Jonas Černius

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Jonas Černius (January 6, 1898 in Kupiškis - July 3, 1977 in Los Angeles) was a Lithuanian general and Prime Minister. When Lithuania declared independence in 1918, he joined the army as a volunteer and participated in the Freedom Wars. He was one of the first graduates from the Military School of Lithuania, but he continued to study military engineering in Brussels (1929) and Paris (1932).

On his return to Lithuania, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and appointed as chief of the military technical staff. In 1934 he became a colonel. In 1935 he was promoted to brigadier general and chief of staff of the army. From March 30 to November 22, 1939 he was the Prime Minister and led the 20th cabinet.

He escaped from the Soviet occupation in 1944. At first he lived in Germany, then England, and in 1948 came to the U.S. He worked as an engineer for General Motors.

[edit] References

• "Jonas Černius". Encyclopedia Lituanica II. (1970-1978). Ed. Simas Sužiedėlis. Boston, Massachusetts: Juozas Kapočius. 490-491. LCC 74-114275. 
• (Lithuanian) Jonas Černius, Previous Governments: Between 1918-1940, Government of the Republic of Lithuania. Accessed September 7, 2006.

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