active book smugglers during the Lithuanian press ban. Monks of the Congregation of Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception moved to Panevėžys in 1927 and settled close to the Church of the Holy Trinity; on 15 August 1915 the newly built Marian Chapel was consecrated. Panevėžys is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Panevėžys, which was established in 1926. Its primary church is the Christ the King Cathedral, consecrated in 1933. Panevėžys has a rich history of Lithuanian Jews. In 1875, Panevėžys had eight synagogues, possibly the amount of the prayer communities was the same. The smaller synagogues were also called houses of prayer or a religious school – they served both functions of these institutions. The houses of prayer could have also been set up in private houses. The prayer community was led by a council consisting of an elder, a teacher, a treasurer, and a rabbi, and took care of the management of synagogues and prayer schools and the organization of charity. After Telšiai, Panevėžys was known as the most significant center of Torah studies. As early as 1897, the Jewish community in the city had one main synagogue, later numbered 8, 7, 12, and perhaps 15 houses of worship, however only small fragments of these buildings have survived to this day. The most important wooden synagogue, built in 1764 or 1794, stood in the area between Elektros and Ukmergės streets, but it burned down at the end of the World War I. Seventeen Jewish houses of worship have already been mentioned in the interwar city. The Jewish population of the city was nearly completely exterminated during the German occupation of Lithuania during World War II. The Panevėžys Evangelical Lutheran Parish was founded in 1790–1795, before that it was a filial church of the Biržai Parish. The Panevėžys Evangelical Lutheran Church was built in 1845–1850. The church was significantly damaged following the Soviet occupation of Lithuania as the building was nationalized, its tower was demolished and it was converted into a dance club, later – a household goods store. Following the Re-Establishment of the State of Lithuania, the parish and the church were restored. During the interwar years of the independent state of Lithuania, Panevėžys region became the main residence of the Crimean Karaites. On 3 May 1922, the board for the management of the affairs of the Panevėžys Karaite community was registered. The only houses