Treniota ( be, Транята; ''Troniata''; c. 1210–1264) was the

Grand Duke of Lithuania The monarchy of Lithuania concerned the monarchical head of state of Lithuania, which was established as an absolute and hereditary monarchy. Throughout Lithuania's history there were three ducal dynasties that managed to stay in power— Ho ...

(1263–1264). Treniota was the nephew of Mindaugas, the first and only king of Lithuania. While Mindaugas had converted to

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global popula ...

in order to discourage

Livonian Order The Livonian Order was an autonomous branch of the Teutonic Order, formed in 1237. From 1435 to 1561 it was a member of the Livonian Confederation. History The order was formed from the remnants of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword after th ...

and

Teutonic Knights The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians o ...

attacks on Lithuania, becoming king in the process, Treniota remained a staunch

pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. I ...

. It is believed that Treniota was trusted to rule

Samogitia Samogitia or Žemaitija ( Samogitian: ''Žemaitėjė''; see below for alternative and historical names) is one of the five cultural regions of Lithuania and formerly one of the two core administrative divisions of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ...

. Despite Mindaugas's conversion, the Teutonic Knights regularly made incursions in Lithuanian territory. After the

Battle of Durbe The Battle of Durbe ( lv, Durbes kauja, lt, Durbės mūšis, german: Schlacht an der Durbe) was a medieval battle fought near Durbe, east of Liepāja, in present-day Latvia during the Livonian Crusade. On 13 July 1260, the Samogitians sound ...

in 1260, Treniota convinced Mindaugas to relapse from Christianity and attack the Teutonic Order, though the attack was ineffective and the Teutonic Knights were barely weakened. Mindaugas began to question his alliance with Treniota. However, before he was able act against his pagan nephew, Treniota together with Daumantas assassinated Mindaugas and two of his sons in 1263. Treniota usurped the throne and reverted the nation to paganism. However, he only ruled for a year before being deposed by

Vaišvilkas Vaišvilkas or Vaišelga (also spelled as ''Vaišvila'', ''Vojszalak'', ''Vojšalk'', ''Vaišalgas''; killed on 18 April 1267) was the Grand Duke of Lithuania (1264–1267). He was son of Mindaugas, the first and only Christian King of Lithu ...

, the younger son of Mindaugas.

References

* 1264 deaths 13th-century Lithuanian nobility Grand Dukes of Lithuania Year of birth unknown Year of birth uncertain {{Lithuania-noble-stub

See also

References