Stankiewicz Page

THE STANKIEWICZ FAMILY HISTORY
AND STORIES

The Polish Heraldic Eagle

The immediate roots of the Stankiewicz family lie not in Poland, but in what is now Lithuania! Antoni Stankiewicz was born August 20, 1888, in the city that the Poles called Wilno. The Lithuanians call this city Vilnius, and it is their capital city!

Poland, throughout its history, has been under the rule of various different peoples, including Poles. Casimir III, son of Wladyslaw I the Short, took Poland to great heights of power and prosperity during his reign from 1333 to 1370. Casimir III had a grand niece, Jadwiga, who was queen of Poland. In 1836, Jadwiga married the grand duke of Lithuania, Jagiello, who was then crowned Wladyslaw II Jagiello, king of Poland.

In 1410, Polish and Lithuanian armies under Wladyslaw II defeated the Teutonic Knights, thereby raising Poland to a leading position among European nations. From that point on, until 1569, Poland and Lithuania were usually ruled by a single sovereign.

The two realms of Poland and Lithuania were united in 1569 by Sigismund II Augustus, who was the Polish king at the time. Wilno became known as a center of Polish culture with this union. Poles to this day make up about 7% of the Lithuanian population.

Until 1920, Poles exerted a tremendous influence over Wilno. In 1920, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) occupied the Polish held city, and transferred it to Lithuania, who had proclaimed independence that same year. The League of Nations, mediators in the dispute, awarded Vilnius to Lithuania; however, Poland reoccupied the city later in the year. In 1939, the USSR captured the city, and Poland would rule in Lithuania no more.

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