Timeline of Lithuania

Chronology

33 events spanning the history of Lithuania. BCE/CE dating.

1. 2500 BCE – 1500 BCE

   Finno-Ugric and proto-Baltic tribes settle on Baltic shores.

   Finno-Ugric and proto-Baltic tribes settle on Baltic shores.

2. 1 – 100

   Early Baltic peoples experience rapid cultural progress.

   Early Baltic peoples experience rapid cultural progress and expansion of trade with Roman Empire and Germanic tribes.

3. 701 – 1200

   Scandinavian Vikings and Slavic tribes engage in trade and war with Baltic peoples.

   Scandinavian Vikings and, subsequently, Slavic tribes engage in trade and war with Baltic peoples.

4. 1253

   Mindaugas crowned king of Lithuania.

   Mindaugas crowned king of Lithuania.

5. 1300

   Grand Duke Gediminas expand Lithuania’s territories southward to Black Sea.

   Grand Duke Gediminas and his descendants expand Lithuania’s territories southward to Black Sea.

6. 1569

   Lithuania unites with Poland, forming Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

   Lithuania unites with Poland, forming Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

7. 1710

   Russian tsar Peter I (the Great) succeeds in wresting control of Estland and Livland.

   Russian tsar Peter I (the Great) succeeds in wresting control of Estland and Livland (southern Estonia and northern Latvia) from Sweden.

8. 1795

   Poland partitioned; Lithuania annexed by Russian Empire.

   Poland partitioned; Lithuania annexed by Russian Empire.

9. 1918 – 1920

   Baltic states engage in war to defend independence.

   Baltic states engage in war to defend independence; Bolshevik, White Russian, German, Polish, and other forces struggle for control of territories. Lithuania fails to regain Polish-occupied Vilnius region.

10. 1920

    Baltic states sign peace treaties with Soviet Russia

    Baltic states sign peace treaties with Soviet Russia; Moscow recognizes their independence and renounces all claims to their territories.