Marijampolė Partisan Bunker

After World War II, Lithuania waged one of Europe's longest guerrilla resistance campaigns against Soviet occupation. Lithuanian partisans — known as the Forest Brothers — fought from hidden underground bunkers in the forests for nearly a decade (1944-1953). The reconstructed partisan bunker near Marijampolė provides a visceral understanding of how these fighters lived. The bunker — dug into the forest floor, concealed by vegetation, and accessed through a hidden entrance — recreates the cramped, dark conditions in which partisans survived for months and years. Exhibits include period weapons, communications equipment, personal belongings, and the stories of individual fighters. The partisan war is one of the most heroic and tragic chapters in Lithuanian history, and this site makes it tangible.