Kaunas Prison
Encyclopedia
Kaunas Prison 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 temporary arrest awaiting court decisions or transfers to other detention facilities.
during the times of the Russian Empire
. At the time it was a modern prison in the whole region. It had 300 places for prisoners, a chapel, administrative-household premises, and apartments for employees were planned. But later there the number of places for prisoners grew up to 550. Kaunas Prison was seen far in environs of Kaunas center and aroused terror in everybody. Sometimes it was even called “Kaunas Bastille
”. During the period of 1905 Revolution, the prison was overcrowded with political prisoner
s. The branch of Kaunas Prison was established in the Ninth Fort
of Kaunas Fortress
in 1924.
During World War II
, in June 1941, during the German invasion of the Soviet Union
, the majority of the convicts in the Kaunas Prison were of Jewish nationality
. Most of them were excecuted at the Ninth Fort. The greater part of the prisoners kept in Kaunas Prison, was the prisoners under interrogation. Due to the lack of food, medical care, the exhaustive work, beating, the mortality of prisoners was rather high. Kaunas Prison was completely liquidated in 1960. After the reconstruction, in the place of the former Kaunas Prison the scientific research center of Kaunas Polytechnic Institute
was settled.
Due to the lack of places for individuals under the temporary arrest awaiting court decisions and transfers to other detention sites, Kaunas Remand Prison was to be reconstructed by the resolution adopted by the Government of Lithuania
in 1993. After the major reconstruction, Kaunas Remand Prison was opened in the same place in 2004. Now it is the most modern imprisonment institution in Lithuania.
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
in the center of Kaunas
Kaunas
Kaunas is the second-largest city in Lithuania and has historically been a leading centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the biggest city and the center of a powiat in Trakai Voivodeship of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania since 1413. During Russian Empire occupation...
, second largest city of Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
. As of 2007, it houses approximately 300 prisoners and employs around 230 prison guards. Most prisoners are there under temporary arrest awaiting court decisions or transfers to other detention facilities.
History
The Kaunas Prison was completed in 1864, just after the January UprisingJanuary Uprising
The January Uprising was an uprising in the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth against the Russian Empire...
during the times of the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
. At the time it was a modern prison in the whole region. It had 300 places for prisoners, a chapel, administrative-household premises, and apartments for employees were planned. But later there the number of places for prisoners grew up to 550. Kaunas Prison was seen far in environs of Kaunas center and aroused terror in everybody. Sometimes it was even called “Kaunas Bastille
Bastille
The Bastille was a fortress in Paris, known formally as the Bastille Saint-Antoine. It played an important role in the internal conflicts of France and for most of its history was used as a state prison by the kings of France. The Bastille was built in response to the English threat to the city of...
”. During the period of 1905 Revolution, the prison was overcrowded with political prisoner
Political prisoner
According to the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, a political prisoner is ‘someone who is in prison because they have opposed or criticized the government of their own country’....
s. The branch of Kaunas Prison was established in the Ninth Fort
Ninth Fort
The Ninth Fort 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 the rest of Lithuania by the Soviet Union, the fort was used as a prison and...
of Kaunas Fortress
Kaunas Fortress
Kaunas Fortress is the remains of a fortress complex in Kaunas, Lithuania. It was constructed and renovated between 1882 and 1915 to protect the Russian Empire's western borders, and was designated a "first-class" fortress in 1887...
in 1924.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, in June 1941, during the German invasion of the Soviet Union
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
, the majority of the convicts in the Kaunas Prison were of Jewish nationality
History of the Jews in Lithuania
The history of the Jews in Lithuania spans the period from the eighth century to the present day. There is still a small community in that country, as well as an extensive Lithuanian Jewish diaspora in Israel, the United States and other countries. For more detail, see Lithuanian Jews.-Early...
. Most of them were excecuted at the Ninth Fort. The greater part of the prisoners kept in Kaunas Prison, was the prisoners under interrogation. Due to the lack of food, medical care, the exhaustive work, beating, the mortality of prisoners was rather high. Kaunas Prison was completely liquidated in 1960. After the reconstruction, in the place of the former Kaunas Prison the scientific research center of Kaunas Polytechnic Institute
Kaunas University of Technology
- KTU :Kaunas University of Technology is one of the largest technical universities in the Baltic States.In Webometrics Ranking of World Universities 2010 KTU took the highest ratings among Lithuanian higher education institutions as having the web of best presence, visibility and accessibility...
was settled.
Due to the lack of places for individuals under the temporary arrest awaiting court decisions and transfers to other detention sites, Kaunas Remand Prison was to be reconstructed by the resolution adopted by the Government of Lithuania
Government of the Republic of Lithuania
Government of the Republic of Lithuania is the cabinet of Lithuania. It consists of the Prime Minister, who is Head of Government, and 14 government ministers....
in 1993. After the major reconstruction, Kaunas Remand Prison was opened in the same place in 2004. Now it is the most modern imprisonment institution in Lithuania.
Notable prisoners
- Felix Dzerzhinsky, Communist revolutionary
- Michał Elwiro Andriolli, PolishPolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
painter and architect - Antanas SniečkusAntanas SnieckusAntanas Sniečkus was First Secretary of the Lithuanian Communist Party from August 1940 to January 22, 1974.- Biography :Antanas Sniečkus was born in 1903, in the village of Būbleliai, near Šakiai. During the First World War, his family fled to Russia where he observed the Russian revolution of 1917...
, Lithuanian communist leader - Leonas BistrasLeonas BistrasLeonas Bistras was a Lithuanian politician, journalist, translator, philosopher and professor. He had studied medicine also....
, former Prime Minister of LithuaniaPrime Minister of LithuaniaThe Prime Minister of Lithuania is the head of the executive arm of Lithuania's government, and is chosen by the Lithuanian parliament, the Seimas. The modern office of Prime Minister was established in 1990, although the official title was "Chairperson of the Council of Ministers" until 25...