Day of Restoration of Independence of Lithuania Date in the current year: March 11, 2024

In Lithuania, there are two national holidays that celebrate the country's independence. February 16 is Day of Restoration of the State of Lithuania. It is the anniversary of the Act of Independence of Lithuania signed on February 16, 1918. The second holiday, Day of Restoration of Independence of Lithuania, is the anniversary of the country's independence from the Soviet Union.

Lithuania was occupied by the USSR in 1940, after the USSR and Germany signed the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact which included the territory of Lithuania into the Soviet sphere of influence. On July 21, 1940, the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic was established.

Following the start of Perestroika in the Soviet Union, the independence movement in Lithuania began to gain momentum. As a result, Lithuania became the first republic of the Soviet Union to declare its independence from the USSR. This event is viewed as the re-establishment of the Lithuanian independence proclaimed in 1918. Its anniversary was declared a public holiday.