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Trakai Voivodeship

{{Short description|Voivodeship of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania}}

{{Infobox Former Subdivision

|native_name = {{langx|la|Palatinatus Trocensis}}
{{langx|lt|Trakų vaivadija}}
{{langx|pl|Województwo trockie}}

|conventional_long_name = Trakai Voivodeship

|common_name = Trakai

|subdivision = Voivodeship

|nation =
Grand Duchy of Lithuania (1413–1569)

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (1569–1795)

|year_start = 1413

|event_start = Established by Union of Horodło

|event_end = Third Partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

|year_end = 1795

|event1 = Union of Lublin

|date_event1 = 1569

|p1 = Duchy of Trakai

|s1 = Vilna Governorate

|s2 = Grodno Governorate

|s3 = East Prussia

|s4 = Podlaskie Voivodeship (1513–1795)

|image_coat = Recueil d'armoiries polonaises COA of Trakai Voivodeship.png

|image_map = Trakai Voivodeship within Lithuania in the 17th century.png

|image_map_caption = Trakai Voivodeship (in red) in the 17th century

|image_map2 = RON województwo trockie map.svg

|image_map2_caption = Trakai Voivodeship in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth

|capital = Trakai

|political_subdiv = Counties: 4

|government_type = Monarchy

|legislature = Sejmik

|title_leader = Voivode

|title_deputy = Castellan

|stat_year1 = 1570

|stat_area1 = 31100

|stat_year2 = 1790

|stat_area2 = 23885

|stat_pop2 = 288000

|today = Lithuania
Poland
Belarus

|footnotes = Population and area are given according to {{cite book | last=Vaitiekūnas | first=Stasys | title=Lietuvos gyventojai: Per du tūkstantmečius | year=2006 | publisher=Mokslo ir enciklopedijų leidybos institutas | location=Vilnius | isbn=5-420-01585-4 | pages=53, 71|language=lt}}

}}

Trakai Voivodeship,{{cite web| first=Rimvydas |last=Laužikas | publisher=Lithuanian Institute of History |work=Aruodai| date=2004-10-15 | url=http://www.aruodai.lt/paieska/terminas.php?TeId=1756 |title=Trakų vaivadija |access-date= 2008-06-07|language=lt}} Trakai Palatinate, or Troki Voivodeship{{cite book| first=Anatol |last=Leszczyński |title=Żydzi ziemi bielskiej od połowy XVII w. do 1795 r.: studium osadnicze| publisher=Zakład Narodowy im. Ossolińskich |year=1980 |isbn=83-04-00389-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MetJAAAAIAAJ | page=248 }} ({{langx|la|Palatinatus Trocensis}}, {{langx|lt|Trakų vaivadija}}, {{langx|pl|Województwo trockie}}), was a unit of administrative division and local government in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from 1413 until 1795.

History

File:Troki. Трокі (T. Makoŭski, 1600).jpg, capital of the voivodeship, in the 17th century]]

Trakai Voivodeship together with Vilnius Voivodeship was established by the Grand Duke of Lithuania Vytautas the Great in 1413 according to the Union of Horodło. Vytautas copied the Polish system of administrative division in order to centralize and strengthen the government. Trakai Voivodeship replaced the former Duchy of Trakai, which was ruled directly by the Grand Duke or his close relative (brother or son). The Duke of Trakai ({{langx|la|dux Trocensis}}) was replaced by appointed officials – voivodes and his deputy castellan.

The voivodeship was divided into four {{ill|powets|be|Павет (Вялікае Княства Літоўскае)}}: Grodno, Kaunas, Trakai (ruled directly by the voivode), and Upytė. The biggest cities in the voivodeship were Kaunas, Grodno and Trakai.

The western portion of the voivodeship was split off in 1513 by Sigismund I the Old and transferred to the Polish Crown. It was organized as the Podlaskie Voivodeship. In 1793, the counties of Grodno, Sokółka and Wołkowysk one of Nowogródek Voivodeship were merged into Grodno Voivodeship.

After the Union of Lublin the voivodeship, together with the whole Grand Duchy of Lithuania, became part of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth until the partitions of the Commonwealth in 1795. Most of the territory became part of the Russian Empire, while territories west of the Neman River – part of the Province of East Prussia.

Voivodes

The Voivode of Trakai ({{langx|pl|Wojewoda trocki}}, {{langx|lt|Trakų vaivada}}) was one of the most important state offices in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. They were appointed from prominent magnate families and competed only with voivode of Vilnius and Grand Chancellors for power and prestige.{{cite encyclopedia | editor=Simas Sužiedėlis | encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Lituanica | title=Trakai | year=1970–1978 | publisher=Juozas Kapočius | volume=V | location=Boston, Massachusetts | pages=491| lccn=74-114275 }} Voivodes were the ex officio members of the Lithuanian Council of Lords. Voivodes had their residence in Trakai city, near Galvė Lake, north of the Trakai Peninsula Castle.

=List of voivodes=

References

{{Reflist}}

{{Voivodeships of Lithuania}}

{{Administrative division of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth}}

{{coord|54.639319|24.935049|format=dms|display=title|type:landmark}}

Category:Voivodeships of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth

Category:Voivodeships of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania

Category:1413 establishments in Europe

Category:15th-century establishments in Lithuania

Category:1795 disestablishments in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth