Lithuanian partisans (1941)
Encyclopedia
Lithuanian partisans is a generic term used during World War II
by Nazi officials and quoted in books by modern historians to describe Lithuanian collaborators with the Nazis during the first months of the occupation of Lithuania by Nazi Germany
. Lithuanian partisans, mostly fighters against retreating Soviet forces during the June Uprising, were later organized into various auxiliary units by German Nazis. Several of the numerous units assisted and actively participated in mass executions of the Lithuanian Jews
mostly in June–August 1941.
The term "Lithuanian partisans" might apply to several different and unrelated groups during 1941 and later:
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...
by Nazi officials and quoted in books by modern historians to describe Lithuanian collaborators with the Nazis during the first months of the occupation of Lithuania by Nazi Germany
Occupation of Lithuania by Nazi Germany
The occupation of Lithuania by Nazi Germany refers to the occupation of Lithuania by Nazi Germany from the start of the German invasion of Soviet Union to the end of the Battle of Memel . At first the Germans were welcomed as "liberators" from the repressive Soviet regime which occupied Lithuania...
. Lithuanian partisans, mostly fighters against retreating Soviet forces during the June Uprising, were later organized into various auxiliary units by German Nazis. Several of the numerous units assisted and actively participated in mass executions of the Lithuanian Jews
Lithuanian Jews
Lithuanian Jews or Litvaks are Jews with roots in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania:...
mostly in June–August 1941.
The term "Lithuanian partisans" might apply to several different and unrelated groups during 1941 and later:
- A group led by Nazi agent Algirdas KlimaitisAlgirdas KlimaitisAlgirdas Jonas Klimaitis was a Lithuanian para-military commander.When the Nazi Germans entered Lithuania, in 1941, at the start of Operation Barbarossa, he formed a military unit of roughly 600 members, which was not subordinate to the Lithuanian Activist Front or the Provisional Government of...
and active in Kaunas at the end of June 1941 - Tautinio Darbo Apsaugos BatalionasTautinio Darbo Apsaugos BatalionasTautinio Darbo Apsaugos Batalionas was organized by the Provisional Government of Lithuania in 1941 as basis for future independent Lithuanian Army, but Nazi authorities soon reorganized the battalion into auxiliary police...
(TDA) was formed in Kaunas as basis for independent Lithuanian army, but soon transformed into a Nazi auxiliary unit participating in executions of the Jews at the Seventh and Ninth FortNinth FortThe 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...
s - Rollkommando HamannRollkommando HamannRollkommando Hamann was a small mobile unit that committed mass murders of Lithuanian Jews in the countryside in July–October 1941. The unit was also responsible for a large number of murders in Latvia from July through August, 1941...
and its Lithuanian auxiliaries from TDA, responsible for mass murders in the countryside - Lithuanian Police Battalions formed in Vilnius from 3,600 deserters from 29th Lithuanian Territorial Corps of the Red Army
- Ypatingasis būrysYpatingasis burysYpatingasis būrys or Special SD and German Security Police Squad was a Nazi killing squad of approximately 50 men, also called the "Lithuanian equivalent of Sonderkommando", operating in the Vilnius Region...
formed in VilniusVilniusVilnius is the capital of Lithuania, and its largest city, with a population of 560,190 as of 2010. It is the seat of the Vilnius city municipality and of the Vilnius district municipality. It is also the capital of Vilnius County...
; and participant in the Ponary massacrePonary massacreThe Ponary massacre was the mass-murder of 100,000 people, mostly Polish Jews, by German SD and SS and Lithuanian Nazi collaborators Sonderkommando collaborators...