Scenes of Soviet Lithuania

The route enables the traveller to understand the extent of the Soviet occupation and the traces it left in Lithuanian history, while revealing the ability of people to preserve their identity and fight for independence. The Soviet occupation of Lithuania lasted for about five decades. World War II was followed by Soviet repressions, resistance by national partisans, the militarisation of Lithuania during the Cold War and the regaining of independence by Lithuania. Lithuania was also strategically important to the USSR due to its proximity to Western countries, which is why military installations were deployed there. The route also includes some sites belong ing to other periods of the military history of the 20th cen tury. This route, or a part thereof, can be connected to the following routes in Latvia: “World War II and its Aftermath – Soviet Occupation in Southern Latvia and Latgale”, “World War I and the Wars of Independence in Southern Latvia”.