Palemonids

The Palemonids were a legendary dynasty of Grand Dukes of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Ruthenia. The legend was born in the 15th or 16th century as proof that Lithuanians and the Grand Duchy are of Roman origins. Already Jan Długosz (1415–1480) wrote that Lithuanians are of Roman origin, but did not provide more details. The legend is first recorded in the second redaction of the Lithuanian Chronicle produced in the 1530s.^[1] At the time Grand Duchy or Lithuania was quarrelling with Kingdom of Poland rejecting the claims that Poland "nobilizied" pagan and barbaric Lithuania. Lithuanian nobility needed to show the noble origins of the ruling dynasty, as the only available chronicles at the time were written by the Teutonic Knights, a long-standing enemy, and depicted Gediminas as a hostler of Vytenis.^[2]

In the chronicle, Palemon (Could be Polemon II of Pontus, which was relative to Nero), a relative of Roman Emperor Nero, escaped Rome with 500 noble families. They traveled north, through the Baltic Sea, and reached Nemunas Delta. Then they decided to sail upstream until they reached the mouth of Dubysa. There Palemonids settled on a large hill and ruled the country for generations until the Gediminids emerged.^[1] The chronicle skipped Mindaugas and Traidenis, attested Grand Dukes of Lithuania, entirely.^[2] It incorporated the first redaction for the account of the Gediminids line. To make the story more believable, the chronicle presented a very detailed account of the travel. Because there were not enough generations to cover the gap between the 1st century when Palemon arrived and the 14th century when Gediminas died, the third redaction of the chronicle, also known as the Bychowiec Chronicle, moved up Palemon from the 1st century Rome to the 5th century, when Rome was devastated by Attila the Hun,^[1] and incorporated Mindaugas and later known dukes. But it was not enough and historians like Maciej Stryjkowski and Kazimierz Kojałowicz-Wijuk moved it further to the 10th century.^[3] Multiple contradictory versions of the legend survive to this day as historians tried to patch up some obvious mistakes and make it more historically sound.

At the end of the 19th century, there were some attempts, for example in a history written by Maironis, to tie the legend with the expansion of vikings.^[1] While many historians, up to the dawn of the 20th century, believed the legend to be true, it is now largely discarded as a fictional story that only serves to illustrate political ideology in the 16th century Lithuania.^[4]

Genealogical tree

Palemon From Column family

Borkus Duke of Samogitia Founder of Jurbarkas

Kunos Duke of Aukštaitija Founder of Kaunas

Spera Duke of Eastern Lithuania Name: Lake Spėra

Daumantas Duke of Deltuva From Centaurus family

Kernius Duke of Lithuania Founder of Kernavė

Gimbutas Duke of Samogitia

Montvilas Duke of Samogitia

Kiras Duke of Deltuva

Pajauta ♀ Name: valley in Kernavė

Nemunas Name: Neman River

Erdvilas Duke of Navahradak

Skirmantas

Vykintas Duke of Samogitia

Mingaila Duke of Navahradak and Polatsk

Živinbudas Duke of Samogitia

Kukovaitis Duke of Lithuania

Skirmantas Duke of Navahradak, Pinsk, Turaŭ, etc.

Ginvilas Duke of Polatsk

Kukovaitis Duke of Samogitia

Traidenis Grand Duke of Navahradak

Liubartas Grand Duke of Karachev

Pisimantas Duke of Turaŭ

Rogvolodas Duke of Polatsk

Algimantas Duke of Navahradak

Gleb Duke of Polatsk

Paraskeva ♀

Utenis Duke of Lithuania and Samogitia Founder of Utena

Ryngold Duke of Navahradak

Vaišvilkas Duke of Navahradak

Šventaragis Grand Duke of Lithuania Name: valley in Vilnius

Skirmantas Grand Duke of Lithuania

Trabus Duke of Samogitia

Koliginas Duke of Lithuania and Rus'

Romanas Grand Duke of Lithuania

Narimantas Grand Duke of Lithuania

Daumantas Killed Traidenis

Olshan Ancestor of Olshanski

Giedrius Ancestor of Giedraičiai

Traidenis Grand Duke of Lithuania

Rimantas Grand Duke of Lithuania

Source: (Lithuanian) Jučas, Mečislovas (2003). Lietuvos metraščiai ir kronikos. Vilnius: Aidai. p. 53. ISBN 9955-445-40-8.  The table was prepared according to the second redaction of the Lithuanian Chronicles, so-called transcription of Archeological Society. Other redactions, transcriptions, chronicles, and later historians presented significantly different genealogical trees. Note: Darker shaded cells represent dukes who share their names with real historical figures. Dukes with the title Grand Duke of Lithuania ruled the unified country: i.e. they ruled Lithuania, Samogitia, and Rus'.

See also

• family of Gediminas
• Gediminids

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} (Lithuanian) Ivinskis, Zenonas (1953–1966). "Palemonas". Lietuvių enciklopedija. 21. Boston, Massachusetts: Lietuvių enciklopedijos leidykla. pp. 400–401. LCC 55020366. 
2. ^ ^{a b} (Lithuanian) Ivinskis, Zenonas (1953–1966). "Metraščiai". Lietuvių enciklopedija. 18. Boston, Massachusetts: Lietuvių enciklopedijos leidykla. pp. 307–310. LCC 55020366. 
3. ^ (Lithuanian) Jonynas, Ignas (1936). "Borkus". In Vaclovas Biržiška. Lietuviškoji enciklopedija. 4. Kaunas: Spaudos Fondas. pp. 251–255. 
4. ^ Rowell, S. C. (1994). Lithuania Ascending: A Pagan Empire Within East-Central Europe, 1295-1345. Cambridge Studies in Medieval Life and Thought: Fourth Series. Cambridge University Press. p. 41. ISBN 9780521450119.