Jonas Smilgevičius (12 February 1870, Šoniai,

Kovno Governorate Kovno Governorate was an administrative-territorial unit (''guberniya'') of the Russian Empire, with its capital in Kovno (Kaunas). It was formed on 18 December 1842 by Tsar Nicholas I of Russia, Nicholas I from the western part of Vilna Govern ...

– 27 September 1942) was a

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

economist An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social sciences, social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this ...

and politician; he was one of the twenty signatories to the

Act of Independence of Lithuania The Act of Independence of Lithuania () or the Act of February 16th, also the Lithuanian Resolution on Independence (),The signed document is actually titled simply , meaning 'decision' or 'resolution', and it "proclaims the restoration of the ...

. Smilgevičius studied economics at the

University of Königsberg The University of Königsberg () was the university of Königsberg in Duchy of Prussia, which was a fief of Poland. It was founded in 1544 as the world's second Protestant Reformation, Protestant academy (after the University of Marburg) by Duke A ...

and at the

University of Berlin The Humboldt University of Berlin (, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin, Germany. The university was established by Frederick William III on the initiative of Wilhelm von Humbol ...

, graduating in Berlin in 1899. He then worked for the

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

n Ministry of Agriculture in

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...

for three years. He lived for a time in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

, where he worked in private industry, and then moved to

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

, where he co-founded and directed the agricultural machinery firm ''Vilija''. After helping organize the

Vilnius Conference In the history of Lithuania, the Vilnius Conference () or Vilnius National Conference met on 18–22 September 1917, and began the process of establishing a Lithuanian state based on ethnic identity and language that would be independent of ...

in 1917, he was elected to the

Council of Lithuania In the history of Lithuania, the Council of Lithuania (; ; ), after July 11, 1918, the State Council of Lithuania () was convened at the Vilnius Conference that took place between 18 and 23 September 1917. The twenty men who composed the c ...

, and signed the Act of Independence in 1918. During the

Interwar period In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period, also known as the interbellum (), lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days) – from the end of World War I (WWI) to the beginning of World War II ( ...

, he pursued various private enterprises, and contributed to several economic organizations. Many of his efforts were centered on improving the family estate in

Užventis Užventis (, Samogitian: ''Ožvėntis'') is a city in the Kelmė district municipality, Lithuania. It is located north-west of Kelmė. River Venta flows through the city. Etymology Užventis is a place name derived from the river named Venta ...

; he sponsored the construction of a brickyard, sawmill, and distillery there. He died in

Kaunas Kaunas (; ) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius, the fourth largest List of cities in the Baltic states by population, city in the Baltic States and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaun ...

in 1942.

References

*"Smilgevičius, Jonas". Encyclopedia Lituanica V: 236. (1970–1978). Ed. Simas Sužiedėlis. Boston, Massachusetts: Juozas Kapočius. LCCN 74-114275. 1870 births 1942 deaths People from Plungė District Municipality People from Kovno Governorate Members of the Council of Lithuania Lithuanian economists Lithuanian businesspeople Lithuanian independence activists {{Lithuania-politician-stub