Semigallians
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Semigallians (
Name
The name of Semigallia appears in contemporary records as Seimgala, Zimgola and Sem[e]gallen. The -gal[l] element means "border", while the first syllable corresponds to ziem ("north") or zem ("low"). So the Semigallians were the "people of the northern borderlands" or "people of the low borderlands", i.e. the lower parts of the Mūša and Lielupe river valleys.[1]
History
During the
At the start of German conquests Semigallian lands were divided in Upmale, Dobele, Spārnene, Dobe, Rakte, Silene and Tērvete chieftaincies.
According to the
In 1219, the Semigallian-German alliance was canceled after a crusader invasion in Semigallia. Duke Viestards promptly formed an alliance with Lithuanians and Curonians. In 1228, Semigallians and Curonians attacked the Daugavgrīva monastery, the main crusader stronghold at the Daugava river delta. The crusaders took revenge and invaded Semigallia. The Semigallians, in turn, pillaged land around the Aizkraukle hillfort. In 1236, Semigallians attacked crusaders retreating to Riga after the Battle of Saule, killing many of them. After regular attacks, the Livonian Order partly subdued the Semigallians in 1254.
In 1270, the Lithuanian Grand Duke Traidenis, together with Semigallians, attacked Livonia and Saaremaa. During the Battle of Karuse on the frozen gulf of Riga, the Livonian Order was defeated, and its master Otto von Lutterberg killed. In 1287, around 1400 Semigallians attacked a crusader stronghold in Ikšķile and plundered nearby lands. As they returned to Semigallia they were caught by the Order's forces, and the great battle began near the Garoza river (Battle of Garoza). The crusader forces were besieged and badly defeated. More than 40 knights were killed, including the master of the Livonian Order Willekin von Endorp, and an unknown number of crusader allies. It was the last Semigallian victory over the growing forces of the Livonian Order.
In 1279, after the Battle of Aizkraukle, Grand Duke Traidenis of Lithuania supported a Semigallian revolt against the Livonian Order led by duke Nameisis.
In the 1280s, the Livonian Order started a massive campaign against the Semigallians, which included burning their fields and thus causing famine.
The Semigallians continued their resistance until 1290, when they burned their last castle in Sidrabene, and a large number of Semigallians. The
Semigallian archaeological sites in Latvia
Semigallian archaeological sites in Lithuania
Notable leaders
There is an unconfirmed theory that the Semigallians were one of the first Baltic tribes to establish a monarchy, yet one weak in comparison to the power of the Semigallian nobles.
One of the most notable Semigallian leaders was duke Viestards (Viesturs). Upon uniting hostile Semigallian clans into a single state in the early 13th century, Viestards formed an alliance with the German crusaders to defeat his enemies on the outside. After the crusaders broke the treaty and invaded his lands, he allied with Lithuanians, resulting in the near annihilation of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword in the Battle of Saule in 1236.
Duke
after 1281. Main sources for his activities are Livländische Reimchronik and Das Zeugenverhör des Franciscus de Moliano (1312). What is known with certainty, however, is that by the end of the 1270s, a new powerful leader had emerged who achieved several major victories over German crusaders in Zemgale and East Prussia.References
- ISBN 9789639116429 – via Google Books.
- ^ "..obtrivi Kurios vel quas alit Estia gentes, et populos, Semgalla, tuos". Gesta Danorum 8.8.9.
- ^ В том же 6614 (1106) лете победиша зимегола Всеславич. Всю братию и дружины убиша 9 тысящь. — БЕЛАРУСКАЯ ЛІТАРАТУРА X — XV стст. / Укладанне, прадмова, каментарыі, пераклад на беларускую мову і адаптацыя І.В.Саверчанкі. — Мінск: Беларус. навука, 2010. — 410 с.
- ^ Ilona Vaškevičiūtė. The Semigallian cultural area Archived 2011-09-28 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Žiemgaliai. The Semigallians. Baltic archaeological Exhibition Catalogue. Lietuvos nacionalinis muziejus, Latvijas Vēstures muzejs, 2005
- Žiemgaliai. The Semigallians. Baltic archaeological Exhibition Catalogue. Lietuvos nacionalinis muziejus, Latvijas Vēstures muzejs, 2005
- Ilona Vaškevičiūtė. The Semigallian cultural area