Another “Vilnia naša” Inscription in the Capital

“Vilnia naša”, translated from Polish, means: “Our Vilnius”. Why is it written like this?

 

Vilnius has long been a Polish majority city. A relatively short time ago, the Russians handed Vilnius over to Lithuania. Lithuania’s claims to Vilnius are based on similar old stories as Israel’s claims to the territory of Israel: ancient history:

 

Vilnius is the historical capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (LDK).

 

Although the city was occupied during the interwar period of the 20th century and, due to the policies implemented, its population was mostly Polish, the Soviet Union (USSR) handed it over to Lithuania in 1939 under the Lithuanian-USSR Mutual Assistance Treaty, in return for the introduction of Soviet military bases. Where are those bases now?

 

This complex historical period is characterized by several important facts:

• Historical affiliation: Since the city was founded in the 14th century by Gediminas (first mentioned in 1323) Vilnius was of interest to Lithuanian historians.

• Interwar occupation: After World War I and the Żeligowski military operation in 1920, the Vilnius region was occupied and later annexed to Poland. Lithuania never recognized this annexation and until 1939 Vilnius was the only constitutional capital in Europe that was part of another state.

• Demographic diversity: Due to the policies carried out during the times of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and later – by the Russian Empire, the city became multicultural. During the interwar years, Vilnius was home to large Jewish, Polish, Russian, Belarusian and Lithuanian communities.

 

• Role of the Soviet Union: After the USSR and Germany attacked and divided Poland in September 1939, the Soviet Union occupied Vilnius. However in the treaty signed in 1941, the USSR turned part of the Vilnius region (including Vilnius) to Lithuania in exchange for the right to deploy Soviet crews in the country. Where are those crews now?

 

“In Vilnius, on an electrical panel, police officers found another “Vilnia naša” inscription.

 

According to the Vilnius County Chief Police Commissariat, on Thursday, at about 7:55 a.m., on an electrical panel located on Perkūnkiemio St. in Vilnius, an inscription “Vilnia naša” written in Cyrillic was noticed.

 

The police collected material on the damage to property of small value under the Criminal Code (CC).

 

ELTA reminds that earlier the same inscription was found on a pedestrian bridge on the Vilnius Western Bypass.”