# Gedvydas

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{{Short description|Lithuanian noble (died c. 1253)}}

{{No footnotes|date=November 2025}}
'''Gedvydas''' (or '''Edivid'''; died {{circa|1253}}) was one of the sons of [Dausprungas](/source/Dausprungas) and nephews of Lithuanian king [Mindaugas](/source/Mindaugas). Gedvydas together with his brother [Tautvilas](/source/Tautvilas) and uncle [Vykintas](/source/Vykintas) waged a civil war against Mindaugas. Gedvydas' brother and uncle were more active and Gedvydas played just a secondary role in the conflict. The war resulted in the [coronation](/source/coronation) of Mindaugas.

==Life==
In 1248, Mindaugas sent Tautvilas, Gedvydas, and Vykintas to conquer [Smolensk](/source/Smolensk), promising that they could keep what they would conquer. On the [Protva River](/source/Protva_River) they defeated and killed the first prince of Moscow, [Mikhail Khorobrit](/source/Mikhail_Khorobrit), but near [Zubtsov](/source/Zubtsov) lost to the grand prince of [Vladimir-Suzdal](/source/Vladimir-Suzdal). After discovering about the failure, Mindaugas took their land and property for himself. At the beginning of 1249, Tautvilas, Gedvydas, and Vykintas fled to [Daniel of Halych](/source/Daniel_of_Halych), who was married to Gedvydas' sister. They formed a powerful coalition with the [Samogitia](/source/Samogitia)ns, the [Livonian Order](/source/Livonian_Order), and Vasilko of [Volhynia](/source/Volhynia) in opposition to Mindaugas. An internal war erupted. Daniel and the Livonian Order organized several military campaigns into Mindaugas' lands.

The Livonian Order became an ally of Mindaugas after he agreed to get baptized. In 1251, the remaining allies attacked Mindaugas in [Voruta](/source/Voruta), but the attack failed. Tautvilas' and Gedvydas' forces retreated to defend themselves in Vykintas' castle in the present-day [Rietavas municipality](/source/Rietavas_municipality). Neither side seems to have won. Vykintas died in or about 1253, and Gedvydas was forced to flee to [Halych](/source/Halych). There he helped Daniel in an unsuccessful campaign against [Bohemia](/source/Bohemia). This is the last mention of Gedvydas in written sources, and historians assume he perished in the battle.

==References==
* {{cite encyclopedia | editor = Simas Sužiedėlis | encyclopedia = [Encyclopedia Lituanica](/source/Encyclopedia_Lituanica) | title = Tautvilas | year = 1970–1978 | publisher = Juozas Kapočius | volume = V | location = Boston, Massachusetts | pages = 384 | lccn = 74-114275 }}
* {{cite book |editor= Vytautas Spečiūnas|title= Lietuvos valdovai (XIII-XVIII a.): enciklopedinis žinynas |year=2004 |publisher=Mokslo ir enciklopedijų leidybos institutas |location=Vilnius |isbn=5-420-01535-8 |pages=20–21|language=lt}}

==See also==
* [House of Mindaugas](/source/House_of_Mindaugas) – family tree of Gedvydas and Tautvilas

{{DEFAULTSORT:Edivydas}}
Category:1250s deaths
Category:13th-century Lithuanian nobility
Category:Year of birth unknown

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Gedvydas](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gedvydas) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gedvydas?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.