The Estonian Government in Exile ^[1] refers to the formally declared governmental authority of the Republic of Estonia in exile, existing from 1953 until the reestablishment of Estonian sovereignty over Estonian territory in 1992. It traced its legitimacy through constitutional succession to the last Estonian government in power prior to the Soviet invasion of 1940. January 7 - President Harry S. Truman announces the United States has developed a hydrogen bomb. ... Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Timeline

Members of Estonian government go underground during Soviet occupation

The USSR illegally annexed Estonia in 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 8 former heads of state and 38 ministers. Those that survived went underground. For other uses, see June (disambiguation). ... Year 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The President of Estonia is the head of state of the Republic of Estonia. ... Konstantin Päts VR I/1 and III/1 (February 23, 1874 – January 18, 1956) was a politician and the first President of Estonia. ... A car from 1956 Year 1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

National Committee under occupation by Nazi Germany

The National Committee of the Republic of Estonia was formed from individuals engaged in the Estonian government prior to Soviet annexation. The Committee was led by Jüri Uluots, the last constitutional prime minister at the time of Soviet occupation. With the loss of Päts, the Committee recognized Ulots as the head of the Estonian government in accordance with Section 46 the Estonian Constitution (Riigi Teataja 03.09.1937 No. 71 Art 590), which specified that in the case that the President vacated the office or was otherwise unable to execute his duties, those duties were to be assumed by the Prime Minister, who carries duties of the Prime Minister to the Acting Prime Minister. Jüri Uluots (January 13, 1890 - January 9, 1945) was an Estonian prime minister, journalist, and prominent attorney. ...

Failure to reestablish independence

Uluots formally was recognized as Prime Minister in capacity of the President of the Republic (Peaminister Vabariigi Presidendi ülesandeis) by Electoral Committee (Vabariigi Presidendi Asetäitja Valimiskogu), on April 20, 1944. On September 18, 1944 Uluots, suffering from cancer, named Otto Tief the Deputy Prime Minister and formed a Government which consisted of 11 members selected out of members of the National Committee. is the 110th day of the year (111th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1944 (MCMXLIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

On September 20, 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. As reported by the Royal Institute of International Affairs: on September 21 the Estonian national government was proclaimed, Estonian forces seized the Toompea government buildings and ordered the German forces to leave. ^[2] The flag of Germany was replaced with the Estonian flag. 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 down the Estonian flag from the tower of Pikk Hermann. is the 264th day of the year (265th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Toompea is a hill in Tallinn centre. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... is the 265th day of the year (266th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Pikk Hermann (Tall Hermann) is a tower of the castle of Toompea in Tallinn, the capital of Estonia. ...

Flight ahead of Soviet forces

The Tief government fled Tallinn. 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, including Tief, were caught, jailed, deported, or executed by the advancing Soviets. Tief managed to survive a decade in Siberia and died back in Estonia in 1976. Only a small number managed to escape.

Rei succession and Maurer rivalry

After Uluots died on January 9, 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's government in Sweden. Rei was the last Estonian envoy in Moscow before the Soviet annexation and had managed to escape from Moscow through Riga to Stockholm in June 1940. ^[3] August Rei August Rei (22 March 1886 - 29 March 1963) was an Estonian politician. ... For other uses, see June (disambiguation). ... Year 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Rei declared an official Estonian government in exile on January 12, 1953 in Oslo, Norway. (Oslo, not Stockholm, was chosen because Norway did not have bans on such political activity, while Sweden did.) However, another group of Estonian politicians believed a president should be elected through some representative body. This group was lead 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 (Vabariigi Presidendi Asetäitja) in exile on March 3, 1953 in Augustdorf, Germany. While Maurer's lineage had more support among the exile community, he never appointed any new government (stating, that Tief's government is still in office and there is no need for a new government) and this line became extinct upon Maurer’s death a year-and-a-half later, in September 20, 1954. This left the Rei government as the sole contestant to legitimacy. is the 12th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... January 7 - President Harry S. Truman announces the United States has developed a hydrogen bomb. ... Year 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 62nd day of the year (63rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... January 7 - President Harry S. Truman announces the United States has developed a hydrogen bomb. ... is the 263rd day of the year (264th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1954 (MCMLIV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The position of acting head of government continued to be assumed by succession following Rei’s death in 1963. From 1953 to 1992, five governments in exile were formed. For other uses, see 1963 (disambiguation). ... January 7 - President Harry S. Truman announces the United States has developed a hydrogen bomb. ... Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ...

Diplomacy

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 its 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 based in London^{[citation needed]} and a consulate in New York. This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... This article is about the state. ...

Under the Stimson Doctrine, USA, and under similar doctrines, 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), the government in exile’s role from Oslo was, to a great degree, symbolic in nature. This does not cite any references or sources. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The occupation of Baltic states generally refers to the occupation of the Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) first by the Soviet Union, then Nazi Germany, and again by the Soviets during World War II, and to the Soviet presence in the Baltics from 1945 until the re-establishment of...

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 the incoming President Lennart Meri on October 8, 1992. Meri issued a statement thanking the Estonian government in exile for being the keepers of the legal continuity of the Estonian state. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Lennart Meri Lennart Georg Meri (IPA: ˈlennɑr̺t ˈg̥eɔrg̥ ˈmer̺i) (March 29, 1929 – March 14, 2006) was a writer, film director and politician who served as President of Estonia from 1992 to 2001. ... is the 281st day of the year (282nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ...

List of Acting Prime Ministers (Peaministri asetäitjad)

• Otto Tief (18 September 1944 - 12 January 1953, remained in Estonia, Soviet prisoner since 10 October 1944)
• Johannes Sikkar (12 January 1953- 22 August 1960)
• Tõnis Kint (22 August 1960- 1 January 1962)
• Aleksander Warma (1 January 1962 - 29 March 1963)
• Tõnis Kint (2 April 1963- 23 December 1970)
• Heinrich Mark (8 May 1971 - 1 March 1990)
• Enno Penno (1 March 1990 - 15 September 1992)

Otto Tief Otto Tief (14. ... is the 261st day of the year (262nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1944 (MCMXLIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 12th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... January 7 - President Harry S. Truman announces the United States has developed a hydrogen bomb. ... is the 283rd day of the year (284th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1944 (MCMXLIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... This organization, company, or building article needs to be wikified. ... is the 12th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... January 7 - President Harry S. Truman announces the United States has developed a hydrogen bomb. ... is the 234th day of the year (235th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Please wikify (format) this article or section as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ... is the 234th day of the year (235th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 1st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Aleksander Warma VR I/3 (June 22, 1890 Kõnnu Commune, Estonia - December 23, 1970 Stockholm, Sweden) was Estonian navy officer and diplomat. ... is the 1st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 88th day of the year (89th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see 1963 (disambiguation). ... is the 92nd day of the year (93rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see 1963 (disambiguation). ... is the 357th day of the year (358th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (link shows full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... is the 128th day of the year (129th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. ... is the 60th day of the year (61st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1990 (MCMXC) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 60th day of the year (61st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1990 (MCMXC) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 258th day of the year (259th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ...

Notes

References

• Mälksoo, Lauri (2000). Professor Uluots, the Estonian Government in Exile and the Continuity of the Republic of Estonia in International Law. Nordic Journal of International Law 69.3, 289-316.
• Made, Vahur. Estonian Government-in-Exile: a controversial project of state continuation. Estonian School of Diplomacy