Aušra of Kretnga

Aušra of Kretnga
Portrait by Šarune Paksys
Pukias Sualkaranė
Reign	22 December 1601 – 4 September 1664
Predecessor	Skaidre the Tall
Successor	Žydrune II of Ravumo
Born	(1578-06-11)11 June 1578 Kretnga, Silua
Died	4 September 1664(1664-09-04) (aged 86) Ravumo, Silua
Burial	Ravumo Mausoleum of the Sun and Moon
Spouse	Ovidijus Bekeriene (m. 1598)
Issue	Skirmante, Gintare, Laimonas
Full name Aušra Vainauskus of Kretnga
Father	Matas Vainuaskiene
Mother	Raminta Vainuaskus, Karova of Kretnga
Religion	Kuvo
Military career
Allegiance	Silua
Service/branch	Siluan Army
Years of service	1595 - 1648
Rank	Commander-in-chief of the Siluan Army (1601 - 1664)
Unit	3rd Army of the East (1595-1601) 6th Army of Sun (1602-1648)
Commands held	22nd Husaras Pulkas
Battles/wars	Ogre War Exodus War Third War of the South Stoni War

Aušra of Kretnga was the Pukias Sualkaranė of Silua from 1601-1664. Aušra expanded the borders of Silua at the expense of its neighbors, most notably Shalum, and is frequently rated as one of the best military leaders of the 17th century.

Childhood and family

Aušra was born in Kretnga, seat of the Kretnga military district, on 22 December 1578 amidst one of the coldest winters ever recorded in Eracura. Her mother was Raminta Vainauskus, the korava (military governor) of Kretnga and the daughter of the Siluan war hero Ona Vainauskus. Her father was Matas Vainuaskiene, the son of exiled High Princess Ieva of Ogre. The marriage between Raminta and Matas was arranged by Skaidre the Tall in the hopes that the two would produce a daughter that could lay legal claim to the Ogre Principality which was under Shalumite control at the time.

The two were wed on 10 February 1568 when Raminta was 20 years of age and Matas was 16. The couple's first three children all died within the first year of life. In 1570 Raminta gave birth to a son, Gediminas, who would survive and live to the age of 60. From 1571 - 1576 Raminta was in near constant service in the Siluan border regions as Silua defended against incursions from several nations. After the conclusion of the conflict in 1576, Raminta once again began trying for a daughter. On 22 December 1578 she gave birth to twin girls, Aušra and Ugne.

As was common at the time, the two daughters of Raminta were not raised by thier mother as she was still in active service with the Siluan army. They were instead raised by thier younger aunt, Laima Rabaciauskas, who also acted as thier wet nurse. When the girls were ten years old, Laima enrolled Aušra in the military school of the Kretnga temple of Sual as she was the elder twin and Ugne was sent to study at the Kretnga College of Arts and Administration as the younger twin.

Aušra and Ugne were very close as children and were said to be inseparable from the moment they were born. They would frequently share thier lessons with each other, which benefited Aušra immensely later in life. The two would continue thier close relationship late into life, often supporting each other after Aušra was nominated and confirmed as Pukias Sualkaranė.

Early adult years and military service

Early military service

At the age of 16, Aušra was officially assigned to Siluan Army. She was placed in a provisional hussar company in the 3rd Army of the East along the eastern Siluan border and saw her first combat action four months after her sixteenth birthday in April of 1595. At the time, The Northern Coalition led by XXXX was at war with Silua and was attempting to wrest control of the eastern region of Petrašiūnai from Silua. Initially, Siluan commanders were of the opinion that the war would be over in matter of months, but the Northern Coalition proved a much tougher opponent than the generals thought and the war lasted five years, from 1595-1600.

During the course of the war, Aušra distinguished herself on numerous occasions and by the time of the war's end in 1600 she had been promoted to the rank of Fourth General and was in command of the 22nd Husaras Pulkas. During the war, her commanders and fellow soldiers noted her extreme courage, strength, tactical savvy. On more than one occasion, she was said to have withdrawn from an engagement that would have caused too great a toll on her subordinate troops only to return to the fray in a much stronger position and devastate her opponents. It was in part this battlefield ingenuity that led to her nomination by Skaidre the Tall for the position of Pukias Sualkaranė in the final months of 1600.

Off-duty life

Between engagements, Aušra read voraciously and was known to consume whatever texts she could get a hold of. These included Siluan, Saldian, various Nordic, ancient Makedonian, and Ridevan works of fiction and nonfiction alike. Among the many books that Aušra read, she was said to have found those concerning Siluan Predominance Theory, military treatises, and the often condemned sensual literature of Tennai exceptionally enthralling. These varieties of literature would inform her early political career and lead to widespread rumors regarding her sexuality which were only partially quelled by her marriage to Ovidijus Bekeriene in 1598 and the birth of her children following her confirmation as Pukias Sualkaranė.

During her early years of military service, Aušra developed her Pan Siluan philosophy which she would publish shortly after her ascension to Siluan leadership. Encapsulated in her philosophy was the idea that all those of Siluan and closely related ethno-linguistic groups should either belong to a single nation (presumably Silua) or at the very least a tightly-knit alliance of these peoples. On assuming the head position of Siluan government in 1601, Aušra further developed her philosophy and used it as partial justification for many of the wars she fought during her long tenure as Pukias Sualkaranė.

In early 1597, Skaidre the Tall took note of Aušra's military successes and academic interests and made a series of visits to the young Aušra's unit and by the middle of the year, she had begun to groom Aušra for the the role of Pukias Sualkranė. Also by the end of 1597, Skaidre had arranged a marriage for Aušra with the son of the prominent Bekerys military and religous family. Aside from the advantages of having such a doubly powerful and influential family tied to the top position in Siluan government, it has also been theorized that Skaidre also made this particular arrangement to help smother rumors of what was considered deviant sexual behaviour by the leading Kuvo religious leaders of the time. Skadre herself had been at the center of rumors concerning her sexuality throughout her tenure as Pukias Sualkaranė and it has been theorized that aliging Aušra with a well known religious family was an attempt to help Aušra avoid the challenges to her rule that Skaidre had faced.

While the 3rd Army of the east was camped for the winter, Aušra and Ovidijus Bekeryte were married in January of 1598.