Visvaldis was a Latgalian nobleman and the prince of Jersika in the 13th century. In the '' Livonian Chronicle of Henry '', he is called king (''rex'').

Biography

Visvaldis's date of birth is unknown. His origins, too, are unclear: some scholars think that he was a son of Barys Davidavič, prince of Polotsk, and a Latgalian mother. The first written record of him dates from 1203 and tells of how he, together with the

Lithuanians Lithuanians () are a Balts, Baltic ethnic group. They are native to Lithuania, where they number around 2,378,118 people. Another two million make up the Lithuanian diaspora, largely found in countries such as the Lithuanian Americans, United Sta ...

attacked the newly established city of

Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...

. Although he was a vassal of Principality of Polotsk, he was married to a daughter of the Lithuanian duke Daugerutis and thus became also Lithuania's ally. Between 1203 and 1208, Visvaldis, together with the Lithuanians repeatedly raided Livonian lands and tried to gain full control of the River Daugava. In 1209, Bishop Albert of Riga led German

crusaders The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Papacy during the Middle Ages. The most prominent of these were the campaigns to the Holy Land aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and its surrounding ...

and the allied Livonian army against the Principality of Jersika. They did not meet significant resistance and plundered Visvaldis's capital, the Jersika hillfort, taking his wife prisoner. Visvaldis, however, managed to escape but he was forced to surrender and became a vassal of Albert of Riga. He was forced to submit his kingdom to Albert as a gift to the

Bishopric of Riga The Archbishopric of Riga (, ) was a Catholic diocese and civil government in Medieval Livonia, subject to the Holy See. It was established in 1186 and ended in 1561. History The diocese was established in 1186 as the Bishopric of Livonia ...

, and received only a portion of it as a fiefdom. Visvaldis's feudal charter is the oldest such document surviving in Latvia, and calls him "the king of Jersika" ("Vissewalde, rex de Gercike"). In 1214, Jersika castle was again destroyed by the German knight Meinhard from Koknese because Visvaldis was still supporting the Lithuanians. In later years, Visvaldis's lands were repeatedly divided among Bishop Albert of Riga and the

Livonian Brothers of the Sword The Livonian Brothers of the Sword (; ) was a Catholic Church, Catholic Military order (monastic society), military order established in 1202 during the Livonian Crusade by Albert of Riga, Albert, the third bishop of Riga (or possibly by Theode ...

. Visvaldis's date of death is unknown, and is probably between 1230 and 1239. The '' Chronicle of Henry of Livonia'' describes Jersika hillfort as abandoned in 1239.

Notes

References

{{Reflist 13th-century dukes in Europe Medieval Latgalian people People of the Livonian Crusade