| King ofRuthenia | |
|---|---|
| Rex Rusiae | |
 Coat of arms of theKingdom of Galicia–Volhynia | |
 Daniel of Galicia | |
| Details | |
| First monarch | Daniel of Galicia |
| Last monarch | Casimir III the Great |
| Formation | 1253 |
| Abolition | 1370 |
| Residence | Kholm (1253-1271)Lviv (1271-1349) |
| Appointer | Hereditary |
King of Ruthenia,King of Rus',King of Galicia and Lodomeria,Lord and Heir of Ruthenian Lands (Latin:Rex Rusiae,Rex Ruthenorum,Rex Galiciae et Lodomeriae,Terrae Russiae Dominus et Heres;Ukrainian:Король Русі, король Галичини і Володимирії, князь і володар Всієї Землі Руської,romanized: Korol Rusi, korol Halychyny i Volodymyrii, kniaz i volodar Vsiiei Zemli Ruskoi) was a title ofprinces of Galicia and Volhynia, granted by the Pope.
The title was initially issued to the rulingIzyaslavichi of Volhynia.[citation needed] Later the title was passed on to theRomanovichi as rulers of the unitedKingdom of Galicia–Volhynia. By the 15th century the title was used as a claim by other royal houses.
In the 13th–14th centuries, many of southwestern Rus' principalities were united under the power of theKingdom of Rus' (Latin:Regnum Rusiae), historiographically better known as theKingdom of Galicia–Volhynia.Roman the Great was variously nameddux Rutenorum,princeps Ruthenorum orrex Ruthenorum by Polish chroniclers.[1]Danylo of Galicia was crownedRex Ruthenorum or "king of the Rus'" in 1253.[2] Alternatively, Danylo and his brotherVasylko Romanovych were styledPrinceps Galiciae,Rex Russiae, andRex Lodomeriae inPapal documents, while the population of Halych and Volhynia was calledRusciae christiani andpopulus Russiae amongst other names.[3] TheGesta Hungarorum (c. 1280) stated that the Carpathian mountains between Hungary and Halych were situatedin finibus Ruthenie ("on the borders of Ruthenia").[3]
Galicia–Volhynia declined by mid-14th century due to theGalicia–Volhynia Wars after the poisoning of kingYuri II Boleslav by local Ruthenian nobles in 1340.Iohannes Victiensis Liber (page 218) records the death of Boleslav asHoc anno rex Ruthenorum moritur (...) ("In that year the king of the Ruthenians died (...)").[4]
After the death ofBoleslav-Yuri II of Halych,Galicia–Volhynia Wars ensued which resulted in Galicia gradually being annexed by theKingdom of Poland, between 1349 and 1366, during the reign ofCasimir III of Poland.[5]
At the death ofCasimir III the Great all of titulage was passed over toLouis I of Hungary
Grand Duke of LithuaniaGediminas called himselfKing of the Lithuanians and [many] Ruthenians in the 1320s.[6] In the subsequent years, allKings of Poland-Lithuania styled themselvesLord of Rus’ (or Ruthenia). Simultaneously, the tsars of Russia adopted from 1547 onwards the titleTsar of All-Rus’. The Hungarian kings continued to claim the title ofKing in Halych and Volhynia, later taken over together with theHungarian Crown by theHoly Roman emperors.
After thePartitions of Poland, the tsars of Russia styled themselvesEmperor of all the Russias, while theHoly Roman Emperors (later emperors of Austria and ofAustria-Hungary) used the title ofKing of Galicia and Lodomeria drawn from the historical claims of Hungarian Kings toHalych–Volhynia to justify the annexations of territories belonging toPolish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, in spite of the fact that the newly established rump puppetKingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria was included in theAustrian instead ofHungarian part of the empire, the true historical claimant of the region.[citation needed] Part of Galicia was included in the puppetKingdom of Poland (1916-1918) re-established by the Central Powers and ruled by theRegency Council. All these monarchies were abolished upon the end ofWorld War I. However, the Kingdom of Hungary was formally re-established in 1920 along with its royal titles and styles, and its territory even included at a time theCarpathian Ruthenia, following the breakup of theSecond Czechoslovak Republic. Nevertheless, its throne remained vacant until the ultimate abolition of Hungarian monarchy in 1946.
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