Neo Westphalian Europe Part 50: Republic of Lithuania

Lithuania is the last of the Baltic States that played such an integral role in the break up of the Soviet Union. Again they surprisingly chose not to learn the lessons against being part of a giant supranational union, like the one the Soviets created, and squandered their newfound freedom by joining the European Union and NATO.

Again the Baltics will probably be a region that realises the mistakes of this move as the European Union unravels. To make progress into a more stable future the world needs to realise it can no longer be trapped in a dualistic view of the world; “Their union is bad, our union is good”. ALL unions are bad, as they inherently destroy the sovereignty of peoples and steal resources back to imperial centres.

The Lithuanian story is similar to the neighbouring countries however it has a longer history of being an independent nation, as it was for a long time the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and was independent of the neighbouring medieval states. Much of its existence saw it in tension and conflicts with the neighbouring Teutonic and Livonian knighthoods. This was because it was one of the last pagan regions to hold out to converting to the Pope, so numerous crusades were launched against it.

Eventually the Lithuanians gave Samogitia to the Knights in exchange for peace and converted. During this time they were even able to expand territorially into Ruthenian regions. A number of centuries of conflict, with Samogitia passing back and forward between the foes, then ensued. During this period the nation also alternated between being Eastern Orthodox and Western Papist. Over time the Western influence lead to increasing ties with Catholic Poland.

Eventually, as Ruthenians became more interested in forming a Russian nation centred in Moscow, this pushed Lithuania into even deeper alliance with Poland for defence. This ended with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, which formed in the 1500’s. This was destroyed, and a large portion of it became part of the Russian Empire, in the 1700’s.

Finally, as with all the Baltics, true independence came in the chaos following the First World War.  After declaring independence in 1918 they were invaded by the Soviets. Their war against the Soviets ended when the Poles invaded them yet again and a Lithuanian Polish war broke out. This finally ended in 1920 in full independence.

World War Two ended this independence and once again they were under Soviet rule. Finally in 1990, as the rest of the Baltics declared independence, Lithuania followed suit. It was a more violent process in Lithuania with several attacks by the Soviets over the next few years. By mid 1991 they were officially free but Soviet troops did not fully withdraw until 1993.

As with the other Baltic States this independence was short lived however, as they once again fell under foreign rule, this time from the EU. Now it is likely that the dream for a truly independent Lithuania will once again be realised, as it frees itself from Brussels in the coming years. It will of course probably lose Samogitia as it does so however. This will leave a rump Lithuania made up of the Lithuania Minor, Aukstaitija, Suvalkija and Dzukija Regions, all currently a part of Lithuania.

The Lithuanian flag is another in the Tricolour style of flags, which became popular in European Republican movements after the French Revolution. An older flag of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which is red with a knight on it, is still used as the war flag and State flag of Lithuania. The civil flag however is the tricolour, which was adopted in 1905 by Lithuanian nationalists.

The colours were taken from the traditional dress often worn in the region. It was decided to use this new Tricolour to differentiate the new push for a republic, from the old Duchy, as that state included regions that now belonged to other countries. The flag was officially adopted as the national flag in 1918, when independence was declared. The flag was no longer used during the Soviet occupation after world war two. During the independence movement in the 1990’s it made a come back and was restored when Lithuania became independent again.

Go To Part 51