''De moribus tartarorum, lituanorum et moscorum'' ("On the Customs of Tatars, Lithuanians and Muscovites") is a 16th-century Latin treatise by Michalo Lituanus ("Michael the Lithuanian"). The work, which was originally dedicated to King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania

Sigismund II Augustus Sigismund II Augustus ( pl, Zygmunt II August, lt, Žygimantas Augustas; 1 August 1520 – 7 July 1572) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, the son of Sigismund I the Old, whom Sigismund II succeeded in 1548. He was the first ruler ...

, survived only in ten fragments that were first published in 1615 by Johann Jacob Grasser in

Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (B ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

Content

The treatise is thought to date from around 1550: the author's ideas and writing style show the clear influence of

humanism Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "human ...

. While the treatise contains some useful historical information, this should be treated with care. The work is neither a

chronicle A chronicle ( la, chronica, from Greek ''chroniká'', from , ''chrónos'' – "time") is a historical account of events arranged in chronological order, as in a timeline. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and ...

nor a

travel book The genre of travel literature encompasses outdoor literature, guide books, nature writing, and travel memoirs. One early travel memoirist in Western literature was Pausanias, a Greek geographer of the 2nd century CE. In the early modern period ...

, but rather a political

essay An essay is, generally, a piece of writing that gives the author's own argument, but the definition is vague, overlapping with those of a letter, a paper, an article, a pamphlet, and a short story. Essays have been sub-classified as formal a ...

which is critical of the author's motherland (

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was Partitions of Poland, partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire, Habsburg Empire of ...

) and overly praises Muscovy and the

Crimean Khanate The Crimean Khanate ( crh, , or ), officially the Great Horde and Desht-i Kipchak () and in old European historiography and geography known as Little Tartary ( la, Tartaria Minor), was a Crimean Tatar state existing from 1441 to 1783, the long ...

for their centralized governments and united subjects.Introduction
to the Russian translation: Михалон Литвин. О нравах татар, литовцев и москвитян. Moscow 1994 The author examines the reasons behind Lithuania's decreasing power and influence, criticises the nobility and high Catholic officials, and advocates for a strong centralized government. He further idealizes the era of

Vytautas the Great Vytautas (c. 135027 October 1430), also known as Vytautas the Great ( Lithuanian: ', be, Вітаўт, ''Vitaŭt'', pl, Witold Kiejstutowicz, ''Witold Aleksander'' or ''Witold Wielki'' Ruthenian: ''Vitovt'', Latin: ''Alexander Vitoldus'', O ...

, when the ruling class supposedly did not pursue self-interests, and instead served the state. Michalo supports the theory that the Lithuanian nation was founded by the legendary dynasty of the Palemonids from the late

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...

, and he proposes introducing Latin as the Grand Duchy's official language, thereby restoring forgotten ancestral traditions. As proof of the similarity between Lithuanian and Latin, Michalo includes a list of 74 words that are similar in the two languages. He also compares ancient Roman traditions with pagan Lithuanian customs.

Author

The identity of the author, also known as Michalon Litwin or Michalo the Lithuanian, is not known. In the book's title his name is given in the

genitive In grammar, the genitive case ( abbreviated ) is the grammatical case that marks a word, usually a noun, as modifying another word, also usually a noun—thus indicating an attributive relationship of one noun to the other noun. A genitive can a ...

as "Michalonis Lithuani". Modern historians, including the Lithuanian

Ignas Jonynas Ignas Jonynas (January 24, 1884 – July 14, 1954) was a Lithuanian diplomat, historian, and university professor. As a diplomat he is known for negotiations with the Second Polish Republic and League of Nations regarding Vilnius Region. As a ...

and the Russian Matvey Lubavsky, have identified the author as Michał Tyszkiewicz, the Lithuanian envoy to the

Crimean Tatars , flag = Flag of the Crimean Tatar people.svg , flag_caption = Flag of Crimean Tatars , image = Love, Peace, Traditions.jpg , caption = Crimean Tatars in traditional clothing in front of the Khan's Palace ...

in 1537–39. However, Tyszkiewicz was an

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or " canonical ...

while "Michalonis Lithuani" identified himself as a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. The Polish historian has proposed notary Vatslav Nikolayevich (Vaclovas Mikalojaitis or Wacław Nikołajewicz, – ) from

Maišiagala Maišiagala ( pl, Mejszagoła) is a historic town in Vilnius district municipality, Lithuania. It is located about northwest of Vilnius city municipality near the Vilnius–Panevėžys highway. According to the 2021 census, it had a population o ...

. Nikolayevich began to serve

Grand Chancellor of Lithuania Chancellor of Poland ( pl, Kanclerz - , from la, cancellarius) was one of the highest officials in the historic Poland. This office functioned from the early Polish kingdom of the 12th century until the end of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonweal ...

Albertas Goštautas Albertas Goštautas ( la, Albertus Gastold, links=no, pl, Olbracht Gasztołd, links=no, Belarusian/Ukrainian: ''Альберт Гаштольд'') ( – 1539) was a Lithuanian noble of the Goštautai family from ethnic Lithuanian lands of the G ...

around 1526. In 1528 and from 1534 until his death, he was a secretary at the Grand Duke's Chancery. He was an envoy of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania to

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

in 1537 and 1555–1556 and to

Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a p ...

in 1543.

Notes

References

* {{italics title Lithuanian chronicles East Slavic chronicles 16th-century Latin books