On September 8, Lithuania celebrates the Coronation Day of Vytautas the Great and thanksgiving for defending the independence and freedom of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
Vytautas the Great (Great Prince of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, 1350—1430), since 1392 Grand Duke of Lithuania, son of Keistut. After Lithuania's union with Poland of 1385, Vytautas (Vytautas), relying on Lithuanian and Russian boyars living in the Russian regions of Lithuania, fought for Lithuania's independence from Poland.
On August 4, 1392, in Ostrov (on the border of Lithuania and Poland), Vytautas and the Polish king Jogaila concluded a treaty that transferred the Principality of Trakai to Vytautas, and he became the de facto ruler of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. In a short time, Vytautas strengthened centralized power and eliminated the consequences of internal strife.
Obstructed the unification policy of the Moscow princes; entered into agreements with the princes Tver (1427), Ryazan (1430), Pronsky (1430) hostile to Moscow; captured Smolensk (1404); interfered in the affairs of Novgorod and Pskov and invaded the Moscow principality three times (1406—1408).
Lithuanian possessions under Vytautas reached the upper reaches of the Oka and Mozhaisk. He took Southern Podolia from the Tatars and expanded his possessions to the Black Sea; fought stubbornly with the German knights. Vytautas and Jagiello were the organizers of the defeat of the German knights in the Battle of Grunwald in 1410. In 1422, Vytautas returned Samogitia, captured by the order (1398), to Lithuania.
An important historical event was to be the coronation of Grand Duke Vytautas of Lithuania, scheduled for September 8, 1430. As a result, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was to become the Kingdom of Lithuania with all the attributes of royal power. Emperor Sigismund I sent Vytautas drafts of the coronation act and the act of transforming the principality into a kingdom.
But Polish feudal lords, who always dreamed of annexing Lithuanian lands to Poland, intercepted the crown, which was carried by Sigismund's ambassadors. In return, they offered the crown of Vytautas’ brother — Jogaila, who was the king of Poland under the name Vladislav II. The coronation was disrupted. Vytautas soon fell ill, retired to his Trakai Castle and died that same year.
But Vytautas the Great’s contribution to the history of Lithuania was appreciated by his descendants. Therefore, it was decided to include the day of Vytautas’ failed coronation in the calendar of memorable dates of the Republic of Lithuania. However, there are no special commemorative events or celebrations on this day.