Monument to the Soldiers killed for Lithuania‘s Freedom in 1920
Memorial site

The monument is located in Giedraičiai.
On 19 June 1932, a monument dedicated to the fallen Lithuanian freedom fighters was unveiled in Giedraičiai. The construction of the monument was initiated by the inhabitants of Giedraičiai – the painter and author of the monument Antanas Jaroševičius, Pastor Meigis, Malvina Valeikienė and Matas Valeika, who supported the Lithuanian soldiers in battle, the community of Širvintos and the Lithuanian Army; the amount of 11,000 litas was raised for the construction of the monument. The appeal for donations for the monument states that it is being built “to honour victory and our eternal joy, which will remind us of the historical significance of the site and pay tribute to the soldiers buried in Giedraičiai”.
The opening ceremony was sumptuous. It was attended by the President of the Republic of Lithuania, A. Smetona – Commander- in-Chief of the Lithuanian Armed Forces, representatives of the 2nd, 4th, 7th, and 9th Regiments and officers, who took part in the Battles of Giedraičiai. Flowers were dropped at the monument from military planes, and Malvina Valeikienė, a prominent Lithuanian personality and one of the organisers of the construction works of the monument, read out the names of the Lithuanian soldiers who died in Giedraičiai, and she was awarded the Order of the Cross of the Knight, 3rd Class. The flag of the local riflemen unit was consecrated at the monument. From 1962–1964, pursuant to the instructions of the Soviet administration, an unsuccessful attempt was made to demolish the monument, but it was later declared a historical monument.