The Republic of Central Lithuania or Middle Lithuania (Polish: Republika Litwy Środkowej, Lithuanian: Vidurio Lietuvos Respublika, Belarusian: Рэспубліка Сярэдняе Літвы / Respublika Siaredniaje Litvy), or simply Central Lithuania (Polish: Litwa Środkowa, Lithuanian: Vidurio Lietuva or Vidurinė Lietuva, Belarusian: Сярэдняя Літва / Siaredniaja Litva), was a short-lived political entity, which did not gain international recognition. The republic was created in 1920 following the staged rebellion of soldiers of the 1st Lithuanian–Belarusian Infantry Division of the Polish Army under Lucjan Żeligowski, supported by the Polish air force, cavalry and artillery. Centered around the historical capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Vilna (Lithuanian: Vilnius, Polish: Wilno), for eighteen months the entity served as a buffer state between Poland, upon which it depended, and Lithuania, which claimed the area. After a variety of delays, a disputed election took place on January 8, 1922, and the territory was annexed to Poland.
The republic was regarded by some as a Poland-dependent puppet state. Initially the Polish government denied that it was responsible for the false flag action that created the entity, but Polish leader, Józef Piłsudski, subsequently acknowledged that he personally ordered Żeligowski to pretend that he was acting as a mutinous Polish officer.
The Polish-Lithuanian borders in the interwar period, while recognized by the Conference of Ambassadors of the Entente and the League of Nations, were not recognized by the Republic of Lithuania. In 1931 an international court in The Hague issued the statement that the Polish seizure of the city had been a violation of international law.
Read more about Republic Of Central Lithuania: Legal Status
Other articles related to "central, republic of, republic, republic of central lithuania, lithuania":
... killed 75 security forces in a jungle ambush in central India in the worst-ever massacre of security forces by the insurgents ... groups in the Ituri region of northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) ... Central African Republic Bush War (2004–2007) – began with the rebellion by the Union of Democratic Forces for Unity (UFDR) rebels, after the current president of the ...
... America, the Lesser Antilles, and the east coast of Central America ... Vietnam 400,000 People of Indonesian descent living in Cambodia and central Vietnam ... Carolina, Oklahoma) 316,049 Native American people originally of eastern and central Tennessee, most of Kentucky, southern West Virginia, western ...
1920, Żeligowski, a native of historical lands of Lithuania, was chosen to command the 1st Lithuanian-Belarusian Infantry Division, composed mainly of P.O.W ... partisans from the territory of modern Belarus and Lithuania ... unit and took control over the city of Wilno (modern Vilnius, Lithuania) and its area ...
... Some historians have argued that if Poland had not prevailed in the Polish-Soviet War, Lithuania would have been invaded by the Soviets, and would never have experienced two decades of independence ... Under this scenario, despite the Soviet-Lithuanian Treaty of 1920, Lithuania was very close to being invaded by the Soviets in summer 1920 and being forcibly ... After the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact and the Polish Defensive War of 1939, Lithuania was given Vilnius, and its surroundings up to 30 kilometers, on October 10, 1939 ...
Famous quotes containing the words republic of, republic and/or central:
“Paper is cheap, and authors need not now erase one book before they write another. Instead of cultivating the earth for wheat and potatoes, they cultivate literature, and fill a place in the Republic of Letters. Or they would fain write for fame merely, as others actually raise crops of grain to be distilled into brandy.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“The first requisite of a good citizen in this republic of ours is that he shall be able and willing to pull his weight.”
—Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919)
“In inner-party politics, these methods lead, as we shall yet see, to this: the party organization substitutes itself for the party, the central committee substitutes itself for the organization, and, finally, a “dictator” substitutes himself for the central committee.”
—Leon Trotsky (1879–1940)