self-government – History of Šiauliai

Present-Day Šiauliai

Šiaulių TIC — Sun, 04 Feb 2018 14:28:42 +0000

Šiauliai is the fourth largest city in Lithuania, the centre of science, culture and economy of Northern Lithuania, which has retained deep traditions of the city of industry and enterprising people. It is a city with over 106 thousand inhabitants, but the area of the city is almost equal to Klaipėda – its territory doubled when Zokniai airport and vicinities were connected in the Soviet period and the city’s southern area was built. At one point in time, Šiauliai was the third largest Lithuanian city, only after separating Ginkūnai area from the city, Šiauliai again returned to the fourth place. The majority of the population is Lithuanians. This was not always the case. Still at the beginning of the last century, the majority of the population was made up of Jews, who left a deep historical, cultural and economic trace in the city, as well as Russians, Germans and members of other national communities.

Šiauliai became involved in the development of self-governance straight after announcement of independence. During the years of the first Republic of Lithuania, namely Šiauliai created the first democratic municipality in Lithuania. Thus, it was not surprising that, not even a month after the proclamation of the Independence Act, Šauliai authorities already gathered to the first session of the city’s Council of People’s Deputies (soon renamed as the council of Šiauliai municipality), where they elected a chairman who, after a couple of weeks, was replaced by the elected mayor of the city.

On September 7^th, 1993, on his way to the Hill of Crosses (Jurgaičiai Mound), located near Šiauliai, Pope John Paul II visited, prayed and rested in Šiauliai. Following this visit, by his special decree, Šiauliai Peter and Paul’s Church was given the title of the Cathedral, this way transforming Motiejus Valančius’ words about the Cathedral of Samogitia that stood here for 400 years in his times, into reality; the Diocese of Šiauliai was set up.

From 1993, the ‘Aušra’ Museum begins to expand rapidly and takes over the Radio and Television and Bicycle Museums and Ch. Frenkelis’s Villa. Upon completion of reconstruction works of the Villa, which were started in 1995, the Villa becomes a new cultural-representative place, the centre of most of the city’s high culture events, hosting exhibitions in its premises and the inner courtyard, a place of meetings with artists, concerts, performances, and art festivals. In 2009, according to the project prepared by the ‘Aušra’ Museum for the funds of Lithuania and Norway (according to the Norwegian financial mechanism), Žaliūkiai windmill, one of the most important accents of Šiauliai city landscape and the centre of ethno-culture and traditional crafts, and the 19^th century miller’s farmstead, standing nearby, were restored and adapted to the public needs. In addition to these projects, the Museum completed the reconstruction of one of its units, the Museum of Photography, adding the top floor and turning the Museum into a four-storied building with an open-air terrace on the roof open for visitors and events. This is the only institution of this kind in Lithuania, dedicated to the art and equipment of photography.

In 1997, upon the decision to reorganize Šiauliai Pedagogical Institute and Šiauliai Polytechnic Faculty of Kaunas University of Technology, Šiauliai University was established. Over the years, the higher education institution grew, joining new spaces, turning them into its divisions and, at the same time, established close international relations with other universities of the world, becoming a significant player in the city’s region.

The Zokniai airport belonging to the city serves both military and civilian purposes. The traditions of Šiauliai as a national defence point, known since the Middle Ages, remained: there is a military air base at the airport, where since 2004, NATO fighter aircrafts patrolling the air space of the Baltic States have been deployed. In addition, cargo aircrafts of international companies are taking off and landing.

In 2007, Šiauliai Arena, a multifunctional complex for sports, mass culture and chamber events, was officially opened. It hosts the city’s all biggest sports, business and cultural events, including the European Basketball Championship group tournament matches in 2011 and performances of world music celebrities.

The University, non-university higher educational institutions, the drama theatre, the ‘Aušra’ Museum, professional art groups, and a new sports arena provide Šiauliai with perspectives to remain the attraction centre of the whole region. The city fosters its history and strives to become a modern European city.

The city is created and each time reconsidered by its people, so it is people who will decide what awaits Šiauliai in the future. One after another new monuments are created for those who lived and matured as creators and as people, such as Algirdas Julius Greimas, a world-renowned scholar in linguistics or signatories to the Act of Independence of 16 February, 1918. Alongside, new scampy ideas and artistic works, creating the image of a playful and lively city, are born. These are accompanied by active renewal works, renovation of the city’s public spaces, gaining a new concept, initiated construction works of the city’s central square. Thus, the city is changing, modernizing and steadily moving in the rhythm of the 21^st century.

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Fot. Saulius Jankauskas

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Talkšos ežeras, Saulės Laikrodžio aikštė. Fot. Gabrielė Gendvilaitė.

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Frenkelis. Festivalio atidarymas

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Skulptūra Šaulys. Autorius skulpt. Stanislovas Kuzma. Fot. Virginijus Kinčinaitis.

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Šimtmetį švenčiantys Šiauliai. Fot. Gintautas Plungė.

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Šiaulių Šv. apaštalų Petro ir Pauliaus katedra. Fot. Saulius Jankauskas.

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Šiauliu arena. Fot. Algirdas Musneckis.

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Šiauliečių akcija Šypsokis, Saules mieste. Fot. Aleksandr Reznik

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Rekyvos ežeras. Fot. Andrius Mačiūnas.

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Pietinis naktyje. Fot. Mindaugas Macaitis.

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Motokrosas. Fot. Evaldas Černiauskas.

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Miesto šventė Šiaulių naktys. Fot. Rinat Tarzumanov.

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Saulius Jankauskas ©

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Šiauliai and Sąjūdis Activities

Šiaulių TIC — Thu, 01 Feb 2018 18:54:18 +0000

From the very beginning, Šiauliai community with the representatives of local intellectuals took active part in the activities of the initiative group of Lithuanian reform movement Sąjūdis. After little more than a month when this group was formed, on July 22, 1988, the first event of Sąjūdis was held: a meeting in the Sundial Square, rallying a lot of people from Šiauliai and all over the area. The event called for sovereignty of Lithuania, introduction of democracy, it condemned the cruelty of Stalinism times, monetary donations were collected for the construction of the monument to Povilas Višinskis, a prominent member of the Lithuanian national movement and language conservator, it was urged to take care of the Lithuanian language and restore the historical truth. Like in all other cities, Šiauliai Sąjūdis community mostly focused on the Lithuanian language and ethnic culture, and put their main efforts into freedom and independence of Lithuania. For that purpose, meetings were held in the city, discussions in the classrooms of higher education institutions took place. In October, 1988, one of the most prominent events of the first year of Rebirth was organised in Šiauliai – the Language festival, aimed at paying attention to the situation of the Lithuanian language that severely suffered during the years of occupation. On October 12 of the same year, the city council granted a status of a public organization to Sąjūdis movement of Šiauliai city. After five days, the founding conference of Šiauliai groups of Sąjūdis movement was organized in Šiauliai drama theatre. The conference elected the representatives of the future Seimas, discussed the main issues, and decided to publish the publication of the city’s Sąjūdis movement. On December 12-22, the Lithuanian drama festival ‘Atgaiva’ was held in Šiauliai, presenting performances based on the prohibited drama works of Lithuanian emigrants, which were banned during the years of occupation, to the audience. Stage art was accompanied by a series of lectures, delivered by culture, science and public figures, such as the future signatory Romualdas Ozolas, historian Liudas Truska. August 23, 1989, the day that went down in the history of Lithuania as The Baltic Way day, was celebrated by Šiauliai people particularly loudly: organizing theatrical events in the city’s streets and Pergalė Square (later renamed as Prisikėlimo Square), sneering at the Nazis and Bolsheviks, who one after another occupied Lithuania in the Second World War. After these events, the city quickly emptied – all went to The Baltic Way action.

The systematic activity of Šiauliai Sąjūdis movement led to shrinking numbers of pro-Soviet persons and members of the Communist Party of Lithuania from the ranks of Šiauliai city council. They were pushed by the representatives of Sąjūdis, their delegated and supported persons. People close to Sąjūdis movement began to lead the city council. Mindaugas Stakvilevičius, Donatas Morkūnas, Romualdas Ozolas, Virginijus Kačinskas, Kęstutis Lapinskas and Algimantas Sėjūnas were elected by Šiauliai people to the Supreme Council and became the signatories to the Act of March 11, which announced the fact of the Restoration of the Republic of Lithuania.

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Baltijos kelio diena Šiauliuose.

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Baltijos kelio diena Šiauliuose.

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Baltijos kelio diena Šiauliuose.

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The Importance of the City for the Newly Created State

Šiaulių TIC — Mon, 29 Jan 2018 18:22:47 +0000

After the First World War, it did not take long for Šiauliai to stand on its feet, and the city’s inhabitants were among the most active creators of the foundations for the internal life and politics of the new state. Šiauliai self-governance was firm, rallying politicians who well knew their aim and had the vision, such as lawyer Kazimieras Venclauskis who had already acquired considerable experience in self-governance still in the years of occupation and who became the first burgomaster of the city and formed the guidelines for self-governance policy; cultural and social activist Antanas Mikševičius, who chaired the management board of Šiauliai cultural society ‘Varpas’ before the war; economist Jackus Sondeckis, who always remaining loyal to social democratic values, greatly improved the city’s health and social situation and laid down the city’s further development guidelines.

The geographical position of Šiauliai again became the reason for its prosperity. In 1923, when the Republic of Lithuania incorporated Klaipėda area, at last it had a port that could be used for trade; thus, the state had to immediately connect Klaipėda and its port with the rest of Lithuania, and Šiauliai as a connecting point became strategically very important. The railway lines were soon built from Šiauliai to Telšiai, and later, via the later, to Kretinga and Klaipėda. Šiauliai tradesmen turned towards Klaipėda through which the relationships with foreign traders were established and there was no need to use the services of Riga port as before.

The improving economic situation boosted the rapid growth of the city. Soon, nearby former settlements were connected, such as the territories of Ginkūnai, Aleksandrija and Gubernija manors, previously ruled by counts the Zubovai, increasing the area of the city more than twice. The residents, who were hiding abroad and in the depth of Russia from the horrors of war, returned. The national composition of the townsmen changed considerably. Still in 1909, the population census data showed that more than half of the townsmen were Jews, while the Russian community was only slightly smaller than that of Lithuanians, but the population census of 1923 showed that the Jewish community declined by half, while Russian representatives almost disappeared. At that time, Lithuanians made up two thirds of the city’s population.

Before the war, Šiauliai was famous for a large group of intellectuals who actively fostered cultural, educational and public activities. Even Kaunas, which at that time did not rally such a large group of enlightened persons, could envy the number and personalities of Šiauliai intellectuals. Unfortunately, Šiauliai did not manage to retain these people during the interwar period. They were tempted to move to the temporary capital to form the core of the professors of the newly established University of Lithuania (the future Vytautas Magnus University) and contribute to the creation of the administrative apparatus of the state. These were such prominent public figures and educators as Jonas Šliūpas, Mykolas and Vaclovas Biržiškos, Kazys and Stasys Šalkauskai, Kipras Bielinis, Rapolas Skipitis, and Vladas Požela. Even after such intellectuals’ loss, Šiauliai managed to preserve part of the intelligentsia, which, led by burgomaster J. Sondeckis and lawyer K. Vencliauskis, even having lost its former associates (most of them, like the ones who left, were social democrats and left-wing representatives), significantly contributed to the restoration of the city, which achieved its prosperity in fourth decade of the 20^th century, under the rule of strong burgomasters J. Sondeckis and Juozas Valančius. Under the rule of the latter, in 1931-1938, nice modernist buildings arose, the infrastructure of the city – sanitation, telecommunications and electricity networks – was developed.

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Pocių namai. Pastato antrame aukšte buvo įsikūręs Piliečių klubas.

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Venclauskių namai.

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The City, Sinking in Flames of War

Šiaulių TIC — Mon, 29 Jan 2018 18:09:14 +0000

During World War I, Šiauliai became a strategically important point, crossed by the main railway lines, making it the venue of fierce clashes. It is one of the cities of Lithuania that suffered most during the war. As the Russian Empire Army was retreating and leaving the land of Lithuania, the German Army, entering the city, robbed, devastated and set it on fire. The fire was so large that, according to the regional press of that time, the sea of flames was illuminating the city all night. The raging of the German Army ceased only when three quarters of the city’s buildings were destroyed and burned, but the battles for Šiauliai continued. The Russian Army, having returned, being repeatedly defeated and shrinking, again set the city on fire. The local press continued to describe the sad fate of Šiauliai, mentioning that all that remained from the city was a large cemetery, overgrown streets and just 5,000 inhabitants. The network of educational institutions was completely destroyed in the city, there was no library or school (it was allowed to set up only small shelter schools, which also did not last long). In 1917, the gymnasium started functioning in the city again. ‘Varpas’ society, which was closed at the beginning of occupation of the Kaiser’s Germany, after reorganisation called ‘Kanklės’, revived.

Most of the enterprises were no longer able to function because they no longer had materials for manufacturing any production. Only Ch.Frenkelis’s tannery was still functioning until it ran out of its raw materials reserves. Small businesses, which did not stand excessive tax burden, closed.

After the war, in the beginning of January, 1919, being chased by the Bolsheviks Army, the German Army was forced to leave the city but quickly returned again, though only for several months. This time, their consolidation was restrained by representatives of the emerging municipality, led by K. Venclauskis, who had already acquired sufficient political experience and began to decide how the city should be managed and in which direction it should move forward.

As soon as Germans retreated from Šiauliai, local inhabitants immediately received new uninvited guests: the Bermondt’s Army. Their activities in the city were marked by a single feature: permanent robbery of institutions and residents and devastation of the area. Šiauliai municipality responded to them by setting up a temporary partisan headquaters in Šiauliai, which united partisans’ squads, and assisted by the Lithuanian Army, after two months of rampage of the Bermondt’s Army, defeated the intruders. One of the most significant moments of these battles was when the Lithuanian Army, at that time still poorly armed, confiscated the weaponry transported in trains of the Bermondt’s Army and later successfully used it in the war, this way reaching the breakthrough in the battles.

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Degantys Šiauliai.