Like the Ottomans could move in on Europe, or England start regretting taking over the French.
How is Muscovy, the Ukrainians, and what was going to be Russia?
The Silver Knight, a Lithuania Timeline
- Thread starter Augenis
- Start date
Like the Ottomans could move in on Europe, or England start regretting taking over the French.
How is Muscovy, the Ukrainians, and what was going to be Russia?
Muscovy is now one of the many titles under the Grand Duke of Lithuania, Moscow was almost renamed to "Teodormiestis" after it was pillaged yet again in 1434.
OTL Ukraine is a province under the Grand Duchy, Kiev is still a major city in the region, while colonization of the southern and eastern steppes has so far been struggling with low interest from Vilnius and Tatar raids.
Russia is either Lithuania itself or a bunch of fractured Russian principalities under Lithuanian hegemony. Tver is currently the strongest of these little principalities, and slowly expanding under Grand Ducal dominance.
Nizhny Novgorod is part of the Principality of Suzdal-Nizhny Novgorod, an "independent vassal" of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Mordvins are under the Kazan Khanate, though most of them are still pagans.
Chapter 12: Alas, Poor Leader
Part 12: Alas, Poor Leader (1467-1475)
Panic slowly began to ensue, especially when Corvinus moved north, towards Grodno (Gardinas), the gateway to Lietuva Land and one of the biggest cities and fortresses in western Lithuania. Teodoras hastily began preparing his troops for a possible, though likely suicidal, confrontation with the Black Army in the Dainava Forest, but it never came to be.
In the first day of November in 1467, Corvinus suddenly retreated, leaving the outskirts of Grodno and moving back to Poland. To Lithuanians at the time, it looked like God's will descended from the skies to save the heart of the entire nation from certain doom, but the actual reasons for this retreat were far more earthly. The Polish Succession War had been going on for four years, and the Ottoman Turks used this as an opportunity for more and frequent incursions into Bohemia-Hungary, the last Christian nation standing between the Balkans and the center of Christendom. War seemed imminent, and knowing that an extended campaign into Lithuania would consume time, resources, men - especiall during a winter - and leave the nation itself vulnerable to a Muslim invasion, Charles I called Corvinus back, but this lack of information about the events in Southern Europe left Lithuania confused.
Nowadays, the sudden abrupt end of the 1467 Lithuania campaign has since become a source of big what-if discussion - what if Bohemia-Hungary pushed forward? What if the Ottomans did not use the opportunity to raid Hungary and thus distract Charles I? What would have happened? These debates seem to have no end, and numerous sources of obscure information - the recently unearthed sources about Mykolas Žygimantaitis's cooperation with the Bohemo-Hungarians, the "Eastern Bull of 1466", where Pope Pius III granted "all territories east of Vistula" to Charles I, and other documents - is what makes this discussion so interesting. But the consensus is that no one knows exactly.
Despite the retreat, Teodoras I did not have the capabilities to resume the offensive, both in a manpower and morale situation, and this situation prompted Charles I to propose an offer of peace in January of 1468. The offer, which later went down in history as the Peace of Plock, was quite punitive - Lithuania renounces all claims to the Polish throne and accepts Charles I as the rightful ruler of the Kingdom of Poland, as well as pays a sizable sum for war reparations - indeed, punitive enough that Teodoras I wanted to simply decline it and press forward until he got something better, but this time the nobility of the nation stepped in. The higher council of Lithuania - the Council of Lords - said no to resumption of hostilities, and despite his burning desire to continue, he was forced to peace out, with a single demand of his own - that Mykolas, the pretender, is extradited to Lithuania.
Bohemia-Hungary said no, instead secretly releasing Mykolas in occupied Brest to prepare his forces for war. Despite the declination, Lithuania agreed to the peace terms, and it was signed in Plock in March of 1468, ending the Polish Succession War.
The war was a defining moment in the history of Eastern-Central Europe, and in the history of Lithuania. For the first time in it's history, it's expansion was stopped, it's wings were clipped, and it's army was humiliated in battle. The war led to dozens of thousands of Lithuanian deaths, and eroded the prestige of Teodoras I Jogailaitis. It was the introduction to modern tactics and technology in the region. Bohemia-Hungary-Poland left the war as a winner, but a costly one. The newly acquired Poland lost over 30 percent of it's population, over 50% in Podolia, and the remnants weren't particularly fond of this new government. The nation's treasury was spent on this draining war, and was by now almost empty, filled up mostly by Lithuanian war reparations. However, one positive thing came out of this conflict for the Triple Crown - it provided an injected a sense of unity into this multicultural state. The prestige of the formerly controversial House of Luxembourg rose to new heights, and it slowly started to stylize itself as a Bohemo-Hungarian, not a Brandenburgian or Luxembourgian dynasty.
What followed the Polish Succession War? As is known today, Mykolas Žygimantaitis, secretly supported by Bohemia-Hungary, raised a revolt, but it's details are still unclear. It is known that in 1469 and 1470, there were numerous small-scale battles across Western Lithuania, particularly around the Brest and Lutsk area, ended only by the pretender's death from old age in 1471. The Chronicle of Lithuania, highly supervised by the Grand Duke, purposefully left out all details of this revolt to keep the authority of the monarch stable. The Lithuanian leadership saw no problems with tampering with history for their own goals.
The last few years of Teodoras I's rule were uneventful. For the most part, the already slowly dying Grand Duke of Lithuania focused his efforts on keeping what was left under him in check. A few punitive raids against Novgorod and Pskov, some treaties with Tver to ensure their loyalty, some efforts to relieve the war exhaustion still rampant in the nation, and finally, in April 1475, he stepped out of the mortal world with the Reaper at his side.
Teodoras Jogailaitis, the son of one of the most revered figures in Lithuanian history, is a controversial figure in Lithuanian historiography. Most people agree that Lithuania's tremendous failure in the Polish Succession War was at least partially his fault, and his unyielding focus on turning his realm into a militarized state heavily hurt the arts and culture of the recovering nation, but even then many still don't completely write him off as a failure. His success against the Livonian Order, even if it was not accomplished by him, is till upheld, and his independent, though somewhat self-centered attitude regarding the mending of the East-West Schism make some see him as a patriot, even if such a claim is very, very bold. Perhaps it's nostalgia of his father, who was indeed a great man, that saves Teodoras I from being shunned from history completely.
Upon the death of the old Grand Duke, Prince Algirdas succeeded him as Algirdas II. Already over 30 years old at the time of succession, the new Grand Duke did not have the same problem of inheriting at a very young age.
What does the future hold for Lithuania with this new leader?
Teodoras I, Grand Duke of Lithuania, 1409-1475
Algirdas II, Grand Duke of Lithuania, 1438-
If Lithuania had won total victory over Bohemia-Hungary? If Corvinus had fallen in battle? If everything went right for Teodoras I?
Good times, but either way, Lithuania can always look another way while everyone else is busying fighting the Ottomans, and maybe even come back and beat on Bohemia-Hungary.
Right?
Could happen. One should remember, though, that bashing on Catholics and continuing aggression will keep on turning Lithuania politically isolated (there are no other Orthodox nations left, after all) - something an intelligent and more savvy ruler may not want.
So? It must regain it's lost honor and make Bohemia-Hungary fly the flags of Lithuania. Make them Orthodox!
I have a feeling you'd do well in making election banners for the Lithuanian National Democrats
Chapter 13: Long Live the King
Part 13: Long Live the King (1475-1481)
It is likely because of this experience, plus the prince's connections among the nobility, that the succession upon the death of Grand Duke Teodoras was surprisingly calm and bloodless. Sure, there was a peasant revolt near Chernigov and some rumblings in Suzdal, but that was to be expected. Algirdas II was coronated in January of 1476, and he immediately began numerous actions to both solidify his rule and for the prosperity of the nation.
The reign of Algirdas II saw the execution of a major currency reform. The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was perhaps the most powerful country in Europe which did not have it's own currency - sure, there were the Lithuanian silver long sticks, but they were not easy to use as currency and easy to counterfeit. Former rulers, like Algirdas and Jogaila the Great, tried to create their own currency as well, but it did not stick. The nation was full of foreign coins, from Bohemian thalers to Venetian ducats, and to better control his treasury as well as increase the ruler's prestige, the Grand Duke founded an official national mint in Vilnius, and this new institution created the official Lithuanian Denar - the first long-term and consistent currency of the Lithuanian nation. Minted out of silver and sometimes copper, these coins featured the Vytis - the silver knight, symbol of the Lithuanian state since the 13th century - on one side and a portrait of the current ruler on the other. Only the Vilnius National Mint had the right to mint these coins, and any counterfeiters were planned to receive great punishment, be it via fines or imprisonment.
Such control of the treasury and coinage had important long-term positive effects on the economy of Lithuania, but Algirdas II had other, much more contemporary plans with this power. The Polish Succession War showed the ineffectiveness of the ancient noble voluntary levy against modern standing and mercenary armies, and the Grand Duke hoped to fill this gap by reforming the army of the Lithuanian nation. However, modern firearms and mercenaries were expensive, and Lithuania was far from being wealthy enough to pay for an army that was just as big as before, but modern armed and well prepared. Plus, outright abolishing the ancient army system and denying nobles the exclusive right to serve would not resonate well with the Lithuanian nobility, who saw war as a pleasure and a chance to loot just like their ancestors did. As such, Algirdas had to reach for a compromise. Under his rule, the Lithuanian Regiment was created, first mentioned in written sources in 1480. The Lithuanian Regiment was organized to be the core of the Lithuanian Army - a small standing force of about 6000 men, equipped with the most modern weaponry possible to acquire, like bronze-cast cannons, arquebuses and crossbows, and would be supplemented by raised levies and Voivodeship regiments in wartime.
The Lithuanian Regiment was the beginning of the history of the Lithuanian standing army, with many more events to come.
However, a far more interesting event happened in the very beginning of Algirdas II's reign... The Papacy was watching the events in Lithuania closely, and upon he ascension of the new Grand Duke, Pope Paul II sent a very enticing offer - he offered the hand of Angela Palaiologina, the niece of the last Emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire, who was taking refuge in Rome after the Fall of Constantinople, for the still unmarried monarch. The Pope planned to use this marriage as a way to strengthen Catholic influence in the massive Orthodox nation and perhaps get Algirdas to reverse his father's stance on the Union of Florence, while Algirdas II saw this as an opportunity to finalize Teodoras's claim on declaring the Grand Duchy as the successor to the Roman Empire. The negotiations for this marriage lasted for two years, until finally, in 1478, Angela and Algirdas became married. Angela's dowry included 8000 Venetian ducats and an entire library of books saved from Constantinople, which were later included in a Royal Library in Vilnius. The marriage was overseen by Papal Legate Anthony, and negotiations for the Union of Florence soon began. Algirdas II was reluctant, though.
Soon after the marriage to a relative of the last Roman Emperor, Algirdas II officially declared his capital, Vilnius, under the concept of "Translatio Imperii", to be the Third Rome, the successor to Constantinople as the seat of the Patriarchate and the Roman Empire, and in 1481, he crowned himself, under the new Patriarch, Anastas, as the Lietuvos Karalius (King of Lithuania). The Chronicles of Lithuania were rewritten to further solidify this claim, including the legend of the mythical Palemon, a Roman refuge who founded Lithuania over a thousand years ago. The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was no more, and the Kingdom of Lithuania, extinguished for 200 years by the death of Mindaugas, arose once again.
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Quick update to remind you all that I am not dead.
Well, it's good to show Lithuania is becoming stronger from this, but is it best for letting in Catholic influence?
Indeed, Algirdas II is a breath of fresh air compared to his father.
No spoilers for the second part :X
100 TL Year Celebration
With 13 chapters and a LOT of words, we have passed over 100 years from our start in 1366. 114, to be exact.
We've seen the world slowly enter the age of Renaissance, the age of humanist, rational thought. We have buried three generations of rulers of Lithuania, and saw it slowly enter the world of the West.
To celebrate, why don't you tell your favorite moment from this TL so far? It can be a battle, a description of an event or an entire chapter if you want.
We've seen the world slowly enter the age of Renaissance, the age of humanist, rational thought. We have buried three generations of rulers of Lithuania, and saw it slowly enter the world of the West.
To celebrate, why don't you tell your favorite moment from this TL so far? It can be a battle, a description of an event or an entire chapter if you want.
Alt-grunwald!
Also the gruesome war against B-H was good beause it made the TL balanced.
Also the gruesome war against B-H was good beause it made the TL balanced.
Just it overall really. Not many Lithuania TL's, or that it goes well for them for that matter. I do hope Lithuania will embrace the Renaissance, and kick out all that Catholic influence. Lithuania is Orthodox! Not a tool for the Roman Church!!
And the fact you killed Russia.
For now, but Lithuania will come back, and send B-H to it's grave.
The Ilawa Campaign was probably the most in-depth I had ever gotten into a military campaign, down to the food preparation and transport.
The Polish Succession War was great in my opinion too. I hoped to not turn this into a Lithuania wank, and it looks like it worked.
If I am some sort of pioneer, I hope that this introduction to the deep field of alternate history of Lithuania was good enough.
The Ilawa Campaign was probably the most in-depth I had ever gotten into a military campaign, down to the food preparation and transport.
The Polish Succession War was great in my opinion too. I hoped to not turn this into a Lithuania wank, and it looks like it worked.
If I am some sort of pioneer, I hope that this introduction to the deep field of alternate history of Lithuania was good enough.
You made it a wank with Lithuania beating Moscow and thus killing future Russia.