The principality of Lithuania was originally Lithuanian-Russian in composition with a predominance of Russians and could become a powerful Orthodox state. It is not known what would have happened to the Moscow principality if the Lithuanian princes had not turned to the West, towards Poland.
Zhemgola, Zhmud, Prussians and others
The Lithuanian tribes, close to the Slavs, judging by both the study of the language and the analysis of beliefs, lived quite calmly and carelessly on the Baltic coast between the Western Dvina and the Vistula. They were divided into tribes: on the right bank of the Dvina the Letgola tribe lived, on the left - the Zhemgola, on the peninsula between the mouth of the Neman and the Gulf of Riga - the Kors, between the mouths of the Neman and the Vistula - the Prussians, in the Neman basin - Zhmud in the upper reaches, and Lithuania proper - on average, plus the densest of the listed Yotvingians on Narva. Cities in these territories did not exist until the 13th century, when the city of Voruta among the Lithuanians and Tveremet near Zhmud were noted for the first time in the annals, and historians tend to attribute the folding of the rudiments of the state to the 14th century.
German knights
Young and aggressive Europeans, represented mainly by Germans, but also by Swedes and Danes, of course, could not but begin the colonization of the east of the Baltic Sea. So the Swedes took the lands of the Finns, the Danes built Revel in Estonia, and the Germans went to the Lithuanians. At first they only traded and preached. The Lithuanians did not refuse to be baptized, but then they plunged into the Dvina and “washed away” the baptism from themselves, sending it back to the Germans by water. The Pope then sent crusaders there, led by Bishop Albert, the first Bishop of Livonia, who in 1200 founded Riga, the Order of the Sword, since there were plenty of knights in those days, and conquered and colonized the surrounding lands. Thirty years later, another order, the Teutonic Order, was located nearby, in the possessions of the Polish prince Konrad of Mazovia, which was driven out of Palestine by Muslims. They were called upon to defend Poland from the Prussians, who constantly robbed the Poles. The knights conquered all the Prussian lands in fifty years, and a state was founded there in fief subordination from the emperor of Germany.
The first reliable reign
But the Lithuanians did not submit to the Germans. They began to unite in large crowds, build alliances, in particular, with the Polotsk princes. Considering that the Russian western lands were weak at that time, passionate Lithuanians, who were called to the service by one or the other princes, acquired primitive management skills, and they themselves begin to seize first the Polotsk land, then the lands of Novgorod, Smolensk, Kyiv. The first reliable reign is Mindovg, the son of Romgold, who created the principality from Russians and Lithuanians. However, it was impossible to turn around too much, since in the South there was a strong Galician principality headed by Daniel, and on the other hand, the Livonian Order did not doze off. Mindovg ceded the occupied Russian lands to Daniil's son Roman, but formally retained power over them and secured this business by marrying his daughter to Daniil's son Shvarna. The Livonian Order recognized Mindovg when he was baptized. As a sign of gratitude, he handed over to the Germans the letters for the Lithuanian lands, which he did not own.
Dynasty Founder
After the death of Mindovg in the principality, as expected, various civil strife began, which lasted half a century, until in 1316 Gedimin, the founder of the Gediminovich dynasty, occupied the princely throne. Over the previous years, Daniel and other Russian princes had a great influence in Lithuania and transferred a lot there in terms of urban planning, cultural military. Gediminas was married to a Russian and generally led a Lithuanian-Russian policy, realizing that this was necessary for the construction of the state. But he subjugated Polotsk, Kyiv, and partly Volhynia. He himself sat in Vilna, and two-thirds of his state were Russian lands. Gedimin's sons Olgerd and Keistut turned out to be friendly guys - one was in Vilna, and was engaged in northeastern Russia, and Keistut lived in Troki, and acted against the Germans.
Jagiello - apostate
To match the sound of his name, Prince Jagiello turned out to be an unworthy son of Olgerd, he agreed with the Germans to destroy his uncle Keistut. That Jagiello won, but did not kill his nephew, and in vain, because at the first opportunity, Jagiello strangled his uncle, but his son Vitovt was able to hide from the Teutonic knights, however, then he returned and sat on small lands. The Poles began to approach Jagiello with a proposal to marry him to Queen Jadwiga. She was recognized as queen after the death of the Hungarian king Louis, who also ruled dynastically in Poland. The pans argued and fought for a long time over who Jadwiga should take as her husband, and Jagiello was very suitable: the disputes over Volhynia and Galich would stop, Poland would strengthen itself against the Germans who seized the Polish seaside, drive the Hungarians out of Galich and Lvov. Jagiello, who was baptized into Orthodoxy, was very pleased with the offer, was baptized into Catholicism and baptized Lithuania. In 1386, the marriage was concluded and Jagiello received the name Vladislav. He destroyed the pagan temples, etc., helped to remove the Hungarians and inflicted a crushing defeat on the Teutonic Order at Grunwald. But, as the Russian historian Sergei Platonov notes, the union "introduced the seeds of internal enmity and decay into Lithuania," since the prerequisites were created for the oppression of Orthodox Russians.
Vitovt - the collector of lands
The son of the murdered Keistut Vitovt, as soon as Jagiello left for Poland, with the help of the appanage princes, he began to rule in Poland (1392), moreover, with such support that he achieved complete personal independence from King Vladislav, the former Jagiello. Under Vitovt, Lithuania expanded from the Baltic to the Black Sea, deeply advanced to the East at the expense of the Smolensk principality. Vasily I was married to the only daughter of Vitovt Sophia, and the left tributary of the Oka Utra was designated as the border between Moscow and Lithuanian lands. Some historians believe that this powerful eastern policy, which could lead to the creation of a huge Lithuanian-Russian state, was promoted by the Orthodox princes of Lithuania, but the Poles and the new Polonized Lithuanian nobility, who received all the privileges of the gentry and pans, were sharply opposed. Vytautas even began to petition for a royal title before the emperor of Germany in order to become independent from Poland, but died (1430) in the midst of this process.
full union
For more than 100 years, the union was largely formal. This, as in the case of Vytautas, could have the most unfortunate consequences for Poland, so it was decided to always elect one person as both prince and king. Thus, the union, conceived in 1386, was implemented only at the beginning of the 16th century. Polish influence in Lithuania after that began to grow. Previously, local princes could rule in their lands without Catholic and Polish dictatorship, now the Grand Duke subjugated them, the Roman faith became overwhelming and oppressive in relation to the Orthodox. Many converted to Catholicism, others tried to fight, moved to Moscow, which, thanks to this situation, was able to push Lithuania. In the internal policy of the principality, the Polish order was finally established, first of all, the gentry with its enormous rights in relation to the king and peasants. This process naturally ended in 1569 with the Union of Lublin and the formation of another state - the Commonwealth.
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania, a feudal state that existed in the 13th-16th centuries. on the territory of part of modern Lithuania and Belarus. The main occupation of the population was agriculture and cattle breeding. Hunting and crafts played an auxiliary role in the economy. The development of handicrafts based on iron production, internal and external trade (with Russia, Poland, etc.) contributed to the growth of cities (Vilnius, Trakai, Kaunas, etc.). In the 9th-12th centuries. feudal relations developed on the territory of Lithuania, the estates of feudal lords and dependent people were formed. Separate Lithuanian political associations had different levels of social and economic development. The decomposition of primitive communal relations and the emergence of the feudal system led to the formation of a state among the Lithuanians. According to the Galicia-Volyn chronicle, the Russo-Lithuanian treaty of 1219 mentions an alliance of Lithuanian princes headed by the "oldest" princes who owned lands in Aukstaitija. This indicates the existence of a state in Lithuania. The strengthening of the grand ducal power led to the unification of the main Lithuanian lands in V. k. L. under the rule of Mindovg (mid-30s of the 13th century - 1263), who also seized some Belarusian lands (Black Russia). The formation of the V. k. L. was accelerated by the need to unite to fight the aggression of the German crusaders, which intensified from the beginning of the 13th century. Lithuanian troops won major victories over the knights in the battles of Siauliai (1236) and Durba (1260).
In the 14th century, during the reign of Gediminas (1316-1341), Olgerd (1345-77) and Keistut (1345-82), . the Principality of Lithuania significantly expanded its possessions, adding all Belarusian, part of Ukrainian and Russian lands (Volyn, Vitebsk, Turov-Pinsk, Kyiv, Pereyaslav, Podolsk, Chernihiv-Seversky lands, etc.). Their inclusion was facilitated by the fact that Russia was weakened by the Mongol-Tatar yoke, as well as the fight against the aggression of German, Swedish and Danish invaders. Joining the Great. princes Lithuanian. Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian lands with more developed social relations and culture contributed to the further development of socio-economic relations in Lithuania. In the annexed lands, the Lithuanian grand dukes retained significant autonomy and immunity rights for local magnates. This, as well as differences in the level of socio-economic development and the ethnic heterogeneity of individual parts of V. k. L., led to the lack of centralization in state administration. At the head of the state was the Grand Duke, with him - a council of representatives of the nobility and the highest clergy. In order to join forces to fight the advance of the German knightly orders and strengthen his power, Grand Duke Jagiello (1377-92) concluded the Union of Krevo with Poland in 1385. However, the union was fraught with the danger of Lithuania becoming a province of Poland in the future. In Lithuania, where until the end of the 14th century. paganism existed, Catholicism began to spread by force. Jagiello's policy was opposed by a part of the Lithuanian and Russian princes, headed by Vitovt, who in 1392, after an internecine struggle, actually became the Grand Duke in Lithuania. The combined Lithuanian-Russian and Polish troops, with the participation of Czech troops in the Battle of Grunwald in 1410, utterly defeated the knights of the Teutonic Order and stopped their aggression.
The growth of large feudal landownership and the consolidation of the ruling class in the 14th - 15th centuries. were accompanied by mass enslavement of the peasants, which caused peasant uprisings (for example, in 1418). The main form of exploitation of the peasants was food rent. Simultaneously with the growth of economic dependence, national oppression in the Belarusian and Ukrainian lands also intensified. Crafts and trade developed in the cities. In the 15-16 centuries. the rights and privileges of the Lithuanian lords are growing. According to the Union of Horodel in 1413, the rights of the Polish gentry were extended to the Lithuanian Catholic nobles. At the end of the 15th century a Rada of pans was formed, which actually put the power of the Grand Duke under its control by the privilege of 1447 and by the privilege of the Grand Duke Alexander in 1492. The formation of a general gentry Sejm (at the end of the 15th century), as well as the publication of the Lithuanian Statutes of 1529 and 1566, consolidated and increased the rights of the Lithuanian nobility.
The transition to cash rent at the end of the 15th-16th centuries. was accompanied by an increase in the exploitation of the peasants and an aggravation of the class struggle: escapes and unrest became more frequent (especially large ones - in 1536-37 in the grand ducal estates). In the middle of the 16th century a reform was carried out on the estates of the Grand Duke, as a result of which the exploitation of the peasants intensified due to the growth of corvee (see Volochnaya Pomera). From the end of the 16th century this system is being introduced in the estates of large landowners-tycoons. Mass enslavement of peasants, development of corvée economy, acquisition by Lithuanian landlords in the second half of the 16th century. the right to duty-free export of grain abroad and the import of goods hindered the development of cities.
The Lithuanian princes, from the moment of the formation of V. k. L., sought to seize Russian lands. However, the strengthening in the 14th century. The Grand Duchy of Moscow and the unification of the Russian lands around it led to the fact that from the 2nd half of the 15th century. as a result of wars with Russia (1500-03, 1507-08, 1512-22, 1534-37) B. k. L. lost Smolensk (captured by Grand Duke Vitovt in 1404), Chernigov, Bryansk, Novgorod-Seversky and other Russians earth. The growth of anti-feudal uprisings in the lands of V. k. L., the aggravation of intra-class contradictions, the desire for expansion into V., as well as the failures in the Livonian War of 1558-83 against Russia led to the unification of V. k. L. with Poland according to the Union of Lublin in 1569. one state - the Commonwealth.
By the time of its formation, at the end of the 13th century and the 14th century, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a confederation of Lithuanian and Russian lands and principalities united under the suzerainty of the Grand Duke. Each of the lands constituted an independent sociopolitical unit. Throughout the 15th century, the Grand Dukes tried to strengthen the power of the central government over all the territories of the Grand Duchy.
However, for a long time it was difficult to overcome the resistance of local authorities trying to maintain their former rights. Each region enjoyed wide autonomy, which was provided by a special letter (letter) of the Grand Duke. In a privilege issued in 1561 to the Vitebsk land, the Grand Duke took an oath not to force the inhabitants of this region to move to any other region of the Grand Duchy (in contrast to Moscow policy); not send indigenous soldiers to garrison duty in any other land; and not to call a Vitebsk resident (a resident of the Vitebsk land) to Lithuania for trial. Similar letters were issued to the Polotsk, Smolensk (nine years before its capture by Muscovy), Kyiv and Volyn lands. In many cases, the affairs of each of these lands were discussed and conducted by local residents - noble landowners and those who lived in large cities. Local noble assemblies constantly gathered in Volhynia.
The process of strengthening the power of the central government over the autonomous lands was motivated, as in Muscovy, by the military and financial considerations of the Grand Duke and the council of nobles. In the XIV and early XV centuries, the Teutonic Order was a danger to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. At the end of the 15th century, the Grand Duke of Moscow claimed the West Russian lands, considering them his sex as an equal inheritance. During the 15th and 16th centuries, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, as well as Muscovy, was constantly attacked by the Tatars, and in the 16th and 17th centuries Western Russia and Poland were forced to repel the offensive of the Ottoman Turks. A better organization of the country's economic resources and a more efficient system of government were required so that the Lithuanian state could cope with the constantly arising difficulties.
One of the first tasks of the Grand Duke was to bring to the dock those parts of the territory over which he had direct authority, that is, the gospodar lands. The main population in these possessions were sovereign peasants, but part of the gospodar lands was transferred to the "gospodar nobility", those who owned plots of gospodar lands, being in the position of servants of the grand duke. Their position was similar to the owners of estates in Muscovy, and the term "estate" itself was often used in Western Russian documents. Residents of small towns located in the lord's lands were also under the direct authority of the Grand Duke.
In order to make the management of the crown's possessions more efficient, they were divided into a number of districts, each of which was headed by a grand princely governor, also called a "derzhavtsa". Derzhavets was the chief manager. tax collector from the Gospodar lands in his area. was also the military head of the district, responsible for mobilization in case of war, and a local judge in the Gospodar lands. These governors were given the right to keep part of the collected taxes and court fees - a method of remuneration that corresponded to the "feeding" system in Muscovy.
Outside the district of the sovereigns lay the lands of the nobility - the vast possessions of princes and lords and the smaller lands of the gentry. The nobles enjoyed the same legal rights in relation to the population of their possessions as the derzhavtsy in the Gospodar lands entrusted to him. The gentry demanded for themselves the same power over their servants and farmers - tenants of their lands.
It should be noted that in the second half of the 15th century, the Polish gentry managed to achieve the right to local self-government, as well as a number of other privileges. The expansion of the rights of the petty nobility in Poland could not but speed up a similar process in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. During the war, each nobleman joined the army with his retinue, and the gentry of each district formed a separate regiment. For participation in hostilities, petty nobles demanded satisfaction of their political claims, and the Grand Duke and the council of nobles were gradually forced to give in to these demands. At the same time, however, they tried to establish political and military control over the provinces.
In the middle of the 16th century, a balanced system of administration of regions and districts was established. The network of districts (povets) constituted the lower layer of the system. By 1566 the total number of districts was thirty-one. The ruler of the district, the headman, was at the same time the "derzhavtsa" (viceroy) of the ruler's lands and the head of the general administration of the district.
To conduct litigation over the land of the nobility in each district, a special noble “zemsky court” was organized. The nobility of each county during mobilization constituted a separate military unit with its own banner. At the head was a special officer, who was called the cornet of the regiment.
The regions that constituted the higher level of local government were called voivodeships. Each voivodeship included from one to five counties. At the head of each was a governor or governor. In the end, the latter title proved to be preferable. The voivode was the "ruler" of the central region of the voivodeship, the head of the voivodeship administration, the commander-in-chief of all armed forces mobilized within his voivodeship in case of war, and the chief judge. His power extended to the population of the lord's lands and to the petty nobility, but not to the nobles.
In addition to the voivode, in many voivodships there was the position of "commander of the castle (fortress)", called "kastella".
The positions of voivode and castellan were established in 1413, at first only in Lithuania proper (not including Samogitia), which was divided on this occasion into two voivodeships, Vilna and Trokai. During the reign of Svidrigailo, the position of "Marshal" of Volhynia was established. The marshal exercised military leadership. In the 16th century, Volhynia became an ordinary province. In 1471, when Kyiv lost the status of a principality, the post of governor of Kyiv was created. In 1504 the voivodeship was formed by Poloshcha land, and in 1508 by Smolensk land (captured by the Muscovites in 1514). By 1565, thirteen voivodeships were formed (not counting Smolensk, which at that time belonged to Moscow).
The ethnic composition of the three voivodeships was predominantly Lithuanian: Vilna (five counties), Trokai (four counties) and Samogitia. The latter consisted of only one povet, and its head was called the headman, and not the governor; however, his power was equated with the power of the governor. In all other voivodships, Russians made up the bulk of the population. These are the following areas:
1. Novogrudok Voivodship (Novgorod-Litovsk). It included three districts: Novogrudok (Novogorodok), Slonim Volkovysk.
2. Voivodship Berestie (Brest), which consisted of two povets: Brest and Pinsk.
3. Voivodeship Podlaskie, three counties: Bielsk, Dorogichin and Melnik.
4. Voivodship Minsk, two districts: Minsk and Rechitsa.
5. Voivodship Mstislavl, one county.
6. Voivodship of Polotsk, one county.
7. Voivodeship Vitebsk, two counties: Vitebsk and Orsha.
8. Voivodeship Kiev, two districts: Kyiv and Mozyr.
9. Volyn Voivodship, three povets: Lutsk, Vladimir and Kremen.
10. Braslav Voivodeship, two counties: Braslav and Vinnitsa.
The borders of the Polotsk and Vitebsk voivodeships almost completely coincided with the borders of the former Russian principalities with the same names. Three other voivodeships in the Russian part of the Grand Duchy (Kiev, Volyn, Minsk) also almost corresponded to the Old Russian principalities.
As a result of both the Old Russian traditions that still existed in most of the Western Russian lands, and the creation of a powerful administrative center in each voivodship, the local government played a much more important role in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania than in Muscovy. On the other hand, the central administration services were developed to a lesser extent than in Moscow.
The main connection between the central and local government of the Grand Duchy was provided by the aristocracy - pans. It was they who occupied the most important positions both at the central and provincial levels and made up the pans of the rada (governing council), which not only gave advice to the Grand Duke, but actually led the country.
Legally, the head of the Lithuanian-Russian state was the Grand Duke. By tradition, he was chosen from the descendants of Gediminas, but there was no specific law on succession to the throne. After the unification of Lithuania and Poland in 1385, Vytautas, the son of Keistut, led the Lithuanian opposition to his cousin, King Jagiello (son of Olgerd), and he managed to establish himself as the Grand Duke of Lithuania. After the death of Vytautas (1430), several princes from the house of Gediminas began to claim the crown at once. Only after the youngest son of Jagiello Casimir was proclaimed the Grand Duke of Lithuania in 1440, the dynastic peace was restored. In 1447, Casimir was elected king of Poland, while at the same time remaining the Grand Duke of Lithuania. Thus, the descendants of Jagiello (Jagiellons) managed to establish a common Polish-Lithuanian dynasty. At first, only the personality of the ruler testified to the unification of Poland and Lithuania. Only during the Union of Lublin in 1569 did the connection between the two states become real.
The Grand Duke was not an autocrat even before the First Lithuanian Statute constitutionally limited his power in favor of the council of nobles. He could act independently only when it came to the possessions of the crown, but even in the administration of the sovereign lands, he was, in fact, dependent on officials who, according to custom, were chosen from among the aristocracy. The Gospodareva lands were not in the personal possession of the Grand Duke, but belonged to the state in his person. But the great princes and members of their families also had personal, rather extensive land lands.
The Grand Duke also had the right to collect taxes and payments of various kinds. However, taxes intended for the needs of the army and collected from all over the territory of the Grand Duchy were established by the council of nobles, and later by the Sejm. Taxes on the use of the domains of the crown could be determined by the Grand Duke himself. In fact, they were usually also approved by individual members of the council of nobles, although it is not at all necessary for the entire council.
The Grand Duke also held certain royal prerogatives ("regalia"), such as minting coins and trading in salt and alcohol. The exclusive right to trade in alcoholic beverages was known as the "right of propination." The Grand Duke could dispose of his right to maintain inns and often sold it for a suitable fee to private individuals or gave it to those whom he wanted to show mercy. In this way, many representatives of the nobility could acquire this right. In Poland, the gentry received the exclusive right of propination (propinacja) on the basis of the Statute of Piotrkow (Piotrkow) of 1496.
It can be added that the purified alcoholic beverage, now known throughout the world under the Russian name "vodka", was first mentioned in the documents of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania at the very beginning of the 16th century. It was called "burnt wine", hence the Ukrainian word "gorelka" (gorilka).
The Grand Duke was assisted by a number of state dignitaries, whose positions were established in accordance with the Polish model and whose titles were mainly of Polish origin. Polish posts of this kind were originally associated with the prince's household (court posts, urzydy dworskie). During the 13th and 14th centuries they became positions of the royal administration.
The closest assistant to the Grand Duke was the land administrator (marshalor zemsky). This official was responsible for the observance of etiquette at the court of the Grand Duke, as well as at meetings of the Diet. In the absence of the Grand Duke at the meetings of the council of nobles, the land administrator was his authorized representative. His deputy was called the steward of the court. He is standing at the head of the court servants (nobles). The rest of the court posts were as follows: cupbearer, butcher, equerry, and so on.
More important were the positions of chancellor, land treasurer, his deputy - court treasurer, who was responsible for the treasury of the Grand Duke, commander in chief and his deputy - field commander. In wartime, the commander-in-chief had complete control over the army, especially during long-distance campaigns.
None of these officials held political power; the course of affairs was given by the advice of the nobles, and the influence of any of the higher dignitaries was based mainly on their membership in the council. Otherwise, they just carried out the decisions of the council.
The council of nobles was finally established under Casimir and his sons. By this time, its composition had grown so much that the “plenary” meetings of the council were convened only in cases of emergency or when the Sejm was in “session”.
At the “plenary” meetings of the council, the seats in the front row were occupied by the Roman Catholic Bishop of Vilna, the governor of Vilna, the governor and castellan Trokai, and the headman of Samogitia. In the second row seats were the Roman Catholic bishops of Lutsk, Brest, Samogitia, and Kyiv; behind them sat the governor of Kyiv, the headman of Lutsk, the governors of Smolensk and Polotsk, the headman of Grodno and the governors of Novogrudok, Vitebsk and Podlyashye. The highest dignitaries, such as marshals and hetmans, did not have specially designated positions, since usually the manager or hetman combined his position with the position of voivode or headman. The seats of junior court officials were behind the second row.
Between "plenary" meetings of the council, its inner circle, known as the highest, or secret council, continued to operate on an ongoing basis. The inner circle consisted of the Roman Catholic Bishop of Vilna (and any other Catholic bishop if he was present at the meeting of the council), all the governors who were members of the council, the elders of Samogitia and Lutsk, two stewards and the secretary of the treasury.
The council of nobles, especially its inner circle, was the main driving force behind the government. The constitutional powers of the council were formulated in letters of 1492 and 1506. and finally formalized by the First Lithuanian Statute of 1529. According to the latter, the sovereign (ruler) was obliged to keep intact all previous laws and not to issue new laws without the knowledge of the council (Section III, Article 6).
The nobles played a prominent role in the foreign affairs of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. They represented the principality in its negotiations with Poland, as well as with the Muscovite state.
In 1492 and 1493 Three Lithuanian nobles took an active part in preliminary negotiations regarding the proposed marriage of Ivan III's daughter Elena and Grand Duke Alexander of Lithuania: Jan Zaberezinsky, Stanislav Glebovich and Jan Khrebtovich. Each of them visited Moscow in turn. Zaberezinsky and Glebovich established friendly relations with the senior Moscow boyar, Prince Ivan Yuryevich Patrikeyev (who, by the way, was a descendant of Gediminas) and some other Moscow boyars. When Princess Elena arrived in Lithuania, Vilna was met by Prince Konstantin Ivanovich Ostrozhsky and Princes Ivan and Vasily Glinsky.
In November 1493, the Lithuanian “great embassy” was sent to conclude a peace treaty between Lithuania and Moscow. The embassy consisted of three nobles: Peter Ivanovich (who was the governor and land administrator of Trokai), Stanislav Kezgail (headman of Samogitia) and Voitekh Yanovich. At the same time, the Lithuanian council of nobles sent a message to Prince Patrikeev, asking him to help establish friendly relations between the two states. The message was signed by the Roman Catholic Bishop of Lutsk and Brest Jan, Peter Yanovich (a member of the embassy), Prince Alexander Yuryevich Golshansky (governor of Grodno) and Stanislav Kezgail (member of the embassy).
The attempts of the Lithuanian Council of Nobles to establish close relations between it and the Moscow Boyar Duma were frustrated because of the disgrace of Prince Patrikeev in 1499; but even after that, the exchange of envoys between Lithuania and Moscow contributed to the establishment of personal contacts between the subjects of the two countries. Among the Lithuanian envoys who visited Moscow in the first half of the 16th century were Sapieha (in 1508), Kishka (1533 and 1549), Glebovich (1537 and 1541), Tyszkiewicz (1555) and Volovich (1557). ). During his stay in Moscow in 1555, Yuri Tyshkevich, being Greek Orthodox, paid a visit to Metropolitan Macarius and asked his blessing.
The Council of Nobles of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania can be compared with the Polish Senate - the highest chamber of the Polish Sejm. The lower chamber of this Sejm was the chamber of representatives of the local nobility - izba poselska (ambassadorial chamber).
Local assemblies of the Polish gentry took a different form in the second half of the 16th century. It was at these assemblies that the petty nobility elected their deputies to the national diet.
Under Polish influence, the local nobility of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania also began to seek both local self-government and national representation. To achieve this, the petty nobles took advantage of political or military circumstances in which the Grand Duke and the council of nobles especially needed their active help. At first, only representatives of the Lithuanian nobility were asked for help in mobilizing the army for a major war or supporting the interests of the Grand Duchy in conflicts and negotiations with Poland. The first National Sejm of the Grand Duchy - which was attended not only by representatives of Lithuania proper, but also by Russian regions - took place in 1492 after the death of Casimir to elect a new Grand Duke.
After that, representatives of the petty nobility took part in meetings of the Sejm, whenever it was convened. The governors were instructed to ensure the presence of two deputies from the gentry from each district at the meetings of the Sejm. Local electoral sejms of the gentry (seimiki) did not function regularly at that time. At first, deputies from the gentry were not elected, but appointed by local or regional officials. Only during the reign of Sigismund II Augustus (1548-78) were the sejmiks of the petty nobility officially recognized and given the right to elect "envoys" to the national diet. This right was granted by the Vilna Charter of 1565 and confirmed by the Second Lithuanian Statute (Section III, Articles 5 and 6).
What was the participation of Russians in the government and administration of the Lithuanian-Russian state? In view of the fact that the majority of the population of the Grand Duchy was Russian, and that the Russian language was predominantly used both in administration and in the courts, one would expect Russians to be the majority in the government. Actually, it wasn't.
Among the factors that prevented Russian participation in the government of the country was the strong position held by the Roman Catholic Church. It should be remembered that it was proclaimed the state church of Lithuania under the terms of the first union with Poland. After that, the Lithuanian people were converted to Roman Catholicism. The first Catholic bishopric organized in Lithuania was Vilna. In 1417 another one was formed in Samogitia. Twelve years later, two Catholic bishops were appointed to Ukrainian lands - to Lutsk and Kyiv. Another Catholic bishopric was organized in Brest. Since the Ukrainian people at that time belonged to the Greek Orthodox Church, the establishment of Roman Catholic bishoprics in these lands actually mattered only for small groups of the population, mainly for Lithuanians and Poles living in Ukraine. However, this action marked the beginning of an ambitious program of Roman proselytism in Ukraine.
Under the terms of the Charter of 1434, the existence of the Greek Orthodox Church in the Grand Duchy was recognized, and the Orthodox "believers were promised equality in rights with the Catholics. The same promise was repeated by Casimir in 1447. Despite this, not a single Orthodox clergyman has ever been on the other hand, as already noted above, all Catholic bishops were provided with permanent seats in the council.
As for the secular members of the council, there were both Russians and Lithuanians among them. In the middle of the 16th century, the Radziwills (Lithuanian family) enjoyed the greatest influence in solving state affairs. However, some of the Russians, such as the princes Ostrozhsky, Khodkevichi and Volovichi, played a prominent role in the council. The position of those who held positions in the central and local administrations was similar.
In a charter issued in 1564 in Belsk, the following Russian (or adherent to Russian traditions) dignitaries are mentioned: Jan Ieronimovich Khodkevich, headman of Samogitia; Prince Konstantin Konstantinovich Ostrozhsky (son of Konstantin Ivanovich), governor of Kyiv and ruler of Volhynia; Pavel Ivanovich Sapega, governor of Novogrudok; Prince Stepan Andreevich Zbarazhsky, governor of Vitebsk; and Ostafiy Volovich, steward of the court and secretary of the treasury. These people witnessed the affixing of the charter (grafted) with a seal. Other Russian witnesses included Grigory Alexandrovich Khodkevich, Vasily Tyshkevich, Prince Alexander Fedorovich Czartorysky, and Prince Andrei Ivanovich Vishnevetsky.
Despite the high position that some Russian dignitaries occupied, they did not represent an organized group. There was no "Russian party" in the council of nobles. Most of the Russian nobles were devoted subjects of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, quite satisfied with their position in the government.
It seems that Russians showed their national self-consciousness to a greater extent in such regions as Smolensk, Polotsk, Vitebsk, Kyiv and Volyn. In many cases, however, here, as in other regions of Lithuania, the difference in the social and economic interests of the aristocracy and the petty nobility affected, which undermined the sense of ethnic community. At the Sejm of Lublin (1569), it became obvious that the transition of the Ukrainian regions from Lithuania to Poland was largely facilitated by the dissatisfaction of the Ukrainian petty nobility with their position.
In the Russian regions of the Grand Duchy, the nobility constituted a minority of the population; the majority were peasants. However, they did not have a voice in the government. Only the nobility enjoyed political influence.
At the end of the 12th - beginning of the 13th centuries, the Baltic tribes were at the stage of decomposition of the tribal system. Individual tribes had not yet united with each other, so there were no state formations. They developed feudal relations.
At the end of the XII century - the German invasion of the Baltic states. The Baltic tribes fiercely resisted, and this accelerated the formation of the state (and this was also facilitated by the weakening of the Russian lands after the Mongol invasion).
Relations with Russia.
First, peaceful, good neighborly relations. In the absence of their own statehood and church institutions, the Russian lands exerted a strong influence on the Baltic states. Relations with Novgorod and Polotsk were especially close.
They joined the struggle for the Baltic states.
Mid 13th century - Establishment of the Principality of Lithuania. There was a temporary alliance against the knights, but as the Russian lands weakened, the Lithuanian princes repeatedly invaded the Polotsk land. But still, the Russians found the support of the local population here.
New stage.
Over time, part of the Russian lands that were part of Kievan Rus was included in the Lithuanian principality (in the 40s)
AS?
XIV century - Heyday
It was precisely the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Russia. 9/10 were Russian lands, this state has reached a significant size.
The Slavs made up the majority of the population in it (Polotsk, Minsk, Kyiv, Smolensk) and determined the development of the principality. Russian was the state language, Orthodoxy was the religion, the laws were taken from Russkaya Pravda, i.e. Russian legal norms were in force. Russian was also the language of official writing. Lithuania and Russia were generally brought together by long-standing ties. Most of the feudal nobility of Lithuania were of Russian origin. Many Lithuanians were Orthodox and married Russian princesses. And many Russian princes in the XIV century. they preferred to recognize dependence on Lithuania (this freed them from submission to the Horde).
Thus, the inclusion in the GDL of a large number of Russian lands, and with a higher level of social relations and culture, led to the Russification of this state. A complete "Russification" could also occur.
There were other trends as well:
14th century was the time of their struggle. The question of the further development of the GDL → complex, contradictory relations was being decided.
Moscow orientation | Western orientation |
For a long time, Slavic cities retained rights and privileges, language, writing, culture, and Orthodoxy. | Lithuanian feudal lords tried to suppress the independence of the Russian princes. Gradually, the principalities were liquidated. The Lithuanian principality contributed to the weakening of the Galicia-Volyn land. 30s - Lithuanian princes established dominance over the Smolensk principality. |
Smolensk is a buffer that softens difficult relationships. | Ser. century - 2nd half of the century - the struggle for influence with Moscow. Smolensk princes were forced to maneuver between them. Moscow uses force. In response, Olgerd helps Tver (Moscow's rival), besieges Moscow three times 1372, but unsuccessfully. 1380 - Jagiello is an ally of Mamai. True, he did not participate in the Battle of Kulikovo. |
1387 - turn. Reorientation. |
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The marriage of Jagiello and the sister of D. Donskoy was being prepared (there was a rapprochement with Moscow). 1392 - strengthening of the Moscow orientation. Jagiello's cousin, Vitovit, became the ruler of Lithuania. The marriage of his daughter with the Moscow Grand Duke Vasily II is concluded. Alliance with Tokhtamysh → influence on Horde affairs. Vitovt himself is Orthodox, married to the Tver princess. The main issue for him was the struggle for independence from Poland, against the union. Relations with Moscow are peaceful, the closest. 1396 - joint actions against the Horde. True, in 1399 - a defeat. | 1387 - Prince Jagiello became the Polish king. Pagan in its mass, Lithuania was baptized into Catholicism. Catholics received benefits. 1385 - Polish-Lithuanian union. Lithuania is expanding (Ryazan land was driven between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Golden Horde. Polotsk land experienced a strong onslaught of Lithuania and the Livonian knights even before the Mongol invasion, already in the 2nd half of the XIII century, before all other Western Russian lands, was under Lithuanian rule) to the western and southern Russian lands: Belarus (Vitebsk, Polotsk), Chernihiv, Podolsk, Novgorod-Seversky. 1395 - the capture of Smolensk (1404 - finally included in Lithuania). |
Received the eastern part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, dominated by Russian lands. Accepted the Orthodox faith and continued his father's policy of "gathering" Russian lands | |
Olgerd's son. Accepted Catholicism. Concluded a union with Poland At the end of the XIV century. the danger for the Moscow principality came from the troops of both the Lithuanian prince Jagiello and the Golden Horde temnik Mamai. Vitovt (nephew of Olgerd) | |
The proclamation of Catholicism as the state religion of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the privilege of Catholics caused discontent among the Orthodox part of the principality. The struggle for independence was led by the Orthodox prince Vitovt. 1392 - section ON (Lithuania-Vitovt, Poland - Jagiello) 1404 - Vitovt continued the policy of expanding his possessions at the expense of native Russian lands and annexed Smolensk. | |
1406 - war against Pskov. As a result: in XV century, the borders of Lithuania came close to the Moscow principality | |
So, the Polish orientation prevailed. The Slavic population was no longer interested in maintaining ON. Reasons for the crash: 1) the failure of the Lithuanian princes in military clashes with Moscow; 2) reorientation to Poland; 3) Catholicism. |
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Additions:
- In the 13th century (after the Mongol invasion), the Russian lands became part of the early feudal Lithuanian state.
- This slowed down the development of feudalism. In general, this was of great importance for the fate of the Russian state.
- On the territory of these Russian lands (Chernigov, Galicia-Volynsk, Smolensk), Ukrainian and Belarusian nationalities began to take shape.
Mongol invasion on:
- Great Russian (Northeast and Northwest)
- Ukrainian and Belarusian (Lithuania and Poland - Galician land)
In the XIV century, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania became a formidable rival of Moscow in the matter of "gathering" Russian lands. It united under its rule most of the Western Russian lands (Smolensk region, Ukraine, Belarus).
It was really “another Russia”, and they considered their own state to be the real Russia. Lithuania served as a support for the Western Russian lands in the anti-Horde struggle. Grand Duke Olgerd, with the same right as the Moscow princes, claimed to collect all Russian lands under his authority.
