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Kingdom of Livonia

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The Kingdom of Livonia (Low German: Königriek Lyffland, Danish: Kongeriget Livland, Ugaunian: Liwi Kuningrikk, Curonian: Liwonijas ķēniņwalsts, Ruthenian: Karalewstwa Inflanty, Polish: Królestwo Inflanty, Russian: Королевство Лифляндия, Swedish: Konungariket Livland) is a former country in modern Latvia and Estonia that existed 1570 - 1578. Located north of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, west of Muscovy, and east of Sweden, it was located at 58°39′9″N, 25°58′14″E in northern Europe. Livonia bordered the Baltic Sea and the capital cities were Oberpahlen and Wenden.

History[edit]

The Protestant Reformation came to Scandinavia in 1530s, and following the Count's Feud civil war, Denmark converted to Lutheranism in 1536. Later that year, Denmark entered a union with Norway and its colonies. Two and a half centuries of wars with Sweden followed. In 1561 during the Livonian War the Livonian Confederation fell to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Eight years later, in 1569, when the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Kingdom of Poland formed the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Livonia became a joint domain administered directly by the King and Grand Duke. By 1562, Muscovy found itself in wars with the kingdoms of Poland and Sweden. The armies of Ivan IV were initially successful, taking Polock (1563) and Parnawa (1575) and overrunning much of Grand Duchy of Lithuania up to Vilna. Eventually, in 1569 the Poles and Litvins cemented their alliance with the Union of Lublin, forming the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Eric XIV of Sweden did not like this and The Northern Seven Years' War between Free City of Lübeck, Denmark, Poland, and Sweden broke out. While only losing land and trade, Frederick II of Denmark and Magnus of Œsel-Wiek were not faring well. But in 1569 Erik XIV became insane and his brother John III of Sweden took his place. After all parties had been financially drained, Frederick II let his ally, King Zygmunt II August, know that he was ready for peace. On December 15, 1570, the Treaty of Stettin was concluded.

In the next phase of the conflict, in 1577 Ivan IV took opportunity of the Commonwealth internal strife (called the war against Gdańsk in Polish historiography), and during the reign of Stefan Batory in Poland invaded Livonia, quickly taking almost the entire territory, with the exception of Riga and Rewel. In 1578 Magnus of Livonia recognized the sovereignty of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (not ratified by the Sejm of Poland-Lithuania, or recognized by Denmark). The Kingdom of Livonia was beaten back by Muscovy on all fronts. In 1578 Magnus of Livonia retired to Poland and his brother all but gave up the land in Livonia.

Subsequent[edit]

Having rejected peace proposals from its enemies, Ivan IV found himself in a difficult position by 1579, when Crimean Khanate devastated Muscovian territories and burnt down Moscow (see Russo-Crimean Wars), the drought and epidemics have fatally affected the economy, Oprichnina had thoroughly disrupted the government, while Lithuania had united with Poland (1569) and acquired an energetic leader, Stefan Batory, supported by Ottoman Empire (1576). Stefan Batory replied with a series of three offensives against Muscovy, trying to cut the Livonia from main Muscovian territories. During his first offensive in 1579 with 22,000 men he retook Polatsk, during the second, in 1580, with 29,000-strong army he took Wielkie Łuki, and in 1581 with a 100,000-strong army he started the Siege of Pskow but failed to take the fortress. Frederick II had trouble continuing the fight against Muscovy unlike Sweden and Poland. He came to an agreement with John III in 1580 giving him the titles in Livonia. That war would last from 1577 to 1582. Muscovy recognized Polish-Lithuanian control of Ducatus Ultradunensis only in 1582. After Magnus of Livonia died in 1583, Poland invaded his territories in The Duchy of Courland and Frederick II decided to sell his rights of inheritance. Except for the island of Œsel, Denmark was out of the Baltic by 1585. As of 1598 Inflanty was divided onto:


Sources[edit]

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