290 Chapter 3
290 Poland/366 Estonia
MID#1685
Dispute Number: 1685
Date(s): September 14, 1939 to September 21, 1939
Participants: 366 Estonia/290 Poland
Outcome (and Settlement): Unclear (None)
Fatalities: None
Narrative: Estonia seized the Polish submarine Orzel in September 1939. After war
materials were confiscated, the ship’s crew overpowered the Estonian guards days
later and escaped from the harbor in Tallin.
Coding changes: End Date changed from September 17, 1939. Fatalities changed
from Missing.
290 Poland/367 Latvia
MID#1272
Started in April 1919. See the narrative in the 290 Poland/368 Lithuania dyad dispute
list.
290 Poland/368 Lithuania
MID#1272
Dispute Number: 1272
Date(s): April 4, 1919 to November 29, 1920
Participants: 290 Poland/367 Latvia, 368 Lithuania
Outcome (and Settlement): Victory for side A (Negotiated)
Fatalities: >999 deaths
Narrative: This Polish-Lithuanian conflict occurred shortly after both states became
independent in the aftermath of World War I. Poland’s new independence led Jozef
Pilsudski, then leader of the fledgling republic, to attempt restoration of the former
status of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Lithuania, now independent as well,
felt any union with Poland as it had previously would be a simple subjugation and loss
of cultural autonomy and refused all overtures. Poland then opted to restore its pre-
partition territories by force. Vilnius was the heart of the conflict. The predominantly
Polish city in Lithuania was under siege by Russia’s Red Army, who moved west after
Germany retreated from the area. Poland, who despised the Russians for their role in
Poland’s elimination from the interstate system, moved against Russia. Lithuania, for
whom Vilnius was a capital, was caught in the middle of this power struggle. Lithu-
ania was forced to withdraw from Vilnius on January 3, 1919, under threat from the
Soviets (see MID#2603). The Lithuanian government relocated to Kaunas. Russian