking areas of the Russian Empire, defying a ban on such materials in force from 1864 to 1 ...

and worked with the Garšviai Book Smuggling Society to hide and distribute the prohibited books. He spent considerable time and effort tracking down old and rare Lithuanian books, corresponding with various activists and bibliophiles, and purchasing books from

Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

. Since there were no Lithuanian libraries, Didžiulis' collection was used by various Lithuanian activists and researchers as an informal library. For his support of the

Russian Revolution of 1905 The Russian Revolution of 1905, also known as the First Russian Revolution, was a revolution in the Russian Empire which began on 22 January 1905 and led to the establishment of a constitutional monarchy under the Russian Constitution of 1906, t ...

and participation in the activities of the

Social Democratic Party of Lithuania The Social Democratic Party of Lithuania (, LSDP) is a centre-left and social democratic political party in Lithuania. Founded as an underground Marxist organisation in 1896, it is the oldest extant party in Lithuania. During the time of the ...

, Didžiulis and his son Antanas were sentenced to lifetime deportation to Siberia. An ailing old man, he was released after the

February Revolution The February Revolution (), known in Soviet historiography as the February Bourgeois Democratic Revolution and sometimes as the March Revolution or February Coup was the first of Russian Revolution, two revolutions which took place in Russia ...

in 1917. He lived with his family in

Yalta Yalta (: ) is a resort town, resort city on the south coast of the Crimean Peninsula surrounded by the Black Sea. It serves as the administrative center of Yalta Municipality, one of the regions within Crimea. Yalta, along with the rest of Crime ...

before returning to his native in 1924 where he died in 1927. Majority of Didžiulis' book collection was acquired by the

University of Lithuania Vytautas Magnus University (VMU) (, VDU) is a public university in Kaunas, Lithuania. The university was founded in 1922 during the Polish–Lithuanian War, interwar period as an alternate national university. Initially it was known as the Univ ...

and

Vaclovas Biržiška Vaclovas Biržiška (2 December 1884 – 3 January 1956) was a Lithuanian attorney, bibliographer, and educator. He was a member of a notable Lithuanian family; his great-grandfather Mykolas Biržiška was a representative in the Sejm of the Pol ...

. After World War II, the books were divided among various Lithuanian institutions with

Vilnius University Library Vilnius University Library or VU Library (also ''VUL'') is the oldest and one of the largest academic libraries of Lithuania. It was founded in 1570 by the Jesuits and as such is nine years older than Vilnius University. VU Library holds 5.4 mil ...

received the largest portion of 230 books. A reconstructed catalog of the collection was published in 2004 and included 548 Lithuanian language works. This number includes about ten books that are the only known surviving copies.

Biography

Early life

Stanislovas Didziulis ir Liudvika Didziuliene

Didžiulis was born on in near

Andrioniškis Andrioniškis is a town in Anykščiai District Municipality, in Utena County, in northeast Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on ...

in the present-day

Anykščiai District Municipality Anykščiai (; see #Name, other names) is a ski resort city in Lithuania, west of Utena, Lithuania, Utena. The Roman Catholic Church of St. Matthias in Anykščiai is the tallest church in Lithuania, with spires measuring in height. Anykščia ...

. He was the only child of a local family of

that owned about of land. He completed three classes at the

before it was closed after the failed

. He was then educated privately by Antanas Viskantas, priest in Andrioniškis, who shared his interest in books with Didžiulis and encouraged him to start a personal library. Didžiulis later established contacts with other priests from

Anykščiai Anykščiai (; see #Name, other names) is a ski resort city in Lithuania, west of Utena, Lithuania, Utena. The Roman Catholic Church of St. Matthias in Anykščiai is the tallest church in Lithuania, with spires measuring in height. Anykščia ...

area, including future bishops Antanas Karosas and

Antanas Baranauskas Antanas Baranauskas (; 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 '' Anykščių šilelis''. He used various pen names ...

. His ex libris reflected his changing identity: earliest books are marked with his full Polonized initial S. F. G. O. D. (Stanisław Feliks Giedgowt Oszmiański Dydziul) while later books were marked only with S. D. (Stanislovas Didžiulis). Didžiulis inherited the manor in Griežionėlės after his father's death in 1874. In 1877, he married Liudvika Nitaitė who later became known as a writer and an activist. They had a total of nine children – five daughters and three sons grew to adulthood while one son died in infancy – but their marriage was not happy. While their shared their interest in

Lithuanian language Lithuanian (, ) is an East Baltic languages, East Baltic language belonging to the Baltic languages, Baltic branch of the Indo-European language family. It is the language of Lithuanians and the official language of Lithuania as well as one of t ...

and

culture Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...

, Didžiulis had several lovers and was stubborn even despotic. In 1896, Didžiulienė moved to Mitau (

Jelgava Jelgava () is a state city in central Latvia. It is located about southwest of Riga. It is the largest town in the Semigallia region of Latvia. Jelgava was the capital of the united Duchy of Courland and Semigallia (1578–1795) and was the ad ...

) in present-day Latvia.

Activist and deportation

Liudvika Didziuliene with husband and granddaughter

Around 1875, Didžiulis became interested in

Lithuanian folklore Lithuanian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Lithuania, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe ** Lithuanian language ** Lithuanians, a Baltic ethnic group, native to Lithuania and the immediate geographical region ** L ...

, particularly in

Lithuanian folk songs Lithuanian folk songs (in Lithuanian: ) are often noted for not only their mythological content but also their relating historical events. Lithuanian folk music includes romantic songs, wedding songs, as well as work songs and archaic war s ...

. Some of the collected material was published in ''Tauta ir žodis'' in 1926. Later, Didžiulis helped hide and distribute the banned Lithuanian publications. He purchased 20 copies of each ''

Aušra ''Aušra'' or ''Auszra'' (literally: ''dawn'') was the first national Lithuanian newspaper. The first issue was published in 1883, in Ragnit, East Prussia, Germany (newspaper credited it as ) East Prussia's ethnolinguistic part - Lithuania Mi ...

'' issue and distributed them in the area. He contributed articles to ''Aušra'', ''

Žemaičių ir Lietuvos apžvalga ''Žemaičių ir Lietuvos apžvalga'' (literally: ''Samogitian and Lithuanian Review'', original spelling: ''Żemajczių ir Lietuwos Apżwałga''), often abbreviated as , was a Lithuanian-language Catholic newspaper published in Tilsit, East Pru ...

'', ''

Varpas ''Varpas'' (literally: ''The Bell'') was a monthly Lithuanian-language newspaper published during the Lithuanian press ban from January 1889 to December 1905. Because its publication was illegal in Lithuania, then part of the Russian Empire, it w ...

''. He also worked with the Garšviai Book Smuggling Society (active in 1885–1895). Didžiulis was a member of the

Lithuanian Literary Society The Lithuanian Literary Society () was a literary society dedicated to the Lithuanian language that was active from 1879 to about 1923 in Tilsit, East Prussia (now Sovetsk, Kaliningrad Oblast). It was the first scientific society dedicated to Lithua ...

East Prussia East Prussia was a Provinces of Prussia, province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1772 to 1829 and again from 1878 (with the Kingdom itself being part of the German Empire from 1871); following World War I it formed part of the Weimar Republic's ...

and supported the Lithuanian and Samogitian Charitable Society in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

. In summer, their house was visited by various Lithuanian activists, including

Jonas Jablonskis Jonas Jablonskis (; 30 December 1860, in Kubilėliai, Šakiai district – 23 February 1930, in Kaunas) was a distinguished Lithuanian linguist and one of the founders of the standard Lithuanian language. He used the pseudonym ''Rygiškių Jonas'' ...

, ,

Mečislovas Davainis-Silvestraitis Mečislovas Davainis-Silvestraitis (; 20 April 1849 – 31 May 1919) was a Lithuanian journalist, poet, publicist, folklorist, and Lithuanian book smugglers, book smugler during the Lithuanian National Revival, best known for his collection of Li ...

, Liudvikas Vaineikis. In 1895–1896, he organized several petitions of local peasants to Tsar

Nicholas II of Russia Nicholas II (Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov; 186817 July 1918) or Nikolai II was the last reigning Emperor of Russia, Congress Poland, King of Congress Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland from 1 November 1894 until Abdication of Nicholas II, hi ...

asking to lift the

. Afraid to be charged with a conspiracy, Didžiulis and others collected no more than 15 signatures per petition. When the ban was lifted in 1904, Didžiulis applied for a permit to open a Lithuanian, Polish, and Russian bookstore in Anykščiai but was denied because he was not politically reliable. Didžiulis supported the

and participated in the activities of the

. His house was searched by the Tsarist police in February 1906 which found a

hectograph The hectograph, gelatin duplicator or jellygraph is a printing process that involves transfer of an original, prepared with special inks, to a pan of gelatin or a gelatin pad pulled tight on a metal frame. While the original use of the technol ...

and anti-Tsarist social democratic brochures. Didžiulis and his son Antanas were sentenced to lifetime deportation to

Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...

in May 1908. After their appeals were denied, they were deported to the

Irkutsk Governorate Irkutsk Governorate () was an administrative-territorial unit (''guberniya'') of the Russian Empire, located in Siberia. It existed from 1764 to 1926; its seat was in the city of Irkutsk. Demographics References

Irkutsk Governorate, ...

in April 1909. After a few years, Didžiulis was allowed to move near

Kansk Kansk () is a town in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, located on both banks of the Kan River. Population: History and economy Founded in 1628 as a Russian fort, it was transferred to its current location in 1636 and granted town status in 1782. Th ...

in the

Krasnoyarsk Krai Krasnoyarsk Krai (, ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject (a krai) of Russia located in Siberia. Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Krasnoyarsk, the second-largest city in Siberia after ...

. He was released after the

in 1917 and moved to

Crimea Crimea ( ) is a peninsula in Eastern Europe, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, almost entirely surrounded by the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov. The Isthmus of Perekop connects the peninsula to Kherson Oblast in mainland Ukrain ...

where his wife Liudvika and daughter Vanda lived. He was ill and partially paralyzed and received treatments at local sanatoriums. The family was finally allowed to return to Lithuania in 1924. Didžiulis moved the native Griežionėlės where he died on 19 May 1927. He was buried on a hill in nearby . His tombstone, an oak stump made of cement, was designed by

Bernardas Bučas Bernardas Bučas (1903–1979) was a Lithuanian painter, sculptor, and graphicer. Amongst his works are the statue ''Agriculture'' () on the Green Bridge in Vilnius. See also *List of Lithuanian painters A list of notable Lithuanian artists ...

in 1933.

Book collection

Book collector

Didžiulis started collecting books, especially in Lithuanian or about Lithuania, around 1870 and did so for about 30 years. At the time, due to the

, Lithuanian-language publications printed in the

Latin alphabet The Latin alphabet, also known as the Roman alphabet, is the collection of letters originally used by the Ancient Rome, ancient Romans to write the Latin language. Largely unaltered except several letters splitting—i.e. from , and from � ...

after 1864 were illegal and there was no institution collecting or cataloging Lithuanian books. Didžiulis spent considerable amount of time and effort tracking down old and rare Lithuanian books and corresponding with other bibliophiles, including

Adalbert Bezzenberger Adalbert Bezzenberger (14 April 1851 – 31 October 1922) was a German philologist. He was born at Kassel and died at Königsberg. He is considered to be the founder of Baltic philology.Karol Estreicher, . He developed a closer working relationship with . Didžiulis was a frequent customer of the Zawadzki bookstore in

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

(about 100 books purchased in 1870–1883) and of the bookstore of in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

(about 150 books purchased in 1877–1885). He was also a customer of book and antique stores in

Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...

. He purchased or exchanged books with local Lithuanians. For example, he purchased newer prayer books and exchanged them for older and rarer editions. His interest in books did not diminish after the Lithuanian press ban was lifted in 1904, but his activities were interrupted by the arrest and deportation to Siberia. Even when Didžiulis was deported to Siberia, he continued to care about his collection. He wrote to his family asking them to safeguard the books and ensure that borrowed books were returned. He asked to mail him Lithuanian periodicals and new books so that he could keep up with Lithuanian cultural life.

Troubles with the police

Due to the Lithuanian press ban, Didžiulis had to split his collection into legal and illegal publications. The banned publications were hidden in wall cavity which was concealed by a large cupboard and which has survived to present day. Not discovered during police searches, it is the only surviving original hiding place of Lithuanian book smugglers. In 1884–1885, he petitioned Tsarist authorities for a permit to import books from

without getting each book approved by the Russian censors. He claimed that he was working on a

bibliography Bibliography (from and ), as a discipline, is traditionally the academic study of books as physical, cultural objects; in this sense, it is also known as bibliology (from ). English author and bibliographer John Carter describes ''bibliograph ...

of Lithuanian books from the 16th to the 19th century. Not only his requests were denied, but they also brought attention of the Tsarist police. His home was searched in April and October 1885. The police confiscated about 700 and 164 books, respectively. After several petitions, the books (other than four books prohibited in the Russian Empire) were returned to Didžiulis. This forced Didžiulis to ship publications via more politically reliable friends and acquaintances. His home was searched again in 1905–1906. Once again, the police confiscated books but Didžiulis managed to get them back.

Content and fate of the collection

Didžiulis collection is estimated at 1,000 titles which made it the largest collection of Lithuanian and Lithuania-related books during the Lithuanian press ban. A reconstructed catalog of the collection was published in 2004 and included 548 Lithuanian language works. This number includes about ten books that are the only known surviving copies. Other books included German, Polish, Russian works on Lithuanian language or history. The personal library included other miscellaneous books in other languages (Latvian, Belarusian, French, Latin) and other topics (hygiene, medicine, home economics, fiction) that were of interest to other family members. The collection also included several unpublished manuscripts and handwritten copies of published books. Since there were no Lithuanian libraries, Didžiulis' collection was used by various Lithuanian activists and researchers (including

, Liudas Vaineikis, ,

Jonas Basanavičius Jonas Basanavičius (, ; 23 November 1851 – 16 February 1927) was an activist and proponent of the Lithuanian National Revival. He participated in every major event leading to the independent Lithuanian state and is often given the informal hon ...

, ,

Mykolas Biržiška Mykolas Biržiška (; 24 August 1882, in Viekšniai – 24 August 1962, in Los Angeles), a Lithuanian editor, historian, professor of literature, diplomat, and politician, was one of the twenty signatories of the Act of Independence of Lithuan ...

) as well as local residents. After Lithuania regained independence in 1918, the book collection was cared mostly by Didžiulis' son Vytautas. Working with

, Vytautas sold 323 books at 10

litas The Lithuanian litas (ISO currency code LTL, symbolized as Lt; plural ''litai'' (nominative) or ''litų'' (genitive) was the currency of Lithuania, until 1 January 2015, when it was replaced by the euro. It was divided into 100 centų (geniti ...

per book to the

in 1930. Most other books were acquired by Biržiška for his personal library. When he escaped the advancing Red Army in 1944, the books ended up in the library of Kaunas University. After the university was closed in 1950, the collection was spread out among various institutions, including

(largest set of 230 books),

Kaunas University of Technology The Kaunas University of Technology (abbreviated as KTU, ) is a public university, public research university located in Kaunas, Lithuania. Established in 1922, KTU has been seen as one of Lithuania's top science education centers. In 2021, KTU ...

Kaunas University of Medicine Lithuanian University of Health Sciences (, LSMU) is a medical school in Kaunas, Lithuania. The present-day Lithuanian University of Health Sciences is a consolidation of two institutions of higher education, Kaunas University of Medicine and th ...

, public libraries in Kaunas, and others. A handful of books remained in Griežionėlės and were donated to the

Library of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences The Wroblewski Library of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences () is a major research library in Vilnius, Lithuania. The library was established by Tadeusz Wróblewski in 1912. It became part of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences in 1941. The libr ...

or became part of the memorial museum established in 1968.

Legacy

In 1940,

Vytautas the Great War Museum The Vytautas the Great War Museum () 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 decided to move to a larger location. A ...

erected a wall to commemorate

. Didžiulis was included among the hundred names on the wall. The wall was demolished by the

Soviet authorities The Government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) was the executive and administrative organ of the highest body of state authority, the All-Union Supreme Soviet. It was formed on 30 December 1922 and abolished on 26 December 199 ...

in 1950 but rebuilt in 1997. After several petitions by Didžiulis' family, Soviet authorities established a memorial museum in Griežionėlės in 1968. In 2007, the public library of the

was renamed after Didžiulis and his wife

Liudvika Didžiulienė Liudvika Didžiulienė (1856–1925) also known by her pen name Žmona (wife) was a Lithuanian writer and activist during the Lithuanian National Revival. Having published her first story in 1892, she became the first Lithuanian woman writer. Edu ...

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Didziulis, Stanislovas 1850 births 1927 deaths Lithuanian book smugglers Lithuanian book and manuscript collectors 19th-century Lithuanian nobility 20th-century Lithuanian nobility Internal exiles from the Russian Empire