Butvydas or Pukuveras (died ) was

Grand Duke of Lithuania This is a list of Lithuanian monarchs who ruled Lithuania from its inception until the fall of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in 1795. The Lithuanian monarch bore the title of Grand duke, Grand Duke, with the exception of Mindaugas, who was crown ...

from until his death in . Butvydas is believed to have been the father of Grand Duke

Gediminas Gediminas ( – December 1341) was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1315 or 1316 until his death in 1341. He is considered the founder of Lithuania's capital Vilnius (see: Iron Wolf legend). During his reign, he brought under his rule lands from t ...

, under whom

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

emerged as a major Northern and Eastern European power.

Background

There is no conclusive data regarding Butvydas's origins. However, some scholars consider him to have been a son of the Grand Duke

Traidenis Traidenis (; ; died 1282) was List of Lithuanian monarchs, Grand Duke of Lithuania from around late 1267 to 1268 until 1282. He is the second most prominent grand duke of Lithuania in the 13th century after Mindaugas. His reign ended a seven-year ...

. Butvydas is first mentioned in Galician–Volhynian Chronicle dating to April–May 1289, when, together with his elder brother Grand Duke Butigeidis, he handed over the town of Vawkavysk to the

Ruthenia ''Ruthenia'' is an exonym, originally used in Medieval Latin, as one of several terms for Rus'. Originally, the term ''Rus' land'' referred to a triangular area, which mainly corresponds to the tribe of Polans in Dnieper Ukraine. ''Ruthenia' ...

n prince Mstislav in compliance with the terms of the peace treaty between

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a sovereign state in northeastern Europe that existed from the 13th century, succeeding the Kingdom of Lithuania, to the late 18th century, when the territory was suppressed during the 1795 Partitions of Poland, ...

and Principality of Volhynia. Butvydas is mentioned again in '' Chronicon terrae Prussiae'' by

Peter of Dusburg Peter of Dusburg (; ; died after 1326), also known as Peter of Duisburg, was a Priest-Brother and chronicler of the Teutonic Knights. He is known for writing the ''Chronicon terrae Prussiae'', which described the 13th and early 14th century Teutonic ...

, in which he is referred to as Pukuveras the King of Lithuanians (''Pucuwerus rex Lethowie''), when in 1291 he sent an army led by his sons—including future Grand Duke Vytenis to fight against the Poles in

Kuyavia Kuyavia (; ), also referred to as Cuyavia, is a historical region in north-central Poland, situated on the left bank of Vistula, as well as east from Noteć River and Lake Gopło. It is divided into three traditional parts: north-western (with th ...

Reign

Butvydas's reign appears to have overlapped with that of his brother, Grand Duke Butigeidis, and some historians propose that the two may have effectively shared power, similar to later instances of co-regency observed in the dynasty, like the grandsons

Algirdas Algirdas (; , ; – May 1377) was List of Lithuanian monarchs, Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1345 to 1377. With the help of his brother Kęstutis (who defended the western border of the Duchy) he created an empire stretching from the pre ...

and Kęstutis. After the death of Butigeidis, Butvydas became the sole monarch. Butvydas’ short reign occurred during a critical period of Lithuanian consolidation against external threats, including the

Teutonic Order The Teutonic Order is a religious order (Catholic), Catholic religious institution founded as a military order (religious society), military society in Acre, Israel, Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Order of Brothers of the German House of Sa ...

’s annual attacks on Samogitia, fights with Order-allied Poles in

Masovia Mazovia or Masovia ( ) is a historical region in mid-north-eastern Poland. It spans the North European Plain, roughly between Łódź and Białystok, with Warsaw being the largest city and Płock being the capital of the region . Throughout the ...

and Mongol influence in neighbouring Ruthenian principalities. Historian Stephen Christopher Rowell argues that Butvydas laid administrative foundations for his successors, enabling Vytenis and Gediminas to centralize authority and expand Lithuania’s territory in the former

Kievan Rus' Kievan Rus', also known as Kyivan Rus,. * was the first East Slavs, East Slavic state and later an amalgam of principalities in Eastern Europe from the late 9th to the mid-13th century.John Channon & Robert Hudson, ''Penguin Historical At ...

. Despite this, no surviving records detail his specific policies or military campaigns, leaving historians reliant on comparative analysis of Slavic and Germanic chronicles.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Butvydas 13th-century births 1295 deaths Year of birth unknown 13th-century Lithuanian nobility Grand dukes of Lithuania Gediminids

Background

Reign

See also

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