The Lithuanian Council of Lords ( be, Паны-Рада, lt, Ponų taryba) was the main permanent institution of central government in the

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 Li ...

active in its capital city of

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 ...

. It had originated from the advisory Council of the Grand Duke, established by

Vytautas the Great Vytautas (c. 135027 October 1430), also known as Vytautas the Great ( Lithuanian: ', be, Вітаўт, ''Vitaŭt'', pl, Witold Kiejstutowicz, ''Witold Aleksander'' or ''Witold Wielki'' Ruthenian: ''Vitovt'', Latin: ''Alexander Vitoldus'', O ...

in the early 15th century. During the reign of

Casimir Jagiellon Casimir IV (in full Casimir IV Andrew Jagiellon; pl, Kazimierz IV Andrzej Jagiellończyk ; Lithuanian: ; 30 November 1427 – 7 June 1492) was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1440 and King of Poland from 1447, until his death. He was one of the ...

it was renamed to the Council of Lords. Under the

Union of Lublin The Union of Lublin ( pl, Unia lubelska; lt, Liublino unija) was signed on 1 July 1569 in Lublin, Poland, and created a single state, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, one of the largest countries in Europe at the time. It replaced the pe ...

of 1569, the Council formally became a constituent part of the Polish–Lithuanian

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

s (see also

Offices in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth An office is a space where an organization's employees perform administrative work in order to support and realize objects and goals of the organization. The word "office" may also denote a position within an organization with specific dut ...

), together with the Royal Council of

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

, but it continued to operate ''de facto'' until the mid-17th century.

Competence

The Council carried out the functions of the Grand Duke after his death and had a supreme authority in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania until a new Grand Duke was appointed, as well as organised his appointment. The first appointed ruler was Casimir Jagiellon, who in exchange expanded the council's powers significantly and approved the

Casimir Code The Casimir's Code ( lt, Kazimiero teisynas, pl, Statut Kazimierza) was a legal code adopted in 1468 by Grand Duke of Lithuania and King of Poland Casimir IV Jagiellon with an approval of the Lithuanian Council of Lords. It was the first attempt t ...

. The council was granted judicial powers and became an appellate instance, subordinate to the King and acting in the absence of him, who remained the chief justice. Casimir was followed by his son

Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

who issued another privilege in 1492. According to the privilege of 1506 by his brother

Sigismund the Old Sigismund I the Old ( pl, Zygmunt I Stary, lt, Žygimantas II Senasis; 1 January 1467 – 1 April 1548) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1506 until his death in 1548. Sigismund I was a member of the Jagiellonian dynasty, the ...

, the new laws could no longer be adopted and the existing could not be amended without the council's consent. The First Lithuanian Statute of 1529 confirmed its administrative powers, as well as granted legislative powers, exercised together with the Grand Duke of Lithuania. The council's legislative powers were limited under the subsequent edition of the Lithuanian Statute of 1566, as a result of a growing role of

szlachta The ''szlachta'' (Polish: endonym, Lithuanian: šlėkta) were the noble estate of the realm in the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth who, as a class, had the dominating position in the ...

and its Sejms. The Council carried out executive functions in the state since 1445 because the majority of Lithuanian Grand Dukes resided in Poland. It also convoked the Lithuanian Seimas.

Composition

The council had 35 – 50 permanent members as of 1529. It consisted of the most prominent representatives of the Lithuanian magnate families, as well as bishops,

marshal Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used for elevated o ...

s and

treasurer A treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury of an organization. The significant core functions of a corporate treasurer include cash and liquidity management, risk management, and corporate finance. Government The treasury o ...

s. The ''

ex officio An ''ex officio'' member is a member of a body (notably a board, committee, council) who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term '' ex officio'' is Latin, meaning literally 'from the office', and the sense intended is 'by right ...

'' members of the council were the voivods of

and

Trakai Trakai (; see names section for alternative and historic names) is a historic town and lake resort in Lithuania. It lies west of Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. Because of its proximity to Vilnius, Trakai is a popular tourist destination. ...

castellan A castellan is the title used in Medieval Europe for an appointed official, a governor of a castle and its surrounding territory referred to as the castellany. The title of ''governor'' is retained in the English prison system, as a remnant o ...

s of

and

, the

Elder of Samogitia The Duchy of Samogitia ( lt, Žemaičių seniūnija, sgs, Žemaitėjės seniūnėjė, pl, Księstwo żmudzkie)Grzegorz Błaszczyk, ''Żmudź w XVII i XVIII wieku: zaludnienie i struktura społeczna'', Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza w Pozn ...

, the

Grand Hetman of Lithuania Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor * Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist * Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper Places * Grand, Oklahoma * Grand, Vosges, village and c ...

and the

Grand Chancellor of Lithuania Chancellor of Poland ( pl, Kanclerz - , from la, cancellarius) was one of the highest officials in the historic Poland. This office functioned from the early Polish kingdom of the 12th century until the end of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonweal ...

. Since the 16th century, these members comprised a Secret Council which was a ''de facto'' core of the Council of Lords, dealing with all crucial state affairs, since the full membership of the council was rarely convened. A majority of the members were Roman Catholic ethnic

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

;Council of Lords in the State Affairs
by Jūratė Kiaupienė. however, the influence of Ruthenian magnates was constantly increasing.

References

Sources

* {{in lang, lt}
The History of Lithuanian Seims
from the official website of the

Seimas The Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublikos Seimas), or simply the Seimas (), is the unicameral parliament of Lithuania. The Seimas constitutes the legislative branch of government in Lithuania, enacting laws and amendmen ...

(Lithuanian Parliament)

Competence

Composition

References

Sources

See also