1236-1387 CE
From 1236 to 1387 CE, the Lithuanians carved the last pagan empire in Europe from the forests of the Baltic. Where the Sword Brothers fell at Saule, Mindaugas built a kingdom; where crusaders planted crosses, Gediminas raised Vilnius and welcomed refugees from Mongol terror. His grandsons ruled from the Baltic to the Black Sea — until Jogaila chose a Polish crown and a Christian font over the sacred flames his ancestors had kept burning.