List of rulers of Lithuania
Term Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet
1 25 August 1940 - 14 April 1967 Justas Paleckis
2 14 April 1967 - 24 December 1975 Motiejus Šumauskas
3 24 December 1975 - 18 November 1985 Antanas Barkauskas
4 18 November 1985 - 7 December 1987 Ringaudas Songaila
5 7 December 1987 - 15 January 1990 Vytautas Astrauskas
6 15 January 1990 - 11 March 1990 Algirdas Brazauskas
Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic ( 1940–1941 and 1944–1990 )
Main article : Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic The Soviet Union occupied Lithuania and established Lithuanian SSR in July 1940 . As Nazi Germany attacked the Soviet Union , Lithuania was occupied by the Germans . For a few days before the German occupation , Lithuania was ruled by pro-German rebel government of Juozas Ambrazevičius . Under the Germans , the General District of Lithuania was governed by the administration of general Petras Kubiliūnas . As Nazi Germany retreated , the Soviet Union reoccupied the country and reestablished the Lithuanian SSR in 1944 . Title : First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Lithuania ( Lithuanian : Lietuvos komunistų partijos Centro komiteto pirmasis sekretorius ; Russian : Первый секретарь Центрального Комитета Коммунистической партии Литвы ) . No Term First Secretary Remarks 1 21 July 1940 – 24 June 1941 13 July 1944 – 22 January 1974 Antanas Sniečkus 2 18 February 1974 – 14 November 1987 Petras Griškevičius 3 1 December 1987 – 19 October 1988 Ringaudas Bronislovas Songaila First leader of the party to be deposed of his power ( Sniečkus and Griškevičius held office until their death ) 4 19 October 1988 – 11 March 1990 Algirdas Mykolas Brazauskas Lost power as independence was declared The Presidium of the Supreme Soviet acted as a collective head of state from 25 August 1940 to 11 March 1990 .
The following is a list of rulers over Lithuania - grand dukes,a king, and presidents - the heads of authority over historical Lithuanian territory. The timeline includes Lithuania as a sovereign entity or legitimately part of a greater sovereign entity, as well as Lithuania under control or occupation of an outside authority (i.e. Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic). The incumbents and office-holders are listed by names most commonly used in English language. Where appropriate, the alternatives in Lithuanian, Ruthenian (later Belarusian) and Polish are included. The state of Lithuania was formed in the 1230s: when threatened by the Livonian Order in the north and the Teutonic Knights in the west, the Baltic tribes united under the leadership of Mindaugas. He became the only crowned king of Lithuania. His state became known as the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. After Grand Duke Jogaila became also king of Poland in 1386, the two states became more closely connected, and from 1440 both were ruled by a common ruler. In 1569 the Union of Lublin was signed and a new entity - the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth - emerged. The commonwealth was partitioned in 1795 and Lithuania became part of the Russian Empire until 16 February 1918. The Council of Lithuania was able to establish the country's sovereignty only in 1919, after the end of World War I.