The City Left Behind: Changes in the Ethnic Composition of Vilnius During and After World War II

Abstract

The population of Wilno/Vilnius numbered over 200 000 people when the Second World War broke out. The city found itself at the crossroads of Polish, Lithuanian and belated Belarusian nation building efforts. In the first phase of the war, the multi-ethnic city which was also a centre of a voivodship and where Poles were the majority community, came under Lithuanian authority. The Soviet military and diplomatic actions played a key role in this change. The arrival of the Soviet troops halted the extensive “Lithuanianization” process that had begun. As a result, tensions between the Polish community and the Lithuanian state eased. The Extermination of the Jewish population the city commenced with the German invasion on 24 June 1941. Before the Soviet troops reached the Vilnius Region, the Polish Home Army (AK) gained control over the rural areas. Despite the Polish plans, Vilnius was liberated with the help of the Soviet Red Army on 13 July 1944. The relationship between the Polish and the Soviet army quickly turned hostile. Moreover, violence continued to accompany population movement. Even though the Old Town remained largely intact, the demographic profile of Vilnius altered dramatically. First, it became a Russian dominated space. Following the collectivization, as a result of the influx of the Lithuanians intensified and they gradually became the majority in the city.