This book covers the period of the deepest suffering and the greatest battle in the history of Lithuania, and as such is utterly unique. It tells the world about the period of history with which many Lithuanians have not yet fully come to terms. The first decades after the restoration of independent Lithuania saw Soviet reactionary tendencies take hold of the public sentiment. This sentiment found a channel of expression in Lithuanian history research through the dismissal of the suffering that the population of Lithuania had gone through and via the underestimation of the resistance effort. But the main expression for the Soviet reactionary sentiment was the attempt to depict some repressive and occupant structures in a positive light, even giving them a cosy romantic tint. Over the past decades, Vladas Terleckas has not only published numerous research works and shown his profound knowledge of Lithuanian history; he has first and foremost been a radical and brave opponent of reactionary sentiment. He has always countered conformance and lack of expertise with detailed research and open professional criticism. The style of Vladas Terleckas diverges markedly from the Lithuanian humanitarian tradition. The solid historical research in his texts is a synthesis of hard facts and smart arguments. In contrast to most research works dealing with the same period in Lithuania's history that offer the reader a cocktail of conflicting facts and provoke misguided conclusions, the book by Vladas Terleckas paints a complex picture that allows for a clearer and deeper understanding of the past. Eglė Marcinkevičiūtė-Wittig, philosopher, publicist The present publication follows the latest research and newly-available sources in an attempt to offer a review of the years from 1918 to 1953 in Lithuanian history, a period of dramatic changes. The first part of the book is a summary-style introduction into the life of Lithuania after it was restored in 1918, covering the building of the state and the main achievements and challenges in the process. The main part of the book focuses on the impact that the Soviet (1940-1941) and Nazi (1941-1944) occupation as well as the Stalinist regime of 1944-1953 had on Lithuania. The author covers the wave of repression, the sovietisation of all areas of life as well as the armed and unarmed resistance of the Lithuanian people to occupation. The book also explains the mechanisms of physical and psychological annihilation that the Soviets employed against the local population.