Polish-Lithuanian War 1920. Polish-Lithuanian War – a question of the future or the past? Excerpt characterizing the Polish-Lithuanian War
Victory for Poland
| Poland (de jure until October 7, 1920; de facto throughout the war) Central Lithuania (from 12 October 1920) |
Lithuania |
Polish-Lithuanian War 1920 - a rarely used designation for the armed conflict between Poland and Lithuania due to territorial disputes over the Vilna region.
During the advance of the Polish army in alliance with Petlyura's units in Ukraine during the Polish-Soviet War, the Soviet government concluded the Moscow Treaty recognizing an independent Lithuanian state (with its capital in Vilnius and vast territories southeast of the city, including Grodno, Oshmyany, Lida) July 12, 1920. On July 14, 1920, the Red Army (3rd Cavalry Corps of G. Guy) reoccupied Vilno, and on July 19, Grodno, but the territories formally transferred to Lithuania were controlled by Soviet military leaders. Only after the evacuation of the red units (August 26) from Vilna did Lithuanian troops enter the city on August 28.
Lithuania recognized the annexation of the Vilna region by Poland only in 1937. On October 10, 1939, after the liquidation of the Polish state, the USSR returned Vilno (part of the Vilna region) to independent Lithuania. In October 1940, the remaining part of the Vilna region and part of the territory of the BSSR were transferred to Lithuania.
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Notes
Excerpt characterizing the Polish-Lithuanian War
- Que diable! [Damn it!] - said the voice of a man who bumped into something.Prince Andrei, looking out of the barn, saw Pierre approaching him, who tripped on a lying pole and almost fell. It was generally unpleasant for Prince Andrei to see people from his world, especially Pierre, who reminded him of all those difficult moments that he experienced on his last visit to Moscow.
- That's how! - he said. - What destinies? I didn't wait.
While he was saying this, in his eyes and the expression of his whole face there was more than dryness - there was hostility, which Pierre immediately noticed. He approached the barn in the most animated state of mind, but when he saw the expression on Prince Andrei’s face, he felt constrained and awkward.
“I arrived... so... you know... I arrived... I’m interested,” said Pierre, who had already senselessly repeated this word “interesting” so many times that day. “I wanted to see the battle.”
- Yes, yes, what do the Masonic brothers say about the war? How to prevent it? - said Prince Andrei mockingly. - Well, what about Moscow? What are mine? Have you finally arrived in Moscow? – he asked seriously.
- We've arrived. Julie Drubetskaya told me. I went to see them and didn’t find them. They left for the Moscow region.
The officers wanted to take their leave, but Prince Andrei, as if not wanting to remain face to face with his friend, invited them to sit and drink tea. Benches and tea were served. The officers, not without surprise, looked at the thick, huge figure of Pierre and listened to his stories about Moscow and the disposition of our troops, which he managed to travel around. Prince Andrei was silent, and his face was so unpleasant that Pierre addressed himself more to the good-natured battalion commander Timokhin than to Bolkonsky.
- So, did you understand the entire disposition of the troops? - Prince Andrei interrupted him.
- Yes, that is, how? - said Pierre. “As a non-military person, I can’t say that I completely, but I still understood the general arrangement.”
“Eh bien, vous etes plus avance que qui cela soit, [Well, you know more than anyone else.],” said Prince Andrei.
- A! - Pierre said in bewilderment, looking through his glasses at Prince Andrei. - Well, what do you say about the appointment of Kutuzov? - he said.
“I was very happy about this appointment, that’s all I know,” said Prince Andrei.
- Well, tell me, what is your opinion about Barclay de Tolly? In Moscow, God knows what they said about him. How do you judge him?
“Ask them,” said Prince Andrei, pointing to the officers.
Pierre looked at him with a condescendingly questioning smile, with which everyone involuntarily turned to Timokhin.
“They saw the light, your Excellency, as your Serene Highness did,” Timokhin said, timidly and constantly looking back at his regimental commander.
- Why is this so? asked Pierre.
- Yes, at least about firewood or feed, I’ll report to you. After all, we were retreating from the Sventsyans, don’t you dare touch a twig, or some hay, or anything. After all, we are leaving, he gets it, isn’t it, your Excellency? - he turned to his prince, - don’t you dare. In our regiment, two officers were put on trial for such matters. Well, as His Serene Highness did, it just became so about this. We saw the light...
- So why did he forbid it?
Timokhin looked around in confusion, not understanding how or what to answer such a question. Pierre turned to Prince Andrei with the same question.
“And so as not to ruin the region that we left to the enemy,” said Prince Andrei with malicious mockery. – This is very thorough; The region must not be allowed to be plundered and the troops must not be accustomed to looting. Well, in Smolensk, he also correctly judged that the French could get around us and that they had more forces. But he couldn’t understand,” Prince Andrei suddenly shouted in a thin voice, as if breaking out, “but he couldn’t understand that we fought there for the first time for Russian land, that there was such a spirit in the troops that I had never seen, that We fought off the French for two days in a row and that this success increased our strength tenfold. He ordered a retreat, and all efforts and losses were in vain. He didn’t think about betrayal, he tried to do everything as best as possible, he thought it over; but that’s why it’s no good. He is no good now precisely because he thinks everything over very thoroughly and carefully, as every German should. How can I tell you... Well, your father has a German footman, and he is an excellent footman and will satisfy all his needs better than you, and let him serve; but if your father is sick at the point of death, you will drive away the footman and with your unusual, clumsy hands you will begin to follow your father and calm him down better than a skilled but stranger. That's what they did with Barclay. While Russia was healthy, a stranger could serve her, and she had an excellent minister, but as soon as she was in danger; I need my own, dear person. And in your club they made up the idea that he was a traitor! The only thing they will do by slandering him as a traitor is that later, ashamed of their false accusation, they will suddenly turn the traitors into a hero or a genius, which will be even more unfair. He is an honest and very neat German...
Polish-Lithuanian War (1920)
Polish-Lithuanian War 1920 - a rarely used designation for the armed conflict between Poland and Lithuania due to territorial disputes over the Vilna region.
During the advance of the Polish army in alliance with Petliura's units in Ukraine during the Soviet-Polish War, the Soviet government concluded the Moscow Treaty recognizing the independent Lithuanian state (with its capital in Vilnius and vast territories southeast of the city, including Grodno, Oshmyany, Lida) July 12, 1920. On July 14, 1920, the Red Army (3rd Cavalry Corps of G. Guy) reoccupied Vilna, and on July 19, Grodno, but the territories formally transferred to Lithuania were controlled by Soviet military leaders. Only after the evacuation of the red units (August 26) from Vilna did Lithuanian troops enter the city on August 28.
However, already on September 22, Polish troops launched a new offensive. In some places, clashes between Polish and Lithuanian units occurred after Polish units crossed the Neman River in the Druskininkai area and occupied the city of Grodno on September 25. To prevent further clashes, under pressure from the military control commission of the League of Nations, on October 7, 1920, an agreement was signed in the city of Suwalki, which provided for the cessation of hostilities, the exchange of prisoners and a demarcation line delimiting Lithuanian and Polish territories in such a way that most of the Vilna region was under the control of Lithuania .
The treaty was to come into force on October 10, 1920. But the day before, October 9, Polish troops of the 1st Lithuanian-Belarusian division of General Lucian Zheligowski occupied Vilna. On October 12, Zheligovsky proclaimed himself the supreme ruler of the state “Central Lithuania” he created (pending elections to the body authorized to decide the fate of the region). At the request of the League of Nations, hostilities ceased after the battles of Giedroytsy (November 19) and Shirvint (November 21).
According to the resolution of the Vilna Sejm, formed by elections on January 8, 1922, adopted on February 20, 1922, and the Act of Reunification of the Vilna Region, adopted by the Constituent Sejm in Warsaw on March 22, 1922, the Vilna Region unilaterally became part of Poland.
Lithuania recognized the annexation of the Vilna region by Poland only in 1937. On October 10, 1939, after the liquidation of the Polish state, the USSR returned Vilna (part of the Vilna region) to independent Lithuania. In October 1940, the remaining part of the Vilna region, + part of the territory of the BSSR, was transferred to Lithuania.
Bibliography:
1. “On October 7, 1920, in Suwalki, authorized delegations of Lithuania and Poland signed an armistice agreement, which was to begin on October 10. The agreement stipulated the demarcation line between the two states, according to which Vilnius was transferred to Lithuania. But on the eve of the entry into force of the agreement, the Polish general Lucian Zheligowski, staging a revolt of Polish soldiers and residents of the Vilnius region, occupied Vilnius with a sharp attack and created the state of Central Lithuania here.” Thomas CIVAS, Aras LUKSAS The agreement that brought disappointment to Veidas, July 18, 2007, Lithuania
Polish-Lithuanian War (1920)
Polish-Lithuanian War 1920 - a rarely used designation for the armed conflict between Poland and Lithuania due to territorial disputes over the Vilna region.
During the advance of the Polish army in alliance with Petliura's units in Ukraine during the Soviet-Polish War, the Soviet government concluded the Moscow Treaty recognizing the independent Lithuanian state (with its capital in Vilnius and vast territories southeast of the city, including Grodno, Oshmyany, Lida) July 12, 1920. On July 14, 1920, the Red Army (3rd Cavalry Corps of G. Guy) reoccupied Vilna, and on July 19, Grodno, but the territories formally transferred to Lithuania were controlled by Soviet military leaders. Only after the evacuation of the red units (August 26) from Vilna did Lithuanian troops enter the city on August 28.
However, already on September 22, Polish troops launched a new offensive. In some places, clashes between Polish and Lithuanian units occurred after Polish units crossed the Neman River in the Druskininkai area and occupied the city of Grodno on September 25. To prevent further clashes, under pressure from the military control commission of the League of Nations, on October 7, 1920, an agreement was signed in the city of Suwalki, which provided for the cessation of hostilities, the exchange of prisoners and a demarcation line delimiting Lithuanian and Polish territories in such a way that most of the Vilna region was under the control of Lithuania .
The treaty was to come into force on October 10, 1920. But the day before, October 9, Polish troops of the 1st Lithuanian-Belarusian division of General Lucian Zheligowski occupied Vilna. On October 12, Zheligovsky proclaimed himself the supreme ruler of the state “Central Lithuania” he created (pending elections to the body authorized to decide the fate of the region). At the request of the League of Nations, hostilities ceased after the battles of Giedroytsy (November 19) and Shirvint (November 21).
According to the resolution of the Vilna Sejm, formed by elections on January 8, 1922, adopted on February 20, 1922, and the Act of Reunification of the Vilna Region, adopted by the Constituent Sejm in Warsaw on March 22, 1922, the Vilna Region unilaterally became part of Poland.
Lithuania recognized the annexation of the Vilna region by Poland only in 1937. On October 10, 1939, after the liquidation of the Polish state, the USSR returned Vilna (part of the Vilna region) to independent Lithuania. In October 1940, the remaining part of the Vilna region, + part of the territory of the BSSR, was transferred to Lithuania.
Bibliography:
1. “On October 7, 1920, in Suwalki, authorized delegations of Lithuania and Poland signed an armistice agreement, which was to begin on October 10. The agreement stipulated the demarcation line between the two states, according to which Vilnius was transferred to Lithuania. But on the eve of the entry into force of the agreement, the Polish general Lucian Zheligowski, staging a revolt of Polish soldiers and residents of the Vilnius region, occupied Vilnius with a sharp attack and created the state of Central Lithuania here.” Thomas CIVAS, Aras LUKSAS The agreement that brought disappointment to Veidas, July 18, 2007, Lithuania
The Soviet-Polish war, paradoxically, created favorable conditions for the normalization of relations between Russia and Lithuania. After the fall of the Lithuanian-Belarusian Republic, these relations remained strained. But distrust of Poland brought Moscow and Kaunas closer together, and Russia’s military victories on the Polish front made them think about the possibility of using the Bolshevik armed forces to expel Polish troops from the territory of the Vilna region, where they were introduced in the spring of 1919, despite the protests of Lithuania and the objections of the Entente.
Soviet-Lithuanian negotiations began in May 1920 and ended on July 12 of the same year with the signing of a peace treaty. Soviet Russia recognized the independence of the Lithuanian state and renounced all rights to its territory. The agreement avoided the issue of Lithuania's western borders. But it was stipulated that both sides proceed from the need to define the border between Lithuania and Poland in the future. At the same time, Russia, at the proposal of the Lithuanian side, recognized Vilna, Vilna district and a number of other territories occupied by that time by Polish troops as part of Lithuania.
By a special protocol to the treaty with the RSFSR, Lithuania granted Russia the right to conduct military operations against Poland in territories that, according to the treaty, were recognized as Lithuanian, but were occupied by Polish troops, “with the condition, however, that once the military-strategic need had passed, Russian troops would be withdrawn from the designated areas.” territories". Thus, Soviet Russia unexpectedly found itself in a very peculiar relationship of quasi-alliance with the Lithuanian state against Poland.
During the fighting against Poland, Soviet troops actually drove the Poles out of Vilna and the surrounding area. On August 24, they evacuated the Vilna region, giving way to the Lithuanian army. Now, however, the possibility of a Polish-Lithuanian war arose, since Warsaw was not going to accept the loss of Vilna. On September 22, 1920, the Polish-Lithuanian war really began. It lasted until October 7, 1920, when a temporary truce was signed in Suwalki based on the status quo and demarcation between the positions of Lithuanian and Polish troops at the time of signing the document. Vilna thus remained with Lithuania. But the terms of the truce were observed for exactly two days.
On October 9, General Zeligovski, formally without Pilsudski’s order, led a detachment of volunteers to raid deep into Lithuanian positions and again drove Lithuanian forces out of the Vilna region. On October 12, 1920, the puppet state “Central Lithuania” was proclaimed on the occupied territory, which included Vilna, Trakai, Oshmyany and Svetsyansky districts.
Neither Lithuania nor the Entente countries agreed with this. It was decided to return to the issue of Vilna and hold a plebiscite to determine the fate of the region. A plebiscite was held on January 8, 1922, and on its basis the Vilna region was transferred to Poland. However, Lithuania disputed the results of the vote and refused to recognize its results. The state of war between Lithuania and Poland legally remained until December 10, 1927.
At the end of the NATO summit in Wales, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius said that secret documents had been agreed upon, providing for the deployment of arms and military equipment in the country and a contingent of the Alliance's allied countries without restrictions. However, why do Poles have mixed feelings about this news?
The answer lies in the long-standing mutual hostility and enmity of the two countries - Poland and Lithuania, as well as mutual claims to the lands of their neighbor. Thus, the Lithuanians demand the return of the city of Sejny and its environs, lost in the 20s of the last century, and the Poles lay claim to the Vilnius region, where today more than 60% of citizens of Polish nationality live.
Here, for example, is what the Polish media say.
“In the name of unilateral anti-Russian solidarity in the name of Ukraine, Poland forgot about its commitment to the Poles living in Lithuania and about the standards in the field of the rights of national minorities guaranteed by the European Union,” this opinion was expressed by Polish publicist Rafal Zemkiewicz on the pages of the Do Rzeczy publication. According to him, “the Polish minority in Lithuania is clearly persecuted, and in Lithuanian foreign policy it is difficult to recognize any sign of gratitude for many years of Polish concern.”
Therefore, naturally, the growth of the military component in a neighboring state (albeit an ally in the NATO and EU bloc), which has made the oppression of the Polish minority a state policy, raises obvious fears of the possible outbreak of another conflict like the Ukrainian one.
This is especially important to remember in early September, when Vilnius celebrates City Day - the day of liberation from Polish invaders.
Then, in the fall of 1939, the residents of Vilnius rejoiced, welcoming the entry of Lithuanian soldiers into the city. Lithuanian leader Atanas Smetona wrote: “...thanks to the Soviet Union and the Red Army, historical justice was restored - Vilnius was liberated from the Poles, finally reunited with Lithuania and again became its capital.”
However, this was preceded by a bloody war, which went down in history as the Polish-Lithuanian war.
And for Lithuanians, September is associated not only with a joyful event - the return of the capital, but also with the loss of part of their territories. In 2014, it was 95 years since the end of the Polish-Lithuanian conflict, as a result of which the border town of Sejny and the adjacent territories were recaptured from the Lithuanians. This event, which occurred in September 1919, is the subject of an article by Polish historian Adam Grzeszak, published in the weekly Polityka.
Located in the north-east of present-day Poland (modern Podlaskie Voivodeship), the city of Sejny was inhabited mostly by Lithuanians, but in 1919, when German occupation forces began to withdraw from these territories, the new authorities in Warsaw, led by Józef Pilsudski, decided to recapture the city from Lithuania and annex it to Poland.
Meanwhile, for Lithuania, Sejny was a symbolic city, and not just a geographical point on the map. “Sejny is an outstanding place for Lithuanians. It was there and in Kaunas that the Lithuanian national movement was born at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th,” writes the Polish historian. In the city there was a Lithuanian Catholic seminary, the graduates of which for the first time dared to conduct services in their churches not in Polish, but in Lithuanian.
In order not to attract too much attention to the annexation of the city, it was decided to occupy the city with the forces of the semi-regular Polish Military Organization (POW) - a structure specifically created for sabotage actions in territories that the country's leadership considered “occupied”.
The separation of this territory from Lithuania led to the fact that until the outbreak of World War II, relations between the two neighboring states could be defined as a “cold war,” writes A. Grzeszak.
Currently, in Sejny, taking into account assimilation, Lithuanians make up only 8% of the residents, but their relations with local Poles can hardly be called good. Analyzing the current situation in Sejny and its environs, Adam Grzeszak concludes that there are still “two different histories” there – Polish and Lithuanian, and “in the Polish version there is no place for Lithuanians, and in the Lithuanian version there are no Poles” .
It should be added that not so long ago, on the Internet, on the social network Facebook, Lithuanian programmers developed and implemented a strategy game "Lithuania needs your help in the war", where gamers liberate the country from the Poles, killing the latter.
As they say, learning is hard, but battle is easy...
Unfortunately, the forecasts are disappointing. The unjustified militarization of Lithuania through NATO donor countries could play a cruel joke on the issue of Warsaw-Vilnius relations. Alliance strategists clearly did not foresee this scenario, filling the Baltic region with decommissioned armored personnel carriers and tanks.