In the 13th Century, the Land of Šiauliai Appears in the World History – History of Šiauliai

The Defensive System of Castles or how Šiauliai Defended Lithuania

Šiaulių TIC — Thu, 18 Jan 2018 10:46:21 +0000

The consequences of internal fights for power of the future king Mindaugas were particularly painful to Šiauliai land. It is believed that having killed local rulers, the local governing elite, Mindaugas transformed Šiauliai land into a territory under his control, later controlled by other great knights who sat on the throne after him. No local nobility was left in Šiauliai land or they died out and due to this, the name of this territory completely disappeared from the pages of history for a hundred years. The coincidence of the names of Šiauliai land and Šiauliai settlement and later, Šiauliai rural district indicates that Šiauliai had to stand in the centre of the territory. We learn about the land of Šiauliai only from the chronicles written by Baltramiejus Hionekė and Hermanas Vartbergė. In these chronicles, Šiauliai land is named as the terra Sauleorum. The first of them, written in 1348, mentions that at that time there stood Kulų (Kulen), Businės or Busėnų (Businne), Ceilos (Zela), Dubysos (Dobbesyne) castles. This is the defensive ring of Šiauliai land. It begins with Jurgaičiai mound, located in the north east of Šiauliai (now called the Hill of Crosses), on which a castle called Kuliai or Kula (Kulen) stood. Next goes Normaičiai mound in Pakapė, south of Šiauliai and Lake Rėkyva, on which the so-called Bauska castle stood (historians also mention the place names Busikė, Busėnai and Buožėnai). The third castle was founded in Bubiai, on Bubiai mound, and was called Dubysa; and the fourth, in the present Šiauliai itself, at that time it was also called Šiauliai castle or Ceila, which stood on Salduvė mound, now called the hill (scientists call it Žuvininkai mound). It is believed that Salduvė mound appeared in the 11-14^th centuries. On the neighbouring hill a rampart reinforced with stones was detected – it is a part of the defensive line, which protected Salduvė mound and Šiauliai castle from the northwest. True, these documents also mention that the inhabitants of Šiauliai land were known for their autonomy and independence in making decisions that were related to the whole region; such as until 1348, they did not participate in Samogitian fights with the German Order, preferring to pay taxes to it. This could also be due to the fact that this region became little noticeable and important to both the local rulers and the Knights of the Cross, forcing their way into the land.

Foto 1

Žuvininkų piliakalnis.

Foto 2

Jurgaičių piliakalnis.

Foto 3

Bubių piliakalnis.

Foto 4

Normančių piliakalnis, Bauskės pilies vieta.

Foto 5

Normančių piliakalnis.

Foto 6

Jurgaičių piliakalnis.

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Governing Elite of Šiauliai

Šiaulių TIC — Thu, 18 Jan 2018 10:36:55 +0000

Šiauliai land was for the first time mentioned in an important document of that time, the Livonian Act, in 1254. The Volhynian Chronicle, or otherwise the Hypatian Chronicle, describes a treaty between the Confederation of Lithuanian lands and the Duchy of Halych–Volhynia of 1219, which mentions the dukes of Šiauliai land, the Bulioniai (Bulaičiai), who then ruled Šiauliai vicinities and lived in Bulėnai and Buleinė, also known in the 19^th century as a place of Šiauliai parish church. Thus, the Bulioniai had to live in the current centre of Šiauliai city, which is believed to be the origins of the city, and rule the landholdings from there. This is what is written about these local rulers brothers: ‘Vismantas, who was killed by Mindaugas, who took his wife and killed his brothers Gedvilas and Sprudeikis.’ It is known that in 1219, Šiauliai land and other territories are represented by the local noble families, which at that time supported both Mindaugas and other grand dukes. In subsequent internal military campaigns for power, during which Mindaugas sought to overmaster all lands, Šiauliai people supported Samogitian duke Vykintas, who opposed Mindaugas’ plans, rebelling against him. However, he lost and his allies from Šiauliai, the Bulioniai – all three brothers Vismantas, Gedvilas and Sprudeikis – were killed. By the way, soon Mindaugas married one of the nobles of Šiauliai land – the wife of Vismantas, who died in internal fights, and in 1253, she was crowned as Queen Morta; thus, Šiauliai land can be justly proud of the only queen in the history of Lithuania, who belongs here.

Foto 1

Žiemgalos sutartis p51.

Foto 2

Žiemgalos sutartis p51.

Foto 3

Karalienė Morta.

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The Battle of Saulė: Samogitians’ Power and the Invaders’ Collapse

Šiaulių TIC — Thu, 18 Jan 2018 10:26:11 +0000

The emergence of Šiauliai in the flow of history is to be related to the first mention of the name of the region or land in which the city originated. For the first time the name Soule is mentioned in the written sources of that time on September 22, 1236. This name appears in the rhymed Livonian Chronicle, which was written in order to tell how successfully paramilitary monks of the Teutonic Order from Western Europe baptised local people in the Baltic country in those times. This document, which was important to the history of Lithuania and Šiauliai, described the Battle of Saulė, in which a joint Lithuanian, Samogitian and Semigallian army, which managed to unite for the common defence, crushed the Knights of the Sword. This Order of the Knights of the Sword, which defended the Archbishop of Riga city from the Baltic tribes, which did not obey his will and were attacking his territories, and fought for religious truths and baptism in the territories inhabited by Balts and Finns, was founded in 1202 on the initiative of the Archbishop of Riga – Albert. Under the veil of the mission of baptism, the Knights of the Sword pushed their way through the territory of the present Lithuania with the aim of robbing and conquering local lands and making local people obey them. They could not achieve this because united Baltic tribes managed to prevent this in the Battle of Saulė. This way the locality, which is now known as Šiauliai city, was for the first time mentioned in the history under the name of Saulė.