- •Topic 1
- •Introduction
- •The Trypillians
- •The Early Nomads
- •In 2nd century bc, the Sarmatians, another powerful Iranian-speaking nomadic people from the east, defeated and assimilated most of the Scythians.
- •In the 3rd century ad the Sarmatians were defeated by the Goths,2 a Germanic tribe that came from the west.
- •The Greek Colonies in Ukraine
- •New Barbaric Waves
- •The East Slavs
- •The Origin of Rus
- •Rise of Kiev
- •Kievan Rus at Its Peak
- •Decline of Kievan Rus
- •The Problem of Kievan Rus’ Legacy
- •Topic 2
- •The Conquest of Western Ukraine
- •The Union of Krevo (1385)
- •The Union of Lublin (1569)
- •Ukrainian Culture under Poland-Lithuania
- •The Union of Brest (1596) and the Formation of the Greek Catholic Church
- •The Cossacks
- •The Social Composition of the Cossacks
- •Evaluation of Cossackdom
The Union of Krevo (1385)
Both Poland and Lithuania had a common powerful enemy – the Teutonic knights. This threat caused the two countries to seek some kind of a defensive union against the Germans. In 1385, in a small Belarusian town named Krevo, the two sides concluded the Union of Krevo by means of a marriage between Polish Queen Jadviga (she was only 12 years old) and Grand Prince of Lithuania Jagailo.21 According to the Union Jagailo got the title of the king of Poland and was to attach all his lands to Poland. Besides, he also was to turn the Lithuanians into Catholicism. Some powerful nobles in Lithuania did not want their country to loose independence. They gathered around Jagailo’s cousin Vitovt, who, forced the king to recognize his de facto control of the Grand Principality of Lithuania. Though formally Vitovt was Jagailo’s subordinate, he was the real ruler of Lithuania and Jagailo could not interfere into Lithuanian affairs. In fact, the union of Krevo was only dynastic. It means that Lithuania had the common with Poland king but was part of the union only formally. In fact it was independent. The Union of Krevo, however, influenced cultural life in Lithuania. Many nobles accepted Catholicism and Polish customs.
The Union of Lublin (1569)
By the early 16th century the Grand Principality of Lithuania was in decline. It lost several provinces to Russia (called at the time Muscovy) and was not able to defend its southern lands against Crimean Tatar military raids. Exhausted by wars against Russia and Crimea, the Lithuanians turned to Poland for aid. The middle and lower Lithuanian nobility wanted to get the wide rights enjoyed by the Polish nobility, so they were the major driving force in the concluding of the so-called Lublin Union (signed in the city of Lublin in Poland).
As a result of the union, Poland and Lithuania formed a single state called the Rzeczpospolita (republic) or the Commonwealth. The king (who was simultaneously the grand prince of Lithuania) was elected by Lithuanian and Polish nobility.22 As a result of the union Lithuania retained autonomy23 but it had to give all Ukrainian lands to Poland. Thus this event ended Lithuanian rule in Ukraine.
The Ukrainian nobility favored the attachment of Ukrainian lands to Poland. Compared to a very centralized but backward Russia, Poland seemed to them the best choice. Poland guaranteed their nobles wide political rights and privileges, legal protection and religious tolerance. A Polish noble’s estate could not be confiscated without a court decision. Any Polish noble could not be arrested without court decision either. (In Russia the nobility was completely defenseless against the tsars). Polish courts were independent of the king. The Polish king’s power was seriously limited and looked democratic compared to the despotic power of the Moscow tsar. Only the Sejm (parliament) could make laws, and the king could not raise taxes or troops without its consent.
In contrast to strictly Orthodox Russia, the Commonwealth was a tolerant state. The nobility included Poles, Lithuanians, Ruthenians (Ukrainians and Belarusians), Germans, Italians, Moldavians, Armenians, etc. ‘One is born noble, not Catholic’ was the motto. Catholics, Protestants and Orthodox could be senators in the Sejm.24 However, since Poland officially was a Catholic state, it tried to promote Catholicism whenever it was possible. The Polish government understood that a single religion would better stimulate the unification of the state.