The capital of Prussia. East Prussia: history and modernity. Map, borders, castles and cities, culture of East Prussia
Even in the late Middle Ages, the lands located between the Neman and Vistula rivers got their name East Prussia. Throughout its existence, this power experienced different periods. This is the time of the order, and the Prussian duchy, and then the kingdom, and the province, as well as the post-war country up to the renaming due to the redistribution between Poland and the Soviet Union.
The history of the origin of possessions
More than ten centuries have passed since the first mention of the Prussian lands. Initially, the people who inhabited these territories were divided into clans (tribes), which were separated by conditional borders.
The expanses of Prussian possessions covered the now existing part of Poland and Lithuania. These included Sambia and Skalovia, Warmia and Pogezania, Pomesania and Kulm land, Natangia and Bartia, Galindia and Sassen, Skalovia and Nadrovia, Mazovia and Sudovia.
Numerous conquests
The Prussian lands throughout their existence were constantly subjected to attempts to conquer by stronger and more aggressive neighbors. So, in the twelfth century, the Teutonic knights - the crusaders - came to these rich and alluring expanses. They built numerous fortresses and castles, such as Kulm, Reden, Thorn.
However, in 1410, after the famous Battle of Grunwald, the territory of the Prussians began to smoothly pass into the hands of Poland and Lithuania.
The Seven Years' War in the eighteenth century undermined the strength of the Prussian army and led to the fact that some eastern lands were conquered by the Russian Empire.
In the twentieth century, hostilities also did not bypass these lands. Beginning in 1914, East Prussia was involved in the First World War, and in 1944 - in the Second World War.
And after the victory of the Soviet troops in 1945, it ceased to exist altogether and was transformed into the Kaliningrad region.
Existence between the wars
During the First World War, East Prussia suffered heavy losses. The map of 1939 already had changes, and the updated province was in a terrible state. After all, it was the only territory of Germany that was swallowed up by military battles.
The signing of the Treaty of Versailles was costly for East Prussia. The winners decided to reduce its territory. Therefore, from 1920 to 1923, the League of Nations began to control the city of Memel and the Memel region with the help of French troops. But after the January uprising in 1923, the situation changed. And already in 1924, these lands, as an autonomous region, became part of Lithuania.
In addition, East Prussia also lost the territory of Soldau (the city of Dzialdovo).
In total, about 315 thousand hectares of land were disconnected. And this is a large area. As a result of these changes, the remaining province found itself in a difficult situation, accompanied by enormous economic difficulties.
The economic and political situation in the 20s and 30s.
In the early twenties, after the normalization of diplomatic relations between the Soviet Union and Germany, the standard of living of the population in East Prussia began to gradually improve. The Moscow-Kenigsberg airline was opened, the German Oriental Fair was resumed, and the Koenigsberg city radio station began work.
However, the global economic crisis has not bypassed these ancient lands. And in five years (1929-1933), five hundred and thirteen different enterprises went bankrupt in Koenigsberg alone, and grew to one hundred thousand people. In such a situation, taking advantage of the precarious and uncertain position of the current government, the Nazi Party took control into its own hands.
Territory redistribution
IN geographic Maps East Prussia until 1945, a considerable number of changes were made. The same thing happened in 1939 after the occupation of Poland by the troops of Nazi Germany. As a result of the new zoning, part of the Polish lands and the Klaipeda (Memel) region of Lithuania were formed into a province. And the cities of Elbing, Marienburg and Marienwerder became part of the new district of West Prussia.
The Nazis launched grandiose plans for the redivision of Europe. And the map of East Prussia, in their opinion, was to become the center of the economic space between the Baltic and Black Seas, subject to the annexation of territories Soviet Union. However, these plans failed to materialize.
Post-war time
As the Soviet troops arrived, East Prussia also gradually changed. Military commandant's offices were created, of which by April 1945 there were already thirty-six. Their tasks were to recalculate the German population, inventory and a gradual transition to civilian life.
In those years, thousands of German officers and soldiers were hiding throughout East Prussia, groups engaged in sabotage and sabotage were operating. In April 1945 alone, the military commandant's offices captured more than three thousand armed fascists.
However, ordinary German citizens also lived on the territory of Koenigsberg and in the surrounding areas. They numbered about 140 thousand people.
In 1946, the city of Koenigsberg was renamed Kaliningrad, as a result of which the Kaliningrad region was formed. And later the names of other settlements. In connection with such changes, the previously existing 1945 map of East Prussia was also redone.
East Prussian lands today
These days on former territory Prussians is the Kaliningrad region. East Prussia ceased to exist in 1945. And although the region is part of the Russian Federation, they are territorially divided. In addition to the administrative center - Kaliningrad (until 1946 it bore the name of Koenigsberg), such cities as Bagrationovsk, Baltiysk, Gvardeysk, Yantarny, Sovetsk, Chernyakhovsk, Krasnoznamensk, Neman, Ozersk, Primorsk, Svetlogorsk are well developed. The region consists of seven city districts, two cities and twelve districts. The main peoples living in this territory are Russians, Belarusians, Ukrainians, Lithuanians, Armenians and Germans.
To date, the Kaliningrad region ranks first in the extraction of amber, storing about ninety percent of its world reserves in its bowels.
Interesting places of modern East Prussia
And although today the map of East Prussia has been changed beyond recognition, the lands with the cities and villages located on them still keep the memory of the past. Spirit of the Disappeared great country and to this day is felt in the present Kaliningrad region in the cities bearing the names Tapiau and Taplaken, Insterburg and Tilsit, Ragnit and Waldau.
Excursions conducted at the Georgenburg stud farm are popular with tourists. It existed as early as the beginning of the thirteenth century. The fortress of Georgenburg was a haven for German knights and crusaders, whose main business was horse breeding.
Churches erected in the fourteenth century (in the former cities of Heiligenwalde and Arnau), as well as churches of the sixteenth century in the territory of former city Tapiau. These majestic buildings constantly remind people of the old days of the prosperity of the Teutonic Order.
Knight's castles
The land rich in amber reserves has attracted German conquerors since ancient times. In the thirteenth century, the Polish princes, together with gradually seized these possessions and built numerous castles on them. The remains of some of them, being architectural monuments, and today make an indelible impression on contemporaries. The largest number of knightly castles were built in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. Their place of construction was the captured Prussian rampart-earthen fortresses. When building castles, the traditions in the style of the order's Gothic architecture of the late Middle Ages were necessarily observed. In addition, all buildings corresponded to a single plan for their construction. Nowadays, an unusual
The village of Nizovye is very popular among residents and guests. It houses a unique museum of local lore with ancient cellars. Visiting it, one can say with confidence that the whole history of East Prussia flashes before one's eyes, starting from the time of the ancient Prussians and ending with the era of Soviet settlers.
Brief chronology of ancient Prussian history
Chronology of the development of the ancient Prussian people before the seizure of land by the Teutonic Order.
51-63 years - the appearance of Roman legionnaires on the Amber Coast of the Baltic, the first mention of the Aestii in ancient literature(Pliny the Elder);
180-440 AD - the appearance on Sambia of groups of the North German population - the Cimbri;
425-455 AD - the appearance of representatives of the Hunnic state on the coast of the Vistula Bay, the participation of the Aestians in the Hunnic campaigns, the collapse of the power of Attila and the return of some of the Aestians to their homeland;
450-475 AD - the formation of the beginnings of Prussian culture;
514 - the legendary date of the arrival in the Prussian lands of the brothers Bruten and Videvut with an army, who became the first princes of the Prussians. The legend is supported by the transition of the archaeological culture of the Cimbri to the appearance of signs of the material culture of the North German warriors;
OK. 700 - battle in the south of Natangia between the Prussians and the inhabitants of Masuria, the Prussians won. The base at the mouth of the river. Nogaty trade and craft center Truso, the first in the land of the Prussians. Through Truso, silver began to flow into Prussia in the form of coins;
OK. 800 - the appearance of the Danish Viking Ragnar Lothbrok on Sambia. Viking raids did not stop for the next 400 years. Foundation in the north of Sambia, the trade and craft center Kaup;
800-850 AD - the Prussians become known by that name (Geographer of Bavaria);
860-880 - Truso destroyed by the Vikings. Journey of the Anglo-Saxon Wulfstan to the western border of the land of the Prussians;
983 - the first Russian campaign on the southern outskirts of the land of the Prussians;
992 - the beginning of Polish campaigns in the land of the Prussians;
997 - martyrdom on April 23 in the north of Sambia, St. Adalbert, Prussia's first Christian missionary;
1009 - death on the border of Yatvyagia and Rus' of the missionary Bruno of Querfurt;
1010 - the destruction by the Polish king Boleslav I the Brave of the sanctuary of the Prussians Romov in Natangia;
1014-1016 - the campaign of the Danish king Canut the Great against Sambia, the destruction of Kaup;
end of the 11th century - departure of the Prussian squad outside Sambia, the Prussians invade the neighbors;
1110-1111 - the campaign of the Polish king Boleslav III to the Prussian lands of Natangia and Sambia;
1147 - a joint campaign of Russian and Polish troops on the southern outskirts of the land of the Prussians;
OK. 1165 - appearance in Veliky Novgorod "Prussian street"; the campaign of Boleslav IV in the land of the Prussians and the death of his army in the Masurian marshes;
1206, October 26 - Bull of Pope Innocent III on the Christianization of the Prussians - the beginning of the crusade against the Prussians
1210 last Danish raid on Sambia;
1222-1223 - crusades of the Polish princes against the Prussians;
1224 - Prussians cross the river. Vistula and burn Oliva and Drevenitsa in Poland;
1229 - the Polish prince Konrad of Mazovia cedes the Chelm land to the Teutonic Order for 20 years;
1230 - the first military actions of the German knight brothers against the Prussians at the Vogelsang castle. Bull of Pope Gregory IX giving the Teutonic Order the right to baptize the Prussians;
1233 - the defeat of the Prussians in the battle of Sirgun (Pomesania);
1239-1240 - the foundation of the Balga castle, its siege by the Prussians and the deblockade;
1241 - conversion to Orthodoxy under the name of John, who came to Novgorod, the Prussian commander Glando Kambilo, son of Divon, the ancestor of the Romanov family. Mongol raid on Prussia;
1242-1249 - the uprising of the Prussians against the Order in alliance with the Pomeranian (Polish) Prince Svyatopolk;
1249 - Treaty of Christburg, legally securing the conquest of the southwestern land of the Prussians by the Order;
1249, September 29 - the victory of the Prussians near Kruk (Natangia);
1249-1260 - the second uprising of the Prussians;
1251 - clash of the Prussian detachment with the Russian army of Prince Daniel of Galicia near the river. Lyk;
1254 - the beginning of the campaign of King Ottokar II Przemysl of Bohemia against Sambia;
1255 - the foundation of the castles of Königsberg and Ragnit;
1260-1283 - the third uprising of the Prussians;
1283 - the capture of Yatvyagia by the Crusaders, which secured the victory of the Teutonic Order over the Prussians.
PRUSSIA WITHOUT PRUSSIANS
After in the XIII century, at the request of the Polish prince Konrad of Mazovia and with the blessing of the Pope of Rome, the crusaders, led by the Teutonic Order, completely destroyed the pagan Lithuanian tribe of the Prussians (due to the fact that they did not want to accept Christianity), on the site of their settlement Twangste - the Sudeten king Ottokar II founded the city of Koenigsberg.
In 1410, after the defeat of the Teutonic Order by the Commonwealth, Koenigsberg could become a Polish city. But then the Polish kings limited themselves to the fact that the order became their vassal. When the Commonwealth began to weaken, on the lands of the Teutonic Order arose first the Electorate, then the Duchy of Prussia.
At the beginning of the 16th century Albrecht from the Hohenzollern dynasty, which established itself in Brandenburg in 1415, was elected grand master of the Teutonic Order, which became its vassal after the Thirteen Years' War with Poland (1454-66) (Prussia's fief dependence on Poland remained until the 60s of the 17th century).
The Duchy of Prussia united in 1618 with Brandenburg, which created the core of the future German Empire. In 1701, Elector Frederick III received the title of king from the emperor of the "Holy Roman Empire" (in exchange for a contingent of troops for the upcoming War of the Spanish Succession). The Brandenburg-Prussian state became a kingdom. After Berlin became its capital instead of Koenigsberg, a new history began for the whole of Germany - imperial.
Under King Frederick II (reigned 1740-86), about 2/3 of the annual regular budget was spent on military needs; The Prussian army became the largest in Western Europe. In Prussia, the militaristic police-bureaucratic regime (the so-called Prussianism) was being strengthened. Any manifestation of free thought was mercilessly suppressed. In order to expand its territory, Prussia waged numerous wars. During the War of the Austrian Succession of 1740-48, Prussia took over most of Silesia. In the Seven Years' War of 1756-63, Prussia intended to seize Saxony, which had not yet been captured by part of Pomerania, Courland and strengthen its influence on the small German states, respectively weakening the influence of Austria on them, but suffered a major defeat from Russian troops at Gross-Egersdorf (1757) and in Battle of Kunersdorf 1759.
Koenigsberg in 1758 for the first time became a Russian city. Even the issue of coins of the "Prussian province" was launched. In 1760, Russian troops occupied Berlin, the capital of Prussia. Only disagreements between the main opponents of Prussia (Austria, Russia, France) and the accession to the Russian throne after the death of Elizabeth Petrovna (1761) of Holsteingottorp Duke Peter III saved Prussia from disaster. Peter III concluded peace and alliance with Frederick II, and in 1762 he withdrew Russian troops from East Prussia, and returned the city to Friedrich. As a result, for many years Prussia remained an ally of the Russian tsars, as well as a commercial and technological bridge between Russia and Europe.
Leading role in the economic and political life Prussia was played by the Junkers. Prussian kings from the Hohenzollern dynasty (Frederick II and others) in the 18th - 1st floor. 19th centuries significantly expanded the territory of the state. In the last third of the 18th century Prussia, together with tsarist Russia and Austria, participated in three sections The Commonwealth, as a result of which she captured Poznan, the central regions of the country with Warsaw, as well as Gdansk, Torun and a number of other territories. By the end of the 18th century The Hohenzollerns increased the territory of Prussia to more than 300,000 km.
During the Great french revolution Prussia, together with Austria, formed the core of the 1st anti-French coalition of the monarchical states of Europe (1792). However, after a series of defeats, Prussia was forced to sign a separate Treaty of Basel with France (1795). In 1806 Prussia joined the 4th anti-French coalition. Soon the Prussian army was defeated by Napoleon in the battles of Jena and Auerstedt. According to the Treaty of Tilsit in 1807, Prussia lost about 1/2 of its territory.
The defeat of the Napoleonic army in Russia was the starting point for the liberation war of the German people against the Napoleonic yoke. Under the Vienna Treaty of 1815, Prussia received two-fifths of the territory of Saxony, as well as land along the Rhine (the Rhineland and Westphalia); its population exceeded 10 million people. In 1834, a customs union was created that embraced many German states, in which Prussia played the leading role.
The Prussian rulers helped the tsarist government of Russia suppress the Polish liberation uprising of 1863-64, and at this price achieved the benevolent position of tsarism during the period of Prussia's struggle for hegemony in Germany.
In 1864, Prussia, together with Austria, began a war against Denmark, as a result of which Schleswig-Holstein was torn from Denmark, and in 1866 a war against Austria and the smaller Germans allied with it. states. At the end of the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, Prussia annexed the territories of Hanover, Kurfheessen, Nassau, Schleswig-Holstein, and Frankfurt am Main. Having inflicted a defeat on Austria, Prussia finally eliminated her as a rival in the struggle for a dominant role in Germany, which predetermined the unification of Germany under Prussian leadership. In 1867 Prussia created the North German Confederation.
In 1870-71, Prussia waged war against France (see the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71), as a result of which it captured the French regions of Alsace and East Lorraine and received an indemnity of 5 billion francs.
On January 18, 1871, the formation of the German Empire was proclaimed. Prussia retained its dominant positions in a united Germany; the Prussian king was at the same time the German emperor, the Prussian minister-president usually held (until 1918) the post of imperial chancellor, as well as the Prussian minister of foreign affairs. Prussianism, having gained a foothold in the German Empire, manifested itself with particular force under imperialism.
The Prussian-German militarists played an enormous role in unleashing the First World War of 1914-18. In September 1914, the army of General Samsonov perished in the Prussian swamps.
As a result of the November Revolution of 1918 in Germany, the monarchy in Prussia was abolished. In the Weimar Republic, Prussia became one of the provinces ("lands"), but retained its predominance in the economic and political life of the country. With the establishment of the fascist dictatorship in Germany (January 1933), the state apparatus of Prussia was merged with the state apparatus of the Third Empire. Prussia, like all of Germany, was fascisized.
On June 22, 1941, the German Army Group North struck the Soviet Baltic from the territory of East Prussia. April 9, 1945 Soviet troops took Koenigsberg by storm.
In 1945, by the decision of the Potsdam Conference of the three great powers (USSR, USA, Great Britain) on the liquidation of East Prussia, the region was divided between the USSR and Poland. April 7, 1946 Presidium Supreme Council The USSR adopted the Decree "On the formation of the Koenigsberg region as part of the RSFSR", and on July 4 the region was renamed Kaliningrad. The administrative center of the region, founded in 1255 as the city of Koenigsberg, was renamed Kaliningrad.
The name "Prussia" was originally used to refer to the territory of the state of the Teutonic Order, formed on lands located east of the Vistula on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea, lands originally inhabited Prussians and later conquered by the Teutonic Knights as a result of the Crusades. In 1466 the territory Prussia was divided into the western (“Royal Prussia”), given under the authority of the Polish crown, and the eastern, on which in 1525 the sovereign Duchy of Prussia was formed with its capital in Königsberg. In 1618, the Brandenburg Hohenzollerns inherited the Prussian duchy, as a result of which the personal union of Brandenburg-Prussia was formed and the electors of Brandenburg simultaneously became dukes of Prussia. After the Elector of Brandenburg Frederick III proclaimed himself King of Prussia in 1701, thereby turning the Prussian duchy into a kingdom, the name "Prussia" gradually spread to all the possessions of the Hohenzollerns both within the borders of the Holy Roman Empire and beyond its borders, although it formally referred to only to the territory of the former duchy. The proclaimed Kingdom of Prussia was not part of the Holy Roman Empire (it was this fact that allowed Frederick to proclaim himself King of Prussia), but other territories under the rule of the Prussian king were part of it, that is, until 1806 were not the territories of the Kingdom of Prussia. Despite this, it was the Principality of Brandenburg with its capital in Berlin that became the political core of the new kingdom, formally liquidated only in 1806 with the collapse of the Holy Roman Empire. Even the residence of the Prussian kings was in Berlin, only coronations traditionally took place in Königsberg. Therefore, over time, the name "Kingdom of Prussia" spread to all the possessions of the Prussian kings, and the territory of the Prussian kingdom itself (together with Warmia) became known as East Prussia and constituted the province of the Prussian state of the same name. After the unification of the German states, the Prussian kings took the throne of the unified German Empire. Prussia as a kingdom lasted until the end of 1918 and then became part of the Weimar Republic as the Free State of Prussia. With the coming of the National Socialists to power and their Gleichschaltun policy, the de facto autonomy of Prussia in the Third Reich lost its force back in 1933. De jure Prussia as public education was liquidated only in 1947 by decree of the Control Council of the occupation forces.
Story
Early history
Until the 13th century, the territory Prussia inhabited by the Prussians. They were one of the direct successors of the culture of the Western Baltic mounds (VI-I centuries BC), located in the territories of the Kaliningrad region, western Lithuania, northeastern Poland, northwestern Belarus. Their separation into a separate people from the group of related tribes of the Balts dates back to the 5th-6th centuries. Wherein character traits proper Prussian culture can be traced from the beginning of our era. The first settlements of the Prussians proper arose on the coast of what is now the Gulf of Kaliningrad. Then, until the 9th century, the Prussians migrated west to the lower Vistula.
The threat from the Teutonic Order led to the establishment of a dynastic union between Poland and Lithuania (Unia of Krevo, 1385). In the Great War of 1409-1411, the Teutonic Order was defeated at Grunwald by the combined forces of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. According to the Peace of Torun (1411), he, having abandoned Samogitia and the Polish Dobzhin land, paid an indemnity. With this defeat begins the decline of the Order.
After his death, the situation in Prussia became more complicated again. His sick son, Albrecht Frederick, took little part in the administration of the duchy. From 1578, Prussia was ruled by regents from German dynasty Hohenzollern. Since Albert Frederick had no sons, the Elector of Brandenburg, Joachim Friedrich, married his son John Sigismund to Anna of Prussia, daughter of Albrecht, in the hope of establishing a dynastic relationship and, after his death, annexing the lands of Prussia to Brandenburg. And so it happened. In 1618 Albrecht Frederick dies and the Duchy of Prussia passes to John Sigismund, Elector of Brandenburg.
Part of the lands of the state of the Teutonic Order, which became part of Poland in 1466 as a result of the Second Peace of Torun, which ended the Thirteen Years' War between the Order and Poland. Royal Prussia enjoyed considerable autonomy within Poland. During this period, the assimilation of the Prussians continues, the Prussian language dies out.
Personal union with Brandenburg (1618-1701)
The power of the Electors of Brandenburg in the annexed lands of Prussia was rather shaky. Firstly, Prussia continued to be in fief dependence on Poland, and secondly, Poland itself wanted to own these territories, dreaming of annexing Prussia to the crown lands in the form of a voivodship. Brandenburg, at that time, suffered greatly from the outbreak of the Thirty Years' War and could not pursue an active policy of securing the newly acquired lands.
A significant strengthening of the Brandenburg-Prussian state occurred under the reign of Friedrich Wilhelm I. His policies favored the influx of immigrants into the war-torn Brandenburg and contributed to its rapid recovery. In order to destroy the fief dependence of Prussia on Poland and achieve its sovereignty, the elector took part in the Swedish-Polish war of 1655-1661. The victory over the Poles in the three-day battle near Warsaw, won with the help of the Brandenburg troops, significantly strengthened the position of the elector. On November 20, 1656, Karl Χ concluded an agreement with the elector in Labiau, according to which Friedrich-Wilhelm received full sovereignty in Prussia. In accordance with the Wieliawa-Bydgoszcz treaty of 1657, this sovereignty is recognized by the Commonwealth. Now a new state of Brandenburg-Prussia appears on the map of Europe, which, thanks to the efforts of Frederick William I, is significantly strengthened and overgrown with new lands.
Kingdom of Prussia (1701-1918)
In 1797, after the death of Frederick William II, his son, Frederick William III, succeeded to the throne. Friedrich Wilhelm turned out to be a weak and indecisive ruler. In the Napoleonic Wars he for a long time couldn't decide which side he was on. He promised assistance to Austria, but did nothing after Napoleon's invasion of this country in 1805, hoping to acquire Hanover and other lands in the north from France in exchange for the neutrality of Prussia. On October 1, 1806, Prussia gave Napoleon an ultimatum, and on October 8, 1806, Napoleon attacked Prussia. As a result, the Prussian army was defeated by Napoleon in the battles of Jena and Auerstedt. According to the Treaty of Tilsit in 1807, Prussia lost about half of its territories. In January 1813, Prussia was liberated from the Napoleonic troops. Following the results of the Vienna Congress of 1814-1815, Rhenish Prussia, Westphalia, Poznan and part of Saxony were returned to Prussia.
German unification wars
From this date begins the history of Prussia as part of a single German state.
As part of Germany
Bismarck's new empire became one of the most powerful states in continental Europe. Prussian dominance in the new empire was almost as absolute as it had been in the North German Confederation. Prussia had three-fifths of the area of the empire, and two-thirds of its population. The imperial crown became the hereditary crown of the Hohenzollern dynasty.
However, the roots of future problems lay in the deep differences between the imperial and Prussian systems. The empire had a system of universal and equal suffrage for all men over 25 years of age. At the same time, Prussia maintained a restrictive three-class voting system in which 17.5% of the population controlled all areas of life. The Imperial Chancellor was, with the exception of two periods (January-November 1873 and 1892-1894), also Prime Minister of Prussia, which meant that for most of the empire's existence, the King/Emperor and Prime Minister/Chancellor had to seek a majority in electoral legislatures of two completely different electoral systems.
At the time of the creation of the empire, two-thirds of Prussia's population was rural. However, over the next 20 years, the situation changed and urban settlements already accounted for two-thirds of the population. However, constituency boundaries were never changed to reflect population growth and the influence of cities.
Bismarck understood that the rest of Europe was somewhat skeptical about the strength of the new Reich and turned his attention to keeping the peace like the Congress of Berlin.
Wilhelm I died in 1888 and was succeeded on the throne by Crown Prince Frederick III. The new emperor was an Anglophile and planned to implement sweeping liberal reforms. But he died 99 days after his ascension to the throne. His 29-year-old son, Wilhelm II, became his heir.
Wilhelm rebelled against his parents in their liberal endeavors and left Prussia under Bismarck's tutelage. The new Kaiser quickly spoiled relations with the British royal and Russian imperial families (although he was related to them), became their rival and finally enemy. Wilhelm II removed Bismarck from office in 1890 and launched a campaign of militarization and adventurism in foreign policy that eventually led Germany into isolation.
During the Austro-Hungarian conflict with Serbia, the Kaiser went on vacation, and hasty plans to mobilize several states led to disaster - the First World War (1914-1918). In order to get out of the war, the Bolsheviks, according to the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (1918), agreed to the occupation of part of the Baltic states and Belarus, which bordered on Prussia. German control over these territories lasted only a few months and ended due to the defeat german army and the victories of the German Revolution, which led to the Kaiser's abdication and exile. Under the terms of the Versailles Peace Treaty, Germany assumed the obligation to recognize all independent states formed on this territory.
As part of the Weimar Republic
The Weimar Republic remained a "federal state" and the states were states, albeit with limited sovereignty. It was precisely the inequality of its members that, above all, characterized the federalist structure of the Weimar Republic. Almost 2/3 of the population lived on the territory of Prussia, industry and military organization were widely developed here. As a result, Prussia retained its dominant position in Germany in comparison with other German states. Plans for the territorial reorganization of Germany met with fierce resistance. Article 18 of the Constitution established that territorial changes in existing and the creation of new lands within the German Empire take place through an imperial law that changes the constitution, which literally meant that no territorial reorganization is possible without the consent of Prussia.
Inequality also manifested itself in the representation of the lands in the Reichsrath. Prussia here received 2/5 of the votes and the situation could not be changed even by the inclusion in the constitution of the “anti-Prussian clause”, which stipulated that half of the Prussian votes should have representatives of the Prussian provincial administrations, and not the Prussian government. So, out of 66 votes in the Reichsrat, Prussia had 26, Bavaria - 11, Saxony - 7, Württemberg - 4, Baden - 3, Thuringia, Hesse, Hamburg - 2 each, the remaining 9 lands 1 vote each. All this indicated that not a single decision could be made against the will of Prussia.
After in the XIII century, at the request of the Polish prince Konrad of Mazovia and with the blessing of the Pope of Rome, the crusaders, led by the Teutonic Order, completely destroyed the pagan Lithuanian tribe of the Prussians (due to the fact that they did not want to accept Christianity), on the site of their settlement Twangste - the Sudeten king Ottokar II founded the city of Koenigsberg.
In 1410, after the defeat of the Teutonic Order by the Commonwealth, Koenigsberg could become a Polish city. But then the Polish kings limited themselves to the fact that the order became their vassal. When the Commonwealth began to weaken, on the lands of the Teutonic Order arose first the Electorate, then the Duchy of Prussia.
IN early XVI V. Albrecht from the Hohenzollern dynasty, which established itself in Brandenburg in 1415, was elected grand master of the Teutonic Order, which became its vassal after the Thirteen Years' War with Poland (1454-66) (Prussia's fief dependence on Poland remained until the 60s of the 17th century).
The Duchy of Prussia united with Brandenburg in 1618, which created the core of the future German Empire. In 1701, Elector Frederick III received the title of king from the emperor of the "Holy Roman Empire" (in exchange for a contingent of troops for the upcoming War of the Spanish Succession). The Brandenburg-Prussian state became a kingdom. After Berlin became its capital instead of Koenigsberg, a new history began for the whole of Germany - imperial.
Under King Frederick II (reigned 1740-86), about 2/3 of the annual regular budget was spent on military needs; The Prussian army became the largest in Western Europe. In Prussia, the militaristic police-bureaucratic regime (the so-called Prussianism) was being strengthened. Any manifestation of free thought was mercilessly suppressed. In order to expand its territory, Prussia waged numerous wars. During the War of the Austrian Succession of 1740-48, Prussia took over most of Silesia. In the Seven Years' War of 1756-63, Prussia intended to seize Saxony, which had not yet been captured by part of Pomerania, Courland and strengthen its influence on the small German states, respectively weakening the influence of Austria on them, but suffered a major defeat from the Russian troops at Gross-Egersdorf (1757) and in Battle of Kunersdorf 1759.
Koenigsberg in 1758 for the first time became a Russian city. Even the issue of coins of the "Prussian province" was launched. In 1760, Russian troops occupied Berlin, the capital of Prussia. Only disagreements between the main opponents of Prussia (Austria, Russia, France) and the accession to the Russian throne after the death of Elizabeth Petrovna (1761) of Holsteingottorp Duke Peter III saved Prussia from disaster. Peter III made peace and an alliance with Frederick II, and in 1762 he withdrew Russian troops from East Prussia, and returned the city to Friedrich. As a result, for many years Prussia remained an ally of the Russian tsars, as well as a commercial and technological bridge between Russia and Europe.
PROVINCE OF RUSSIA
The Seven Years' War began in 1756 with several battles between the armies of Austria and France against the Prussian troops. The Russian army under the command of Field Marshal Apraksin set out on a campaign against Prussia in the spring of 1757 from Riga in two directions: through Memel and Kovno. She entered the territory of Prussia, advanced beyond Insterburg (Chernyakhovsk). Near the village of Gross-Egersdorf (now defunct, Chernyakhovsky district) on August 30, in a fierce battle, the Russian army defeated the Prussian troops under the command of Field Marshal Lewald. The way to Koenigsberg was open!
However, the troops unexpectedly turned back and left Prussia through Tilsit. Only the city of Memel remained in the hands of the Russians. The reason for the retreat of the Russian army is still a topic of controversy. But it is considered that true reasons were - lack of food and loss of people. That summer, the Russian troops had two opponents: the Prussian army and the weather.
In the second campaign against Prussia in the autumn of 1757, General-in-chief Willim Vilimovich Fermor (1702-1771) became the head of the army. The task was the same - at the first opportunity to occupy Prussia. At three o'clock in the morning on January 22, 1758, Russian infantry set out from Kaimen and by eleven o'clock occupied the outposts of Koenigsberg, which actually ended up in the hands of the Russians. By four o'clock in the afternoon, Fermor at the head of the detachment drove into the city. The route of its movement was as follows: from the side of present-day Polessk, Frunze Street leads to the city center (the former Koenigstrasse, and during the period of the events described - Breitstrasse, in Russian documents of that time this street was translated literally as “Broad Street”). On it, Fermor with his retinue, following through a crowd of curious spectators, drove into the castle. There he was met by representatives of the Prussian authorities, led by Lesving, and presented with the "keys to the city" (rather, of course, a symbol that marks a historical event).
By the way, in Konigsberg, when Russian troops entered it, there were eighteen churches, of which 14 were Lutheran, 3 were Calvinist and one was Roman Catholic. There were no Orthodox, which was a problem for the Russian residents who appeared. Found a way out. The Russian clergy chose the building, later known as the Steindamm Church. It was one of the oldest Königsberg churches, founded in 1256. Since 1526, Polish and Lithuanian parishioners have used it. And on September 15, 1760, the consecration of the church was solemnly held.
It should be noted that the victors behaved peacefully in Prussia. They provided the inhabitants with freedom of belief and trade and gave them access to the Russian service. Double-headed eagles replaced the Prussian ones everywhere. An Orthodox monastery was built in Koenigsberg. They began to mint a coin with the image of Elizabeth and the signature: Elisabeth rex Prussiae. The Russians intended to settle firmly in East Prussia.
But in Russia there is a change of power. Empress Elizaveta Petrovna dies and Peter III ascends the Russian throne, as you know, an ardent supporter of Frederick II. In a treatise dated May 5, 1762, Peter III unconditionally gave Frederick II all the territories previously occupied by the Russians. On July 5, the Königsberg city newspaper was already published, crowned with the Prussian coat of arms. The transfer of power in the provinces began. On July 9, a coup takes place in Russia and Catherine II ascends the royal throne, but still Russian rule ended in Prussia. Already on August 5, 1762, the last Russian governor of Prussia Voeikov F.M. (1703-1778) received an order to finally proceed with the transfer of the province, from now on not to interfere in the internal affairs of Prussia, to allow the Prussian garrisons to occupy fortresses.
September 3, 1762 - the beginning of the withdrawal of Russian troops from Prussia. And on February 15, 1763, the Seven Years' War ended with the signing of the Treaty of Hubertusburg. Frederick II died of a cold on August 17, 1786 in Potsdam, leaving no direct heir. He was therefore succeeded by his nephew Friedrich Wilhelm II, who was born on September 25, 1744, at the time of his coronation he was 42 years old. Under this king, the Friedrich system of government began to collapse and the decline of Prussia began. Under him, Prussia lost its importance as the leading power within Germany. This inglorious king died on November 16, 1797. Friedrich Wilhelm III ascended the throne.
DIE HARD SURRENDED WITHOUT A FIGHT
In the second half of the 18th century, the Pillau fortress was one of the most powerful Prussian fortresses. It had five bastions, was reinforced with ravelins, surrounded by a moat with water and an auxiliary rampart - a counterguard. Inside the fortress, powder magazines, a grain warehouse, an arsenal, a commandant's house, a church, rooms for soldiers were equipped. In general, the fortress was an exceptionally tough nut to crack. It was not by chance that the symbolic keys to it (as well as from the Friedrichsburg Gate in Koenigsberg) were presented on January 21, 1758 to the commander-in-chief of the Russian troops, General Fermor, in the Royal Castle: the Seven Years' War was going on ...
Russian troops entered Pillau on January 24 without encountering armed resistance. The burgomaster and members of the magistrate, with swords, went out to meet a small detachment of Major Wigant ... The bell ringing was heard in the city. And soon all the citizens already swore allegiance to the Russian Empress Elizabeth, daughter. It is interesting that in Russia only nobles swore allegiance to emperors, while in Prussia this right was granted to everyone. And history has not recorded cases of evasion of the oath.
The first Russian commandant of Pillau was Major Engineer Rodion Gerbel, a well-known builder of fortifications. His father, Nicholas Gerbel, came to Russia from Switzerland in the times of Peter the Great and participated in the construction of St. Petersburg. Russified as much as it was possible. He baptized his son according to the Orthodox tradition.
Rodion Nikolaevich Gerbel studied for two years (1731-1732) in Koenigsberg, at an engineering school, then - in 1744 - visited East Prussia as part of the Russian embassy, heading in a roundabout way to Stockholm. By the way, together with his classmate at the engineering school Larion, the father of the future field marshal. Rodion Gerbel participated in all key battles Seven Years' War: at Gross-Egersdorf, Zondorf, Kunersdorf, the siege and capture of Memel and Koenigsberg.
Subsequently, the name Gerbel will be inscribed in the history of Russia more than once: the grandson of Rodion Nikolaevich, Karl Gustavovich Gerbel, the Knight of St. George, will distinguish himself in 1807 in the battle of Preussisch-Eylau, and in December 1812 - January 1813 he will triumphantly pass through Tilsit and Koenigsberg to Hamburg. And the great-grandson - Nikolai Gerbel - will become a famous Russian writer.
Gerbel commanded at Pillau for a year. He managed to organize a customs service and control over navigation through the strait. Then - departed with the troops for the Vistula, to solve the next military task. He was replaced as commandant by Colonel Freiman, after whom Major Wigant was appointed. Wigant was replaced by Colonel Khomutov, and from 1760 to 1762 this duty was performed by Colonel Girshgend. At this time, thanks to the Governor-General of Corfu, a Russian dam appeared in Pillau. It was very important project. The harbor that existed in Pillau was small for Russian ships. Therefore, a new, wider one was built on the site, which was called Maulshillen (i.e. "slap in the face"). A number of icebreakers stood here, and the coast was fortified with 10,000 fascines, i.e. special bundles of brushwood. The length of the dam was 450 meters (today this place is called the Russian Embankment). Prussian peasants were involved in the construction, but they were released during the harvest. By the way, the Russian army was provided with food through supplies from Russia. Such was the strange occupation. Not at all burdensome for the occupied territories. However, local residents still made attempts to resist.
King Frederick the Great, being outside of East Prussia, incited people loyal to him to fight the "occupiers". Communication was maintained through Pillau's postmaster Ludwig Wagner. Using his postal channels, Wagner passed on news and money collected by like-minded people to the king. He was sure that he was beyond suspicion: according to some reports, the Russian governor of Prussia, von Korf, was very interested in his, Ludwig, sister Maria. In addition, Wagner himself made friends with a couple of Russian officers.
But... at the beginning of 1759, several residents of Pillau (in particular, the inspector for construction and licenses Lange and Captain von Hambeau, under whose command the prisoners were in the fortress) drew up a plan on how to free the fortress from Russian "usurpation". The plan was ridiculous - if only because fifty people knew about it. Both in Pillau and in Koenigsberg. Naturally, someone reported on the "Pillau conspiracy" of the Russian administration.
That same evening, Wagner learned that Lange and Hambeau had also been arrested. All the conspirators were sent to Koenigsberg. June 28, 1759 Ludwig Wagner was sentenced to death penalty through quartering. But Empress Elizabeth pardoned Wagner, and he was "only" exiled to Siberia. Having passed through Moscow, Solikamsk, Tomsk, Yeniseisk and other cities, Wagner ended up in Tobolsk - exactly at the time when, after the death of Elizabeth Petrovna, her nephew Peter III, an ardent admirer of Frederick the Great, inherited the Russian throne.
Peter III immediately made peace with the adored Prussian king, returned Prussia to him - and Wagner, no longer considered an exiled conspirator, set off on his return journey. He did not find his sister alive. The cause of her death remained unknown. But it was rumored that the beautiful Maria, in her turn, not indifferent to the governor-general of Corfu, withered away after she turned into the "sister of the conspirator."
Wagner sent a "Memorandum" to the king. Having listed in detail everything that he had lost, he presented Frederick with a bill of 6,000 thalers. The king received Wagner in Potsdam, lined up a guard of honor, drew his sword, solemnly said "Welcome from Siberia!", But did not give money. But he again appointed Wagner postmaster at Pillau.
Subsequently, Wagner will write a book of memoirs about his Siberian misadventures, and a street in Pillau will be named after him (now it is a lane named after A.S. Pushkin). And in memory of the time when East Prussia belonged to Russia, a monument to Empress Elizabeth was erected in Baltiysk. For some reason - an equestrian statue ...
Interestingly, the fortress of Pillau, which surrendered to the Russians without firing a shot, in 1807 became one of the three Prussian fortresses that fiercely resisted Napoleon's troops. The commandant of the fortress was then 76-year-old Colonel von Herrmann, a most curious personality: for example, he spent his everyday sleep ... in a coffin. Explaining his quirk by the fact that at his venerable age it's time to get used to " wooden box". When the French demanded that Pillau be handed over to them, Herrmann gathered a garrison in the courtyard of the fortress, ordered the coffin to be brought, and declared to the audience: “Friends! As long as I'm alive, I won't give up the fortress. Here is my coffin. Which of you will survive me, I hope, will put me, your boss and commander, in this coffin. Here, in the presence of all of you, I will once again repeat the oath that I took a long time ago when I entered into military service, my monarch, my state. All those in whom military honor lives, I ask you to repeat: "Prussia or death!"
And the garrison held out heroically. The French lost 122 killed and wounded. One cannonball, fired by the defenders of Pillau, fell directly into the mouth of the French cannon, which shattered into pieces, which pretty much cut the Napoleonic artillerymen ... The fortress did not give up for eight days. It is not known how this whole story would have ended, but on June 26, 1807, a truce was concluded in Tilsit.
Prussia is one of the most historically controversial states in continental Europe. On the one hand, we have a once powerful state under whose flag all of Germany was united. On the other hand, the kingdom had not only ups, but also downs. The country was disbanded after the fall of the Third Reich, and previously suffered under the yoke of the Teutons. What legacy has the history of Prussia left us?
Geographical position
Unlike most states of the Old World, Prussia is looked for on the map on purely political grounds. The linguistic feature, so common for identifying other states, works very poorly here, as in general in the countries of Germanic culture.
Important for Prussia played located in the north of the country. It was there that the first settlements appeared. Prussia's borders have changed many times throughout history, from a (relatively) small duchy to the main part of Bismarck's Second Reich.
The neighboring countries - Lithuania (Lithuanians are more blood brothers to the Prussians than the Germans) and Poland - had a huge influence on Prussia. The second built a lot of intrigues to its northwestern neighbor during its independence. Poland repeatedly subjugated its territories.
Finding the main lands of this lost state, Prussia, is now easy. They belong to the Russian Federation and are the Kaliningrad region. Its center is the old Koenigsberg, since 1946 known as Kaliningrad.
Ancient times
A huge role in the emergence of Prussia, as in all European history, played by the leader of the Huns Attila. It was the emergence of his empire that forced the Aestians living on the shores of the Baltic Sea to rise. Ancient authors wrote about them. The Estians left free territory for the Prussians, who until then were located only within the framework of modern Kaliningrad.
The history of Prussia in the form in which we know it now is impossible without the appearance of the German brothers Bruten and Wiedevud. Their existence remains in question, but it is precisely the presence of such rulers who created a strong society with developed social relations from the tribe and built it that explains the sharp jump in the development of the Prussians. As a result, in the cultural tradition, they turned out to be brothers to the Germans, and not to the closest peoples - the Poles and Lithuanians.
Christianization
Since the 11th century, the small Polish principality has been trying to expand its lands at the expense of the pagan Prussians. However, they were extremely successful defenders. Perhaps the territory of Prussia would have remained free from the games of feudal Europe if, under the pretext of Christianization (at the invitation of the Polish prince and the personal blessing of the Pope), the legendary Teutonic Order had not invaded it.
The Lithuanian Order received its own state, in which it was fully authorized to carry out the Christianization of the pagan population, which turned out to be robbery, torture and violence for the Prussians.
Territory expansion
Thanks to the active build-up of power directly by the Teutons themselves and the absorption of others by them, Prussia itself expanded on the map. At some point, most of the Baltic States belonged to the state of the Teutonic Order.
Inside, this country was a tough Catholic state with, to put it mildly, a huge bias in church power. In fact, the Teutonic Order was subordinate (through the master) to the Pope, so the state was under the complete control of the Vatican.
Kingdom Creation
Until the sixteenth century, the state of the Teutonic Order existed. It waged many wars - sometimes successful, expanding their state, but the closer the timeline to the present, the more often the Teutons conceded on the battlefield.
Especially heavy was their defeat in the Thirteen Years' War against Poland. This was the final blow to Teutonic Order- the desire to maintain power and get away from the wrath of the Pope. Master Albrecht of Brandenburg adopted Protestantism, thanks to which Prussia became a secular state. He also became a vassal of the Polish king. The former master did many things useful for the state. For example, he carried out social reform and opened the first university. In addition, thanks to him, Prussia is the first state in history with the Protestant faith dominating at the official level.
The Duchy of Prussia did not last long - the son of Albrecht was ill and after the death of his father could not take the throne, and then died unexpectedly. The next heir to the dukedom was
Kingdom of Prussia within Poland
Having received new lands at his disposal, the ruler thought what Prussia would become. Kingdom seemed the best option, as it significantly increased the prestige of the monarch. Now he was twice ruler.
Like any kingdom within a kingdom, Prussia was quite independent. It had its own laws, its own court. Even its army functioned separately from the Polish one. In addition, the territories of the state grew rapidly, as the king of Prussia understood that only by gathering powerful and strong support around him, they could resist Poland and return to their German origins.
However, such drastic measures were not required. At the time of the formation of Prussia as a German state, Poland was at war with Sweden, and she needed the help of the allies. The Brandenburg prince Friedrich Wilhelm I agreed to lend a helping hand to his neighbors on the condition that he gets Prussia - the land that he, as the largest German prince, considered primordially German, and therefore his own.
Thanks to this deal, the Principality of Brandenburg-Prussia was formed, which was destined to play a huge role in the political life of Europe in the future.
Independent Kingdom of Prussia
Thanks to his efforts and the inheritance of his father, the son of the Brandenburg prince, who conquered more and more land, and with it influence, was crowned. Frederick I ascended the throne in 1701, demonstrating to the whole world that Prussia was now an independent kingdom.
The maximum historical dawn of Prussia fell on the reign of Frederick. He is still considered one of the greatest kings of Europe, since he carried out many reforms - he strengthened the economy of Prussia, thanks to which the treasury was able to finance the army with astronomical sums. He made profound changes in education, state apparatus and military affairs.
Thanks to the huge number of wars, in which for some reason it was necessary for the king of Prussia to intervene, his state was overgrown with more and more lands, creating a reputation for the Prussians as one of the leading nations of the Old World. Only once did Prussia lose - Russian empire took part of the Baltic states for itself after the defeat in the battles against it during the Seven Years' War. However, even this defeat was not serious - under a peace treaty between Frederick II and Peter III, these lands returned to the Prussians very soon.
Unfortunately, after a powerful flowering, a rapid decline followed. The new king, Frederick II, could not hold power over such a huge state. His reign significantly weakened Prussia, but his son marked the final loss of Prussia's leading role in Europe.
But you can't really blame him for that either. The kings of Prussia would not have been able to withstand the avalanche of Napoleon's army. It swept away every state in its path. After the Napoleonic era, Prussia was restored in much smaller territories, and it seemed that she was destined to live her life until the complete loss of statehood, if not ...
German Empire
The great Otto von Bismarck, oddly enough, was a Prussian. With his appearance on the political scene, one can stop naming the Prussian kings - now they did not play a role in comparison with the "Iron Chancellor".
Bismarck was the minister-president of Prussia and a passionate admirer of the idea of a unified German state. At that time, this seemed impossible - the German territory could fit a dozen warring small states and one weakened Austria. However, Bismarck would not have been a great ruler if he did not have a clear and unshakable plan.
Step by step, he increased the power of Prussia, fighting with Denmark and taking away its territories. Bismarck only needed an excuse to attack Austria, and he turned up - a military conflict in Italy led to a seven-week war between Austria and Prussia, which ended in the unification of 21 German states and the creation of the German Empire. The King of Prussia became Kaiser and Bismarck became his chancellor.
The German Empire became one of the main states of the world. Not the last role in its composition was occupied by Prussia. The kingdom sank into oblivion, but it was the Prussians who set the cultural and political tone of the empire.
Unfortunately, Wilhelm II was not such a far-sighted politician. He removed Bismarck from office, and then began to pursue a complete conservatism internal politics and filled with sharp statements aggressive external. Having quarreled with the Russian and British crowns, he led Germany into isolation.
These events served as the main prerequisites for the outbreak of the First World War, after which the Second Reich fell forever. The November uprising tore apart Germany, making Prussia one of the small independent states who were forced to repay the debts of their big parent.
But as always happens in the history of Germany, when the chroniclers were ready to put an end to the history of a single state, a new identity, which is destined to gather around itself all the Germans.
Third Reich
As part of Prussia was one of the central regions.
Although Hitler did not divide Germany, an exception was made for this region.
In the state united by the Nazis, Prussia received autonomy, but had it only on paper. In fact, either Hitler or one of the heads of the Reichstag was the head of the autonomy, depending on the specific date.
It was in the Third Reich that Prussia finally blurred the boundaries of an independent state. Now it was part of Germany, even its former capital - Berlin - had long ceased to be associated with it.
After the defeat of Germany in World War II, part of the territory of Prussia, including the old Koenigsberg, was ceded to the USSR. The remaining territories remained with the GDR and the FRG.
Prussia at the end of World War II
Prussia in 1945 no longer represented anything at all. As a separate state, it did not exist even in theory, being considered a losing Germany. So the sun went down for one of the most influential powers in Europe. Or is there another unexpected twist ahead of us? After all, before the advent of Bismarck, Prussia prophesied the same thing.
Outcome
Prussia is one of the most controversial pages of German history. The state that laid the foundation for the existence of modern federal Germany, in fact, was independent for an incredibly small amount of time.
However, every time Prussia reappeared on the map, even in its smallest borders, it invariably proved that it was she who was the true strength of Germany, her heart and brain.
Somehow, the story again took on an ironic tone - the Prussians, the inhabitants of the Baltics, whom we must classify as Lithuanians and Estonians, are Germans even more than the Germans themselves. This is the mystery of Prussian history, but also its fascination - in endless victories and defeats in the fight against paradoxes.
