A Brief History
On February 25, 1336, the 4,000 defenders of the medieval Lithuanian fortress of Pilénai thought they had no other choice but to make the horrible decision to kill themselves and their families after torching and destroying everything they had of value to deny their Teutonic besiegers the spoils of victory and the opportunity to kill or enslave them.
Digging Deeper
The number of women and children sacrificed is unknown, but even just the number of defenders, recorded at 4,000, is more than enough to rank as history’s largest mass suicide, eclipsing the 900+ dead at Masada in 37-31 B.C. and the 900+ dead at Jonestown in 1978.
These brave defenders are remembered in an epic poem by Wladyslaw Syrokomla titled Margier, in reference to the Duke of Margiris who commanded the defenders, and also in a 1956 opera by Vytautas Klova (with J. Mackonis) titled Pilénai.
Although Lithuanians remember the event as a glorious part of their history, the exact location of the fortress is disputed, with a few different locations laying claim to be the hallowed ground. As for the Teutonic Knights (Germans), they were Crusaders who were back from the Holy Land, and in their march across Europe, attempted to convert Pagans, such as those they found in Lithuania, to Christianity.
Question for students (and subscribers): Were the defenders of Pilénai correct in choosing to die by their own hands? Should they have possibly saved their families and selves by submitting to the Teutonic Knights? Should suicides ever be glorified, or does this only encourage such behavior? Feel free to add your comments and observations, and if you are aware of larger mass suicides please share those with us in the comments section below this article.
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Historical Evidence
For more information, please see…
Cochrane, Ms. Lydia G. and Mr. Georges Minois. History of Suicide: Voluntary Death in Western Culture (Medicine and Culture). The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1998.
<span class="dsq-postid" data-dsqidentifier="9711 https://www.historyandheadlines.com/?p=9711">24 Comments
Suicide is a sensitive topic….with me being affected directly by it, I have mixed emotions. It should not be glorified in any sense but then again as suicide offenders are considered “weak” for leaving this earth by their own doing, I believe they are “strong” for having to nerve to do it. Many attempt it but many don’t go through because they are too “weak” to go through with it. It’s a sensitive topic, and should not be glorified, but all I think about is how they must have felt going through with it…as cowardly as it is, it takes courage.
I agree with you, Alex. Regardless of the reason or justification, the outcome is a very sad one – for everyone.
Suicide was looked at a courageous way to die rather than the by their enemy. This group was most likely well respected for their decision by other peoples in their area.
I think their decision had to have been unimaginably hard to make. This is the first I’ve learned of this (unlike say, the story of Masada). I’m glad these people are also remembered. If nothing else, THEY decided how THEY would live – and die – together with their loved ones.
I understand that it was seen as honorable to commit suicide over being killed in battle but I’ve always found it stupid. If you’re going into a battle and kill yourself before hand, you took away any chance of potential victory and life.
It is crazy to see people committed mass suicide back then! Also, when I read about this I think about the church that had the mass “suicide” in South America when they drank poison.
I don’t think it should ever be glorified when someone, or this case many people are killed by others or themselves.
i think is very sad they felt this was there only way to escape and not giving themselves to be slaves or killed by the emeny. but how do they know they would of been slaves or killed though didnt even see it out or anything it seems like taking out an easy way to die
Death before dishonor. Submission to the Teutonic Knights must have been considered a fate worse than death.
I do not believe that they made the correct choice of ending their lives. I don’t think it should be up to you to decide when you’re done living.
I believe that this was a better choice than possible years of enslavement by the hands of the Germans.
Suicide while in battle is just plain cowardly to me, one who goes to battle knows they are at risk of dying. Therefore they should fight till death or till they win. By killing themselves they lose the chance of victory or even the chance to continue living. I do not see how or why this was considered an honorable gesture.
Well, I this was the cowardly way out…but in a way I also think he did it so he would not be dishonored. Honor was everything to warriors during this time.
I still don’t get why they thought suicide was the best choice. why not fight and try to win so you can survive?
In this situation I think that they should have tried to save their land before taking their own lives. they had given up before even trying to fight back against their attackers.
How can anyone “remember the event as a glorious part of their history?” There’s nothing to be proud of. Had they died fighting back, sure. But not to just give up and go down saying you’ll never take me alive.
Suicide is never the answer – thus says every part of society
I dont understand why they gave up so quickly, to have that many people agree to suicide is crazy.
Alright, for everyone that is so brave here, I have a few things to point out. Firstly, the men who defended the castle did fight until the end. Secondly, this was a major fortification that could not be given to the crusaders at any cost. Thirdly, the suicide happened in a manner most of you do not understand, the women killed their children, the elderly killed the young and the men and all those who were able to fight fought until the end. Until they were killed or claimed by the burning fire. Would any of you have the guts to kill your wife and child and even your parents and then fight to the end or fight until you are immolated? This decision wasn’t made lightly. The inhabitants could not hold out any longer because they were vastly outnumbered by the crusaders and had exactly 0% chance of survival.
Let me tell you one of the scenarios of what happened to the people taken captive by the crusaders. The men were disemboweled and then the crusaders would tie their intestines to a tree an make them walk around it until they were all wound around the tree or until they died. All of this done by threatening to brutalize, torture and painfully kill their families. After that they would still proceed to rape the wives and children too old to indoctrinate and then tortured and killed them. They would take the very young children, raise them into their soldiers and make them fight against their own people. These practices were well documented.
Do you still think that what they did was cowardly? The men did not fear death themselves, they feared that their families would have to suffer capture. The Teutonic order and Lithuania (both the kingdom and the grand duchy) were involved in, every sense of the term, TOTAL WAR for 200 years. That is not much less than the United States has existed for. Something that the people of the US cannot even begin to fathom.
Next time, think before disrespecting the heroes of someone else’s nation. Their decision is heroic not in their decision to commit suicide but what exactly that entailed.
I enjoyed Perkunas follow up on this article, it cleared up a lot of questions that I had while reading the original article, I would like to hear more about this particular event.
I agree with Brett N. , I don’t think it was the best choice to end their lives either.
i knew about the largest mass genocide but never about the largest mass suicide
i wouldn’t of killed my children or family. I wouldn’t of committed suicide i would try to escape or hide the children or fight till the end despite the fact that i am a woman
Fight to the death, give yourself a chance. The light may have been dim but there’s still a chance to reach it