Principality of Jersika

The Principality of Jersika was a medieval Latgalian state located in eastern Latvia, active from at least the 12th century until 1239. It was one of the largest pre-crusade polities in the region, centered around a hill fort near the present-day Līvāni Municipality, southeast of Riga. The principality occupied areas now known as Latgale and Vidzeme, bordering Tālava, Koknese, Selonia, Polotsk, and Lithuania.

Estimated territories under Jersika rule. © Garais

Jersika was a part of the broader trade network along the Daugava River, linked to the route from the Varangians to the Greeks. Initially, it maintained connections with the Principality of Polotsk, with rulers adopting Eastern Orthodoxy. The principality is first mentioned in the Chronicle of Henry of Livonia in 1203, when its ruler, Visvaldis, allied with Lithuanians to raid the newly founded city of Riga.

In 1209, Jersika was conquered by Bishop Albert of Riga and the Livonian Brothers of the Sword. Visvaldis surrendered, and his kingdom was partitioned. He retained parts of Jersika as a fief, but lost territories like Autīne and Cesvaine. His feudal charter, in which he is titled "king of Jersika" (rex de Gercike), is the oldest surviving document of its kind in Latvia.

The principality’s decline continued as Polotsk abandoned its tributary claims over Jersika in favor of Bishop Albert in 1212. In 1214, German forces attacked and plundered Jersika’s castle. After Visvaldis’ death in 1239, the remaining territory passed to the Livonian Order, though it faced further claims from Lithuania and Novgorod. By this time, Russian chronicles referred to the region as "Lotigola," linking it to the Latgale area, which continued to be contested well into the 13th century.