ANNA SVYATOSLAVNA (the year of birth is unknown - † July 31, 1418 in Troki in Lithuania), the Grand Duchess of Lithuania, the first wife (c. 1370) of the Grand Duke of Lithuania Vitautas Kęstutisevich, mother of the Grand Princess of Moscow Sophia Vitovtovna
Biography
Anna Svyatoslavna, despite the relatively small amount of information about her, is undoubtedly one of the most interesting women of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The date of birth of Vitautas's future wife is unknown. Her origin from the Smolensk prince Svyatoslav Ivanovich is also controversial. Researchers who recognize the kinship of Anna and the princes of Smolensk rely primarily on the Chronicle of Bykhovets and the records of sources, where Yuri Svyatoslavich, the son of Svyatoslav of Smolensk and the last independent prince of Smolensk, is referred to as Vitautas's brother-in-law, which was possible only with the close relationship of Anna and Yuri [ 1; 8, p. 177-182]. A number of Lithuanian researchers support the version of I. Yoninas about the origin of Anna from the family of Vitautas`s voivode and deny any kindred relationship between Anna and the Smolensk princes [4, p. 102-103; 5, p. 102-103; 6, p. 88; 7, p. 33].
The marriage of Anna and Vitautas was concluded around 1370 [I, II, p. 79; 6, p. 88]. For Anna, this was the first marriage. There are also different points of view regarding Vitautas: J. Tengovsky, for example, believes that the first wife of Vitautas was Maria Lukomskaya [8, p. 177-182], however, there is a direct reference to it only in the Chronicle of Bykhovets, which raises doubts about the reliability of the information [5, p. 47-50]. The literature mentions Maria as the third wife of Vitautas, but this point of view cannot be accepted for the same reasons as the version of the existence of the first one before Anna, the wife of the Grand Duke of Lithuania [5, p. 47-50].
In a marriage with Vitautas, Anna had a daughter, Sophia, who later became the wife of the Moscow prince Vasily I and played a significant role in the history of Moscow Rus.
Anna herself also was an active, educated woman who took an active part in political events [for more details on the struggle for power see: 2; 3, p. 100-105]. When Vitautas, who fiercely fought for power with his cousin Jagailla, was captured in 1382, Anna organized the salvation of her husband. Sources describe the heroic rescue of Vitautas, who changed clothes with one of Anna's maids and fled from the Krevo castle, while the maid remained instead of the captive [II, p. 89; 9, p. 140]. How Anna's maid managed to get into the castle is still unknown. According to another version, Anna herself remained in the dungeon instead of Vitautas and, having endured all the horrors and deprivations of imprisonment, was released later [5, p. 35–38]. Now it is quite difficult to judge the reliability of these narratives, especially in terms of heroic details, but the very fact that Princess Anna appears in such a significant episode as the release of Vitautas indicates her active and enterprising position.
The princess takes part in Vitautas's negotiations with the crusaders and even becomes a hostage of the Teutonic order in exchange for military assistance in her husband's struggle for power. After the proclamation of Vitautas as the Grand Duke of Lithuania, Anna in 1389 took part in the conclusion of the Salin Treaty on the transfer of the Samogitian lands to the Teutonic Order. In 1400 she toured the churches of Prussia.
In general, Lithuanian researchers emphasize that Anna maintained good relations with the Teutons until her death on July 31, 1418 [III].
It is reported that when the news of the death of the Grand Duchess of Lithuania reached Prussia, a memorial service was held in the churches. Princess Anna died in Troki.
Sources
I. PSRL. T. XXXV. Letopisi Belorussko-litovskie. M., 1980.
II. Khronika Bykhovtsa / Sost. i avtor predisl. N.N. Ulashchik. M., 1966.
III. Dlugossii J. Annales seu Cronicae incliti Regni Poloniae. Liber XI (1413–1430). Varsaviae, 2000; Liber XI et liber XII (1431–1444). Varsaviae, 2001.
Bibliography
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2. Gudavichius E. Istoriia Litvy s drevneishikh vremen do 1569 goda. M., 2005.
3. Polekhov S.V. Nasledniki Vitovta. Dinasticheskaia voina v Velikom kniazhestve Litovskom v 30-e gody XV veka. M., 2015.
4. Anne / Simas Sužiedėlis. Boston, Massachusetts, 1970–1978. Vol. I. P. 102–103.
5. Jonynas I. Vytauto šeimyna // Istorijos baruose. Vilnius: Mokslas, 1984.
6. Lietuvos valdovai (XIII–XVIII a.): enciklopedinis žinynas / Ed. Vytautas Spečiūnas. Vilnius: Mokslo ir enciklopedijų leidybos institutas, 2004. P. 88
7. Rowell S.C. Pious Princesses or Daughters of Belial: Pagan Lithuanian Dynastic Diplomacy, 1279–1423 // Medieval Prosopography. 1994. Vol. 15 (1). P. 1–77.
8. Tęgowski J. Małżeństwa księcia Witolda Kiejstutowicza // Rocznik polskiego towarzystwa heraldycznego heraldycznego. T. 2 (13). Warszava, 1995. S. 177–182.
9. Turnbull S. R., Hook R. Tannenberg 1410: Disaster for the Teutonic Knights. Osprey Publishing, 2003.
Internet Resources