Kaunas Pedagogical Qualification Centre with the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences Gymnasium, 10 May invited history teachers to a remote methodological event – the publication of the book “Lithuanians in Foreign Wars: Comrades and Enemies. Testimonies of the Aged (Vilnius: Briedis, 2021, 320 p.) and a meeting with the author – NSA analyst, Professor Benedikts Šetkus, VMU. The event was hosted by Arūnas Bučnys, Director of the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, and Sr. teacher Jurgita Žulpienė.
The book is primarily aimed at history teachers and students. The aim was to help understand the fate of a significant part of the Lithuanian population, who found themselves in different circumstances and periods in different countries and their armies, and who were subjected to the violence of the occupiers. The book reveals the fates, aspirations, daily lives and experiences of ordinary people who had to fight, willingly or by force, for the cause of Tsarist Russia, Kaiser’s Germany, the USA, Britain, France, Spain, Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union and others. national interests.
The publication is based on memoirs, letters, and articles in the press of the time, as well as excerpts from the works of historians. Chronologically, the material covers the period from the American War of Independence and Napoleon Bonaparte’s conquests to the Soviet Union’s war in Afghanistan. In total, the book contains information about almost two dozen wars in which Lithuanians participated in various regions of the world.
In terms of historical education, the book serves to integrate the history of the World and Lithuania, reveals the links between the wars fought around the world and the history of the Lithuanian nation, presents little-known facts, conveys the different attitudes and motives of contemporaries, and develops critical thinking. Finally, it serves those interested in historical cultural tourism.
“Let their lives remind us once again that there is no family or relative that has not suffered the hardships of war, but the fundamental question remains: do we know about them?”, the author concluded. On behalf of all the participants of the meeting, we would like to thank: the author of the book, Prof. Benediktas Šetkas, for the very interesting and valuable information, insights, and discussion, which broadened the knowledge of the participants and will be useful in teaching history; the director of the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Arūnas Bučnias, for the initiative.
Laura Vaitkevičienė, Methodologist, Kaunas Teacher Qualification Centre
