Transfer of Public Authorities and Institutions of the Republic of Lithuania to Vilnius in 1939–1940: Plans and Their Implementation

Abstract

On 27 October 1939, Vilnius and its region de facto became a part of Lithuania. The process of integration of the city and the whole region into the Republic of Lithuania, which also involved the resettlement of certain public authorities and institutions in the historical capital, began. The article analyses the transfer of Lithuanian public authorities and institutions from Kaunas to Vilnius between 1939 and 1940, reveals the position of the Lithuanian government regarding their relocation to Vilnius, its mechanism, discusses the results achieved, their statistical expression, and the impact on the ethnic-demographic situation in Vilnius.