sign in sign up
<<
Home , Abraomas Kulvietis, Battle of Grunwald, Battle of Orsha, Dausprungas, Konstantinas Sirvydas, Lithuanian mythology

Grand Duchy of

The Grand was a European state the neighbours, with a truncated state (principal cities be- from the 13th century[1] until 1795.[2] The state was ing Kraków, and ) remaining only nom- founded by the , one of the polytheistic Baltic inally independent. After the Kościuszko Uprising, the tribes from Aukštaitija.[3][4][5] territory was partitioned among the , the Kingdom of , and in 1795. The duchy later expanded to include large portions of the former Kievan Rus’ and other Slavic lands, covering the territory of present-day , Latvia, and Lithuania, and parts of , , Russia, and . At its 1 Etymology greatest extent in the , it was the largest state in .[6] It was a multi-ethnic and multi-confessional The Statutes of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania name state with great diversity in languages, , and cul- the complete name of the state as Grand Duchy tural heritage. of Lithuania, and (Ruthenian: Consolidation of the Lithuanian lands began in the late Великое князство Литовское, Руское, Жомойтское [13][14] 12th century. , the first ruler of the Grand и иных). The title of “Grand Duchy” was con- Duchy, was crowned as Catholic King of Lithuania in sistently applied to Lithuania from the 14th century [15] 1253. The pagan state was targeted in the religious cru- onward. sade by the Teutonic and the . In other languages, the Grand Duchy is referred to as: The multi-ethnic and multi-confessional state emerged [7] only at the late reign of and continued to • Belarusian: Вялікае Княства Літоўскае expand under his son .[8] Algirdas’s successor Jogaila signed the in 1386, bringing • German: Großfürstentum Litauen two major changes in the history of the Grand Duchy of • Lithuania: conversion to Catholicism and establishment Estonian: Leedu Suurvürstiriik of a dynastic union between the Grand Duchy of Lithua- • Latin: Magnus Ducatus Lituaniae nia and the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland.[9] • The reign of the Great marked both the great- Lithuanian: Lietuvos Didžioji Kunigaikštystė est territorial expansion of the Grand Duchy and the de- • Old literary Lithuanian: Didi Kunigystė Lietuvos feat of the Teutonic Knights in the of Grunwald in 1410. It also marked the rise of the Lithuanian . • Latvian: Lieitija or Lietuvas Lielkņaziste After Vytautas’s death, Lithuania’s relationship with the • Kingdom of Poland greatly deteriorated.[10] Lithuanian Polish: Wielkie Księstwo Litewskie noblemen, including the Radvila family (Radziwiłłs), at- • Ruthenian: Великое князство Литовское tempted to break the with Poland.[11] However, the unsuccessful Muscovite–Lithuanian Wars • Russian: Великое княжество Литовское with the forced the union to • [14] remain intact. Ukrainian: Велике князiвство Литовське Eventually, the Union of of 1569 created a new state, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. In this 2 History federation, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania maintained its political distinctiveness and had separate government, laws, army, and treasury.[12] This federation was termi- 2.1 Establishment of the state nated by the passing of the Constitution of May 3, 1791, and since then there was supposed to be but a single coun- Main article: History of Lithuania (1219–1295) try — Respublica Poloniae — under one monarch and The first written reference to Lithuania is found in the one parliament. Shortly after, the unitary character of the Quedlinburg Chronicle, which dates from 1009.[16] In state was confirmed by adopting the Reciprocal Guaran- the 12th century, Slavic chronicles refer to Lithuania as tee of Two Nations. The newly reformed Commonwealth one of the areas attacked by the Rus’. Pagan Lithuani- was invaded by Russia in 1792 and partitioned between ans initially paid tribute to , but they soon grew in strength and organized their own small-scale raids. At

1 2 2 HISTORY

Navahrudak Castle

the , led by , defeated the Livonian Order in the Battle of Saule. The Order was forced to be- come a branch of the Teutonic Knights in Prussia, mak- ing Samogitia, a strip of land that separated from in the 12th century Prussia, the main target of both orders. The battle pro- vided a break in the wars with the Knights, and Lithua- nia exploited this situation, arranging attacks towards the Ruthenian provinces and annexing Navahrudak and some point between 1180 and 1183 the situation began Hrodna.[22] Belarusian historians consider that Mindаu- to change, and the Lithuanians started to organize sus- gas was invited to rule Navahrudak and that the union tainable military raids on the Slavic provinces, raiding was peaceful.[23][24] the Principality of Polotsk as well as , and even threatening Novgorod.[17] The sudden spark of military raids marked consolidation of the Lithuanian lands in Aukštaitija.[1] The Livonian Order and Teutonic Knights, crusading military orders, were established in in 1202 and in Prussia in 1226. The Christian orders posed a sig- nificant threat to pagan Baltic tribes and further gal- vanized the formation of the state. The peace treaty with –Volhynia of 1219 provides evidence of co- operation between Lithuanians and Samogitians. This treaty lists 21 Lithuanian dukes, including five senior Island Castle Lithuanian dukes from Aukštaitija (Živinbudas, Daujotas, Vilikaila, and Mindaugas) and several dukes from Žemaitija. Although they had battled in the past, In 1248 a civil war broke out between Mindaugas and the Lithuanians and the Žemaičiai now faced a common his nephews and Edivydas. The powerful coali- [18] [17] enemy. Likely Živinbudas had the most authority tion against Mindaugas included Vykintas, the Livonian [19] and at least several dukes were from the same families. Order, Daniel of Galicia, and Vasilko of Volhynia. Min- The formal acknowledgment of common interests and the daugas, taking advantage of internal conflicts, allied with establishment of a hierarchy among the signatories of the the Livonian Order. He promised to convert to Chris- treaty foreshadowed the emergence of the state. tianity and gift some lands in western Lithuania in ex- change for military assistance against his nephews and the royal crown. In 1251 Mindaugas was baptized and 2.2 Kingdom of Lithuania Pope Innocent IV issued a papal bull proclaiming the cre- ation of the Kingdom of Lithuania. After the civil war Main article: Kingdom of Lithuania ended, Mindaugas was crowned as King of Lithuania on Mindaugas, duke[20] of southern Lithuania,[21] was July 6, 1253, starting a decade of relative peace. Min- among the five senior dukes mentioned in the treaty with daugas later renounced and converted back Galicia–Volhynia. The Livonian Rhymed Chronicle, re- to . Mindaugas tried to expand his influence ports that by the mid-1230s Mindaugas had acquired in Polatsk, a major center of commerce in the supreme power in the whole of Lithuania.[22] In 1236, River basin, and .[22] The Teutonic Knights used this 2.4 Territorial expansion 3 period to strengthen their position in parts of Samogi- the in 1283; the Livonian Order completed tia and Livonia, but they lost the Battle of Skuodas in its conquest of Semigalia, the last Baltic ally of Lithuania, 1259 and the Battle of Durbe in 1260, encouraging the in 1291.[26] The Orders could now turn their full attention conquered Semigallians and Prussians to rebel against the to Lithuania. The “buffer zone” composed of other Baltic Knights. tribes had disappeared, and Grand Duchy of Lithuania Encouraged by , Mindaugas broke the peace with was left to battle the Orders on its own. the Order, possibly reverted to pagan beliefs, and allied The dynasty ruled the Grand Duchy for with Alexander Nevsky of Novgorod. He hoped to unite over a century, and was the first ruler from the all Baltic tribes under the Lithuanian leadership. As mili- dynasty.[27] During his reign Lithuania engaged in con- tary campaigns were not successful, the relationships be- stant warfare with the Order, the Kingdom of Poland, tween Mindaugas and Treniota deteriorated. Treniota to- and Ruthenia. Vytenis was involved in succession dis- gether with Daumantas assassinated Mindaugas and his putes in Poland, supporting Boleslaus II of Masovia, who two sons, Ruklys and Rupeikis, in 1263,[25] and the state was married to a Lithuanian duchess, Gaudemunda. In lapsed into years of internal fights. Ruthenia, Vytenis managed to recapture lands lost after the assassination of Mindaugas and to capture the prin- cipalities of Pinsk and Turaŭ. In the struggle against the 2.3 Rise of the Gediminids Order, Vytenis allied with citizens of Riga; securing po- sitions in Riga strengthened trade routes and provided a base for further military campaigns. Around 1307, Polotsk, an important trading center, was annexed by mil- itary force.[28] Vytenis also began the construction of a defensive castle network along the River. Grad- ually this network developed into the main defensive line against the .

2.4 Territorial expansion

The expansion of the state reached its height under Grand Duke Gediminas, who created a strong central govern- ment and established an empire that later spread from the Black Sea to the Baltic Sea. In 1320, most of the prin- cipalities of western Rus’ were either vassalized or an- nexed by Lithuania. In 1321 Gediminas captured Kiev, sending Stanislav, the last Rurikid to rule Kiev, into ex- ile. Gediminas also re-established the permanent capi- tal of the Grand Duchy in Vilnius, presumably moving it from Trakai in 1323; some researchers, such as Maciej Stryjkowski,[29] claim that Navahrudak was the capital of the 13th century state.

Gediminas Tower in Vilnius

From 1263 to 1269, Lithuania had three Grand Dukes – Treniota, Vaišvilkas, and Svarn. The state did not disintegrate, however, and came to power in 1269. He strengthened Lithuanian control in Black Ruthenia and fought with the Livonian Order, winning the Battle of Karuse in 1270 and the Battle of Aizkraukle in 1279. There is considerable uncertainty about the identities of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania between his death in 1282 and the assumption of power by Vytenis The ruins of Castle from the mid-14th century were re- in 1295. During this time the Orders finalized their con- stored in the late 20th century quests. In 1274 the Great Prussian Rebellion ended, and the Teutonic Knights proceeded to conquer other Baltic Lithuania was in an ideal position to inherit the western tribes: the Nadruvians and Skalvians in 1274–1277, and and the southern parts of Kievan Rus’. While almost ev- 4 2 HISTORY

ery other state around it had been plundered or defeated by the Mongols, the hordes stopped at the modern borders of Belarus, and the core territory of the Grand Duchy was left mostly untouched. The weak control of the Mongols over the areas they had conquered allowed the expansion of Lithuania to accelerate. Rus’ principalities were never incorporated directly into the , maintaining vassal relationships with a fair degree of independence. Lithuania annexed some of these areas as vassals through diplomacy, as they exchanged rule by the Mongols or the Grand Prince of Moscow with rule by the Grand Duchy. An example is Novgorod, which was often in the Lithua- nian sphere of influence and became an occasional de- pendency of the Grand Duchy.[30] Lithuanian control re- sulted from internal frictions within the city, which at- tempted to escape submission to Muscovy. Such rela- tionships could be tenuous, however, as changes in a city’s internal politics could disrupt Lithuanian control, as hap- pened on a number of occasions with Novgorod and other Poland and Lithuania 1386-1434 East-Slavic cities. The Grand Duchy of Lithuania managed to hold off Mon- gol incursions and eventually secured gains. In 1333 and a decisive Polish-Lithuanian victory against the Teutonic 1339, Lithuanians defeated large Mongol forces attempt- Order. Vytautas backed economic development of the ing to regain from the Lithuanian sphere of state and introduced many reforms. Under his rule, the influence. By about 1355, the State of had Grand Duchy of Lithuania slowly became more central- formed, and the Golden Horde did little to re-vassalize ized, as the governors loyal to Vytautas replaced local the area. In 1362 regiments of the Grand Duchy army de- princes with dynastic ties to the throne. The governors [31] feated the Golden Horde at the Battle at Blue Waters. were rich landowners who formed the basis for the no- In 1380 a Lithuanian army allied with Russian forces to bility of the Grand Duchy. During Vytautas’ rule, the defeat the Golden Horde in the Battle of Kulikovo, and Radziwiłł and Goštautas families started to gain influ- though the rule of the Mongols did not end, their influ- ence. ence in the region waned thereafter. In 1387, Moldavia became a vassal of Poland and, in a broader sense, of Lithuania. By this time, Lithuania had conquered the ter- ritory of the Golden Horde all the way to the River. In a crusade against the Golden Horde in 1398 (in an alliance with Tokhtamysh), Lithuania invaded north- ern Crimea and won a decisive victory. In an attempt to place Tokhtamish on the Golden Horde throne in 1399, Lithuania moved against the Horde but were defeated in the Battle of the Vorskla River, losing the steppe region. The , 1410, with and Vytautas at center 2.5 Union with Poland The rapid expansion of Muscovy influence soon put it Lithuania was Christianized in 1387, led by Jogaila, into a position to rival the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, who personally translated Christian into the and after the annexation of Novgorod in 1478, Muscovy .[32] The state reached a peak under was among the preeminent states in Northeastern Europe. Vytautas the Great, who reigned from 1392 to 1430. Vy- Between 1492 and 1508, Ivan III further consolidated tautas was one of the most famous rulers of the Grand Muscovy, winning the key Battle of Vedrosha and regain- Duchy of Lithuania, serving as the Grand Duke from ing such ancient lands of Kievan Rus’ as Chernigov and 1401–1430, and as the Prince of Hrodna (1370–1382) Bryansk. and the Prince of Lutsk (1387–1389). Vytautas was the On 8 September 1514, the allied forces of the Grand son of Kęstutis, cousin of Jogaila, who became King of Duchy of Lithuania and Kingdom of Poland, under the Poland in 1386, and he was the grandfather of Vasili II of command of , fought the Moscow. Battle of against the army of Grand Duchy of In 1410 Vytautas commanded the forces of the Grand Moscow under Konyushy Ivan Chelyadnin and Kniaz Duchy in the Battle of Grunwald. The battle ended in Mikhail Golitsin. The battle was part of a long series of 5

Muscovite–Lithuanian Wars conducted by Russian rulers the French invasion of Russia, the lands of the former striving to gather all the former lands of Kievan Rus’ Grand Duchy revolted against the . Soon after under their rule. According to Rerum Moscoviticarum his arrival to Vilnius, Napoleon proclaimed the creation Commentarii by Sigismund von Herberstein, the primary of a Commissary Provisional Government of the Grand source for the information on the battle, the much smaller Duchy of Lithuania, which in turn renewed the Polish- army of Poland–Lithuania (under 30,000 men) defeated Lithuanian Union.[36] However, the union was never for- the 80,000 Russian soldiers, capturing their camp and malized, as only half a year later Napoleon’s Grande Ar- . The Russians lost about 30,000 men, while mée was pushed out of Russia and forced to retreat further the losses of the Poland–Lithuania army totaled only 500. westwards. In December 1812, Vilnius was recaptured While the battle is remembered as one of the greatest by Russian forces, bringing all plans of recreation of the Lithuanian victories, Muscovy ultimately prevailed in the Grand Duchy to an end.[36] war. Under the 1522 peace treaty, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania made large territorial concessions. 3 Religion and culture 2.6 Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth See also: Main article: Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth After the baptism in 1252 and coronation of King The loss of land to Moscow and the continued pres-

" of Lithuania in 1387”, oil on canvas by , 1889, Royal Castle in Warsaw

The Grand Duchy of Lithuania within the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth c.a. 1635 sure threatened the survival of the state of Lithuania, so it was forced to ally more closely with Poland, unit- ing with its western neighbor as the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (Commonwealth of Two Nations) in the Union of Lublin of 1569. During the period of the Union, many of the territories formerly controlled by the largely Ruthenized[33] Grand Duchy of Lithuania were trans- ferred to the Crown of the Polish Kingdom, while the gradual process of slowly drew Lithuania it- self under Polish domination.[33][34][35] The Grand Duchy retained many rights in the federation (including a sepa- St. Anne’s Church and the church of the Bernardine Monastery rate government, treasury and army) until the May Con- in Vilnius stitution of Poland was passed in 1791. Mindaugas in 1253, Lithuania was recognized as a Chris- tian state until 1260, when Mindaugas supported an up- 2.7 Partitions and the Napoleonic period rising in Courland and (according to the German order) renounced Christianity. Up until 1387, Lithuanian nobles Following the Partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Com- professed their own religion, which was polytheistic. Eth- monwealth, most of the lands of the former Grand Duchy nic Lithuanians were very dedicated to their . The were directly annexed by the Russian Empire rather than pagan beliefs needed to be deeply entrenched to survive attached to the Kingdom of Poland, a rump state in per- strong pressure from and foreign powers. sonal union with Russia. However, in 1812, soon before Until the seventeenth century there were relics of old faith 6 4 LANGUAGES

reported by counter-reformation active Jesuit priests, like feeding žaltys with milk or bringing food to graves of an- cestors. The lands of modern-day Belarus and Ukraine, as well as local dukes (princes) in these regions, were firmly Orthodox Christian (Greek Catholic after the Union of Brest), though. While pagan beliefs in Lithuania were strong enough to survive centuries of pressure from mil- itary orders and missionaries, they did eventually suc- cumb. In 1387, Lithuania converted to Catholicism, while most of the Ruthenian lands stayed Orthodox. At one point, though, Pope Alexander VI reprimanded the Grand Duke for keeping non-Catholics as advisers.[37] There was an effort to polarise Orthodox Christians af- ter the Union of Brest in 1596, by which some Orthodox Christians acknowledged papal authority and Catholic catechism, but preserved their liturgy. The country also became one of the major centers of the Reformation. In the second half of the 17h century spread in Lithuania, supported by the families of Radziwiłł, , Sapieha, Dorohostajski and others. By the 1580s the majority of the senators from Lithuania were Calvinist or Socinian Unitarians (Jan Kiszka). In 1579, Stefan Batory, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, founded , one of the old- est universities in Northern Europe. Due to the work of the Jesuits during the Counter-Reformation the university The Constitution of May 3 was one of the first official state doc- soon developed into one of the most important scientific uments, issued in both Polish and Lithuanian language. Lithua- and cultural centers of the region and the most notable nian language edition of the Constitution. scientific center of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.[38] The work of the Jesuits as well as conversions from among the Lithuanian senatorial families turned the tide and by the 1670s Calvinism lost its former importance though it still retained some influence among the ethnically Lithuanian peasants and some middle nobility, by then thoroughly From the time of Vytautas, there are fewer remaining Polonized. documents written in Ruthenian than there are in Latin and German, but later Ruthenian became the main lan- guage of documentation and writings, especially in east- ern and southern parts of the Duchy. In the 4 Languages at the time of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Lithua- nian lands became increasingly polonized over time and In the 13th century, the center of the Grand Duchy started to use the instead of the Lithua- of Lithuania, was inhabited by a majority which spoke nian and Ruthenian languages and Polish officially be- Lithuanian,[39] but it was not a written language until the came the chancellery language of the Lithuanian-Polish 16th century.[40] In the other parts of the duchy, the ma- Commonwealth in 1697.[41][42][43][44] jority of the population, including Ruthenian nobles and The with the predominant ethnic Lithuanian ordinary people used both spoken and written Ruthenian [39] population, Vilnius, Trakai and Samogitian voivodeships, languages. Nobles who migrated from one place to an- remained almost wholly Lithuanian speaking, both col- other would adapt to a new locality and adopt the local loquially and by ruling nobility. In the extreme south- religion and culture and those Lithuanian noble families ern parts of Trakai , and south-eastern parts which moved to Slavic areas, often took up the local cul- [41] of Vilnius voivodeship Ruthenian communities were also ture quickly over subsequent generations. present. In addition to Lithuanians and Ruthenians, other were native to the east-central and south-eastern parts of important ethnic groups on throughout the Grand Duchy the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. of Lithuania were Jews and .[41] Vilnius city pop- The Ruthenian language, also called Chancery Slavonic ulation and its surroundings were multi-ethnic, among in its written form, was used to write laws alongside Pol- languages spoken here, there were Lithuanian, Polish, ish, Latin and German, but use varied between regions. Belarusian, Yiddish, German also Tatar, Karaim etc. 4.2 Lithuanian language situation 7

4.1 Languages for state and academic pur- both Polish- and Lithuanian-speaking courts.[48] poses From the beginning of the 16th century, and especially after a rebellion led by in 1508, there were attempts by the Court to replace the usage of Ruthe- nian with Latin.[49] But the Ruthenian tongue had deep cultural roots. Its use by academics in areas formerly part of Rus’ and even in Lithuania proper was widespread. Court of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania Lew Sapieha, noted in the preface of the Third Statute of Lithuania (1588) that this code was to be written exclu- sively in Ruthenian.

And clerk must use ruthenian letters and ruthenian words in all pages, letters and re- quests, and not any other language or words... —А писаръ земъский маеть по-руску литерами и словы рускими вси листы, выписы и позвы писати, а не иншимъ езыкомъ и словы..., The Statute of GPL 1588. Part 4, article 1[50]

Nonetheless, Mikalojus Daukša, writing in Polish, noted in his Postilla (1599) that many people, especially szlachta, preferred to speak Polish rather than Lithuanian, but spoke Polish poorly. Such were the linguistic trends in the Grand Duchy that by the political reforms of 1564– 1566 parliaments local land courts, appellate courts and other State functions were recorded in Polish.[49] and Pol- ish became increasingly spoken across all social classes.

4.2 Lithuanian language situation

Tribunal of Grand Duchy of Lithuania, printed in Ruthenian language, 1586

Numerous languages were used in state documents de- pending on which period in history and for what pur- pose. These languages included Lithuanian, Ruthenian (East Slavonic; Old Belarusian or Old Ukrainian),[44][45] Polish and, to a lesser extent (mostly in diplomatic com- munication), Latin and German.[40][41][43] The Court used Ruthenian to correspond with Eastern countries while Latin and German were used in foreign affairs with Western countries.[44][46] During the latter part of the history of the Grand Duchy, Polish was in- creasingly used in State documents, especially after the Union of Lublin.[43] By 1697, Polish had largely replaced Ruthenian as the “official” language at Court,[40][44][47] although Ruthenian continued to used on a few official documents until the second half of the 18th century.[42]

Usage of the Lithuanian language still continued at Court Area of the Lithuanian language in the 16th century after the death of Vytautas and Jogaila while Grand Duke Alexander I could understand and speak Lithua- Ruthenian and Polish languages were used as state lan- nian. The last Grand Duke, Zygmunt August, maintained guages of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, besides Latin 8 5 DEMOGRAPHICS

and German in diplomatic correspondence. Vilnius, Trakai and Samogitia were the core voivodeships of the state, being part of Lithuania Proper, as evidenced by the privileged position of their governors in state authorities, such as the Council of Lords. Peasants in ethnic Lithua- nian territories spoke exclusively Lithuanian, except tran- sitional border regions, but the Statutes of Lithuania and other laws and documentation were written in Ruthenian. Following the royal court, there was tendency to replace Lithuanian with Polish in the ethnic Lithuanian areas, whereas Ruthenian was stronger in ethnic Belarusian and Ukrainian territories. There is Sigismund von Herber- stein's note left, that there were in an ocean of in this part of Europe two non Ruthenian re- gions: Lithuania and Samogitia.[49] At one point in the history of the Grand Duchy of Lithua- nia, the higher strata of Lithuanian society from ethnic Lithuania spoke Lithuanian, although since the later 16-th century gradually began using Polish, and from Belarus – Old Belarusian. Samogitia was exclusive through state in its economical situation – it lay near ports and there were fewer people under corvee, instead of that, many simple people were money payers. As a result, the stratification of the society was not as sharp as in other areas. Be- ing more similar to a simple population the local szlachta spoke Lithuanian to a bigger extent than in the areas close to the capital Vilnius, which itself had become a center of intensive linguistic Polonization of surrounding areas since the 18th century. In Vilnius University there are preserved texts written The Statute of Grand Duchy of Lithuania (1588) in Ruthenian printed in Vilnius in the Lithuanian language of the Vilnius area, lying south-eastwards from Vilnius, then called Lithuanian lan- guage, today called a dialect of Eastern Aukštaitian. The source are preserved in works of graduates from Stanislovas Rapalionis Vilnius based Lithuanian language school graduate Martynas Mažvydas and Rapalionis rel- of Lithuania was 800 to 930 thousand km2, just 10% to ative Abraomas Kulvietis. 14% of which was ethnically Lithuanian.[51][53] One of the main sources of Lithuanian written and com- An estimate of the population in the territory of mon language is Eastern Aukštaitian dialect (Vilnius di- Poland and Grand Duchy of Lithuania together gives alect), preserved in the in a trilin- a population at 7.5 million for 1493, breaking them gual (Polish-Latin-Lithuanian) 17th-century dictionary, down by ethnicity at 3.75 million Ruthenians (ethnic the main Lithuanian language dictionary used until the , ), 3.25 million and 0.5 mil- late 19th century. lion Lithuanians.[54] With the Union of Lublin, 1569, Lithuanian Grand Duchy lost large part of lands to the Polish Crown. 5 Demographics In the mid and late 17th century, due to Russian and Swedish invasions, there was much devastation and population loss on throughout the Grand Duchy of See also: Demographics of the Polish-Lithuanian Com- Lithuania,[55] including ethnic Lithuanian population in monwealth. Vilnius surroundings. Besides devastation, Ruthenian In 1260 the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was the land population declined proportionally after the territorial of Lithuania, and ethnic Lithuanians formed majority losses to Russian Empire. By 1770 there were about 4.84 (67.5%) of its 400,000 people.[51] With the acquisition of million inhabitants in the territory of 320 thousand km2, new Ruthenian territories, in 1340 this portion decreased the biggest part of whom were inhabitants of Ruthenia to 30%[52] By the time of the largest expansion towards and about 1.39 million or 29% – of ethnic Lithuania.[51] Rus’ lands, which came at the end of the 13th and dur- During the following decades, the population decreased ing the 14th century, the territory of the Grand Duchy in a result of partitions.[51] 9

day. While there were certainly substantial regional dif- ferences in Kievan Rus, it was the Lithuanian annexation of much of southern and western Ruthenia that led to the permanent division between Ukrainians, Belarusians, and Russians. Some argue, that the ethnic and linguistic divi- sions amongst inhabitants of Ruthenia were not initiated by division of this area between Mongols and Lithuania, and are older than the creation of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. They state that until the twentieth century, eth- nic and linguistic frontiers between Ukrainians, Belaru- sians, and Russians coincided with no political borders. Notwithstanding the above, Lithuania was a kingdom un- der Mindaugas I, who was crowned by authority of Pope Innocent IV in 1253. Gediminas and Vytautas the Great also assumed the title of King, although uncrowned. A failed attempt was made in 1918 to revive the Kingdom under a German Prince, Wilhelm Karl, Duke of Urach, who would have reigned as Mindaugas II of Lithuania.

7 Gallery

• Lithuanian ancient hill fort in Rudamina

• Lithuanian ancient hill fort mounds in Kernavė, now listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site The first printed book in Lithuanian The Simple Words of Cate- chism (by Martynas Mažvydas) printed in Königsberg (Prussia). • Ruins of Navahrudak Castle. Current state (2004) Dedicated to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. • Mir Castle 6 Legacy • St. George church (1487) in Kaunas • Vilnius University and the Church of St. John See also: Statutes of Lithuania. Some Russian historians claim, one of the most crucial effects of Lithuanian rule was ethnic divisions amongst 8 See also the inhabitants of former Kievan Rus’. From this point of view, the creation of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania • Belarus played a major role in the division of Eastern . After the Mongolian conquest of Rus’, Mongols attempted to • Cities of Grand Duchy of Lithuania keep Eastern Slavs unified and succeeded in conquering most of Ruthenian lands. • Crimea Prussian tribes (of Baltic origin) were attacking Masovia, • Duchy of Lithuania and that was the reason Duke Konrad of Masovia in- vited the Teutonic Knights to settle near the Prussian area • History of Lithuania of settlement. The fighting between Prussians and the Teutonic Knights gave the more distant Lithuanian tribes • List of Belarusian rulers time to unite. Because of strong enemies in the south and north, the newly formed Lithuanian state concentrated • List of Lithuanian rulers most of its military and diplomatic efforts on expansion eastward. • Lithuania

The rest of former Ruthenian lands (Belarusian princi- • Lithuania proper palities) joined the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Some other lands in Ukraine were vassalized by Lithuania later. • Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth The subjugation of Eastern Slavs by two powers created substantial differences between them, that persist to this • Ukraine 10 9 NOTES AND REFERENCES

9 Notes and references [20] By contemporary accounts, the Lithuanians called their early rulers kunigas (kunigai in plural). The word was bor- [1] T. Baranauskas. Lietuvos valstybės ištakos. Vilnius, 2000 rowed from the – kuning, konig. Later on kunigas was replaced by the word kunigaikštis, used to [2] Sužiedėlis, Saulius. Historical dictionary of Lithuania describe to medieval Lithuanian rulers in modern Lithua- (2nd ed.). Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press. p. 119. ISBN nian, while kunigas today means priest. 978-0-8108-4914-3. [21] Z.Kiaupa, J. Kiaupienė, A. Kunevičius. The History of [3] Rowell S.C. Lithuania Ascending: A pagan empire within Lithuania Before 1795. Vilnius, 2000. p. 43-127 east-central Europe, 1295-1345. Cambridge, 1994. p.289-290 [22] V. Spečiūnas. Lietuvos valdovai (XIII-XVIII a.): Enciklo- pedinis žinynas. Vilnius, 2004. p. 15-78. [4] Ch. Allmand, The New Cambridge Medieval History. Cambridge, 1998, p. 731. [23] А. Кравцевич История Великого Княжества Литовского. [5] Encyclopædia Britannica. Grand Duchy of Lithuania [24] Краўцэвіч, А.К. Стварэнне Вялікага Княства [6] R. Bideleux. A History of Eastern Europe: Crisis and Літоўскага. Change. Routledge, 1998. p. 122 [25] Senosios Lietuvos istorija p. 44-45 [7] Rowell, Lithuania Ascending, p.289. [26] Kiaupa, Zigmantas; Jūratė Kiaupienė; Albinas Kunevičius [8] Z. Kiaupa. “Algirdas ir LDK rytų politika.” Gimtoji is- (2000) [1995]. “Establishment of the State”. The History torija 2: Nuo 7 iki 12 klasės (Lietuvos istorijos vadovėlis). of Lithuania Before 1795 (English ed.). Vilnius: Lithua- CD. (2003). Elektroninės leidybos namai: Vilnius. nian Institute of History. pp. 45–72. ISBN 9986-810-13- [9] N. Davies. Europe: A History. Oxford, 1996, p. 392. 2.

[10] J. Kiaupienė. Gediminaičiai ir Jogailaičiai prie Vytauto [27] Lithuania Ascending p.55 palikimo. Gimtoji istorija 2: Nuo 7 iki 12 klasės (Lietu- vos istorijos vadovėlis). CD. (2003) Elektroninės leidybos [28] New Cambridge p.706 namai: Vilnius. [29] Maciej Stryjkowski (1985). Kronika polska, litewska, [11] J. Kiaupienë, “Valdžios krizës pabaiga ir Kazimieras Jo- żmódzka i wszystkiéj Rusi Macieja Stryjkowskiego. War- gailaitis.” Gimtoji istorija 2: Nuo 7 iki 12 klasės (Lietuvos saw: Wydawnictwa Artystyczne i Filmowe. p. 572. istorijos vadovėlis). CD. (2003). Elektroninės leidybos namai: Vilnius. [30] Glenn Hinson. The Church Triumphant: A History of Christianity Up to 1300. 1995, p.438 [12] D. Stone. The Polish-Lithuanian state: 1386-1795. Uni- versity of Washington Press, 2001, p. 63. [31] Battle at Blue Waters (Ukrainian Pravda)

[13] Statute of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (1529), Part. [32] Jerzy Kloczowski, A History of Polish Christianity, Cam- 1., Art. 1.: «На первей преречоным прелатом, bridge University Press, 2000, p. 55. княжатом, паном, хоруговым, шляхтам и местом преречоных земель Великого князства Литовского, [33] “Within the [Lithuanian] Grand Duchy, the Ruthenian Руского, Жомойтского и иных дали есмо:...»; Ac- lands initially retained considerable autonomy. The pagan cording to.: Pervyi ili Staryi Litovskii Statut // Vremennik Lithuanians themselves were increasingly converting to Obschestva istorii i drevnostei Rossiiskih. 1854. Book Orthodoxy and assimilating into Ruthenian culture. The 18. p. 2-106. P. 2. grand duchy’s administrative practices and legal system drew heavily on Slavic customs, and Ruthenian became [14] Lithuanian-Ruthenian state at the Encyclopedia of the official state language. Direct Polish rule in Ukraine Ukraine since the 1340s and for two centuries thereafter was lim- ited to Galicia. There, changes in such areas as admin- [15] E. Bojtár. Forward to the Past: A Cultural History of the istration, law, and land tenure proceeded more rapidly Baltic People. Central European University Press, 1999 p. than in Ukrainian territories under Lithuania. However, 179 Lithuania itself was soon drawn into the orbit of Poland.” from Ukraine. (2006). In Encyclopædia Britannica. [16] Encarta.Lithuania. Accessed September 21, 2006. Archived 2009-10-31. [34] “Formally, Poland and Lithuania were to be distinct, equal [17] Encyclopedia Lituanica. Boston, 1970-1978, Vol.5 p.395 components of the federation,[...] But Poland, which re- tained possession of the Lithuanian lands it had seized, [18] Lithuania Ascending p.50 had greater representation in the Diet and became the dominant partner. [19] A. Bumblauskas, Senosios Lietuvos istorija, 1009–1795 from Lublin, Union of (2006). In Encyclopædia Britan- [The early history of Lithuania], Vilnius, 2005, p. 33. nica 11

[35] “While Poland and Lithuania would thereafter elect a joint [51] Letukienė, Nijolė; Gineika, Petras (2003). “Istorija. Poli- sovereign and have a common parliament, the basic dual tologija: kurso santrauka istorijos egzaminui” (in Lithua- state structure was retained. Each continued to be admin- nian). Vilnius: Alma littera. p. 182.. Statistical num- istered separately and had its own law codes and armed bers, usually accepted in historiography (the sources, their forces. The joint commonwealth, however, provided an treatment, the method of measuring is not discussed in the impetus for cultural Polonization of the Lithuanian nobil- source), are given, according to which in 1260 there were ity. By the end of the 17th century it had virtually become about 0.27 million Lithuanians out of a total population indistinguishable from its Polish counterpart.” of 0.4 million (or 67.5%). The size of the territory of from Lithuania, history in Encyclopædia Britannica the Grand Duchy was about 200 thousand km2. The fol- lowing data on population is given in the sequence - year, [36] Marek Sobczyński. “Procesy integracyjne i dezinte- total population in millions, territory, Lithuanian (inhab- gracyjne na ziemiach litewskich w toku dziejów” (pdf) itants of ethnic Lithuania) part of population in millions: (in Polish). Zakład Geografii Politycznej Uniwersytetu 1340 - 0.7, 350 thousand km2, 0.37; 1375 - 1.4, 700 thou- Łódzkiego. Retrieved 2007-10-11. sand km2, 0.42; 1430 - 2.5, 930 thousand km2, 0.59 or 24%; 1490 - 3.8, 850 thousand km2, 0.55 or 14% or 1/7; [37] Ludwig von Pastor, The History of the Popes, from the 1522 - 2.365, 485 thousand km2, 0.7 or 30%; 1568 - 2.8, Close of the , Vol. 6, p. 146. Quote: "...he 570 thousand km2, 0.825 million or 30%; 1572, 1.71, wrote to the Grand Duke of Lithuania, admonishing him 320 thousand km2, 0.85 million or 50%; 1770 - 4.84, 320 to do everything in his power to persuade his consort thousand km2, 1.39 or 29%; 1791 - 2.5, 250 km2, 1.4 or to 'abjure the Russian religion, and accept the Christian 56%; 1793 - 1.8, 132 km2, 1.35 or 75% Faith.'" [52] Letukienė, N., Istorija, Politologija: Kurso santrauka is- [38] Vilniaus Universitetas. History of Vilnius University. Re- torijos egzaminui, 2003, p. 182; there were about 0.37 trieved on 2007.04.16 million Lithuanians of 0.7 million of a whole population 2 [39] Daniel. Z Stone, A History of East Central Europe, p.4 by 1340 in the territory of 350 thousand km and 0.42 million of 1.4 million by 1375 in the territory of 700 thou- [40] Kevin O'Connor, Culture And Customs of the Baltic States, sand km2. Different numbers can also be found, for ex- Greenwood Press, 2006, ISBN 0-313-33125-1, Google ample: Kevin O'Connor, The History of the Baltic States, Print, p.115 Greenwood Publishing Group, 2003, ISBN 0-313-32355- 0, Google Print, p.17. Here the author estimates that there [41] Stephen R. Burant and Voytek Zubek, Eastern Europe’s were 9 million inhabitants in the Grand Duchy of Lithua- Old Memories and New Realities: Resurrecting the Polish- nia, and 1 million of them were ethnic Lithuanians by lithuanian Union, East European Politics and Societies 1387. 1993; 7; 370, online, p.4 [53] Bjorn Wiemer, Dialect and language contacts on the ter- [42] (Lithuanian) Lietuvos Didžiosios kunigaikštystės ritory of the Grand Duchy from the 15th century un- kanceliarinės slavų kalbos termino nusakymo problema til 1939, Kurt Braunmüller, Gisella Ferraresi, Aspects of Z. Zinkevičius multilingualism in European language history, John Ben- jamins Publishing Company, 2003, ISBN 90-272-1922- [43] Daniel. Z Stone, A History of East Central Europe, p.46 2, Google Print, p.109; 125 [44] Bjorn Wiemer, Dialect and language contacts on the ter- [54] Based on 1493 population map (p.92) from Iwo Cyprian ritory of the Grand Duchy from the 15th century un- Pogonowski, Poland a Historical Atlas, Hippocrene til 1939, Kurt Braunmüller, Gisella Ferraresi, Aspects of Books, 1987, ISBN 0-88029-394-2 multilingualism in European language history, John Ben- jamins Publishing Company, 2003, ISBN 90-272-1922- [55] Jarmo Kotilaine, Russia’s foreign trade and economic ex- 2, Google Print, p.109-114 pansion in the seventeenth century: windows on the world, BRILL, 2005, ISBN 90-04-13896-X, Google Print, p.45 [45] Stone, Daniel. The Polish-Lithuanian State, 1386-1795. Seattle: University of Washington, 2001. p. 4. 1. S. C. Rowell. Chartularium Lithuaniae res gestas [46] Kamuntavičius, Rustis. Development of Lithuanian State magni ducis Gedeminne illustrans. Gedimino laiškai. and Society. Kaunas: Vytautas Magnus University, 2002. Vilnius, 2003. p.21. 2. Norman Davies. ’s Playground. Columbia Uni- [47] Piotr Eberhardt, Jan Owsinski, Ethnic Groups and Popu- versity Press; 2nd edition (2002), ISBN 0-231- lation Changes in Twentieth-Century Central-Eastern Eu- 12817-7. rope: History, Data, Analysis, M.E. Sharpe, 2003, ISBN 0-7656-0665-8, Google Print, p.177. 3. Вялікае княства Літоўскае: Энцыклапедыя. — Мінск: БелЭн, 2005—2010. — Т. 1—3. [48] Daniel. Z Stone, A History of East Central Europe, p.52 4. Гісторыя Беларусі: Падруч. у 2 ч. / Я.К. Новік, [49] (Lithuanian) Lietuvių kalba: poreikis ir vartojimo mastai Г.С. Марцуль, І.Л. Качалаў і інш.; Пад рэд. Я.К. (XV a. antra pusė - XVI a. antra pusė); A. Dubonis Новіка, Г.С. Марцуля. — Мінск : Выш. шк., [50] [...] не обчымъ яким языкомъ, але своимъ властнымъ 2003. — Ч. 1. Ад старажытных часоў — па люты права списаные маемъ [...]; Dubonis, A. Lietuvių kalba 1917 г. — 416 с. 12 10 EXTERNAL LINKS

5. Гісторыя Беларусі: у 6 т. / Ю. Бохан [і інш.]; рэдкал: М. Касцюк (гал. рэд.) [і інш.]. — Мінск : Экаперспектыва, 2000—2012. — Т. 2. Беларусь у перыяд Вялікага Княства Літоўскага. — Мінск : Экаперспектыва, 2008. — 688 с.

6. Краўцэвіч, А.К. Стварэнне Вялікага Княства Літоўскага / А.К. Краўцэвіч. — Rzeszów, 2000. — 238 с. ISBN 985-08-0249-9 7. Насевiч, В.Л. Пачаткі Вялікага княства Літоўскага: Падзеі і асобы. — Мінск : Полымя, 1993. — 160 с.

10 External links

• History of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania

• Cheryl Renshaw. The Grand Duchy of Lithuania 1253-1795

• Grand Duchy of Lithuania • Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Administrative map

• Lithuanian-Ruthenian state at the Encyclopedia of Ukraine 13

11 Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

11.1 Text

• Grand Duchy of Lithuania Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Duchy_of_Lithuania?oldid=674351218 Contributors: Szopen, Space Cadet, SimonP, Drbug, Mic, Alex756, Dysprosia, Rudminjd, Zoicon5, Topbanana, Joy, Altenmann, Romanm, Buncic, Henrygb, Halibutt, Cautious, Lysy, LinasLit, Imf980, Yeti~enwiki, Mintleaf~enwiki, Fudoreaper, Wmahan, Piotrus, Domino theory, PDH, Gene s, Sam Hocevar, PolishPoliticians, Mrrhum, Irpen, Kevyn, Jakro64, EugeneZelenko, Rydel, Kostja, Delicates, Mgedmin, CanisRufus, Lankiveil, Bletch, Reinyday, Cmdrjameson, Nk, Pearle, Jeltz, Ricky81682, Infviza, Deacon of Pndapetzim, DeirYassin, Alai, Drbrezn- jev, Ghirlandajo, Thryduulf, Boothy443, Woohookitty, Daniel Case, Lokyz, OldAl, Ilya, BD2412, NoPuzzleStranger, Rjwilmsi, Amire80, Chekaz, Czalex, Valip, Olessi, Ev, Leithp, Ian Pitchford, Paolo914, Witkacy, Bloomfield, Zivinbudas, Volunteer Marek, Roboto de Ajvol, YurikBot, Hairy Dude, RussBot, Gaius Cornelius, Akhristov, Welsh, Sir48, Renata3, Seeaxid, AjaxSmack, Whitejay251, Laszlo Panaflex, Lt-wiki-bot, Petri Krohn, Curpsbot-unicodify, SmackBot, Maliuta, Kuban kazak, Mister X, Davewild, Timeshifter, HeartofaDog, Feens, Kazkaskazkasako, Bistropha, Thumperward, Hebel, Moonshiner, WeniWidiWiki, Tsca.bot, DarioTW, Greenshed, Fuhghettaboutit, Va- lenciano, Only, Orczar, DDima, Epf, Vina-iwbot~enwiki, Unomano, Esrever, Harryboyles, Mathiasrex, JohnI, ExadusX, PEiP, Zemene- spuu~enwiki, Dan Gluck, Iridescent, Grblomerth, Joseph Solis in Australia, Kestudi, Maxdf, CmdrObot, Bonás, Zurkhardo, Cydebot, Ntsimp, Languagehat, M.K, Hmkingroman, Juraune, PKT, Thijs!bot, Barticus88, SeNeKa, Staberinde, Marek69, NorwegianBlue, Iulius, Nick Number, ThomasPusch, AntiVandalBot, Kdebem, Dellijks, .anacondabot, WolfmanSF, Pleckaitis, Truthseeker 85.5, Martynas Pata- sius, Spellmaster, DerHexer, Happydrink, Rickard Vogelberg, CommonsDelinker, Shellwood, J.delanoy, Ioakinf, Trusilver, Numbo3, Alek- sandr Grigoryev, Kresy, Garret Beaumain, M-le-mot-dit, Idioma-bot, Glossologist, VolkovBot, Alexandria, TXiKiBoT, A4bot, Rei-bot, Lvivske, JhsBot, 4kinnel, Ashesofman, Spring01, Belamp, Munci, Koliak2991, NHRHS2010, Romuald Wróblewski, Lylefor, SieBot, Froztbyte, BotMultichill, Chromaticity, Riwnodennyk, Lightmouse, H-JAM, Denisarona, Gorsak, TFCforever, ClueBot, PipepBot, Foxj, Saddhiyama, Der Golem, Jacurek, Mild Bill Hiccup, Samanas~enwiki, Enerelt, Gytaz, Grantri, PoofyPeter99, Pirags, BarretB, Sergm, Dthomsen8, Good Olfactory, Luwilt, Addbot, Bennó, Laurinavicius, Vinigrooves, AndersBot, Martenz, Konstantinos~enwiki, Ivario, Greyhood, Luckas-bot, Yobot, Ajh1492, MrBlueSky, AnomieBOT, Galoubet, Ivan2007, Bluerasberry, Elder Eye, Tat1642, El1604, Schnugglepuff, Xqbot, Estlandia~enwiki, Sledgeas, Omnipaedista, Earlypsychosis, RibotBOT, SassoBot, Karl The Estonian, UrusHyby, WebCiteBOT, Осенняя мгла, Bestt, FrescoBot, GiW, AlexPin, CityElefant, Masz, BenzolBot, Dziugreb, Rgvis, Citation bot 1, Чаховіч Уладзіслаў, Mnh123, Rozincina, RedBot, Benmcrobie92, Dragovit, BoTaHuK, Jauhienij, SeikoEn, PerV, Hedviberit, DixonDBot, Zuy ,Mackay 86, Лобачев Владимир, EmausBot, John of Reading, SANCEZZZ, Mk5384, Pavelkha ,روخو ,czuowieq, River6969us, Axxxion Moswento, Tommy2010, AsceticRose, Josve05a, Rjrya395, Serge Kaleyeu, Sashhenka, TRAJAN 117, Mjbmrbot, Depenaille, Alexcold- casefan, Helpful Pixie Bot, BG19bot, Adom2000, Gomada, Spiridon Ion Cepleanu, AdventurousSquirrel, Olsufr8, Khazar2, Makecat- bot, Pracar, Matthewrobertolson, Vyvirka, Soheyl75, Nimetapoeg, Žemėpatis, Danik9000, Katlianik, Juozapaitis, MattKaymans, Vsvedas, Lietuvos Rytas Fan, No longer a penguin, Sabbatino, Pktlaurence, Manomintis, AsNory, Monkbot, Gamerprof, Pariah24, KasparBot, Mr.Bob.298 and Anonymous: 232

11.2 Images

• File:Alex_K_Grundwald_flags_1410-03.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0c/Alex_K_Grundwald_ flags_1410-03.svg License: CC BY 3.0 Contributors: self-made (based on Клейноди України (з історії державної і національної символіки). Комплект з 33-х кольорових листівок. – К., 1991., Banderia Pruttenorum) Original artist: Alex Tora • File:Alex_K_Halych-Volhynia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/Alex_K_Halych-Volhynia.svg Li- cense: Public domain Contributors: self-made Based on [1][2] Original artist: Alex Tora or Alex K in Ukranian and Japanese wiki • File:Baltic_Tribes_c_1200.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/Baltic_Tribes_c_1200.svg License: CC- BY-SA-3.0 Contributors: Based on a map by , published in The Balts (1963) LCC 63018018. Available at Vaidilute.com. In addition to Gimbutas, other maps were also consulted: Original artist: MapMaster • File:Belarus_stub_blank.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/Belarus_stub_blank.svg License: CC BY- SA 2.5 Contributors: No machine readable source provided. Own work assumed (based on copyright claims). Original artist: No machine readable author provided. Zscout370 assumed (based on copyright claims). • File:Blank.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d2/Blank.png License: Public domain Contributors: ? Origi- nal artist: ? • File:Chrzest_Litwy_1387_Matejko.JPG Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/Chrzest_Litwy_1387_ Matejko.JPG License: Public domain Contributors: Ewa Suchodolska, Marek Wrede (1998). Jana Matejki Dzieje cywilizacji w Polsce. Zamek Królewski w Warszawie. ISBN 83-7022-093-2 Original artist: Jan Matejko • File:Coat_of_Arms_of_Lithuania.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Coat_of_arms_of_Lithuania. svg License: Public domain Contributors: http://www.lrv.lt/Herbas/Veliav_herb/LR_veliava_ir_herbas.pdf Original artist: • File:Commons-logo.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg License: ? Contributors: ? Original artist: ? • File:Constitution_of_May_3_in_Lithuanian_language.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/21/ Constitution_of_May_3_in_Lithuanian_language.jpg License: Public domain Contributors: Scan from A.Bumblauskas, Senosios Lietuvos istorija 1009 - 1795 Original artist: unknown early 19th century scribe • File:Flag_of_Belarus.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/Flag_of_Belarus.svg License: Public domain Contributors: http://www.tnpa.by/ViewFileText.php?UrlRid=52178&UrlOnd=%D1%D2%C1%20911-2008 Original artist: Zscout370 • File:Flag_of_Latvia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/84/Flag_of_Latvia.svg License: Public domain Contributors: Drawn by SKopp Original artist: Latvija • File:Flag_of_Lithuania.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/11/Flag_of_Lithuania.svg License: Public do- main Contributors: Own work Original artist: SuffKopp 14 11 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

• File:Flag_of_Moldova.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/Flag_of_Moldova.svg License: Public do- main Contributors: vector image traced by User:Nameneko from Image: gerb large.png. Construction sheet can be found at http://flagspot.net/flags/md.html#const Original artist: Nameneko and others • File:Flag_of_Poland.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/12/Flag_of_Poland.svg License: Public domain Contrib- utors: ? Original artist: ? • File:Flag_of_Romania.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/73/Flag_of_Romania.svg License: Public do- main Contributors: Own work Original artist: AdiJapan • File:Flag_of_Russia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/f3/Flag_of_Russia.svg License: PD Contributors: ? Origi- nal artist: ? • File:Flag_of_Ukraine.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/Flag_of_Ukraine.svg License: Public domain Contributors: ДСТУ 4512:2006 - Державний прапор України. Загальні технічні умови SVG: 2010 Original artist: України • File:Flag_of_the_Kingdom_of_Prussia_(1750-1801).svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/Flag_of_ the_Kingdom_of_Prussia_%281750-1801%29.svg License: Copyrighted free use Contributors: Own Work, Custom Creation according design specifications of the previous file Original artist: Drawing created by David Liuzzo • File:Gediminas_Tower_in_Vilnius_(cropped).jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/38/Gediminas_ Tower_in_Vilnius_%28cropped%29.jpg License: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contributors: cropped original image Original artist: Cropped by me • File:Kaunas_-_Castle_01.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f1/Kaunas_-_Castle_01.jpg License: CC- BY-SA-3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Lestat (Jan Mehlich) • File:Lietuva_ir_Lenkija.Lithuania_and_Poland_1387.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/Lietuva_ ir_Lenkija.Lithuania_and_Poland_1387.png License: CC BY-SA 2.5 Contributors: used this pattern Original artist: M.K. • File:Lithuanian_language_in_the_16th_century.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/Lithuanian_ language_in_the_16th_century.png License: CC BY-SA 2.5 Contributors: Own work Data source: Z.Zinkevičius. Lietuvių tautos kilmė. 2005, p.230 Original artist: M.K. • File:Lob_Погоня_Сигизмунда_Кейстутовича1.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Lob_%D0% 9F%D0%BE%D0%B3%D0%BE%D0%BD%D1%8F_%D0%A1%D0%B8%D0%B3%D0%B8%D0%B7%D0%BC%D1%83%D0% BD%D0%B4%D0%B0_%D0%9A%D0%B5%D0%B9%D1%81%D1%82%D1%83%D1%82%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B8%D1% 87%D0%B01.svg License: CC BY-SA 3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Лобачев Владимир • File:Matejko_Battle_of_Grunwald.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a1/Matejko_Battle_of_ Grunwald.jpg License: Public domain Contributors: www.info-poland.buffalo.edu Original artist: Jan Matejko • File:Mazvydo_katekizmas.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3a/Mazvydo_katekizmas.jpg License: Pub- lic domain Contributors: ? Original artist: ? • File:Pahonia_-_Пагоня,_Grand_Duchy_of_Lithuania_COA_(1575)_cut.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/ commons/2/2c/Pahonia_-_%D0%9F%D0%B0%D0%B3%D0%BE%D0%BD%D1%8F%2C_Grand_Duchy_of_Lithuania_COA_ %281575%29_cut.png License: Public domain Contributors: • Pahonia_-_Пагоня,_Grand_Duchy_of_Lithuania_COA_(1575).jpg Original artist: Pahonia_- _Пагоня,_Grand_Duchy_of_Lithuania_COA_(1575).jpg: Erazm Komnin • File:Polska_1386_-_1434.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bb/Polska_1386_-_1434.png License: CC BY-SA 3.0 Contributors: własna praca na podstawie “Ilustrowany atlas historii Polski, wyd. Demart, Warszawa 2006” Original artist: Poznaniak • File:Rzeczpospolita_voivodships.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/Rzeczpospolita_voivodships.png License: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Halibutt • File:Statut-1588.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c5/Statut-1588.jpg License: Public domain Contribu- tors: http://litvin.org Original artist: Unknown • File:Trakai-Troki.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/29/Trakai-Troki.jpg License: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Con- tributors: own work (photographic film) Original artist: Julo • File:Tribunal-1586.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/86/Tribunal-1586.png License: Public domain Contributors: «Трибунал обывателям Великого княжества Литовского». Вильна: Типография братьев Мамоничей, 1586. год Original artist: Mamonich Bros. • File:Vilnius_St_Anns_church.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2e/Vilnius_St_Anns_church.jpg Li- cense: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Wojsyl • File:Yarthewise.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c4/Yarthewise.png License: Public domain Contribu- tors: Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons by Russavia using CommonsHelper. Original artist: The original uploader was Ghirlandajo at English Wikipedia • File:Навагрудскі_замак.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e3/%D0%9D%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0% B0%D0%B3%D1%80%D1%83%D0%B4%D1%81%D0%BA%D1%96_%D0%B7%D0%B0%D0%BC%D0%B0%D0%BA.jpg License: CC BY-SA 3.0 Contributors: http://mr4ex.livejournal.com/30428.html Original artist: Андрэй Бортнікаў

11.3 Content license

• Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0