Council of Lithuania in the context of "Kingdom of Lithuania (1918)"

The Act of Independence of Lithuania (Lithuanian: Lietuvos Nepriklausomybės Aktas) or the Act of February 16th, also the Lithuanian Resolution on Independence (Lithuanian: Lietuvos Nepriklausomybės Nutarimas), was signed by the Council of Lithuania on February 16, 1918, proclaiming independence from Russia and the restoration of an independent State of Lithuania, governed by democratic principles, with Vilnius as its capital. The Act was signed by all twenty representatives of the Council, which was chaired by Jonas Basanavičius. The Act of February 16 was the result of a series of resolutions on the issue, including one issued by the Vilnius Conference and the Act of January 8. The path to the Act was long and complex because the German Empire exerted pressure on the Council to form an alliance. The Council had to carefully maneuver between the Germans, whose troops were present in Lithuania, and the demands of the Lithuanian people.

The immediate effects of the announcement of Lithuania's re-establishment of independence were limited. Publication of the Act was prohibited by the German authorities, and the text was distributed and printed illegally. The work of the Council was hindered, and Germans remained in control over Lithuania. The situation changed only when Germany lost World War I in the fall of 1918. In November 1918 the first Cabinet of Lithuania was formed, and the Council of Lithuania gained control over the territory of Lithuania. Independent Lithuania, although it would soon be battling the Wars of Independence, became a reality.

The Polish–Lithuanian War was an undeclared war fought in the aftermath of World War I between newly independent Lithuania and Poland, with fighting mainly in the Vilnius and Suwałki regions, which was part of the Lithuanian Wars of Independence and lasted from May 1919 to 29 November 1920. From the spring of 1920 onward, the conflict happened alongside the wider Polish–Soviet War and was affected by its progress. It was subject to unsuccessful international mediation at the Conference of Ambassadors and the League of Nations.

After World War I, the military and political situation in the region was chaotic, as multiple countries, notably Lithuania, Poland, and Soviet Russia, vied with each other over control of overlapping areas. The Polish–Lithuanian conflict was centered on Vilnius, which the Council of Lithuania declared the capital of the restored Lithuanian state. Control of Vilnius was transferred from Germans to Poles on January 2, 1919, but the Polish paramilitary lost the city to the Bolsheviks on January 5. The Polish Army seized Vilnius again on April 19, 1919 and came in contact with the Lithuanian Army fighting in the Lithuanian–Soviet War. Despite the antagonism over Vilnius, the Lithuanian and Polish armies sometimes cooperated when fighting against a common enemy, the Bolsheviks. As Lithuanian–Polish relations worsened, the Entente drew two demarcation lines in hopes to stall further hostilities. The lines did not please either side and were ignored. The first clashes between Polish and Lithuanian soldiers occurred on April 26 and May 8, 1919, near Vievis. With the Polish coup against the Lithuanian government failing in August 1919, the front stabilized until the summer of 1920.