Britannica
Sources used in this answer
Why did Lithuania’s national government move from Vilnius to Kaunas in 1919?
Created from Britannica articles
using AI.
AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Lithuania
Flag of Lithuania.
The Lithuanian national government evacuated from Vilnius to Kaunas in January 1919 due to the Soviet invasion of the country following World War I.12
On January 5, 1919, the Red Army occupied Vilnius and installed a communist government, forcing the newly independent Lithuanian administration to relocate to Kaunas for safety. Kaunas subsequently served as the capital of independent Lithuania from 1920 to 1940 while the status of Vilnius remained the subject of a long-standing dispute between Lithuania and Poland.3145