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Grand Duchy of Lithuania

Grand Duchy of Lithuania
c. 1236–1795[a]
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania at the height of its power in the 15th century.
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania at the height of its power in the 15th century.
Status
Capital
Common languagesLithuanian, Ruthenian, Polish, Latin, German, Yiddish, Tatar, Karaim (see § Languages)
Religion
Government
Grand Duke 
• 1236–1263 (from 1251 as King)
Mindaugas (first)
• 1764–1795
Stanisław August Poniatowski (last)
LegislatureSeimas
• Privy Council
Council of Lords
History 
• Consolidation began
1180s
1251–1263
14 August 1385
1 July 1569
24 October 1795
Area
1260[4]200,000 km2 (77,000 sq mi)
1430[4]930,000 km2 (360,000 sq mi)
1572[4]320,000 km2 (120,000 sq mi)
1791[4]250,000 km2 (97,000 sq mi)
1793[4]132,000 km2 (51,000 sq mi)
Population
• 1260[4]
400,000
• 1430[4]
2,500,000
• 1572[4]
1,700,000
• 1791[4]
2,500,000
• 1793[4]
1,800,000
Preceded by		 Succeeded by
Kingdom of Lithuania
Kingdom of Prussia
Russian Empire
West Galicia
  1. ^ Unsuccessful Constitution of 3 May 1791 envisioned a unitary state whereby the Grand Duchy would be abolished; however, an addendum to the Constitution, known as the Reciprocal Guarantee of Two Nations, restored Lithuania on 20 October 1791.[1]
  2. ^ Supposed appearance of the royal (military) banner with design derived from a 16th century coat of arms[2][3]

The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a sovereign state in northeastern Europe that existed from the 13th century,[5] succeeding the Kingdom of Lithuania, to the late 18th century,[6] when the territory was suppressed during the 1795 partitions of Poland–Lithuania. The state was founded by Lithuanians, who were at the time a polytheistic nation of several united Baltic tribes from Aukštaitija. By 1440 the grand duchy had become the largest European state, controlling an area from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Black Sea in the south.[7][8][9]

The grand duchy expanded to include large portions of the former Kievan Rus' and other neighbouring states, including what is now Belarus, Lithuania, most of Ukraine as well as parts of Latvia, Moldova, Poland and Russia. At its greatest extent, in the 15th century, it was the largest state in Europe.[10] It was a multi-ethnic and multiconfessional state, with great diversity in languages, religion, and cultural heritage.

The consolidation of the Lithuanian lands began in the late 13th century. Mindaugas, the first ruler of the grand duchy, was crowned as the Catholic King of Lithuania in 1253. The pagan state was targeted in a religious crusade by the Teutonic Knights and the Livonian Order, but survived. Its rapid territorial expansion started late in the reign of Gediminas,[11] and continued under the diarchy and co-leadership of his sons, Algirdas and Kęstutis.[12] Algirdas's son Jogaila signed the Union of Krewo in 1386, bringing two major changes in the history of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania: conversion to Christianity of Europe's last pagan state,[13] and establishment of a dynastic union between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland.[14] This marked the beginning of the rule of other countries by the patrilineal members of the Lithuanian ruling Gediminids dynasty who since the 14th–15th centuries ruled not only Lithuania, but also Poland, Hungary, Croatia, Bohemia, and Moldavia.[15][16]

The reign of Vytautas the Great, son of Kęstutis, marked both the greatest territorial expansion of the grand duchy (it became one of the largest countries territorially in Europe) and the defeat of the Teutonic Knights in the Battle of Grunwald in 1410.[17] It also marked the rise of the Lithuanian nobility. After Vytautas's death, Lithuania's relationship with the Kingdom of Poland greatly deteriorated.[18] Lithuanian noblemen, including the Radvila family, attempted to break the personal union with Poland.[19] However, unsuccessful wars with the Grand Duchy of Moscow forced the union to remain intact.

Eventually, the Union of Lublin of 1569 created a new state, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. In the Federation, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania maintained its political distinctiveness and had separate ministries, laws, army, and treasury.[20] The federation was terminated by the passing of the Constitution of 3 May 1791, when it was supposed to become a single country, the Commonwealth, under one monarch, one parliament and no Lithuanian autonomy. Shortly afterward, the unitary character of the state was confirmed by adopting the Reciprocal Guarantee of Two Nations.

However, the newly reformed Commonwealth was invaded by Russia in 1792 and partitioned between neighbouring states. A truncated state (whose principal cities were Kraków, Warsaw and Vilnius) remained that was nominally independent. After the Kościuszko Uprising, the territory was completely partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia and Austria in 1795.

  1. ^ Tumelis, Juozas. "Abiejų Tautų tarpusavio įžadas". Vle.lt (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  2. ^ "History of the national coat of arms". Seimas. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  3. ^ Herby Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej i Wielkiego Księstwa Litewskiego. Orły, Pogonie, województwa, książęta, kardynałowie, prymasi, hetmani, kanclerze, marszałkowie (in Polish). Jagiellonian Library. 1875–1900. pp. 6, 30, 32, 58, 84, 130, 160, 264, 282, 300. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d e Vaitekūnas, Stasys. "Lietuvos Didžiosios Kunigaikštystės gyventojai". Vle.lt (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  5. ^ Baranauskas, Tomas (2000). "Lietuvos valstybės ištakos" [The Lithuanian State] (in Lithuanian). Vilnius: viduramziu.istorija.net. Archived from the original on 29 September 2016. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
  6. ^ Sužiedėlis, Saulius (2011). Historical dictionary of Lithuania (2nd ed.). Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press. p. 119. ISBN 978-0-8108-4914-3.
  7. ^ Rowell 1994, pp. 289–290.
  8. ^ Ch. Allmand, The New Cambridge Medieval History. Cambridge, 1998, p. 731.
  9. ^ Encyclopædia Britannica. Grand Duchy of Lithuania
  10. ^ R. Bideleux. A History of Eastern Europe: Crisis and Change. Routledge, 1998. p. 122
  11. ^ Rowell 1994, p. 289.
  12. ^ Z. Kiaupa. "Algirdas ir LDK rytų politika." Gimtoji istorija 2: Nuo 7 iki 12 klasės (Lietuvos istorijos vadovėlis). CD. (2003). Elektroninės leidybos namai: Vilnius.
  13. ^ Kowalska-Pietrzak, Anna (2015). "History of Poland During the Middle Ages" (PDF). Core.
  14. ^ N. Davies. Europe: A History. Oxford, 1996, p. 392.
  15. ^ "Gediminaičiai". Visuotinė lietuvių enciklopedija (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 20 November 2023.
  16. ^ "Jogailaičiai". Visuotinė lietuvių enciklopedija (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 20 November 2023.
  17. ^ "Lithuania and the Enlargement of the European Union". European Parliament. 24 October 2000. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  18. ^ Cite error: The named reference palikimas was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  19. ^ J. Kiaupienë, "Valdžios krizës pabaiga ir Kazimieras Jogailaitis." Gimtoji istorija 2: Nuo 7 iki 12 klasės (Lietuvos istorijos vadovėlis). CD. (2003). Elektroninės leidybos namai: Vilnius.
  20. ^ Stone 2001, p. 63.

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