Vaidila (''Woidiło'', ''Voydiło'', ''Woydylo''; executed in 1381) was a favorite and brother-in-law of Jogaila,

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 ...

. The

Lithuanian Chronicles The Lithuanian Chronicles (; also called the Belarusian-Lithuanian Chronicles) are three redactions of chronicles compiled in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. All redactions were written in the Ruthenian language and served the needs of Lithuanian pat ...

present Vaidila as a kitchen assistant who rose to the top and entered the nobility only through his marriage to Jogaila's sister Maria in 1379. However, this portrayal is likely biased propaganda. It was a known practice to denounce political opponents as a common peasant. 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 ...

mention that boyar Vaidila ruled ''Wegebeticht'' (believed to be near

Deltuva Deltuva is a small town in Ukmergė district, Vilnius County, Lithuania. It is located 6 km north-west of Ukmergė, near the road to Kėdainiai. It has about 500 inhabitants. Etymology The etymology of the place name Deltuva remains uncertai ...

) and ''Wayteldorff'' ( Dubrowo, north 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 ...

). The Lithuanian Chronicle blames him and

Uliana of Tver Uliana Aleksandrovna ( – 17 March 1391) was a grand duchess of Lithuania as the second wife of Algirdas. She was the daughter of Alexander of Tver and Anastasia of Galicia, daughter of Yuri I of Galicia. Life After her father and eldes ...

, Jogaila's mother, for initiating the

Treaty of Dovydiškės The Treaty of Dovydiškės (; ), Daudiske, or Daudisken was a secret treaty signed on 31 May 1380 between Jogaila, the Grand Duke of Lithuania, and Winrich von Kniprode, the Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights. The treaty was directed against ...

, which caused the

Lithuanian Civil War (1381–1384) The Lithuanian Civil War of 1381–1384 was the first struggle for power between the cousins Jogaila, Grand Duke of Lithuania and later King of Poland, and Vytautas the Great. It began after Jogaila signed the Treaty of Dovydiškės with the Teut ...

. The Chronicle further stipulates that Vaidila held a personal grudge against Kęstutis, who did not recognize his new noble status. For his service in negotiating peace between Jogaila and the Order, Teutonic Knights gifted Vaidila some land on the

Samogitia Samogitia, often known by its Lithuanian language, Lithuanian name ''Žemaitija'' (Samogitian language, Samogitian: ''Žemaitėjė''; see Samogitia#Etymology and alternative names, below for alternative and historical names) is one of the five ...

n–

Livonia Livonia, known in earlier records as Livland, is a historical region on the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea. It is named after the Livonians, who lived on the shores of present-day Latvia. By the end of the 13th century, the name was extende ...

n border and perhaps two ''hufen'' (historical land unit in Germany) of land near

Ragnit Neman (; ; ), is a town and the administrative center of Nemansky District in Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia, located in the historic region of Lithuania Minor, on the steep southern bank of the Neman River, where it forms the Russian border with ...

. When

Kęstutis Kęstutis ( – 3 or 15 August 1382) was sole Duke of Trakai from 1342 to 1382 and List of Lithuanian monarchs, Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1342 to 1382, together with his brother Algirdas (until 1377), and with his nephew Jogaila (from 1377 to ...

briefly took power during the civil war, Vaidila was hanged. Jogaila revenged his death by executing Vidimantas and his son Butrimas, relatives of

Birutė Birutė (died 1382) was the Grand Duchess of Lithuania as the second wife of Kęstutis, Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Grand Duke of Lithuania, and mother of Vytautas the Great. There is very little known about Birutė's life, but after her death a cu ...

, wife of Kęstutis. After Vaidila's death Maria was married off to David of Gorodets. If Vaidila was indeed a low-born peasant, he would be the most striking example of social mobility within Lithuanian classes. He was the only Lithuanian duke known to marry a daughter of a

Gediminid 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 the ...

ruler. This marriage might be an indication that Jogaila needed domestic alliances to keep his throne after his father

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 ...

died in 1377 and his elder brother

Andrei of Polotsk Andrei of Polotsk (; ; ; – 12 August 1399) was the eldest son of Algirdas, Grand Duke of Lithuania, and his first wife Maria of Vitebsk. He was the Prince of Pskov (through his deputy Yuri, 1342–1348) and Polotsk (1342–1387). As the ...

challenged the last will.

References

{{reflist, 2 14th-century births 1381 deaths 14th-century Lithuanian nobility