Juozas Urbšys
Juozas Urbšys | |
---|---|
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania | |
In office 5 December 1938 – 16 June 1940 | |
President | Antanas Smetona |
Prime Minister | Vladas Mironas Jonas Černius Antanas Merkys |
Preceded by | Stasys Lozoraitis |
Succeeded by | Stasys Lozoraitis (as Chief of Diplomacy) |
Personal details | |
Born | Lithuanian War of Independence | 29 February 1896
Juozas Urbšys (29 February 1896 – 30 April 1991) was a prominent
Biography
Juozas Urbšys was born on 29 February 1896 in Šeteniai, a village north of Kėdainiai.[3] In 1907 Urbšys attended a school in Panevėžys, graduating in 1914. Soon afterwards he pursued his education in Riga, Latvia. The outbreak of World War I interrupted his studies and he enlisted in the army in 1916.[4] A few years later, Urbšys completed his education at Chuguyevo Military School (Russian: Чугуево, now Chuhuiv in Ukraine), returning to Lithuania in 1918 after Lithuania re-established its independence. He continued to serve in the Lithuanian military until 1922.
After joining the foreign service, Urbšys worked in
Rumors arose in 1939 that
Another major diplomatic development occurred during October 1939. During the course of a visit to the
Urbšys continued to make his living by translating works in the
His last political action was performed on 23 August 1988, when his speech, recorded in a tape recorder, was played during a Sąjūdis rally. In the speech he narrated about the Soviet–Lithuanian Mutual Assistance Treaty signing in Moscow.[8]
Close to his death, Urbšys was interviewed by a Swedish diplomat, who visited him on 9 September 1990 in his poor Soviet era flat that was located in the outskirts of the Kaunas city (soon after the declaration of the Act of the Re-Establishment of the State of Lithuania on 11 March 1990). When asked about the possible Lithuanian military resistance against the Soviet invasion in 1940, he said that it would have been impossible and that there is no reason to compare Lithuania situation with Finland, who fought the Winter War, because it had a much better geographical position, Karelia and Mannerheim Lines. He also noted that the resistance might have only made the horrific occupation conditions of the state even worse.[8]
Two schools have been named for Juozas Urbšys: Kaunas 29th Secondary School and a school in Tiskūnai.
Awards
- Order of Vytautas the Great (Lithuania), Officer's Cross
- Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas (Lithuania), Commander's Grand Cross and Officer's Cross
- Royal Order of the Polar Star (Sweden), Commander 1st class (1935)
Works
Juozas Urbšys translated works by Georges Duhamel and Pierre Beaumarchais from French to Lithuanian, among others. His memoir, Lithuania During the Fatal Years, 1939-40, was published in 1988.[2]
References
- ^ Gerhard L. Weinberg. A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II. 1994 p.946
- ^ New York Times. 1991-05-02. Retrieved 2008-05-28.
- ^ a b LR užsienio reikalų ministerija. Juozas Urbšys (1938 12 05 – 1940 06 16)[permanent dead link]. Retrieved on 2008-05-28
- ^ a b c Juozas Urbšys Archived 2008-06-10 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved on 2008-05-28
- ^ ISBN 9986-9216-9-4. Archived from the originalon 2008-03-03. Retrieved 2008-03-14.
- ^ ISBN 0-312-22458-3.
- ^ Lituanus. Lithuania and Soviet Union 1939-1940. Retrieved on 2008-05-28
- ^ a b Gritėnas, Paulius. "Juozo Urbšio išpažintis švedų diplomatui: "1940-aisiais pasipriešinimas jau nebuvo įmanomas"". 15min.lt. Retrieved 19 October 2018.