Scouting in the Baltic Countries A history in philately

“Scouting in the Baltic Countries. A History in Philately” (author: Darius Liutikas, Vilnius, 2018, p. 416).

The beginning of the history of the Scout Movement in the Baltic countries is in 1912, when the first Scout troops were formed in Estonia. The first Scout troops were formed in Latvia in 1917, and in Lithuania in 1918. The history of Scouting of the Baltic countries has very similar details and intertwines with the overall history of the Baltic countries. The founder of World Scouting, Robert Baden Powell, visited the Baltic countries during his trip on the ship Calgaric in 1933. Organizations of the Scout Movement were particularly active before World War II in their respective countries, followed by activities in refugee camps during and after World War II. Scouting was forbidden in the Baltic countries during the fifty years of the Soviet Occupation. Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian Scouts developed their activities in exile. The Scout Movement in the Baltic countries was re-established after the collapse of the Soviet Union at the end of 1980s.

The book “Scouting in the Baltic Countries. A History in Philately” presents a history of the Scout Movement in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The main Scout and Guide Jamborees in the Homeland and in Exile are described. More than 1,000 illustrations including post stamps, souvenir sheets, covers, postmarks, cachets, revenue stamps and postcards are presented in this book. An Illustrated Glossary of Philatelic Terms is included. The book presents a thematic collection. The thematic collection is compiled to reflect a specific topic or events (in this case History of the Scout Movement in the Baltic Countries). The author chose the collection plan.

The book is intended for readers of all ages, current Scouts and those who are interested in Scouting and youth organizations. This book should be interesting to former Scouts and their family members. This book should also be interesting for philatelists and collectors of Scout memorabilia. Collectors also can use this book as a catalogue. A number of illustrations identify different stamps, covers and postcards. All the illustrations in the book are from the author's personal collection.

This is the second book of Darius Liutikas on this topic. His book in the Lithuanian Skautai. Dievui, Tėvynei, Artimui! Skautybė pašto ženkluose (Scouts. For God, For Homeland, For Neighbour! Scouting on Postage Stamps) was published at the beginning of 2012. Since 2012, Liutikas has participated in EuroScout exhibitions and World Scout Collectors meetings. He presented philatelic expositions in Germany (2012), Denmark (2014), Austria (2016), and Portugal (2018). In 2014, at the “EuroScout 2014” exhibition in Denmark, D. Liutikas was awarded the Walter Grob Award for the exposition “History of Lithuanian Scouting.”

The book “Scouting in the Baltic Countries. A History in Philately” is dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Lithuanian Scout Movement (1918-2018). The publishers of the book Community of Lithuanian Pilgrims and Lithuanian Scouts Association (Lietuvių Skautų Sąjunga).