Landscape of Resistance. Traces of the Military Training of the Lithuanian Liberation Army in Plokštinė Forest, Samogitia, Northwestern Lithuania

Abstract

In recent years, fortified and open-type campsites of the Lithuanian Partisan War (1944–1953) have become the subject of archaeological research in Lithuania. The military training camp for soldiers of the Lithuanian Liberation Army (the so-called Vanagai, or Hawks) in Plokštinė Forest (Plungė District), Samogitia region, northwestern Lithuania was investigated by the author of this paper in 2019 and 2020. From 15 to 25 August 1944, in the face of the impending second Soviet invasion, the Plokštinė Forest camp was used to train the Samogitian youths in the basics of armed resistance. Archaeological field research carried out in the Plokštinė Forest allowed the determination of the exact location of the Vanagai military training camp and firearms training ground, the collection of archaeological data on the camp, its layout and equipment, as well as the everyday life of the Vanagai, and the weapons they used. This paper presents the results of the archaeological research of the Vanagai military training camp and their analysis. Based on the research data, the importance of the landscape in the selection of the campsite and firearms training ground, their spatial layout and the identification of activity areas are discussed.