Early years Jonas Mačiulis was born on in manor, , , in the former
Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which was almost wholly annexed by the
Russian Empire during the
Partitions of the
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Maironis' parents were free peasants who maintained close relations with the
polonized Lithuanian nobility. Such a social environment formed the basis of Maironis' personality, leading to his deep
religiosity and loyalty to tradition, free from
atheistic or
liberal influences. Socially, Maironis was uninvolved in the tensions between nobles and peasants, the rich and the poor, and did not become a representative of either side. Maironis was raised with a firm grounding in Lithuanian rural culture and was open to influence of any culture provided that it did not contradict Maironis' love for his land, his people, its past and traditions.
Ecclesiastical and academic career During 1873–1883, Maironis was learning in the
gymnasium of Kaunas. In sixth class, he began writing verses in
Polish. In 1883, he entered the
Kiev University to study literature. He only studied there for a single semester. He left the university after the lectures did not satisfy his hopes and the students' stances towards religion were strange to him, so, Maironis returned to Kaunas in 1884 and entered
Kaunas Priest Seminary. Maironis studied in the seminary until 1888. In the seminary, Lithuanian culture and the use of the Lithuanian language were encouraged by the priest, then
Auxiliary bishop,
Antanas Baranauskas. This influenced Maironis to decide in favour of Lithuanianness and to create art in the Lithuanian language, thus leading to him being important in the Lithuanian National Revival. In 1888-1892, Maironis studied in the
Saint Petersburg Roman Catholic Theological Academy, where he mostly studied
moral theology and for his work , he received a
Master's degree. In 1891, Maironis was ordained a priest. From 1892 to 1894, he was professor in Kaunas Priest Seminary, where he taught the
dogmatic theology and
catechism.
In Saint Petersburg banknote (2001) From 1894 to 1909, he was Theology
Professor in Saint Petersburg Roman Catholic Theological Academy and was made the academic inspector in 1900. For a few years, he was also the
prefect and
spiritual father. In 1903, he received the degree of
Doctor of Theology. In the Academy, the Department of
Sociology was established at the insistence of Maironis. Around 1900, Maironis was one of the founders of the
Lithuanian Language Rights' Restoration Union (). Maironis' presence in academia had indirect influence on Lithuanian culture in
Saint Petersburg, as the presence of a Lithuanian poet in the functions of an inspector raised patriotic pride amongst the Lithuanian students and allowed the entry of more Lithuanians into professorship. Moreover, this allowed Maironis to authoritatively support the works of Lithuanians in the Imperial Russian capital, for example, the Lithuanian newspaper
Lietuvių laikraštis of . This newspaper was the first legally-printed Lithuanian newspaper in the Russian Empire following the end of Lithuanian press ban in 1904. In 1905, Maironis was a member of the Commission formed by the Minister of Education of the Russian Empire to prepare a Lithuanian language program for Lithuanian schools. Together with others, he prepared a draft program of the
Christian Democratic Party for the
Great Seimas of Vilnius of 1905.
In Lithuania From 1908, Maironis was member of the
Lithuanian Scientific Society in
Vilnius. In 1909, he was invited as
rector of the Kaunas Priest Seminary. In his first
public speech, he spoke in Lithuanian, breaking with the tradition of speaking either in
Latin or Polish. This was a breakthrough moment for Lithuanianness in the seminary. Outside of the seminary, Maironis was important to show that Lithuanians had their own intellectual high ecclesiastical figures, as Maironis was
Mogilev's
honorary canon since 1902 and later also the
prelate of the Samogitian
Capitula from 1912. He aided Roman Catholic Lithuanian cultural organisations by allowing them to establish their headquarters in the former , which Maironis had bought. Maironis remained the seminary's rector until his death in 1932, except when the seminary was closed during
World War I. Maironis left Kaunas only during short breaks during summer when he went to
Palanga or when the seminary was closed during World War I.
World War I During the First World War, Maironis lived in several places such as
Krekenava,
Upytė and others. He was persuaded to travel with the Lithuanian delegation to the Conference of
Bern in 1917, which was one of the
Lithuanian conferences during World War I.
Interwar Maironis was rejoicing at the re-establishment of Lithuanian independence, but he was disappointed with certain social ills he witnessed with the rebellious wave following independence. He disapproved of the
Interwar as it was contrary to his deep
social conservativism. In this respect, the
Tautininkai were closer to him than the Christian Democrats. His political leanings were partly also because of personal relations. While avoiding the public spotlight, Maironis preferred to frequent the intellectual artist circles, where poetry, song and music predominated. In 1922, Maironis was elected the Professor of Moral Theology in the Faculty of Theology-Philosophy of the newly-founded
University of Lithuania. For a short time, he taught courses on general and Lithuanian literature. The students were impressed by the clarity and simplicity of the teaching, looking at the substance of the question rather than the
rhetoric. Later that year, Maironis was elected the
honorary professor of the University of Lithuania on 15 December 1922. A decade later, the same institution gave him the degree of
honorary doctor of literature on 29 January 1932. == Works ==