The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to the late 18th century, when the territory was partitioned in 1795 among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire of Austria. The state was founded by Lithuanians, who were at the time a polytheistic nation born from several united Baltic tribes from Aukštaitija.
The Pact of Vilnius and Radom was a set of three acts passed in Vilnius, Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and confirmed by the Crown Council in Radom, Kingdom of Poland in 1401. The union amended the earlier act of the Union of Krewo (1385) and confirmed the Ostrów Agreement (1392). Vytautas, Grand Duke of Lithuania, became fully in charge of the Lithuanian affairs, while Władysław II Jagiełło, King of Poland, reserved the rights of an overlord. After the death of Vytautas, Lithuania was to be ruled by Władysław II Jagiełło or his legal heir. The union is generally seen as strengthening of the Polish–Lithuanian union.
The Union of Horodło or Pact of Horodło was a set of three acts signed in the town of Horodło on 2 October 1413. The first act was signed by Władysław II Jagiełło, King of Poland, and Vytautas, Grand Duke of Lithuania. The second and third acts were composed by the Polish nobility (szlachta) and Lithuanian boyars, respectively. The union amended the earlier Polish–Lithuanian unions of Krewo and Vilnius–Radom. Politically, Lithuania received more autonomy as, after the death of Vytautas, the Lithuanian nobles could choose another Grand Duke instead of passing the title to Władysław II Jagiełło or his heir. However, culturally, Lithuania and Poland grew closer. Lithuania adopted Polish institutions of castellans and voivodes. Catholic Lithuanian nobles and church officials were granted equal rights with the Polish nobles and clergy. Forty-seven selected Lithuanian nobles were adopted by Polish families and granted Polish coats of arms. Thus the union signified the beginnings of the Polonization of Lithuanian culture and the rise of the Lithuanian nobility. It was one of the major steps towards the modernization and Europeanization of Lithuania.
The Union of Grodno was a series of acts of the Polish–Lithuanian union between Kingdom of Poland and Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The first acts were signed in 1432 during the Lithuanian Civil War of 1431–1435. The acts confirmed the Union of Vilnius and Radom (1401). The Union established Sigismund Kęstutaitis as the Grand Duke of Lithuania and re-established Władysław II Jagiełło's seniority and dynastic interest in Lithuania.
The Act of Mielnik or Union of Mielnik was an attempt to unite the Kingdom of Poland with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in 1501. It was not ratified by the Lithuanian Seimas or by the Polish Sejm. The Act of Mielnik remained just a political project. Despite the failure to unify two countries into a single state, Poland and Lithuania were under a personal union until the Union of Lublin of 1569.
Tomas Baranauskas is a Lithuanian historian specializing in the history of medieval Lithuania.
Alfredas Bumblauskas is a professor at Vilnius University and one of the best known Lithuanian historians.
Law enforcement in Lithuania is the responsibility of a national police under the jurisdiction of the Interior Ministry. The main institution is the Lithuanian Police Department led by the Police Commissar General.
History of Lithuania or Academic History of Lithuania is a thirteen-volume series of books dedicated to the history of Lithuania. Its first volume was published in 2005, and its last volume is scheduled for publication in 2011. After its completion it will be the largest and the most comprehensive academic publication covering Lithuania's history ever released. As of 2011 five volumes had been released.
Jūratė Kiaupienė is a Lithuanian historian, professor, Habilitated Doctor.
The Ostrów or Astrava Agreement was a treaty between Jogaila, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, and his cousin Vytautas the Great, signed on 4 August 1392. The treaty ended the destructive Lithuanian Civil War, launched in 1389 by Vytautas who hoped to gain political power, and concluded the power struggle between the two cousins that erupted in 1380 after Jogaila secretly signed the Treaty of Dovydiškės with the Teutonic Knights. The Ostrów Agreement did not stop attacks from the Teutonic Knights and the territorial dispute over Samogitia continued up to 1422. According to the treaty, Vytautas became the ruler of Lithuania, but he also acknowledged Jogaila's rights to Lithuania. The details of the Polish–Lithuanian relationship were clarified in several later treaties, including the Union of Vilnius and Radom in 1401 and Union of Horodło in 1413.
The Union of Kraków and Vilna also known as Union of Vilnius was one of the agreements of the Polish–Lithuanian union. It was signed in Kraków by Polish nobility on 6 May 1499 and in Vilnius by Lithuanian nobility on 24 July 1499.
The Lithuania Governorate was a short-lived governorate of the Russian Empire in 1796–1801.
A laukininkas was a free peasant in the early Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Laukininkai formed the majority of the Grand Duchy's population. They formed communities, called laukas. The term was later replaced by volosts and subsequently laukininkas became known as valstietis, which is a modern Lithuanian term for farmers and peasants.
The Lithuanian Civil War of 1389–1392 was the second civil conflict between Jogaila, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, and his cousin Vytautas. At issue was control of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, then the largest state in Europe. Jogaila had been crowned King of Poland in 1386; he installed his brother Skirgaila as ruler of Lithuania. Skirgaila proved unpopular and Vytautas attempted to depose him. When his first attempt to take the capital city of Vilnius failed, Vytautas forged an alliance with the Teutonic Knights, their common enemy – just as both cousins had done during the Lithuanian Civil War between 1381 and 1384. Vytautas and the Knights unsuccessfully besieged Vilnius in 1390. Over the next two years it became clear that neither side could achieve a quick victory, and Jogaila proposed a compromise: Vytautas would become Grand Duke and Jogaila would remain Superior Duke. This proposal was formalized in the Ostrów Agreement of 1392, and Vytautas turned against the Knights. He went on to reign as Grand Duke of Lithuania for 38 years, and the cousins remained at peace.
The Treaty of Dubysa or Treaty of Dubissa consisted of three legal acts formulated on 31 October 1382 between Jogaila, Grand Duke of Lithuania, with his brother Skirgaila and Konrad von Wallenrode, Marshal of the Teutonic Order. During the Lithuanian Civil War (1381–84), Teutonic Order helped Jogaila and Skirgaila to defeat their uncle Kęstutis and his son Vytautas. Trying to realize promises given by Jogaila during the war, Teutonic Order organized the negotiations for the treaty. The acts were signed after six days of negotiations on an island in the mouth of the Dubysa River. The treaty was never ratified and never came into effect. The civil war resumed in summer 1383.
Peace of Brześć Kujawski was a peace treaty signed on December 31, 1435, in Brześć Kujawski that ended the Polish–Teutonic War (1431–1435). The treaty was signed in the aftermath of the Livonian Order's defeat at the hands of the allied Polish-Lithuanian force in the Battle of Wiłkomierz. The Teutonic Knights agreed to cease their support to Švitrigaila and in the future to support only Grand Dukes properly elected jointly by Poland and Lithuania. The treaty did not change borders determined by the Treaty of Melno in 1422. The Peace of Brześć Kujawski showed that Teutonic Knights lost their universal missionary status. Teutonic and Livonian Order no longer interfered with Polish–Lithuanian affairs; instead Poland and Lithuania involved themselves in the Thirteen Years' War, the civil war in Prussia that tore it in half.
The sejm was an early parliament in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. It was active from 1445 to 1569, when it was officially abolished by the Union of Lublin. The Sejm was an irregular gathering of the Lithuanian nobility, called as needed by the Grand Duke or during an interregnum by the Lithuanian Council of Lords. The meetings would usually last one or two weeks. Sejm gradually evolved from a meeting of the most powerful magnates to a full legislative institution representing all of the nobility. The Sejm was not the main political player as it was overshadowed by the Council of Lords. The Union of Lublin created a new state, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, and joined the Sejm of Lithuania with Sejm of Poland into one Sejm of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. However, the Sejm continued to convene under the name of Lithuanian Convocation. In total there were 40 Sejm and 37 Convocations.
Stanisław Piotrowicz Kiszka was a noble, diplomat and military commander from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. He became the progenitor of the prominent Kiszka family. He was sent on frequent diplomatic missions to the Grand Duchy of Moscow and Kingdom of Poland. He attempted to negotiate peace during the Muscovite–Lithuanian Wars and supported a closer union between Poland and Lithuania. During the Second Muscovite–Lithuanian War (1500–03), he successfully defended Smolensk and became Grand Hetman of Lithuania until Konstanty Ostrogski escaped Russian captivity in 1507. Kiszka helped to subdue the Glinski rebellion in 1508. Shortly before his death, Kiszka also became Grand Marshal of Lithuania.
The siege of Smolensk was an unsuccessful attempt to capture Smolensk by the forces of the Grand Duchy of Moscow in summer 1502. It was the last major military engagement during the Muscovite–Lithuanian War (1500–1503).
