Vaišvilkas
Encyclopedia
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state from the 12th /13th century until 1569 and then as a constituent part of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth until 1791 when Constitution of May 3, 1791 abolished it in favor of unitary state. It was founded by the Lithuanians, one of the polytheistic...
(1264–1267). He was son of Mindaugas
Mindaugas
Mindaugas was the first known Grand Duke of Lithuania and the only King of Lithuania. Little is known of his origins, early life, or rise to power; he is mentioned in a 1219 treaty as an elder duke, and in 1236 as the leader of all the Lithuanians...
, the first and only King of Lithuania.
Nothing is known about Vaišvilkas' youth as he entered historical sources only in 1254 when he made a treaty, in the name of his father King Mindaugas, with Daniel
Daniel of Halych
Daniel I of Galicia or Daniel Romanovych or Danylo Halytskyi was a King of Galicia , Peremyshl , and Volodymyr...
of Halych-Volhynia
Halych-Volhynia
The Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia or Kingdom of Rus or Galicia–Vladimir was a Ruthenian state in the regions of Galicia and Volhynia during 1199–1349. Along with Novgorod and Vladimir-Suzdal, it was one of the three most important powers to emerge from the collapse of Kievan Rus'...
. In the treaty Halych-Volhynia transfers Black Ruthenia
Black Ruthenia
Black Ruthenia, Black Rus or Black Russia are variant conventional terms used for a region around Navahrudak , in the western part of contemporary Belarus on the upper reaches of the Neman River for the time period between the 13th and 14th centuries...
with center in Navahrudak to Lithuania. So solidify the treaty Daniel's son Shvarn was married to Vaišvilkas' sister. Vaišvilkas was appointed as duke of some of these lands. After Vaišvilkas was baptized in Greek Orthodox
Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople , part of the wider Orthodox Church, is one of the fourteen autocephalous churches within the communion of Orthodox Christianity...
rite, he was drawn to the religious life so much that he transferred his title and lands to Roman Danylovich
Roman Danylovich
Roman Danylovich , Prince of Black Ruthenia 1254–1258, Prince of Slonim?.He was born as a younger son of Danylo of Halych, a powerful prince of lands east from Poland and later king of those regions, which was most of the times called Volhynia or Ruthenia .In 1252 he was married to Gertrude,...
, son of Daniel of Halych. He founded a monastery, traditionally identified with Lavrashev Monastery on the bank on the Neman River
Neman River
Neman or Niemen or Nemunas, is a major Eastern European river rising in Belarus and flowing through Lithuania before draining into the Curonian Lagoon and then into the Baltic Sea at Klaipėda. It is the northern border between Lithuania and Russia's Kaliningrad Oblast in its lower reaches...
and entered it as a monk. He set off on a pilgrimage to Mount Athos
Mount Athos
Mount Athos is a mountain and peninsula in Macedonia, Greece. A World Heritage Site, it is home to 20 Eastern Orthodox monasteries and forms a self-governed monastic state within the sovereignty of the Hellenic Republic. Spiritually, Mount Athos comes under the direct jurisdiction of the...
in Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. However, he did not reach the destination due to wars in the Balkans and returned to Navahrudak.
In 1264 he escaped assassination plot by Treniota
Treniota
Treniota was the Grand Duke of Lithuania .Treniota was the nephew of Mindaugas, the first and only king of Lithuania. While Mindaugas had converted to Christianity in order to discourage Livonian Order and Teutonic Knights attacks on Lithuania, becoming king in the process, Treniota remained a...
and Daumantas
Daumantas of Pskov
Daumantas, later Dovmont , Christian name Timothy , ; c. 1240? – May 17, 1299), was a Lithuanian princeling best remembered as a military leader of the Pskov Republic between 1266 and 1299...
against his father and two of his brothers. Treniota was murdered by former servants of Mindaugas. Vaišvilkas allied himself with his brother-in-law Shvarn from Halych-Volhynia. They managed to take control over Black Ruthenia and Duchy of Lithuania
Duchy of Lithuania
Duchy of Lithuania was a state-territorial formation of ethnic Lithuanians, that existed from the 12th century until 1413. Most of the time it was a constituent part and a nucleus of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania...
. Then they waged a war against Nalšia
Nalšia
Nalšia or Nalšėnai was an ancient land in the early stages of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. It is mentioned in written sources from 1229 to 1298. The references to it cease as it was fully incorporated into the Grand Duchy...
and Deltuva
Deltuva
Deltuva is a small town in Ukmergė district, Vilnius County, Lithuania. It is located 6 km north-west of Ukmergė, near the road to Kėdainiai...
, two main centers of opposition to Mindaugas and Vaišvilkas. Daumantas, Duke of Nalšia, was forced to flee to Pskov
Pskov
Pskov is an ancient city and the administrative center of Pskov Oblast, Russia, located in the northwest of Russia about east from the Estonian border, on the Velikaya River. Population: -Early history:...
. Suksė (Suxe), another influential duke from Nalšia, fled to Livonia
Livonia
Livonia is a historic region along the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea. It was once the land of the Finnic Livonians inhabiting the principal ancient Livonian County Metsepole with its center at Turaida...
. Vaišvilkas become the Grand Duke of Lithuania. As a Christian, he tried to maintain friendly relationship with the Teutonic Knights
Teutonic Knights
The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem , commonly the Teutonic Order , is a German medieval military order, in modern times a purely religious Catholic order...
and the Livonian Order
Livonian Order
The Livonian Order was an autonomous Livonian branch of the Teutonic Order and a member of the Livonian Confederation from 1435–1561. After being defeated by Samogitians in the 1236 Battle of Schaulen , the remnants of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword were incorporated into the Teutonic Knights...
. He signed a peace treaty with Livonia regarding trade on the Daugava River. Lithuanian support of the Great Prussian Uprising ceased, and the orders made advances against Semigallians
Semigallians
Semigallians were the Baltic tribe that lived in the southcentral part of contemporary Latvia and northern Lithuania...
and Curonians
Curonians
The Curonians or Kurs were a Baltic tribe living on the shores of the Baltic sea in what are now the western parts of Latvia and Lithuania from the 5th to the 16th centuries, when they merged with other Baltic tribes. They gave their name to the region of Courland , and they spoke the Old...
uninterrupted. Together with Shvarn Vaišvilkas attacked Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
in 1265 to avenge devastation of Yotvingians
Yotvingians
Yotvingians or Sudovians were a Baltic people with close cultural ties to the Lithuanians and Prussians...
in 1264.
When in 1267 he decided to go back to monastic life, Vaišvilkas transferred the title of Grand Duke to Shvarn. A year later he was killed by Shvarn's brother, Leo I of Halych
Leo I of Halych
Lev I of Galicia became in turn Knyaz of Belz , Knyaz of Peremyshl, king of Halych and King of Rus' , Grand Prince of Kiev .-Family:...
, who was angry that Vaišvilkas did not divide the powers between him and his brother. He was interred near the Assumption Church in Volodymyr-Volynskyi
Volodymyr-Volynskyi
Volodymyr-Volynsky is a city located in Volyn Oblast, in north-western Ukraine. Serving as the administrative centre of the Volodymyr-Volynsky District, the city itself is also designated as a separate raion within the oblast...
.
Name
The original Lithuanian name of the Grand Duke has puzzled many linguists and historians. Their reconstructions resulted in two credible variants Vaišvilkas, based on Woyszwiłk and Vaišelga, based on Vojšalk. The name Vaišvilkas was first reconstructed by Kazimieras BūgaKazimieras Buga
Kazimieras Būga was a Lithuanian linguist and philologist. He was a professor of linguistics, who mainly worked on the Lithuanian language.He was born at Pažiegė, near Dusetos, then part of the Russian Empire...
. In fact, the first part of the double-stemmed name vaiš- causes no dispute and is attested in many similar names. However, the second part -vilkas, meaning "wolf" is very rare to non existent in Lithuanian name
Lithuanian name
A personal name, like in most European cultures, consists of two main elements: the given name followed by family name . The usage of personal names in Lithuania is generally governed by three major factors: civil law, canon law, and tradition. Lithuanian names always follow the rules of the...
s. This led to the hypothesis that the initial form of the name should have been Vaišvilas. The variant Vaišelga/Vaišalga has gained more popularity in historical writings even though the origins of the element -alg and -elg are not entirely clear. Eventually, some researchers even suggest that he had two names, one of them being Vaišvilas.
See also
- House of MindaugasHouse of MindaugasThe House of Mindaugas was the first royal family of Grand Duchy of Lithuania, centered around Mindaugas, the first known and undoubted sovereign of Lithuania. He was crowned as King of Lithuania in 1253 and assassinated ten years later...
– family tree of Vaišvilkas - List of Belarusian rulers
- List of Lithuanian rulers