Great Seimas of Vilnius

Russia lost the Russo-Japanese War and became engulfed in the Revolution of 1905. In Lithuania, the press ban was lifted. Basanavičius, after years of service, was entitled to receive a Bulgarian pension and considered this a good time to return to Lithuania even though he did not have a permission to return. He departed Bulgaria in May 1905 and arrived to Vilnius in August. Immediately he joined activities of Lithuanian activists and promoted the idea of a Lithuanian assembly which would become the Great Seimas of Vilnius.^[3] With help from the staff of Vilniaus žinios, a fifteen-member organizing committee was formed and Basanavičius became its chairman. In November 1905, in the name of the organizing committee Basanavičius authored a controversial memorandum to Sergei Witte, Prime Minister of the Russian Empire, which demanded autonomy for Lithuania in the Russian Empire.

Over 2,000 participants gathered on 4–5 December 1905 in Vilnius for the Great Seimas of Vilnius. Basanavičius was elected as its chairman. After loud, passionate, and intense discussions, the Seimas adopted a four-paragraph resolution which declared Tsarist government as Lithuania's most dangerous enemy and demanded autonomy for Lithuania. The resolution also called for passive and peaceful resistance to Tsarist authorities, such as not paying taxes, organizing strikes, boycotting certain products, etc. The autonomy was not achieved and the Tsarist authorities soon reestablished their control, but it laid the groundwork for establishing the independent Lithuanian republic in 1918. Using the energy generated by the Seimas, Basanavičius founded the Lithuanian National Democratic Party (Lithuanian: Tautiškoji lietuvių demokratų partija), the first nationalistic party in Lithuania but it did not gain more prominence.

As Tsarist authorities began investigating the Seimas and questioning its organizers, Basanavičius decided to leave Vilnius and traveled to Saint Petersburg. There he approached Pavel Milyukov, leader of the Constitutional Democratic Party, but found little sympathy for the Lithuanian cause. When he returned in January 1906, the police was waiting for him and he considered fleeing the country, but his Bulgarian passport was expired. The authorities questioned him, but he was not jailed. He managed to renew his passport and even obtain a one-year permit to reside in Russia. Despite his ailments and recurring health problems, Basanavičius wholeheartedly joined the election campaigns to the newly established State Duma of the Russian Empire, wrote extensively for Lithuanian press, campaigned for use of Lithuanian language in Catholic churches, continued his ethnographic research going through various archives and libraries. The issue of language in churches was particularly important to Basanavičius. When Russian authorities expelled Eduard von der Ropp, Bishop of Vilnius, from Vilnius, Basanavičius attempted to organize a delegation to Pope Pius X to convince the pope to replace Ropp with a Lithuanian bishop. That put Basanavičius in sharp conflict with Polish clergy. Basanavičius chaired a commission organizing the first exhibition of Lithuanian art, which was held in January 1907 at Vileišis Palace.

Lithuanian Scientific Society

On 7 April 1907, Basanavičius, who contemplated establishing a learned society since the 1880s, formally opened the Lithuanian Scientific Society dedicated to studies of Lithuanian history and language. He was elected as the society's president and the society became the focus of his life. Basanavičius was involved to such a degree that the society was virtually identical with his person. The society published scholarly journal Lietuvių tauta (The Lithuanian Nation) which Basanavičius edited. The society also established a library, archive, and museum. The society was not welcomed by Tsarist authorities, that monitored and restricted its activities. Basanavičius campaigned for the National House, an official headquarters for the society. The society raised enough funds to buy a plot of land, but not enough to construct the house. The society and Basanavičius were criticized by younger scholars as too old-fashioned while Christian clergy attacked it for being too secular, but established new standards and levels of quality of Lithuanian scholarship.

The society organized exhibitions, two most prominent were in 1908 for the 25th anniversary of Aušra and in 1914 for the 10th anniversary of the end of the Lithuanian press ban. The society wanted to publish Lithuanian textbooks, but could not find competent authors for the books. It also planned on publishing a Lithuanian encyclopedia, but editorial disputes and financial difficulties derailed the project. The society established a four-member commission (members were Jonas Jablonskis, Kazimieras Būga, Juozas Balčikonis, and Jurgis Šlapelis) which was tasked with standardizing the Lithuanian language. After great debates, Joblonskis emerged as the leading linguist and his book on Lithuanian syntax was published by the society in 1911. The society actively campaigned against city plans to build a water tower on Gediminas Hill and further damage remains of the historic Vilnius Upper Castle; Basanavičius personally traveled to Saint Petersburg to petition the issue.

During its annual meeting in June 1913, the society decided to send a delegation to United States primarily to raise funds for the National House. It was decided that Basanavičius should go and that Martynas Yčas would accompany him.^[4] Basanavičius hesitated, citing his health issues, but agreed.^[5] They visited Lithuanian American communities on the East Coast (New York, Illinois, Pennsylvania and elsewhere). They were discouraged by lax manners of the Lithuanians, infighting between local communities, and attacks by socialists (for example, Vincas Mickevičius-Kapsukas wrote to Lithuanian American socialist press urging to boycott the donation drive).^[6] Basanavičius deeply resented such attacks as to him loyalty to one's nation far outweighed loyalty to one's class or political views.^[7] In total, they visited 84 Lithuanian communities in 120 days and collected $23,799 from some 6,000 donors.^[8] The money was not enough to build the National House and it was lost in a Russian bank during World War I.^[9]

The exhausting travel schedule further deteriorated Basanavičius' frail health. Observers agreed that he became a lot more passive, more an observer than an active participant. Basanavičius himself recognized that he had trouble speaking, remembering things, was overall weaker.^[10] He continued to join various committees and organizations, but he would not automatically become chairman. It seemed that his membership was in honor of his past services rather than in expectation of future accomplishments.^[11]

World War I

At the outbreak of World War I, Basanavičius was undergoing bladder treatment in Berlin and rushed to Vilnius before the borders closed. He spent the war in Vilnius trying to preserve and protect the holdings of the Lithuanian Scientific Society and organize refugee relief efforts via the Lithuanian Society for the Relief of War Sufferers. In September 1915, Germans took over Vilnius. Many Lithuanians evacuated deeper into Russia, but Basanavičius remained in the city. Initially, the Ober Ost officials restricted Lithuanian activities and banned their press but became more lenient as the war progressed. Basanavičius concerned himself with the cultural work; for example, he obtained new premises for the library of the Lithuanian Scientific Society in summer 1917 and defended Lithuanian priests who spoke against political activities of Kazimierz Mikołaj Michalkiewicz [pl], administrator of the Vilnius Diocese.^[12]

The Germans established the puppet Kingdom of Poland and Basanavičius co-signed several memorandums to German officials informing them of Lithuanian aspirations. He participated in the Vilnius Conference and was elected to the 20-member Council of Lithuania, but his role was more honorary and ceremonial. He formally presented thanks to the German officials for allowing the conference and sent a letter to Pope Benedict XV, but was not one of the active officers of the proceedings.^[13] On 11 December 1917, the council adopted an act that was demanded by German Chancellor Georg von Hertling and that called for "a firm and perpetual bond of alliance" with Germany.^[14] Such concessions to the Germans created a rift in the council and four members – Mykolas Biržiška, Steponas Kairys, Stanisław Narutowicz and Jonas Vileišis – resigned from the council in protest.^[15] Chairman Antanas Smetona, who supported the Act of 11 December, temporarily stepped down and Basanavičius chaired the session that adopted the Act of Independence of Lithuania on 16 February 1918.^[15] He was the first to sign the Act.^[13]

Later life

Between January 1919 and October 1920, Vilnius changed hands and political regimes several times, but Basanavičius was little concerned with political turmoil and concentrated on cultural work. He worked with the communist regime of the short-lived Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic, particularly the Commissar of Education Vaclovas Biržiška, to obtain funds for the repairs of the history museum.^[16] After the city was captured by the Poles in April 1919, Polish officials harassed Lithuanian activists, confiscated the money advanced by the Soviets for the museum, raided premises of the Lithuanian Scientific Society in search for weapons, etc. Basanavičius organized lectures, helped with Lithuanian schools, and continued his cultural research.^[17] Balancing between Lithuanian and Polish interests, he refused to participate in the opening of the Stefan Batory University.^[18] In early 1920, he once again had to relocate the Lithuanian Scientific Society as the premises granted by the German authorities were returned to previous owners.^[19]

In May 1920, Basanavičius together with Mykolas Biržiška, Kristupas Čibiras [lt], and Teofilius Juodvalkis traveled to Kaunas to attend the opening of the Constituent Assembly of Lithuania.^[19] Basanavičius was greeted as an honored guest and met with many dignitaries and old friends. He also visited the native Ožkabaliai before returning to Vilnius in early June.^[20] A month later, in July 1920, the city was captured by the Soviet Union and it was transferred to the Lithuanians according to the Soviet–Lithuanian Peace Treaty. But Poland recaptured the city in October 1920 during the staged Żeligowski's Mutiny.^[21] Polish authorities limited the membership in the Lithuanian Scientific Society only to the residents of Poland.^[22] Polish censorship and restrictions caused great anxiety to Basanavičius who feared that he might get arrested.^[23] His refusal to leave the city became a living symbol of the Lithuanian claims to the city.^[24] In July–November 1924, Basanavičius again visited Lithuania and received a hero's welcome.^[25] On 23 November, a day-long celebration with a special mass, concerts, and lectures for his 75th birthday was held in Kaunas.^[26]

Death

Basanavičius fell in his home on 5 February 1927. He refused to go to a hospital until he completed certain writing. At the hospital of the Lithuanian Sanitary Aid Society, he was diagnosed with bladder and lung infections that his body was failing to fight.^[27] On 16 February 1927, the 9th anniversary of Lithuania's independence, he discussed matters of the Lithuanian Scientific Society and expressed wishes to attend the independence celebrations.^[28] He died that day at 6:50 pm. The Lithuanian government declared five-day mourning and sent a 12-member delegation to his funeral. He was buried in Rasos Cemetery on 21 February.^[27]