Editing History of Lithuania (section)

==Grand Duchy of Lithuania (13th century–1569)==
{{Main|Grand Duchy of Lithuania}}

===13th–14th century Lithuanian state===

====Mindaugas and his kingdom====
{{Main|History of Lithuania (1219–95)}}
[[File:Papal bull regarding Lithuanian ruler Mindaugas 1251.jpg|thumb|[[Pope Innocent IV]]'s bull regarding Lithuania's placement under the jurisdiction of the [[Bishop of Rome]], [[Mindaugas]]' baptism and coronation]]
From the early 13th century, frequent foreign military excursions became possible due to the increased cooperation and coordination among the Baltic tribes.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/> Forty such expeditions took place between 1201 and 1236 against Ruthenia, Poland, Latvia and Estonia, which were then being conquered by the [[Livonian Order]]. [[Pskov Republic|Pskov]] was pillaged and burned in 1213.<ref name="Ochmański 43-45"/> In 1219, twenty-one Lithuanian chiefs signed a peace treaty with the state of [[Galicia–Volhynia]]. This event is widely accepted as the first proof that the Baltic tribes were uniting and consolidating.<ref name=gerutis>{{cite book |last=Jakštas |first=Juozas |editor= Albertas Gerutis|others= translated by Algirdas Budreckis|title= Lithuania: 700 Years |year=1984 |edition=6th |publisher= Manyland Books|location= New York|isbn=0-87141-028-1 |pages=45–50 |chapter=Beginning of the State}}</ref>

From the early 13th century, two German crusading [[Military order (monastic society)|military orders]], the [[Livonian Brothers of the Sword]] and the [[Teutonic Knights]], became established at the mouth of the [[Daugava River]] and in [[Chełmno Land]] respectively. Under the pretense of converting the population to Christianity, they proceeded to conquer much of the area that is now Latvia and [[Estonia]], in addition to parts of Lithuania.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/> In response, a number of small Baltic tribal groups united under the rule of [[Mindaugas]]. Mindaugas, originally a ''kunigas'' or major chief, one of the five [[List of early Lithuanian dukes|senior dukes]] listed in the treaty of 1219, is referred to as the ruler of all Lithuania as of 1236 in the [[Livonian Rhymed Chronicle]].<ref name=LV-Mind>{{cite encyclopedia |first=Edvardas |last=Gudavičius | author-link=Edvardas Gudavičius |author2=Rimantas Jasas | editor= Vytautas Spečiūnas |encyclopedia= Lietuvos valdovai (XIII-XVIII a.): enciklopedinis žinynas |title=Mindaugas |year=2004 |publisher=Mokslo ir enciklopedijų leidybos institutas |location=Vilnius |isbn=5-420-01535-8 |pages=15–18|language=lt}}</ref>

[[File:Teutonic Order 1260.png|thumb|left|[[State of the Teutonic Order]] in 1260]]
In 1236 the pope declared a crusade against the Lithuanians.<ref name="Bumblauskas 29-30">Eidintas et al. (2013), pp. 29–30</ref> The [[Samogitians]], led by [[Vykintas]], Mindaugas' rival,<ref name="Ochmański 46-47">Ochmański (1982), pp. 46–47</ref> soundly defeated the Livonian Brothers and their allies in the [[Battle of Saule]] in 1236, which forced the Brothers to merge with the Teutonic Knights in 1237.<ref name="kiaupa">{{cite book |last=Kiaupa |first=Zigmantas |author2=Jūratė Kiaupienė |author3=Albinas Kuncevičius |title= The History of Lithuania Before 1795 |chapter=Establishment of the State |orig-date= 1995|edition= English|year= 2000|publisher= Lithuanian Institute of History|location= Vilnius|isbn= 9986-810-13-2|pages=45–72}}</ref> But Lithuania was trapped between the two branches of the Order.<ref name="Bumblauskas 29-30"/>

Around 1240, Mindaugas ruled over all of [[Aukštaitija]]. Afterwards, he conquered the [[Black Ruthenia]] region (which consisted of [[Grodno]], [[Brest, Belarus|Brest]], [[Navahrudak]] and the surrounding territories).<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/> Mindaugas was in process of extending his control to other areas, killing rivals or sending relatives and members of rival clans east to Ruthenia so they could conquer and settle there. They did that, but they also rebelled. The Ruthenian duke [[Daniel of Galicia]] sensed an occasion to recover Black Ruthenia and in 1249–1250 organized a powerful anti-Mindaugas (and "anti-pagan") coalition that included Mindaugas' rivals, Yotvingians, Samogitians and the [[Livonia]]n Teutonic Knights. Mindaugas, however, took advantage of the divergent interests in the coalition he faced.<ref name="Ochmański 47-48">Ochmański (1982), pp. 47–48</ref>

[[File:Seal of Mindaugas.jpg|thumb|upright=.7|[[Seal of Mindaugas]]]]
In 1250, Mindaugas entered into an agreement with the Teutonic Order; he consented to receive baptism (the act took place in 1251) and relinquish his claim over some lands in western Lithuania, for which he was to receive a royal crown in return.<ref name=voruta>{{cite journal |first=Tomas |last=Baranauskas |author-link=Tomas Baranauskas |date=23 March 2003 |title=Mindaugo karūnavimo ir Lietuvos karalystės problemos | url= http://www.voruta.lt/article.php?article=87 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20051026174819/http://www.voruta.lt/article.php?article=87 | archive-date= 2005-10-26 | journal=[[Voruta (newspaper)|Voruta]] | volume=6 | issue=504 | issn=1392-0677 | access-date =2012-05-04|language=lt}}</ref> Mindaugas was then able to withstand a military assault from the remaining coalition in 1251, and, supported by the Knights, emerge as a victor to confirm his rule over Lithuania.<ref name="Ochmański 48-50">Ochmański (1982), pp. 48–50</ref>

On 17 July 1251, [[Pope Innocent IV]] signed two [[papal bull]]s that ordered the Bishop of [[Chełmno]] to crown Mindaugas as [[List of rulers of Lithuania|King of Lithuania]], appoint a bishop for Lithuania, and build a cathedral.<ref name=MGweb>{{cite journal|last=Butkevičienė |first=Birutė |author2=Vytautas Gricius |date=July 2003 |title=Mindaugas — Lietuvos karalius |journal=Mokslas Ir Gyvenimas |volume=7 |issue=547 |issn=0134-3084 |url=http://ausis.gf.vu.lt/mg/nr/2003/07/7mlk.html |access-date=2012-05-04 |language=lt |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070523045154/http://ausis.gf.vu.lt/mg/nr/2003/07/7mlk.html |archive-date=2007-05-23 }}</ref> In 1253, Mindaugas was crowned and a [[Kingdom of Lithuania]] was established for the first and only time in Lithuanian history.<ref>{{in lang|lt}} Tomas Baranauskas. [http://www.voruta.lt/archyvas/24/1116 ''Lietuvos karalystei – 750'']{{dead link|date=November 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}. 2001.</ref><ref name="Department of State Lithuania">[https://2009-2017.state.gov/outofdate/bgn/lithuania/191349.htm Lithuania profile: history.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211218201135/https://2009-2017.state.gov/outofdate/bgn/lithuania/191349.htm |date=18 December 2021 }} U.S. Department of State Background Notes. Last accessed on 02 June 2013</ref> Mindaugas "granted" parts of Yotvingia and Samogitia that he did not control to the Knights in 1253–1259. A peace with Daniel of Galicia in 1254 was cemented by a marriage deal involving Mindaugas' daughter and Daniel's son [[Shvarn]]. Mindaugas' nephew [[Tautvilas]] returned to his [[Principality of Polotsk|Duchy of Polotsk]] and Samogitia separated, soon to be ruled by another nephew, [[Treniota]].<ref name="Ochmański 48-50"/>

In 1260, the Samogitians, victorious over the Teutonic Knights in the [[Battle of Durbe]], agreed to submit themselves to Mindaugas' rule on the condition that he abandons the Christian religion; the king complied by terminating the emergent conversion of his country, renewed anti-Teutonic warfare (in the struggle for Samogitia)<ref name="Bumblauskas 33"/> and expanded further his Ruthenian holdings.<ref name="Ochmański 50-53">Ochmański (1982), pp. 50–53</ref> It is not clear whether this was accompanied by his personal [[apostasy]].<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/><ref name="Bumblauskas 33">Eidintas et al. (2013), p. 33</ref> Mindaugas thus established the basic tenets of medieval Lithuanian policy: defense against the German Order expansion from the west and north and conquest of [[Ruthenia]] in the south and east.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/>

Mindaugas was the principal founder of the Lithuanian state. He established for a while a Christian kingdom under the pope rather than the [[Holy Roman Empire]], at a time when the remaining pagan peoples of Europe were no longer being converted peacefully, but conquered.<ref name="Bumblauskas 30-33">Eidintas et al. (2013), pp. 30–33</ref>

====Traidenis, Teutonic conquests of Baltic tribes====
{{Main|History of Lithuania (1219–95)}}
[[File:Daumantas of Pskov.jpg|thumb|upright=.7|[[Daumantas of Pskov]] killed Mindaugas in revenge for the king's taking of Daumantas' wife]]
Mindaugas was murdered in 1263 by [[Daumantas of Pskov]] and [[Treniota]], an event that resulted in great unrest and civil war. Treniota, who took over the rule of the Lithuanian territories, murdered Tautvilas, but was killed himself in 1264. The rule of Mindaugas' son [[Vaišvilkas]] followed. He was the first Lithuanian duke known to become an [[Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople|Orthodox]] Christian and settle in Ruthenia, establishing a pattern to be followed by many others.<ref name="Bumblauskas 33"/> Vaišvilkas was killed in 1267. A power struggle between Shvarn and [[Traidenis]] resulted; it ended in a victory for the latter. Traidenis' reign (1269–1282) was the longest and most stable during the period of unrest. Tradenis reunified all Lithuanian lands, repeatedly raided Ruthenia and Poland with success, defeated the Teutonic Knights in Prussia and in Livonia at the [[Battle of Aizkraukle]] in 1279. He also became the ruler of Yotvingia, Semigalia and eastern Prussia. Friendly relations with Poland followed, and in 1279, Tradenis' daughter [[Gaudemunda of Lithuania]] married [[Bolesław II of Masovia]], a [[Piast dynasty|Piast]] duke.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/><ref name="Ochmański 50-53"/>

Pagan Lithuania was a target of [[Northern Crusades|northern Christian crusades]] of the Teutonic Knights and the [[Livonian Order]].<ref name=empire>{{cite book |last=Rowell |first=C. S. |title=Lithuania Ascending: A Pagan Empire Within East-central Europe, 1295–1345 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=i4hpVJ51y4oC&pg=RA4-PA302 |access-date=2007-01-02 |date=1994-06-24 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=0-521-45011-X |pages=302–304}}</ref> In 1241, 1259 and 1275, Lithuania was also ravaged by raids from the [[Golden Horde]], which earlier (1237–1240) [[Mongol invasion of Rus'|debilitated Kievan Rus']].<ref name="Ochmański 50-53"/> After Traidenis' death, the German Knights finalized their conquests of Western Baltic tribes, and they could concentrate on Lithuania,<ref name=cd-831>{{cite book |last=Kiaupa |first=Zigmantas |title=Gimtoji istorija. Nuo 7 iki 12 klasės |url=http://mkp.emokykla.lt/gimtoji/ |access-date=2012-05-25 |year=2002 |publisher=Elektroninės leidybos namai |location=Vilnius |isbn=9986-9216-9-4 |chapter=Prie Mindaugo palikimo: Treniota, Vaišvilkas, Švarnas ir Traidenis |chapter-url=http://mkp.emokykla.lt/gimtoji/?id=831 |language=lt |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080303191252/http://mkp.emokykla.lt/gimtoji/ |archive-date=2008-03-03 }}</ref> especially on Samogitia, to connect the two branches of the Order.<ref name="Ochmański 50-53"/> A particular opportunity opened in 1274 after the conclusion of the [[Prussian uprisings|Great Prussian Rebellion]] and the conquest of the Old Prussian tribe. The Teutonic Knights then proceeded to conquer other Baltic tribes: the [[Nadruvians]] and [[Skalvians]] in 1274–1277 and the [[Yotvingians]] in 1283. The Livonian Order completed its conquest of Semigalia, the last Baltic ally of Lithuania, in 1291.<ref name=kiaupa />

====Vytenis, Lithuania's great expansion under Gediminas====
[[File:Peace agreement between Gediminas and Order.jpg|thumb|left|Peace agreement between [[Gediminas]] and the Teutonic Order]]
The [[family of Gediminas]], whose members were about to form Lithuania's [[Gediminids|great native dynasty]],<ref name="Bumblauskas 34">Eidintas et al. (2013), p. 34</ref> took over the rule of the Grand Duchy in 1285 under [[Butigeidis]]. [[Vytenis]] (r. 1295–1315) and [[Gediminas]] (r. 1315–1341), after whom the [[Gediminids|Gediminid dynasty]] is named, had to deal with constant raids and incursions from the Teutonic orders that were costly to repulse. Vytenis fought them effectively around 1298 and at about the same time was able to ally Lithuania with the German burghers of [[Riga]]. For their part, the Prussian Knights instigated a rebellion in Samogitia against the Lithuanian ruler in 1299–1300, followed by twenty incursions there in 1300–15.<ref name="Ochmański 50-53"/> Gediminas also fought the Teutonic Knights, and besides that made shrewd diplomatic moves by cooperating with the government of Riga in 1322–23 and taking advantage of the conflict between the Knights and Archbishop Friedrich von Pernstein of Riga.<ref name="Ochmański 53-55"/>

Gediminas expanded Lithuania's international connections by conducting correspondence with Pope [[John XXII]] as well as with rulers and other centers of power in Western Europe, and he invited German colonists to settle in Lithuania.<ref name="Bumblauskas 34-35">Eidintas et al. (2013), pp. 34–35</ref> Responding to Gediminas' complaints about the aggression from the Teutonic Order, the pope forced the Knights to observe a four-year peace with Lithuania in 1324–1327.<ref name="Ochmański 53-55"/> Opportunities for the Christianization of Lithuania were investigated by the pope's legates, but they met with no success.<ref name="Ochmański 53-55"/> From the time of Mindaugas, the country's rulers attempted to break Lithuania's cultural isolation, join [[Western Christendom]] and thus be protected from the Knights, but the Knights and other interests had been able to block the process.<ref name="Bumblauskas 37-39"/> In the 14th century, Gediminas' attempts to become baptized (1323–1324) and establish Catholic Christianity in his country were thwarted by the Samogitians and Gediminas' Orthodox courtiers.<ref name="Bumblauskas 34-35"/> In 1325, [[Casimir III the Great|Casimir]], the son of the Polish king [[Władysław I the Elbow-high|Władysław I]], married Gediminas' daughter [[Aldona of Lithuania|Aldona]], who became queen of Poland when Casimir ascended the Polish throne in 1333. The marriage confirmed the prestige of the Lithuanian state under Gediminas, and a defensive alliance with Poland was concluded the same year. Yearly incursions of the Knights resumed in 1328–1340, to which the Lithuanians responded with raids into Prussia and Latvia.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/><ref name="Ochmański 53-55">Ochmański (1982), pp. 53–55</ref>

[[File:Lithuanian state in 13-15th centuries.png|thumb|225px|Expansion of the [[Grand Duchy of Lithuania]] in the 13–15th centuries]]
The reign of Grand Duke Gediminas constituted the first period in Lithuanian history in which the country was recognized as a great power, mainly due to the extent of its territorial expansion into Ruthenia.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/><ref name="Davies 392">[[Norman Davies]], ''[[Europe: A History]]'', p. 392, 1998 New York, HarperPerennial, {{ISBN|0-06-097468-0}}</ref> Lithuania was unique in Europe as a pagan-ruled "kingdom" and fast-growing military power suspended between the worlds of [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] and [[Western Roman Empire|Latin]] Christianity. To be able to afford the extremely costly defense against the Teutonic Knights, it had to expand to the east. Gediminas accomplished Lithuania's eastern expansion by challenging the [[Mongols]], who from the 1230s sponsored a [[Mongol invasion of Rus']].<ref name="Lukowski 38-39">''A Concise History of Poland'', by [[Jerzy Lukowski]] and [[Hubert Zawadzki]]. Cambridge: [[Cambridge University Press]], 2nd edition 2006, {{ISBN|0-521-61857-6}}, pp. 38–39</ref> The collapse of the political structure of [[Kievan Rus']] created a partial regional power vacuum that Lithuania was able to exploit.<ref name="Bumblauskas 37-39"/> Through alliances and conquest, in competition with the [[Grand Duchy of Moscow|Principality of Moscow]],<ref name="Ochmański 53-55"/> the Lithuanians eventually gained control of vast expanses of the western and southern portions of the former Kievan Rus'.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/><ref name="Davies 392"/> Gediminas' conquests included the western [[Smolensk]] region, southern [[Polesia]] and (temporarily) [[Kyiv]], which was ruled around 1330 by Gediminas' brother [[Fiodor of Kiev|Fiodor]].<ref name="Ochmański 53-55"/> The Lithuanian-controlled area of Ruthenia grew to include most of modern [[Belarus]] and [[Ukraine]] (the [[Dnieper River]] basin) and comprised a massive state that stretched from the [[Baltic Sea]] to the [[Black Sea]] in the 14th and 15th centuries.<ref name="Bumblauskas 37-39">Eidintas et al. (2013), pp. 37–39</ref><ref name="Davies 392"/>

In the 14th century, many Lithuanian princes installed to govern the Ruthenia lands accepted [[Eastern Christianity]] and assumed Ruthenian custom and names in order to appeal to the culture of their subjects. Through this means, integration into the Lithuanian state structure was accomplished without disturbing local ways of life.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/> The Ruthenian territories acquired were vastly larger, more densely populated and more highly developed in terms of church organization and literacy than the territories of core Lithuania. Thus the Lithuanian state was able to function because of the contributions of the [[Culture of ancient Rus|Ruthenian culture]] representatives.<ref name="Bumblauskas 37-39"/> Historical territories of the former Ruthenian dukedoms were preserved under the Lithuanian rule, and the further they were from Vilnius, the more autonomous the localities tended to be.<ref name="Bumblauskas 41">Eidintas et al. (2013), p. 41</ref> Lithuanian soldiers and Ruthenians together defended Ruthenian strongholds, at times paying tribute to the [[Golden Horde]] for some of the outlying localities.<ref name="Ochmański 53-55"/> Ruthenian lands may have been ruled jointly by Lithuania and the Golden Horde as [[Condominium (international law)|condominium]]s until the time of [[Vytautas]], who stopped paying tribute.<ref name="Bumblauskas 40">Eidintas et al. (2013), p. 40</ref> Gediminas' state provided a counterbalance against the influence of Moscow and enjoyed good relations with the Ruthenian principalities of [[Pskov Republic|Pskov]], [[Novgorod Republic|Veliky Novgorod]] and [[Tver]]. Direct military confrontations with the Principality of Moscow under [[Ivan I of Moscow|Ivan I]] occurred around 1335.<ref name="Ochmański 53-55"/>

====Algirdas and Kęstutis====
[[File:Algierd. Альгерд (A. Guagnini, 1578).jpg|thumb|left|16th-century image of [[Algirdas]], one of the great rulers of 14th-century Europe]]
Around 1318, Gediminas' elder son [[Algirdas]] married [[Maria of Vitebsk]], the daughter of Prince Yaroslav of [[Principality of Vitebsk|Vitebsk]], and settled in [[Vitebsk]] to rule the principality.<ref name="Ochmański 53-55"/> Of Gediminas' seven sons, four remained pagan and three converted to Orthodox Christianity.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/> Upon his death, Gediminas divided his domains among the seven sons, but Lithuania's precarious military situation, especially on the Teutonic frontier, forced the brothers to keep the country together.<ref name="Ochmański 55-56">Ochmański (1982), pp. 55–56</ref> From 1345, Algirdas took over as the Grand Duke of Lithuania. In practice, he ruled over Lithuanian Ruthenia only, whereas [[Lithuania proper]] was the domain of his equally able brother [[Kęstutis]]. Algirdas fought the Golden Horde Tatars and the Principality of Moscow; Kęstutis took upon himself the demanding struggle with the Teutonic Order.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/>

The warfare with the Teutonic Order continued from 1345, and in 1348, the Knights defeated the Lithuanians at the [[Battle of Strėva]]. Kęstutis requested King [[Casimir III the Great|Casimir]] of Poland to mediate with the pope in hopes of converting Lithuania to Christianity, but the result was negative, and Poland took from Lithuania in 1349 the [[Halych]] area and some Ruthenian lands further north. Lithuania's situation improved from 1350, when Algirdas formed an alliance with the [[Tver#Grand princedom|Principality of Tver]]. Halych was ceded by Lithuania, which brought peace with Poland in 1352. Secured by those alliances, Algirdas and Kęstutis embarked on the implementation of policies to expand Lithuania's territories further.<ref name="Ochmański 55-56"/>

[[File:Authentic Seal of Kęstutis.jpg|thumb|Seal of [[Kęstutis]]]]
[[Bryansk]] was taken in 1359, and in 1362, Algirdas captured Kyiv after defeating the Mongols at the [[Battle of Blue Waters]].<ref name="Davies 392"/><ref name="Lukowski 38-39"/><ref name="Ochmański 55-56"/> [[Volhynia]], [[Podolia]] and [[left-bank Ukraine]] were also incorporated. Kęstutis heroically fought for the survival of ethnic Lithuanians by attempting to repel about thirty incursions by the Teutonic Knights and their European guest fighters.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/> Kęstutis also attacked the Teutonic possessions in Prussia on numerous occasions, but the Knights took [[Kaunas]] in 1362.<ref name="Ochmański 56-58">Ochmański (1982), pp. 56–58</ref> The dispute with Poland renewed itself and was settled by the peace of 1366, when Lithuania gave up a part of Volhynia including [[Volodymyr-Volynskyi|Volodymyr]]. A peace with the Livonian Knights was also accomplished in 1367. In 1368, 1370 and 1372, Algirdas invaded the [[Grand Duchy of Moscow]] and each time approached [[Moscow]] itself. An "eternal" peace (the [[Treaty of Lyubutsk]]) was concluded after the last attempt, and it was much needed by Lithuania due to its involvement in heavy fighting with the Knights again in 1373–1377.<ref name="Ochmański 56-58"/>

The two brothers and Gediminas' other offspring left many ambitious sons with inherited territory. Their rivalry weakened the country in the face of the Teutonic expansion and the newly assertive Grand Duchy of Moscow, buoyed by the 1380 victory over the Golden Horde at the [[Battle of Kulikovo]] and intent on the unification of all Rus' lands under its rule.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/>

====Jogaila's conflict with Kęstutis, Vytautas====
[[File:Treaty of Dovydiškės between Jogaila and Order.png|thumb|left|Jogaila's [[Treaty of Dovydiškės|treaty with the Teutonic Knights]] precipitated the fall of Kęstutis.]]
Algirdas died in 1377, and his son [[Jogaila]] became grand duke while Kęstutis was still alive. The Teutonic pressure was at its peak, and Jogaila was inclined to cease defending Samogitia in order to concentrate on preserving the Ruthenian empire of Lithuania. The Knights exploited the differences between Jogaila and Kęstutis and procured a separate armistice with the older duke in 1379. Jogaila then made overtures to the Teutonic Order and concluded the secret [[Treaty of Dovydiškės]] with them in 1380, contrary to Kęstutis' principles and interests. Kęstutis felt he could no longer support his nephew and in 1381, when Jogaila's forces were preoccupied with quenching a rebellion in [[Polotsk]], he entered Vilnius in order to remove Jogaila from the throne. A [[Lithuanian Civil War (1381–84)|Lithuanian civil war]] ensued. Kęstutis' two raids against Teutonic possessions in 1382 brought back the tradition of his past exploits, but Jogaila retook Vilnius during his uncle's absence. Kęstutis was captured and died in Jogaila's custody. Kęstutis' son [[Vytautas]] escaped.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/><ref name="Lukowski 38-39"/><ref name="Ochmański 58-60">Ochmański (1982), pp. 58–60</ref>

Jogaila agreed to the [[Treaty of Dubysa]] with the Order in 1382, an indication of his weakness. A four-year truce stipulated Jogaila's conversion to Catholicism and the cession of half of Samogitia to the Teutonic Knights. Vytautas went to Prussia in seek of the support of the Knights for his claims, including the [[Duchy of Trakai]], which he considered inherited from his father. Jogaila's refusal to submit to the demands of his cousin and the Knights resulted in their joint invasion of Lithuania in 1383. Vytautas, however, having failed to gain the entire duchy, established contacts with the grand duke. Upon receiving from him the areas of [[Grodno]], [[Podlasie]] and [[Brest, Belarus|Brest]], Vytautas switched sides in 1384 and destroyed the border strongholds entrusted to him by the Order. In 1384, the two Lithuanian dukes, acting together, waged a successful expedition against the lands ruled by the Order.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/>

By that time, for the sake of its long-term survival, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania had initiated the processes leading to its imminent acceptance of European [[Christendom]].<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/> The Teutonic Knights aimed at a territorial unification of their Prussian and Livonian branches by conquering Samogitia and all of Lithuania proper, following the earlier subordination of the Prussian and Latvian tribes. To dominate the neighboring Baltic and Slavic people and expand into a great Baltic power, the Knights used German and other volunteer fighters. They unleashed 96 onslaughts in Lithuania during the period 1345–1382, against which the Lithuanians were able to respond with only 42 retributive raids of their own. Lithuania's Ruthenian empire in the east was also threatened by both the unification of Rus' ambitions of Moscow and the centrifugal activities pursued by the rulers of some of the more distant provinces.<ref name="Ochmański 70-74">Ochmański (1982), pp. 70–74</ref>

====13th–14th century Lithuanian society====
[[File:VILLINUS OLD TOWN LITHUANIA SEP 2013 (9851576794).jpg|thumb|[[Gediminas' Tower]] in [[Vilnius]], built under [[Vytautas]]]]
The Lithuanian state of the later 14th century was primarily binational, Lithuanian and Ruthenian (in territories that correspond to the modern Belarus and Ukraine). Of its 800,000 square kilometers total area, 10% comprised ethnic Lithuania, probably populated by no more than 300,000 inhabitants. Lithuania was dependent for its survival on the human and material resources of the Ruthenian lands.<ref name="Ochmański 60">Ochmański (1982), p. 60</ref>

The increasingly differentiated Lithuanian society was led by princes of the [[Gediminids|Gediminid]] and [[Rurik Dynasty|Rurik]] dynasties and the descendants of former ''kunigas'' chiefs from families such as the [[Giedraitis family|Giedraitis]], [[Olshanski]] and Svirski. Below them in rank was the regular [[Lithuanian nobility]] (or [[boyar]]s), in Lithuania proper strictly subjected to the princes and generally living on modest family farms, each tended by a few feudal subjects or, more often, slave workers if the boyar could afford them. For their military and administrative services, Lithuanian boyars were compensated by exemptions from public contributions, payments, and Ruthenian land grants. The majority of the ordinary rural workers were free. They were obligated to provide crafts and numerous contributions and services; for not paying these types of debts (or for other offences), one could be forced into slavery.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/><ref name="Ochmański 60–62">Ochmański (1982), pp. 60–62</ref>

The Ruthenian princes were Orthodox, and many Lithuanian princes also converted to [[Eastern Orthodoxy]], even some who resided in Lithuania proper, or at least their wives. The masonry Ruthenian churches and monasteries housed learned monks, their writings (including [[Gospel]] translations such as the [[Ostromir Gospels]]) and collections of religious art. A Ruthenian quarter populated by Lithuania's Orthodox subjects, and containing their church, existed in Vilnius from the 14th century. The grand dukes' chancery in Vilnius was staffed by Orthodox churchmen, who, trained in the [[Church Slavonic language]], developed [[Chancery Slavonic]], a Ruthenian written language useful for official record keeping. The most important of the Grand Duchy's documents, the [[Lithuanian Metrica]], the [[Lithuanian Chronicles]] and the [[Statutes of Lithuania]], were all written in that language.<ref name="Bumblauskas 41-44">Eidintas et al. (2013), pp. 41–44</ref>

German, [[Jew]]ish and [[Armenia]]n settlers were invited to live in Lithuania; the last two groups established their own denominational communities directly under the ruling dukes. The Tatars and [[Crimean Karaites]] were entrusted as soldiers for the dukes' personal guard.<ref name="Bumblauskas 41-44"/>

Towns developed to a much lesser degree than in nearby Prussia or [[Livonia]]. Outside of Ruthenia, the only cities were [[Vilnius]] (Gediminas' capital from 1323), the old capital of [[Trakai]] and [[Kaunas]].<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/><ref name="Bumblauskas 22"/><ref name="Department of State Lithuania"/> [[Kernavė]] and [[Kreva]] were the other old political centers.<ref name="Ochmański 53-55"/> Vilnius in the 14th century was a major social, cultural and trading center. It linked economically central and eastern Europe with the [[Baltic states|Baltic area]]. Vilnius merchants enjoyed privileges that allowed them to trade over most of the territories of the Lithuanian state. Of the passing Ruthenian, Polish and German merchants (many from Riga), many settled in Vilnius and some built masonry residencies. The city was ruled by a governor named by the grand duke and its system of fortifications included three castles. Foreign currencies and Lithuanian currency (from the 13th century) were widely used.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/><ref name="Ochmański 62–63">Ochmański (1982), pp. 62–63</ref>

The Lithuanian state maintained a [[Patrimonialism|patrimonial]] power structure. Gediminid rule was hereditary, but the ruler would choose the son he considered most able to be his successor. Councils existed, but could only advise the duke. The huge state was divided into a hierarchy of territorial units administered by designated officials who were also empowered in judicial and military matters.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/>

The Lithuanians spoke in a number of Aukštaitian and Samogitian (West-Baltic) dialects. But the tribal peculiarities were disappearing and the increasing use of the name ''Lietuva'' was a testimony to the developing Lithuanian sense of separate identity. The forming Lithuanian [[feudalism|feudal system]] preserved many aspects of the earlier societal organization, such as the family clan structure, free peasantry and some slavery. The land belonged now to the ruler and the nobility. Patterns imported primarily from Ruthenia were used for the organization of the state and its structure of power.<ref name="Ochmański 68-69">Ochmański (1982), pp. 68–69</ref>

Following the establishment of [[Western Christianity]] at the end of the 14th century, the occurrence of pagan [[cremation]] burial ceremonies markedly decreased.<ref name="Bumblauskas 44-47">Eidintas et al. (2013), pp. 44–47</ref>

===Dynastic union with Poland, Christianization of the state===
{{Main|Christianization of Lithuania|History of Poland during the Jagiellonian dynasty}}

====Jogaila's Catholic conversion and rule====
[[File:Šv._Mikalojaus_bažnyčios_šonas_2.jpg|thumb|[[St. Nicholas Church, Vilnius|St. Nicholas]] in Vilnius, the oldest church in Lithuania]]
As the power of the Lithuanian warlord dukes expanded to the south and east, the cultivated [[East Slavs|East Slavic]] Ruthenians exerted influence on the Lithuanian ruling class.<ref name="Snyder 17-18">Snyder (2003), pp. 17–18</ref> They brought with them the [[Church Slavonic language|Church Slavonic]] [[Christian liturgy|liturgy]] of the [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Eastern Orthodox]] Christian religion, a written language (Chancery Slavonic) that was developed to serve the Lithuanian court's document-producing needs for a few centuries, and a system of laws. By these means, Ruthenians transformed [[Vilnius]] into a major center of Kievan Rus' civilization.<ref name="Snyder 17-18"/> By the time of Jogaila's acceptance of Catholicism at the [[Union of Krewo]] in 1385, many institutions in his realm and members of his family had been to a large extent assimilated already into the Orthodox Christianity and became Russified (in part a result of the deliberate policy of the Gediminid ruling house).<ref name="Snyder 17-18"/><ref name="Lukowski 38-40"/>

[[File:Master Andrey Ladislaus II Jagiello kneeling before the Virgin Mary.jpg|thumb|left|[[Ruthenia]]n depiction of Christian [[Jogaila]]]]
Catholic influence and contacts, including those derived from German settlers, traders and missionaries from Riga,<ref name="Ochmański 67">Ochmański (1982), p. 67</ref> had been increasing for some time around the northwest region of the empire, known as Lithuania proper. The [[Franciscan]] and [[Dominican Order|Dominican]] friar orders existed in Vilnius from the time of [[Gediminas]]. [[Kęstutis]] in 1349 and [[Algirdas]] in 1358 negotiated Christianization with the pope, the [[Holy Roman Empire]] and the Polish king. The [[Christianization of Lithuania]] thus involved both Catholic and Orthodox aspects. Conversion by force as practiced by the [[Teutonic Knights]] had actually been an impediment that delayed the progress of Western Christianity in the grand duchy.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/>

[[Jogaila]], a grand duke since 1377, was himself still a pagan at the start of his reign. In 1386, agreed to the offer of the Polish crown by leading Polish nobles, who were eager to take advantage of Lithuania's expansion, if he become a Catholic and married the 13-year-old crowned king (not queen) [[Jadwiga of Poland|Jadwiga]].<ref name="Lukowski 37">Lukowski & Zawadzki (2001), p. 37</ref> For the near future, Poland gave Lithuania a valuable ally against increasing threats from the Teutonic Knights and the [[Grand Duchy of Moscow]]. Lithuania, in which Ruthenians outnumbered ethnic Lithuanians by several times, could ally with either the Grand Duchy of Moscow or Poland. A Russian deal was also negotiated with [[Dmitry Donskoy]] in 1383–1384, but Moscow was too distant to be able to assist with the problems posed by the Teutonic orders and presented a difficulty as a center competing for the loyalty of the Orthodox Lithuanian Ruthenians.<ref name="Baczkowski 55-61"/><ref name="Lukowski 38-40">Lukowski & Zawadzki (2001), pp. 38–40</ref>

[[File:Union of Krewo.jpg|thumb|[[Union of Krewo|Act of Kreva]] signed on 14 August 1385]]
Jogaila was baptized, given the baptismal name Władysław, married Queen Jadwiga, and was crowned [[List of Polish monarchs|King of Poland]] in February 1386.<ref name="Ochmański 74-76">Ochmański (1982), pp. 74–76</ref><ref name="Baczkowski 61-68">Krzysztof Baczkowski – ''Dzieje Polski późnośredniowiecznej (1370–1506)'' (History of Late Medieval Poland (1370–1506)), pp. 61–68</ref>

Jogaila's baptism and crowning were followed by the final and official [[Christianization of Lithuania]].<ref name="Lukowski 38-42">Lukowski & Zawadzki (2001), pp. 38–42</ref> In the fall of 1386, the king returned to Lithuania and the next spring and summer participated in mass conversion and baptism ceremonies for the general population.<ref name="Ochmański 76-78">Ochmański (1982), pp. 76–78</ref> The establishment of a bishopric in Vilnius in 1387 was accompanied by Jogaila's extraordinarily generous endowment of land and peasants to the Church and exemption from state obligations and control. This instantly transformed the Lithuanian Church into the most powerful institution in the country (and future grand dukes lavished even more wealth on it). Lithuanian boyars who accepted baptism were rewarded with a more limited privilege improving their legal rights.<ref name="Ochmański 78-79">Ochmański (1982), pp. 78–79</ref><ref name="Baczkowski 68-74">Krzysztof Baczkowski – ''Dzieje Polski późnośredniowiecznej (1370–1506)'' (History of Late Medieval Poland (1370–1506)), pp. 68–74</ref> Vilnius' townspeople were granted self-government. The Church proceeded with its civilizing mission of literacy and education, and the [[estates of the realm]] started to emerge with their own separate identities.<ref name="Bumblauskas 44-47"/>

Jogaila's orders for his court and followers to convert to Catholicism were meant to deprive the Teutonic Knights of the justification for their practice of forced conversion through military onslaughts. In 1403 the pope prohibited the Order from conducting warfare against Lithuania, and its threat to Lithuania's existence (which had endured for two centuries) was indeed neutralized. In the short term, Jogaila needed Polish support in his struggle with his cousin Vytautas.<ref name="Bumblauskas 44-47"/><ref name="Lukowski 38-40"/>

====Lithuania at its peak under Vytautas====
[[File:Witold Duke of Lithuania seal.PNG|thumb|Grand Duke [[Vytautas]], a Lithuanian hero, was [[Jogaila]]'s first cousin and rival]]
The [[Lithuanian Civil War (1389–92)|Lithuanian Civil War of 1389–1392]] involved the Teutonic Knights, the Poles, and the competing factions loyal to Jogaila and [[Vytautas]] in Lithuania. Amid ruthless warfare, the grand duchy was ravaged and threatened with collapse. Jogaila decided that the way out was to make amends and recognize the rights of Vytautas, whose original goal, now largely accomplished, was to recover the lands he considered his inheritance. After negotiations, Vytautas ended up gaining far more than that; from 1392 he became practically the ruler of Lithuania, a self-styled "Duke of Lithuania," under a compromise with Jogaila known as the [[Ostrów Agreement]]. Technically, he was merely Jogaila's regent with extended authority. Jogaila realized that cooperating with his able cousin was preferable to attempting to govern (and defend) Lithuania directly from Kraków.<ref name="Baczkowski 68-74"/><ref name="Ochmański 79-80">Ochmański (1982), pp. 79–80</ref>

Vytautas had been frustrated by Jogaila's Polish arrangements and rejected the prospect of Lithuania's subordination to Poland.<ref name="Lukowski 40-41"/> Under Vytautas, a considerable centralization of the state took place, and the Catholicized [[Lithuanian nobility]] became increasingly prominent in state politics.<ref name="Lukowski 55-56"/> The centralization efforts began in 1393–1395, when Vytautas appropriated their provinces from several powerful regional dukes in Ruthenia.<ref name="Bumblauskas 48-50">Eidintas et al. (2013), pp. 48–50</ref> Several invasions of Lithuania by the Teutonic Knights occurred between 1392 and 1394, but they were repelled with the help of Polish forces. Afterwards, the Knights abandoned their goal of conquest of Lithuania proper and concentrated on subjugating and keeping Samogitia. In 1395, [[Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia]], the Order's formal superior, prohibited the Knights from raiding Lithuania.<ref name="Ochmański 80-82"/>

In 1395, Vytautas conquered [[Smolensk]], and in 1397, he conducted a victorious expedition against a branch of the Golden Horde. Now he felt he could afford independence from Poland and in 1398 refused to pay the tribute due to Queen Jadwiga. Seeking freedom to pursue his internal and Ruthenian goals, Vytautas had to grant the Teutonic Order a large portion of Samogitia in the [[Treaty of Salynas]] of 1398. The conquest of Samogitia by the Teutonic Order greatly improved its military position as well as that of the associated [[Livonian Brothers of the Sword]]. Vytautas soon pursued attempts to retake the territory, an undertaking for which needed the help of the Polish king.<ref name="Ochmański 80-82">Ochmański (1982), pp. 80–82</ref><ref name="Lukowski 44-45"/>

During Vytautas' reign, Lithuania reached the peak of its territorial expansion, but his ambitious plans to subjugate all of Ruthenia were thwarted by his disastrous defeat in 1399 at the [[Battle of the Vorskla River]], inflicted by the Golden Horde. Vytautas survived by fleeing the battlefield with a small unit and realized the necessity of a permanent alliance with Poland.<ref name="Ochmański 80-82"/><ref name="Lukowski 44-45">Lukowski & Zawadzki (2001), pp. 44–45</ref>

[[File:Oldest surviving writing in Lithuanian language.jpg|thumb|left|Oldest surviving [[manuscript]] in the [[Lithuanian language]] (beginning of the 16th century), rewritten from a 15th-century original text]]
The original Union of Krewo of 1385 was renewed and redefined on several occasions, but each time with little clarity due to the competing Polish and Lithuanian interests. Fresh arrangements were agreed to in the "[[Polish–Lithuanian union|unions]]" of [[Pact of Vilnius and Radom|Vilnius (1401)]], [[Union of Horodło|Horodło (1413)]], [[Union of Grodno (1432)|Grodno (1432)]] and [[Union of Kraków and Vilna|Vilnius (1499)]].<ref name="Lukowski 41-42">Lukowski & Zawadzki (2001), pp. 41–42</ref> In the Union of Vilnius, Jogaila granted Vytautas a lifetime rule over the grand duchy. In return, Jogaila preserved his formal supremacy, and Vytautas promised to "stand faithfully with the Crown and the King." Warfare with the Order resumed. In 1403, [[Pope Boniface IX]] banned the Knights from attacking Lithuania, but in the same year Lithuania had to agree to the [[Peace of Raciąż]], which mandated the same conditions as in the Treaty of Salynas.<ref name="Ochmański 82-83">Ochmański (1982), pp. 82–83</ref>

Secure in the west, Vytautas turned his attention to the east once again. The campaigns fought between 1401 and 1408 involved Smolensk, [[Pskov]], Moscow and [[Veliky Novgorod]]. Smolensk was retained, Pskov and Veliki Novgorod ended up as Lithuanian dependencies, and a lasting territorial division between the Grand Duchy and Moscow was agreed in 1408 in the treaty of [[Ugra River (Oka)|Ugra]], where a great battle failed to materialize.<ref name="Ochmański 82-83"/><ref name="Baczkowski 89-90">Krzysztof Baczkowski – ''Dzieje Polski późnośredniowiecznej (1370–1506)'' (History of Late Medieval Poland (1370–1506)), pp. 89–90</ref>

[[File:Jan Matejko, Bitwa pod Grunwaldem.jpg|thumb|[[Battle of Grunwald]] was one of the largest battles in [[Medieval Europe]] and is regarded as one of the most important victories in the history of Lithuania]]
The decisive war with the Teutonic Knights (the [[Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War|Great War]]) was preceded in 1409 with a [[Samogitian uprisings|Samogitian uprising]] supported by Vytautas. Ultimately the Lithuanian–Polish alliance was able to defeat the Knights at the [[Battle of Grunwald]] on 15 July 1410, but the allied armies failed to take [[Malbork Castle|Marienburg]], the Knights' fortress-capital. Nevertheless, the unprecedented total battlefield victory against the Knights permanently removed the threat that they had posed to Lithuania's existence for centuries. The [[Peace of Thorn (1411)]] allowed Lithuania to recover Samogotia, but only until the deaths of Jogaila and Vytautas, and the Knights had to pay a large monetary reparation.<ref name="Ochmański 83-84">Ochmański (1982), pp. 83–84</ref><ref name="Baczkowski 90-100">Krzysztof Baczkowski – ''Dzieje Polski późnośredniowiecznej (1370–1506)'' (History of Late Medieval Poland (1370–1506)), pp. 90–100</ref><ref name="Bumblauskas 50–53">Eidintas et al. (2013), pp. 50–53</ref>

The [[Union of Horodło]] (1413) incorporated Lithuania into Poland again, but only as a formality. In practical terms, Lithuania became an equal partner with Poland, because each country was obliged to choose its future ruler only with the consent of the other, and the Union was declared to continue even under a new dynasty. Catholic Lithuanian boyars were to enjoy the same privileges as Polish nobles (''[[szlachta]]''). 47 top Lithuanian clans were colligated with 47 Polish noble families to initiate a future brotherhood and facilitate the expected full unity. Two administrative divisions (Vilnius and Trakai) were established in Lithuania, patterned after the existing Polish models.<ref name="Ochmański 84-85">Ochmański (1982), pp. 84–85</ref><ref name="Baczkowski 103-108">Krzysztof Baczkowski – ''Dzieje Polski późnośredniowiecznej (1370–1506)'' (History of Late Medieval Poland (1370–1506)), pp. 103–108</ref>

Vytautas practiced religious toleration and his grandiose plans also included attempts to influence the Eastern Orthodox Church, which he wanted to use as a tool to control Moscow and other parts of Ruthenia. In 1416, he elevated [[Gregory Tsamblak]] as his chosen Orthodox patriarch for all of Ruthenia (the established Orthodox [[Metropolitan bishop]] remained in Vilnius to the end of the 18th century).<ref name="Bumblauskas 48-50"/><ref name="Ochmański 85-86"/> These efforts were also intended to serve the goal of global unification of the Eastern and Western churches. Tsamblak led an Orthodox delegation to the [[Council of Constance]] in 1418.<ref name="Bumblauskas 53–57"/> The Orthodox synod, however, would not recognize Tsamblak.<ref name="Ochmański 85-86"/> The grand duke also established new Catholic bishoprics in Samogitia (1417)<ref name="Bumblauskas 53–57"/> and in Lithuanian Ruthenia ([[Lutsk]] and Kyiv).<ref name="Ochmański 85-86">Ochmański (1982), pp. 85–86</ref>

The [[Gollub War]] with the Teutonic Knights followed and in 1422, in the [[Treaty of Melno]], the grand duchy permanently recovered Samogitia, which terminated its involvement in the wars with the Order.<ref name="Ochmański 85-87">Ochmański (1982), pp. 85–87</ref> Vytautas' shifting policies and reluctance to pursue the Order made the survival of German [[East Prussia]] possible for centuries to come.<ref name="Ochmański 87-89"/> Samogitia was the last region of Europe to be Christianized (from 1413).<ref name="Bumblauskas 53–57">Eidintas et al. (2013), pp. 53–57</ref><ref name="Bumblauskas 17">Eidintas et al. (2013), p. 17</ref> Later, different foreign policies were prosecuted by Lithuania and Poland, accompanied by conflicts over [[Podolia]] and [[Volhynia]], the grand duchy's territories in the southeast.<ref name="Lukowski 44-48">Lukowski & Zawadzki (2001), pp. 44–48</ref>

Vytautas' greatest successes and recognition occurred at the end of his life, when the [[Crimean Khanate]] and the [[Volga Tatars]] came under his influence. Prince [[Vasily I of Moscow]] died in 1425, and Vytautas then administered the Grand Duchy of Moscow together with his daughter, Vasily's widow [[Sophia of Lithuania]]. In 1426–1428 Vytautas triumphantly toured the eastern reaches of his empire and collected huge tributes from the local princes.<ref name="Ochmański 87-89"/> Pskov and Veliki Novgorod were incorporated to the grand duchy in 1426 and 1428.<ref name="Bumblauskas 53–57"/> At the [[Congress of Lutsk]] in 1429, Vytautas negotiated the issue of his crowning as the King of Lithuania with Holy Roman Emperor [[Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor|Sigismund]] and Jogaila. That ambition was close to being fulfilled, but in the end was thwarted by last-minute intrigues and Vytautas' death. Vytautas' cult and legend originated during his later years and have continued until today.<ref name="Ochmański 87-89">Ochmański (1982), pp. 87–89</ref>

====Around the first half of the 15th century====
[[File:Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania 2019 3.jpg|thumb|[[Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania]] in [[Vilnius]], Lithuania]]
The [[personal union|dynastic link]] to Poland resulted in [[Catholic Church|religious]], political and cultural ties and increase of [[Western culture|Western influence]] among the native Lithuanian nobility, and to a lesser extent among the [[Ruthenians|Ruthenian]] [[boyar]]s from [[Culture of ancient Rus|the East]], Lithuanian subjects.<ref name="Lukowski 40-41">Lukowski & Zawadzki (2001), pp. 40–41</ref> Catholics were granted preferential treatment and access to offices because of the policies of Vytautas, officially pronounced in 1413 at the Union of Horodło, and even more so of his successors, aimed at asserting the rule of the Catholic Lithuanian elite over the Ruthenian territories.<ref name="Lukowski 55-56">Lukowski & Zawadzki (2001), pp. 55–56</ref> Such policies increased the pressure on the nobility to convert to Catholicism. Ethnic Lithuania proper made up 10% of the area and 20% of the population of the Grand Duchy. Of the Ruthenian provinces, [[Volhynia]] was most closely integrated with Lithuania proper. Branches of the [[Gediminids|Gediminid]] family as well as other Lithuanian and Ruthenian [[Magnates of Poland and Lithuania|magnate]] clans eventually became established there.<ref name="Bumblauskas 48-50"/>

During the period, a stratum of wealthy landowners, important also as a military force, was coming into being,<ref name="Bumblauskas 47-48">Eidintas et al. (2013), pp. 47–48</ref> accompanied by the emerging class of [[serfdom|feudal serfs]] assigned to them.<ref name="Bumblauskas 48-50"/> The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was for the time being largely preserved as a separate state with separate institutions, but efforts, originating mainly in Poland, were made to bring the Polish and Lithuanian elites and systems closer together.<ref name="Ochmański 84-85"/><ref name="Baczkowski 103-108"/> Vilnius and other cities were granted the German system of laws ([[Magdeburg rights]]). Crafts and trade were developing quickly. Under Vytautas a network of chanceries functioned, first schools were established and [[annals]] written. Taking advantage of the historic opportunities, the great ruler opened Lithuania for the influence of the [[Culture of Europe|European culture]] and integrated his country with European [[Western Christianity]].<ref name="Bumblauskas 53–57"/><ref name="Bumblauskas 47-48"/>

====Under Jagiellonian rulers====
[[File:Lithuanian Statute I.jpg|thumb|upright=.7|[[Statutes of Lithuania|First Lithuanian legal statute]], implemented in 1522–1529]]
[[File:Royal insignias of the rulers of Lithuania in the Vilnius Cathedral, 1931.jpg|thumb|Royal insignias of the [[List of rulers of Lithuania|rulers of Lithuania]] in the [[Vilnius Cathedral]], 1931]]
The Jagiellonian dynasty founded by Jogaila (a member of one of the branches of the Gediminids) ruled Poland and Lithuania continuously between 1386 and 1572.

Following the deaths of Vytautas in 1430, [[Lithuanian Civil War (1432–1438)|another civil war]] ensued, and Lithuania was ruled by rival successors. Afterwards, the Lithuanian nobility on two occasions technically broke the union between Poland and Lithuania by selecting grand dukes unilaterally from the [[Jagiellonian dynasty]]. In 1440, the Lithuanian great lords elevated [[Casimir IV Jagiellon|Casimir]], Jogaila's second son, to the rule of the grand duchy. This issue was resolved by Casimir's election as king by the Poles in 1446. In 1492, Jogaila's grandson [[John I Albert|John Albert]] became the king of Poland, whereas his grandson [[Alexander Jagiellon|Alexander]] became the grand duke of Lithuania. In 1501 Alexander succeeded John as king of Poland, which resolved the difficulty in the same manner as before.<ref name="Lukowski 44-45"/> A lasting connection between the two states was beneficial to Poles, Lithuanians, and Ruthenians, Catholic and Orthodox, as well as the Jagiellonian rulers themselves, whose hereditary succession rights in Lithuania practically guaranteed their election as kings in accordance with the customs surrounding the [[royal elections in Poland]].<ref name="Lukowski 41-42"/>

On the Teutonic front, Poland continued its struggle, which in 1466 led to the [[Second Peace of Thorn (1466)|Peace of Thorn]] and the recovery of much of the [[Piast dynasty]] territorial losses. A secular [[Duchy of Prussia]] was established in 1525. Its presence would greatly impact the futures of both Lithuania and Poland.<ref name="Lukowski 45-50">Lukowski & Zawadzki (2001), pp. 45–50</ref>

The [[Tatars|Tatar]] [[Crimean Khanate]] recognized the suzerainty of the [[Ottoman Empire]] from 1475. Seeking slaves and booty, the Tatars raided vast portions of the grand duchy of Lithuania, burning [[Kyiv]] in 1482 and approaching Vilnius in 1505. Their activity resulted in Lithuania's loss of its distant territories on the [[Black Sea]] shores in the 1480s and 1490s. The last two Jagiellon kings were [[Sigismund I the Old|Sigismund I]] and [[Sigismund II Augustus]], during whose reign the intensity of Tatar raids diminished due to the appearance of the military caste of [[Cossacks]] at the southeastern territories and the growing power of the [[Grand Duchy of Moscow]].<ref name="Lukowski 52-55">Lukowski & Zawadzki (2001), pp. 52–55</ref>

[[File:CATECHISMVSA PRAsty Szadei (in Lithuanian language) by Martynas Mažvydas, published in Königsberg, 1547 (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|[[Martynas Mažvydas]]' ''[[Catechism of Martynas Mažvydas|Catechism]]'' was published in Lithuanian in [[Königsberg]] (1547)]]
Lithuania needed a close alliance with Poland when, at the end of the 15th century, the increasingly assertive Grand Duchy of Moscow threatened some of Lithuania's Rus' principalities with the goal of "recovering" the formerly Orthodox-ruled lands. In 1492, [[Ivan III of Russia]] unleashed what turned out to be a series of [[Muscovite–Lithuanian Wars]] and [[Livonian War]]s.<ref name="Lukowski 56-58">Lukowski & Zawadzki (2001), pp. 56–58</ref>

In 1492, the border of Lithuania's loosely controlled eastern Ruthenian territory ran less than one hundred [[miles]] from [[Moscow]]. But as a result of the warfare, a third of the grand duchy's land area was ceded to the Russian state in 1503. Then the loss of [[Smolensk]] in July 1514 was particularly disastrous, even though it was followed by the successful [[Battle of Orsha]] in September, as the Polish interests were reluctantly recognizing the necessity of their own involvement in Lithuania's defense. The peace of 1537 left [[Gomel]] as the grand duchy's eastern edge.<ref name="Lukowski 56-58"/>

In the north, the Livonian War took place over the strategically and economically crucial region of Livonia, the traditional territory of the Livonian Order. The [[Livonian Confederation]] formed an alliance with the Polish-Lithuanian side in 1557 with the [[Treaty of Pozvol]]. Desired by both Lithuania and Poland, Livonia was then incorporated into the Polish Crown by Sigismund II. These developments caused [[Ivan the Terrible]] of Russia to launch attacks in Livonia beginning in 1558, and later on Lithuania. The grand duchy's fortress of [[Polotsk]] fell in 1563. This was followed by a Lithuanian victory at the [[Battle of Ula]] in 1564, but not a recovery of Polotsk. Russian, Swedish and Polish-Lithuanian occupations subdivided Livonia.<ref name="Lukowski 58-60">Lukowski & Zawadzki (2001), pp. 58–60</ref>

====Toward more integrated union====
[[File:Statut Vialikaha Kniastva Litoŭskaha. Статут Вялікага Княства Літоўскага (1588) (2).jpg|thumb|upright=.7|[[Statutes of Lithuania|Third Grand Duchy's Statute]] (1588 legal code) was still written in the [[Ruthenian language]]. [[Coat of arms of Lithuania|Lithuanian coat of arms]], "the Chase", is shown on the title page]]
The Polish ruling establishment had been aiming at the incorporation of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania into Poland since before the Union of Krewo.<ref name="Wyrozumski">[[Jerzy Wyrozumski]], ''Historia Polski do roku 1505'' (History of Poland until 1505), pp. 178-180; Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe ([[Polish Scientific Publishers PWN]]), Warszawa 1986, {{ISBN|83-01-03732-6}}</ref> The Lithuanians were able to fend off this threat in the 14th and 15th centuries, but the dynamics of power changed in the 16th century. In 1508, the Polish [[General sejm|Sejm]] voted funding for Lithuania's defense against Muscovy for the first time, and an army was fielded. The Polish nobility's [[executionist movement]] called for full incorporation of the Grand Duchy because of its increasing reliance on the support of the Polish Crown against Moscow's encroachments. This problem only grew more acute during the reign of [[Sigismund II Augustus]], the last Jagiellonian king and grand duke of Lithuania, who had no heir who would inherit and continue the [[personal union]] between Poland and Lithuania. The preservation of the Polish-Lithuanian power arrangement appeared to require the monarch to force a decisive solution during his lifetime. The resistance to a closer and more permanent union was coming from Lithuania's ruling families, increasingly [[Polonization|Polonized]] in cultural terms, but attached to the Lithuanian heritage and their patrimonial rule.<ref name="Lukowski 74-82">Lukowski & Zawadzki (2001), pp. 74–82</ref><ref name="Grzybowski 142-146"/>

Legal evolution had lately been taking place in Lithuania nevertheless. In the [[Privilege of Vilnius]] of 1563, Sigismund restored full political rights to the Grand Duchy's Orthodox [[boyar]]s, which had been restricted up to that time by [[Vytautas]] and his successors; all members of the nobility were from then officially equal. Elective courts were established in 1565–66, and the Second [[Statutes of Lithuania|Lithuanian Statute]] of 1566 created a hierarchy of local offices patterned on the Polish system. The Lithuanian legislative assembly assumed the same formal powers as the Polish Sejm.<ref name="Lukowski 74-82"/><ref name="Grzybowski 142-146"/>

[[File:Cranach the Younger Sigismund II Augustus.jpg|thumb|left|upright=.7|[[Sigismund II Augustus]] took decisive steps to ensure preservation of the union after his death]]
The Polish Sejm of January 1569, deliberating in [[Lublin]], was attended by the Lithuanian lords at Sigismund's insistence. Most left town on 1 March, unhappy with the proposals of the Poles to establish rights to acquire property in Lithuania and other issues. Sigismund reacted by announcing the incorporation of the Grand Duchy's [[Volhynia]] and [[Podlasie]] [[voivodeship]]s into the Polish Crown. Soon the large [[Kiev Voivodeship]] and [[Bratslav Voivodeship]] were also annexed. Ruthenian boyars in the formerly southeastern Grand Duchy mostly approved the territorial transfers, since it meant that they would become members of the privileged Polish nobility. But the king also pressured many obstinate deputies to agree on compromises important to the Lithuanian side. The arm twisting, combined with reciprocal guarantees for Lithuanian nobles' rights, resulted in the "voluntary" passage of the [[Union of Lublin]] on July 1. The combined polity would be ruled by a common Sejm, but the separate hierarchies of major state offices were to be retained. Many in the Lithuanian establishment found this objectionable, but in the end they were prudent to comply. For the time being, Sigismund managed to preserve the Polish-Lithuanian state as great power. Reforms necessary to protect its long-term success and survival were not undertaken.<ref name="Lukowski 74-82"/><ref name="Grzybowski 142-146">[[Stanisław Grzybowski]] – ''Dzieje Polski i Litwy (1506-1648)'' (History of Poland and Lithuania (1506-1648)), pp. 142–146; Fogra, Kraków 2000, {{ISBN|83-85719-48-2}}</ref>

====Lithuanian Renaissance====
[[File:Poland and Lithuania in 1526.PNG|thumb|Poland and Lithuania in 1526, before the [[Union of Lublin]]]]
From the 16th to the mid-17th century, culture, arts, and education flourished in Lithuania, fueled by the [[Renaissance]] and the [[Protestant Reformation]]. The Lutheran ideas of the Reformation entered the [[Livonian Confederation]] by the 1520s, and Lutheranism soon became the prevailing religion in the urban areas of the region, while Lithuania remained Catholic.<ref>{{cite book|author=Kevin O&Connor|title="The" History of the Baltic States|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b3b5nU4bnw4C&pg=PA25|year=2003|publisher=Greenwood|page=25|isbn=978-0-313-32355-3|access-date=29 October 2015|archive-date=8 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201008184103/https://books.google.com/books?id=b3b5nU4bnw4C&pg=PA25|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>[[Ingė Lukšaitė]], "The Reformation in Lithuania: A New Look," ''Lituanus'' (2011) 57#3 pp 9-31</ref>

An influential book dealer was the humanist and bibliophile [[Francysk Skaryna]] (c. 1485—1540), who was the founding father of [[Belarusians|Belarusian]] letters. He wrote in his native [[Ruthenian language|Ruthenian]] (Chancery Slavonic) language,<ref>{{cite book|author=Norman Davies|title=Litva: The Rise and Fall of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6yPA0MerzqIC&pg=PT56|year=2013|publisher=Penguin Group US|page=56|isbn=978-1-101-63082-2|access-date=29 October 2015|archive-date=19 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200919013509/https://books.google.com/books?id=6yPA0MerzqIC&pg=PT56|url-status=live}}</ref> as was typical for [[intellectual|literati]] in the earlier phase of the Renaissance in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. After the middle of the 16th century, [[Polish language|Polish]] predominated in literary productions.<ref name="Snyder 21">Snyder (2003), p. 21</ref> Many educated Lithuanians came back from studies abroad to help build the active cultural life that distinguished 16th-century Lithuania, sometimes referred to as Lithuanian Renaissance (not to be confused with [[Lithuanian National Revival]] in the 19th century).

At this time, Italian architecture was introduced in Lithuanian cities, and [[Lithuanian literature]] written in Latin flourished. Also at this time, the first printed texts in the [[Lithuanian language]] emerged, and the formation of written Lithuanian language began. The process was led by Lithuanian scholars [[Abraomas Kulvietis]], [[Stanislovas Rapalionis]], [[Martynas Mažvydas]] and [[Mikalojus Daukša]].