A Territorial Unit ( Lithuanian: Rinktinė) was a type of Lithuanian partisan military unit that existed from the end of 1944 to 1954, who fought against the second Soviet occupation of Lithuania. [1] Instead of destroyed or disintegrated units, new ones were founded, often with different names. [1]
Due to the difficulties of guerrilla warfare, as well as for tactical reasons, the territorial units' boundaries changed, so, depending on the case, they operated in one county, a part of thereof, or several neighboring counties. [1] Sometimes territorial units were transferred from one military district to another. [1] Territorial units, thought not all, published their own press. [1]
The first territorial units were formed in Southern and Eastern Lithuania at the end of 1944. [1] At the beginning of the partisan war in Lithuania, some territorial units formed and operated independently (e.g. Perkūnas, Deer, Vytautas in the Tauras military district). [1]
A territorial unit was made up of several squads, companies, battalions, districts. [1] Most frequently, it included several companies. [2] In turn, several territorial units made up a military district (Lithuanian: Apygarda). [1] After the founding of the Lithuanian Freedom Fighters Union in 1949, a territorial unit was composed of several homelands (Lithuanian: Tėvūnija). [1]
Territorial units differed in the number of fighters (from roughly 50 to about 200 people). [1] Sometimes, they were 700-strong. [2] They were active anywhere from several to 8 years. [1]
The military district's commander appointed the territorial unit's commander. [1] The people chosen were either staff officers or distinguished commanders of companies or other formations. [1] Generally, these were Lithuanian army officers and school teachers. [1]
The following territorial units were active at various times: [1]
Formation name | Date created | Date formation ceased to exist | Unit insignia | Part of Military District (MD) | Notable battles | Notes | Source(s) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Duke Margis | May 1947 | Autumn 1950 | Algimantas | [3] | |||
Šarūnas | January 1945 | November 1950 | [4] | ||||
Green | March 1946 | November 1953 | Ažagai | [5] | |||
Dzūkai | June 1945 | 16 August 1954 | A or Algirdas MD;
since May 1946: Dainava MD |
[6] | |||
Šarūnas | April 1945 | 26 December 1951 | Liepakojai, Kalniškės | [7] | |||
Iron Wolf | May 1945 | August 1946 | [8] | ||||
Merkys | June 1945 | September 1947 | Varčios Forest, Liberation of Merkinė | [9] | |||
Kazimieraitis | 25 September 1945 | February 1952 | A [a] | [10] | |||
A | December 1945 | September 1948 | Grand Fight | A [b] | [11] | ||
B | 1 December 1945 | 25 November 1950 | [12] | ||||
Krikštaponis | 20 April 1949 | January 1951 | Vytis | [13] | |||
Moose | 20 April 1949 | January 1951 | [14] | ||||
Gediminas | January 1951 | 17 April 1953 | [15] | ||||
Falcon | 23 May 1945 | July 1945 | Vytautas | [16] | |||
Tiger | 20 November 1944 | June 1952 | Kiauneliškis | [17] | |||
Bear | 15 December 1944 | April 1951 | Antazavė Pinewood | [18] | |||
Lion [c] | June 1946 | May 1952 | [19] | ||||
Tumas-Vaižgantas | November 1950 | October 1952 | [20] | ||||
Iron Wolf | October 1945 | April 1953 | Tauras | Būdininkai, Palios–Žuvintas, Raišupis | [21] | ||
Žalgiris [d] | 15 August 1945 | July 1952 | Opšrūtai | [22] | |||
Vytautas | 25 June 1945 | 21 January 1952 | [23] | ||||
Gediminas | April 1945 | August 1946 | [24] | ||||
Birutė | 24 September 1947 | 28 February 1949 | [25] | ||||
Šarūnas | January 1945 | November 1950 | [26] | ||||
Patrimpas | August 1945 | 22 October 1945 | [27] | ||||
Kęstutis | 1947 | 1949 | [27] | ||||
Seinai | July 1945 | July 1946 | [28] | ||||
Altar [e] | September 1946 | 8 July 1948 | Kęstutis | [29] | |||
Butigeidis | July 1948 | 13 June 1954 | [30] | ||||
Vaidotas | Summer 1946 | 5 August 1953 | [31] | ||||
Lydis | Early 1945 | July 1947 | [32] | ||||
Naras [f] | December 1946 | July 1947 | [31] | ||||
LLA's March district [g] | 1945 | 1946 | [33] | ||||
Amber | February 1948 | March 1949 | [34] | ||||
Weasel [h] | 22 July 1945 | Late 1951 | Pyragiai | [34] | |||
Squirrel [i] | October 1946 | May 1952 | Resurrection | [35] [36] | |||
Vytautas the Great [j] | January 1946 | April 1948 | [1] | ||||
Lithuanian Green | April 1948 | November 1950 | [37] | ||||
Lukšys [k] | March 1946 | March 1953 | [33] | ||||
Alka | October 1945 | 1949 | Žemaičiai | [38] | |||
Sword | 15 November 1945 | 1953 | [39] | ||||
Šatrija | August 1945 | March 1953 | [40] |