The Pact of Horodlo or Union of Horodło was a set of acts introduced in the town of Horodło in 1413. It amended the earlier Polish-Lithuanian Unions of Krewo and Vilnius-Radom was another step to recognise Lithuanian nobility as equal in the union between two sovereign states, ruled separately by elected monarch.

According to the act of the union, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was to retain a separate Grand Duke and its own parliament. At the same time both the Polish and Lithuanian Sejms were to discuss all the important matters jointly. Also, institutions of castellans and voivods were introduced in Lithuania and the Lithuanian and Ruthenian nobility were granted equal rights to those of the szlachta in Poland. This led to a large number of Ruthenian and Lithuanian noble families being adopted by the Polish szlachta clans and introduction of coats of arms in Lithuania. This affected all 47 major families and clans, as well as several other families.

Historical background

Polish - Lithuanian relations at the beginning of 15th century were sanctionated by the Union of Vilnius and Radom, which preserved in fact independence of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania after its subjection in Union of Kreva, Vytautas was made the Grand Duke (magnus dux), de facto independent ruler, de jure under Greater Duke (supremus dux) and King of Poland, Władysław Jagiełło. That decisions ended fights between both Lithuanians and let them to concentrate their attention on foreign politics, especially on relatations to the Teutonic Knights.
After the Polish-Lithuanian-Teutonic War, which was politically unemployed triumph, rulers of Poland and Lithuania decided that there`s need to review their relations. Grand Duke Vytautas knowed that he needs to reform the Lithuanian state after its Christianisation and subordination of the Ruthenian princedoms, Christianised much later in the Eastern Orthodox rite. Lithuanian lords, however barely Christianised, having experience of allie with Poland against the Teutons, for the first time proposed their own act, aiming to gain the same privillages as the Polish nobility had.

Treaty

Both subscribers claimed that they want to keep union against enemies who would want it to break, thus making each state weaker.

It meaned especially the Teutonic Knights, who were recently allied to Vytautas in his fights against Władysław Jagiełło.

Treaty was repeateing indissoluble character of Polish - Lithuanian relations, for the onther hand it was clearly stateing that after Vytautas there will be another Grand Duke, thus Lithuania will stay as a separate state, however the Lithuanian Boyars promised to choose a successor to Vytautas in consultation with Polish elites while the Polish Nobles promised to consult with Lithuanians in election of the Polish King.

Another point was making church officials equal in both countries, or rather giving to Lithuanian clerics same rights and prerogatives as they had in the Polish Kingdom. It should be noted that the first clergymans in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania were Poles, for instance subscriber of Horodlo Union and the Bishop of Vilnius, Mikołaj z Gorzkowa (Gorzkowski), who also adopted in Horodło to his clan of Gierałt a Lithuanian lord, Surgintas Reszyński and all of his heirs.

The most significant resolution for the Grand Duchy was adoption of Polish administrative divisions and offices like voivode and castellan, at that time were created two voivodesips Trakai and Vilnius, taken by two Lithuanian nobles, signatoryies of Horodło treaty. Soon another divisions were created, the next one was Kiev Voivodeship in 1471, when Kiev Principality, as a first Ruthenian Princely province of Lithuaia, was turned into voivodeship.

According to the act of the union, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was to retain a separate Grand Duke and its own parliament. At the same time both the Polish and Lithuanian Sejms were to discuss all the important matters jointly. Also, institutions of castellans and voivods were introduced in Lithuania and the Lithuanian and Ruthenian nobility were granted equal rights to those of the szlachta in Poland. This led to a large number of Ruthenian and Lithuanian noble families being adopted by the Polish szlachta clans and introduction of coats of arms in Lithuania. This affected all 47 major families and clans, as well as several other families.

Aftermath

Armorials adoption