Pilviškiai - Killing Field

After the German Wehrmacht had occupied the rural municipality of Pilviškiai in 1941 a self-defence unit was formed. Since June 1941 after making public the antisemitic order issued by the Nazis, the Jews were not allowed to walk on the pavement, they could not leave their home later than 8.00 pm and they were not allowed to buy or sell on the market.

At the end of August 1941 summoned the police unit. They were told to arrest the Jews. The policemen and the members of the self-defence unit arrested about 400 Jewish men. Following this was an operation of mass killings. On August 27-29 1941, the Jewish men were conveyed to this place. They were told to excavate two ditches. Nex to them the Jewish men were forced to stand. Prior to murdering, the victims were undressed to underwear, then grouped in small groups by the ditch and killed. The men were out to death by shooting in their back from about 10m distance. The Germans and several members of the self-defence unit comprised the firing squad. The executions were photographed by German officers. According to data from the historical investigation, about 300-350 Jews and several dozen Soviet activists were killed here.

During the Nazi occupation, 190.000 Lithuanian Jews were killed