The danger looming from the East and West forced the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Poland to conclude a closer alliance.
In the summer of 1385, three powerful states gathered in the Krevo castle: the ON, Hungary, and Poland. For receiving the Polish crown from Jagaila, they demanded certain obligations, which were reflected in the agreement on August 14, 1385. The obligations consisted of a number of actions, namely: the reconquest of all Polish lands, which she had lost, the payment of 200 thousand florins to Poland, the adoption of Catholicism and the conversion of her subjects to this faith. In more detail the conditions of the Crevian Union were considered in Volkovysk. And already on January 11, 1385, Jagaila was awarded the Polish crown, moved to Krakow and received a new name, Vladislav. After some time, the marriage of the Polish king with 12-year-old Jadwiga took place. In general, the union provided for the absorption of Poland by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the incorporation of both states, the creation of one state. At the same time, the vassals had to swear allegiance to the Polish king. However, the reality was different. The Grand Duchy retained its independence. This was expressed in the fact that the principality had its own army, symbols, finances, and independently conducted its foreign policy. This means that the Polish side could have falsified the conditions of the union at some stage. After all, they returned to the question of union in 1401, 1413, 1447, 1451, 1453, 1501, 1503, 1564, 1566 and 1567. Of course, if it had been observed, the same question would not have been raised so many times. Nevertheless, the Kreva Union marked the beginning of the Catholicization and expansion of influence in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from Poland.
Of course, the union also had positive aspects. For example, the defeat of the Teutonic Order at Grunwald in 1410. In 1413, three letters and privileges were adopted, the purpose of which was to further unite the two states. The third document, which belongs to Jagail and Vitovt, had the goal of openly launching Catholic aggression, the creation of an ideology by the Catholic clergy in order to subordinate the will of the Belarusian people. But, the unias of 1385 and 1413 were not fully implemented. It was only the unification of the two states, the main goal of which was still to avoid aggression from the German invaders. The second stage of the integration of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania with Poland began in 1447, when Casimir was granted the Polish throne.
General characteristics of the ON - state authorities, management. Statutes ON
Unitary centralized state. The head of state was great. prince, with him - a council of representatives of the nobility and the highest clergy. Authorities: Grand Duke (from the Gedeminovich dynasty, from the 16th century, elective) - commander-in-chief, defined. external politics, higher. judicial functions, the right of legislative powers in conjunction with the parliament and the diet, appointed. officials together with the joy. Gosud.rada (advisory, legislative, execute-order body) are independent. meaning acquired from the 1440s - the leadership of the central authorities, the protection of power, control over the prince, appointed. positions, management of households. Composition: the chancellor is the head of the grand ducal chancellery, the marshal is the senior at the meetings of the council, the podskarby is the head of finance, the hetman is the commander-in-chief of the army. Diet (formed at the end of the 15th century. Estate-representative. Body) - election of the prince, international. otnosti, the adoption of laws (since 1566 only the Diet), established taxes.
Composition: the grand duke, the nobles-rada, official persons, all the feudal lords of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (Issues of war and peace, taxes and laws, the election of the grand prince were decided). to positions: nobleman, landowner, Christian, appointed chief. Prince / Rada, for life in office. 1st Statute, consisting of 282 articles, published in 1529. The statute contained issues of civil and criminal law. The 2nd Statute was published in 1566 and reflected the social-economy and political changes. The 3rd Statute was published in 1588 and operated on the territory of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania until it was canceled in 1840. Written in the Old Belarusian language.
Having married the Polish queen Jadwiga, he was proclaimed the Polish king.
Background
The terms of the Kreva Union (in 1401 they were clarified by the Vilna-Radom Union) were in force for 184 years, until 1569, when the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland signed the Union of Lublin, which united both states into a limited confederate elected monarchy. And also one of the consequences of the Kreva Union was the receipt by Catholic feudal lords of additional rights and freedoms.
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Notes
An excerpt characterizing the Krevo union
“Cependant, mon cher,” he said, examining his fingernail from afar and picking up the skin over his left eye, “malgre la haute estime que je professe pour le the Russian Orthodox army, j" avoue que votre victoire n "est pas des plus victorieuses. [However, my dear, with all my respect for the Orthodox Russian army, I believe that your victory is not one of the most brilliant.]He continued in the same way in French, pronouncing in Russian only those words that he contemptuously wanted to emphasize.
- How? You with all your mass fell upon the unfortunate Mortier with one division, and this Mortier goes between your hands? Where is the victory?
- However, seriously speaking, - answered Prince Andrey, - all the same we can say without boasting that it is a little better than Ulm ...
- Why didn't you take us one, at least one marshal?
- Because not everything is done as expected, and not as regularly as at the parade. We thought, as I told you, to go to the rear by seven o'clock in the morning, and did not come even by five in the evening.
- Why didn't you come at seven in the morning? You had to come at seven in the morning, ”Bilibin said smiling,“ you had to come at seven in the morning.
- Why didn't you inspire Bonaparte by diplomatic means that it was better for him to leave Genoa? - Prince Andrey said in the same tone.
“I know,” Bilibin interrupted, “you think it is very easy to take marshals from sitting on the sofa in front of the fireplace. It's true, but still, why didn't you take it? And do not be surprised that not only the Minister of War, but also the august emperor and king Franz will not be very happy with your victory; and I, the unfortunate secretary of the Russian embassy, \u200b\u200bdo not feel any need, as a sign of joy, to give my Franz a thaler and let him go with his Liebchen [dear] to the Prater ... True, there is no Prater here.
He looked directly at Prince Andrew and suddenly pulled the collected skin from his forehead.
“Now it’s my turn to ask you why, my dear,” said Bolkonsky. - I confess to you that I don’t understand, maybe there are diplomatic subtleties above my weak mind, but I don’t understand: Mac is losing an entire army, Archduke Ferdinand and Archduke Karl do not give any signs of life and make mistakes after mistakes, finally, one Kutuzov wins a real victory, destroys the charme [charm] of the French, and the minister of war is not even interested in knowing the details.
- It is from this, my dear. Voyez vous, mon cher: [You see, my dear:] hurray! for the tsar, for Russia, for the faith! Tout ca est bel et bon, [all this is fine and good,] but what do we, I say - the Austrian court, care about your victories? Bring us your good news about the victory of Archduke Karl or Ferdinand - un archiduc vaut l "autre, [one archduke is worth the other,] as you know, even over Bonaparte's fire brigade is another matter, we will fire into the cannons. As if on purpose, he can only tease us. Archduke Karl does nothing, Archduke Ferdinand is covered with shame. You leave Vienna, you do not defend anymore, comme si vous nous disiez: [as if you told us:] God is with us, and God is with you, with your capital. One general whom we all loved, Schmitt: you bring him under the bullet and congratulate us on the victory! ... Agree that there is no more irritating news you bring. C "est comme un fait expres, comme un fait expres. [It's as if on purpose, as on purpose.] Besides, well, if you won a brilliant victory for sure, even Archduke Karl won a victory, what would that change in the general course of affairs? It is too late now that Vienna is occupied by French troops.
- How busy? Is Vienna busy?
“Not only busy, but Bonaparte is in Schönbrunn, and the count, our dear Count Vrbna, goes to him for orders.
Bolkonsky, after the weariness and impressions of travel, reception, and especially after dinner, felt that he did not understand the full meaning of the words that he heard.
“Count Lichtenfels was here this morning,” Bilibin continued, “and he showed me a letter detailing the French parade in Vienna. Le prince Murat et tout le tremblement ... [Prince Murat and all that ...] You see that your victory is not very happy and that you cannot be accepted as a savior ...
- Really, it doesn't matter to me, it doesn't matter at all! - said Prince Andrew, beginning to understand that his news of the battle at Krems really was of little importance in view of such events as the occupation of the capital of Austria. - How was Vienna taken? And what about the bridge and the famous tete de pont, [bridge fortification,] and Prince Auersperg? We had rumors that Prince Auersperg was defending Vienna, ”he said.
- Prince Auersperg stands on this, on our, side and protects us; I think it protects very poorly, but still protects. Vienna is on the other side. No, the bridge has not yet been taken and, I hope, will not be taken, because it is mined and ordered to be blown up. Otherwise, we would have been in the mountains of Bohemia for a long time, and you and your army would have spent a bad quarter of an hour between two fires.
The causes and consequences of the Krevo Union of 1385 in modern historiography are very contradictory. Some historians consider this event to be a kind of "Rubicon that split Russia", for others it is significant because this was the beginning of a voluntary union of the two peoples. Their states did not lose their own sovereignty. The unification of Poles and Litvin took place against the background of intensifying confrontation between East and West. The reasons for the 1385 Krevo Union will be discussed in the article.
Olgerd and Keistut
The onslaught of the crusaders to the East intensified. The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was on the path of their advance. The Lithuanian prince Gedymin did not manage to appoint a successor for himself. The nobility immediately took advantage of this. Local separatism intensified, undermining the power of the state. The Teutonic Order, even more impudent from impunity, carried out predatory raids under the plausible pretext of "baptizing the Slavs."
Two brothers - princes Olgerd and Keistut - voluntarily shared their responsibilities for the defense of the state, being its co-rulers. Each chose his own direction: Keistut was interested in relations with the West, and Olgerd positioned himself as in the East. If necessary, they provided each other with comprehensive support. This policy soon bore fruit. The power of ON has increased.
Even after the death of his brother, Keistut did not change the tradition. Jagiello's son took the place of his father. In order to understand the issue of the causes and consequences of the Krevo Union of 1385, it is necessary to say a few words about the heir of Olgerd.
Yagailo
He was a very cunning, insidious and cruel ruler, for whom personal power was above all. Therefore, very soon he began to intrigue against his uncle. At this time, there was a convergence of interests of Dmitry Donskoy and Keistut. They both saw the Golden Horde as the main threat. Yagailo decided to take advantage of this and became close to Mamai. After the famous Battle of Kulikovo, the authority of Grand Duke Dmitry Ivanovich Donskoy increased. They saw in him the main defender and support of the Russian lands. They listened to his opinion, sought his support. Among them was Yagailo.
Only one thing embarrassed this power-hungry prince. If he accepts the conditions of Dmitry Ivanovich, then he himself, and at the same time the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, will have to recognize the supreme power of the winner of the Battle of Kulikovo. This was not in the interests of Jagiello. The nephew managed to destroy his uncle Keistut in 1382, and his son Vitovt fled to the crusaders. Now he was the main contender for supreme power in the ON. Soon, Jagiello received a very tempting offer from the Pope. It needs to be voiced in more detail in order to understand the reasons and conditions for the conclusion of the Krevo Union.
Promotion of Catholicism to the East
Rome has long cherished the hope of converting the Russian lands into the bosom of its church. Promises, threats, the use of military force did not help. The Teutonic Order repeatedly got in the teeth from the Russians, and this suggested that something needed to be changed in the strategy.
It was necessary to find a ruler willing to spread Catholicism. The Orthodox prince Yagailo turned out to be the ideal candidate. He needed support more than ever. His power from the east was threatened by Moscow, from the west - by Vitovt, and in Lithuania itself, many countrymen were dissatisfied with the reprisal against Keistut. Poland's proposal for him was the only acceptable option not only to save, but also to strengthen his own power. The causes and consequences of the Krevo union of 1385 cannot be considered without dwelling on the very concept of “union”. What is it, what characteristics does it have?
What is union
A union is a union that can only be concluded between states with a monarchical form of government, in which one monarch is the head of all member states of such a union. At the same time, there should not necessarily be close economic and political cooperation between them, and the sovereignty of such countries remains unshakable.
The rapprochement of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania with Poland and the Krevo Union of 1385 are a vivid example of this. Each side had its own army, treasury, border and did not particularly interfere in each other's affairs. However, in the event of a common danger, such allies acted as a united front. It was a forced union of two weakened states experiencing colossal external pressure.
Terms of an agreement
The powerful Roman Catholic Church stood behind Poland. She was the main guarantor of compliance with the agreements by the West. In exchange for his support, the settlement of conflict situations with the Teutonic Order, the following was required from the Lithuanian prince Jagiello:
Accept Catholicism and promote its advancement in the territory of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.
Return all the disputed territories that the Lithuanians, in their naivety, considered their own and annexed the principality with the power of the sword.
Pay a penalty for breaking a marriage contract. Jadwiga was already promised to the Austrian duke, but 200,000 Florens should help the "poor fellow" to drown out his mental suffering.
The history of the Krevo Union of 1385 is a sad tale of the betrayal of the ancestors' faith by the top of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The common people, like part of the aristocracy, did not begin to accept the faith alien to them. A bloody confrontation began. Vitovt, the son of the meanly murdered Prince Keistut, took advantage of this situation. Muscovites and crusaders supported him in this massacre. Gradually, Vilna, Gorodnya, Novogrudok fell under the power of Vitovt. In this ever-growing conflict, a compromise was needed. The Kingdom of Poland, represented by Jagiello, understood this perfectly.
Conclusion
If we briefly characterize the causes and consequences of the Krevo Union of 1385, then it is necessary to highlight several of the most important points. The West, trying to prevent the strengthening of the Moscow state, attracted another ally to its side - the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. This became possible not only due to the fact that the top of this state was flattered by privileges and liberties. Europe's deliberate choice was made because its culture, economy, military power were the most attractive for the people who understand that they still have something to learn from others.
In 1385, on August 14, 1385, a dynastic union was concluded between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland (Krevo Union) in the Lithuanian castle Krevo.
At this time, active events took place in neighboring Poland. In 1382, the Polish king died, after which only two daughters remained. After a series of palace intrigues, it was decided that the king's youngest daughter, Jadwiga, should take the throne.
There were several contenders for her hand, but with the help of the local gentry, it was Jagailo who became Jadwiga's husband. However, the Polish magnates had a fairly wide range of requirements. In the summer of 1385 in Krevo castle gathered to know from Poland and ON. Poland's requirements were as follows: the unification of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, where there will be a single sovereign - Jagiello, general military and diplomatic relations with other states, while the internal politics, army, and financial system of each state will be its own.
And on August 14, 1385 Krevo union was signed by Jagailo, his brother Skirgailo and Prince Vitovt. The Kreva union and the union of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Poland allowed the Grand Duchy of Lithuania to become more defensive, at the same time, contributed to the deep penetration of Catholicism into the territory of the principality.
ACT OF THE KREVSK UNION AUGUST 14, 1385
We, Jagiello, by the grace of God, the Grand Duke of Lithuania, a lord and heir born of Russia, notify everyone who follows and who sees the letter that we were informed by the blessed mistress, by the grace of the Queen of Hungary, Poland, Dalmatian, etc. noble and respectable men, priests Stefan, probosch of Chanaden, Vladislav, son of Kakas from Kaz, castellan from Potok, Vladko, chashnik Krakow, Nikolai, castellan Zavikhovsky, and Christian, ruler of Kazimer
First, then they said how the enlightened prince of Lithuania Jagiello sent his solemn embassy, \u200b\u200bfirst to the Polish gentlemen of the nobles, and then to her royal majesty. The same ambassadors who were appointed to the royal majesty took with them letters of credence from the main and supreme ambassador, the magnificent prince Skirgaila, the brother of the grand duke Yagaila, who for certain reasons could not personally appear before her royal majesty. His ambassadors, Prince Boris and Ganko, the headman of Vilna, who appeared before the Queen of Hungary, said:
“Many emperors, kings and various princes were eager to enter into a permanent relationship of blood relationship with the same Grand Duke of Lithuania, but God Almighty has reserved this for the person of your royal majesty. Therefore, Blessed Lady, fulfill this saving order, accept the Grand Duke Jagaila as a son and give him your beloved daughter Jadwiga, Queen of Poland, as his wife. We believe that from this union glory to God, salvation of souls, honor to people and an increase in the kingdom will be rewarded. Before what we are talking about, before the completion of the matter, the Grand Duke Yagailo with all his brothers, who have not yet been baptized, also with relatives, with the gentry, noblemen large and small, in his lands living, wants, wants and thirsts to accept the faith Catholic Saint Roman Church. Many emperors and various princes could not receive this from him, despite diligent efforts, since God almighty preserved this glory for your royal majesty.
To confirm and force this, the Grand Duke Jagiello promises to collect and give his money to cover the costs that both Lithuania and Poland will incur, if only the Queen of Hungary unites her daughter, Jadwiga, the Queen of Poland, by marriage with him. Grand Duke Jagiello promises to collect and pay the amount agreed between the Queen of Hungary and the Duke of Austria, namely twice one hundred thousand florins. This very prince Yagailo promises and vouches with his own expenses and efforts to return to the Polish kingdom all the lands that were torn away from it and taken away by someone. The same prince Jagiello promises to return the original freedom to all Christians, especially people of both sexes from the Polish land, captured and resettled by the right of war, and in such a way that everyone or everyone can go wherever they want. Finally, the same Grand Duke Jagiello promises to attach his Lithuanian and Russian lands to the crown of the Kingdom of Poland for eternity.
We, therefore, the indicated Grand Duke of Lithuania Jagiello, with the above statement to the ambassadorial, given and announced on our behalf to the gentlemen of the Kingdom of Poland through the aforementioned Skirgaila, our beloved brother, as well as with the assurances given to the blessed queen of Hungary Elizabeth, through our representatives sent by the same brother in the presence of the Queen's ambassadors, both Hungarians and Poles, sent to our Majesty, together with our brothers, the princes of Lithuania Skirgaila, Koribut, Vitovt, Lingvenem, as well as on behalf of our other brothers, present and not present, we agree and declare this is the so-called lady queen, as well as the aforementioned gentlemen of the Kingdom of Poland; the same Polish statements we ordered to affix our seals and our brothers, and we confirm this in everything. "
Given in Kreva, on Monday, on the eve of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the year of the Lord 1385.
Castle in Krevo and the town have played a role in history more than once.
Around 1440, the King of Poland Casimir was hiding from the conspirators in the Krevo Castle. Here the disgraced subject of Ivan the Terrible, Andrei Kurbsky, found refuge.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, Krevo had Magdeburg Law, which allowed the town to be practically independent.
The last time the Krevo Castle played its historical role was during the First World War. Just here the front line passed, and the castle in Krevo last played the role of a defensive fortification and this time became the most destructive in the history of the castle in Krevo, after which the Krevo castle was no longer destined to recover.
On a photo the preservation of the castle walls and the Prince's Tower at the beginning of the 20th century.
In 1383-1384, feeling the precariousness of power, Jagiello began to seek support from Poland. As a result of the Kreva Union, on August 14, 1385, Jagiello pledged to convert to Catholicism and return to Poland the lands that had previously been torn from her. In 1386, ambassadors from Krakow came to Jagiello, asking them to accept the Polish crown (the people of Krakow protested against the transfer of it by the childless Polish king Kazimir to the Podolsk prince Konstantin Olgerdovich - Jagailo's half-brother, Olgerd's son from the first wife Maria Yaroslavna, princess of Vitebsk).
After consulting with his mother and the masters, realizing that the road to the east to the Moscow lands had been ordered for him, Jagielo rushed west. He undoubtedly converted to the Roman faith, was baptized under the name of Vladislav II, entered into marriage with the Polish queen Jadwiga I on February 18, 1386, which allowed Poland to unite with Lithuania and form a single state with the Polish system of government. When the principality of Lithuania was incorporated into the Polish kingdom of Jagiello, it was ordered to "forever attach all their lands, Lithuanian and Russian, to the Polish crown."
ATTITUDE TO KREVSKAYA UNI IN LANDS OF SOUTHWESTERN RUSSIA
The goals of the internal policy of the ruling elites of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in relation to the lands of South-Western Russia in the activities of Jagail Olgerdovich, the Grand Duke of Lithuania (1377-1385), and since 1386 simultaneously the King of Poland, are even more clearly visible. As already noted, by order of Jagail in 1380, on the territory of the Chernigov-Seversky principality, which had previously belonged to Dmitry Olgerdovich, three Chernigov, Starodubsky and Novgorod-Seversky princedoms, independent from each other and subordinate to his supreme power, were formed. By 1384, Jagail's promise to transfer to Vitovt Keistutovich the Lutsk land, which at that time was owned by Fyodor Lyubartovich after his father. However, in 1377-1385. in an atmosphere of resistance to the grand-ducal power on the part of the appanage principalities of Russia, relying on the political support of Moscow, Yagailo was unable to achieve success in the state centralization of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. His internal political actions covered a small number of appanage reigns and, first of all, those of them, the feudal lords of which, led by the princes, showed themselves in the political events of the mid-70s and 80s. XIV century. as active supporters of cooperation with the Moscow Grand Duchy. Jagail and his closest associates from among the Lithuanian nobility managed to implement their plans to some extent only after the conclusion of the Kreva Union, in the new socio-political situation that developed under its influence, when Jagail's plans received the support of the feudal leaders of the Polish kingdom.
Formalized with a special charter given by Jagail on August 14, 1385 in the town of Krevo, the state-political union of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania played an important role in the history of both states, but had different consequences for them. For Lithuania, the Kreva Union meant the beginning of a deep socio-political and cultural influence on it by the magnate-gentry Poland, which played a leading role in the formed state union. Lithuania adopted Catholicism, and with it gradually adopted the Polish model of a feudal political system, which was very beneficial for the landowning class.
One of the main motives that prompted the ruling elites of Lithuania and Poland to conclude a union was the realized need to unite the forces of both states to repel the aggression of the common enemy - the Teutonic and Livonian orders. At the same time, each of the parties interested in the union sought to use it for their own purposes. Thus, the Lithuanian ruling elite hoped to preserve, strengthen and expand dominance in the East Slavic lands with the help of the union. Polish feudal lords, primarily the magnate circles of Lesser Poland, viewed the Krevo Union as an important means of expanding feudal expansion in Eastern Europe. It was for this purpose that they achieved the inclusion in the act of union of Jagail's obligation to forever "annex" the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, together with its East Slavic territories, to the crown of the Kingdom of Poland. For the population of South-Western Russia, the implementation of the conditions of the Kreva Union entailed an increase in political dependence on the ruling elite of the Polish-Lithuanian state and transformation into an object of feudal colonization of the ruling class of the Polish kingdom.
At the beginning of 1385, at the Diet in Lublin, Jagiello was elected king of Poland. Soon in Krakow, he was baptized, taking the name of Vladislav II, and married the heiress to the Polish throne, Jadwiga, daughter of Louis of Hungary. On March 4, 1386, Yagailo-Vladislav was crowned. Having become the Polish king, he simultaneously retained the title and rights of the supreme prince of Lithuania and the hereditary owner ("grandfather") of the Russian lands of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. In the same 1386, the implementation of one of the main goals of the Kreva Union began - the incorporation (incorporation) of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania into the Kingdom of Poland and the strengthening of the political domination of Polish and Lithuanian feudal lords in it.
The main steps in this direction were attracting the Lithuanian boyars to the side of the Kingdom of Poland and securing the specific principalities of Russia for the Polish crown with the help of a number of special political measures: weakening cooperation between the Russian and Lithuanian feudal nobility and opposing them to each other along religious and estate-legal lines by providing 1387 the Lithuanian Catholic boyars had greater rights and privileges in comparison with the feudal lords of the East Slavic lands; the deployment of Polish garrisons and military detachments of Lithuanian princes loyal to Jagiel in the largest centers of these lands; oaths of appanage princes. At the same time, other means were also used, aimed at limiting and eliminating the appanage-princely power on the ground. Of these, the most widely practiced was the withdrawal from the jurisdiction of the appanage princes of their individual vassals, followed by the subordination of the king's authority and the replacement of rebellious local dynasts by princes who remained loyal to Jagail, or royal governors.
In Southwestern Russia, the implementation of the conditions of the Kreva Union began with the giving of the oaths of its appanage princes to Jagaila as the head of the Polish state, as well as to Queen Jadwiga and the Polish crown, which, according to feudal law, meant the transfer of princes and their possessions directly under the rule of the Polish king. One of the first such oaths was given on March 22, 1386 by Fyodor Lyubartovich and Ivan Yuryevich, Prince of Belz, who took part in the celebrations in Krakow on the occasion of the coronation of Jagail. "
On October 23, 1386, Yagailo took the oath of office from Dmitry-Koribut, prince of Novgorod-Seversky, and then from Fedor Olgerdovich, prince of Ratnensky (in Volyn). " On May 18, 1388, Dmitry-Koribut renewed his oath; on July 12 of the same year, the Kiev prince Vladimir Olgerdovich swore allegiance to the Polish king. The sworn certificates of Boris Koriatovich, Konstantin of Chernigov and the Starodub prince Patrick Narimantovich have not survived, but they were hardly an exception to the general rule. Written sources recorded the stay of the Starodub prince at the court of Yagail-Vladislav in August 1388, where the Chernigov “Prince Constantine, who deserved a worthy mention”, was also well known. Boris Koriatovich was one of the most active participants in the preparation of the Krevo Union. Thus, by the end of 1388, almost all of Southwestern Russia, with the exception of a part of the Podolsk land, the princes of which recognized their dependence on the Hungarian kingdom, was formally incorporated into the Polish kingdom. A similar process took place in other lands subject to the Lithuanian feudal lords of Russia. Those princes who refused to give jury records, such as Andrei Olgerdovich of Polotsk, were deprived of their inheritance.
The Polish feudal lords were not content, however, with only a formal recognition of the dependence of the appanage princes on the Polish crown. They took a number of measures to consolidate certain territories of Southwestern Russia within the kingdom. In 1387, under the leadership of Queen Jadwiga, Polish troops and detachments of some Lithuanian-Russian princes, led by Vitovt, cleared Galician Rus from the Hungarian garrisons, which had ceded to Hungary during the reign of King Louis of Hungary in Poland, and incorporated it into the Kingdom of Poland as a royal domain. Almost simultaneously, the territory to which the power of the Volyn prince Fyodor Lyubartovich extended was limited. Back in 1386, he lost the Lutsk land, where the Polish king appointed the Sandomierz kashtelian Kreslav from Kurozvonk as governor. At the same time, his largest vassal, Prince Fyodor Danilovich Ostrozhsky, was withdrawn from the jurisdiction of the Volyn prince, to whom Vladislav-Yagailo confirmed the ownership of the hereditary lands on November 4, 1386, and Fyodor Lyubartovich, for his part, guaranteed full immunity of the possessions. In 1388, Vladislav-Yagailo handed over the Lutsk and Vladimir lands to Vitovt, but did not issue this act with a letter. Obviously, at the same time the Chernigov prince Constantine was granted Chertorysk, separated from the Lutsk land. Later, however, the limitation of the power of the appanage princes was suspended in connection with the unfolding feudal war in Lithuania, the main content of which was the struggle of the Lithuanian feudal lords to restore the state independence of Lithuania, which it had lost under the terms of the Krevo Union.