The so called Rainiai Massacre took place on the night from 24th to 25th June 1941 executed by Soviet troops in which 76 political prisoners from Telšiai prison were killed. The soldiers transported the prisoners from the prison in the dead of night, brutally tortured and executed them without any charges.
Later Soviet government, in an attempt to erase the memory of this event, demolished an unfinished chapel in Telšiai graveyard and cut down Rainiai wood.
Despite this, the local community did not forget the events that took place there and in 1991, when commemorating the 50-year anniversary of the massacre, a new chapel was consecrated in Rainiai. Its ceilings were decorated with frescoes by artist A. Kmieliauskas, which depict the martyrs of Rainiai.
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