That gave me some food for thought, and here are my musings.
The Baltic tribes (the predecessors of Lithuanians and Latvians) for thousands of years lived in a wide area that encompasses today’s Belarus and parts of Russia and Ukraine. They had no writing system; they worshipped God of Thunder (Perkunas/Perun) and their temples were sacred oak groves. These tribes were sparsely populated, they had some contact with Ugro-Finns in the north. This equilibrium lasted for 2 or 3 thousands of years.
The areas inhabited by the Baltic tribes were protected by the Pripyat marshes in the south (even today this area is very big and diverse - some call it "Amazon of Euope") and Belovezh forest in the west. These two natural features formed almost impenetrable barrier and protection for a long time.
Area of distribution of earliest Indo-European river names (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indo-European_migrations)
The situation stayed like this more or less until the beginning of common era (5-6th century of CE) when the Slav migration started from the steppes of what today is Ukraine and Russia. On top of that, at that time there were Goth and other migrations, conquests (Norman conquest) etc. that changed the makeup of Europe completely. The Celts have been displaced, Huns have arrived etc. - who knows today of Dacians, Thracians, Scythians and many other peoples that used to populate Europe. In today’s Belarus, by 9th century there already were Slavic villages and castles. Slavs were coming from the south, there was a lot of them, and they had a writing system and connections with Constantinople which had gathered the remains of the Roman empire under Orthodox Christianity.
Similar to Finno-Ugric people around Moscow, the Balts mixed with Slavs North of Pripyat marshes, but then an unexpected thing happened. The Baltic pagan warlords started pushing back against these apparently more sophisticated people. Not everywhere there was a happy ending for the old-timers. In what is today's Baltic shores of Poland, Konrad I of Masovia could not push or subdue the Prussian tribes out, so he invited the Teutonic order. This brought about the scorched earth policy which in effect led to disappearance of the Old Prussians.
Prussian uprisings - Wikipedia
13th-century revolts by Old Prussians against the Teutonic Knights Baltic tribes and Prussian clans c. 1200 The Prussian uprisings were two major and three smaller uprisings by the Old Prussians , one of the Baltic tribes , against the Teutonic Knights that took place in the 13th century during the Prussian Crusade . The crusading military order , supported by the Popes and Christian Europe, sought to conquer and convert the pagan Prussians. In the first ten years of the crusade, five of the seven major Prussian clans fell under the control of the less numerous Teutonic Knights. However, the Prussians rose against their conquerors on five occasions. The first uprising was supported by Duke Swietopelk II, Duke of Pomerania . The Prussians were successful at first, reducing the Knights to only five of their strongest castles. The duke then suffered a series of military defeats and was eventually forced to make peace with the Teutonic Knights. With Duke Swietopelk's support for the Prussians broken, a prelate of Pope Innocent IV negotiated a peace treaty between the Prussians and the Knights. This treaty was never honored or enforced, especially after the Prussian victory in the Battle of Krücken at the end of 1249. [1] The second uprising, known in historiography as "the great Prussian uprising", was prompted by the 1260 Battle of Durbe , the largest defeat suffered by the Teutonic Knights in the 13th century. [2] This uprising was the longest, largest, and most threatening to the Teutonic Order, who again were reduced to five of their strongest castles. Reinforcements for the Knights were slow to arrive, despite repeated encouragements from Pope Urban IV , and the position of the Order looked set to worsen. Luckily for the Order, the Prussians lacked unity and a common strategy and reinforcements finally reached Prussia in around 1265. One by one, the Prussian clans surrendered and the uprising was ended in 1274. The later three lesser uprisings relied on foreign assistance and were suppressed within one or two years. The last uprising in 1295 effectively ended the Prussian Crusade, and Prussia became a Christian German-speaking territory, which assimilated native Prussians and a number of settlers from different German states . Background [ edit ] Although the Prussians repelled early incursions by the Order of Dobrzyń , they were outnumbered by attacks from Poland, Ruthenians in the southeast and the Teutonic Knights from the west. The Teutonic Order was called to the Culmerland in 1226 by Konrad I of Masovia , who started a number of attacks and crusades against the Prussians and later asked the Knights to protect him from retaliatory raids by the Prussians. Preoccupied with crusades in the Holy Land , the Teutonic Knights arrived only in 1230. Their first task was to build a base on the left bank of Vistula at Vogelsang, opposite of Toruń (Thorn), which was completed a year later. [4] Led by Hermann Balk, the Knights did not repeat the mistak
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prussian_uprisings
The Lithuanians and Samogitians were luckier. They were able to resist both the Teutons and the Slavs. Their warlords were also offered lands and some Slav Princess hand in exchange for an alliance and help in fight against the Golden Horde. House of Gediminas gives rise to many Russian and Polish noble families. Jogaila married Polish princess Jadwiga and became the ruler of Poland.
Gediminids - Wikipedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Lithuanian royal dynasty The House of Gediminid or simply the Gediminids ( Lithuanian : Gediminaičiai , Samogitian : Gedėmėnātē , Belarusian : Гедзімінавічы , Polish : Giedyminowicze , Ukrainian : Гедиміновичі ;) were a dynasty of monarchs in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania that reigned from the 14th to the 16th century. [1] A cadet branch of this family, known as the Jagiellonian dynasty , reigned also in the Kingdom of Poland , Kingdom of Hungary and Kingdom of Bohemia . [2] Several other branches ranked among the leading aristocratic dynasties of Russia and Poland into recent times. [1] The Gediminas' Cap was used during the inaugurations of Gediminids as Lithuanian monarchs in the Vilnius Cathedral and symbolized the dynasty's continuity. [3] [4] [5] Their monarchical title in Lithuanian primarily was, by some folkloristic data, kunigų kunigas ("Duke of Dukes"), and later on, didysis kunigas ("Great/High Duke") or, in a simple manner, karalius or kunigaikštis . [ citation needed ] In the 18th century, the latter form was changed into tautological didysis kunigaikštis , which nevertheless would be translated as " Grand Duke " (for its etymology, see Grand Prince ). The origin of Gediminas himself is much debated. Some sources say he was Vytenis ' ostler , others that he was of peasant stock. Some historians consider him as the son or grandson of Lithuanian or Yatvingian King/duke Skalmantas . Most scholars agree, however, that Gediminas was Vytenis ' brother (the parentage of Vytenis is explained differently in various fake genealogies, compiled from the 16th century onwards; according to the latest Polish research, his parentage cannot be established). [6] Confirmed Gediminid rulers [ edit ] Branches of the dynasty [ edit ] The Gediminid symbol in Rambynas Hill, Lithuania The Eastern Orthodox branches of the family were mostly Ruthenian , which also was one of the two main languages of their established state. Some of these families (e.g., Czartoryski ) later converted to Roman Catholicism and became Polonized . Others (e.g., Galitzine ) moved to Muscovy and became thoroughly Russified . In Poland, most Gediminid families (such as Olelkowicz-Słucki, Wiśniowiecki , Zbaraski) are extinct, but at least some families survive to the present: Chowański , Czartoryski , Sanguszko , Siesicki (Dowmont-Siesicki, Szeszycki) and Koriatowicz-Kurcewicz . [ citation needed ] . The Russian Gediminid families include Bulgakov , Golitsin , Kurakin , Khovansky , Troubetzkoy , Mstislavsky , Belsky , and Volynsky . [ citation needed ] Some of these families also survive as of 2020. Gediminid descendants [ edit ] I. The descendants of * Bujwid Vytianis Rex. King Lithuania. Dukes Prince of Bujwid I. The descendants of Narimantas : Dukes of Pinsky (nobility) [ ru ] (faded at the end of the 15th century) Dukes of Kurcewicze [ pl ] Dukes of Buremscy [ pl ] Dukes of Patrikeyev [ ru ] Dukes of Bulgakov (nobility) [ ru ] Dukes of Kurcewi
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gediminids
The records show that Lithuanian rulers in Slavic lands quickly abandoned their religion and accepted Christianity. Some of them even became Orthodox saints.
Daumantas of Pskov - Wikipedia
Lithuanian prince (c. 1240–1299) Daumantas or Dovmont [1] ( Russian : Довмонт, Belarusian : Даўмонт, Christian name Timothy [2] ( Russian : Тимофей ), ; c. 1240? – 17 May 1299), was a Lithuanian prince best remembered as a military leader of the Principality of Pskov between 1266 and 1299. During his term in office, Pskov became de facto independent from Novgorod . He is venerated as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church with his feast day observed on 20 May . [3] In Lithuania [ edit ] Until 1265, Daumantas [4] was Duke of Nalšia , a northern province of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania , and was an ally of King Mindaugas . Mindaugas' and Daumantas' wives were sisters. In spite of the family relationship, Daumantas chose to ally himself with Mindaugas' nephew Treniota , who was Duke of Samogitia . Treniota had been steadily increasing his personal power within the kingdom as he tried to spark an all- Balts rebellion against the Teutonic Knights and the Livonian Order . In 1263, Daumantas assassinated Mindaugas and two of his sons. It has been suggested that he acted in collusion with Treniota. As a result, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania relapsed into paganism for another one hundred and twenty years. Some Russian chronicles say that Daumantas' motive for the murder was to further his power and get revenge: after Queen Morta's death c. 1262, Mindaugas took Daumantas' wife for himself. When Mindaugas dispatched a large army towards Bryansk , Daumantas participated in the expedition, but suddenly returned and killed Mindaugas and two of his sons. According to the Bychowiec Chronicle (a late and not very reliable source), Daumantas received the title of Duke of Utena as his reward. When Vaišelga , the eldest son of Mindaugas, entered into an alliance with Shvarn of Halych-Volhynia in 1264, he was able to take revenge for his father's death by killing Treniota. Daumantas and his followers fled to Pskov . Ruler of Pskov [ edit ] After arriving in Pskov, Daumantas was baptized into Eastern Orthodoxy , assumed the Christian name Timotheus (Russian: Timofei ) and married a daughter of Dmitry of Pereslavl , son of Alexander Nevsky . He led Pskovian armies against the Lithuanians and defeated them on the bank of the Western Dvina , proceeded to devastate the land of Duke Gerdenis , and captured his two sons and wife. Daumantas' daring spirit, his friendly ways, and the success of his military enterprise persuaded the Pskovians to elect him as their knyaz , or military leader. Daumantas' election was never sanctioned by the Novgorod Republic , which had traditionally controlled the Pskovian affairs. Prince Yaroslav of Novgorod planned to punish the Pskovians for their willfulness and oust Daumantas from the city, but the Novgorodians refused to support Yaroslav's campaign and, joining their forces with the Pskovians, invaded Lithuania the following year. Daumantas was again in command and returned to Pskov in triumph. In January 1268 the Pskovian-Novgorodian alli
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daumantas_of_Pskov
The writing system in the large country that was Lithuania was Old Slavonic (from Kievan Rus and Constantinople) and later Polish. The rulers did not look at things from an ethnic point of view, but rather used whatever works. Some old Baltic settlements (Protva Battle, East Galindians, not far from Mozhaisk or Dnepr Balts persisted until 12–14th century, but later they melted into the sea of Slavs). Yotvingians persisted the longest, but even they in part later became part of new Slavic nations.
If Lithuania did not join with Poland in 14–16 century and become Catholic, some serious historians point out that it is quite likely that it would have become a center for consolidation of Eastern Slav lands under Orthodox Christianity. If that were the case, the ethnic Lithuanians would by now be absorbed into the “Old Lithuanian” (Litvin, senlietuviai) identity that includes all the peoples that used to live in the Grand Duchy. Most likely, we would all be speaking some Slavic language, modernized Ruthenian for example.
In the Lithuanian Grand Duchy, the process of forming an identity was well in the works when it got absorbed by Russian empire in 1795. The “Old Lithuanian” identity (as defined by Czeslaw Milosz and which includes A. Mickiewicz for example) included Slavs and Lithuanians under common language which was Polish (not unlike the British identity and literary tradition which includes Irish, Welsh, Scots and English).
From 1795 until 1918 there was the Spring of Nations, and new ethnicity-based nations have sprung up from the Old Lithuanian identity.
There are cases that in the same family one brother would choose to be Lithuanian, one brother -Belarusian and the third brother - Polish.
Tadas Ivanauskas - Wikipedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Tadas Ivanauskas (December 16, 1882 – June 1, 1970) was a Lithuanian zoologist and biologist , and one of the founders of Vytautas Magnus University . Biography [ edit ] He was born in Lebiodka Manor (today Halavičpolie [ lt ] in Belarus) as a third child of Leonard Iwanowski and Jadwiga Reichel. [1] After finishing Warsaw Gymnasium in 1901, Ivanauskas moved to Saint Petersburg , where he studied in the 1st gymnasium of the city. In 1903, he studied at the natural sciences department of the Saint Petersburg University . He met and befriended Lithuanian students here and learned the Lithuanian language . In 1905, he moved to Paris, studied at Sorbonne University Nature-history faculty and graduated in 1909. Since 1904 he was a member of the Lithuanian society Lituania . Together with another early twentieth-century Lithuanian activist, Michał Römer , Ivanauskas gave lectures about Lithuania in Paris in 1905. In 1909, he again entered Saint Petersburg University, as Russian Empire did not recognize foreign diplomas, and finished with a first-grade diploma in 1910. During his studies, he was active in Lithuanian student society , and was elected as chairman. In 1910, in Saint Petersburg, he established the natural sciences visual devices laboratory Zootom , which prepared various biological, botanical, anatomical and mineralogical devices. In the summertime, he travelled around Lithuania collecting material for his devices. In 1914 and 1917, Ivanauskas participated in scientific expeditions into Northern Russia ( Murmansk and Arkhangelsk ) and Norway . In 1918 Ivanauskas returned to Lithuania and together with his wife Honorata opened a Lithuanian school. In 1920, he moved to Kaunas and worked as an adviser in the Ministry of Agriculture of Lithuania, also helped organize Higher courses, that later became the University of Lithuania. Together with Konstantinas Regelis organized Kaunas Botanical Park in 1923. Together with his wife, he started organizing the annual National day of birds and Tree planting days. He was a professor in University of Lithuania (later Vytautas Magnus University ) from 1922 until 1940, [2] and in 1929, became the head of the Zoology Department. He became a professor at the re-established Vilnius University between 1940 and 1941. He returned to this position in 1944, which he held until 1956. He simultaneously held a professorship at the Kaunas Medical Institute from 1954 until 1970. Among his other achievements, he is known for opening one of the first bird banding stations in Europe , at Ventė Cape in 1929. He also founded the Zoological Museum in 1918, the Kaunas Botanical Garden in 1923, Žuvintas reserve in 1937, and the Kaunas Zoo in 1938. Ivanauskas published 37 books and brochures, the most famous of them - Birds of Lithuania . Since 1941 he was a full member of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences . Nationality [ edit ] Born as Tadeusz Iwanowski in Lebiodka, Grodno Region of today'
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tadas_Ivanauskas
Or take the Narutowicz brothers from Samogitia: one chose to become Polish and was elected the first president of Poland (Gabriel Narutowicz) and the other chose to become Lithuanian (Stanislaw Narutowicz) and is a signatory of the Act of Independence of Lithuania.
So, modern Lithuanians according to post- Spring of Nations definition are a small nation that is mostly limited to Lithuania’s borders. The biggest emigration happened after WWI and WWII, so one can find communities in the US, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Australia.
“Old Lithuanians” (pre-1795 identity of people who lived in this large country) have melted into the new nations that were formed after WWI. Some Belarusians even to this day call themselves “Litvin” which in translation means Lithuanian. But they do not mean that they are modern Lithuanians, rather it is a reference to the “Old Lithuanian” identity that underlines their difference from Muscovy.
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