[2][3][4] The war was fought on the one side by Švitrigaila, allied with the Teutonic Knights, and on the other by Sigismund Kęstutaitis, backed by the Kingdom of Poland.

[6] The war ended in a decisive defeat for Švitrigaila and his ally, the Livonian branch of the Teutonic Knights, at the Battle of Wiłkomierz in September 1435.

The Knights' defeat in the battle weakened but did not completely vanquish their military power and they continued to engage in lesser conflicts.

While Jogaila (Jagiełło) and Vytautas had converted to Roman Catholicism, the Eastern Orthodox elite, along with some Lithuanian magnates, opposed a closer union with Poland.

[citation needed] On 27 October 1430 Vytautas the Great, Grand Duke of Lithuania, suddenly died without leaving an heir or a will.

[9] This violated the terms of the Union of Horodło of 1413, wherein the Lithuanians had pledged not to elect a new Grand Duke without the approval of the Kingdom of Poland.

[9] At the time Jogaila (Jagiełło), King of Poland and brother of Švitrigaila, was in Lithuania and participated in the funeral of Vytautas.

[10] However, an armed conflict erupted due to territorial disputes in Podolia and Volhynia, which, according to the understanding of the Polish nobility, under the terms of a 1411 agreement, were to have been ruled by Lithuania only during the lifetime of Vytautas.

[9] Švitrigaila refused, professed full independence, and even asked Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund to send him the crown that had been intended for Vytautas.

[13] He negotiated with the Teutonic Knights, with Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, with Moldavia, with the Golden Horde, and with the dukes of the eastern lands of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

[12] Finding little opposition, the Knights ravaged Dobrzyń Land, taking the town of Nieszawa, and tried to move on to the Kuyavia and Krajna regions.

[16] On 31 August 1432, conspirators, including Semen Olshanski, Petras Mangirdaitis, and Jonas Goštautas,[10] attacked Švitrigaila and his escort at Ashmyany, where they were staying the night.

[15] Švitrigaila and some of his supporters, including Jurgis Gedgaudas and Jonas Manvydas, managed to escape to Polotsk while his pregnant wife was detained.

Possibly some Lithuanian nobles were displeased with favors that Švitrigaila had granted to the Orthodox dukes, but prior to the coup no opposition had manifested itself.

[9] Sigismund, who had not played a major role in Lithuanian politics before the coup,[9] and who had initially supported Švitrigaila,[17] resumed the policy of union with Poland.

Švitrigaila had enlisted the aid of Sayid Ahmad I, Khan of the Golden Horde,[19] and wrote to Pope Eugene IV and Council of Florence hoping to gain their support by promising a church union.

During their last and largest "beautiful ride",[6][21] the Czech forces under Jan Čapek of Sány were also supported by Pomeranian Duke Bogusław IX of the Duchy of Stolp (Słupsk).

[20][24] Despite their failed siege of Danzig, the Hussites celebrated their "beautiful ride" by symbolically filling their bottles with water from the Baltic Sea.

[26][27] This marked the end of the war on Polish soil; the struggle on Lithuanian lands would continue for two more years,[28] as the truce with Poland did not extend to the Livonian Order.

[26] In July and August 1433, Švitrigaila and his Livonian allies raided Lida, Kreva and Eišiškės and devastated the suburbs of Vilnius, Trakai and Kaunas.

[13] Jogaila's son Casimir IV Jagiellon, born in 1426, received approval as a hereditary hospodar from Lithuania's ruling families in 1440.