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61-591: The town is known for the surrounding Masurian Lakeland and numerous monuments of historical value such as the Wolf's Lair in nearby Gierłoż , which was Adolf Hitler 's primary headquarters in Eastern Europe over the course of Nazi Germany 's military campaign on the Eastern Front during World War II . The town is also known for its 14th century Teutonic Kętrzyn Castle . The original inhabitants of

122-571: A desire for revenge and retribution for crimes committed by the Nazis during their invasion of the Soviet Union, collectively driven by Soviet propaganda. The propaganda was a purposeful goad to the Soviet soldier and reflected the will of the political authorities in the Soviet Union right up to Stalin. There is no question that Stalin was aware of what was happening. Given the strict control of

183-520: A heavy bombardment of the city. The land route to Pillau was once again severed and those civilians who were still in the city died by the thousands. Eventually, the German garrison surrendered on 9 April, and as Beevor wrote, "the rape of women and girls went unchecked in the ruined city" The widely publicized killings and rapes in places like Nemmersdorf by the Soviets led to a severe degree of fear in

244-668: A lake district in northeastern Poland within the geographical region of Masuria , in the past inhabited by Masurians who spoke the Masurian dialects . It contains more than 2,000 lakes. The district had been elected as one of the 28 finalists of the New 7 Wonders of Nature . The Lakeland extends roughly 290 km (180 mi) eastwards from the lower Vistula to the Poland– Russia border, and occupies an area of roughly 52,000 square kilometres (20,000 sq mi). Administratively,

305-448: A time – they rape them on a collective basis." Even Russian women liberated from forced labor camps were raped by Soviet soldiers. The rear-guard units of the advancing Soviet armies were responsible for a large proportion of the crimes committed by Red Army personnel. Soviet Officers like Lev Kopelev, who tried to prevent crimes, were accused of pity for the enemy and became Gulag prisoners. These acts of violence were influenced by

366-765: 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 - Goldap , 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 the area adjacent to it as described above subject to expert examination of

427-469: Is estimated to be at least 300,000. However, most of the German inhabitants, which at that point consisted mainly of children, women, and old men, did escape the Red Army as part of the largest exodus of people in human history. Antony Beevor said: "A population which had stood at 2.2 million in 1940 was reduced to 193,000 at the end of May 1945." The Schieder commission in 1953 estimated casualties in

488-460: Is often cited in historical literature. The West German search service issued its final report in 1965 detailing the losses of the German civilian population due to the flight and expulsions. The West German government authorized its release in 1986, and a summary of the findings was published in 1987 by the German scholar de:Gert von Pistohlkors . According to the West German search service,

549-663: Is one of the most famous lake districts in Central Europe and a popular vacation spot, with a high number of visitors every year. The lake district was shaped by glaciers during the Pleistocene ice age . Many of its hills are parts of moraines and many of its lakes are moraine-dammed lakes . From the 13th century on, the Lakeland was successively part of the monastic state of the Teutonic Knights ,

610-740: The 3rd Belorussian Front , led by General Chernyakhovsky, surrounded the capital city of East Prussia, Königsberg. The 3rd Panzer Army and around 200,000 civilians were trapped inside the city. In response to this, General Georg-Hans Reinhardt , commander of the Army Group Center , warned Hitler of the imminent Soviet threat, but the Führer refused to act. Due to the rapid approach of the 2nd Belorussian Front led by General Rokossovsky , Nazi authorities in Königsberg decided to send trains full of refugees to Allenstein , without knowing that

671-602: The Baltic Sea to Germany and occupied Denmark . This evacuation was one of the Kriegsmarine 's most significant activities during the war. The greatest recorded loss of life from a ship sinking occurred during this operation, when the transport ship Wilhelm Gustloff was hit by three torpedoes from the Soviet submarine S-13 in the Baltic Sea on the night of 30 January 1945. She sank in under 45 minutes; figures for

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732-820: The Duchy of Prussia , and the Prussian province of East Prussia . In modern times, while part of the German Empire , it was the location of the First Battle of the Masurian Lakes (1914) and the Second Battle of the Masurian Lakes (1915) during World War I . At the end of World War II (1945), following the decision taken at the Potsdam Agreement , all national borders were redrawn ,

793-545: The Gauleiter of East Prussia, forbade evacuation of civilians (until 20 January 1945), and ordered that civilians trying to flee the region without permission should be instantly shot . Any kind of preparations made by civilians were treated as defeatism and " Wehrkraftzersetzung " (undermining of military morale). Koch and many other Nazi functionaries were among the first to flee during the Soviet advance. Between 12 January and mid-February 1945, almost 8.5 million Germans fled

854-718: The Seven Years' War , from 1758 to 1762, the town was occupied by the Russians, in June 1807, throughout the Napoleonic wars , the division of General Jan Henryk Dąbrowski was stationed in the town. Following the unsuccessful Polish November Uprising , in 1832–1833, Polish insurgents, including several officers, were interned in the town. In the late 19th century a Polish Lutheran parish still existed in Rastenburg, despite

915-536: The evacuation of German civilians towards the end of World War II , these events are not to be confused with the expulsion from East Prussia that followed after the war had ended . The area that was evacuated was not the Gau East Prussia , but the inter-war East Prussia where most people already held German citizenship. German citizens in Memel and other regions with proximity to East Prussia also took part in

976-672: The Łuknajno Lake that is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve , or the Białowieża Forest , with a breeding station for European Bison . There are four separate boating trails set up along connecting lakes: from Giżycko to Węgorzewo and Ruciane-Nida, and from Mikołajki to Pisz and Ryn. There are also two kayaking trails along rivers, the most popular being the Krutynia River Trail. On top of that, there are several color-marked walking trails with numerous points of interest for qualified tourism. They include: Historical sights include

1037-718: The 1944–45 campaign as well as deliberate killings by Soviet forces. According to other sources, in summer 1945 about 800,000 Germans were still living in East Prussia. The Red Army's brutality towards civilians during the East Prussian campaign, coupled with years of Nazi propaganda regarding the Soviet Union, led many German soldiers on the Eastern Front to believe that "there could be no purpose in surviving Soviet victory". This belief motivated many German soldiers to continue fighting even though they believed that

1098-533: The 1945 campaign at 30,000 civilian dead in East Prussia, and overall civilian losses in the entire Oder–Neisse region at 75–100,000. The West German Statistisches Bundesamt figures from 1958 estimated total civilian losses in East Prussia of 299,200 including 274,200 in the expulsions after May 1945 and 25,000 during the war. According to the Statistisches Bundesamt, in total, out of a pre-war population of 2,490,000, about 500,000 died during

1159-594: The Communist party over the military hierarchy, the pillage and rape in Prussia was the result of the Soviet command at all levels. Only when Stalin saw that it was in the Soviet Union's interests to check the behaviour of the Red Army did he take steps to stop it. The Red Army eliminated all pockets of resistance and took control of East Prussia in May 1945. The exact number of civilian dead has never been determined, but

1220-642: The Eastern provinces of the Reich. Most of the refugees were women and children heading to western parts of Germany, carrying goods on improvised means of transport, such as wooden wagons and carts, as all the motorized vehicles and fuel had been confiscated by the Wehrmacht at the beginning of the war. After the Red Army reached the coast of the Vistula Lagoon near Elbing on 23 January 1945, cutting off

1281-452: The German authorities, including the Gauleiter of East Prussia, Erich Koch , delayed action until 20 January, when it was too late for an orderly evacuation, and the civil services and Nazi Party were eventually overwhelmed by the numbers of those wishing to evacuate. Coupled with the panic caused by the speed of the Soviet advance, civilians caught in the middle of combat, and the bitter winter weather, many thousands of refugees died during

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1342-661: The Lake District lies within the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship . Small parts of the district lie within the Masovian and Podlaskie Voivodeships . The lakes are well connected by rivers and canals , forming an extensive system of waterways. The 18th-century Masurian Canal links this system to the Baltic Sea . The whole area is a prime tourist destination, frequented by boating enthusiasts, canoeists , anglers, hikers, bikers and nature-lovers. It

1403-553: The Pisa. Masuria is famous for its lakes and forests, offering a wide range of outdoor activities from sailing to kayaking and swimming. The region includes the largest lake in Poland, called Śniardwy . The resort towns include the most popular, Giżycko and Mikołajki , Węgorzewo , Ryn , Pisz and Iława . Giżycko is located on the shore of Lake Niegocin. It has an ancient fortress, historic church, bridges, and passenger boats to

1464-720: The Teutonic Knights in 1411. In 1440, the town joined the anti-Teutonic Prussian Confederation . Upon the request of the Confederation, King Casimir IV Jagiellon incorporated the region and town to the Kingdom of Poland in 1454. The town then recognized the Polish King as the rightful ruler and the townspeople sent their representative to Königsberg to pay homage to the King. After the Thirteen Years’ War (1454–1466)

1525-601: The area annexed by Communist Poland and its German residents expelled . Mother tongue of the inhabitants of Masuria , by county, during the first half of the 19th century: The Masurian Lakeland can be reached by train, bus or car. The nearest international airports are in Szymany , Warsaw , Gdańsk and Vilnius . The main transport hubs in the region are the towns of Olsztyn and Ełk . There are trains to Masuria from Warsaw, Gdańsk and Vilnius, and buses from many Polish cities. A boat service connects some central towns in

1586-558: The autumn of 1944 and 1,500,000 after January 1945. An estimated 600,000 remained behind in Soviet-controlled East Prussia in April–May 1945. According to a 1974 West German government study, an estimated 1% of the civilian population was killed during the Soviet offensive. The West German search service reported that 31,940 civilians from East Prussia, which also included Memel, were confirmed as killed during

1647-538: The bomb-riddled ice covering the brackish water. Furthermore, horses and caretakers from the Trakehner stud farms were evacuated with the wagon trains. The evacuation was severely hampered by Wehrmacht units, which clogged roads and bridges. The remaining men aged 16–60 were immediately incorporated into the Volkssturm . However, some Volkssturm members, without basic military knowledge and training, escaped into

1708-428: The civil population of able-bodied men for service in the military, the victims of the atrocity were primarily old men, women, and children. Upon the Soviet withdrawal from the area, German authorities sent in film crews to document what had happened, and invited foreign observers as further witnesses. A documentary film from the footage obtained during this effort was put together and shown in cinemas in East Prussia, with

1769-598: The civilian population of East Prussia (including Memel ) before the flight and expulsions was 2,328,947. They put civilian dead and missing at 514,176 persons. The number of confirmed dead was 123,360 (9,434 violent deaths, 736 suicides, 9,864 deportation deaths, 7,841 in internment camps, 31,940 deaths during the wartime flight, 22,308 during the expulsions and 41,237 from unknown causes). There were an additional 390,816 cases of persons reported missing whose fate could not be clarified. Some historians in Germany maintain that

1830-476: The end of February. Springtime can be wet, while summers are generally drier. Evacuation of East Prussia The evacuation of East Prussia was the movement of German civilian population and military personnel from East Prussia between 20 January and March 1945, that was initially organized and carried out by state authorities but quickly turned into a chaotic flight from the Red Army . A part of

1891-441: The entire German population of East Prussia. Those that could not escape the advancing Soviets were left to their fate. Wealthy civilians of East Prussia were often shot by Soviet soldiers, their goods stolen, and their houses set on fire. Zakhar Agranenko, a playwright serving as an officer of marine infantry in East Prussia, wrote: "Red Army soldiers don't believe in 'individual liaisons' with German women. Nine, ten, twelve men at

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1952-455: The evacuation of women and children until it was too late, never mentions in his diary those fleeing in panic from the eastern regions. The incompetence with which they handled the refugee crisis is chilling, yet in the case of the Nazi hierarchy it is often hard to tell where irresponsibility ended and inhumanity began. Operation Hannibal was a military operation that started on 21 January 1945, on

2013-514: The evacuation period. The Soviet forces took control of East Prussia only in May 1945. According to the West German Schieder commission , the civilian population of East Prussia at the beginning of 1944 was 2,653,000 people. This accounting, which was based on ration cards, included air raid evacuees from western Germany and foreign workers. Before the end of the war an estimated 2 million people were evacuated, including 500,000 in

2074-475: The evacuation, wishing to escape by sea, even though in their regions there was no official evacuation announced. The evacuation, which had been delayed for months, was initiated due to fear of the Red Army advances during the East Prussian Offensive . Some parts of the evacuation were planned as a military necessity, Operation Hannibal being the most important military operation involved in

2135-591: The evacuation. The Red Army initiated an offensive into East Prussia in October 1944, but it was temporarily driven back two weeks later. After that, the German Ministry of Propaganda reported that war crimes had taken place in East Prussian villages, in particular in Nemmersdorf , where inhabitants had been raped and killed by the advancing Soviets. Since the Nazi war effort had largely stripped

2196-445: The evacuation. However, many refugees took to the roads on their own initiative because of reported Soviet atrocities against Germans in the areas under Soviet control. Both spurious and factual accounts of Soviet atrocities were disseminated through the official news and propaganda outlets of Nazi Germany and by rumors that swept through the military and civilian populations. Despite having detailed evacuation plans for some areas,

2257-541: The intention of bolstering civilian and military resolve in resisting the Soviets. A Nazi information campaign about the atrocities at Nemmersdorf, as well as other crimes committed in East Prussia, convinced the remaining civilians that they should not get caught by the advancing enemy. Murders of Axis prisoners of war and German civilians are known from cases at Soviet military tribunals. Also, when Soviet troops moved into East Prussia, large numbers of enslaved Ostarbeiter ("Eastern workers") were freed, and knowledge of

2318-400: The isotherm used. The climate of the city has a considerable thermal amplitude , but still with some not so pronounced influence of the sea. The local football team is Granica Kętrzyn  [ pl ] . It competes in the lower leagues. Kętrzyn is twinned with: Masurian Lakeland The Masurian Lake District or Masurian Lake Land ( Polish : Pojezierze Mazurskie ) is

2379-604: The method which, in so far as we have been able to see, will be the most satisfactory and lasting. There will be no mixture of populations to cause endless trouble. A clean sweep will be made. After World War II, as also agreed at the Potsdam Conference (which met from 17 July until 2 August 1945), all of the area east of the Oder-Neisse line , whether recognized by the international community as part of Germany before 1933 or occupied by Germany during World War II,

2440-511: The number of deaths vary from 5,348, to 7,000 or 9,400. The 949 survivors were rescued by Kriegsmarine vessels led by the cruiser Admiral Hipper , although it is claimed that "the big warship could not risk heaving to, with a submarine close by". Also, on 10 February, the SS General von Steuben left Pillau with 2,680 refugees on board; it was hit by torpedoes just after departure, killing almost all aboard. On 24 January 1945,

2501-557: The number of expulsion deaths is needed. However, the German government and the German Red Cross still maintain that the higher figures which include the persons reported missing whose fate could not be clarified are correct. The German Federal Archives estimated that about 1% (100–120,000 of the estimated 11–12 million total German civilian population) in the Oder–Neisse region lost their lives due to military activity in

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2562-552: The orders of Admiral Karl Dönitz , withdrawing German troops and civilians from Courland , East Prussia, and the Polish Corridor . The flood of refugees turned the operation into one of the largest emergency evacuations by sea in history – over a period of 15 weeks, somewhere between 494 and 1,080 merchant vessels of all types and numerous naval craft, including Germany's largest remaining naval units, transported about 800,000–900,000 refugees and 350,000 soldiers across

2623-487: The overland route between East Prussia and the western territories, the only way to leave was to cross the frozen Vistula Lagoon to reach the harbours of Danzig or Gotenhafen to be evacuated by ships taking part in Operation Hannibal . Mingled with retreating Wehrmacht units, and without any camouflage or shelter, the refugees were attacked by Soviet bombers and fighter aircraft . Many wagons broke through

2684-617: The policy of Germanisation conducted by the Prussian authorities. In the second half of the 19th century, a sugar factory, brewery and mill were built. Rastenburg and the surrounding district was the scene of the First World War 's First Battle of the Masurian Lakes and Second Battle of the Masurian Lakes . During the Second World War Adolf Hitler 's wartime military headquarters, the Wolf's Lair ,

2745-606: The pre-war Polish Vilnius Region that was annexed by the Soviet Union and given to the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic . The town was given the historic Polish name Rastembork in 1945, and in 1946 it was renamed to Kętrzyn after the Polish historian, activist and patriot Wojciech Kętrzyński , who attended the local gymnasium in the years 1855–1859. After the war, the town's life

2806-608: The region were the Balt tribe of the Aesti , mentioned by Tacitus in his Germania (AD 98). The town, known in German as Rastenburg and in Polish as Rastembork , was established in 1329 in the State of the Teutonic Knights and was granted town rights in 1357 by Henning Schindekop . After the Battle of Grunwald , in 1410, the mayor surrendered the town to Poland, however, it fell back to

2867-610: The region. Biking and boating are popular ways to get around. Hotels can be found in close proximity to the Great Masurian Lakes, in the towns of Giżycko , Mikołajki and Ełk among others. There are also guesthouses and campsites in surrounding villages. The Masuren Waterway starts in Węgorzewo in the north and finishes in Pisz. This Waterway is new for pleasure boats. Only boats with a low waterdraft can go as far as Pisz on

2928-450: The ruins of Hitler 's fortified World War II headquarters, the Wolf's Lair , near Kętrzyn (former German name: Rastenburg), which has become a major tourist destination. Masuria has a temperate climate with cold winters and warm summers. The weather here is generally a bit cooler than in most parts of Poland, and the area usually experiences several snowfalls during the winter. The Masurian lakes are oftentimes frozen from December until

2989-417: The search service figures of confirmed dead provide a realistic view of the total losses due to the flight and expulsions; they believe that the cases of persons reported missing whose fate could not be clarified are unreliable. The German historian Rüdiger Overmans maintains that the statistical foundations of the West German government search service report to be unreliable; he believes that new research on

3050-507: The suffering and deaths of many of these workers hardened the attitude of many Soviet soldiers towards East Prussians. Lev Kopelev , who took part in the invasion of East Prussia, sharply criticized atrocities against the German civilian population. For this he was arrested in 1945 and sentenced to a ten-year term in the Gulag for "bourgeois humanism" and for "pity for the enemy". Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn also served in East Prussia in 1945 and

3111-465: The town had already been captured by the Soviet 3rd Guards Cavalry Corps . During the Soviet assault, the Frische Nehrung spit became the last means of escape to the west. However, civilians who tried to escape along the spit were often intercepted and killed by Soviet tanks and patrols. Two thousand civilians left Königsberg every day and tried to reach the already crowded town of Pillau. The final Soviet assault on Königsberg started on 2 April with

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3172-454: The town was part of Poland as a fief held by the Teutonic Order's state and, from 1525 to 1701, it was part of the Duchy of Prussia , a Polish fief until 1657. In the second half of the 17th century, Poles constituted around a half of the town's population, the other half being Germans . In 1667, a Polish church school was established. In 1701 the town became part of the Kingdom of Prussia and subsequently, in 1871, part of Germany. During

3233-441: The towns of Węgorzewo , Mikołajki and Ruciane-Nida . The town of Mikołajki is a popular tourism center. In addition to lakes, the Masurian region also has many rivers used for fly fishing, and forest areas that offer many trails for trekking and biking. There is also a variety of wildlife, edible berries and mushrooms, and large protected areas, including the Masurian Landscape Park that includes eleven nature reserves such as

3294-400: The war was lost, and this contributed to higher Soviet casualties. Most Germans who were not evacuated during the war were expelled from East Prussia and the other former German territories east of the Oder-Neisse line in the years immediately after the end of World War II, as agreed to by the Allies at the Potsdam conference , because, in the words of Winston Churchill : Expulsion is

3355-415: The war, including 210,000 military dead and 311,000 civilians dying during the wartime flight, postwar expulsion of Germans and forced labor in the Soviet Union; 1,200,000 managed to escape to the western parts of Germany, while about 800,000 pre-war inhabitants remained in East Prussia in summer 1945. The figure of 311,000 civilian deaths is included in the overall estimate of 2.2 million expulsion deaths that

3416-458: The woods, hoping to simply survive. Refugee trains leaving East Prussia were also extremely crowded, and due to the very low temperatures, children often froze to death during the journey. The last refugee train left Königsberg on 22 January 1945. Berlin military writer Antony Beevor wrote, in Berlin: The Downfall (2002), that: Martin Bormann , the Reichsleiter of the National Socialist Party , whose Gauleiters had in most cases stopped

3477-480: Was a Wehrmacht garrison town until it was occupied by the Red Army on 27 January 1945. The largely abandoned town was heavily destroyed by the Soviets. After the war, the town was transferred to Poland under border changes promulgated at the Potsdam Conference . Its surviving German residents who had not evacuated were subsequently expelled westward in accordance with the Potsdam Agreement and replaced with Poles , most of whom were themselves expelled from

3538-605: Was arrested for criticizing Joseph Stalin and Soviet crimes in private correspondence with a friend. Solzhenitsyn was sentenced to an eight-year term in a labor camp. Of the atrocities, Solzhenitsyn wrote: "You know very well that we've come to Germany to take our revenge" for German atrocities committed in the Soviet Union . The evacuation plans for parts of East Prussia were ready in the second half of 1944. They consisted of both general plans and specific instructions for many towns. The plans encompassed not only civilians, but also industry and livestock . Initially, Erich Koch ,

3599-407: Was being rebuilt. In 1945, the Municipal Theater was established. Thanks to voluntary contributions, books were purchased for newly organized public libraries. A museum was created in the renovated castle. From 1975 to 1998, Kętrzyn was administratively located in the Olsztyn Voivodeship . Kętrzyn's climate is either oceanic ( Köppen : Cfb ) or humid continental ( Köppen : Dfb ), depending on

3660-402: Was in the forest east of Rastenburg. The bunker was the setting for the failed assassination attempt of the 20 July plot against Hitler. During the war, the Germans operated a forced labour camp for Jews in the town. In 1945, the area suffered devastation from both the retreating Germans and advancing Soviets during the Vistula-Oder campaign . Some ruins of the Wolf's Lair remain. The town

3721-437: Was placed under the jurisdiction of other countries. The relevant paragraph regarding East Prussia in the Potsdam Agreement is: V. City of Koenigsberg and the adjacent area. The Conference examined a proposal by the Soviet Government to the effect 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

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