Ivan Chodkiewicz (; 1420 – 1484) was a Ruthenian noble from 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, ...

. He was a son of

Chodko Jurewicz Chodko Jurewicz (, ; fl. c.1400–1447) was a Ruthenian noble from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and is considered to be the founder of the Chodkiewicz family. Chodko was a historical person, but his obscure origin and biography have long been su ...

and ancestor of the

Chodkiewicz The House of Chodkiewicz (; ) was one of the most influential Szlachta, noble families of Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Lithuanian-Ruthenians, Ruthenian descent within the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in the 16th and 17th century.Chester S. L. D ...

family. Ivan married Jawnuta (Agnieszka) Belska, first cousin of

Casimir IV Jagiellon Casimir IV (Casimir Andrew Jagiellon; ; Lithuanian: ; 30 November 1427 – 7 June 1492) was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1440 and King of Poland from 1447 until his death in 1492. He was one of the most active Polish-Lithuanian rulers; under ...

. The marriage into the royal line helped him to obtain positions of

starosta Starosta or starost (Cyrillic: ''старост/а'', Latin: ''capitaneus'', ) is a community elder in some Slavic lands. The Slavic root of "starost" translates as "senior". Since the Middle Ages, it has designated an official in a leadersh ...

Lutsk Lutsk (, ; see #Names and etymology, below for other names) is a city on the Styr River in northwestern Ukraine. It is the administrative center of Volyn Oblast and the administrative center of Lutsk Raion within the oblast. Lutsk has a populati ...

(1473) and

voivode of Kiev This the list of voivodes of Kiev. A Kiev voivode () was the major administrative position in Kiev Voivodship, in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from 1471 until 1569 and in the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland from 1569 until 1793. In the 15–16th ...

(1480). During a

Tatar Tatar may refer to: Peoples * Tatars, an umbrella term for different Turkic ethnic groups bearing the name "Tatar" * Volga Tatars, a people from the Volga-Ural region of western Russia * Crimean Tatars, a people from the Crimea peninsula by the B ...

invasion in 1482, Ivan and his family were taken hostage. Ivan died in captivity while his wife, daughter Agrafena, and son

Aleksander Chodkiewicz Aleksander Chodkiewicz (, , ; ca. 1475 – 28 May 1549) was a Ruthenian noble from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, founder of the Supraśl Orthodox Monastery. He inherited vast possessions from his father Ivan Chodkiewicz, which made him 11th we ...

were ransomed and continued the family line.

Biography

Early life

Traditionally, historiography states that Ivan Chodkiewicz first appears in written sources in 1453 as a member of a Lithuanian delegation sent to the

Sejm of the Kingdom of Poland The General Sejm (, also translated as the General Parliament) was the parliament of the Kingdom of Poland (1385–1569), Kingdom of Poland. It had evolved from the earlier institution of ''Curia Regis'' (King's Council) and was one of the prima ...

Parczew Parczew is a town in eastern Poland, with a population of 10,281 (2006). It is the capital of Parczew County in the Lublin Voivodeship. Parczew historically belongs to Lesser Poland (''Małopolska'') region. The town lies 60 kilometers north o ...

. However, this note is based on an unreliable account by

Albert Wijuk Kojałowicz Albert Wijuk Kojałowicz (also ''Wojciech Wijuk Kojałowicz'', ; ; 1609–1677) was a Lithuanian historian, theologian and translator. He was a devoted Jesuit and religious polemicist, interested in genealogy and heraldry. He served as a censor, ...

. According to Lithuanian historian Genutė Kirkienė, the first reliable mention of Ivan was on 6 June 1459 when he witnessed a treaty. At the time he was

Minsk Minsk (, ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach (Berezina), Svislach and the now subterranean Nyamiha, Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the administra ...

. He reappeared as a military commander in 1466 during the

Thirteen Years' War (1454–1466) The Thirteen Years' War (; ), also called the War of the Cities, was a conflict fought in 1454–1466 between the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Teutonic Order. After the Battle of Grunwald, enormous defeat suffered by the German Ord ...

between the Kingdom of Poland and the

Teutonic Knights The Teutonic Order is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem was formed to aid Christians on their pilgrimages to t ...

. The Grand Duchy of Lithuania declared neutrality and officially did not participate in the war. In 1466, the Knights defended themselves in

Chojnice Chojnice (; or ; or ) is a town in northern Poland with 38,789 inhabitants, as of June 2023, near the Tuchola Forest. It is the capital of the Chojnice County in the Pomeranian Voivodeship. Founded in , Chojnice is a former royal city of Poland ...

(Konitz) and the siege by Polish troops, commanded by

Piotr Dunin Piotr Dunin (c. 1415 – 1484) was a Polish leader. He was Starost of Malbork from 1478–1484, castellan of Sieradz from 1478, and voivode of Brześć Kujawski Voivodeship from 1481. Early life Born into an old Dunin family, as the son of Wło ...

, stalled. Polish King and Lithuanian Grand Duke

sent reinforcements of 500 Lithuanian and 300 Tatar soldiers, who were commanded by Ivan Chodkiewicz. The Polish–Lithuanian forces succeeded in burning and capturing the city on 28 September 1466. In 1470, Ivan Chodkiewicz became part of the royal court. In a 23 October 1470 document he was mentioned as court marshal (''

marszałek Marszałek (, , , ) was the title of one of the highest officials in the Polish royal court since the 13th century, and in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania since the 15th century. It was the highest-ranking of all court officials and was considered ...

hospodarski'') and governor of

Lida Lida is a city in Grodno Region, western Belarus, located west of Minsk. It serves as the administrative center of Lida District. As of 2025, it has a population of 103,262. Etymology The name ''Lida'' arises from its Lithuanian name ''Ly ...

. In this position, which was shared with other people and held by Ivan until 1479, he was responsible for the security of the royal court. Around this time he married Jawnuta (Agnieszka) Belska, daughter of and first cousin of Casimir IV. It is believed that their first son,

, was born around 1475. Kirkienė argued that the wedding was a boost for further career of Ivan, who lost his position in Lida to become a governor of

Vitebsk Vitebsk or Vitsyebsk (, ; , ; ) is a city in northern Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Vitebsk Region and Vitebsk District, though it is administratively separated from the district. As of 2025, it has 358,927 inhabitants, m ...

around 1473.The date is usually given as 1477, when the title was reliably mentioned in a written document.

Later career

On 12 October 1474, Ivan Chodkiewicz commanded Lithuanian troops in a battle near

Wrocław Wrocław is a city in southwestern Poland, and the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It is the largest city and historical capital of the region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the Oder River in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Eu ...

(Breslau) against

Matthias Corvinus of Hungary Matthias Corvinus (; ; ; ; ; ) was King of Hungary and Croatia from 1458 to 1490, as Matthias I. He is often given the epithet "the Just". After conducting several military campaigns, he was elected King of Bohemia in 1469 and adopted the tit ...

. Ivan, his otherwise unknown brother Pavel, and eleven other

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 nobles signed a letter to

Pope Sixtus IV Pope Sixtus IV (or Xystus IV, ; born Francesco della Rovere; (21 July 1414 – 12 August 1484) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 August 1471 until his death in 1484. His accomplishments as pope included ...

in 1476, authored by

Misail Pstruch Misail Pstruch (; born undetermined date, died fall of 1480 or winter of 1480/81) was the acting Metropolitan of Kiev, Galicia and all Rus' in the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople of the Eastern Orthodox Church. Hrushevskyi M. Hierarchal r ...

Metropolitan of Kiev Metropolitan of Kyiv is an Episcopal polity, episcopal title that has been created with varying suffixes at multiple times in different Christian churches, though always maintaining the name of the Metropolis (religious jurisdiction), metropolita ...

. The letter expressed loyalty to the

Council of Florence The Council of Florence is the seventeenth ecumenical council recognized by the Catholic Church, held between 1431 and 1445. It was convened in territories under the Holy Roman Empire. Italy became a venue of a Catholic ecumenical council aft ...

and supported a

church union Church union is the name given to a merger of two or more Christian denominations. Such unions may take on many forms, including a united church and a federation. United churches A united church is the result of a merger of churches of vari ...

between Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy. It also contained complains that the Catholics were discriminating the Orthodoxs and asked the Pope for protection. There are doubts whether the letter was authentic and not a later forgery. In 1478, Ivan was mentioned as starosta of

. It was a high-level position in

Volhynia Volhynia or Volynia ( ; see #Names and etymology, below) is a historic region in Central and Eastern Europe, between southeastern Poland, southwestern Belarus, and northwestern Ukraine. The borders of the region are not clearly defined, but in ...

, an important region contested between Poland and Lithuania. As starosta, Ivan enacted new taxes that faced resistance and were canceled by his successor. Ivan Chodkiewicz reached the top of his career when he became

in summer 1480. This upset dynastic interest of the Olelkovych and Belsky families, who could claim ancestry from the ruling

Gediminid dynasty The House of Gediminas (), or simply the Gediminids, were a dynasty of monarchs in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania that reigned from the 14th to the 16th century. A cadet branch of this family, known as the Jagiellonian dynasty, reigned also in th ...

and

Princes of Kiev The Grand Prince of Kiev (sometimes also Grand Duke) was the title of the monarch of Kievan Rus', residing in Kiev (modern Kyiv) from the 10th to 13th centuries. In the 13th century, Kiev became an appanage principality first of the grand prin ...

. Disappointed by such dynastic policies,

Mikhailo Olelkovich Mikhailo or Mikhail Olelkovich (; died August 30, 1481) was a noble from the Olelkovich family of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. He was the younger brother of Simeon Olelkovich, the prince of Kiev, and a cousin of Ivan III, the grand prince of Mosc ...

with relatives and planned a coup against Casimir IV in 1481. However, the conspiracy was discovered, possibly by Ivan Chodkiewicz, and Mikhailo and Ivan were executed. Kiev Voivodeship was threatened by the

Crimean Khanate The Crimean Khanate, self-defined as the Throne of Crimea and Desht-i Kipchak, and in old European historiography and geography known as Little Tartary, was a Crimean Tatars, Crimean Tatar state existing from 1441 to 1783, the longest-lived of th ...

under Khan

Meñli I Giray Meñli I GirayCrimean Tatar language, Crimean Tatar, Ottoman Turkish and (1445–1515) was thrice the List of Crimean khans, khan of the Crimean Khanate (1466, 1469–1475, 1478–1515) and the sixth son of Hacı I Giray. Biography Stru ...

. Therefore, it had to have strong and organized military, and Ivan's military experience was useful. However, the Tatars invaded the region and kidnapped Ivan and his family in 1482. Ivan and his daughter (name unknown) died in captivity, while his wife, son Aleksander, and daughter Agrafena were ransomed.

Notes

References

;Notes ;Bibliography * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Chodkiewicz, Ivan 1420s births 1484 deaths Year of birth uncertain

Ivan Chodkiewicz Ivan Chodkiewicz (; 1420 – 1484) was a Ruthenian nobility, Ruthenian noble from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. He was a son of Chodko Jurewicz and ancestor of the Chodkiewicz family. Ivan married Jawnuta (Agnieszka) Belska, first cousin of Casim ...

Ruthenian nobility Voivodes of Kiev