[2][3] In two more instances, royal nobles were not crowned due to political circumstances, but held de jure recognition abroad —Vytautas the Great by Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor,[4] and Mindaugas II by Pope Benedict XV.

"[9] As the territory of Lithuania expanded eastwards, other king-titled grand dukes who ruled the country adopted similar titles for introducing themselves abroad.

This was because in Lithuania, unlike in the majority of other European monarchies, the Grand Duke was a sovereign monarch who was accountable to no one, thus de facto king.

[18] In 1398, the Lithuanian nobility declared Vytautas the Great as the King of Lithuania and, following the Congress of Lutsk in 1429, the crowning was sanctioned by Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor.

The first inauguration ceremony of a Lithuanian Grand Duke about which there is reliable information is that of Casimir IV Jagiellon, as reported by Jan Długosz.

[27] But instead he was elected as Grand Duke upon his arrival to Vilnius on 29 June 1440, with the ringing of church bells and the singing of the Te Deum laudamus.

[29][30] It manifested Lithuania as a sovereign state and its ruler Casimir IV Jagiellon stressed himself as a "free lord" (pan – dominus).

The newly elected ruler was dressed "in a ducal cap with pearls and precious stones set in it, also the usual robe that today the princes of the Reich wear at the imperial coronation.

[41] Following the Union of Lublin, which formed the federative Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1569, and the death of the last Gediminid ruler Sigismund II Augustus in 1572, separate inaugurations in Vilnius Cathedral were abolished, therefore Gediminas' Cap lost its ceremonial significance.

[43] On 20 April 1576 a congress of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania's nobles was held in Grodno which adopted an Universal, signed by the participating Lithuanian nobles, which announced that if the delegates of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania will feel pressure from the Poles in the Election sejm, the Lithuanians will not be obliged by an oath of the Union of Lublin and will have the right to select a separate monarch.

[52] Nevertheless, before the 1576 Polish–Lithuanian royal election a congress of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania's nobles was held on 20 April 1576 in Grodno which adopted an Universal, signed by the participating Lithuanian nobles, which announced that if the delegates of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania will feel pressure from the Poles in the Election sejm, the Lithuanians will not be obliged by an oath of the Union of Lublin and will have the right to select a separate monarch.

[44] On 29 May 1580, a ceremony was held in the Vilnius Cathedral during which bishop Merkelis Giedraitis presented Stephen Báthory (King of Poland since 1 May 1576) a luxuriously decorated sword and a hat adorned with pearls (both were sanctified by Pope Gregory XIII himself), while this ceremony manifested the sovereignty of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and had the meaning of elevation of the new Grand Duke of Lithuania, this way ignoring the stipulations of the Union of Lublin.

In response, Duke Mindaugas, who by then had managed to strengthen his grip in various Baltic and Slavic lands, sought to consolidate power and unite Lithuania into one political entity, convert to Christianity, and become king.

Some historical documents suggest that at the time of signing the Treaty of Salynas in 1398, Lithuanian nobles had acknowledged Vytautas as their King as a symbolic declaration of allegiance.

As a consequence, the idea of a fully-fledged Lithuanian monarchy as well as Poland losing its influence over its neighbour was met with fierce resistance from the Polish nobles.

[4] In 1526, the Lithuanian Council of Lords suggested King Sigismund I the Old to grant the Grand Duchy of Lithuania the status of a kingdom, but such a proposal was rejected by the ruling Jagiellonian dynasty.

In an attempt to avoid becoming a province but remain on good terms with Germany, the Council of Lithuania decided to establish a separate constitutional monarchy with Wilhelm von Urach as King with his residence being in Verkiai Palace.

According to the twelve-point document resembling the rudiments of a Constitution, the Kingdom of Lithuania was supposed to have had a bicameral legislature with a representative role of the monarch.

Wilhelm von Urach was also presented with conditions such as adopting the title of Mindaugas II, letting his children to a Lithuanian school, only appointing courtiers, ministers and other high-ranking public officials who are Lithuanian citizens and speak the country's official language as well as not leaving the state for more than two months per year without the permission of the government.

On 5 October 1918, in the Reichstag, the new Chancellor of Germany Maximilian of Baden announced that his state acknowledged the right of nations to self-determination and supported their efforts of becoming independent countries.

[63] On 2 November 1918, as it became apparent that King-elect Mindaugas himself was hesitant to arrive in Lithuania for his coronation due to political unrest, the Council decided to abandon the idea of being a satellite monarchy and establish a fully independent republic instead.