Adolfas Ramanauskas
Adolfas Ramanauskas (March 6, 1918 – November 29, 1957), code name Vanagas (lit. 'The Hawk'), was a prominent Lithuanian partisan and one of the leaders of the Lithuanian resistance. Ramanauskas was working as a teacher under the Nazi administration when Lithuania was re-occupied by the Soviet Union in 1944–45. He joined the anti-Soviet resistance after being pressured by the NKVD to spy on his students, eventually advancing from a platoon commander to the chairman of the Union of Lithuanian Freedom Fighters. Betrayed by a classmate, he was arrested, brutally tortured, and eventually executed. He was the last known partisan commander to be captured.
Colonel Adolfas Ramanauskas | |
|---|---|
| Acting President of Lithuania | |
As Deputy Chairman of the Presidium of the Council of the Union of Lithuanian Freedom Fighters Posthumously recognised in 20 November 2018 | |
| In office November 26, 1954 – November 29, 1957 | |
| Preceded by | Jonas Žemaitis (as Chairman of the Union of Lithuanian Freedom Fighters) |
| Succeeded by | Vytautas Landsbergis (first head of state of independent Lithuania in 1991) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | March 3, 1918 New Britain, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Died | November 29, 1957 (aged 39) Vilnius, Lithuanian SSR, Soviet Union |
| Cause of death | Execution by shooting |
| Resting place | Antakalnis Cemetery |
| Spouse |
Birutė Mažeikaitė (m. 1945) |
| Children | Daughter Auksutė |
| Profession | Scout, teacher, journalist, leader of the partisans |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Lithuania |
| Years of service | 1945–1956 (Lithuanian partisans) |
| Rank |
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| Commands | Union of Lithuanian Freedom Fighters |
| Awards |
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Ramanauskas remains a controversial figure due to his alleged collaboration with the Nazis during the Holocaust, and his memorials have been protested against by the Simon Wiesenthal Center, the World Jewish Congress, and the Jewish Agency.