page_title: Klaipėda Revolt
section_title: Military actions
hierarchical_section_title: Klaipėda Revolt / Revolt / Military actions
caption_attribution_description: Lithuanian rebels in Rimkai railway station during the Klaipėda Revolt
context_page_description: The Klaipėda Revolt took place in January 1923 in the Klaipėda Region. The region, located north of the Neman River, was detached from East Prussia, Germany by the Treaty of Versailles and became a mandate of the League of Nations. It was placed under provisional French administration until a more permanent solution could be worked out. Lithuania wanted to unite with the region due to its large Lithuanian-speaking minority of Prussian Lithuanians and major port of Klaipėda – the only viable access to the Baltic Sea for Lithuania. As the Conference of Ambassadors favored leaving the region as a free city, similar to the Free City of Danzig, the Lithuanians organized and staged a revolt.
  Presented as an uprising of the local population, the revolt met little resistance from either the German Police or the French Army. The rebels established a pro-Lithuanian administration, which petitioned to unite with Lithuania, citing the right of self-determination. The League of Nations accepted the fait accompli and the Klaipėda Region was transferred as an autonomous territory to the Republic of Lithuania on February 17, 1923.
context_section_description: Galvanauskas enlisted the paramilitary Lithuanian Riflemen's Union to provide manpower for the revolt. Vincas Krėvė-Mickevičius, chairman of the union, believed that the idea to organize the revolt originated within the organization and Galvanauskas only tacitly approved the plan while carefully distancing the government from the rebels. In December 1922, Krėvė-Mickevičius met with Reichswehr's commander Hans von Seeckt and was assured that German army would not interfere with the Lithuanian plans in the region. Krėvė-Mickevičius cheaply bought 1,500 guns, 5 light machine guns, and 1.5 million bullets from the Germans. The military action was coordinated by Lithuanian counterintelligence officer and former Russian colonel Jonas Polovinskas, who changed his name to Jonas Budrys, which sounded more Prussian Lithuanian. Later his entire staff changed their last names to sound more Prussian Lithuanian. According to memoirs of Steponas Darius, the revolt was first scheduled for the night of the New Year, but the Lithuanian government pulled out based on a negative intelligence report. Supporters of the revolt gathered in Kaunas and convinced the government to proceed. The delay jeopardized the mission as the secret could have leaked to the Allies.
  The revolt started on January 10, 1923. Arriving with trains to Kretinga and Tauragė, 1,090 volunteers (40 officers, 584 soldiers, 455 riflemen, 3 clerks, 2 doctors, 6 orderlies) crossed the border into the region. Among them were Steponas Darius and Vladas Putvinskis. They wore civilian clothes and had green armband with letters MLS for Mažosios Lietuvos sukilėlis or Mažosios Lietuvos savanoris (rebel/volunteer of Lithuania Minor). Each man had a rifle and 200 bullets; the rebels had a total of 21 light machine guns, 4 motorcycles, 3 cars, 63 horses. In hopes to negotiate a peaceful retreat of the French and to avoid any casualties, shooting was allowed only as a last resort of self-defense. Galvanauskas ordered perfect behavior (politeness, no plunder, no alcoholic drinks, no political speeches) and no Lithuanian identification (no Lithuanian documents, money, tobacco, or matchboxes). In the Klaipėda Region, these men were met by some 300 local volunteers, though Lithuanian historian Vygandas Vareikis disputed the accuracy of this assertion. More local men joined once the rebels reached cities. The rebels met little resistance, but struggled with cold winter weather, lack of transportation and basic supplies (they were not provided with food or clothes, but were given a daily allowance of 4000 German marks).
  The contingent was divided into three armed groups. The first and strongest group (530 men commanded by Major Jonas Išlinskas codename Aukštuolis) was ordered to take Klaipėda. The second group (443 men led by Captain Mykolas Kalmantavičius codename Bajoras) was sent to capture Pagėgiai (Pogegen) and secure the border with Germany and the third (103 men led by Major Petras Jakštas codename Kalvaitis) to Šilutė (Heydekrug). By January 11, the pro-Lithuanian forces controlled the region, except for the city of Klaipėda. The French administrator Pestiné refused to surrender and fighting over Klaipėda broke out on January 15. The city was defended by 250 French soldiers, 350 German policemen, and 300 civilian volunteers. After a brief gunfight, a ceasefire was signed by Pestiné and Budrys and the French soldiers were interned in their barracks. During the fighting, 12 insurgents, two French soldiers, and one German policeman were killed. According to German sources, one French soldier died and two were injured. On January 16, the Polish ship Komendant Piłsudski entered the port of Klaipėda carrying Colonel Eugène Trousson, a member of the French military mission in Poland, and reinforcements to French troops. However, the ship soon departed as the fighting was over and ceasefire was in effect. On January 17–18, British cruiser HMS Caledon and two French torpedo boats Algérien and Senégalais reached Klaipėda. French cruiser Voltaire was on its way. The Lithuanians began organizing 
caption: Lithuanian rebels at the railway station in Rimkai
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