Leonas Bistras

Leonas Bistras
10th Prime Minister of Lithuania
In office 25 September 1925 – 31 May 1926
President	Aleksandras Stulginskis
Preceded by	Vytautas Petrulis
Succeeded by	Mykolas Sleževičius
Minister of Education
In office 18 June 1923 – 4 February 1924
Prime Minister	Antanas Tumėnas
Preceded by	Petras Juodakis
Succeeded by	Kazys Jokantas
In office 17 December 1926 – 3 May 1927
Prime Minister	Augustinas Voldemaras
Preceded by	Vincas Čepinskis
Succeeded by	Konstantinas Šakenis
In office 28 March 1939 – 21 November 1939
Prime Minister	Jonas Černius
Preceded by	Juozas Tonkūnas
Succeeded by	Kazimieras Jokantas
Minister of Defence
In office 25 September 1925 – 31 May 1926
Prime Minister	Himself
Preceded by	Teodoras Daukantas
Succeeded by	Juozas Papečkis
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office 21 April 1925 – 31 May 1926
Prime Minister	Himself
Preceded by	Mečislovas Reinys
Succeeded by	Mykolas Sleževičius
Personal details
Born	(1890-10-20)20 October 1890 Liepāja, Courland Governorate, Russian Empire (now Latvia)
Died	17 October 1971(1971-10-17) (aged 80) Kaunas, Lithuanian SSR, Soviet Union
Resting place	Petrašiūnai Cemetery
Political party	Lithuanian Christian Democratic Party
Alma mater	University of Freiburg

Leonas Bistras (20 October 1890 in Liepāja – 17 October 1971 in Kaunas) was one of the most prominent Lithuanian politicians of the interwar period. A Christian Democrat, he was in 1925 appointed Prime Minister of Lithuania. Bistras also headed the ministries of education, defense and foreign affairs in several different governments throughout the 1920s and 1930s and twice served as the speaker of the Lithuanian parliament, the Seimas. After the 1926 Lithuanian coup d'état and the subsequent fall of parliamentary democracy, Bistras led the Christian Democrats and, despite persecution, acted as an outspoken leader of the opposition to the authoritarian President Antanas Smetona.

After the Soviet occupation and annexation of Lithuania, Bistras was arrested, sentenced without a trial and deported from Lithuania. He only permanently returned after the death of Josef Stalin. Bistras lived the remaining years of his life in obscurity and poverty, supported only by the local people of Kaunas.