Please remember that for all the medieval Christians, the Jews were the murderers of Christ. The ones which rejected the Savior and were no occupying with "dirty" businesses as money lending...
The Silver Knight, a Lithuania Timeline
- Thread starter Augenis
- Start date
Deleted member 97083
But not in Poland, Lithuania's most powerful neighbor, since the 1264 Statute of Kalisz.
Indeed, both Poles and Eastern Slavs were not that much into anti-Semitism at this period in history.
Keeping the Lithuanians all pagan (as in: majority of ethnically Lithuanian population plus leadership pagan) looks at least borderline ASB.
But there are other options interestingly diverging from OTL.
The most plausible, it seems to me, is a simple conversion to Orthodoxy. May take a little longer than OTL`s conversion to Catholicism because the Teutonic Order and other Westerners are not enough of a danger to such an immensely powerful empire now. But the vast majority of its Orthodox population will continue to rebel and be unruly unless they have a supreme Christian prince. An orthodox Lithuania would certainly inherit Constantinople`s position as champion of the orthodox world soon enough.
For the latter reason, all other options are less likely, these being: conversion to Catholicism, conversion to Judaism, conversion to some heretical / innovative brand of Christianity, conversion to Islam, and innovation of the traditional Baltic paganism into a religion which is comparably aggressive as Christianity and Islam.
Catholicism is still an option, with both Poles, Moravians and Scandinavians being avenues for it, though much less likely than IOTL.
Judaism is a tad implausible because Christian Europe is, by this time, much more consolidated than it was when the Chasars converted. Yet, as Achaemenid Rome has suggested, it would be a smart move with regards to gaining qualified people. Now a Jewish-led Lithuania would be a really cool twist to European history. Also, it´s probably the best way to keep paganism around for a long time among the rural Lithuanian population because conversion will be slower.
As for heresies, you`d probably have to make one up, for the ones which were around in South-Eastern and Eastern Europe (Bogumilism, Strigolniki) are quite anarchical and difficult to tame for the purposes of imperialism.
Conversion to Islam is possible and less implausible than conversion to Judaism, but the gains are limited.
Modernising Baltic paganism is quite difficult at this point in time. A few centuries earlier, it might have worked, but by the 14th century, the Balts are a tiny pagan island in an ocean of Christianity...
Keeping the Lithuanians all pagan (as in: majority of ethnically Lithuanian population plus leadership pagan) looks at least borderline ASB.
But there are other options interestingly diverging from OTL.
The most plausible, it seems to me, is a simple conversion to Orthodoxy. May take a little longer than OTL`s conversion to Catholicism because the Teutonic Order and other Westerners are not enough of a danger to such an immensely powerful empire now. But the vast majority of its Orthodox population will continue to rebel and be unruly unless they have a supreme Christian prince. An orthodox Lithuania would certainly inherit Constantinople`s position as champion of the orthodox world soon enough.
For the latter reason, all other options are less likely, these being: conversion to Catholicism, conversion to Judaism, conversion to some heretical / innovative brand of Christianity, conversion to Islam, and innovation of the traditional Baltic paganism into a religion which is comparably aggressive as Christianity and Islam.
Catholicism is still an option, with both Poles, Moravians and Scandinavians being avenues for it, though much less likely than IOTL.
Judaism is a tad implausible because Christian Europe is, by this time, much more consolidated than it was when the Chasars converted. Yet, as Achaemenid Rome has suggested, it would be a smart move with regards to gaining qualified people. Now a Jewish-led Lithuania would be a really cool twist to European history. Also, it´s probably the best way to keep paganism around for a long time among the rural Lithuanian population because conversion will be slower.
As for heresies, you`d probably have to make one up, for the ones which were around in South-Eastern and Eastern Europe (Bogumilism, Strigolniki) are quite anarchical and difficult to tame for the purposes of imperialism.
Conversion to Islam is possible and less implausible than conversion to Judaism, but the gains are limited.
Modernising Baltic paganism is quite difficult at this point in time. A few centuries earlier, it might have worked, but by the 14th century, the Balts are a tiny pagan island in an ocean of Christianity...
Importing construction stone? From outside their territory? Ouch!!! I find it hard to believe that's possible. Do you have a link or reference for that?
Stone is HEAVY.
That would be the Rule of Cool...
I suppose 50 more years of paganism are not entirely impossible. You just need Vytautas not to convert, he had a long rule. BUT this rule was so stable because the Gediminids married into almost all Rus princely houses. Pagans would not have that option.
But let's say he manages.
Why would such a Great Lithuania convert to Hussitism? Hussitism grew out of dissatisfaction with the Catholic clergy - so not a Motive here. It was carried by peasants, urban workers, theologians without a parish employment, Barons who sought to gain from secularising monasteries etc., and lower gentry which was fuelled, among other motives, by their fear to be overtaken by Germans.
None of this applies to great lithuania in the 1420s, or am I wrong here?
An alliance may make sense, but would that lead to conversion?
Chapter 3: Lithuanian Civil War
I'm loving these discussions you all have! Like an insomniac finally going to sleep, this forum can at last go back to normal Balticism levels...
Part 3: Lithuania 3: Civil War (1377-1382)
Part 3: Lithuania 3: Civil War (1377-1382)
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was never an incredibly stable country. In some ways, it reminded a cardboard puzzle, one that would start to break apart on every succession and require the new ruler to fix and rebuild the entire country. This particular year was no exception.
However... Jogaila, the new Grand Duke of Lithuania, the new ruler of this pagan empire stretching from the Baltic Sea to the Don, was not willing to back down. 29 years old, yet unmarried, this son of Algirdas was an ambitious man, indeed. As soon as news of the revolt came to his court, he ordered to raise his and his allies' forces to fight. The biggest allies that Jogaila had were his brother Skirgaila - Prince of Smolensk, and a devout loyalist to his older brother - and Kęstutis. Before Algirdas's death, the two brothers ran the Grand Duchy in a dual rule - Kęstutis focused on matters with the West, while Algirdas on the East. Hoping to preserve this duality as tradition, Kęstutis allied himself with his nephew, putting his hopes on Jogaila preserving the pagan traditions of the ethnic Lithuanians. Along with that, many other sons of Algirdas stood loyal to Jogaila, like Kaributas of Severian Novgorod and others, stood loyal to the new Grand Duke for the time being.
The anti-Jogaila camp was led by two dukes in the East - Dmitry (Demetrius) of Bryansk and Andrei of Polotsk and Pskov. Both of the princes were sons of Algirdas, but both already having converted to Orthodoxy, and they used this as a source of legitimacy to organize an anti-pagan coalition against Jogaila, composed of the revolters, Novgorod, Ryazan, Moscow and the Livonian Order, which was invited with promises of handing over Samogitia after the victory, connecting the lands of the two German monastic orders via a land route. Mikhail II of Tver declared himself neutral, against the alliance between it and Lithuania - attributed to the souring of relations between Algirdas and Mikhail after the Treaty of Velikye Luki. Along with that, The Metropolitan of Moscow, Sergius of Radonezh, declared that all Orthodox rulers who support Jogaila will be excommunicated and separated from the Orthodox Church. Andrei of Polotsk was the leader of this coalition of revolters, seeking to claim the title of Grand Duke for himself.
The first battles of the Lithuanian Civil War took place in 1377, when forces of Bryansk marched into the Principality of Smolensk under Skirgaila, leading into a few skirmishes between the small defender forces and the invaders. The lands of Smolensk still hadn't recovered after the conquest and annexation of the city by Algirdas, thus it's war capacity was quite meager. Nevertheless, it worked as a distraction to the majority of the Coalition while Jogaila prepared his forces.
In early 1378, the forces of the Grand Duke gathered in Vilnius and began to march eastward, towards the city of Polotsk. Forces of the Livonian Order were raiding the north of the country, but overall avoided any major conflict. Andrei, reinforced by troops from Novgorod and Pskov, moved into the defensive near his capital. After arriving to the Duchy, the Lithuanian forces under Jogaila decided to avoid a direct confrontation immediately, instead looting the countryside and waiting for better weather. While Lithuania was in chaos, disappointing news arrived to the Grand Duke's camp - Poland, under a personal union with Hungary, decided to use this opportunity to annex the Lithuanian part of Galicia, divided between the two countries all the way back in 1352. The Lithuanian garrisons fled north, rebasing in Podlasie and Grodno. Jogaila decided against beginning a war with Angevin Poland-Hungary, with a simple reason - the civil war is enough of a problem, Lithuania should not create an another front for it to focus on.
The first major battle in the Civil War took place in April of 1378, where, reinforced by troops from Moscow, the forces of Vladimir of Bryansk clashed with the remainder's of Skirgaila's forces about ten kilometers south of the fortress of Dorogobuzh. Sources on the sizes of the armies differ - Jan Dlugosz states that the Lithuanians only had 1500 defenders while the "Muscovite and heretic forces" were as big as in the dozens of thousands. The Bychowiec Chronicle in the 16th century mentions far wilder estimates - 1000 and 50 000 troops respectively. Current researchers follow a more conservative estimate, though it's agreed that Skirgaila's forces were far smaller in size. Nevertheless, all historic sources on the Battle of Dorogobuzh mention it as a brave defeat - Skirgaila hoped for support for Kaributas or Jogaila in the clash, but even when it turned out to be clear that no help will arrive and death is imminent, the men fought until death anyway. However, the truth in these statements is not confirmed. Dorogobuzh was won by the Bryansk-Muscovy forces, and Smolensk fell under rebel occupation.
The fate of Skirgaila is unknown, but nowadays, he is hailed as one of the few "heroes" of the medieval Lithuanian period. Vincas Krėvė would later, far later, write a poem on the Battle of Dorogobuzh, named "Skirgaila" - about Skirgaila, a lone duke, tasked with defending the frontier from invading Russian and traitor forces, and staying loyal to his lord and brother no matter the odds.
In June of 1378, an another battle began, this time near Polotsk. Having learned of the defeat in Dorogobuzh and the Bryanskian-Muscovite forces advancing westward, Jogaila made the decision of not trying to give them and Andrei's forces the chance to connect and retaliate, and upon receiving reinforcements from the south - Severia, Kiev and Galicia - crossed the Dauguva north of the city and attacked the Polotskian forces stationed there. The revolters were caught unprepared by such a brunt assault, and the Battle of Polotsk was a success for the loyalists. Andrei of Polotsk managed to escape the city and reconnect with the other rebel force along with some troops, but the majority of his forces were routed and Polotsk was captured. However, even with this success, it didn't seem to amount to much in the long term. The majority of enemy troops were still intact, after all...
August of 1378 marked a sudden turn in the events of the Civil War. The hordes of Mamai, the Khan of the Blue Horde, crossed into the territory of the Russian principalities, targeting to punish them for disobedience. After crossing Oka and Vozha Rivers without any resistance, the 50 000 men large Tatar horde attacked Ryazan, then poured into the territories of Moscow and Tvew. Moscow, still heavily recovering from the Lithuanian-Muscovite War, received a second beating, as harsh as the last one. Witnesses spoke of the countryside of the city being almost completely lifeless for up to three decades. After collecting required tribute and obtaining oaths of loyalty from Mikhail of Tver and Dmitry Ivanovich, as well as hearing of Tokhtamysh, supported by Tamerlane, seizing Sarai in the south, Mamai left the Rus', leaving it burning.
This raid stopped the Muscovite-Bryanskian advance, and immediately made Dmitry of Moscow reconsider his choices. Indeed, a much better strategy would be to not fight Lithuania and instead somehow reason with it... perhaps send it against the Tatar hordes instead of into Russia...
In a sudden turn of events, in 1379, Dmitry Ivanovich proposed an offer to Jogaila. He would offer the hand of his daughter, Sophia, to the Grand Duke of Lithuania, as well as leave the anti-pagan coalition and even offer support against the rebellious Andrei and Vladimir, along with getting the Metropolitan of Kiev to cancel the excommunication threat to all his Orthodox supporters. In exchange? Jogaila agrees to convert to Eastern Orthodoxy and agrees to cooperate on common military action against the Tatars "within a reasonable timeframe". The Grand Duke's response lagged on for a few weeks, during which both of the sides entered into a raiding war - sending raiding parties towards one another, looting and pillaging. The reason for this was deep consideration. After all, such big choices should happen out of nowhere. Accepting Orthodoxy would bring the Lithuanian dynasty closer to their subjects as well as to the principalities of the Rus', but it's unlikely that it would stop raids from the Teutonic Knights...
Soon, Jogaila responded with a letter: he agrees.
Muscovite and Bryanskian forces almost immediately clashed, with the battle ended by Lithuanian forces joining on the side of Moscow. Andrei was captured during the fight and imprisoned, while Vladimir managed to escape north with a detachment of his troops. Jogaila and 500 of his closest nobles and soldiers went to meet the Prince of Moscow directly. The Metropolitan himself baptized the Lithuanian Grand Duke, with the new, Orthodox Christian name Nikolai. The Lithuanian lord married his new bride, Sophia Dmitriyevna, afterwards. Soon after the baptism, Lithuanian forces attacked Bryansk, and with an official mission from Novgorod informing them that they agree to surrender, and the Livonian Order informing them of leaving the coalition soon after, Nikolai I Jogaila, the first Christian Grand Duke of Lithuania, was finally victorious in the two year struggle to solidify his rule.
Or, he would be, if it weren't for one more factor in the grand equation. Kęstutis.
Kęstutis, the Duke of Trakai, upon the news of Jogaila's baptism in the religion of his subjects, immediately gathered an army and marched into Vilnius, declaring himself the new Grand Duke of Lithuania. Kęstutis's main interest was the restoration of paganism as the ruling religion of Lithuania, following the ways of old. However, his new reign didn't last. After the ceremonies and battles in the East, Jogaila marched West to return to his capital, sending an offer to Kęstutis for negotiation, by Kaributas, who had joined up with his overlord's forces after the occupation of Bryansk. Kaributas guaranteed Kęstutis and his son Vytautas protection and security in the meeting, and in February of 1380, Jogaila and his uncle met in the former's camp near Krewa. Jogaila immediately ordered the arrest and imprisonment of the two men.
After the arrest, Kęstutis's forces, only organized from this prestigious leader's command and lacking any other leader within their ranks, started to disperse. Kęstutis and Vytautas were imprisoned in the castle of Krewo. While Jogaila squashed a small Samogitian pagan revolt and returned to Vilnius, tearing down the old temple of Perkūnas and building a church on it's foundations, the old man still tried to escape the prison to try a revolt for a second time.
But it didn't work. On August of 1382, two years later, Kęstutis mysteriously died, presumably due to poisoning. Vytautas was quick to perish after his father, dying a month later. Jogaila was now the undisputed ruler of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and an Orthodox one. This was the biggest thing to come out of the Lithuanian Civil War, one that will form the history of the Lithuanians for many years later...
And speaking of such events... In September of 1382, Louis I Angevin, King of Hungary and Poland, died without a male heir, leaving only two daughters - Mary and Hedwig. The personal union between the country was broken, and the unpopular monarch in Poland was replaced by an underage woman, with dozens of dukes now wying for the crown...
---
Is the pace too slow? It might be too slow for you. It's just that the events in this particular time are really important, and I can't just skip them...
Anyway, this was the Lithuanian Civil War. Far, far shorter than the original, which went up to 1392.
However... Jogaila, the new Grand Duke of Lithuania, the new ruler of this pagan empire stretching from the Baltic Sea to the Don, was not willing to back down. 29 years old, yet unmarried, this son of Algirdas was an ambitious man, indeed. As soon as news of the revolt came to his court, he ordered to raise his and his allies' forces to fight. The biggest allies that Jogaila had were his brother Skirgaila - Prince of Smolensk, and a devout loyalist to his older brother - and Kęstutis. Before Algirdas's death, the two brothers ran the Grand Duchy in a dual rule - Kęstutis focused on matters with the West, while Algirdas on the East. Hoping to preserve this duality as tradition, Kęstutis allied himself with his nephew, putting his hopes on Jogaila preserving the pagan traditions of the ethnic Lithuanians. Along with that, many other sons of Algirdas stood loyal to Jogaila, like Kaributas of Severian Novgorod and others, stood loyal to the new Grand Duke for the time being.
The anti-Jogaila camp was led by two dukes in the East - Dmitry (Demetrius) of Bryansk and Andrei of Polotsk and Pskov. Both of the princes were sons of Algirdas, but both already having converted to Orthodoxy, and they used this as a source of legitimacy to organize an anti-pagan coalition against Jogaila, composed of the revolters, Novgorod, Ryazan, Moscow and the Livonian Order, which was invited with promises of handing over Samogitia after the victory, connecting the lands of the two German monastic orders via a land route. Mikhail II of Tver declared himself neutral, against the alliance between it and Lithuania - attributed to the souring of relations between Algirdas and Mikhail after the Treaty of Velikye Luki. Along with that, The Metropolitan of Moscow, Sergius of Radonezh, declared that all Orthodox rulers who support Jogaila will be excommunicated and separated from the Orthodox Church. Andrei of Polotsk was the leader of this coalition of revolters, seeking to claim the title of Grand Duke for himself.
The first battles of the Lithuanian Civil War took place in 1377, when forces of Bryansk marched into the Principality of Smolensk under Skirgaila, leading into a few skirmishes between the small defender forces and the invaders. The lands of Smolensk still hadn't recovered after the conquest and annexation of the city by Algirdas, thus it's war capacity was quite meager. Nevertheless, it worked as a distraction to the majority of the Coalition while Jogaila prepared his forces.
In early 1378, the forces of the Grand Duke gathered in Vilnius and began to march eastward, towards the city of Polotsk. Forces of the Livonian Order were raiding the north of the country, but overall avoided any major conflict. Andrei, reinforced by troops from Novgorod and Pskov, moved into the defensive near his capital. After arriving to the Duchy, the Lithuanian forces under Jogaila decided to avoid a direct confrontation immediately, instead looting the countryside and waiting for better weather. While Lithuania was in chaos, disappointing news arrived to the Grand Duke's camp - Poland, under a personal union with Hungary, decided to use this opportunity to annex the Lithuanian part of Galicia, divided between the two countries all the way back in 1352. The Lithuanian garrisons fled north, rebasing in Podlasie and Grodno. Jogaila decided against beginning a war with Angevin Poland-Hungary, with a simple reason - the civil war is enough of a problem, Lithuania should not create an another front for it to focus on.
The first major battle in the Civil War took place in April of 1378, where, reinforced by troops from Moscow, the forces of Vladimir of Bryansk clashed with the remainder's of Skirgaila's forces about ten kilometers south of the fortress of Dorogobuzh. Sources on the sizes of the armies differ - Jan Dlugosz states that the Lithuanians only had 1500 defenders while the "Muscovite and heretic forces" were as big as in the dozens of thousands. The Bychowiec Chronicle in the 16th century mentions far wilder estimates - 1000 and 50 000 troops respectively. Current researchers follow a more conservative estimate, though it's agreed that Skirgaila's forces were far smaller in size. Nevertheless, all historic sources on the Battle of Dorogobuzh mention it as a brave defeat - Skirgaila hoped for support for Kaributas or Jogaila in the clash, but even when it turned out to be clear that no help will arrive and death is imminent, the men fought until death anyway. However, the truth in these statements is not confirmed. Dorogobuzh was won by the Bryansk-Muscovy forces, and Smolensk fell under rebel occupation.
The fate of Skirgaila is unknown, but nowadays, he is hailed as one of the few "heroes" of the medieval Lithuanian period. Vincas Krėvė would later, far later, write a poem on the Battle of Dorogobuzh, named "Skirgaila" - about Skirgaila, a lone duke, tasked with defending the frontier from invading Russian and traitor forces, and staying loyal to his lord and brother no matter the odds.
In June of 1378, an another battle began, this time near Polotsk. Having learned of the defeat in Dorogobuzh and the Bryanskian-Muscovite forces advancing westward, Jogaila made the decision of not trying to give them and Andrei's forces the chance to connect and retaliate, and upon receiving reinforcements from the south - Severia, Kiev and Galicia - crossed the Dauguva north of the city and attacked the Polotskian forces stationed there. The revolters were caught unprepared by such a brunt assault, and the Battle of Polotsk was a success for the loyalists. Andrei of Polotsk managed to escape the city and reconnect with the other rebel force along with some troops, but the majority of his forces were routed and Polotsk was captured. However, even with this success, it didn't seem to amount to much in the long term. The majority of enemy troops were still intact, after all...
August of 1378 marked a sudden turn in the events of the Civil War. The hordes of Mamai, the Khan of the Blue Horde, crossed into the territory of the Russian principalities, targeting to punish them for disobedience. After crossing Oka and Vozha Rivers without any resistance, the 50 000 men large Tatar horde attacked Ryazan, then poured into the territories of Moscow and Tvew. Moscow, still heavily recovering from the Lithuanian-Muscovite War, received a second beating, as harsh as the last one. Witnesses spoke of the countryside of the city being almost completely lifeless for up to three decades. After collecting required tribute and obtaining oaths of loyalty from Mikhail of Tver and Dmitry Ivanovich, as well as hearing of Tokhtamysh, supported by Tamerlane, seizing Sarai in the south, Mamai left the Rus', leaving it burning.
This raid stopped the Muscovite-Bryanskian advance, and immediately made Dmitry of Moscow reconsider his choices. Indeed, a much better strategy would be to not fight Lithuania and instead somehow reason with it... perhaps send it against the Tatar hordes instead of into Russia...
In a sudden turn of events, in 1379, Dmitry Ivanovich proposed an offer to Jogaila. He would offer the hand of his daughter, Sophia, to the Grand Duke of Lithuania, as well as leave the anti-pagan coalition and even offer support against the rebellious Andrei and Vladimir, along with getting the Metropolitan of Kiev to cancel the excommunication threat to all his Orthodox supporters. In exchange? Jogaila agrees to convert to Eastern Orthodoxy and agrees to cooperate on common military action against the Tatars "within a reasonable timeframe". The Grand Duke's response lagged on for a few weeks, during which both of the sides entered into a raiding war - sending raiding parties towards one another, looting and pillaging. The reason for this was deep consideration. After all, such big choices should happen out of nowhere. Accepting Orthodoxy would bring the Lithuanian dynasty closer to their subjects as well as to the principalities of the Rus', but it's unlikely that it would stop raids from the Teutonic Knights...
Soon, Jogaila responded with a letter: he agrees.
Muscovite and Bryanskian forces almost immediately clashed, with the battle ended by Lithuanian forces joining on the side of Moscow. Andrei was captured during the fight and imprisoned, while Vladimir managed to escape north with a detachment of his troops. Jogaila and 500 of his closest nobles and soldiers went to meet the Prince of Moscow directly. The Metropolitan himself baptized the Lithuanian Grand Duke, with the new, Orthodox Christian name Nikolai. The Lithuanian lord married his new bride, Sophia Dmitriyevna, afterwards. Soon after the baptism, Lithuanian forces attacked Bryansk, and with an official mission from Novgorod informing them that they agree to surrender, and the Livonian Order informing them of leaving the coalition soon after, Nikolai I Jogaila, the first Christian Grand Duke of Lithuania, was finally victorious in the two year struggle to solidify his rule.
Or, he would be, if it weren't for one more factor in the grand equation. Kęstutis.
Kęstutis, the Duke of Trakai, upon the news of Jogaila's baptism in the religion of his subjects, immediately gathered an army and marched into Vilnius, declaring himself the new Grand Duke of Lithuania. Kęstutis's main interest was the restoration of paganism as the ruling religion of Lithuania, following the ways of old. However, his new reign didn't last. After the ceremonies and battles in the East, Jogaila marched West to return to his capital, sending an offer to Kęstutis for negotiation, by Kaributas, who had joined up with his overlord's forces after the occupation of Bryansk. Kaributas guaranteed Kęstutis and his son Vytautas protection and security in the meeting, and in February of 1380, Jogaila and his uncle met in the former's camp near Krewa. Jogaila immediately ordered the arrest and imprisonment of the two men.
After the arrest, Kęstutis's forces, only organized from this prestigious leader's command and lacking any other leader within their ranks, started to disperse. Kęstutis and Vytautas were imprisoned in the castle of Krewo. While Jogaila squashed a small Samogitian pagan revolt and returned to Vilnius, tearing down the old temple of Perkūnas and building a church on it's foundations, the old man still tried to escape the prison to try a revolt for a second time.
But it didn't work. On August of 1382, two years later, Kęstutis mysteriously died, presumably due to poisoning. Vytautas was quick to perish after his father, dying a month later. Jogaila was now the undisputed ruler of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and an Orthodox one. This was the biggest thing to come out of the Lithuanian Civil War, one that will form the history of the Lithuanians for many years later...
And speaking of such events... In September of 1382, Louis I Angevin, King of Hungary and Poland, died without a male heir, leaving only two daughters - Mary and Hedwig. The personal union between the country was broken, and the unpopular monarch in Poland was replaced by an underage woman, with dozens of dukes now wying for the crown...
---
Is the pace too slow? It might be too slow for you. It's just that the events in this particular time are really important, and I can't just skip them...
Anyway, this was the Lithuanian Civil War. Far, far shorter than the original, which went up to 1392.
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Oh well, it was bound to happen, I guess. I was half hoping you would find a way to make paganism survive as the state religion, I admit. Still curious to see where it will lead.
Chapter 4: Poland, the Neighbor
Sorry for not posting in a while. Weekends are a busy time for me.
Hopefully I can go back to my normal schedule.
Part 4: Poland, the Neighbor (1383-1384)
After the baptism of Jogaila and the defeat of Kęstutis, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania saw a few years of peace. Jogaila granted a few acts of privileges to the newly established diocese of Vilnius, beginning a period of Christianization within the ethnic Lithuanian lands. On the last months of 1383, 500 Lithuanian nobles and priests were baptized along the Neris river in Orthodox rites, and Jogaila released an act granting higher privileges to "all Christian nobles of Lithuanian birth". On 1383, an official letter from Pope Urban VI arrived to the court of the Grand Duke, declaring that "while it is a great sight to see that this distant pagan nation has finally accepted the word of Christ, it is disheartening to see that it was baptized in Schismatic rites". The Teutonic and Livonian Orders were ordered to continue their pressure on Lithuania, on the hopes of converting it to the true, Catholic faith.
Meanwhile, Jogaila continued establishing new privileges and institution in his effort to make the Baptism of Lithuania more fulfilling. On early 1383, city rights, adjusted and similar to the Magdeburg laws common in northern Germany, Poland and Hungary, were granted to the City of Vilnius - the first one in this massive land, as well as the first Orthodox city in Europe with city law based on the German laws. The citizens of Vilnius were allowed to elect their own autonomous institutions and freely participate in crafts and trade. Jews across the entire Grand Duchy also received similar privileges, though regardless of their location.
While all of this was great and all, a much more important series of events was unfolding right to the west of Lithuania... Upon the death of Louis I of Hungary and Poland, the new King of Poland, according to the ruler's will, was to be his elder daughter Mary, married to Sigismund of Luxemburg, the King of Hungary. While this preserved the personal union between Poland and Hungary, it ended up being hugely controversial among the Polish nobility. Both the continuation of the personal union and Sigismund were hugely unpopular, especially among the nobles of Greater Poland, many of whom also saw this as an opportunity to reinstall the Piast dynasty through the leader of their anti-Angevin coalition - Siemowit IV, the Duke of Mazovia.
Siemowit IV, the strongest surviving ruler of the Piast dynasty, had only recently inherited the Duchy of Mazovia from his father, also named Siemowit. A determined man, he was willing to take hold of the Crown at any cost. In 1383, the Greater Poland Civil War, between the anti-Angevin Nalęcz families and the pro-Angevin Grzymala families, with the nobility of Lesser Poland in between, despite the court of Sigismund and the underage Mary still debating a compromise to please both sides. In a meeting of szlachta and other lesser nobles under Siemowit's side in Sieradz, the Duke of Mazovia announced his war for the claim on the Polish throne, under the rights of "restoring the dynasty that reigned this land for thousands of years, starting with the first Piasts to Casimir III, and abolishing the union between Poland and Hungary".
Meanwhile, the Dowager Queen, Elizabeth of Bosnia, the wife of the dead Louis I, sent an official declaration to the Polish nobility - the will of her husband will not be changed, Mary will inherit the throne of Poland, and the regent called all Polish nobles to arms to defeat Siemowit IV. Not all that many of them responded, but certainly enough to challenge the pretender from Mazovia. This time, Lesser Poland joined the side of the Angevin dynasty, fearing that a Masovian victory would lead to Greater Poland dominating all affairs of the state. The first battles of the Civil War were short and quick, more resembling raiding parties than military campaigns. Siemowit's forces attacked Bydgoszcz and Lodz, while Angevin detachments raided southern Masovia. Despite the chaos at home due to numerous revolts taking advantage of Mary's unstable reign, the regent Elizabeth ordered an army to be marched towards Poland, with Hungary, ruled by Mary's husband Sigismund, also declaring war on the pretender.
In response, Siemowit turned east, towards the fresh convert Jogaila. Masovia and Lithuania were on somewhat tepid and mild terms - the Masovian Piasts and the Gediminids were connected by numerous marriage ties, and yet often clashed for border territories. Despite some hostilities in the past, Siemowit hoped to obtain Lithuania's support in this war, with territorial offers to come with it... On March 21st of 1383, Siemowit IV of Mazovia sent a letter to Nikolai I Jogaila of Lithuania, which we can discuss in slightly bigger detail. In the very first line, the Polish lord refers to Jogaila as "elder brother", despite not even being in the same dynasty. Lithuanian nationalists in the modern era, both referring to future events and to the fact that in many places in Eastern Europe such a referral implies suzerainity, often point to this letter as a fact that Mazovia, and by extension Poland, were dominated by Lithuanian influence at the time. However, serious researchers dismiss the claim, accurately pointing out that it was Siemowit's way to appeal to Jogaila and gain his support - the power of the Grand Duke could be a deciding factor in the war, after all. Most of the text of the letter is composed of a well-crafted plead for help, with an important chapter being the paragraph right before the signature. There, Siemowit promises the return of Podolia, all the territory Poland acquired during the Lithuanian Civil War there, with even a chunk of Polish Podolia to settle the deal. And, most importantly, should he acquire the throne of Poland, he will join Jogaila in an attack against the Teutonic Knights - "after all, both of our nations have been punished by it". As a sign of good will, immediately with the letter Mazovia returned the city of Podlasie and it's surroundings, which it had acquired shortly after Jogaila's ascension.
Lithuania had a few interests of it's own in Poland. The most important one was, of course, the border territories of Podolia and Volhynia. Both of these regions were wealthy, profiteering from being a crossroad between Northeast Europe and Constantinople, and thus, by extension, the Middle East and North Africa. Lithuania and Poland fought numerous wars for these territories, with no decisive outcome. Hungary also laid some claims in the area. In addition, the opportunity of an alliance, however temporary it may be, against the Teutonic Order, finally obtaining a chance to end the hundred years' war for survival against the Knights proved to be enticing as well... The hope of breaking up Poland-Hungary and thus securing the Grand Duchy's western frontier played a part, too, and about a month later, Jogaila wrote back to Siemowit, stating that he accepts the call to arms.
The Lithuanians immediately began preparing an army for a summer march into Poland. While this was taking place, though, the Polish Civil War was going back and forth. Siemowit began sieging Kalisz as his first major act of the war, but the news of an incoming Hungarian and Lesser Polish army led to him cancelling the siege and retreating back to his territory east. Piast supporters and Angevin supporters, from small barons with an army of a few hundred men to powerful magnates and entire dukes clashed - according to Polish chroniclers, the war was very bloody, both among the soldiers and the peasantry who had to take the effects of the war. In July, Jogaila's forces joined up with Mazovian and Greater Polish troops in Plock, and thus the scales of the war were tipped heavily in the pretender's favor. In August of 1383, Siemowit captured Lęczyca and Kalisz, and finally engaged Lesser Polish troops near Adamki, close to Sieradz. The Battle of Adamki took only a few hours, leading to the loyalists taking heavy losses and retreating due to the superior numbers of the Masovian-Lithuanian forces. Even though it was a major victory that basically guaranteed Siemowit control over Greater Poland, it did not lead to victory, far from it.
On September of 1383, Hungarian troops, led by Sigismund of Luxemburg personally, devastated Mazovia, even threatening to march north, towards Lithuania proper. Reacting to this development, Jogaila demanded Siemowit to abandon his habit of sieging down one castle after another and instead march east to engage the enemies directly. Siemowit agreed, with hopes that a decisive victory against Elizabeth and Sigismund would lead to them giving up the war. Winter was coming, too, and news arrived that Teutonic forces raided and pillaged Sudovia while the Grand Duke was away. Weeks ticked. After looting and sacking the outskirts of Plock, Polish-Hungarian forces surprisingly started moving south, back to Hungary, instead of attacking Lithuania and forcing Jogaila out of the war. While it appeared as if the incoming Masovian and Lithuanian troops scared them off, the reasons for this action weren't even rooted in the Civil War. Back in Hungary, the Dowager Queen Elizabeth could barely hold onto her rule, especially because of the conflict between her and Sigismund, who was backed by the Holy Roman Emperor, Wenceslaus IV. Elizabeth was not enthusiastic with her daughter having to rule the country along with her husband, while Sigismund wanted to invade Hungary and depose the queen consort to become the kingdom's co-ruler. Charles III of Naples, the only surviving male Angevin, was a much more preferred heir by the Hungarian nobility, too, and the King planned an invasion of his own to claim the throne. John of Palisna also raised his banners in revolt, opposed to the centralization policy of the previous monarch Louis I. Faced with such a complicated situation and trying to avoid an invasion of the nation when she was embroiled in a whole other war, Elizabeth had no other choice but to pull out of Poland and secure Hungary first - or at least knock Siemowit out of the war with a preemptive attack and find a solution, but this did not happen due to the latter's alliance with Lithuania.
In late October of 1383, Elizabeth finally decided on her course of action, and the Duke of Mazovia received an offer to marry Hedwig, the younger daughter of the deceased Louis I, despite her betrothal to William of Habsburg, and thus become King of Poland. Siemowit was quick to agree. Elizabeth retracted the betrothal, and Hedwig arrived to Krakow in the beginning of 1384. The last Lesser Polish opposition was defeated in numerous skirmishes across the country, Mary and Sigismund were retracted from their position as rulers of Poland and Siemowit Piast was crowned Siemowit I of Poland. The Piast dynasty returned to the throne of their nation once again, at least for the time being. Siemowit I and Nikolai I of Poland and Lithuania respectively began planning their collective attack on the Teutonic Order, each one with their own territorial goals in mind...
What did this year-long foreign civil war mean for Poland? Quite a lot, actually. Despite mainly being a second-tier player, Lithuania showed it's teeth as a Christian nation, and displayed it's capabilities to affect the wars and diplomatic struggles in it's neighboring countries. Had Jogaila not helped Mazovia in the war, the personal union between Poland and Hungary would have likely been restored.
This is not even say of the importance that the outcome of the war will have on the not so distant future.
---
Wow, this turned out longer than expected. I was planning to write about an entire decade in this part, but there is just so much detail to add for all of this to even make sense.
Hopefully I can go back to my normal schedule.
Part 4: Poland, the Neighbor (1383-1384)
Meanwhile, Jogaila continued establishing new privileges and institution in his effort to make the Baptism of Lithuania more fulfilling. On early 1383, city rights, adjusted and similar to the Magdeburg laws common in northern Germany, Poland and Hungary, were granted to the City of Vilnius - the first one in this massive land, as well as the first Orthodox city in Europe with city law based on the German laws. The citizens of Vilnius were allowed to elect their own autonomous institutions and freely participate in crafts and trade. Jews across the entire Grand Duchy also received similar privileges, though regardless of their location.
While all of this was great and all, a much more important series of events was unfolding right to the west of Lithuania... Upon the death of Louis I of Hungary and Poland, the new King of Poland, according to the ruler's will, was to be his elder daughter Mary, married to Sigismund of Luxemburg, the King of Hungary. While this preserved the personal union between Poland and Hungary, it ended up being hugely controversial among the Polish nobility. Both the continuation of the personal union and Sigismund were hugely unpopular, especially among the nobles of Greater Poland, many of whom also saw this as an opportunity to reinstall the Piast dynasty through the leader of their anti-Angevin coalition - Siemowit IV, the Duke of Mazovia.
Siemowit IV, the strongest surviving ruler of the Piast dynasty, had only recently inherited the Duchy of Mazovia from his father, also named Siemowit. A determined man, he was willing to take hold of the Crown at any cost. In 1383, the Greater Poland Civil War, between the anti-Angevin Nalęcz families and the pro-Angevin Grzymala families, with the nobility of Lesser Poland in between, despite the court of Sigismund and the underage Mary still debating a compromise to please both sides. In a meeting of szlachta and other lesser nobles under Siemowit's side in Sieradz, the Duke of Mazovia announced his war for the claim on the Polish throne, under the rights of "restoring the dynasty that reigned this land for thousands of years, starting with the first Piasts to Casimir III, and abolishing the union between Poland and Hungary".
Meanwhile, the Dowager Queen, Elizabeth of Bosnia, the wife of the dead Louis I, sent an official declaration to the Polish nobility - the will of her husband will not be changed, Mary will inherit the throne of Poland, and the regent called all Polish nobles to arms to defeat Siemowit IV. Not all that many of them responded, but certainly enough to challenge the pretender from Mazovia. This time, Lesser Poland joined the side of the Angevin dynasty, fearing that a Masovian victory would lead to Greater Poland dominating all affairs of the state. The first battles of the Civil War were short and quick, more resembling raiding parties than military campaigns. Siemowit's forces attacked Bydgoszcz and Lodz, while Angevin detachments raided southern Masovia. Despite the chaos at home due to numerous revolts taking advantage of Mary's unstable reign, the regent Elizabeth ordered an army to be marched towards Poland, with Hungary, ruled by Mary's husband Sigismund, also declaring war on the pretender.
In response, Siemowit turned east, towards the fresh convert Jogaila. Masovia and Lithuania were on somewhat tepid and mild terms - the Masovian Piasts and the Gediminids were connected by numerous marriage ties, and yet often clashed for border territories. Despite some hostilities in the past, Siemowit hoped to obtain Lithuania's support in this war, with territorial offers to come with it... On March 21st of 1383, Siemowit IV of Mazovia sent a letter to Nikolai I Jogaila of Lithuania, which we can discuss in slightly bigger detail. In the very first line, the Polish lord refers to Jogaila as "elder brother", despite not even being in the same dynasty. Lithuanian nationalists in the modern era, both referring to future events and to the fact that in many places in Eastern Europe such a referral implies suzerainity, often point to this letter as a fact that Mazovia, and by extension Poland, were dominated by Lithuanian influence at the time. However, serious researchers dismiss the claim, accurately pointing out that it was Siemowit's way to appeal to Jogaila and gain his support - the power of the Grand Duke could be a deciding factor in the war, after all. Most of the text of the letter is composed of a well-crafted plead for help, with an important chapter being the paragraph right before the signature. There, Siemowit promises the return of Podolia, all the territory Poland acquired during the Lithuanian Civil War there, with even a chunk of Polish Podolia to settle the deal. And, most importantly, should he acquire the throne of Poland, he will join Jogaila in an attack against the Teutonic Knights - "after all, both of our nations have been punished by it". As a sign of good will, immediately with the letter Mazovia returned the city of Podlasie and it's surroundings, which it had acquired shortly after Jogaila's ascension.
Lithuania had a few interests of it's own in Poland. The most important one was, of course, the border territories of Podolia and Volhynia. Both of these regions were wealthy, profiteering from being a crossroad between Northeast Europe and Constantinople, and thus, by extension, the Middle East and North Africa. Lithuania and Poland fought numerous wars for these territories, with no decisive outcome. Hungary also laid some claims in the area. In addition, the opportunity of an alliance, however temporary it may be, against the Teutonic Order, finally obtaining a chance to end the hundred years' war for survival against the Knights proved to be enticing as well... The hope of breaking up Poland-Hungary and thus securing the Grand Duchy's western frontier played a part, too, and about a month later, Jogaila wrote back to Siemowit, stating that he accepts the call to arms.
The Lithuanians immediately began preparing an army for a summer march into Poland. While this was taking place, though, the Polish Civil War was going back and forth. Siemowit began sieging Kalisz as his first major act of the war, but the news of an incoming Hungarian and Lesser Polish army led to him cancelling the siege and retreating back to his territory east. Piast supporters and Angevin supporters, from small barons with an army of a few hundred men to powerful magnates and entire dukes clashed - according to Polish chroniclers, the war was very bloody, both among the soldiers and the peasantry who had to take the effects of the war. In July, Jogaila's forces joined up with Mazovian and Greater Polish troops in Plock, and thus the scales of the war were tipped heavily in the pretender's favor. In August of 1383, Siemowit captured Lęczyca and Kalisz, and finally engaged Lesser Polish troops near Adamki, close to Sieradz. The Battle of Adamki took only a few hours, leading to the loyalists taking heavy losses and retreating due to the superior numbers of the Masovian-Lithuanian forces. Even though it was a major victory that basically guaranteed Siemowit control over Greater Poland, it did not lead to victory, far from it.
On September of 1383, Hungarian troops, led by Sigismund of Luxemburg personally, devastated Mazovia, even threatening to march north, towards Lithuania proper. Reacting to this development, Jogaila demanded Siemowit to abandon his habit of sieging down one castle after another and instead march east to engage the enemies directly. Siemowit agreed, with hopes that a decisive victory against Elizabeth and Sigismund would lead to them giving up the war. Winter was coming, too, and news arrived that Teutonic forces raided and pillaged Sudovia while the Grand Duke was away. Weeks ticked. After looting and sacking the outskirts of Plock, Polish-Hungarian forces surprisingly started moving south, back to Hungary, instead of attacking Lithuania and forcing Jogaila out of the war. While it appeared as if the incoming Masovian and Lithuanian troops scared them off, the reasons for this action weren't even rooted in the Civil War. Back in Hungary, the Dowager Queen Elizabeth could barely hold onto her rule, especially because of the conflict between her and Sigismund, who was backed by the Holy Roman Emperor, Wenceslaus IV. Elizabeth was not enthusiastic with her daughter having to rule the country along with her husband, while Sigismund wanted to invade Hungary and depose the queen consort to become the kingdom's co-ruler. Charles III of Naples, the only surviving male Angevin, was a much more preferred heir by the Hungarian nobility, too, and the King planned an invasion of his own to claim the throne. John of Palisna also raised his banners in revolt, opposed to the centralization policy of the previous monarch Louis I. Faced with such a complicated situation and trying to avoid an invasion of the nation when she was embroiled in a whole other war, Elizabeth had no other choice but to pull out of Poland and secure Hungary first - or at least knock Siemowit out of the war with a preemptive attack and find a solution, but this did not happen due to the latter's alliance with Lithuania.
In late October of 1383, Elizabeth finally decided on her course of action, and the Duke of Mazovia received an offer to marry Hedwig, the younger daughter of the deceased Louis I, despite her betrothal to William of Habsburg, and thus become King of Poland. Siemowit was quick to agree. Elizabeth retracted the betrothal, and Hedwig arrived to Krakow in the beginning of 1384. The last Lesser Polish opposition was defeated in numerous skirmishes across the country, Mary and Sigismund were retracted from their position as rulers of Poland and Siemowit Piast was crowned Siemowit I of Poland. The Piast dynasty returned to the throne of their nation once again, at least for the time being. Siemowit I and Nikolai I of Poland and Lithuania respectively began planning their collective attack on the Teutonic Order, each one with their own territorial goals in mind...
What did this year-long foreign civil war mean for Poland? Quite a lot, actually. Despite mainly being a second-tier player, Lithuania showed it's teeth as a Christian nation, and displayed it's capabilities to affect the wars and diplomatic struggles in it's neighboring countries. Had Jogaila not helped Mazovia in the war, the personal union between Poland and Hungary would have likely been restored.
This is not even say of the importance that the outcome of the war will have on the not so distant future.
---
Wow, this turned out longer than expected. I was planning to write about an entire decade in this part, but there is just so much detail to add for all of this to even make sense.
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I'm trying to go for something not too offensive, but I'll keep it in mind.
I like this so far. With Moscow so devastated repeatedly, will the Orthodox Church move its seat? It seems like you're setting the rise of Tver instead of Moscow, which since their princes seem to avoided to bad luck they had OTL, they'll get it. But the fact Moscow still has the leadership of the Orthodox Church is a huge issue for Tver and can keep Moscow able to rise again.
Maybe since Lithuania is Orthodox and thus will be tied to the Slavic lands, the Orthodox Church will return to Kiev in time?
How far will Lithuania expand into Russia? Can Tver present themselves as capable of opposing Lithuania? By making both Tver and Poland indebted to the Lithuanians, you've made alliances for the Russians against the main threat to the west difficult. The only hope they'll have is Sweden, which isn't much until the age of the "Swedish Empire".
Maybe since Lithuania is Orthodox and thus will be tied to the Slavic lands, the Orthodox Church will return to Kiev in time?
How far will Lithuania expand into Russia? Can Tver present themselves as capable of opposing Lithuania? By making both Tver and Poland indebted to the Lithuanians, you've made alliances for the Russians against the main threat to the west difficult. The only hope they'll have is Sweden, which isn't much until the age of the "Swedish Empire".
This is probably the worst reason to have the legendary CalBear read my TL...
Changed.
@PaleoT Glad you liked it! Sorry for not posting in Divide et Imperia, life caught up to me and I put this TL on a higher priority.
@metalinvader665 Indeed, these are all really good questions for the future. Thanks for reading!
