Petras Vileišis was a prominent Lithuania

Lithuania

Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...

n engineer, political activist, and philanthropist

Philanthropist

A philanthropist is someone who engages in philanthropy; that is, someone who donates his or her time, money, and/or reputation to charitable causes...

.

His early schooling took place in Panevežys

Panevežys

Panevėžys see also other names, is the fifth largest city in Lithuania. As of 2008, it occupied 50 square kilometers with 113,653 inhabitants. The largest multifunctional arena in Panevėžys is the Cido Arena...

. He then completed his secondary education at the Šiauliai Gymnasium, graduating with honors. In 1874, he completed his studies at St. Petersburg University, with degrees in physics and mathematics. While at the university he had illegally distributed Lithuanian publications, which were forbidden due to the ban of the Lithuanian language by the Tsarist authorities. With two of his brothers, Jonas

Jonas Vileišis

Jonas Vileišis was a Lithuanian lawyer, politician, and diplomat.-Early life and career:Vileišis was born in Mediniai, near Pasvalys. In 1892 he graduated from the Šiauliai gymnasium. During 1892-1894, he studied physics and mathematics at Saint Petersburg University. Later he transferred to the...

 and Antanas

Antanas Vileišis

Dr. Antanas Vileišis was a Lithuanian public figure. After graduating from Moscow University in 1898, he settled in Vilnius and practiced medicine. He contributed to and distributed illegal Lithuanian press during the press ban imposed by the Tsarist authorities...

, he belonged to the underground "Twelve Apostles" organization.

Later he accumulated a great fortune as a result of his work as an engineer, much of which he distributed to Lithuanian social organizations. Petras Vileišis established the first legal Lithuanian-language daily newspaper Vilniaus žinios

Vilniaus žinios

Vilniaus žinios was a short-lived newspaper published in Vilnius, Lithuania. It was the first legal Lithuanian-language daily newspaper to appear after the Lithuanian press ban was lifted on May 7, 1904.-History:...

 in Vilnius

Vilnius

Vilnius is the capital of Lithuania, and its largest city, with a population of 560,190 as of 2010. It is the seat of the Vilnius city municipality and of the Vilnius district municipality. It is also the capital of Vilnius County...

. He was also a patron of the arts and sponsored the First Lithuanian Art Exhibition, which took place at his palatial home in 1907.

In 1926, while on vacation in Palanga

Palanga

Palanga and beautiful sand dunes. Officially Palanga has the status of a city municipality and includes Šventoji, Nemirseta, Būtingė and other settlements, which are considered as part of the city of Palanga.-Legend:...

, Petras Vileišis died, and was buried in Kaunas. He was reburied, nine years later, in Vilnius' Rasos Cemetery

Rasos Cemetery

Rasos Cemetery is the oldest and most famous cemetery in the city of Vilnius, Lithuania. It is named after the Rasos district where it is located. It is separated into two parts, the old and the new cemeteries, by a narrow Sukilėliai Street. The total area is 10.8 ha...

in 1935.