Vilnius lost much of its archive, but 15 historic privileges survive

Vilnius has preserved 15 original copies of documents confirming its self-government, although much of the city archive was lost during the mid-17th-century occupation by Moscow’s army, historian Mindaugas Klovas writes in an article for LRT. Klovas is with the Lithuanian Institute of History.

The privileges documented the rights and freedoms granted to the city by its rulers. Written culture began to expand in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the late 14th century, and in 1387 Grand Duke Jogaila issued privileges to the Vilnius diocese, Catholic nobles and the city’s residents.

From the late 14th century to the 18th century, Lithuania was ruled by 19 grand dukes. The city is known to have received 18 privileges from 13 rulers. Some rulers did not issue a confirmation, while others did so more than once. Historians do not know whether Vytautas granted a privilege to Vilnius or whether Jogaila issued a second one, as he had promised.

Vilnius officials sought renewed confirmations to protect the city’s rights. In 1564, representatives secured a second confirmation of Magdeburg law from Sigismund Augustus amid a dispute over how city residents should be tried. In 1566, they obtained another confirmation with a fuller explanation of their self-government rights.

The privileges were kept in the city archive at the Town Hall. A 1536 order by Sigismund the Old instructed that they be stored in a room or chest secured with four locks. During the occupation by Moscow’s army in the mid-17th century, most of the archive was destroyed. The privileges survived by chance because city representatives had taken the originals to Warsaw while conducting business at the Sejm.

A 1829 report by the Vilnius City Duma said that some archive records had been taken to Kyiv, Smolensk and other cities during the occupation. Historians have not confirmed or disproved that claim. It remains unclear how many documents kept at the Town Hall were destroyed in fires or looted.