The exhibition is divided into
four parts. The beginning and end are
highlighted by significant turning points in the
history of Lithuania's statehood. Special
attention is given to those earliest sources
that mention Lithuania for the first time in
history.
The first part of the
exhibition presents information on the formation
of the Lithuanian state and its metamorphosis
into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. This part of
the exhibition concludes with events before the
Union of Lublin. Documents dating from the 12th
century to the first half of the 16th century
reflect the Grand Duchy of Lithuania's
relationships with neighbouring countries, in
particular Livonia, the Teutonic Order, the
principalities of Rus' (later Russia), Poland,
the Golden Horde and the Papal States. These
documents attest to military campaigns and
activities, writs and treatises pertaining to
armistices and peace, grievances, privileges and
treaties concerning trade, resolutions over
territorial issues, Lithuanian-Polish treaties
concerning the nature of their union, documents
about Lithuania's Christianisation (culturally
as well as sociopolitically speaking, the 1387
Christianisation of Lithuania ushered in a new
period in the country's history, allowing the
state to become much closer to Western Europe,
both culturally and politically). This part of
the exhibition also reveals what life was like
in the state: relations between members of the
ruling elite, the struggle for power, reforms of
the country's system of government, the
formation of estates (especially, those of the
nobility) and how their status changed. A 1255
writ by which King Mindaugas signed over his
claim to Selonia to the Livonian Order is the
oldest original document in the exhibition.
The second part of the
exhibition is dedicated to the Grand Duchy of
Lithuania within the Commonwealth of the Two
Nations (1569-1795). Generally speaking, this
stage in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania's
historical development resulted in the gradual
weakening of the state, the loss of territory,
an agricultural crisis, and economic decline (particularly
in the mid-18th century); in the end, this epoch
saw Lithuania's complete loss of statehood.
Nevertheless, the period was also noted for
achievements in culture and learning (e.g. in
1579, Vilnius University was founded) as well as
military victories and other important events.
The country fought bitterly over Livonia, and
was forced to protect its territorial integrity
through battles with Russia, Sweden and Turkey.
Often, relations were strained, even with Poland,
its political partner. Conditions were made
worse as a result of epidemics, internal
frictions and fighting among factions; even a
section of the nobility was caught up in foreign
intrigues that led to their betrayal of their
country. In the end, the Commonwealth of the Two
Nations, both parts of the union, were to be
partitioned three times by foreign powers, the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania vanished from political
maps of Europe.
The third part of the
exhibition familiarises visitors with Lithuanian
history from 1795 to 1918, a period in history
when the country was controlled by foreign
countries. As Lithuania was annexed by Russia,
the Imperial Russian authorities attempted to
force the inhabitants to become obedient
servants of the tsar, to russify them and to
eradicate any traces that Lithuania had been an
independent political entity. It was to become
nothing more than the "Northwest Land" within
the Russian Empire.
Lithuanians responded with two uprisings, a
national struggle over the Lithuanian language,
and a national liberation movement. Consequent
events, the First World War and the collapse of
the Russian Empire, were to create the
conditions for the re-establishment of
Lithuania's statehood.
The last part of the
exhibition focuses on Lithuania in the 20th and
21st centuries: the independent republic
(1918-1940); the occupation (1940-1990); and
modern Lithuania (1990 to the present). After
reclaiming independence in 1990, the country's
most recent history is marked by the country's
integration into Europe. Documents from the
period reflect on the trials and tribulations it
underwent in the 20th century in order to
attain independence and to have its
independence recognised by other states.
Similarly, the exhibition reviews key moments in
the state's history, both the successes as well
as the failures, and resistance to the Soviet
occupation. The "Act of the Reestablishment of
the Lithuanian State" decreed by the Supreme
Council of the Republic of Lithuania (ll March
1990) is one of the most recent documents. It
ushered in a new period in the country's history.
In the exhibition, visitors are encouraged to
look at various other references to the state's
recent history: items which reflect on the
Republic of Lithuania's diplomatic relations
with other countries and which attest to
cooperation within NATO and the UN. Lastly, it
highlights the country's accession to the
European Union, which took place along with that
of nine other states.
Therefore, the exhibition "Lithuania
in Ancient Historical Sources'' covers the most
significant moments in Lithuania's first
thousand years. It is also the first time these
snapshots of history have been presented using
the most important surviving documents, which
were retrieved from a great number of European
countries.
"In the year 1009, St Bruno
called Boniface, archbishop and monk, during his
eleventh year after having become a monk, was
killed by pagans at the border ofRus' and
Lithuania on 9 March with eighteen of his
brethren, all of whom went to heaven."
Translated by Eugenrja
Ulčinaite
The first known written
mention of the name of Lithuania occurs in the
German Quedlinburger Annalen (Quedlinburg
Annals) in 1009. The event which prompted this
is also described in other sources: the
missionary St Bruno Boniface was killed. In the
other sources, however, there is no mention of
Lithuania, only Prussia. This may indicate that
the Germans and Poles at that time did not
recognise Lithuanians as such: all Baits, or at
least most, were "Prussians" to them. Lithuania
was mentioned in the Quedlinburg Annals because
the information about St Bruno's death came from
people close to him and it was the most accurate.
Edvardas Gudavičius
Writing about the martyrdom
of St Bruno Boniface in 1009, a nun of noble
Saxon descent at the St Servatius convent in
Quedlinburg wrote down for the first time the
name of Lithuania (LituaJ: "In the year 1009, St
Bruno called Boniface, archbishop and monk,
during his eleventh year after having become a
monk, was killed by pagans at the border ofRus'
and Lithuania on 9 March with eighteen of his
brethren, all of whom went to heaven." The
first mention of Lithuania's name is associated
with Christianising missions, thanks to which
more information began to be gathered about the
countries on Europe's periphery. The convent of
Quedlinburg Abbey, which was established by the
Imperial Ottoman Dynasty, was a place where such
information was recorded. The Holy Roman
Emperor Otto Ill's idea of "imperial renewal" (revival
of the glory and power of Ancient Rome) provided
strong political support for such peaceful
missions by the monks. This was the time when
Central, Eastern and northern European countries
were being converted to Christianity. The
Christianisa-tion of bordering tribes was to
follow, and that was St Bruno's mission. There
is no agreement in historiography about the
origins of Bruno's principal political partner,
Netimeras, whose negotiations concerning baptism
and conversion are recorded in other sources.
One of the more serious hypotheses postulates
that Netimeras could have been a leader of one
of Lithuania's tribes who successfully created a
strong early political organisation. In any case,
Bruno's violent death on the border of Lithuania
and Rus marked Lithuania's disappearance from
the horizon of the civilised world and
Christianising missions for a long time.
Rudimentary state organisations would begin to
form here, and the Western world would only
learn about them in the 13th century, when new
centres of Christian missionary work were
established in the Eastern Baltic (Prussia and
Livonia).
Rimvydas Petrauskas
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