Lazdijų „lenkų“ sukilimas 1919 m. rugpjūčio 22–23 d.

LTReikšminiai žodžiai: Lazdijai; 1919 m. rugpjūčio 22–23 d. sukilimas; Lietuvos lenkai; Lazdijai; Uprising on August 22nd–23rd, 1919; Lithuanian Poles.

ENAfter declaring itself an independent state on February 16, 1918, Lithuania was confronted with the predatory aspirations of the neighbouring countries: Soviet Russia, Germany, and Poland. Particularly dangerous was Poland which sought to have its own state with the borders of 1772. In order to join the Lithuanian, Gudian and Ukrainian lands, which were part of the Republic of the Two Nations, Poland drew up plans for the implementation of these goals before the proclamation of the independent state of Lithuania. They provided various ways and means for Lithuania to join: some Poles proposed to join Lithuania by military force as an integral part of the Polish territory, others offered to form a federal state with Lithuania by voluntary self-determination of the Lithuanian population. At the beginning of 1919, Poles began to intensify their activities in South Suvalkija. Supported by the wealthy local landowners and the Warsaw authorities, they acquired weapons and other military ammunition. In the first half of January 1919, the Chief Commandant of the Polish POW A. Kocas appointed an officer A. Rudnickis as the head of POW Suvalkai and Kaunas districts. A. Kocas provided A. Rudnickis with funds, instructions, secret publications, and instructors. After working for a month and a half, A. Rudnickis boasted that he organized 1200 partisans in Suvalkai district. A. Rudnickis declared not only Lazdijai, Kalvarija, Seirijai, but also Simnas districts as Polish. The authorities of POW Suvalkai County leadership, following the Declaration of the Congress of Suvalkai Landlords of August 12th, 1919, decided to revolt against the Lithuanians at night from August 22nd to August 23rd, to push them beyond the line of demarcation, and then to occupy the area all the way to the town of Simnas, in Alytus county. The rebels had to be helped and provided with weapons and ammunition by the regular Polish army.During the first night it was planned to occupy Seirijai, Lazdijai, Didžiuliai, the lake line between Gibai and Želva, Kapčiamiestis, Šadžiūnai, and at dawn of August 24th to occupy Seinai and Krasnopolis. The rebel partisan corps consisted of converted into Poles, nationally misunderstood, Polishinstigated manor workers and small farmers who could not make a living from their land and worked in the manors. The real Poles were only landowners and part of the priests. The rebels were led by the officers of the regular Polish army. All Polish soldiers were disguised in civilian clothes, but wearing an eagle on their hats. As the Seinai County Commandant’s troops were retreating from Seinai at about 7 o’clock in the morning, at about 9 km to Lazdijai, the soldiers of the Seinai County Commandant’s Office arrested Povilas Grubavičius, an armed Polish partisan, who hurried to inform the Seinai that Lazdijai was also occupied by the Poles. The Polish partisan Juozas Albavičius, who rode the other way, managed to do it. It was learned from the residents that Lazdijai was occupied on August 22nd at about 11 p.m., the Lithuanian militia was disarmed (4 militiamen), and important officials and public figures were arrested. Podporučnikas (junior lieutenant) Jurgis Vaičiulionis had assembled a platoon of over 50 armed peoviakai (Polska Organizacja Wojskowa, POW) (Lazdijai, Simnas and Seirijai Poles) in Lazdijai, which met the arriving Lithuanian unit with fire. The clash took place here at about 12 p.m. on August 23rd. The soldiers led by the officer S. Asevičius attacked the “rebels” of Lazdijai and, supported by the Lithuanian partisans, after 2 hours of shooting, they dispersed them and drove them out of Lazdijai. 2 peoviaks were killed (Valentukonis and Albavičius), and several were injured.The Commandant of Kapčiamiestis POW, together with several local peoviaks briefly occupied Kapčiamiestis and guarded the territory from the southeast side from the Lithuanian attack. There were 3 Lithuanian militiamen there, who retreated by shooting and took the telephone apparatus with them. There were attempts by the peoviaks to occupy Veisiejai and Seirijai. Dozens of members of the POW Simnas county unit also took part in the “uprising” in Lazdijai. A Polish “uprising” in Seinai took place, and the Seinai region was annexed to Poland. However, the pro-Polish people in Lazdijai hurried, without waiting for the Polish army to arrive from the Seinai, occupied the city themselves, disarmed the local militia, and occupied the post office and other offices. Not only with their desires, but also with their deeds, they showed that their homeland is Poland, and that they not only want to belong to themselves, but to connect Lithuania to Poland by way of an upheaval. However, Lithuanian soldiers and local partisans quickly liquidated this upheaval. The events of the Lazdijai “uprising” and its consequences (the legal prosecution of the “rebels” by the then authorities) lasted for more than 20 years. Now this fact is remembered only by the older generation of people or historians. Many things were forgotten, only archival documents and the memories of contemporaries remained. On July 26th, 1919, the demarcation line in favour of Poland (later: the neutral zone, the administration line) established by the French Marshal F. Fosh divided Sūduva between Lithuania and Poland. For two decades, there was a “Cold War” between the neighbouring countries: a geopolitical, ideological, and economic confrontation. “Straw Wall” separated people, neighbours and relatives on different sides, who had belonged to the same state and culture since ancient times. [...]. [From the publication]