Visvaldis (

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

: Vissewalde rex de Gerzika, Russian: Всеволод,

Belarusian Belarusian may refer to: * Something of, or related to Belarus * Belarusians, people from Belarus, or of Belarusian descent * A citizen of Belarus, see Demographics of Belarus * Belarusian language * Belarusian culture * Belarusian cuisine * Byelor ...

: Усевалад) was a Latgalian nobleman, Duke of the

Principality of Jersika The principality of Jersika ( la, Gerzika, terra Lettia, german: Gerzika, Zargrad, russian: Ерсика, Герцике; also known as ''Лотыголa'') was an early medieval Latgalian principality in eastern modern-day Latvia and one of th ...

in the 12th-13th centuries. In the Chronicle of Henry of Livonia, 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 Boriss Davidovic,

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...

of the Principality 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 ( 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 ...

attacked the newly established city of

Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...

. 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 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 ( la, Archiepiscopatus Rigensis, nds, Erzbisdom Riga) was an archbishopric in Medieval Livonia, a subject to the Holy See. It was established in 1186 as the bishopric of Livonia at Ikšķile, then after moving to Riga ...

, 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 Koknese () is a town in Aizkraukle Municipality in the Vidzeme region of Latvia, on the right bank of the Daugava River. It has a population of nearly 3,000. According to the provisions of the 2021 Latvian administrative reform, Koknese gained ...

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. 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.

References

{{Reflist, 30em 13th-century rulers in Europe Medieval Latgalian people People of the Livonian Crusade