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101-514: 54°53′37″N 21°05′22″E  /  54.89361°N 21.08944°E  / 54.89361; 21.08944 This Kaliningrad Oblast location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article related to a river in Russia is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Kaliningrad Oblast Kaliningrad Oblast ( Russian : Калининградская область , romanized :  Kaliningradskaya oblastʹ )

202-603: A Posener or Prussian by dialect and character? Distinct features hardly exist." While the north of East Prussia was overwhelmingly German, the south was majority Slavic and mostly composed of Poles and Masurians . There was also a slight Lithuanian majority in the north-eastern area of East Prussia, Lithuania Minor . Regional and local identities were particularly strong in East Prussia - local Polish population often identified with Masuria rather than Poland, and Prussian Lithuanians also did not actively identify themselves with

303-517: A breakdown by county. However, the majority of East Prussian Polish and Lithuanian inhabitants were Lutherans , not Catholics like their ethnic kinsmen across the border in the Russian Empire . Only in southern Warmia , Catholic Poles —so called Warmians (not to be confused with predominantly Protestant Masurians )—comprised the majority of population, numbering 26,067 people (~81%) in county Allenstein (Polish: Olsztyn ) in 1837. In

404-552: A climate gradually transitioning from oceanic to humid continental depending on distance from the Baltic Sea moderation. It remains very mild by Russian standards with winters above freezing without the hot summers associated with the Russian interior on similar latitudes. The local climate is slightly wetter than similar latitudes farther west, but infrequent ice days lead to low snow accumulation regardless. Anton Alikhanov

505-572: A crusade against the Baltic pagans in 1195, which was reiterated by Pope Innocent III , and a crusading expedition led by Meinhard's successor, Bishop Berthold of Hanover , landed in Livonia (part of present-day Latvia, surrounding the Gulf of Riga ) in 1198. Although the crusaders won their first battle, Bishop Berthold was mortally wounded and the crusaders were repelled. In 1199, Albert of Buxhoeveden

606-662: A great number of German Catholics, are willing to vote for a Polish party candidate". By the end of the 19th century, East Prussia had a significant Polish minority, and German nationalist circles warned of the prospect of Polonization of East Prussia. The perceived weakness of Germanness of East Prussia was also reinforced by the Ostflucht , as East Prussia suffered from both under-industrialisation and rural overpopulation. After 1876, farm prices in East Prussia fell by 20 percent, which encouraged local landowners to hire foreign workers from Congress Poland , incidentally strengthening

707-467: A lesser extent also Ukrainians and Belarusians. Some historians speculate that it may have originally been offered to the Lithuanian SSR because the resolution from the conference specifies that Kaliningrad's border would be at the (pre-war) Lithuanian frontier. According to some historians , Joseph Stalin created it as an oblast separate from the Lithuanian SSR because it further separated

808-658: A monument to Stalin stood on Victory Square. In 1973, the town hall was turned into the House of Soviets. In 1975, the trolleybus was launched again. In 1980, a concert hall was opened in the building of the former Lutheran Church of the Holy Family. In 1986, the Kreuzkirche building was transferred to the Russian Orthodox Church. In 1957, an agreement was signed and later came into force which delimited

909-482: A power-sharing treaty with the federal government, granting them autonomy. However, this agreement was abolished on 31 May 2002. After 1991, some ethnic Germans emigrated to the area, such as Volga Germans from other parts of Russia and Kazakhstan . These Germans are overwhelmingly Russian-speaking and as such were rejected for resettlement within Germany under Germany's new rules. A similar migration by Poles from

1010-631: A rationale for the growth and expansion of the Teutonic Order of German crusading knights which had been founded in Palestine at the end of the 12th century. Duke Konrad I of Masovia in west-central Poland appealed to the Knights to defend his borders and subdue the pagan Old Prussians in 1226. Already in 1234, a great expedition began, in which the Polish forces of Konrad of Mazovia and

1111-582: A stone fortress housing a strong garrison. The Danish stronghold was besieged and surrendered within five days, the Danish garrison returned to Revel , leaving bishop Albert of Riga 's brother Theodoric, and few others, behind as hostages for peace. The castle was razed to the ground by the Oeselians. A 20,000 strong army under Papal legate William of Modena crossed the frozen sea while the Saaremaa fleet

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1212-434: A tributary of Valdemar II of Denmark , had been reluctant to conduct a large scale campaign against them. After Albert's death in 1229, the crusaders secured the peaceful submission of Vanemane (a county with a mixed Livonian, Oselian , and Curonian population in the northeastern part of Courland) by treaty in 1230. In the same year, the papal vice-legate Baldouin of Alnea annulled this agreement and concluded an agreement with

1313-712: Is adjacent to the Baltic Sea should pass from a point on the eastern shore of the Bay of Danzig to the east, north of Braunsberg  – Goldep , to the meeting point of the frontiers of Lithuania , the Polish Republic and East Prussia . The Conference has agreed in principle to the proposal of the Soviet Government concerning the ultimate transfer to the Soviet Union of the city of Koenigsberg and

1414-536: Is from 1187 when crusader Esbern Snare mentioned in his Christmas feast speech a major victory over the Finns. The two next known crusades were made in 1191 and in 1202. The latter one was led by the Bishop of Lund, Anders Sunesen , with his brother. By the 12th century, the peoples inhabiting the lands now known as Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania formed a pagan wedge between increasingly powerful rival Christian states –

1515-696: Is now northern and eastern Germany . The crusade occurred parallel to the Second Crusade to the Holy Land , and continued irregularly until the 16th century. The Swedish crusades were campaigns by Sweden against Finns , Tavastians and Karelians during the period from 1150 to 1293. The wars with the Eastern Orthodox Novgorod Republic also had a religious aspect. The Danes are known to have made at least three crusades to Finland. The first mention of these crusades

1616-544: Is the 230 m (750 ft) Gora Dozor hill near the tripoint of the Poland–Russia border / Lithuania–Russia border . As a semi-exclave of Russia, it is surrounded by Poland ( Pomeranian and Warmian-Masurian Voivodeships ), Lithuania ( Klaipėda , Marijampolė , and Tauragė Counties ) and the Baltic Sea. The end of the river Neman forms part of the Lithuania–Russia border . Notable geographical features include

1717-546: Is the westernmost federal subject of the Russian Federation , in Central and Eastern Europe . It is a semi-exclave situated on the Baltic Sea . The oblast is surrounded by two European Union and NATO members: Poland to the south and Lithuania to the north and east. The largest city and administrative centre of the province ( oblast ) is the city of Kaliningrad , formerly known as Königsberg . Half of

1818-1082: The Curonian Lagoon (shared with Lithuania) and the Vistula Lagoon (shared with Poland). The oblast's largest river is the Pregolya . The river starts as a confluence of the Instruch and the Angrapa and drains into the Baltic Sea through the Vistula Lagoon. Its length, strictly under the name "Pregolya", is 123 km (76 mi); when including the Angrapa, is it 292 km (181 mi) long. Major cities and towns include: † Pre-1946 (the German-language names were also used in English in this period) Kaliningrad Oblast has

1919-645: The Finnish-Novgorodian Wars after receiving alarming information from the Archbishop of Uppsala . He authorized the Bishop of Finland to establish a trade embargo against the "barbarians" that threatened Christianity in Finland. The nationality of the "barbarians", presumably a citation from Archbishop's earlier letter, remains unknown, and was not necessarily known even by the Pope. However, as

2020-540: The Holy Roman Empire had begun moving to subjugate their pagan neighbors even earlier (see Christianization of Pomerania ). The non-Christian people who were objects of the campaigns at various dates included: Armed conflict between the Finnic peoples , Balts and Slavs who dwelt by the Baltic shores and their Saxon and Danish neighbors to the north and south had been common for several centuries before

2121-636: The Livonian Brothers of the Sword were founded in 1202. The founding by Bishop Albert of the market at Riga in 1201 attracted citizens from the Empire and economic prosperity ensued. At Albert's request, Pope Innocent III dedicated the Baltic countries to the Virgin Mary to popularize recruitment to his army and the name "Mary's Land" has survived up to modern times. This is noticeable in one of

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2222-646: The Orthodox Church to their east and the Catholic Church to their west. The difference in creeds was one of the reasons they were able to resist being forcibly converted to a different religion. During a period of more than 150 years leading up to the arrival of German crusaders in the region, Estonia was attacked thirteen times by Russian principalities, and by Denmark and Sweden as well. Estonians for their part made raids upon Denmark and Sweden. There were peaceful attempts by some Catholics to convert

2323-599: The Potsdam Agreement of 1 August 1945, the city became part of the Soviet Union pending the final determination of territorial borders at an anticipated peace settlement. This final determination eventually took place on 12 September 1990 when the Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany was signed. The excerpt from the initial agreement pertaining to the partition of East Prussia, including

2424-567: The Stutthof concentration camp , the Oflag 52, Oflag 60 and Dulag Luft prisoner-of-war camps , and a camp for Romani people in Königsberg (see Romani Holocaust ). On 29 August 1944, Soviet troops reached the border of East Prussia. By January 1945, they had taken all of East Prussia except for the area around Königsberg. Many inhabitants fled west at this time. During the last days of

2525-568: The pagan Baltic , Finnic and West Slavic peoples around the southern and eastern shores of the Baltic Sea . The most notable campaigns were the Livonian and Prussian crusades. Some of these wars were called crusades during the Middle Ages, however others, including the 12th century First Swedish Crusade and several following military incursions by Scandinavian Christians against the then pagan Finns , were dubbed "crusades" only in

2626-700: The 11-year-old, female, king Jadwiga of Poland . However, even after the country was officially converted, the conflict continued up until the 1410 Battle of Grunwald , also known as the First Battle of Tannenberg , when the Lithuanians and Poles, helped by the Tatars , Moldovans and the Czechs , defeated the Teutonic Knights. In 1221, Pope Honorius III was again worried about the situation in

2727-516: The 19th century by romantic nationalist historians. However, crusades against Estonians and against "other pagans in those parts" were authorized by Pope Alexander III in the crusade bull Non parum animus noster , in 1171 or 1172. At the outset of the northern crusades, Christian monarchs across northern Europe commissioned forays into territories that comprise modern-day Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Russia. The indigenous populations of Pagans suffered forced baptisms and

2828-536: The 19th century, East Prussia was commonly viewed by German commentators as culturally backwards and a part of the "German mission in the East" rather than a core German territory. Pan-Germanist politician Ernst Hasse criticised the lack of folk identity and imagined community : "It is the case that there is almost no common folk identity [Landsmannschaften] among the Poseners and Prussians at all. [...] Who can recognise

2929-456: The Baltic heathens was of the same rank as participating in a crusade to the Holy Land . Although he landed in the mouth of the Daugava in 1200 with only 23 ships and 500 soldiers, the bishop's efforts ensured that a constant flow of recruits followed. The first crusaders usually arrived to fight during the spring and returned to their homes in the autumn. To ensure a permanent military presence,

3030-585: The Baltic states from the West. Others think that the reason was that the region was far too strategic for the USSR to leave it in the hands of another SSR other than the Russian one. In the 1950s, Nikita Khrushchev offered the entire Kaliningrad Oblast to the Lithuanian SSR but Antanas Sniečkus refused to accept the territory because it would add at least a million ethnic Russians to Lithuania proper. In

3131-786: The Bishop of Riga and the Order of the Swordbearers , did Latgallian countries finally become the possession of German conquerors. The territory of the former Principality of Jersika was divided between the Bishop of Riga and the Livonian Order in 1239. By 1208, the Germans were strong enough to begin operations against the Estonians, who were at that time divided into eight major and several smaller counties led by elders with limited cooperation between them. In 1208–1227, war parties of

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3232-960: The Bishopric of Riga and the Order of Livonia. In 1265 a stone castle was built at Jelgava , on the Lielupe, and became the main military base for crusader attacks against the Semigallians. In 1271 the capital hillfort of Tērvete was conquered, but Semigallians under the Duke Nameisis rebelled in 1279, and the Lithuanians under Traidenis defeated Livonian Order forces in the Battle of Aizkraukle . Duke Nameisis' warriors unsuccessfully attacked Riga in 1280, in response to which around 14,000 crusaders besieged Turaida castle in 1281. To conquer

3333-531: The Estonian town of Lindanisse (present-day Tallinn ) in 1219. After the Battle of Lindanise the Danes established a fortress, which was besieged by Estonians in 1220 and 1223 but held out. Eventually, the whole of northern Estonia came under Danish control . The last Estonian county to hold out against the invaders was the island county of Saaremaa (Ösel), whose war fleets had raided Denmark and Sweden during

3434-537: The Estonians, starting with missions dispatched by Adalbert , Archbishop of Bremen in 1045–1072. However, these peaceful efforts seem to have had limited success. Moving in the wake of German merchants who were now following the old trading routes of the Vikings , a monk named Meinhard landed at the mouth of the Daugava river in present-day Latvia in 1180 and was made bishop in 1186. Pope Celestine III proclaimed

3535-535: The French. The Court of Prussia fled to Königsberg, asking for Russian help. Russia intervened, leading to the bloody Battle of Eylau and Battle of Friedland in 1807. Following a French victory in the latter, both sides signed the Treaties of Tilsit . In 1817, East Prussia had 796,204 Protestants , 120,123 Catholics , 2,389 Jews , and 864 Mennonites . In 1824, shortly before its merger with West Prussia ,

3636-552: The Germans fail. Moreover, both these national minorities in East Prussia are bound to the soil by centuries of tradition: they are not comparative new-comers like the majority of the Germans there. For these reasons, the Poles and Lithuanians in that province hardly ever emigrate from the land of their birth, especially as the emigration in question is not so attractive for them as for the Germans: proceeding to central or western Germany,

3737-510: The Germans to send many troops to their East provinces. Later, Hindenburg and Ludendorff pushed Russia back at the battle of Tannenberg , thereby liberating East Prussia from Russian troops. Yet Russian troops remained in the easternmost part of the region until early 1915. During World War II, the Hohenbruch concentration camp  [ de ] was operated at modern Gromovo mostly for Polish prisoners, as well as several subcamps of

3838-475: The Germans, and rarely emigrated. Discussing the situation in East Prussia, Polish geographer Stanisław Srokowski remarked: The Poles who live in the southern and western parts of East Prussia and the Lithuanians of the north-west have succeeded better than the Germans in reconciling their mode of life with their earnings. This has, of course, led to a lower standard of life, but it has enabled them to adapt themselves to actual conditions and even to prosper where

3939-624: The Kaliningrad Oblast used to be inhabited by the Old Prussians and other Western Balts , prior to the Teutonic conquest in the early Late Middle Ages . Afterwards, it was settled by Germans (especially the western part), Lithuanians (especially Lithuania Minor ) and Poles (especially Königsberg , Polish : Królewiec , and the current southern border strip). The Old Prussians became extinct due to Germanisation in

4040-446: The Kingdom of Prussia and annex the territory, which was then to be offered to Poland as part of a territorial exchange desired by Russia. The territory was occupied and annexed by Russia in 1758 during the Seven Years' War before being returned to Prussia in 1762 when Russia switched sides in the war . It was then reorganized into the province of East Prussia within the Kingdom of Prussia in 1773. The current oblast also contains

4141-486: The Lithuanian military threat. In 1454, following a request by the anti-Teutonic Prussian Confederation , the territory was incorporated to the Kingdom of Poland by King Casimir IV Jagiellon , an event that sparked the Thirteen Years' War (1454–1466) . After Poland's victory in the war with the Second Peace of Thorn , the State of the Teutonic Order became a vassal of Poland, also considered an integral part of "one and indivisible" Kingdom of Poland. During this war,

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4242-414: The Lithuanian nation. Moreover, confessional identity often prevailed over the national one - German authorities were concerned about the "Catholic-Polish axis"; German Catholics were alienated from the German nation because of the Kulturkampf legislation, and tended to support the Polish national movement. An East German newspaper Thorner Zeitung reported in 1871 that "not only Polish Catholics, but also

4343-487: The Livonian Order, and one third to the Bishopric of Courland . At the Battle of Durbe in 1260 a force of Samogitians and Curonians overpowered the united forces of the Livonian and Teutonic Orders; over the following years, however, the Crusaders gradually subjugated the Curonians, and in 1267 concluded the peace treaty stipulating the obligations and the rights of their defeated rivals. The unconquered southern parts of their territories (Ceklis and Megava) were united under

4444-487: The Orders' master Villekin and at least 35 knights lost their lives. The new master of the Order Konrad von Hattstein organised the last campaigns against the Semigallians in 1289 and 1290; the hillforts of Dobele , Rakte and Sidabre were conquered and most of the Semigallian warriors joined the Samogitian and Lithuanian forces. From 1147 the Polish Duke of Mazovia, Boleslaw the Curly, led many expeditions against pagan Prussia, some of them were successful and resulted in

4545-450: The Polish element in the region. The increased Slavic immigration to the region generated by the requirement of the Junkers for cheap labour and better economic conditions in West Germany caused many German inhabitants to leave the region. Most Germans moved to work in the industrial heartland of western Germany, while others migrated abroad. Poles and Lithuanians of East Prussia also had much higher birth-rate and natural increase rates than

4646-468: The Republics of Pskov and Novgorod ), an enterprise endorsed by Pope Gregory IX , accompanied the Northern Crusades. One of the major blows for the idea of the conquest of Russia was the Battle of the Ice in 1242. With or without the Pope's blessing, Sweden also undertook several crusades against Orthodox Novgorod . Livonian missionary and crusade activity in Estonia caused conflicts with Novgorod , who had also attempted to subjugate, raid and convert

4747-440: The Roman Catholic monastic order of the Teutonic Knights to come to Prussia and suppress the Old Prussians. Campaigns against Yotvingians and Lithuanians were also conducted in the years 1248–1282 by princes Bolesław the Chaste and Leszek the Black. They defeated the forces of pagans invading Mazovia, Kujawy and the Lublin region. They also carried out several expeditions to Yotvingian territories. The Northern Crusades provided

4848-433: The Soviet era, the city was completely closed and, with the exception of rare visits of friendship from neighboring Poland, it was practically not visited by foreigners. In 1950, there were 1,165,000 inhabitants, which was only half the number of the pre-war population. The old city was not restored, and the ruins of the Königsberg Castle were demolished in the late 1960s, on Leonid Brezhnev 's personal orders, despite

4949-421: The Teutonic Knights defeated the Baltic Prussians in the battle on the Dzierzgoń river. After the subjugation of the Prussians, the Teutonic Knights fought against the Grand Duchy of Lithuania . When the Livonian knights were crushed by Samogitians and Semigallians in the Battle of Saule in 1236, coinciding with a series of revolts in Estonia, the Livonian Order was inherited by the Teutonic Order, allowing

5050-428: The Teutonic Knights to exercise political control over large territories in the Baltic region. Mindaugas , the King of Lithuania, was baptised together with his wife after his coronation in 1253, hoping that this would help stop the Crusaders' attacks, which it did not. The Teutonic Knights failed to subdue Lithuania, which officially converted to (Catholic) Christianity in 1386 on the marriage of Grand Duke Jogaila to

5151-411: The Teutonic Order founded the city of Königsberg (modern Kaliningrad), naming it in honour of Ottokar II of Bohemia . The Northern Crusades , including the Lithuanian Crusade , were partly motivated by colonization . The German colonist peasants, craftsmen, and merchants were predominantly concentrated in the southern part of the Teutonic State and did not move into Nadruvia and Skalvia due to

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5252-405: The Teutonic Order's Prussian branch and established himself as ruler of the Duchy of Prussia , the first Protestant state in Europe. Königsberg was the residence of the Duke of Prussia from 1525 until 1701, and was the Duchy of Prussia's capital until 1660, when the capital moved to Berlin . Polish and Lithuanian culture blossomed in Königsberg, with the city being the place of publication of

5353-444: The USSR Mikhail Kalinin . Kalinin was unrelated to the city, and there were already cities named in honour of Kalinin in the Soviet Union, namely Kalinin (now Tver) and Kaliningrad (now Korolev, Moscow Oblast ). The German language was replaced with the Russian language, and the remaining German population was expelled between 1947 and 1948. The territory was then re-populated with Soviet citizens , mostly ethnic Russians but to

5454-463: The already captured territory of Culmerland ( Chełmno Land ). Subjected to constant Prussian counter-raids, Konrad wanted to stabilize the north of the Duchy of Masovia in this fight over the border area of Chełmno Land. Masovia became part of Poland in the 10th century but native Prussians, Yotvingians , and Lithuanians were still living in the territories north of Masovia, where no settled borders existed. Konrad's military weakness led him in 1226 to ask

5555-414: The area adjacent to it as described above, subject to expert examination of the actual frontier. U.S. president Harry Truman and British prime minister Clement Attlee supported the proposal of the Conference at the forthcoming peace settlement. In 1946, Königsberg was added as a semi-exclave to the Russian SFSR and renamed Kaliningrad, after the Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of

5656-404: The area surrounding Königsberg, is as follows (note that Königsberg is spelt "Koenigsberg" in the original document): VI. CITY OF KOENIGSBERG AND THE ADJACENT AREA The Conference examined a proposal by the Soviet Government that pending the final determination of territorial questions at the peace settlement, the section of the western frontier of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics which

5757-429: The border between the Polish People's Republic (a Soviet satellite state at the time) and the Soviet Union. In 2010, the German magazine Der Spiegel published a report claiming that Kaliningrad had been offered to Germany in 1990 (against payment). The offer was not seriously considered by the West German government which, at the time, saw reunification with East Germany as a higher priority. However, this story

5858-410: The capital of the Teutonic state was moved from Marienburg (now Malbork ) to Königsberg in 1457. When the rulers of the Prussia were vassals of the King of Poland from 1466 to 1660, there were few German colonists. After the Teutonic Order lost the war of 1519–1521 with Poland , the Teutonic Order remained a vassal of the Kingdom of Poland. In 1525, Grand Master Albert of Brandenburg secularized

5959-415: The change is that Mikhail Kalinin , a member of the Soviet Politburo , was among those responsible for the Katyn massacre , having co-signed the order to murder thousands of Polish prisoners of war. Kaliningrad is the only Russian Baltic Sea port that is ice-free all year and hence plays an important role in the maintenance of the country's Baltic Fleet. The oblast is mainly flat, as the highest point

6060-450: The conquest of parts of the Prussian territories. Konrad I , the Polish Duke of Masovia , unsuccessfully attempted to conquer pagan Prussia in crusades in 1219 and 1222. Taking the advice of the first Bishop of Prussia, Christian of Oliva , Konrad founded the crusading Order of Dobrzyń (or Dobrin ) in 1220. However, this order was largely ineffective, and Konrad's campaigns against the Old Prussians were answered by incursions into

6161-427: The crusade. The previous battles had largely been caused by attempts to destroy castles and sea trade routes to gain an economic advantage in the region, and the crusade basically continued this pattern of conflict, albeit now inspired and prescribed by the Pope and undertaken by Papal knights and armed monks. The campaigns started with the 1147 Wendish Crusade against the Polabian Slavs (or " Wends ") of what

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6262-443: The defeat, the king of Jersika, Visvaldis , became the vassal of the Bishop of Livonia and received part of his country (southern Latgale ) as a fiefdom. The Selonian stronghold of Sēlpils was briefly the seat of a Selonian diocese (1218–1226), and then came under the rule of the Livonian Order (and eventually the stone castle of Selburg was built in its place). Only in 1224, with the division of Tālava and Adzele counties between

6363-411: The different sides rampaged through the Livonian, Northern Latgallian, and Estonian counties, with Livonians and Latgallians normally as allies of the Crusaders, and the Principalities of Polotsk and Pskov appearing as allies of different sides at different times. Hillforts, which were the key centres of Estonian counties, were besieged and captured a number of times. A truce between the war-weary sides

6464-446: The first Polish and Lithuanian-language cathechisms (by Jan Seklucjan and Martynas Mažvydas ), the first Polish translation of the New Testament , Grammatica Litvanica , the first Lithuanian grammar book, and the Albertina University being the second oldest university of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth , after receiving a royal privilege from King Sigismund II Augustus in 1560. Polish printing continued for centuries with

6565-418: The first half of the 18th century. The Lithuanian-inhabited areas of the Teutonic State were known as Lithuania Minor , which encompassed all of modern Kaliningrad Oblast until the 18th century. In the 13th century, the Teutonic Order conquered the region and established the State of the Teutonic Order , a theocracy . In 1255, on the foundations of a destroyed Sambian settlement known as Tvanksta ,

6666-416: The following spring. In 1220, the Swedish army led by king John I of Sweden and the bishop Karl of Linköping conquered Lihula in Rotalia in Western Estonia. Oeselians attacked the Swedish stronghold the same year, conquered it and killed the entire Swedish garrison including the Bishop of Linköping. In 1222, the Danish king Valdemar II attempted the second conquest of Saaremaa, this time establishing

6767-519: The former would really be going to a foreign country, amongst people not speaking their language and having other customs than theirs. The Memel Territory ( Klaipėda region ), formerly part of northeastern East Prussia as well as Prussian Lithuania, was annexed by Lithuania in 1923. In 1938, Nazi Germany radically renamed about a third of the place names of this area, replacing Old Prussian and Lithuanian names with newly invented German names. In September 1914, after hostilities began between Germany on

6868-430: The goods being imported into Kaliningrad by rail. Food, medicine, and passenger travel were exempted. Russia protested against the sanctions and announced it would increase shipments by sea. In May 2023, Poland officially adopted a new name for the Kaliningrad region, changing it from "Obwód Kaliningradzki" to "Obwód Królewiecki", Królewiec being the historical Polish name for the city of Kaliningrad. The reason given for

6969-430: The island. A peace treaty was signed after the united forces of the Livonian Order , the Bishopric of Ösel-Wiek , and Danish Estonia , including mainland Estonians and Latvians, defeated the Oeselians by conquering their stronghold at Kaarma. Soon thereafter, the Livonian Order established a stone fort at Pöide . Although the Curonians had attacked Riga in 1201 and 1210, Albert of Buxhoeveden , considering Courland

7070-689: The lands of the former Soviet Union to the Kaliningrad Oblast occurred at this time as well. The situation has begun to change, albeit slowly. Germany, Lithuania, and Poland have renewed contact with Kaliningrad Oblast, through town twinning and other projects. This has helped to promote interest in the history and culture of the East Prussian and Lietuvininkai communities. In July 2007, Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov declared that if US-controlled missile defense systems were deployed in Poland, then nuclear weapons might be deployed in Kaliningrad. On 5 November 2008, Russian president Dmitry Medvedev said that installing missiles in Kaliningrad

7171-413: The last Polish publication in 1931. In 1577, the Duke of Prussia forbade serfs —who were mostly Old Prussians, Lithuanians, and Masurians —to leave the land that was the property of the German knights who became proprietary nobles. In 1618, the Duchy merged with the Margraviate of Brandenburg to form Brandenburg-Prussia , remaining under Polish suzerainty until 1660. There was strong opposition to

7272-597: The mixed Livonian–Latgallian inhabited county of Idumea (now Straupe ) was converted to the Roman Catholic faith. The last battle against the Livonians was the siege of Satezele hillfort near to Sigulda in 1212. The Livonians, who had been paying tribute to the East Slavic Principality of Polotsk , had at first considered the Germans useful allies. The first prominent Livonian to be christened

7373-670: The most loyal ally of German crusaders against the Estonians, and he died a Catholic martyr in 1215. The war against the Latgallian and Selonian countries along the Daugava waterway started in 1208 by the occupation of the Orthodox Principality of Koknese and the Selonian Sēlpils hillfort . The campaign continued in 1209 with an attack on the Orthodox Principality of Jersika (known as Lettia ), accused by crusaders of being in alliance with Lithuanian pagans. After

7474-642: The names given to Livonia at the time, Terra Mariana (Land of Mary). In 1206, the crusaders subdued the Livonian stronghold in Turaida on the right bank of Gauja River, the ancient trading route to the Northwestern Rus . In order to gain control over the left bank of Gauja, the stone castle was built in Sigulda before 1210. By 1211, the Livonian province of Metsepole (now Limbaži district ) and

7575-604: The now abandoned village of Narmeln (Polish: Polski ), which was not part of Ducal Prussia, but of the Pomeranian Voivodeship of the Kingdom of Poland until its annexation by the Kingdom of Prussia the Second Partition of Poland in 1793, and is thus part of the historic region of Pomerania . After the defeats of Jena–Auerstedt , the Kingdom of Prussia was invaded and Berlin was occupied by

7676-503: The one hand and France and Russia on the other, the German Army was about to seize Paris, and the French urged Russia to attack East Prussia. Nicholas II launched a major attack, resulting in a Russian victory in the Battle of Gumbinnen . The Russian army arrived at the outskirts of the city of Königsberg but did not take it and settled at Insterburg . This Russian victory and East Prussia's occupation by Russia saved Paris by forcing

7777-444: The population of East Prussia was 1,080,000 people. According to Karl Andree , Germans were slightly more than half of the people, while 280,000 (~26%) were ethnically Polish and 200,000 (~19%) were ethnically Lithuanian . As of 1819, there were also 20,000-strong ethnic Curonian and Latvian minorities as well as 2,400 Jews , according to Georg Hassel. Similar numbers are given by August von Haxthausen in his 1839 book, with

7878-618: The population of the oblast lives in Kaliningrad City proper. The port city of Baltiysk is Russia's only port on the Baltic Sea that remains ice-free in winter. Kaliningrad Oblast had a population of roughly 1 million in the Russian Census of 2021 . The area of Kaliningrad oblast is 15,125 square kilometers (5,840 square miles). The territory was formerly the northern part of the Prussian province of East Prussia ;

7979-520: The protests of architects, historians and residents of the city. The reconstruction of the oblast, threatened by hunger in the immediate post-war years, was carried out through an ambitious policy of oceanic fishing with the creation of one of the main fishing harbours of the USSR in Kaliningrad city. Fishing not only fed the regional economy but also was a basis for social and scientific development, in particular oceanography. From 1953 to 1962,

8080-536: The ravages of military occupation. Spearheading, but by no means monopolizing these incursions, the ascendant Teutonic Order profited immensely from the crusades, as did German merchants who fanned out along trading routes traversing the Baltic frontier. The official starting point for the Northern Crusades was Pope Celestine III 's call in 1195, but the Catholic kingdoms of Scandinavia , Poland and

8181-582: The region and the rest of Russia now must pass through members of NATO and the EU. Thus far, the EU has rejected Russian proposals for visa-free travel between Kaliningrad and the rest of Russia. Travel arrangements based on the Facilitated Transit Document (FTD) and Facilitated Rail Transit Document (FRTD) have been made. Kaliningrad Oblast's geographic isolation has badly affected its economic situation. Concurrent significant reduction in

8282-454: The remaining Semigallian hillforts the Order's master Villekin of Endorpe built a castle called Heiligenberg ( lit.   ' Saints' Hill ' ) right next to the Tērvete castle in 1287. The same year the Semigallians made another attempt to conquer Riga, but again failed to take it. On their return home, Livonian knights attacked them, but were defeated at the Battle of Garoza , in which

8383-707: The remaining southern part of the province is today part of the Warmian–Masurian Voivodeship in Poland. With the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II , the territory was annexed to the Russian SFSR by the Soviet Union . Following the post-war migration and flight and expulsion of Germans , the territory was populated with Soviet citizens, mostly Russians . The territory of what is now

8484-759: The remnants of the Sword Brothers were reorganized in 1237 as a subdivision of the Teutonic Order , and became known as the Livonian Order . In 1242, under the leadership of the master of the Livonian Order Andrew of Groningen , the crusaders began the military conquest of Courland. They defeated the Curonians as far south as Embūte , near the contemporary border with Lithuania, and founded their main fortress at Kuldīga . In 1245 Pope Innocent IV allotted two-thirds of conquered Courland to

8585-679: The rule of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania . The conquest of Semigallian counties started in 1219 when crusaders from Riga occupied Mežotne , the major port on the Lielupe waterway, and founded the Bishopric of Semigallia . After several unsuccessful campaigns against the pagan Semigallian duke Viestards and his Samogitian kinsfolk, the Roman Curia decided in 1251 to abolish the Bishopric of Semigallia, and divided its territories between

8686-535: The ruler ( rex ) of Bandava in the central Courland Lammekinus , delivering his kingdom into the hands of the papacy. Baldouin became the popes's delegate in Courland and bishop of Semigallia; however, the Germans complained about him to the Roman Curia , and in 1234 Pope Gregory IX removed Baldouin as his delegate. After their decisive defeat in the Battle of Saule by the Samogitians and Semigallians,

8787-622: The same ceremony they still also pledged allegiance to Poland. In 1724, King Frederick William I of Prussia prohibited Poles , Samogitians and Jews from settling in Lithuania Minor, and initiated German colonization to change the region's ethnic composition. In 1734–1736, Königsberg was the place of stay of Polish King Stanisław Leszczyński during the War of the Polish Succession . In 1756 Russia decided to go to war with

8888-443: The separation of the region from Poland, especially in Königsberg. A confederation was formed in the city to maintain Poland's sovereignty over the city and region. The Brandenburg Elector and his army, however, entered the city and abducted and imprisoned the leader of the city's anti-Elector opposition Hieronymus Roth . In 1663, the city burghers, forced by Elector Frederick William , swore an oath of allegiance to him, however, in

8989-470: The size of the Russian military garrison has hurt as well, since previously the military was a major local employer. Some of the region's cultural heritage, most notably the Königsberg Cathedral , was restored in the 1990s, as citizens started to examine previously ignored German past. On 12 January 1996, Kaliningrad Oblast and Sverdlovsk Oblast became the first oblasts of Russia to sign

9090-602: The subjugation of the Livonians, the crusaders turned their attention to the Latgallian principalities to the east, along the Gauja and Daugava rivers. The military alliance in 1208 and later conversion from Greek Orthodoxy to Roman Catholicism of the Principality of Tālava was the only peaceful subjugation of the Baltic tribes during the Nordic crusades. The ruler of Tālava, Tālivaldis ( Talibaldus de Tolowa ), became

9191-688: The trade embargo was widened eight years later, it was specifically said to be against the Russians. Based on Papal letters from 1229, the Bishop of Finland requested the Pope enforce a trade embargo against Novgorodians on the Baltic Sea , at least in Visby , Riga and Lübeck . A few years later, the Pope also requested the Livonian Brothers of the Sword send troops to protect Finland. Whether any knights ever arrived remains unknown. The Teutonic Order's attempts to conquer Orthodox Russia (particularly

9292-413: The war, over two million people fled, anticipating imminent Red Army conquest, and were evacuated by sea . Initially, at the end of World War II in 1945, the current southern border strip passed under Polish control with Polish administration organized in the towns of Gierdawy and Iławka , however, the area was eventually annexed by the Soviet Union and included within the Kaliningrad Oblast. Under

9393-593: The years of fighting against the German crusaders. In 1206, a Danish army led by the king Valdemar II and Andreas, the Bishop of Lund landed on Saaremaa and attempted to establish a stronghold without success. In 1216 the Livonian Brothers of the Sword and the bishop Theodorich joined forces and invaded Saaremaa over the frozen sea. In return, the Oeselians raided the territories in Latvia that were under German rule

9494-555: Was almost a certainty. These plans were suspended in January 2009, but implemented in October 2016. In 2011, a long-range Voronezh radar was commissioned to monitor missile launches within about 6,000 km (3,700 mi). The radar is situated in the settlement of Pionersky in Kaliningrad Oblast. A few months after the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine , Lithuania started implementing EU sanctions , which blocked about 50% of

9595-614: Was also killed. Since 1211, his name had come to the attention of the German chroniclers as a notable Estonian elder, and he had become the central figure of the Estonian resistance. The Christian kingdoms of Denmark and Sweden were also greedy for conquests on the Eastern shores of the Baltic. While the Swedes made only one failed foray into western Estonia in 1220, the Danish Fleet headed by King Valdemar II of Denmark had landed at

9696-478: Was appointed by the Archbishop Hartwig II of Bremen to Christianise the Baltic countries. By the time Albert died 30 years later, the conquest and formal Christianisation of present-day Estonia and northern Latvia was complete. Albert began his task by touring the Empire, preaching a Crusade against the Baltic countries, and was assisted in this by a papal bull which declared that fighting against

9797-414: Was established for three years (1213–1215) and proved generally more favourable to the Germans, who consolidated their political position, while the Estonians were unable to develop their system of loose alliances into a centralised state. The Livonian leader Kaupo was killed in battle near Viljandi (Fellin) on 21 September 1217, but the battle was a crushing defeat for the Estonians, whose leader Lembitu

9898-787: Was governor of Kaliningrad Oblast from 2017 until May 2024, when he was appointed as Minister of Industry and Trade. The region's legislative body is the 40-seat Kaliningrad Oblast Duma. As of the 2021 census , the population of the oblast was 1,027,678. Earlier censuses recorded a population of 955,281 in 2002 and 871,283 in 1989 . Northern Crusades In the Holy Land (1095–1291) Later Crusades (1291–1717) Northern (1147–1410) Against Christians (1209–1588) Popular (1096–1320) The Northern Crusades or Baltic Crusades were Christianization campaigns undertaken by Catholic Christian military orders and kingdoms, primarily against

9999-469: Was icebound, in January 1227. After the surrender of two major Oeselian strongholds, Muhu and Valjala , the Oeselians formally accepted Christianity. In 1236, after the defeat of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword in the Battle of Saule , military action on Saaremaa broke out again. In 1261, warfare continued as the Oeselians had once more renounced Christianity and killed all the Germans on

10100-508: Was later denied by Mikhail Gorbachev . The independence of Lithuania in 1990 and full dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 isolated Kaliningrad from the rest of Russia, having previously been joined by other Soviet republics. This isolation became more severe when both Poland and Lithuania joined NATO and the European Union and imposed strict border controls on Kaliningrad Oblast. All military and civilian land links between

10201-522: Was their leader Caupo of Turaida . As the German grip tightened, the Livonians rebelled against the crusaders and the christened chief but were put down. Caupo of Turaida remained an ally of the crusaders until his death in the Battle of St. Matthew's Day in 1217. The German crusaders enlisted newly baptised Livonian warriors to participate in their campaigns against Latgallians and Selonians (1208–1209), Estonians (1208–1227) and against Semigallians , Samogitians and Curonians (1219–1290). After

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