lt, Trakų vaivadija
pl, Województwo trockie , conventional_long_name = Trakai Voivodeship , common_name = Trakai , subdivision = Voivodeship , nation =

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 ...

(1413–1569)

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi-confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Crown of the Kingdom of ...

(1569–1795) , year_start = 1413 , event_start = Established by

Union of Horodło The Union of Horodło or Pact of Horodło was a set of three acts signed in the town of Horodło on 2 October 1413. The first act was signed by Władysław II Jagiełło, King of Poland, and Vytautas, Grand Duke of Lithuania. The second and thir ...

, event_end =

Third Partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth The Third Partition of Poland (1795) was the last in a series of the Partitions of Poland–Lithuania and the land of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth among Prussia, the Habsburg monarchy, and the Russian Empire which effectively ended Polis ...

, year_end = 1795 , event1 =

Union of Lublin The Union of Lublin ( pl, Unia lubelska; lt, Liublino unija) was signed on 1 July 1569 in Lublin, Poland, and created a single state, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, one of the largest countries in Europe at the time. It replaced the per ...

, date_event1 = 1569 , p1 = Duchy of Trakai , image_p1 = COA of Gediminaičiai dynasty Lithuania

, s1 = Vilna Governorate , image_s1 = Vilnius COA 1845

, s2 = Slonim Governorate , flag_s2 = Flag of Russia.svg , s3 = Province of East Prussia , flag_s3 = Flagge Preußen - Provinz Ostpreußen.svg , s4 = Podlaskie Voivodeship (1513–1795) , image_s4 = POL województwo podlaskie IRP COA

, image_flag = Flag of Trakai Voivodeship (1569-1795)-1.svg , image_coat = Recueil d'armoiries polonaises COA of Trakai Voivodeship.png , image_map = Trakai Voivodeship within Lithuania in the 17th century.png , image_map_caption = Trakai Voivodeship (in red) in the 17th century , capital = Trakai , political_subdiv =

Counties A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

: 4 , government_type = Monarchy , legislature = Sejmik , title_leader = Voivode , title_deputy = Castellan , stat_year1 = 1570 , stat_area1 = 31100 , stat_year2 = 1790 , stat_area2 = 23885 , stat_pop2 = 288000 , footnotes = Population and area are given according to Trakai Voivodeship, Trakai Palatinate, or Troki Voivodeship ( la, Palatinatus Trocensis, lt, Trakų vaivadija, pl, Województwo trockie), was a unit of administrative division and local government in the

from 1413 until 1795.

History

Trakai Voivodeship together with

Vilnius Voivodeship pl, Województwo wileńskie , conventional_long_name = Vilnius Voivodeship , common_name = Vilnius , subdivision = Voivodeship , nation = Grand Duchy of Lithuania (part of the federative Polish–Lithua ...

was established by the

Grand Duke of Lithuania The monarchy of Lithuania concerned the monarchical head of state of Lithuania, which was established as an absolute and hereditary monarchy. Throughout Lithuania's history there were three ducal dynasties that managed to stay in power— Ho ...

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 ...

in 1413 according to the

. Vytautas copied the Polish system of administrative division in order to centralize and strengthen the government. Trakai Voivodeship replaced the former

Duchy of Trakai Duchy of Trakai was a subdivision of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania during the 14th and early 15th centuries. The Duke of Trakai was an important position held either by the Grand Duke of Lithuania himself or his second-in-command. History After th ...

, which was ruled directly by the Grand Duke or his close relative (brother or son). The Duke of Trakai ( la, dux Trocensis) was replaced by appointed officials –

voivodes Voivode (, also spelled ''voievod'', ''voevod'', ''voivoda'', ''vojvoda'' or ''wojewoda'') is a title denoting a military leader or warlord in Central, Southeastern and Eastern Europe since the Early Middle Ages. It primarily referred to the ...

and his deputy

castellan A castellan is the title used in Medieval Europe for an appointed official, a governor of a castle and its surrounding territory referred to as the castellany. The title of ''governor'' is retained in the English prison system, as a remnant ...

. The voivodeship was divided into four :

Grodno Grodno (russian: Гродно, pl, Grodno; lt, Gardinas) or Hrodna ( be, Гродна ), is a city in western Belarus. The city is located on the Neman River, 300 km (186 mi) from Minsk, about 15 km (9 mi) from the Polish b ...

Kaunas Kaunas (; ; also see other names) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the largest city and the centre of a county in the Duchy of Traka ...

Trakai Trakai (; see names section for alternative and historic names) is a historic town and lake resort in Lithuania. It lies west of Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. Because of its proximity to Vilnius, Trakai is a popular tourist destination. ...

(ruled directly by the voivode), and Upytė. The biggest cities in the voivodeship were

and

. The western portion of the voivodeship was split off in 1513 by

Sigismund I the Old Sigismund I the Old ( pl, Zygmunt I Stary, lt, Žygimantas II Senasis; 1 January 1467 – 1 April 1548) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1506 until his death in 1548. Sigismund I was a member of the Jagiellonian dynasty, the ...

and transferred to the

Polish Crown The Crown of the Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Korona Królestwa Polskiego; Latin: ''Corona Regni Poloniae''), known also as the Polish Crown, is the common name for the historic Late Middle Ages territorial possessions of the King of Poland, incl ...

. It was organized as the

Podlaskie Voivodeship Podlaskie Voivodeship or Podlasie Province ( pl, Województwo podlaskie, ) is a voivodeship (province) in northeastern Poland. The name of the province and its territory correspond to the historic region of Podlachia. The capital and largest c ...

. In 1793, the counties of Grodno, Sokółka and Wołkowysk one of Nowogródek Voivodeship were merged into Grodno Voivodeship. After the

the voivodeship, together with the whole Grand Duchy of Lithuania, became part of the

until the partitions of the Commonwealth in 1795. Most of the territory became part of the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War ...

, while territories west of the

Neman River The Neman, Nioman, Nemunas or MemelTo bankside nations of the present: Lithuanian: be, Нёман, , ; russian: Неман, ''Neman''; past: ger, Memel (where touching Prussia only, otherwise Nieman); lv, Nemuna; et, Neemen; pl, Niemen; ; ...

– part of the Province of East Prussia.

Voivodes

The Voivode of Trakai ( pl, Wojewoda trocki, lt, Trakų vaivada) was one of the most important state offices in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. They were appointed from prominent magnate families and competed only with voivode of Vilnius and Grand Chancellors for power and prestige. Voivodes were the ''ex officio'' members of the

Lithuanian Council of Lords The Lithuanian Council of Lords ( be, Паны-Рада, lt, Ponų taryba) was the main permanent institution of central government in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania active in its capital city of Vilnius. It had originated from the advisory Council ...

. Voivodes had their residence in

city, near Galvė Lake, north of the

Trakai Peninsula Castle Trakai Peninsula Castle is one of the castles in Trakai, Lithuania. It is located on a peninsula between southern Lake Galvė and Lake Luka. Built around 1350–1377 by Kęstutis, Duke of Trakai, it was an important defensive structure protect ...

List of voivodes

Jonas Goštautas Jonas Gostautas or Goštautas ( pl, Jan Gasztołd; c. 1383 in Geranainys – 1 September 1458 in Vilnius) was a Lithuanian nobleman from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania of the Gasztołd (Goštautai) noble family, a politician and skillful la ...

(1440) * Iwaszko Moniwidowicz (1443–1458) *

Radvila Astikas Radvila Astikas or Astikaitis (baptized Nicholas; pl, Radziwiłł Ościkowicz; died in 1477) was a magnate, a member of the Astikai and founder of the Radvila (Radziwiłł) family. He was a member of the Lithuanian Council of Lords and one of the ...

(1466–1477) *

Martynas Goštautas Martynas Goštautas ( pl, Marcin Janowicz Gas(z)tołd, links=no or ''Marcin Gasztołdowicz''; uk, Га́штовт Марти́н Іва́нович, links=no; 1428, Vilnius – c. 1483, Vilnius) was a nobleman from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania o ...

(1480–1483) * Jan Zabrzeziński (1498–1505) * Olbracht Gasztołd (Albrecht Goštautas) (1519–1522) *

Konstanty Ostrogski Konstanty Iwanowicz Ostrogski (c. 1460 – 10 August 1530; lt, Konstantinas Ostrogiškis; uk, Костянтин Іванович Острозький, translit=Kostiantyn Ivanovych Ostrozkyi; be, Канстантын Іванавіч Ас� ...

(1522–1530) * Stanisław Gasztołd (Stanislovas Goštautas) (1542) *

Mikołaj Krzysztof "the Orphan" Radziwiłł Prince Mikołaj Krzysztof Radziwiłł ( lt, Mikalojus Kristupas Radvila Našlaitėlis) (2 Augustus 1549 – 28 February 1616) and nicknamed "the Orphan" ( pl, Sierotka, lt, Našlaitėlis), was a Polish–Lithuanian nobleman ( szlachcic), ...

(1590–1604) *

Janusz Skumin Tyszkiewicz Janusz Skumin Tyszkiewicz ( lt, Jonušas Skuminas Tiškevičius) (1570–1642) was a noble of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, a politician, a sponsor of Baroque music and a writer (1610+). He held numerous political offices, including voivod ...

(1626–1640) *

Piotr Pac Piotr Pac ( lt, Petras Pacas) (after 1570–1642) was a Polish- Lithuanian noble, Lithuanian Court Chorąży from 1613, Lithuanian Court Treasurer from 1635, Voivode of Trakai (1640–1642). He took part in the Battle of Kircholm in 1605. ...

(X 1640–VII 1642) *

Mikołaj Abramowicz Mikołaj Abramowicz or Abrahamowicz ( lt, Mikalojus Abrahamovičius; 1590s – 1651) was a Polish–Lithuanian soldier who was one of the leading military and diplomatic figures of his period. Life A szlachcic of Jastrzębiec coat of arms, M ...

(1647–1651?) * Marcjan Ogiński (since 1670) * Tadeusz Franciszek Ogiński (1770–1783) * Józef Mikołaj Radziwiłł (since 1788)

References

{{coord, 54.639319, 24.935049, format=dms, display=title, type:landmark Voivodeships of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Former voivodeships of Grand Duchy of Lithuania 1413 establishments in Europe 15th-century establishments in Lithuania 1795 disestablishments in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth