Karo laukimo tendencijos Lietuvoje 1945–1953 m.

• Published in: Istorija
• Main Author: Juodis, Darius
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: Lithuanian; English
• Published: 2021
• Subjects: Second World War; partisans; Press; radio; memories; Soviet security; cold War; North Atlantic
• Online Access: http://lka.oai.elaba.lt/documents/100595184.pdf; http://lka.lvb.lt/LKA:ELABAPDB100595184&prefLang=en_US

Based on various sources, the article analyses the tendencies of waiting for war in Lithuania after the Second World War. The examples of the Lithuanian partisan movement are the most analysed, because armed fighters were waiting for a new war more than other residents of the country and it was a relevant problem for them. The recollections of witnesses analysed in the work clearly reflect the tendencies of waiting for war and Western help, as well as the subsequent 191Istorija. 2021, t. 121, Nr. 1Articlesdisappointments of the unfulfilled alleged promises of Western countries (mainly America) and foreign Lithuanians. The specific sources of the time studied show that such assessments of past events are not merely the later inventions of witnesses, but impressions taken from the past. The wait for the war of 1945–1953 was stimulated by the experience of 1940–1941, when the predicted German-USSR war began. During the war, the anti-national underground hopes for liberation began to be associated with Britain and the United States, and this view became even stronger after the end of World War II, especially in the United States. The difficult post-war situation, the ongoing Soviet repression, and the difficult financial situation especially encouraged the public to wait for war. The sources of war predictions were foreign and Soviet radio stations, the Soviet press, and various rumours. There is no evidence that representatives of Western governments called for an open, armed struggle, but the biased interpretation of true and false knowledge led people to expect rapid change. Waiting for war is tied not only to general reflections, but also to specific events in the world, such as statements by foreign leaders, military clashes in the world (such as the Korean War), the emergence and use of the atomic bomb, the North Atlantic military bloc, and so on. The mood of waiting for war determined the tactics of Lithuanian partisan fighting. Waiting tactics are established, that is, the accumulation of strength for a decisive moment. The date of the beginning of the predicted war can often be found in the documents of the time. Lithuanian partisans tried to maintain the confidence of the people of the country in their own strength and faith in the impending war, sometimes responding quite harshly to those who doubted these statements. With no help coming from the West, the number of sceptics and frustrations steadily increased. The increase in frustration with the West and Lithuanian emigrants was sharply criticised by the West, which allegedly betrayed the promises made. The motive of the alleged betrayal crept into the memory and later moved into the collective memories