Russian Imperial Army Galvydis-Bykauskas was born on in near
Užpaliai. In 1884, he graduated from the of the
Foresters' Corps and briefly worked as an assistant forester. In July 1885, he volunteered to the
Russian Imperial Army and was sent to study at the . He graduated with excellent grades and was awarded a prize of
Dmitry Milyutin. He was assigned to the . In 1900 or 1909, he graduated from the in
Oranienbaum and was promoted to captain. In 1911, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and was transferred to the 18th Siberian Rifle Regiment. Galvydis-Bykauskas fought in World War I. In November 1914, he was injured near
Łódź. For distinction in action, he was promoted to colonel in August 1915. In November 1915, he became commander of the 18th Siberian Rifle Regiment. In January 1916, he was captured by the Germans and kept in POW camps until early 1918.
Lithuanian Army 1st Infantry Regiment In early 1918, Galvydis-Bykauskas returned to Lithuania. Upon learning of the
Act of Independence of Lithuania, he travelled to
Vilnius to sign up for the Lithuanian Army, but it was not established until October 1918. He worked as director of procurement at the
Ministry of Defence and took it upon himself to draft plans on how to organize the Lithuanian Army. He presented the plan to the ministers of defence and internal affairs who rejected it. He officially joined the army on 23 November 1918 and was assigned as the commander of the
1st Infantry Regiment which he was to form in
Alytus. He recruited men in Vilnius until the outbreak of the
Lithuanian–Soviet War. On 17 December 1918, the regiment evacuated from Vilnius to Alytus. Galvydis-Bykauskas continued to recruit and train new volunteers. On 26 December, he was recalled to Vilnius and was ordered to organize defence of Vilnius against the advancing Red Army. However, that was an unrealistic order and the
city was captured first by Poles then by the Soviets. On 5 January 1920, Galvydis-Bykauskas ordered the 1st Battalion commanded by
Kazys Ladiga to march towards
Lentvaris to the frontline with the Soviets. They were to meet German forces which promised to supply weapons and other necessities. However, Ladiga and other officers refused as they felt undersupplied. The following day, several officers signed a letter to the
Defence Staff asking to replace Galvydis-Bykauskas with someone who showed more enthusiasm and initiative. Upon learning of this letter, Galvydis-Bykauskas attempted to replace Ladiga with and challenged them to duel when they refused to follow orders.
War School After this conflict, Galvydis-Bykauskas was assigned as the director of the
War School of Kaunas on 25 January 1919. He assumed this role after he returned from
Berlin on 27 February 1919. The first classes were held on 11 March 1919. Galvydis-Bykauskas taught field statute, theory of shooting, and practical riffle combat. It was a difficult task as there was a lack of instruction material. In August 1919, Galvydis-Bykauskas became commander of the Kaunas garrison. His main task was ensuring soldiers' discipline and obtaining supplies for the army. In August 1919, Galvydis-Bykauskas was one of about 18 Lithuanian officers who took initiative and began arresting Poles in
Kaunas in an attempt to stop the
planned coup by the
Polish Military Organization. In October 1919, he was promoted to
lieutenant general.
Army command On 1 January 1920, Galvydis-Bykauskas was transferred from the War School to the 3rd Division (
3rd,
6th, and
9th Infantry Regiments) which was deployed near
Daugavpils where Lithuanian, Polish, and Latvian forces met when pushing out the Red Army (see: Lithuanian–Soviet War#Final battles). On 7 February, Galvydis-Bykauskas assumed the command. There were no active engagements at this front, but there were tensions between the Lithuanian and Polish troops that led to various incidents. The most serious incident occurred on 14 March 1920 when Poles pushed out Lithuanians from the
Turmantas railway station. In addition, on 9 April 1920, Galvydis-Bykauskas became the acting
supreme commander of the Lithuanian Army when supreme commander
Silvestras Žukauskas took vacation to retrieve his family from
Kyiv but decided to resign from the military in June 1920. On 7 July 1920, as tensions were rising in the
Polish–Lithuanian War, Galvydis-Bykauskas was dismissed from the army command and was replaced by
Konstantinas Žukas who was
minister of defence at the same time. On 23 October 1920, few days after the loss of
Vilnius to Poland in the
Żeligowski's Mutiny, Galvydis-Bykauskas was appointed acting commander of the 2nd Division. He departed to the frontline, but the division did not participate in combat. After a ceasefire was reached on 30 November 1920, Galvydis-Bykauskas moved the division's staff to Kaunas. He was dismissed from the 2nd Division on 1 February 1921 and replaced by .
Constituent Assembly In March 1920, Galvydis-Bykauskas as a representative of the
Lithuanian Christian Democratic Party was elected to the
Constituent Assembly of Lithuania which convened in May 1920. He was elected chairman of the parliamentary committee on national defence. At the assembly, Galvydis-Bykauskas most frequently spoke about issues concerning military and the
Lithuanian Riflemen's Union. He supported proposals that the Ministry of Defence would have full jurisdiction over their riflemen and even more so when concerning their weaponry. He spoke on other issues, including the
proposed constitution (supported death penalty and emphasized the need for
state orders) and
land reform (supported in principle but spoke against specific provisions that excluded
Lithuanian Americans from the reform or that nobility's land would be nationalized without taking into account how they acquired the land). In discussions, he often brought up traditional values and moral virtues. His work at the assembly was interrupted by the
Żeligowski's Mutiny and his command of the 2nd Division. He resigned from the assembly on 17 December 1921.
Return to the War School On 18 December 1921, Galvydis-Bykauskas was again appointed director of the
War School of Kaunas. The school was transformed from a school that catered to the urgent needs at the frontline into a peacetime school for junior officers that had more long-term strategic goals of strengthening the Lithuanian Army. The curriculum was expanded and the length of the program increased from six months to two years. In December 1922, the school moved from cramped premises in central Kaunas to
Panemunė. In addition to the work at the war school, Galvydis-Bykauskas was also commander of the Kaunas garrison from 1 January 1922 to 1 September 1923.
Civilian life On 28 August 1926, Galvydis-Bykauskas was released to the reserve based on his request. On the same day, he was promoted to general with seniority from 5 April 1920. He continued to participate in the Lithuanian public life. He was a board member of the Union of Lithuanian Farmers' Cooperatives (organization sponsored by the
Farmers' Association) and of the
Catholic Action Center. As such, he was in opposition to the authoritarian regime of President
Antanas Smetona and was investigated by the Lithuanian police. He owned a manor in
Romainiai. After the
Soviet occupation of Lithuania in June 1940, Galvydis-Bykauskas was investigated by the
NKVD as an active member of the
Lithuanian Christian Democratic Party and for several anti-communist speeches delivered in the 1930s. He was arrested on 12 June 1941 because he was implicated as a member of the "counter-revolutionary" organization Lithuanian Defense Guard (). However, he was freed from
Kaunas Prison after the
German invasion of the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941. According to testimony of , Galvydis-Bykauskas assisted Jews from the
Kovno Ghetto by providing them food and clothing. Galvydis-Bykauskas died on 16 July 1943. He was given and official funeral. The
lying in state was held at the
Church of St. Michael the Archangel. He was buried in
Raudondvaris. ==Publications==