- Viestards
Viestards ( also "Viesthard, Vesthardus, Viesturs") was one of the greatest
Semigallia n leaders in the 13th century, sometimes referred to as King of Semigallia. His capital wasTērvete . During the first decades of the 13th century he was allied with theLivonian Order againstLithuanians , who looted Semigalia on several occasions. In 1205, joint forces defeated Lithuanians and killed dukeŽvelgaitis .When German crusaders broke the peace treaty and attacked the Semigallian castle in
Mežotne , Viestards became an enemy of the German Order. He made an alliance with his neighbors, the Lithuanians. Together they fought against the crusaders. Viestards died in 1230, but the Semigallians still were not conquered until the beginning of the 14th century. Viestards never acceptedChristianity and accepted only one monk in Semigallia as a preacher.The Order of Viesturs (Vesthardus Rex) was founded in 1938 to commemorate the spirit of independence of the people of ancient
Latvia .References
*
*
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.