Lithuania: A History

by Richard Butterwick, Unknown Author

Lithuania is often portrayed as a small nation- state that has survived against the odds of together with Estonia and Latvia, it won independence at the end of the First World War, lost it to the Soviet Union in 1939–40, regained it in 1990–1, and joined NATO and the EU in 2004, angering the Kremlin. But Lithuania’s rich and complex history stretches back much further than these events, and much further than many realise.

In the fourteenth century, Europe’s last pagan dynasty ruled a vast empire stretching from forests on the Baltic shores to the steppes north of the Black Sea. Forging a remarkable, liberty-based union with the Kingdom of Poland, for 400 years the Grand Duchy of Lithuania blocked Moscow’s pretensions to rule all of Rus’, particularly Belarus and Ukraine. Yet it was in competition with Poles, and under Russian imperial rule, that the modern ethnic Lithuanian nation emerged in the nineteenth century.

This is a lively and accessible history of a fascinating country that was once much larger than it is today; a land where, for centuries, peoples and communities—including Belarusians, Ukrainians, Germans, Poles, Russians, Jews, Karaites and Tatars—lived together in concord and discord.

Genres: History, European History

488 pages, Paperback

Published August 7, 2025

Reviews

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am the grandchild of two Lithuanians who migrated to the United States in 1913, and have never found a history of Lithuania that did not reek of nationalist revanchism. Thankfully, this book has remedied that lack.

Richard Butterwick has written a well-researched book that recounts the glories of 15th-century Lithuania, and then the Grand Duchy’s union with Poland and subsequent absorption by Russia. An interesting array of characters struts across the page. The reader learns that many Polish heroes — among them Stanislaw Poniatowski and the founder of modern Poland Jozef Pilsudski — had Lithuanian roots (as did Menachem Begin, whose policies shaped today’s Israel).

I found this book slow going at first, mainly due to my weak command of medieval history in northeastern Europe. As the book got into the 19th century, the pace quickened notably. For readers looking for an unbiased view of Lithuanian history, this book is well worth the investment of time to read it.

[Jacob Profitt · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating read, I picked this up as my partner is Lithuanian and wanted to learn more about his home country. I look forward to visiting the country in the near future and seeing the history with my own eyes.