The article focuses on the historical memory maintained by the families of the members of the partisan armed anti-Soviet resistance in the 1944–1953. This memory is reconstructed on the grounds of the narratives by the third generation family members born in 1985–1989. The author discusses ways that memory of the partisan war is revealed by the generation born in the eve of restoration of the Lithuanian independence (which was proclaimed in 1990): how it was transferred in the families, and how experiences of the family members impacted and shaped the values and personal attitudes of the third generation towards the struggles for Lithuanian freedom. The analysis enables appreciating the influence that narratives established in the public discourse had in shaping the reflections of the family experiences, and pointing out, which images of the struggle for freedom are recognized by the third generation as suitable for the historical perception. It is noted that stories by the third generation make use both of the family narratives and the available public information.The interviewed informants usually do not remember the moment when they first learned of their family members’ participation in the armed resistance and their subsequently suffered repressions. For many, it was an inherent part of their daily life that shaped their attitudes towards the history of deportations, imprisonments, and Holocaust. Usually, the biographical facts of the family members were highlighted in various situations of the daily life, and their authentic and real stories reminded those of the fictional heroes. Narratives maintained in the family were accepted as very important to the family members; however, their certification or supplementation required other sources. The third generation can be characterized by their attempts to seek the historical truth and strive for justice. They attempt at getting to know the “un-heroic” picture of the postwar resistance, uncovering the obscure historical details, and ensuring continuation of the memory, which they try to pass on not only to the younger generations of the family, but also to the outsiders. This generation performs the role of mediator between the first and the second ones in their attempts both at understanding the past and at reconciliation with it.This generation exhibits an ambivalent attitude towards the history of the partisan war. On the one hand, they try assuming an unbiased position, but evidently, the family past strongly influences their values and behavior. The third generation displays considerable empathy towards participants of the historical events and their diverse fates. The narrators tend to emphasize their patriotism and appreciation of this land and its freedom, of gaining inner strength from the historical struggles for freedom. In some cases, the narrators describe themselves as belonging to the partisan community. All the narratives are characterized by enhanced importance of freedom as a universal value, which content, however, depends on the individual experience and understanding. Active involvement of this generation into the commemoration of the partisan resistance is encouraged not only by their family history, but also by the public opinion.The generation that grew up in the independent Lithuania had an unrestricted access to the history of the armed resistance. Nowadays its representatives willingly and openly share not only their own experiences, but also those of their family members. In spite of their declared unbiased attitude, they display pride in their family history and readiness to foster it.

The subject of the article is the narrative of the partisan war maintained by family members of the partisans from the Vytis Partisan District Antanas Žilys and Zofija Žilienė. This case study aims at revealing the memory of struggle for freedom from the perspective of the families that had lived prior to the beginning of the anti-Soviet resistance. It includes circumstances under which the narrative was shaped, the peculiarities of its content and change, its influence on the personal attitudes of the family members and the fundamentals of its transferring from one generation to another. Stories recorded in 2019–2020 embrace three generations of the family: Algimantas the son of the partisans, Jurga and Gediminas their grandchildren, and Gaudutė their great-granddaughter. In order to perceive the background of the story, the author uses memoirs by the freedom fighters connected to the Žiliai Family, and by Zofija Žilienė, published at the onset of the Lithuanian independence. According to the author, a person telling his / her life story or relating its separate events presents an original interpretation of the past and shapes his / her identity; therefore, such narrative is of utmost importance in terms of understanding the partisans and their closest surroundings. The members of the partisan community exhibit a remarkably positive attitude towards the Žiliai Family, both because of their resistance activities and their personal traits. Published memoirs and artistic works by the partisans depict not only Antanas and Zofija but also their three children who had to grow up with a number of foster-parents. According to their former brothers in arms and family members, the family ties were damaged during the partisan war, albeit still partly maintained, since the parents used to visit their children, contributing to their upbringing. After Antanas was killed in May of 1949, and Zofija subsequently arrested, the family ties weakened even more; however, the narratives preserved in the memory of family members assume that the experiences of resistance and repressions as well as similar reaction towards them bounded them all together. The study revealed that the partisan war and Antanas’ death became subjects of a more open discussion in the family only in the eve of the Lithuanian independence in the 90s, although during the Soviet occupation the family members had already intuitively felt a complicated history lurking behind. It should be noted, however, that the memories of the partisan war are not merely directly transferred: the narrative is shaped considerably by certain omissions and by the family members’ behavior during the Soviet period, attempting by various means to shield their close ones from the attention of Soviet repressive structures. According to their narratives, every member of the Žiliai Family appreciates freedom as the main value of life, although painful experiences have forced Zofija and her son Algimantas to adapt to the Soviet regime. However, stories by Zofija’s grandchildren clearly exhibit their subconscious desire to oppose the system and longing for the independence. All narrators seem to be proud of their family members’ involvement in the struggle for freedom, despite their understanding of the cruel impact it had on the family life. Knowledge of the family history is valued as a responsibility to be passed on and appreciated. The younger the generation, the more remote its connections to the resistance; this enhances their impartiality and a lack of authentic experience. Grandchildren of the partisans already tend to speak more openly about the painful experiences of their family members, thus revealing the complicated reality of the struggle for freedom. Narratives by the partisans’ son display clear traces of immediate communication with the partisans, including details from their everyday life and connections with their families, as well as authentic memories of the family relationship. Algimantasʼ mind is more occupied by the image of his slain father. Subsequent generations have mostly preserved memories of interactions with Zofija, supplementing her stories with their own insights in the partisan struggle and attitude towards the Soviet regime. The chief storyteller in the family is still Algimantas, sharing his parents’ and his own experiences both with the family and with the general public. The study reveals that experiences of resistance and repression have influenced the self-perception of several generations. The narrative preserved by the partisan families expands the notion of their fight and supplements the history of struggle for freedom with new and significant details.

Historians have so far analysed the historical narrative used for modern Lithuanian nationbuilding in terms of its structure, the main storylines and images, and the most important historical figures rooted in it. previous studies have revealed how the narrative was constructed. However, less research has been done on how it was received by individual social groups. the article analyses the Lithuanian historical narrative promoted by partisans who participated in the anti-soviet armed resistance in 1944-1953. the author discusses how the narrative was used to strengthen and perpetuate the struggle, and looks for connections between the organisational unification of the guerrilla fighters and their relationship with historical images and figures. she provides an outline of interpretations of history presented in writings by partisans of various ranks, and reveals features of the historical awareness of the resistance fighters. the main sources used for the research were publications (proclamations, bulletins, periodicals, etc) issued by the partisans. in addition, the author examines the pseudonyms used by 935 fighters, and the names that were given to their organisational units. Data from all three anti-soviet resistance areas, southern, eastern and western Lithuania, are analysed.

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