Edvardas Gudavičius (6 September 1929 – 27 January 2020)
was a
Lithuanian historian. He was known as one of the best historians in
Lithuania specializing in the early history of
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire of Austria. The state was founded by Lit ...
. In 1953, he graduated from
Kaunas Polytechnic Institute with a degree in
engineering
Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...
. Gudavičius started his career as a mechanic at one of the factories in
Kaunas, but in 1958 moved to
Vilnius
Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...
. In 1962, he enrolled to
Vilnius State University of Vincas Kapsukas seeking a degree in
history
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...
. In 1991, he earned the title of
professor
Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...
. He was a full member of
Lithuanian Academy of Sciences
The Lithuanian Academy of Sciences or LMA ( lt, Lietuvos mokslų akademija) is a state-funded independent organization in Lithuania dedicated for science and research. Its mission is to mobilize prominent scientists and initiate activities that ...
.
To the wider public he was mostly known for his work together with
Alfredas Bumblauskas on the long-running
TV show
A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed bet ...
''Būtovės slėpiniai'', a
talk show
A talk show (or chat show in British English) is a television programming or radio programming genre structured around the act of spontaneous conversation.Bernard M. Timberg, Robert J. Erler'' (2010Television Talk: A History of the TV Talk Sh ...
dedicated to topics of the
history of Lithuania
The history of Lithuania dates back to settlements founded many thousands of years ago, but the first written record of the name for the country dates back to 1009 AD. Lithuanians, one of the Baltic peoples, later conquered neighboring lands an ...
. Gudavičius was a frequent contributor to various reference works, including the 25-volume ''
Visuotinė lietuvių enciklopedija
The ''Visuotinė lietuvių enciklopedija'' or VLE (translation ''Universal Lithuanian Encyclopedia'') is a 25-volume universal Lithuanian-language encyclopedia published by the Science and Encyclopaedia Publishing Institute from 2001 to 2014. V ...
''. He also published works on the
Statutes of Lithuania
The Statutes of Lithuania, originally known as the Statutes of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, were a 16th-century codification of all the legislation of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and its successor, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. The Stat ...
.
Dissertations
* 1971 Lithuanian serfage process and its reflection in The first Statute
* 1989 Lithuania in the Balts' war against German aggression in 13th century
Publications
* ''Žymenys ir ženklai Lietuvoje XII-XX a.'', Vilnius, 1981, 131 p.
* ''Pirmasis Lietuvos Statutas'' (together with Stanislovas Lazutka), Vilnius, 1983, t. 1, d. 1: Paleografinė ir tekstologinė nuorašų analizė; Vilnius, 1985, t. 1, d. 2: Dzialinskio, Lauryno ir Ališavos nuorašų faksimilės; Vilnius, 1991, t. 2, d. 1: Tekstai senąja baltarusių, lotynų ir senąja lenkų kalbomis. .
* ''Kryžiaus karai Pabaltijyje ir Lietuva XIII amžiuje'', Vilnius, 1989, 192 p. .
* ''Miestų atsiradimas Lietuvoje'', Vilnius, 1991, 95 p. .
* ''Mindaugas'', Vilnius, 1998, 360 p. .
* ''Lietuvos istorija. Nuo seniausių laikų iki 1569 metų'', Vilnius, 1999, 664 p. .
* ''
----'', Vilnius, 2002, 116 p. .
* ''Lietuvos europėjimo keliais: istorinės studijos'', Vilnius, 2002, 384 p. .
* ''Lietuvos akto promulgacijos kelias: nuo Vytauto kanceliarijos iki Lietuvos Metrikos'', Vilnius, 2006, 80 p. .
Awards
Gudavičius received these awards:
* The Commander's Grand Cross of the
Order of Vytautas the Great
The Order of Vytautas the Great is the Lithuanian Presidential Award.''Lietuvos Respublikos Konstitucija. 84 straipsnis''. Priimta 1992 It may be conferred on the heads of Lithuania and foreign states, as well as their citizens, for distinguished ...
, Lithuania, 2003
* The Commander's Cross of the
Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas
The Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas is the Lithuanian Presidential Award which was re-instituted to honour the citizens of Lithuania for outstanding performance in civil and public offices. Foreign nationals may also be awarded this O ...
, Lithuania, 1999
*
Lithuanian National Prize 1998.
References
*
1929 births
2020 deaths
20th-century Lithuanian historians
21st-century Lithuanian historians
Commander's Crosses of the Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas
Kaunas University of Technology alumni
Vilnius University faculty
Writers from Kaunas
Recipients of the Lithuanian National Prize
Vilnius University alumni
Engineers from Kaunas
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