Danielius Alseika

Danielius Alseika
Born	(1881-01-29)29 January 1881 Bružai,Russian Empire
Died	9 May 1936(1936-05-09)(aged 55) Vilnius,Second Polish Republic
Alma mater	University of Warsaw University of Dorpat
Occupation	Physician
Board member of	Lithuanian Sanitary Aid Society Provisional Committee of Vilnius Lithuanians
Spouse	Veronika Alseikienė
Children	Vytautas Kazimieras Alseika Marija Gimbutas
Relatives	BrotherAlbinas Alseika

Danielius Alseika(Polish:Daniel Olsejko;1881–1936) was a Lithuanian physician and activist. He was the father of the archaeologistMarija Gimbutas.

Born to a family of Lithuanian peasants, Alseika became actively involved inLithuanian cultural lifeas a high school student. He participated inthe smugglingof thebanned Lithuanian publications,organized protests during theRussian Revolution of 1905,and was one of the co-founders of thePeasant Union.

He graduated as doctor from theUniversity of Dorpat.During World War I, he was drafted into theImperial Russian Armyand worked as a doctor at various military hospitals. He founded theLithuanian Sanitary Aid Societywhich cheaply purchased inventory of a military hospital and transported it toVilniuswhere a new Lithuanian hospital was established in 1918. Alseika was director of the hospital until 1933 and chairman of the society until his death. In 1931, Alseika acquired anx-raymachine which did not have propershielding.He died of thechronic radiation syndromein 1936.

Alseika lived and worked in Vilnius which was bitterly contested between theinterwar Lithuaniaand theSecond Polish Republic.He actively defended Lithuanian rights inVilnius Regionand was chairman of theProvisional Committee of Vilnius Lithuaniansin 1923–1928. He also founded and edited Lithuanian periodicalsVilniaus šviesaandVilniaus žodis.

Biography

Early life and education

Alseika was born inBružainearSkuodasin present-day northernLithuania.He was the youngest of five brothers; one of them was Catholic priestAlbinas Alseika.His only sister died young.After primary school in Skuodas, he enrolled at theMitau Gymnasium.There he was a member of a secret group of Lithuanian students led by the future writerJonas Biliūnas.Alseika became involved inthe smugglingof thebanned Lithuanian publications.He also contributed articles to Lithuanian periodicalsŪkininkasandVarpas.Due to such pro-Lithuanian activities, Alseika was expelled from the gymnasium but managed to finish his education at theMarijampolė Gymnasiumin 1903.

In 1903, he enrolled at theUniversity of Warsawto study engineering. For participating in a student strike in 1905, he was expelled.During theRussian Revolution of 1905,he organized protests among the peasants and workers nearVilnius,Trakai,Švenčionysagitating them to strike and resist Tsarist officials.He participated at theGreat Seimas of Vilniusand was one of the co-founders of thePeasant Union.

He then went on to study medicine at theUniversity of Dorpat.At the university, he continued to be involved in Lithuanian activities and led a society of Lithuanian students.He also contributed articles to Lithuanian periodicals, includingLietuvos ūkininkas,Vilniaus žinios,Lietuvos žinios.He graduated with a specialty inotorhinolaryngology(ear, nose, and throat) and moved to work inUkmergė.

Medical career

Main article:Lithuanian Sanitary Aid Society

Alseika with his wifeVeronikain 1915

In 1913, Alseika moved toViennato attend further medical courses. After the outbreak ofWorld War I,he managed to return to Lithuania and was drafted into theImperial Russian Army.He worked as a doctor inDaugavpils,Petrograd,and other locations.He found himself in charge of a war hospital inMinskwhen Germans occupied the city in early 1918. Soon after, he established theLithuanian Sanitary Aid Society.The society treated and vaccinated war refugees returning via Minsk to Lithuania.Those who could afford, were asked to pay for the treatments. The society then used the funds to purchase equipment and other inventory of the war hospital and relocated it to Vilnius in July 1918. The new hospital was opened in November 1918and continued to operate until 1941.Alseika was the director of the hospital until 1933 and chairman of the society until he died in 1936.

In 1919–1921, Alseika served as the city and district doctor of Vilnius.In this position, he had to combat acholeraoutbreak. In his article published inMedicina,Alseika described how he contained an outbreak that infected 70 people, of which 28 died, in August–October 1921.He also published two booklets on medical inventions (1932) and prevention oftuberculosis(1936).

In 1931, Alseika became interested inx-rayand acquired a machine from the United States. However, it did not have propershielding,and he began suffering from thechronic radiation syndrome.The last two years of his life, he retreated from Lithuanian public life and devoted his energy to the x-ray hoping to travel to Austria to improve his skills.He was admitted to the Hospital of the Lithuanian Sanitary Aid Society on 1 May 1936 and died on 9 May. Theviewingwas held at the same hospital and the church service at theChurch of Saint Nicholas.Alseika was buried at theSaulė CemeteryinAntakalnis.

Lithuanian activities

In addition to his medical career, Alseika was also active in Lithuanian cultural life. On 5 December 1918, he as a representative of theLithuanian Popular Peasants' Unionwas coopted by theCouncil of Lithuania.However, he withdrew in less than a month when the council evacuated toKaunasat the outbreak of theLithuanian–Soviet War.For ten months in 1920–1921,he toured various communities of theLithuanian Americanscollecting funds for the newly established publishing companyVarpasas well as for aid to Lithuanians in the Vilnius Region.After the return, he withdrew from political and party work devoting his energy to the affairs of the Lithuanians in Vilnius Region.

Alseika was one of the co-founders of theProvisional Committee of Vilnius Lithuaniansand was its chairman in 1923–1928.The committee functioned as an unofficial representation of Lithuania. It provided legal assistance to residents, campaigned for the rights of Lithuanians in courts and international organizations, and financed Lithuanian education, periodicals, and cultural events.Alseika sought to ally with otherethnic minorities in Poland(Belarusians, Ukrainians, Jews). To that end, a committee was established in Warsaw which published the quadrilingual magazineNatioin 1927.Alseika was one of the editors ofNatio.He resigned after a conflict over the Lithuanian participation in the1928 Polish legislative election:Lithuanians wanted to boycott the election while Alseika advocated participation.

Alseika was the first chairman of the Kultūra Society in 1929–1934. This society operated four Lithuanian primary schools and had 50 local chapters that organized Lithuanian cultural activities.He was also an active member of theLithuanian Scientific Societyand briefly was its acting chairman after the death ofJonas Basanavičiusin February 1927.Alseika took care of Basanavičius during his last years.

In 1928, Alseika founded, published, and edited the Lithuanian magazineVilniaus šviesa.The magazine focused of science and literature and targeted the youth.It was a monthly publication that appeared irregularly and was discontinued in October 1929 and replaced byVilniaus žodis.Alseika was its editor until 1931. He also published books about Lithuanian national aspirations (Lietuvių tautinė idėja istorijos šviesojein 1924) and conditions of Lithuanians in Vilnius Region (Vilniaus krašto lietuvių gyvenimas 1919–34in 1935)as well as two historical books on Grand DukeVytautas(in 1924 and 1927).

Due to his Lithuanian activities, Alseika was harassed by the Polish authorities.For example, he was briefly arrested and imprisoned inLukiškės Prisonin 1922.The authorities wanted to deport Alseika and his wife in May 1924, but it was avoided after a complaint to theHuman Rights Leaguein Paris.The Polish government attempted to deport Alseika again in spring 1927, but theSecretary-General of the League of Nationsintervened.

Personal life

In 1910, Alseika married fellow physicianVeronika Janulaitytėwho specialized inophthalmology(eyes).They had two children: sonVytautas Kazimieras Alseika(1912–2002) and daughterMarija Gimbutas(1921–1994). The couple split in 1931 when Veronika and the children moved toKaunasso that the children could attend a Lithuanian university.