Adolfas Ramanauskas

Union of Lithuanian Freedom Fighters

March 3, 1918 New Britain, Connecticut, U.S.

November 29, 1957(1957-11-29) (39) Vilnius, Lithuanian SSR, Soviet Union

(Posthumously named Head of State in November 2018)

Colonel Adolfas RamanauskasVice Chairman of the Union of Lithuanian Freedom Fighters(Posthumously named Head of State in November 2018) In office November 26, 1954 – November 29, 1957Preceded 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 detailsBorn(1918-03-03 ) March 3, 1918 New Britain, Connecticut, U.S.DiedNovember 29, 1957(1957-11-29) (aged 39) Vilnius, Lithuanian SSR, Soviet UnionResting placeAntakalnis CemeterySpouse(s)Birutė Mažeikaitė ​(m. 1945)​Children1ProfessionTeacher, journalistMilitary serviceAllegiance  LithuaniaYears of service1945–1956 (Lithuanian partisans)Rank Major (February 1949) Colonel (Fall 1949) Brigade General (January 26, 1998; posthumously) CommandsUnion of Lithuanian Freedom FightersAwards Grand Cross of the Order of the Cross of Vytis (1999) Grand Cross of Commander of the Order of the Cross of Vytis (1998) Adolfas Ramanauskas (March 6, 1918 – November 29, 1957), code name Vanagas, was a prominent Lithuanian partisan and one of the leaders of the Lithuanian resistance. Ramanauskas was working as a teacher when Lithuania was re-conquered by the Soviet Union from Nazi Germany in 1944–45. He joined the anti-Soviet resistance, advancing from a platoon commander to the chairman of the Union of Lithuanian Freedom Fighters. From 1952 he lived in hiding with fake papers. Betrayed by a classmate, he was arrested, tortured, and eventually executed by the KGB, the last partisan commander to be captured. After Lithuania regained independence in 1990, Ramanauskas was posthumously awarded the Order of the Cross of Vytis and promoted to brigadier general. In 2018, members of the Seimas passed a resolution identifying Ramanauskas as the "highest-ranking Lithuanian official in the fight against Soviet occupation" from 1954 to 1957.