Jogaila, later
[He is known under a number of names: ; ; . See also: Jogaila (Władysław II Jagiello): names and titles.] (ca. 1362 – 1 June 1434) was
Grand Duke of LithuaniaThe 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...
(1377–1434),
king consortKing consort is an alternative title to the more usual "prince consort" - which is a position given in some monarchies to the husband of a reigning queen. It is a symbolic title only, the sole constitutional function of the holder being similar to a prince consort, which is the male equivalent of a...
of
Kingdom of PolandThe Kingdom of Poland of the Jagiellons was the Polish state created by the accession of Jogaila , Grand Duke of Lithuania, to the Polish throne in 1386. The Union of Krewo or Krėva Act, united Poland and Lithuania under the rule of a single monarch...
(1386–1399), and sole King of Poland (1399–1434). He ruled in Lithuania from 1377, at first with his uncle
KęstutisKęstutis was monarch of medieval Lithuania. He was the Duke of Trakai and governed the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, 1342–82, together with his brother Algirdas , and with his nephew Jogaila...
. In 1386 in
KrakówKraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
he was baptized as Władysław, married the young
queen regnantA queen regnant is a female monarch who reigns in her own right, in contrast to a queen consort, who is the wife of a reigning king. An empress regnant is a female monarch who reigns in her own right over an empire....
Jadwiga of PolandJadwiga was monarch of Poland from 1384 to her death. Her official title was 'king' rather than 'queen', reflecting that she was a sovereign in her own right and not merely a royal consort. She was a member of the Capetian House of Anjou, the daughter of King Louis I of Hungary and Elizabeth of...
, and was crowned King of Poland as Władysław II Jagiełło. In 1387 he
converted LithuaniaThe Christianization of Lithuania – Christianization of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania that took place in 1387, initiated by the King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania Jogaila and his cousin Vytautas, that signified the official adoption of Christianity by Lithuanians, one of the last pagan...
to
ChristianityChristianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
. His own reign in Poland started in 1399, upon death of Queen Jadwiga, and lasted a further thirty-five years and laid the foundation for the centuries-long Polish–Lithuanian union. Władysław II was the founder of the
Jagiellon dynastyThe Jagiellonian dynasty was a royal dynasty originating from the Lithuanian House of Gediminas dynasty that reigned in Central European countries between the 14th and 16th century...
that bears his name, while pagan Jogaila was an heir to the already established house of
GediminidsThe Gediminids were a dynasty of monarchs of Grand Duchy of Lithuania that reigned from the 14th to the 16th century. One branch of this dynasty, known as the Jagiellons, reigned also in Kingdom of Poland, Kingdom of Hungary and Kingdom of Bohemia...
in
Grand Duchy of LithuaniaThe 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...
; the royal dynasty ruled both states until 1572,
[Anna Jagiellon]Anna Jagiellon was queen of Poland from 1575 to 1586. She was the daughter of Poland's King Sigismund I the Old, and the wife of Stephen Báthory. She was elected, along with her then fiance, Báthory, as co-ruler in the second election of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth...
last member of royal Jagiellon family died in 1596. and became one of the most influential dynasties in the late medieval and early modern medieval Central and Eastern
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
Jogaila was the last pagan ruler of medieval Lithuania. He held the title
Didysis Kunigaikštis.
[Lithuanian Didysis Kunigaikštis is translated as grand duke]The title grand duke is used in Western Europe and particularly in Germanic countries for provincial sovereigns. Grand duke is of a protocolary rank below a king but higher than a sovereign duke. Grand duke is also the usual and established translation of grand prince in languages which do not...
or grand princeThe title grand prince or great prince ranked in honour below emperor and tsar and above a sovereign prince .Grand duke is the usual and established, though not literal, translation of these terms in English and Romance languages, which do not normally use separate words for a "prince" who reigns...
. Kunigaikštis is a cognate of König and king, and didysis magnifies it. See also . As King of Poland, he pursued a policy of close alliances with Lithuania against the
Teutonic KnightsThe 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...
. The allied victory at the
Battle of GrunwaldThe Battle of Grunwald or 1st Battle of Tannenberg was fought on 15 July 1410, during the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War. The alliance of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, led respectively by King Jogaila and Grand Duke Vytautas , decisively defeated the Teutonic Knights, led...
in 1410, followed by the Peace of Thorn (1411), secured the Polish and Lithuanian borders and marked the emergence of the Polish–Lithuanian alliance as a significant force in Europe. The reign of Władysław II Jagiełło extended Polish frontiers and is often considered the beginning of Poland's
Golden AgeThe Polish Golden Age refers to the times from 15th century Jagiellon Poland to the death of the last of the Jagiellons, Sigismund August in 1569, or mid-17th century, when in 1648 the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was ravaged by the Khmelnytsky Uprising and The Deluge and the Golden Age...
.
Lithuania
Little is known of Jogaila's early life, and even his date of birth is not certain. Previously historians have given his date of birth as 1352, but some recent research suggests a later date—about 1362. He was a descendant of the Gediminid dynasty and probably born in
VilniusVilnius is the capital of Lithuania, and its largest city, with a population of 560,190 as of 2010. It is the seat of the Vilnius city municipality and of the Vilnius district municipality. It is also the capital of Vilnius County...
. His parents were
AlgirdasAlgirdas was a monarch of medieval Lithuania. Algirdas ruled the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from 1345 to 1377, which chiefly meant monarch of Lithuanians and Ruthenians...
, Grand Duke of Lithuania, and his second wife,
UlianaUliana Alexandrovna of Tver was a daughter of Grand Prince Alexander of Tver and Anastasia of Halych, and second wife of Grand Prince of Lithuania Algirdas. After the death of her husband Uliana became a nun under the name Marina...
, daughter of
Alexander IGrand Prince Alexander or Aleksandr Mikhailovich was a Prince of Tver as Alexander I and Grand Prince of Vladimir-Suzdal as Alexander II.- Life :...
, Grand Prince of
TverTver is a city and the administrative center of Tver Oblast, Russia. Population: 403,726 ; 408,903 ;...
.
Grand Dutchy of Lithuania to which Jogaila succeeded in 1377 was a political entity composed of two leading but very different nationalities and two political systems: ethnic Lithuania in the north-west and the vast
RutheniaRuthenia is the Latin word used onwards from the 13th century, describing lands of the Ancient Rus in European manuscripts. Its geographic and culturo-ethnic name at that time was applied to the parts of Eastern Europe. Essentially, the word is a false Latin rendering of the ancient place name Rus...
n territories of former
Kievan Rus'Kievan Rus was a medieval polity in Eastern Europe, from the late 9th to the mid 13th century, when it disintegrated under the pressure of the Mongol invasion of 1237–1240....
, comprising lands of modern Ukraine, Belarus, and parts of western Russia. At first, Jogaila—like his father—based his rule in the southern and eastern territories of Lithuania, while his uncle, Kęstutis, the Duke of Trakai, continued to rule the north-western region.
[Some historians have called this system a diarchy . However, Rowell suggests that the nature of this dual rule "...reflects political expediency; it certainly does not meet the formal definition of diarchy as 'rule by two independent authorities'...those two leaders were not equal: the grand duke in Vilnius was supreme" .] Jogaila's succession, however, soon placed this system of dual rule under strain.
At the start of his reign, Jogaila was preoccupied with unrest in the Lithuanian Rus' lands. In 1377–78,
Andrei of PolotskAndrei of Polotsk was the eldest son Algirdas, Grand Duke of Lithuania, and his first wife Maria of Vitebsk. He was Duke of Pskov and Polotsk . As the eldest son of the Grand Duke, Andrei claimed his right to the throne after his father's death in 1377...
, the eldest son of Algirdas, challenged Jogaila's authority and sought to become the Grand Duke. In 1380, Andrei and another brother, Dmitry, sided with Prince
Dmitri of MoscowSaint Dmitry Ivanovich Donskoy , or Dmitry of the Don, sometimes referred to as Dmitry I , son of Ivan II the Meek of Moscow , reigned as the Prince of Moscow from 1359 and Grand Prince of Vladimir from 1363 to his death. He was the first prince of Moscow to openly challenge Mongol authority in...
against Jogaila's alliance with emir
MamaiMamai of Borjigin kin, was a powerful military commander of the Blue Horde in the 1370s which is now the Southern Ukrainian Steppes and the Crimean Peninsula....
, "de facto" khan of the
Golden HordeThe Golden Horde was a Mongol and later Turkicized khanate that formed the north-western sector of the Mongol Empire...
. Jogaila failed to support Mamai, lingering in the vicinity of the battlefield, which led to Mamai's army significant defeat at the hands of Prince Dmitri in the
Battle of KulikovoThe Battle of Kulikovo was a battle between Tatar Mamai and Muscovy Dmitriy and portrayed by Russian historiography as a stand-off between Russians and the Golden Horde. However, the political situation at the time was much more complicated and concerned the politics of the Northeastern Rus'...
. The Muscovite quite Pyrrhic victory over the Golden Horde, in a long term, signified, however, the beginning of a slow climb to power by the
Grand Duchy of MoscowThe Grand Duchy of Moscow or Grand Principality of Moscow, also known in English simply as Muscovy , was a late medieval Rus' principality centered on Moscow, and the predecessor state of the early modern Tsardom of Russia....
, thus within a century becoming the most serious future rival and threat to integrity, well-being and survival of Lithuania. However, at that moment Muscovy was awfully weakened by tremendous losses suffered during the famous battle and thus in the same year Jogaila was free to begin a struggle for supremacy with Kęstutis.
In the north-west, Lithuania faced constant armed incursions from the
Teutonic KnightsThe 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...
—founded after 1226 to fight and convert the pagan Baltic tribes of Prussians,
YotvingiansYotvingians or Sudovians were a Baltic people with close cultural ties to the Lithuanians and Prussians...
and
LithuaniansLithuanians are the Baltic ethnic group native to Lithuania, where they number around 2,765,600 people. Another million or more make up the Lithuanian diaspora, largely found in countries such as the United States, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Russia, United Kingdom and Ireland. Their native language...
. In 1380, Jogaila secretly concluded the secret
Treaty of DovydiškėsThe Treaty of Dovydiškės , Daudiske, or Daudisken was a secret treaty signed on May 31, 1380 between Jogaila, the Grand Duke of Lithuania, and Winrich von Kniprode, the Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights...
, directed against Kęstutis. When Kęstutis discovered the plan, the
Lithuanian Civil WarThe Lithuanian Civil War of 1381–1384 was the first struggle for power between the cousins Jogaila, Grand Duke of Lithuania and later King of Poland, and Vytautas the Great. It began after Jogaila signed the Treaty of Dovydiškės with the Teutonic Knights which was aimed against his uncle Kęstutis,...
began. He seized Vilnius, overthrew Jogaila, and pronounced himself grand duke in his place. In 1382, Jogaila raised an army from his father's vassals and confronted Kęstutis near Trakai. Kęstutis and his son Vytautas entered Jogaila's encampment for negotiations but were tricked and imprisoned in the
Kreva CastleKreva Castle is the ruins of a major fortified residence of Grand Dukes Gediminas and Algirdas in Kreva village, Belarus. Algirdas's brother Kęstutis was imprisoned and murdered in Kreva Castle in 1382. The Act of Krewo, the first step towards the Commonwealth of Poland-Lithuania, was signed in...
, where Kęstutis was found dead, probably murdered, a week later. Vytautas escaped to the Teutonic fortress of
MarienburgMalbork is a town in northern Poland in the Żuławy region , with 38,478 inhabitants . Situated in the Pomeranian Voivodeship since 1999, it was previously assigned to Elbląg Voivodeship...
and was baptised there under the name Wigand.
Jogaila formulated the
Treaty of DubysaThe Treaty of Dubysa or Treaty of Dubissa consisted of three legal acts formulated on October 31, 1382 between Jogaila, Grand Duke of Lithuania, with his brother Skirgaila and Konrad von Wallenrode, Marshal of the Teutonic Knights. During the Lithuanian Civil War , Teutonic Knights helped Jogaila...
, which rewarded the Knights for their aid in defeating Kęstutis and Vytautas by promising Christianisation and granting them
SamogitiaSamogitia is one of the five ethnographic regions of Lithuania. It is located in northwestern Lithuania. Its largest city is Šiauliai/Šiaulē. The region has a long and distinct cultural history, reflected in the existence of the Samogitian dialect...
west of the
DubysaDubysa, at 131 km, is the 15th longest river in Lithuania. It originates just a few kilometers from Lake Rėkyva near Šiauliai city. At first it flows south, but at Lyduvėnai turns southeast and near Ariogala - southwest. Dubysa is a Samogitian river...
river. However, when Jogaila failed to ratify the treaty, the Knights invaded Lithuania in the summer of 1383. In 1384, Jogaila reconciled with Vytautas promising to return his patrimony in Trakai. Vytautas then turned against the Knights,attacking and looting several Prussian castles.
Baptism and marriage
Jogaila's Russian mother Uliana of Tver urged him to marry Sofia, daughter of
Prince Dmitri of MoscowSaint Dmitry Ivanovich Donskoy , or Dmitry of the Don, sometimes referred to as Dmitry I , son of Ivan II the Meek of Moscow , reigned as the Prince of Moscow from 1359 and Grand Prince of Vladimir from 1363 to his death. He was the first prince of Moscow to openly challenge Mongol authority in...
, who required him first to convert to Orthodoxy.
[The historian John Meyendorff]John Meyendorff was a modern Orthodox scholar, writer and teacher. He was born into the Russian nobility as Ivan Feofilovich Baron von Meyendorff , but was known as Jean Meyendorff during his life in France.Fr John Meyendorff retired as Dean of St Vladimir's Seminary on June 30, 1992...
suggests Jogaila may have already been an Orthodox Christian: "In 1377, Olgerd of Lithuania died, leaving the Grand Principality to his son Jagiello, an Orthodox Christian..." . Dmitri, however, made it a condition of the marriage that Jogaila "should be baptized in the Orthodox faith and that he should proclaim his Christianity to all men" . That option, however, was unlikely to halt the crusades against Lithuania by the Teutonic Knights, who regarded Orthodox Christians as schismatics and little better than heathens. Jogaila chose therefore to accept a Polish proposal to become a
CatholicThe word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
and marry the eleven-year-old Queen
Jadwiga of PolandJadwiga was monarch of Poland from 1384 to her death. Her official title was 'king' rather than 'queen', reflecting that she was a sovereign in her own right and not merely a royal consort. She was a member of the Capetian House of Anjou, the daughter of King Louis I of Hungary and Elizabeth of...
.
[Jadwiga had actually been crowned king of Poland (rex poloni), because the Polish political system made no provision for a queen-regent]A regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...
). The nobles of Malopolska made this offer to Jogaila for many reasons. For example, they wanted to neutralize the dangers from Lithuania itself and to secure the fertile territories of Galicia–Volhynia. The Polish nobles saw the offer as an opportunity for increasing their privileges and avoiding Austrian influence, brought by Jadwiga's previous fiancé
William, Duke of AustriaWilliam the Courteous was a member and head of the Leopoldinian Line, ruler of Carinthia, Styria and Carniola.Born in Vienna, he was the oldest son of Duke Leopold the Just and his wife, Viridis Visconti, and ruled in Carinthia, Styria and Carniola.His engagement with Hedwig of Hungary, youngest...
.
On 14 August 1385 in
Kreva CastleKreva Castle is the ruins of a major fortified residence of Grand Dukes Gediminas and Algirdas in Kreva village, Belarus. Algirdas's brother Kęstutis was imprisoned and murdered in Kreva Castle in 1382. The Act of Krewo, the first step towards the Commonwealth of Poland-Lithuania, was signed in...
, Jogaila confirmed his prenuptial promises in the Union of Kreva. The promises included the adoption of Christianity, repatriation of lands "stolen" from Poland by its neighbours, and
terras suas Lithuaniae et Russiae Coronae Regni Poloniae perpetuo applicare, a clause interpreted by historians to mean anything from a
personal unionA personal union is the combination by which two or more different states have the same monarch while their boundaries, their laws and their interests remain distinct. It should not be confused with a federation which is internationally considered a single state...
between Lithuania and Poland to a complete incorporation of Lithuania into Poland. The agreement at Kreva has been described both as far-sighted and as a desperate gamble.
[It "reflects the exceptional far-sightedness of the political elites ruling both countries" . It was "a desperate gamble by Jogaila to avert a seemingly inevitable subjugation" ]
Jogaila was duly baptised at the
Wawel CathedralThe Wawel Cathedral, also known as the Cathedral Basilica of Sts. Stanisław and Vaclav, is a church located on Wawel Hill in Kraków–Poland's national sanctuary. It has a 1,000-year history and was the traditional coronation site of Polish monarchs. It is the Cathedral of the Archdiocese of Kraków...
in
KrakówKraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
on 15 February 1386 and from then on formally used the name Władysław or Latin versions of it.
[A Slavic name that roughly translates as glorious rule, Władysław is often Latinised into either Wladislaus or Ladislaus. The choice evoked both Władysław I of Poland, the Elbow-high, who was Queen Jadwiga's great grandfather and unified the kingdom in 1320, and Saint Ladislaus I of Hungary, a king who sided with the pope against the emperor Henry IV]Henry IV was King of the Romans from 1056 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1084 until his forced abdication in 1105. He was the third emperor of the Salian dynasty and one of the most powerful and important figures of the 11th century...
and Christianised TransylvaniaTransylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
. The marriage went ahead on 4 March 1386, two weeks after the baptism ceremonies, and Jogaila was crowned King Władysław by archbishop
BodzantaBodzanta or Bodzęta of Kosowice of Szeliga coat of arms was an archbishop of Gniezno , Polish noble, governor of Kraków–Sandomierz lands .Supporter of Louis I of Hungary and the Angevin dynasty...
. He was also to be legally adopted by Jadwiga's mother, Elizabeth of Bosnia, so retaining the throne in the event of Jadwiga's death. The royal baptism triggered the conversion of most of Jogaila's court and noblemen, as well as mass baptisms in Lithuanian rivers, a beginning of the final
Christianization of LithuaniaThe Christianization of Lithuania – Christianization of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania that took place in 1387, initiated by the King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania Jogaila and his cousin Vytautas, that signified the official adoption of Christianity by Lithuanians, one of the last pagan...
. Though the ethnic Lithuanian nobility were the main converts to Catholicism—both paganism and the Orthodox rite remained strong among the peasants—the king's conversion and its political implications created lasting repercussions for the history of both Lithuania and Poland.
Ruler of Lithuania and Poland
Władysław II Jagiello and Queen Jadwiga reigned as co-monarchs; and though Jadwiga probably had little real power, she took an active part in Poland's political and cultural life. In 1387, she led two successful military expeditions to
Red RutheniaRed Ruthenia is the name used since medieval times to refer to the area known as Eastern Galicia prior to World War I; first mentioned in Polish historic chronicles in the 1321, as Ruthenia Rubra or Ruthenian Voivodeship .Ethnographers explain that the term was applied from the...
, recovered lands her father
Louis I of Hungary had transferred from Poland to Hungary, and secured the homage of
Petru I, Voivode of MoldaviaPetru I Muşat was Voivode of Moldavia from 1375 to 1391, the son of Costea Muşat, the first ruler from the dynastic House of Bogdan. During his reign, he maintained good relationships with his neighbours, especially Poland....
. In 1390, she also personally opened negotiations with the Teutonic Order. Most political responsibilities, however, fell to Jagiello, with Jadwiga attending to the cultural and charitable activities for which she is still revered.
Soon after Jagiello accession to the Polish throne, Jagiello granted
VilniusVilnius is the capital of Lithuania, and its largest city, with a population of 560,190 as of 2010. It is the seat of the Vilnius city municipality and of the Vilnius district municipality. It is also the capital of Vilnius County...
a city charter like that of
KrakówKraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
, modeled on the Magdeburg Law; and Vytautas issued a privilege to a Jewish commune of
TrakaiTrakai is a historic city and lake resort in Lithuania. It lies 28 km west of Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. Because of its proximity to Vilnius, Trakai is a popular tourist destination. Trakai is the administrative centre of Trakai district municipality. The town covers 11.52 km2 of...
on almost the same terms as privileges issued to the Jews of Poland in the reigns of Boleslaus the Pious and Casimir the Great. Władysław's policy of unifying the two legal systems was partial and uneven at first but achieved a lasting influence. By the time of the
Union of LublinThe Union of Lublin replaced the personal union of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania with a real union and an elective monarchy, since Sigismund II Augustus, the last of the Jagiellons, remained childless after three marriages. In addition, the autonomy of Royal Prussia was...
in 1569, there was not much difference between the administrative and judicial systems in force in Lithuania and Poland.
One effect of Jagiello's measures was to be the advancement of Catholics in Lithuania at the expense of Orthodox elements; in 1387 and 1413, for example, Lithuanian Catholic boyars were granted special judicial and political privileges denied the Orthodox boyars. As this process gained momentum, it was accompanied by the rise of both Rus' and Lithuanian identity in the 15th century.
Challenges
Jagiello's baptism entirely failed to end the alleged crusade of the Teutonic Knights, who claimed his conversion was a sham, perhaps even a heresy, and renewed their incursions on the pretext that pagans remained in Lithuania. From now on, however, the Order found it harder to sustain the cause of a crusade and faced the growing threat to its existence posed by the Kingdom of Poland and a genuinely Christian Lithuania alliance. Władysław sponsored the creation of the
diocese of VilniusThe Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Vilnius is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in Lithuania. Established as the Diocese of Vilnius in the 14th century, it was elevated to the rank of a metropolitan archdiocese by Pope Pius XI on October 28, 1925...
under bishop Andrzej Wasilko, the former confessor of
Elisabeth of HungaryElizabeth of Hungary, T.O.S.F., was a princess of the Kingdom of Hungary, Countess of Thuringia, Germany and a greatly-venerated Catholic saint. Elizabeth was married at the age of 14, and widowed at 20. She then became one of the first members of the newly-founded Third Order of St. Francis,...
. The bishopric, which included Samogitia, then largely controlled by the Teutonic Order, was subordinated to the see of
GnieznoGniezno is a city in central-western Poland, some 50 km east of Poznań, inhabited by about 70,000 people. One of the Piasts' chief cities, it was mentioned by 10th century A.D. sources as the capital of Piast Poland however the first capital of Piast realm was most likely Giecz built around...
and not to that of Teutonic
KönigsbergKönigsberg was the capital of East Prussia from the Late Middle Ages until 1945 as well as the northernmost and easternmost German city with 286,666 inhabitants . Due to the multicultural society in and around the city, there are several local names for it...
. The decision may not have improved Władysław's relations with the Order, but it served to introduce closer ties between Lithuania and Poland, enabling the Polish church to freely assist its Lithuanian counterpart.
In 1389, Władysław's rule in Lithuania faced a revived challenge from Vytautas, who resented the power given to
SkirgailaSkirgaila , also known as Ivan; ca. 1353 or 1354 – 11 January 1397 in Kiev; baptized 1383/1384 as Casimir) was a regent of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania for his brother Jogaila from 1386 to 1392. He was son of Algirdas, Grand Duke of Lithuania, and his second wife Uliana of Tver.-Biography:After...
in Lithuania at the expense of his own patrimony. Vytautas started a
civil war in LithuaniaThe Lithuanian Civil War of 1389–1392 was the second civil conflict between Jogaila, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, and his cousin Vytautas the Great. At issue was control of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, then the largest state in Europe. Jogaila had been crowned King of Poland in...
, aiming to become the Grand Duke. On 4 September 1390, the joint forces of Vytautas and the Teutonic Grand Master,
Konrad von WallenrodeKonrad von Wallenrode was the 24th Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, serving from 1391 to 1393. Modern sources are friendly towards Konrad, although they claim he was hot-blooded, proud, and had tendencies to be cruel....
, laid siege to Vilnius, which was held by Władysław's regent Skirgaila with combined Polish, Lithuanian and Ruthenian troops. Although the Knights lifted the siege of the castle after a month, they reduced much of the outer city to ruins. This bloody conflict was eventually brought to a temporary halt in 1392 with the Treaty of Ostrów, by which Władysław handed over the government of Lithuania to his cousin in exchange for peace: Vytautas was to rule Lithuania as the Grand Duke (
magnus dux) until his death, under the overlordship of the Supreme Duke (
dux supremus) in the person of the Polish monarch. Skirgaila was moved from the
Duchy of TrakaiDuchy of Trakai was a subdivision of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania during the 14th and early 15th centuries. The Duke of Trakai was an important position held either by the Grand Duke of Lithuania himself or his second-in-command.-History:...
to become prince of Kiev. Vytautas accepted his new status but continued to demand Lithuania's complete separation from Poland.
This protracted period of war between the Lithuanians and the Teutonic Knights was ended on 12 October 1398 by the
Treaty of SalynasTreaty of Salynas was a peace treaty signed on October 12, 1398 by the Grand Duke of Lithuania Vytautas the Great and the Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights Konrad von Jungingen. It was signed on an islet of the Neman River, probably between Kulautuva and the mouth of the Nevėžis River...
, named after the islet in the
Neman RiverNeman 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...
where it was signed. Lithuania agreed to cede Samogitia and assist the Teutonic Order in a campaign to seize
PskovPskov 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:...
, while the Order agreed to assist Lithuania in a campaign to seize Novgorod. Shortly afterwards, Vytautas was crowned as a king by local nobles; but the following year his forces and those of his ally, Khan
TokhtamyshTokhtamysh was the prominent khan of the White Horde, who briefly unified the White Horde and Blue Horde subdivisions of the Golden Horde into a single state. He was a descendant of Genghis Khan's eldest grandson, Orda Khan or his brother Tuqa-Timur...
of the White Horde, were crushed by the
TimuridsThe Timurids , self-designated Gurkānī , were a Persianate, Central Asian Sunni Muslim dynasty of Turko-Mongol descent whose empire included the whole of Iran, modern Afghanistan, and modern Uzbekistan, as well as large parts of contemporary Pakistan, North India, Mesopotamia, Anatolia and the...
at the
Battle of the Vorskla RiverThe Battle of the Vorskla River was a great battle in the medieval history of Eastern Europe. It was fought on August 12, 1399, between the Tatars, under Edigu and Temur Qutlugh, and the armies of Tokhtamysh and Grand Duke Vytautas of Lithuania...
, ending his imperial ambitions in the east and obliging him to submit to Władysław's protection once more.
King of Poland
On 22 June 1399, Jadwiga gave birth to a daughter, baptised Elizabeth Bonifacia; but within a month the mother and daughter died, leaving Władysław sole ruler of the Kingdom of Poland and without an heir nor much legitimacy to rule the kingdom. Jadwiga's death undermined Władysław's right to the throne; and as a result old conflicts between the nobility of
Lesser PolandLesser Poland is one of the historical regions of Poland, with its capital in the city of Kraków. It forms the southeastern corner of the country, and should not be confused with the modern Lesser Poland Voivodeship, which covers only a small, southern part of Lesser Poland...
, generally sympathetic to Władysław, and the gentry of
Greater PolandGreater Poland or Great Poland, often known by its Polish name Wielkopolska is a historical region of west-central Poland. Its chief city is Poznań.The boundaries of Greater Poland have varied somewhat throughout history...
began to surface. In 1402, Władysław answered the rumblings against his rule by marrying
Anna of CeljeAnne of Celje was Queen of Poland and Grand Duchess of Lithuania, 1402–1416 as second wife of Jogaila, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania ....
, a granddaughter of
Casimir III of PolandCasimir III the Great , last King of Poland from the Piast dynasty , was the son of King Władysław I the Elbow-high and Hedwig of Kalisz.-Biography:...
, a political match which re-legitimised his reign.
The Union of Vilnius and Radom of 1401 confirmed Vytautas's status as grand duke under Władysław's overlordship, while assuring the title of grand duke to the heirs of Władysław rather than those of Vytautas: should Władysław die without heirs, the Lithuanian
boyarA boyar, or bolyar , was a member of the highest rank of the feudal Moscovian, Kievan Rus'ian, Bulgarian, Wallachian, and Moldavian aristocracies, second only to the ruling princes , from the 10th century through the 17th century....
s were to elect a new monarch. Since no heir had yet been produced by either monarch, the act's implications were unforeseeable, but it forged bonds between the Polish and Lithuanian nobility and a permanent
defensive alliance between the two states, strengthening Lithuania's hand for a new war against the Teutonic Order in which Poland officially took no part. While the document left the liberties of the Polish nobles untouched, it granted increased power to the boyars of Lithuania, whose grand dukes had till then been unencumbered by checks and balances of the sort attached to the Polish monarchy. The Union of Vilnius and Radom therefore earned Władysław a measure of support in Lithuania.
In late 1401, the new war against the Order overstretched the resources of the Lithuanians, who found themselves fighting on two fronts after uprisings in the eastern provinces. Another of Władysław's brothers, the malcontent
ŠvitrigailaŠvitrigaila Švitrigaila Švitrigaila (ca 1370 – 10 February 1452; was the Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1430 to 1432. He spent most of his life in largely unsuccessful dynastic struggles against his cousins Vytautas and Sigismund Kęstutaitis.-Struggle against Vytautas:...
, chose this moment to stir up revolts behind the lines and declare himself grand duke. On 31 January 1402, he presented himself in
MarienburgMalbork is a town in northern Poland in the Żuławy region , with 38,478 inhabitants . Situated in the Pomeranian Voivodeship since 1999, it was previously assigned to Elbląg Voivodeship...
, where he won the backing of the Knights with concessions similar to those made by Jogaila and Vytautas during earlier leadership contests in the Grand Duchy.
Defeat
The war ended in defeat for Władysław. On 22 May 1404 in the Treaty of Raciąż, he acceded to most of the Order's demands, including the formal cession of Samogitia, and agreed to support the Order's designs on
PskovPskov 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:...
; in return,
Konrad von JungingenKonrad von Jungingen was the 25th Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, serving from 1393 to 1407...
undertook to sell Poland the disputed
Dobrzyń LandDobrzyń Land is a historic region around the town of Dobrzyń nad Wisłą in Poland, east of the Vistula River and south of the Drwęca, where it borders on the Kulmerland...
and the town of Złotoryja, once pawned to the Order by Władysław Opolski, and to support Vytautas in a revived attempt on Novgorod. Both sides had practical reasons for signing the treaty at that point: the Order needed time to fortify its newly acquired lands, the Poles and Lithuanians to deal with territorial challenges in the east and in
SilesiaSilesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts also in the Czech Republic, and Germany.Silesia is rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. Silesia's largest city and historical capital is Wrocław...
.
Also in 1404, Władysław held talks at Vratislav with
Wenceslaus IV of BohemiaWenceslaus ) was, by election, German King from 1376 and, by inheritance, King of Bohemia from 1378. He was the third Bohemian and second German monarch of the Luxembourg dynasty...
, who offered to return Silesia to Poland if Władysław supported him in his power struggle within the
Holy Roman EmpireThe Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
. Władysław turned the deal down with the agreement of both Polish and Silesian nobles, unwilling to burden himself with new military commitments in the west.
Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic war
In December 1408, Władysław and Vytautas held strategic talks in
Navahrudak CastleThe former castle in Navahrudak, Belarus was one of the key strongholds of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, cited by Maciej Stryjkowski as the location of Mindaugas's coronation as King of Lithuania as well as his likely burial place...
, where they decided to foment a Samogitian uprising against Teutonic rule to draw German forces away from
PomereliaPomerelia is a historical region in northern Poland. Pomerelia lay in eastern Pomerania: on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea and west of the Vistula and its delta. The area centered on the city of Gdańsk at the mouth of the Vistula...
. Władysław promised to repay Vytautas for his support by restoring Samogitia to Lithuania in any future peace treaty. The uprising, which began in May 1409, at first provoked little reaction from the Knights, who had not yet consolidated their rule in Samogitia by building castles; but by June their diplomats were busy lobbying Władysław's court at
ObornikiOborniki is a town in Poland, in Greater Poland Voivodeship, about 30 km north of Poznań. It is the capital of Oborniki County and of Gmina Oborniki. Its population is 18,176 .-External links:* *...
, warning his nobles against Polish involvement in a war between Lithuania and the Order. Władysław, however, bypassed his nobles and informed new Grand Master
Ulrich von JungingenUlrich von Jungingen was the 26th Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, serving from 1407 to 1410. His policy of confrontation with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland sparked the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War and led to disaster for the Order in the Battle of Grunwald.- Life...
that if the Knights acted to suppress Samogitia, Poland would intervene. This stung the Order into issuing a declaration of war against Poland on 6 August, which Władysław received on 14 August in
Nowy KorczynNowy Korczyn is a village in Busko County, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, in south-central Poland. It is the seat of the gmina called Gmina Nowy Korczyn. It lies approximately south of Busko-Zdrój and south of the regional capital Kielce. It is located close to the confluence of the Nida and...
.
The castles guarding the northern border were in such bad condition that the Knights easily captured those at Złotoryja,
DobrzyńThe terms Dobrzyń and Dobrin may refer to:* Order of Dobrzyń, military order* Golub-Dobrzyń, town in Poland* Dobrzyń nad Wisłą, town in Poland* Dobrzyń, Masovian Voivodeship...
and
BobrownikiBobrowniki is a village in Lipno County, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, in north-central Poland. It is the seat of the gmina called Gmina Bobrowniki. It lies approximately south-west of Lipno and south-east of Toruń...
, the capital of
Dobrzyń LandDobrzyń Land is a historic region around the town of Dobrzyń nad Wisłą in Poland, east of the Vistula River and south of the Drwęca, where it borders on the Kulmerland...
, while German burghers invited them into
Bydgoszcz (German: Bromberg). Władysław arrived on the scene in late September, retook Bydgoszcz within a week, and came to terms with the Order on 8 October. During the winter, the two armies prepared for a major confrontation. Władysław installed a strategic supply depot at Płock in Masovia and had a
pontoon bridgeA pontoon bridge or floating bridge is a bridge that floats on water and in which barge- or boat-like pontoons support the bridge deck and its dynamic loads. While pontoon bridges are usually temporary structures, some are used for long periods of time...
constructed and transported north down the
VistulaThe Vistula is the longest and the most important river in Poland, at 1,047 km in length. The watershed area of the Vistula is , of which lies within Poland ....
.
Meanwhile, both sides unleashed diplomatic offensives. The Knights dispatched letters to the monarchs of Europe, preaching their usual crusade against the heathens; Władysław countered with his own letters to the monarchs, accusing the Order of planning to conquer the whole world. Such appeals successfully recruited many foreign knights to each side.
Wenceslas IV of BohemiaWenceslaus ) was, by election, German King from 1376 and, by inheritance, King of Bohemia from 1378. He was the third Bohemian and second German monarch of the Luxembourg dynasty...
signed a defensive treaty with the Poles against the Teutonic Order; his brother,
Sigismund of LuxembourgSigismund of Luxemburg KG was King of Hungary, of Croatia from 1387 to 1437, of Bohemia from 1419, and Holy Roman Emperor for four years from 1433 until 1437, the last Emperor of the House of Luxemburg. He was also King of Italy from 1431, and of Germany from 1411...
, allied himself with the Order and declared war against Poland on 12 July, though his Hungarian vassals refused his call to arms.
Battle of Grunwald
When the war resumed in June 1410, Władysław advanced into the Teutonic heartland at the head of an army of about 20,000 mounted nobles, 15,000 armed commoners, and 2,000 professional cavalry mainly hired from Bohemia. After crossing the Vistula over the pontoon bridge at Czerwińsk, his troops met up with those of Vytautas, whose 11,000 light cavalry included Ruthenians and
TatarsTatars are a Turkic speaking ethnic group , numbering roughly 7 million.The majority of Tatars live in the Russian Federation, with a population of around 5.5 million, about 2 million of which in the republic of Tatarstan.Significant minority populations are found in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan,...
. The Teutonic Order's army numbered about 18,000 cavalry, mostly Germans and 5,000 infantry. On 15 July, at the
Battle of GrunwaldThe Battle of Grunwald or 1st Battle of Tannenberg was fought on 15 July 1410, during the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War. The alliance of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, led respectively by King Jogaila and Grand Duke Vytautas , decisively defeated the Teutonic Knights, led...
(also known as Battle of Tannenberg) after one of the largest and most ferocious battles of the Middle Ages, the allies won a victory so overwhelming that the Teutonic Order's army was virtually annihilated, with most of its key commanders killed in combat, including Grand Master
Ulrich von JungingenUlrich von Jungingen was the 26th Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, serving from 1407 to 1410. His policy of confrontation with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland sparked the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War and led to disaster for the Order in the Battle of Grunwald.- Life...
and Grand Marshal Friedrich von Wallenrode. Thousands of troops were reported to have been slaughtered on either side.
The road to the Teutonic capital
Marienburg-The historical German names of these places:*Ordensburg Marienburg , the large brick castle built by the Teutonic Knights**Malbork, Poland, site of the Ordensburg Marienburg, formerly Marienburg in Westpreußen and during World War II, Nazi Stalag XX-B for enlisted men*Alūksne, Latvia*Feldioara,...
now lay open, the city undefended; but for reasons the sources do not explain, Władysław hesitated to pursue his advantage. On 17 July, his army began a laboured advance, arriving at Marienburg only on 25 July, by which time the new Grand Master, Heinrich von Plauen, had organised a defence of the fortress. The apparent half-heartedness of the ensuing siege, called off by Władysław on 19 September, has been ascribed variously to the impregnability of the fortifications, to high casualty figures among the Lithuanians, and to Władysław's unwillingness to risk further casualties; but a lack of sources precludes a definitive explanation.
Dissent
The war ended in 1411 with the Peace of Thorn, in which neither Poland nor Lithuania drove home their negotiating advantage to the full, much to the discontent of the Polish nobles. Poland regained
Dobrzyń LandDobrzyń Land is a historic region around the town of Dobrzyń nad Wisłą in Poland, east of the Vistula River and south of the Drwęca, where it borders on the Kulmerland...
, Lithuania regained Samogitia, and Masovia regained a small territory beyond the
WkraWkra is a river in north-eastern Poland, a tributary of the Narew river, with a length of 249 kilometres and the basin area of 5,322 km². .Towns and townships:* Bieżuń* Radzanów* Strzegowo* Glinojeck* Sochocin...
river. Most of the Teutonic Order's territory, however, including towns which had surrendered, remained intact. Władysław then proceeded to release many high-ranking Teutonic Knights and officials for apparently modest ransoms. The cumulative expense of the ransoms, however, proved a drain on the Order's resources. This failure to exploit the victory to his nobles' satisfaction provoked growing opposition to Władysław's regime after 1411, further fuelled by the granting of
PodoliaThe region of Podolia is an historical region in the west-central and south-west portions of present-day Ukraine, corresponding to Khmelnytskyi Oblast and Vinnytsia Oblast. Northern Transnistria, in Moldova, is also a part of Podolia...
, disputed between Poland and Lithuania, to Vytautas, and by the king's two-year absence in Lithuania.
In an effort to outflank his critics, Władysław promoted the leader of the opposing faction, bishop Mikołaj Trąba, to the archbishopric of
GnieznoGniezno is a city in central-western Poland, some 50 km east of Poznań, inhabited by about 70,000 people. One of the Piasts' chief cities, it was mentioned by 10th century A.D. sources as the capital of Piast Poland however the first capital of Piast realm was most likely Giecz built around...
in autumn 1411 and replaced him in Kraków with
Wojciech JastrzębiecWojciech of Jastrzębiec was a Polish mediaeval politician and religious leader. A bishop of Cracow and Poznań, he also held prominent posts at the court of the king Władysław II of Poland. Initially a chancellor to king Jadwiga of Poland and one of the advisors to the king Władysław, on 26 April...
, a supporter of Vytautas. He also sought to create more allies in Lithuania. In the Union of Horodło, signed on 2 October 1413, he decreed that the status of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was "tied to our Kingdom of Poland permanently and irreversibly" and granted the Catholic nobles of Lithuania privileges equal to those of the Polish
szlachtaThe szlachta was a legally privileged noble class with origins in the Kingdom of Poland. It gained considerable institutional privileges during the 1333-1370 reign of Casimir the Great. In 1413, following a series of tentative personal unions between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of...
. The act included a clause prohibiting the Polish nobles from electing a monarch without the consent of the Lithuanian nobles, and the Lithuanian nobles from electing a grand duke without the consent of the Polish monarch.
Last conflicts
In 1414, a sporadic new war broke out, known as the "
Hunger War" from the Knights'
scorched-earthA scorched earth policy is a military strategy or operational method which involves destroying anything that might be useful to the enemy while advancing through or withdrawing from an area...
tactics of burning fields and mills; but both the Knights and the Lithuanians were too exhausted from the previous war to risk a major battle, and the fighting petered out in the autumn. Hostilities did not flare up again until 1419, during the
Council of ConstanceThe Council of Constance is the 15th ecumenical council recognized by the Roman Catholic Church, held from 1414 to 1418. The council ended the Three-Popes Controversy, by deposing or accepting the resignation of the remaining Papal claimants and electing Pope Martin V.The Council also condemned and...
, when they were called off at the papal legate's insistence.
The Council of Constance proved a turning point in the Teutonic crusades, as it did for several European conflicts. Vytautas sent a delegation in 1415, including the metropolitan of Kiev; and Samogitian witnesses arrived at Constance at the end of that year to point out their preference for being "baptised with water and not with blood". The Polish envoys, among them Mikołaj Trąba,
Zawisza CzarnyZawisza Czarny z Garbowa , Sulima Coat of Arms, was a Polish knight and nobleman. He served as a soldier and diplomat under the Polish king Władysław II and Hungarian-Bohemian king Sigismund of Luxembourg...
, and Paweł Włodkowic, lobbied for an end to the forced conversion of heathens and to the Order's aggression against Lithuania and Poland. As a result of the Polish–Lithuanian diplomacy, the council, though scandalised by Włodkowic's questioning of the monastic state's legitimacy, denied the Order's request for a further crusade and instead entrusted the conversion of the Samogitians to Poland–Lithuania.
The diplomatic context at Constance included the revolt of the Bohemian
HussiteThe Hussites were a Christian movement following the teachings of Czech reformer Jan Hus , who became one of the forerunners of the Protestant Reformation...
s, who looked upon Poland as an ally in their wars against
SigismundSigismund of Luxemburg KG was King of Hungary, of Croatia from 1387 to 1437, of Bohemia from 1419, and Holy Roman Emperor for four years from 1433 until 1437, the last Emperor of the House of Luxemburg. He was also King of Italy from 1431, and of Germany from 1411...
, the emperor elect and new king of Bohemia. In 1421, the Bohemian Diet declared Sigismund deposed and formally offered the crown to Władysław on condition he accept the religious principles of the Four Articles of Prague, which he was not prepared to do. After Władysław's refusal, Vytautas was postulated (elected in absentia) as Bohemian king, but he assured the pope that he opposed the heretics. Between 1422 and 1428, Władysław's nephew,
Sigismund KorybutSigismund Korybut was a duke from the Gediminid dynasty, best known as a military commander of the Hussite army and a governor of Bohemia and Prague during the Hussite Wars....
, attempted a regency in war-torn Bohemia, with little success. Vytautas accepted Sigismund's offer of a royal crown in 1429—apparently with Władysław's blessing—but Polish forces intercepted the crown in transit and the coronation was cancelled.
In 1422, Władysław fought another war, known as the
Gollub WarThe Gollub War was a two-month war of the Teutonic Knights against the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in 1422. It ended by signing the Treaty of Melno, which resolved territorial disputes, dragging since 1398, between the Knights and Lithuania over Samogitia.-Background:The...
, against the Teutonic Order, defeating them in under two months before the Order's imperial reinforcements had time to arrive. The resulting
Treaty of MelnoThe Treaty of Melno or Treaty of Lake Melno was a peace treaty ending the Gollub War. It was signed on September 27, 1422, between the Teutonic Knights and an alliance of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania at Lake Melno , east of Graudenz...
ended the Knights' claims to Samogitia once and for all and defined a permanent border between Prussia and Lithuania. Lithuania was given the province of Samogitia, with the port of
PalangaPalanga and beautiful sand dunes. Officially Palanga has the status of a city municipality and includes Šventoji, Nemirseta, Būtingė and other settlements, which are considered as part of the city of Palanga.-Legend:...
, but the city of
KlaipėdaKlaipėda is a city in Lithuania situated at the mouth of the Nemunas River where it flows into the Baltic Sea. It is the third largest city in Lithuania and the capital of Klaipėda County....
was left to the Order. This border remained largely unchanged for roughly 500 years, until 1920. The terms of this treaty have, however, been seen as turning a Polish victory into defeat, as a result of Władysław's renunciation of Polish claims to Pomerania, Pomerelia, and
Chełmno LandChełmno land or Chełmno region is a historical region of Poland, located in central Poland, bounded by the Vistula and Drwęca rivers....
, for which he received only the town of
NieszawaNieszawa is a town and a commune in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, in north-central Poland. As of June 30, 2004, the town has a population of 2,047 people....
in return. The Treaty of Melno closed a chapter in the Knights' wars with Lithuania but did little to settle their long-term issues with Poland. Further sporadic warfare broke out between Poland and the Knights between 1431 and 1435.
Cracks in the cooperation between Poland and Lithuania after the death of Vytautas in 1430 had offered the Knights a revived opportunity for interference in Poland. Władysław supported his brother
ŠvitrigailaŠvitrigaila Švitrigaila Švitrigaila (ca 1370 – 10 February 1452; was the Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1430 to 1432. He spent most of his life in largely unsuccessful dynastic struggles against his cousins Vytautas and Sigismund Kęstutaitis.-Struggle against Vytautas:...
as grand duke of Lithuania, but when Švitrigaila, with the support of the Teutonic Order and dissatisfied Rus' nobles, rebelled against Polish overlordship in Lithuania, the Poles, under the leadership of Bishop
Zbigniew OleśnickiZbigniew Oleśnicki may refer to:* Zbigniew Oleśnicki * Zbigniew Oleśnicki , nephew of cardinal...
of Kraków, occupied
PodoliaThe region of Podolia is an historical region in the west-central and south-west portions of present-day Ukraine, corresponding to Khmelnytskyi Oblast and Vinnytsia Oblast. Northern Transnistria, in Moldova, is also a part of Podolia...
, which Władysław had awarded to Lithuania in 1411, and
VolhyniaVolhynia, Volynia, or Volyn is a historic region in western Ukraine located between the rivers Prypiat and Southern Bug River, to the north of Galicia and Podolia; the region is named for the former city of Volyn or Velyn, said to have been located on the Southern Bug River, whose name may come...
. In 1432, a pro-Polish party in Lithuania elected Vytautas's brother
ŽygimantasSigismund Kęstutaitis was the Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1432 to 1440. Sigismund was his baptismal name; Sigismund's pagan Lithuanian birth name is unknown. He was son of the Grand Duke of Lithuania Kęstutis and his wife Birutė....
as grand duke, leading to an armed struggle over the Lithuanian succession which stuttered on for years after Władysław's death.
Succession
Władysław's second wife, Anna of Celje, had died in 1416, leaving a daughter,
JadwigaHedwig Jagiellon was a Polish and Lithuanian princess, member of the Jagiellon dynasty.She was the only daughter of Wladyslaw Jagiello, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania by his second wife Anna, daughter of William, Count of Celje and Anna, in turn daughter of King Casimir III of Poland...
. In 1417, Władysław married
Elisabeth of PilicaElisabeth of Pilica was Queen consort of Poland and Grand Duchess of Lithuania as the third wife of Jogaila who was Grand Duke of Lithuania and King of Poland, reigning 1387 to 1434....
, who died in 1420 without bearing him a child, and two years later,
Sophia of HalshanySophia of Halshany , was a Lithuanian princess of Halshany, Queen of Poland from , and the last wife of Jogaila.-Biography:...
, who bore him two surviving sons. The death in 1431 of Princess Jadwiga, the last heir of Piast blood, released Władysław to make his sons by Sophia of Halshany his heirs, though he had to sweeten the Polish nobles with concessions to ensure their agreement, since the monarchy was elective. Władysław finally died in 1434, leaving Poland to his elder son,
Władysław IIIWładysław III of Varna was King of Poland from 1434, and King of Hungary from 1440, until his death at the Battle of Varna.Władysław III of Varna is known in Hungarian as I...
, and Lithuania to his younger,
CasimirCasimir IV KG of the House of Jagiellon was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1440, and King of Poland from 1447, until his death.Casimir was the second son of King Władysław II Jagiełło , and the younger brother of Władysław III of Varna....
, both still minors at the time. The Lithuanian inheritance, however, could not be taken for granted. His death in 1434 ended the personal union between the two realms, and it was not clear what would take its place.
Family tree (incomplete)
b. ca. 1280
d. 1344
| colspan="2" |
| colspan="2" | Alexander I of Tver
b. 1301
d. 22 X 1339
| colspan="2" |
| colspan="2" | Anastasia of
HalychHalych is a historic city on the Dniester River in western Ukraine. The town gave its name to the historic province and kingdom of Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia, of which it was the capital until the early 14th century, when the seat of the local princes was moved to Lviv...
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AlgirdasAlgirdas was a monarch of medieval Lithuania. Algirdas ruled the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from 1345 to 1377, which chiefly meant monarch of Lithuanians and Ruthenians...
b. ca. 1296
d. May 1377
| colspan="6" |
| colspan="2" |
Uliana Alexandrovna of TverUliana Alexandrovna of Tver was a daughter of Grand Prince Alexander of Tver and Anastasia of Halych, and second wife of Grand Prince of Lithuania Algirdas. After the death of her husband Uliana became a nun under the name Marina...
b. ca. 1330
d. 1392
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1
Jadwiga I of Poland
b. 1374
d. 17 VII 1399
OO 18 II 1386 |
2
Anne of Cilli
b. 1380/81
d. 21 V 1416
OO 29 I 1402 |
Jogaila/Władysław II Jagiełło
b. ca. 1362
d. 1 VI 1434 |
3
Elisabeth of PilicaElisabeth of Pilica was Queen consort of Poland and Grand Duchess of Lithuania as the third wife of Jogaila who was Grand Duke of Lithuania and King of Poland, reigning 1387 to 1434....
b. 1372
d. 12 V 1420
OO 2 V 1417 |
4
Sophia of HalshanySophia of Halshany , was a Lithuanian princess of Halshany, Queen of Poland from , and the last wife of Jogaila.-Biography:...
b. ca. 1405
d. 21 IX 1461
OO 7 II 1422 |
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Elizabeth Bonifacia
b. 22 VI 1399
d. 13 VII 1399
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Hedwig
b. 8 IV 1408
d. 8 XII 1431
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Władysław III
b. 31 X 1424
d. 10 XI 1444
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Casimir
b. 16 V 1426
d. 2 III 1427
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Casimir IVCasimir IV KG of the House of Jagiellon was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1440, and King of Poland from 1447, until his death.Casimir was the second son of King Władysław II Jagiełło , and the younger brother of Władysław III of Varna....
b. 30 XI 1427
d. 7 VI 1492
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