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'Mindaugas' (approximate English transcription [ˈmın.dəʊ.gʌs], simplified Lithuanian transcription [m'i'ndaŭgas]; also known as Ruthenian: Миндовгъ (''Mindowh''), , ) (c. 1203 – 12 September 1263) was the first known Grand Duke of Lithuania from ca. 1236 and King of Lithuania from 1253. Mindaugas was able to win personal power in Lithuania and unite the Balts. During internal fights for power, Mindaugas managed to make an alliance with the Livonian Order and on July 6, 1253 Mindaugas was crowned as King of Lithuania. About ten years later he was assassinated and Lithuania relapsed to paganism. Nevertheless, Mindaugas is considered to be the founder of the Lithuanian state.

Contents

Rise to power

Path to coronation

The Kingdom of Lithuania

Assassination

See also

References

Rise to power

The first conclusive evidence that the Balts were uniting is considered to be a treaty with Halych-Volhynia signed in 1219. The treaty's signatories include 21 Lithuanian dukes; it specifies that five of those were elder and thus took precedence over the remaining 16. Mindaugas, despite his youth, and his brother Dausprungas are listed among the elder dukes. That would imply that they inherited their titles. (2002) ''Gimtoji istorija. Nuo 7 iki 12 klasės'' (CD), 1st ed., Vilnius: Elektroninės leidybos namai. ISBN 9986-9216-9-4. Mindaugas, the duke who governed southern Lithuania between the Neman and Neris Rivers, Mindaugas — Lietuvos karalius, , Birutė, Butkevičienė, Mokslas ir gyvenimas, 2003 eventually became the founder of the Lithuanian state.
Mindaugas is referred to as the ruler of all Lithuania in the Livonian Rhymed Chronicle in 1236. Lietuvos valdovai (XIII-XVIII a.): enciklopedinis žinynas, , , , Mokslo ir enciklopedijų leidybos institutas, 2004, ISBN 5-420-01535-8 The means by which he managed to acquire this title are not well known. Russian chronicles mention that he murdered or expelled various other dukes, including his relatives. In about 1239 Mindaugas took over the weakened Black Ruthenia and appointed his son Vaišvilkas to govern it. During the early 1240s, Mindaugas strengthened and established his power in various Baltic lands.^[1] In 1248, Mindaugas sent his nephews Tautvilas and Edivydas, the sons of Dausprungas, and Vykintas, to conquer Smolensk, but they were unsuccessful. In 1249, an internal war erupted as Mindaugas sought to seize his nephews' and Vykintas' lands.

Path to coronation

The bull by Pope Innocent IV regarding Lithuania's placement under the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Rome, Mindaugas' baptism and coronation

Šeiminyškėliai Hillfort, one of the suggested sites of the capital of Mindaugas, Voruta

Tautvilas, Edivydas, and Vykintas formed a powerful coalition with the Samogitians, the Livonian Order, Daniel of Halych (Tautvilas and Edivydas' brother-in-law), and Vasilko of Volhynia in opposition to Mindaugas. The dukes of Halych and Volhynia managed to gain control over Black Ruthenia, an area ruled by Vaišvilkas. Tautvilas travelled to Riga, where he was baptized by the Archbishop. In 1250, the order organized two major raids, one against Nalša land and the other against the domains of Mindaugas and those parts of Samogitia that still supported him. Attacked from the north and south and facing the possibility of unrest elsewhere, Mindaugas was placed in an extremely difficult position, but managed to use the conflicts between the Livonian Order and the Archbishop of Riga in his own interests. He succeeded in bribing Andreas von Stierland, the master of the order, who was still angry at Vykintas for the defeat at the Battle of the Sun in 1236.
In 1251, Mindaugas agreed to receive baptism and relinquish control over some lands in the western Lithuania, for which he was to receive a crown in return. In 1252, Tautvilas and his remaining allies attacked Mindaugas in Voruta, sometimes considered to be the first capital of Lithuania. The attack failed and Tautvilas' forces retreated to defend themselves in Tverai Castle, in the present-day Rietavas municipality. Vykintas died in or about 1253, and Tautvilas was forced to rejoin Daniel of Halych. Daniel reconciled with Mindaugas in 1254; the Black Ruthenia lands were transferred to Roman, the son of Daniel, and Vaišvilkas, the son of Mindaugas, decided to join a monastery. Tautvilas recognized Mindaugas' superiority and received Polatsk as a fiefdom.

The Kingdom of Lithuania

The act granting Selonia, marked with Mindaugas' seal

Litas commemorative coin dedicated to King Mindaugas

As promised, Mindaugas and his wife Morta were crowned at some time during the summer of 1253, and the Kingdom of Lithuania was established. July 6th is now celebrated as "Statehood Day" (Lithuanian: ''Valstybės diena''); it is an official holiday in modern Lithuania.^[2] However, the exact date of the coronation is not known; the scholarship of historian Edvardas Gudavičius, who promulgated this date, is sometimes challenged. Mindaugo karūnavimo ir Lietuvos karalystės problemos, , Tomas, Baranauskas, Voruta, 2003 The location of the coronation remains unknown. However, as later events showed, Lithuanians were not prepared to accept Christianity, and Mindaugas' baptism had little impact on further developments.
Immediately after his coronation, Mindaugas transferred some western lands to the Livonian Order (portions of Samogitia, Nadruva, and Dainava). There is much discussion whether in later years (1255, 1257, 1259, 1261) Mindaugas gave even more lands to the order. The deeds might have been falsified by the order; the case for this scenario is bolstered by the fact that some of the documents mention lands that were not actually under the control of Mindaugas. Whatever the case, relative peace and stability was established for about 8 years. Mindaugas used this opportunity to concentrate on expansion to the east. He strengthtened his influence in Black Ruthenia, in Polatsk, a major center of commerce in the Daugava River basin, and in Pinsk. He also negotiated a peace with Halych-Volhynia, and married his daughter to Svarn, the son of Daniel of Halych, who would later become Grand Duke of Lithuania. National relationships with western Europe and the Holy See were also reinforced. In 1255, Mindaugas received permission from Pope Alexander IV to crown his son as King of Lithuania. In the domestic arena, Mindaugas strove to organize and establish state institutions: his own noble court, administrative system, diplomatic service, and a monetary system. Silver Lithuanian long coins (Lithuanian: ''Lietuvos ilgieji'') circulated, providing an indice of statehood.

Map of Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the 13-15th centuries

Assassination

The Livonian Order used this period to gain control over Samogitian lands. In 1259 the Livonian Order lost the Battle of Skuodas, and in 1260 it lost the Battle of Durbe. The first loss encouraged a rebellion by the Semigalians, and the later loss spurred the Prussians into an uprising against the order. The Great Prussian Rebellion lasted for 14 years. Encouraged by Treniota, his nephew, Mindaugas broke peace with the order. Some chronicles hint that he also relapsed into his former pagan beliefs, but this is disputable. Nevertheless, all the diplomatic achievements made since his coronation were lost. Treniota led the army to Cēsis and battled Masovia, hoping to encourage all the conquered Baltic tribes to rise up against the orders and unite under Lithuanian leadership. His personal influence grew because Mindaugas was concentrating on the conquest of Russian lands, dispatching a large army to Bryansk. Treniota and Mindaugas began to pursue different priorities. In the midst of these events, Mindaugas' wife Morta died, and Mindaugas expressed the wish to marry Daumantas' wife. Treniota and Daumantas assassinated Mindaugas and two of his sons, Ruklys and Rupeikis. Lithuania lapsed into years of internal disorder. Only with Vytenis, Grand Duke from 1295, did stability return. While most of the Lithuanian Grand Dukes from Jogaila onward reigned also as Kings of Poland, their titles remained separate, and Mindaugas was the only ''King of Lithuania'', recognized as such by Western European rulers.

See also

★ House of Mindaugas – family tree of Mindaugas

★ List of Lithuanian rulers

★ List of Belarusian rulers

★ Early dukes of Lithuania

★ Mindaugas II of Lithuania

References

1. The History of Lithuania Before 1795, , Zigmantas, Kiaupa, Lithuanian Institute of History, 2000, ISBN 9986-810-13-2
2. Lietuvos Respublikos švenčių dienų įstatymas, Žin., 1990, Nr. 31-757, Seimas. Retrieved on 2006-09-17.