The House of Gediminas (Lithuanian: Gediminaičių dinastija), or simply the Gediminids,[lower-alpha 1] 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 Poland and Russia into recent times.[1]
Gediminids | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Parent house | Palemonid dynasty |
| Country | Grand Duchy of Lithuania |
| Founded | 1315 or 1316 |
| Founder | Gediminas |
| Final ruler | Sigismund II of Poland |
| Titles | King/Grand Duke of Lithuania |
| Cadet branches | Jagiellonian dynasty Kęstutaičiai Trubetskoy family House of Golitsyn |
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).
Origin
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
- Gediminas
- Jaunutis
- Algirdas
- Jogaila
- Kęstutis
- Vytautas – King/Grand Duke from 1392 to 1430
- Švitrigaila
- Sigismund Kęstutaitis
- Casimir IV Jagiellon
- Alexander Jagiellon
- Sigismund I the Old
- Sigismund II Augustus
Branches of the dynasty
The Eastern Orthodox branches of the family were initially Ruthenized to some extent. The majority of these families (e.g., Czartoryski) soon converted to Roman Catholicism and became Polonized. Others (e. g. the Golitsyn (Galitzine), Kurakin and Trubetskoy) moved to Muscovy, became thoroughly Russified and are among the princely families of Russia.
In Poland, some Gediminid families (such as Olelkowicz-Słucki, Wiśniowiecki, Zbaraski) are extinct, but others 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. Some of these families also survive, as of 2020.[citation needed]
Gediminid descendants
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 Patrikeyev [ru]
- Dukes of Korecki
- Dukes of Ruzhinsky (nobility) [ru]
II. The descendants of Algirdas:
- Duke Andrei of Polotsk
- Dmitrijus Algirdaitis
- Dukes of Trubetskoy (Trubchevsk)
- Konstantinas Algirdaitis [ru]
- Dukes of Czartoryski
- Vladimiras Algirdaitis
- Olelkaičiai (descendants of Aleksandras Olelka [ru])
- Dukes of Slutsky (nobility) [ru] (faded at the end of the 16th century)
- Dukes of Belsky
- Olelkaičiai (descendants of Aleksandras Olelka [ru])
- The descendants of Kaributas
- Dukes of Zbarazhsky (nobility) [ru]
- Dukes of Wiśniowiecki
- Dukes of Voronetsky (nobility) [ru]
- Dukes of Nesvisky [pl]
- Dukes of Porytskie (nobility) [ru]
- Dukes of Zbarazhsky (nobility) [ru]
- The descendants of Fiodoras Algirdaitis [ru]
- The Jagiellons
- The descendants of Lengvenis
- Dukes of Mstislavsky
III. The descendants of Kęstutis
- Patrikas Kęstutaitis
- Vaidotas Kęstutaitis
- Butautas Kęstutaitis
- Vytautas the Great
- Tautvilas Kęstutaitis
- Žygimantas Kęstutaitis
IV. The descendants of Jaunutis:
- Dukes of Zaslavsky
- Dukes of Mstislavsky
V. The descendants of Liubartas (faded in the first half of the 15th century)
VI. Koriatowicz [uk], descended from Karijotas
- Dukes of Podilskyi (nobility)
- Dukes of Volynsky (nobility) [ru]
Family tree
| Butegeidis Bujwid (? – c. 1292) King/G. Duke of Lith., c. 1285 – c. 1292 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Budvydas-Pukuveras Bujwid (? – c. 1296) King/G. Duke of Lith., c. 1292 – c. 1296 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Vytenis Bujwid (? – 1316) King/G. Duke of Lith., c. 1296–1316 | Gediminas (c. 1275–1341) King/G. Duke of Lith., 1316–1341 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Jaunutis (?) G. Duke of Lith., 1341–1345 | Algirdas (c. 1296–1377) King/G. Duke of Lith., 1345–1377 | Kęstutis (1297–1382) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ladislaus (Jogaila) (c. 1351–1434) King/G. Duke of Lith., 1377–1401 King of Poland, 1386–1434 | Švitrigaila (c. 1370–1452) King/G. Duke of Lith., 1430–1432 | Vytautas (1352–1430) King/G. Duke of Lith., 1401–1430 | Žygimantas Kęstutaitis (? – 1440) King/G. Duke of Lith., 1432–1440 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Jagiellon branch (Jogailaičiai) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
See also
Notes
- Lithuanian: Gediminaičiai, Samogitian: Gedėmėnātē, Belarusian: Гедзімінавічы, romanized: Hedziminavičy, Polish: Giedyminowicze, Ukrainian: Гедиміновичі, romanized: Hedyminovichi; Russian: Гедиминовичи, romanized: Gediminovichi
References
External links
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