Generalbezirk Litauen was originally organized on 25 July 1941 on the territory of the then German-occupied Lithuania, which had until then been under the military administration of the Wehrmacht's Army Group North.

By 1 August 1941, in the wake of further German gains, Litauen expanded to its full extent, when the areas around Vilnius were added.

[1] Civil administration was led by a Generalkommissar (General Commissioner) directly appointed by Adolf Hitler, and who reported to Ostland Reichskommissar Hinrich Lohse, headquartered in Riga.

More than 95% of Lithuania's Jewish population was massacred over the three-year German occupation, representing a more complete destruction than befell any other country affected by the Holocaust.

Generalkommissar von Renteln was reportedly captured at the end of the war and executed in the Soviet Union in 1946, but this is unconfirmed.