Lithuania is not the very centre of Gothic architecture, but it provides a number of examples, partly very different and some quite unique.

Conditions

Lithuania, situated at the border of

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

and Roman Church had developed by the defence of its

pagan Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...

ism, especially against 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 ...

to become a state and in the 14th century a major power. The territory of nowaday's republic, except

Lithuania Minor Lithuania Minor (; ; ) or Prussian Lithuania (; ; ) is one of five ethnographic regions of Lithuania. It is a historical region of Prussia, where Prussian Lithuanians (or Lietuvininkai) lived, now located in Lithuania and the Kaliningrad Obla ...

, which was ruled by the Teutonic Order, was the Lithuanian speaking part of the

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, ...

, with its Slavic and Orthodox majority of subjects. The centre of power of this large state lay among

Kaunas Kaunas (; ) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius, the fourth largest List of cities in the Baltic states by population, city in the Baltic States and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaun ...

Trakai Trakai (; see Trakai#Names and etymology, names section for alternative and historic names) is a city and lake resort in Lithuania. It lies west of Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania or just from the administrative limits of the Lithuanian capi ...

and

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

. The marriage of Grand Duke Jogaila and the Queen of Poland Jadwiga began the personal union of Lithuania and Poland. After the

Battle of Grunwald The Battle of Grunwald was fought on 15 July 1410 during the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War. The alliance of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, led respectively by King Władysław II Jagiełło (Jogaila), a ...

in 1410 and by the

Treaty of Melno The Treaty of Melno (; ) or Treaty of Lake Melno () was a peace treaty ending the Gollub War. It was signed on 27 September 1422, between the State_of_the_Teutonic_Order, Teutonic Knights and an alliance of the Kingdom of Poland (1385–1569), Kin ...

in 1422 the attacks of the Teutonic Order ceased. After the

Second Peace of Thorn The Peace of Thorn or Toruń of 1466, also known as the Second Peace of Thorn or Toruń (; ), was a peace treaty signed in the Hanseatic city of Thorn (Toruń) on 19 October 1466 between the Polish king Casimir IV Jagiellon and the Teutonic Knig ...

, the Order was not any more a serious competitor in the region.

Buildings

Castles with hard walls

Castles built of stones and bricks, dates of the first complete building after wooden precursors: *

Kaunas Castle Kaunas Castle () is a medieval castle in Kaunas, the second-largest city in Lithuania. Archeological evidence suggests that it was built during the mid-14th century in the Gothic style. Its site is strategic—a rise on the banks of the Nemunas ...

, built in the mid 14th century, explored by Teutonic Knights in 1361 and destroyed in 1362, in 1384 once more conquered by the Order and reconquered by the Lithuanians, *

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 protecting ...

, 1350–1377, *

Trakai Island Castle Trakai Island Castle () is an island castle located in Trakai, Lithuania, on an island in Lake Galvė. The construction of the stone castle was begun in the 14th century by Kęstutis, and around 1409 major works were completed by his son Vyta ...

, Fortifications built in the second half of the 14th century, palace after 1410, * Medininkai Castle, 1392, after mid 15th century residential * Gediminas' Tower in Vilnius, completed 1409. Almost all Lithuanian medieval castles and

fortifications A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from La ...

were built of

wood Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...

and

earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...

First churches

Orthodox cathedral of Vilnius

The oldest church in Lithuania, built from bricks, is the Orthodox Cathedral of the Theotokos, Vilnius. It was constructed in 1346, when the

Renaissance style Renaissance architecture is the European architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 16th centuries in different regions, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of Ancient Greece, ancient Greek and ...

had not yet arrived in

central Europe Central Europe is a geographical region of Europe between Eastern Europe, Eastern, Southern Europe, Southern, Western Europe, Western and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Central Europe is known for its cultural diversity; however, countries in ...

, and in the Grand Duchy only the Slavic population was Christian. The roofs and design of the outer walls underwent some changes during the course of centuries. Today, the outer appearance is

Neo-Byzantine Neo-Byzantine architecture (also referred to as Byzantine Revival) was a Revivalism (architecture), revival movement, most frequently seen in religious, institutional and public buildings. It incorporates elements of the Byzantine architecture, ...

, and most of the walls are plastered.

Brick Gothic

Lithuania Kaunas Franciscan Vytautas Church

After Jogaila had been baptized a Catholic, the country officially became Catholic, and churches were built also for the Grand Duchy's Lithuanian population. Soon the most important churches were erected in

Brick Gothic Brick Gothic (, , ) is a specific style of Gothic architecture common in Baltic region, Northeast and Central Europe especially in the regions in and around the Baltic Sea, which do not have resources of standing rock (though Glacial erratic, ...

: * Saint Nicholas Church in

, 1387 * Vytautas' the Great Church in

, 1400 * in

Kėdainiai Kėdainiai () is one of the oldest List of cities in Lithuania, cities in Lithuania. It is located north of Lithuania's second largest city Kaunas on the banks of the Nevėžis River. Kėdainiai were first mentioned in the 1372 Livonian Chronicle ...

, 1403 * Kaunas Cathedral Basilica, 1410, rebuilt several times and redesigned in

Baroque style The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from the early 17th century until the 1750s. It followed Renaissance art and Mannerism and preceded the Rococo (i ...

* in Vilnius, after a wooden precursor of 1387 in bricks since 1410, destroyed several times by fire, since 1671–1675 mainly Baroque.

Late Gothic

Flamboyant style

In the late Gothic period, two exceptional buildings were built in Lithuania, following the abundant French

Flamboyant Flamboyant () is a lavishly-decorated style of Gothic architecture that appeared in France and Spain in the 15th century, and lasted until the mid-sixteenth century and the beginning of the Renaissance.Encyclopedia Britannica, "Flamboyant style ...

style, but realized in bricks. * The House of Perkūnas was built in the mid 15th century as a trading post of the

Hanseatic League The Hanseatic League was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive network of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Growing from a few Northern Germany, North German towns in the ...

and had that function till 1532. Afterwards it was used by the

Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...

. The present name is derived from a small picture that was found at the wall and was considered an image of a Baltic thunder god by romantic historians. * Church of St. Anne, Vilnius, 1495 - 1500.

References

{{Gothic architecture

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 ...