Jadvyga Tūbelienė (née Chodakauskaitė) (January 11, 1891 – October 4, 1988) was one of the founders of the Lithuanian Women's Council, a writer, journalist, head of the Information Bureau in Bern and Paris, Deputy Chief of Mission to Switzerland and married to Juozas Tūbelis, the longest-standing Prime Minister of Lithuania.

Jadvyga Chodakauskaitė was born on January 11, 1891, at Gavėnonys Estate near Šiaudiniai [lt] in Pakruojis District to Antanas Chodakauskas (1850–1925) and Maria-Joanna Chodakowska (1852–1910).

The godparents were Donatas Jasienskis (brother-in-law of the playwright Gabrielius Landsbergis and the father-in-law of the writer Pranas Mašiotas) and Teofilia Chodakauskaitė (born 1856) (Jadvyga's aunt).

[3] She attended classes in religion, Russian, German, Latin, French, history, geography, algebra, arithmetic, geometry, writing, drawing and singing, and from the fifth grade onwards, physics and chemistry.

Jadvyga was interested in history and was fluent in foreign languages; in her parents’ house she spoke Polish (with a Warsaw dialect), German and later Lithuanian.

Living in the Smetona home meant that from her youth, Jadvyga met many Lithuanian intellectuals and heard political debate.

Everybody came there, all kinds of parties"Jadvyga attended the first Lithuanian opera Birutė by playwright Gabrielius Landsbergis-Žemkalnis and composer Mikas Petrauskas.

As the Council of Lithuania increasingly sought the country's independence, some Lithuanian intellectuals working in Russia were looking to participate in the creation of the new state.

"The task of ‘Das Neue Litauen’, was to win over public opinion in Germany and Lithuania for the establishment of a Lithuanian state under German control.

It was important that the Council of Lithuania announce the declaration to the world and so Jadvyga was assigned the task of taking the Act to Berlin as quickly as possible so that the news would spread abroad.

Jadvyga translated the Act into German and secretly gave it to her friend, Oscar Wöhrle (1890–1946), the editor of Zeitung der Zehnten Armee who carried it to Berlin the following day.

[11] In November, 1918 Jadvyga was sent to Bern, Switzerland, where she worked at the Lithuanian Information Bureau: providing her knowledge of Lithuania to the major European telegraph agencies (inc. Havas, Reuters and Stefan).

In 1918 Jadvyga was deputized by Vladas Daumantas, Lithuanian ambassador to Switzerland, becoming the first woman in the Republic of Lithuania employed in the diplomatic service.

So, I was signing the diplomatic passports (laughs) and writing notes to the government.In this position Jadvyga played a leading role in obtaining Swiss recognition of Lithuania's independence.

When Jadvyga was called to the Paris Peace Conference in Versailles, her friends in Bern hosted a big farewell dinner for her.

In Jadvyga's own words, she submitted articles: "…about Lithuanian affairs and about the problems of Lithuania, and to give the general description of this little country and what happens there, our aspirations and so forth.

The French newspapers with the exception of Journal des Debats were all corrupt and only interested in money – one could place articles which were written as editorials as long as you paid enough.

[12] Smetona then told Jadvyga's brother, Captain Tadas Chodakauskas[13] who spoke with the Defence Minister Colonel Konstantinas Žukas.

Voldemaras had become intensely involved with Geležinis Vilkas (en: Iron Wolf) which attracted adherents among the younger nationalist officers, who were favourably impressed by emerging fascism, and who were displeased with what they perceived as Antanas Smetona's more moderate course.

Jadvyga, according to a New York Times article dated  October 2, 1929:[21]"…smashed the Iron Wolf Society…She intrigued, agitated, and conspired, and managed to pry many of the older generals loose from their fascist ties.

He “emerged from the sanatorium to learn that Voldemaras was out of office and that he, Tūbelis was Premier.” The New York Times wrote, in the September 28 article, that Jadvyga:[22]"…is considered the chief influence in the elevation of her husband, Jonas Tubelis, former minister of finance, to the premiership."

Before returning home, she usually stopped in Paris to visit Petras Klimas, the Lithuanian representative in France, and his wife Bronislava Klimienė.

[23] After the departure of Antanas Smetona and Sofija Smetonienė from Lithuania, on June 15, 1940, Jadvyga initially wanted to stay in the country.

On the evening of June 16, Tūbelis’ former driver, well aware of the imminent danger, tried to persuade Jadvyga to flee Lithuania as soon as possible.

Finally convinced, Jadvyga rushed to the German Embassy in Kaunas the next morning and received a diplomatic visa from the envoy, Erich Zechlin, with no date for her return to Lithuania.

With the necessary documents and two small suitcases, Jadvyga and Marija, boarded the train to Berlin and crossed the border of Lithuania without being detained, on June 17, 1940.

At the German Foreign Ministry, Jadvyga met a former secretary of Voldemaras, Dr. Bleš (Blesch), known since the Lithuanian delegation at the Paris Peace Conference.

Thanks to the help of William Bullitt, in the 1950s, Jadvyga became a Russian language instructor at what was then called the Naval Intelligence School in Washington DC.

[26] While visiting Paris, Jadvyga would stay with Olga Mohler-Picabia, wife of the famous French artist Francis Picabia, with whom she developed a close friendship.

Jadvyga eventually ended up in Putnam, Connecticut, in the Nursing Home of the Immaculate Conception Spiritual Renewal Centre, operated by the nuns of a Lithuanian convent.