The Republic of Perloja is a nation that was formed in 1253, becoming one of the largest nations on the planet by 1385. Unfortunately a series of civil wars starting in 1386, 1569, and 1795, caused the nation to shrink dramatically. By 1918, the nation shrunk both in size and military power, sparking international attention. The river Merkys is dividing Perloja into two parts. In the forest close near Perloja there are small but very deep and very beautiful lake after name Paperlojis. The Perloja are famous by own glorious past. By the foundation of independent Republic of Perloja in 1918, was a small portion of its former glory. In the centre of Perloja there are the church in Gothic style and the monument for the fighters against foreign occupation.
In 1918 when Perloja did not have its own army or any other functioning state structures, the country was ravaged by looting foreign soldiers, domestic military forces , and anarchists. The Parish Committee, often called The Republic of Perloja, was established as a self government in 1918. The chairman of the Parish Committee Jonas Česnulevičius (1897-1952) was called Commissar. The Republic of Perloja had its own court, police, prison, currency (Perloja Litas), and an army of 30,000 men.
At the present time in the Perloja there are about 70,000 inhabitants, 3,000 of them are farmers, 5,200 employees, 10,300 school children’s, 20,100 pensioners, 4,800 invalids, 8,500 widowers and orphans. There are a big number of unemployed. The country is currently a non-aligned state.
