Lembitu (

Estonian Estonian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Estonia, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe * Estonians, people from Estonia, or of Estonian descent * Estonian language * Estonian cuisine * Estonian culture See also

...

also: Lembit, died 21 September 1217) was an

ancient Estonia Ancient Estonia refers to a period covering History of Estonia from the middle of the 8th millennium BC until the conquest and subjugation of the local Finnic tribes in the first quarter of the 13th century during the Teutonic and Danish North ...

n senior ( elder) from

Sakala County Sakala County ( Estonian: ''Sakala'', Latin: ''Saccalia'') was an ancient Estonian county that was first mentioned in print by Henry of Latvia in the early 13th century. Geography Sakala County is in northwestern Livonia, covering approximately ...

and military leader in the struggle against conquest of the Estonian lands by the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

Livonian Brothers of the Sword german: Schwertbrüderordenfrench: Ordre des Chevaliers Porte-Glaive , image= , caption= , dates=1204–1237 , country= Terra Mariana , allegiance= Catholic Church , garrison= Wenden (Cēsis), Fellin (Viljandi), Segewold (Sigulda). Aschera ...

at the beginning of the 13th century. He is the only Estonian pre-Crusade ruler, about whom some biographical information is known (he is mentioned only in the

Livonian Chronicle of Henry The ''Livonian Chronicle of Henry'' ( la, Heinrici Cronicon Lyvoniae) offers a Latin narrative of events in Livonia (roughly corresponding to today's inland Estonia and the northern part of Latvia) and surrounding areas from 1180 to 1227. It was ...

). Lembitu, also referred to in

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 ...

as ''Lambite'', ''Lembito'' or ''Lembitus'', was first mentioned in chronicles in 1211. Troops led by Lembitu destroyed a troop of missionaries in the historical Estonian county of Sakala (''Sackalia'') and made a raid as far as

Pskov Pskov ( rus, Псков, a=pskov-ru.ogg, p=pskof; see also names in other languages) is a city in northwestern Russia and the administrative center of Pskov Oblast, located about east of the Estonian border, on the Velikaya River. Population ...

, then a town of the

Novgorod Republic The Novgorod Republic was a medieval state that existed from the 12th to 15th centuries, stretching from the Gulf of Finland in the west to the northern Ural Mountains in the east, including the city of Novgorod and the Lake Ladoga regions of m ...

. In 1215, Lembitu's Lehola (''Leal'') stronghold (situated near the present town of

Suure-Jaani Suure-Jaani is a Populated places in Estonia, town in the northern part of the county of Viljandi County, Viljandimaa in Põhja-Sakala Parish, Põhja-Sakala rural municipality, 25 kilometres north of the town of Viljandi. Until 2017, Suure-Jaani ...

) was taken by Germans and Lembitu was taken prisoner. He was released in 1217. Lembitu attempted to unite the

Estonians Estonians or Estonian people ( et, eestlased) are a Finnic ethnic group native to Estonia who speak the Estonian language. The Estonian language is spoken as the first language by the vast majority of Estonians; it is closely related to other ...

in order to withstand the German conquest. He managed to assemble an army of 6,000 Estonian men from different counties, but was killed in the following

Battle of St. Matthew's Day The Battle of Matthew's Day ( et, Madisepäeva lahing) was fought near Viljandi (probably in Vanamõisa) on 21 September 1217Battle of St. Matthew's Day (September 21) @ during the Livonian Crusade. The adversaries were the Sword Brethren ...

in September 1217.

Title and degree of power

The only written biographical information about Lembit comes from the

, where he is described as "senior" (" elder") and " "princeps ac senior perfidus Lembitus" ("perfidious prince and elder Lembitu"). In another place the chronicle speaks of " Lambito et Meme, seniores de Sackale " (Lembuto and Meme, elders of Sakala), i.e., Lembitu was not the only elder of the county, thus precluding some interpretations of Lembitu's title as "king of Sakala" or "the elder of Sakala". Modern archaeological evidence suggests that Sakala was kingdom. Also, is evidence of a power level king.

Searching the skull of Lembitu in Poland

There are rumors that Lembitu's skull might reside in a Polish museum. During the 1970s, a group of Polish students visiting Estonia spoke of a museum home to the skull of an "Estonian king" with the description "Rex Estorum". In 2017, Estonia and Poland began to search for this skull, but this has been a time-consuming process, as the country is home to over 5,000 museums.

External links

Lembitu

Monument of Lembitu in Suure-Jaani

References

{{reflist 1217 deaths People of medieval Estonia Military personnel killed in action Pagans of the Livonian Crusade Year of birth unknown Pagan martyrs