Jonas "Ivaška" Manvydas (; died 1458) was a

Lithuanian noble Lithuanian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Lithuania, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe ** Lithuanian language ** Lithuanians, a Baltic ethnic group, native to Lithuania and the immediate geographical region ** L ...

. A member of the Manvydas family, he was Voivode of Trakai from 1443 to 1458.

Biography

Manvydas was first recorded in written sources in May 1423 when he affixed his seal to 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 August 1431, he witnessed the truce of Chortoryisk that Grand Duke

Švitrigaila Švitrigaila (before 1370 – 10 February 1452; sometimes spelled Svidrigiello) was the Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1430 to 1432. He spent most of his life in largely unsuccessful dynastic struggles against his cousins Vytautas and Sigismund K� ...

concluded with 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 ...

(see

Polish–Teutonic War (1431–1435) The Polish–Teutonic War (1431–1435) was an armed conflict between the Kingdom of Poland (1385–1569), Kingdom of Poland and the Teutonic Knights. It ended with the Peace of Brześć Kujawski and is considered a victory for Poland. Hostili ...

). At the time, he was a

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 ...

Kremenets Kremenets (, ; ; ) is a city in Ternopil Oblast, western Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Kremenets Raion, and lies north-east of the Pochaiv Lavra. The city is situated in the historic region of Volhynia and features the 12th-c ...

. Manvydas and his family continued to support Švitrigaila after he was deposed in August 1432. His uncle Jurgis Gedgaudas was captured in the Battle of Ashmyany and reconciled with the new Grand Duke

Sigismund Kęstutaitis Sigismund Kęstutaitis (, ; 136520 March 1440) was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1432 to 1440. Sigismund was his baptismal name, while his pagan Lithuanian birth name is unknown. He was the son of Grand Duke Kęstutis and his wife Birutė. Aft ...

. Manvydas continued to support Švitrigaila in the

Lithuanian Civil War (1432–1438) The Lithuanian Civil War of 1432–1438 was a war of succession to the throne of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, after Vytautas the Great died in 1430 without leaving an heir. The war was fought on the one side by Švitrigaila, allied with the Te ...

. In 1436–1437, he claimed the title of Voivode of Podolia. In 1440, after the assassination of Sigismund Kęstutaitis, he supported Casimir Jagiellon against

Michael Žygimantaitis Michael Žygimantaitis (, ; before 1406 – shortly before February 10, 1452 in Moscow) was pretender to the throne of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the last male descendant of Kęstutis, Grand Duke of Lithuania. He supported his father Sigism ...

and regained his influence in 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, ...

. In 1441, he participated in border negotiations with the

Livonian Order The Livonian Order was an autonomous branch of the Teutonic Order, formed in 1237. From 1435 to 1561 it was a member of the Livonian Confederation. History The order was formed from the remnants of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword after thei ...

. In 1443, he became Voivode of Trakai. After the death of

Jonas Goštautas Jonas Gostautas or Goštautas (; c. 1393 in Geranainys or Vilnius – before 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 lan ...

in 1458, he also briefly was

Voivode of Vilnius The Voivode of Vilnius (, ) was a high-ranking Voivode#Commonwealth of Poland–Lithuania, officer in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania who governed the Vilnius Voivodeship from 1413. He was considered as the most influential member of the Lithuanian Co ...

Family

Manvydas was the only known son of Albertas Manvydas. His mother possibly was a sister of Grand Duchess Anna, wife of Grand Duke

Vytautas Vytautas the Great (; 27 October 1430) was a ruler of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. He was also the prince of Grodno (1370–1382), prince of Lutsk (1387–1389), and the postulated king of the Hussites. In modern Lithuania, Vytautas is revere ...

. Manvydas' wife was Anna, but her origins are not known. They had four known children, two sons and two daughters. His daughters married prominent Lithuanian nobles – Sifija married Mikalojus Radvila the Old, ancestor of the powerful

Radziwiłł family The House of Radziwiłł (; ; ; ) is a Polish princely family of Lithuanian origin, and one of the most powerful magnate families originating from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and later also prominent in the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland. Pa ...

, and Jadviga married

Alekna Sudimantaitis Alekna Sudimantaitis (, ; died in 1490/1491) was an influential Lithuanian noble of Trąby coat of arms, Grand Chancellor of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (1478–1490) and Voivode of Vilnius (1477–1490). Alekna is mentioned in written sources i ...

Grand Chancellor of Lithuania The Grand Chancellor of Lithuania (Lithuanian language, Lithuanian: ''Lietuvos didysis kancleris'') was one of the highest Offices in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, offices in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The office functioned from the mid ...

. His son Jonas probably died young. Albertas, the last male heir of the family, was

castellan A castellan, or constable, was the governor of a castle in medieval Europe. Its surrounding territory was referred to as the castellany. The word stems from . A castellan was almost always male, but could occasionally be female, as when, in 1 ...

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 ...

(1461) and

Navahrudak Novogrudok or Navahrudak (; ; , ; ) is a town in Grodno Region, Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Novogrudok District. As of 2025, it has a population of 27,624. In the Middle Ages, the city was ruled by King Mindaugas' son ...

(1473–1475). He considered in present-day Belarus as his main patronymic estate. He inherited

Vishnyeva Vishnyeva (; ; ; ; ) is an agrotown in the Valozhyn District of Minsk Region, Belarus, near the border with Lithuania. History The town was probably established in the 14th century. It was a private town, owned by the Giedygołdowicz, Stecz ...

from his cousin Petras Gedgaudas. Manvydas founded a chapel near the

Vilnia River The Vilnia (also Vilnelė; , ''Vilnia'' ; ) is a river primarily running through Eastern Lithuania. Its source is near the villages of and , 6 km south of Šumskas, nearby to the A3– M7 Medininkai–Kamenny Log border crossing complexes ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Manvydas, Jonas 1458 deaths 15th-century Lithuanian nobility Year of birth unknown Voivode of Vilnius Voivodes of Trakai