Estonian government-in-exile
The Soviet Armed Forces invaded and occupied Estonia on 16, the 17th of June 1940. Soviet authorities arrested President Konstantin Päts and deported him to the USSR where he died in prison in 1956. Many members of the current and past governments were deported or executed, including eight former heads of state and 38 ministers. Those who survived went underground. Sham elections were held on 14, the 15th of July 1940 for a People's Riigikogu, in which voters were presented with a single list dominated by communists. This election is now considered illegal and unconstitutional, since it was conducted on the basis of an electoral law that had not been approved by the upper chamber, as required by the Estonian constitution. The upper house had been dissolved soon after the occupation and was never reconvened. The People's Riigikogu met on the 21st of July, with only one order of business, a resolution declaring Estonia a Soviet republic and petitioning to join the Soviet Union. The resolution passed unanimously. Päts was forced to resign on either the 21st of July or the 22nd of July, depending on the source. In accordance with Section 46 of the Estonian constitution, Johannes Vares, who had been serving as prime minister of a Communist-dominated puppet government appointed in June, then took over the president's powers under the title of Prime Minister in duties of the President and presided over the final stages of the Soviet takeover until Estonia was formally incorporated into the Soviet Union on the 9th of August.
Jüri Uluots, the last constitutional prime minister at the time of Soviet occupation, maintained that Vares' appointment as prime minister was illegitimate, and therefore he was the legitimate acting head of state with Päts' removal. Uluots attempted to appoint a new Estonian government in July 1941, at the beginning of the German occupation, but German authorities refused to recognize Estonia as a sovereign state. On the 20th of April 1944, the Electoral Committee of the Republic of Estonia held a clandestine meeting in Tallinn. The participants included Jüri Uluots, Johan Holberg, Otto Pukk, Alfred Maurer, and Mihkel Klaassen. The committee determined that Vares' appointment as prime minister by Päts had been illegal and that Uluots had ascended as prime minister in duties of the president from the 21st of June 1940, onwards. On the 21st of June 1944, Uluots appointed Otto Tief as deputy prime minister. On the 18th of September 1944, Uluots, suffering from cancer, named Otto Tief the acting prime minister and appointed a government which consisted of 11 members.
On the 20th of September 1944, Uluots, in failing health, departed for Sweden. Tief assumed office in accordance with the constitution and took the opportunity with the departure of the Germans to declare the legitimate Estonian government restored. Most of members of this government left from Tallinn on September 21 and Tief on September 22. As reported by the Royal Institute of International Affairs, on September 21 the Estonian national government was proclaimed, Estonian forces seized the government buildings in Toompea and ordered the German forces to leave. The flag of Germany was replaced with the Estonian tricolour in the Pikk Hermann flag tower. Tief's government, however, failed to keep control, as Estonian military units led by Johan Pitka clashed with both Germans and Soviets. On September 22 the Soviets took control of Tallinn and took the Estonian flag down. The Tief government fled Tallinn. The last meeting was held in the village of Põgari on September 22. However, the boat which was to rendezvous to evacuate them across the Baltic developed engine trouble and failed to arrive in time. Most of the members and officials, including Tief, were caught, jailed, deported, or executed by the advancing Soviets.
After Uluots died on the 9th of January 1945, August Rei, as the most senior surviving member of the government, assumed the role of acting head of state. Rei was supported by the surviving members of the Tief government in Sweden. Rei declared an official Estonian government in exile on the 12th of January 1953, in Oslo, Norway. Another group of Estonian politicians believed a president should be elected through some representative body. This group was led by Alfred Maurer, who had been second deputy chairman of the National Council of Estonia prior to 1940. Maurer was elected Acting President of the Republic in exile on the 3rd of March 1953, in Augustdorf, Germany. While Maurer's lineage had more support among the exile community, he never appointed any new government and this line became extinct upon Maurer's death a year-and-a-half later, on the 20th of September 1954. This left the Rei government as the sole contestant to legitimacy. The position of acting head of government continued to be assumed by succession following Rei's death in 1963.
Of the three Baltic states, only Estonia established a formal government-in-exile. In the cases of Latvia and Lithuania, sovereign authority had been vested in their diplomatic legations. Even with regard to Estonia, the legations were the primary instrument for the conduct of diplomacy and for administering the daily matters of state such as issuing passports. Estonia's primary legation was the Consulate General in New York City. Under the American Stimson Doctrine, the legitimacy of the Soviet occupation of Baltic states was never recognized. As primary diplomatic authority was exercised by the Estonian consulate in New York City, the government-in-exile's role from Oslo was, to a great degree, symbolic in nature. The Estonian consulate in Ireland was in legal proceedings. Three Estonian ships Otto, Piret, and Mall chose a neutral port in Ireland instead of going to a Soviet port. Ivan Maisky, the Soviet Union's ambassador to the United Kingdom, applied to the High Court in Dublin for possession of the ships. Their owners could not be contacted. John McEvoy honorary consul of Estonia successfully opposed the action.
Estonian ships were instructed to go to a Soviet port. Three Estonian ships Otto, Piret, and Mall and two from Latvia Rāmava and Everoja chose a neutral port in Ireland instead. Ivan Maisky, the Soviet Union's ambassador to the United Kingdom, applied to the High Court in Dublin for possession of the ships. Their owners could not be contacted. John McEvoy honorary consul of Estonia successfully opposed the action. This was recalled by Toomas Hendrik Ilves, President of Estonia. However, the Estonian government-in-exile did serve to carry the continuity of the Estonian state forward. The last prime minister in the duties of the president, Heinrich Mark, ended the work of the government-in-exile when he handed over his credentials to incoming president Lennart Meri on the 8th of October 1992. Meri issued a statement thanking the Estonian government-in-exile for being the keepers of the legal continuity of the Estonian state.
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Common questions
When did the Soviet Armed Forces invade and occupy Estonia?
The Soviet Armed Forces invaded and occupied Estonia on the 16th of June 1940. This event marked the beginning of the occupation that led to the formation of the government-in-exile.
Who was the last constitutional prime minister during the Soviet occupation of Estonia?
Jüri Uluots served as the last constitutional prime minister at the time of the Soviet occupation. He maintained that he was the legitimate acting head of state after President Konstantin Päts was removed from power.
What date did Otto Tief assume office as acting prime minister in Estonia?
Otto Tief assumed office as acting prime minister on the 21st of September 1944 following the departure of Jüri Uluots for Sweden. His government declared the restoration of the legitimate Estonian government before fleeing Tallinn on the 22nd of September 1944.
Which country hosted the official Estonian government-in-exile established by August Rei?
August Rei declared an official Estonian government-in-exile in Oslo, Norway on the 12th of January 1953. This location became the base for the government until its work ended in 1992.
When did Heinrich Mark end the work of the Estonian government-in-exile?
Heinrich Mark ended the work of the government-in-exile when he handed over his credentials to incoming president Lennart Meri on the 8th of October 1992. This transfer marked the conclusion of the formal governmental authority between 1944 and 1992.