Kaliningrad
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Kaliningrad (English) Калининград (Russian) |
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Old Königsberg amid the modern Kaliningrad |
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Location of Kaliningrad Oblast on the map of Russia |
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Coordinates Coordinates: |
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Coat of Arms | Flag |
City Day: July 4; observed on first Saturday of July | |
Administrative status | |
Federal subject In jurisdiction of Administrative center of |
Kaliningrad Oblast Kaliningrad Oblast Kaliningrad Oblast |
Local self-government | |
Charter | Charter of Kaliningrad |
Municipal status | Urban okrug |
Head (Mayor) | Alexandr Yaroshuk |
Legislative body | City Council of Deputies |
Area | |
Area | 215.7 km² (83.3 sq mi) |
Population (as of the 2002 Census) | |
Population - Rank - Density |
430,003 inhabitants 42nd 1,993.5/km² (5,163.1/sq mi) |
Events | |
Founded | 1255 |
City rights | 1286 |
Transferred to the Soviet Union | 1945 |
Renamed Kaliningrad | 1946 |
Other information | |
Postal code | 236010 |
Dialing code | +7 4012 |
Official website | |
http://www.klgd.ru/ |
Kaliningrad (Russian: Калининград) is a seaport and the administrative center of Kaliningrad Oblast, the Russian exclave between Poland and Lithuania on the Baltic Sea. The territory borders on NATO and EU members Poland and Lithuania, and is geographically separated from the rest of Russia.
What remained of the largely destroyed Polish town of Królewiec, which had been founded in 1255, was occupied by the Soviet Army in 1945 and renamed Kaliningrad in 1946. In the meantime, the name was briefly Russified as Kyonigsberg (Кёнигсберг).
At the 2002 Census, its population was 430,003, an increase from the 401,280 recorded in the 1989 Census. Its ethnic composition is 77.9% Russians, 8.0% Belarusians, 7.3% Ukrainians and 1.9% Lithuanians.[1]
Contents |
[edit] History
[edit] As Königsberg
The castle of Königsberg was built in 1255 by the Teutonic Knights as a tribute to King Ottokar II of Bohemia, who had led a campaign against pagan Sambians. The town became a member of the Hanseatic League, then in 1457 headquarters of the Teutonic Order, and seat of the secular Duchy of Prussia in 1525. Königsberg became a centre of education when the Albertina University was founded by Duke Albert of Prussia in 1544. By the act of coronation in Königsberg in 1701, Prince-elector Frederick III of Brandenburg became Frederick I, King in Prussia. After World War I, the creation of the Polish Corridor cut off East Prussia and Königsberg from the rest of mainland Weimar Germany.
In the bombing of Königsberg in World War II in 1944, the town suffered heavy damage from British air attacks and burned for several days. The historic city center, including Altstadt, Löbenicht and Kneiphof, was completely destroyed: the cathedral, the castle, all the churches of the old city, the old and the new universities and the old shipping quarter were destroyed. The Battle of Königsberg raged all through February and March 1945. The city was bombed and shelled continuously. On April 9 the German military commander surrendered the remnants of his forces. About 50,000 survivors (out of Königsberg's population on January 1, 1940 of 372,270) remained in the ruins of the devastated city. The remaining German residents were expelled from 1945–48.
[edit] Soviet Union
At the end of World War II in 1945, the city became part of the Soviet Union pending the final determination of territorial questions at the peace settlement (as part of the Russian SFSR) as agreed upon by the Allies at the Potsdam Conference:
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 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 and 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 the actual frontier. The President of the United States and the British Prime Minister have declared that they will support the proposal of the Conference at the forthcoming peace settlement.[1]
Koenigsberg was renamed Kaliningrad in 1946 after the death of Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR Mikhail Kalinin, one of the original Bolsheviks. The German population was expelled and the city was repopulated with Russian citizens. Life changed dramatically: the city had a new name (Kaliningrad), and German was replaced by Russian as the language of everyday life. The city was rebuilt, and went through industrialisation and modernisation. As one of the westernmost territories of the USSR, the Kaliningrad Oblast became a strategically important area during the Cold War. The Soviet Baltic Fleet was headquartered in the city in the 1950s. Because of its strategic importance, Kaliningrad was closed to foreign visitors.
In 1957 an agreement was signed and later came into force which delimited the boundary between Poland and the Soviet Union. (Full text: [2], for other issues of the frontier delimitation see [3])
[edit] Russian Federation
Kaliningrad is the only Russian Baltic Sea port that is ice-free all year around and hence plays an important role in maintenance of the Baltic Fleet.
Due to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Kaliningrad Oblast became an exclave, geographically separated from the rest of Russia. This isolation from the rest of Russia became even more pronounced politically when Poland and Lithuania became members of NATO and subsequently the European Union in 2004. All military and civilian land links between the region and the rest of Russia have to pass through members of NATO and the EU. Special travel arrangements for the territory's inhabitants have been made.
Today, there is some debate about changing the name of the city back to "Königsberg" in the same way that several other Russian cities have reverted to their pre-Soviet names, e.g. St. Petersburg and Tver, which were known in the Soviet era as Leningrad and Kalinin, respectively. "Kyonig" (a shortened Russian form of "Königsberg") is often used in advertisements for tourism companies in the region. Another possibility would be to give it a Russian name similar to other historic Slavic names, such as "Korolevsk".[citations needed]
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.
[edit] Geography
Kaliningrad is located at the mouth of the navigable Pregolya River, which empties into the Vistula Lagoon, an inlet of the Baltic Sea.
Sea vessels can access Gdańsk Bay and the Baltic Sea by way of the Vistula Lagoon and the Strait of Baltiysk.
Until circa 1900 ships drawing more than 2 meters (7 ft) of water could not pass the bar and come into town, so that larger vessels had to anchor at Pillau (now Baltiysk), where merchandise was moved onto smaller vessels. In 1901 a ship canal between Königsberg and Pillau was completed at a cost of 13 million marks, which enabled vessels of a 6.5 meters (21 ft) draught to moor alongside the town. (See also Ports of the Baltic Sea.)
Khrabrovo Airport is located 24 kilometers (15 mi) north of Kaliningrad, and has a few scheduled/charter services to several destinations throughout Europe. There is the smaller Kaliningrad Devau Airport for general aviation. Kaliningrad is also home to Kaliningrad Chkalovsk naval air base.
Weather averages for Kaliningrad | |||||||||||||
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Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 12.7 (55) |
15.6 (60) |
23.0 (73) |
31.7 (89) |
30.6 (87) |
33.5 (92) |
36.3 (97) |
36.5 (98) |
31.2 (88) |
26.4 (80) |
19.4 (67) |
13.3 (56) |
36.5 (98) |
Average high °C (°F) | -0.3 (31) |
0.1 (32) |
4.5 (40) |
11.1 (52) |
17.2 (63) |
20.6 (69) |
22.1 (72) |
21.7 (71) |
17.4 (63) |
11.9 (53) |
5.5 (42) |
1.9 (35) |
11.2 (52) |
Average low °C (°F) | -5.4 (22) |
-5.4 (22) |
-2.3 (28) |
2.3 (36) |
6.8 (44) |
10.7 (51) |
13.0 (55) |
12.5 (55) |
9.2 (49) |
5.1 (41) |
1.0 (34) |
-2.6 (27) |
3.8 (39) |
Record low °C (°F) | -32.5 (-27) |
-33.3 (-28) |
-21.7 (-7) |
-5.4 (22) |
-3.1 (26) |
0.7 (33) |
4.5 (40) |
1.6 (35) |
-2.0 (28) |
-11.2 (12) |
-18.7 (-2) |
-25.6 (-14) |
-33.3 (-28) |
Precipitation mm (inches) | 57 (2.24) |
40 (1.57) |
43 (1.69) |
37 (1.46) |
53 (2.09) |
71 (2.8) |
80 (3.15) |
90 (3.54) |
89 (3.5) |
79 (3.11) |
91 (3.58) |
73 (2.87) |
803 (31.61) |
Source: Pogoda.ru.net[2] 8.09.2007 |
[edit] Main sights
It has been suggested that Music of Kaliningrad be merged into this article or section. (Discuss) |
- Königsberg Cathedral
- Sackheim Gate, Royal Gate and Brandenburg Gate (Königsberg)
- Dom Sovyetov of Kaliningrad
- Cathedral of Christ the Saviour (Kaliningrad)
- Kaliningrad Zoo (formerly: "Königsberg Tiergarten") and former Ostmesse locality
- Ploshchad Pobedy (city centre)
- Immanuel Kant State University of Russia (located on the campus of the former University of Königsberg)
- old fortifications
- World Ocean Museum/Oceanic museum
[edit] Economy
In 1996 Kaliningrad was designated a Special Economic Zone. Manufacturers based there get tax and customs duty breaks on the goods they send back to Russia. Although corruption was an early deterrent, that policy means the region is now a manufacturing hub. One in three televisions in Russia is made in Kaliningrad, and it is home to Hummer and BMW car plants. Now Kaliningrad's major industries are manufacturing, shipping, fishing and amber products. Moscow has declared it will turn the region into "the Russian Hong Kong". [3]
The European Commission provides funds for business projects under its special programme for Kaliningrad. The region has begun to see increasing trade with the countries of the EU as well as increasing economic growth and rising industrial output. With an average GDP growth of more than 10% per year for three years to 2007, Kaliningrad is growing faster than any other region in Russia, even outstripping the success of its EU neighbours.[4]
[edit] Military
Kaliningrad Oblast is the most heavily militarized area of the Russian Federation, and the density of military infrastructure is the highest in Europe. It was the headquarters of the former Soviet Baltic Military District. Kaliningrad also functions as the headquarters of the Russian Baltic Fleet, circled by Chernyakhovsk (air base), Donskoye (air base) and Kaliningrad Chkalovsk (naval air base). Since 1991 the Russians have transferred numerous tactical nuclear warheads to the enclave (exclave).[5]
[edit] Sports
Kaliningrad is home to the football club FC Baltika Kaliningrad, which plays in the Russian First Division.
[edit] Notable residents
- See also: List of people from Königsberg
- Writers
- Sergey Snegov (1910–1994), science fiction writer
- Athletes
- Sergei Beloglazov (born 1956) Olympic wrestler
- Alexander Volkov (born 1967), tennis player
- Max Levintas (born 1953), karate coach, Distinguished Coach of Russia (highest coaching honor in Russian sports)
- Aleksei Leonov (born 1934), first person to walk in space
- Viktor Patsayev (1933–1971)
- Yuri Romanenko (born 1944)
- Alexander Viktorenko (born 1947)
- Others
- Oleg Gazmanov (born 1951), singer
- Lyudmila Putina (born 1958), wife of Vladimir Putin, former First Lady of Russia
- Tvangeste, black metal band
- Sergei Orlov M.D., Ph.D (born 1961), neurosurgeon
[edit] Twin Towns - Sister Cities
Kaliningrad is twinned with:
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Kaliningrad Oblast
- ^ "Pogoda.ru.net" (in Russian). Retrieved on September 8, 2007.
- ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/6048708.stm 'Kaliningrad erases stains of past' 16 October 2006
- ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/country_profiles/6177003.stm 'Regions and territories: Kaliningrad' 18 December 2007
- ^ Bill Gertz, "Russia Transfers Nuclear Arms to Baltics," Washington Times, 3 January 2001, p. 1.
- ^ "Twin Cities". The City of Łódź Office. (in English and Polish) © 2007 UMŁ. Retrieved on 2008-10-23.
- Vesilind, Priit J. "Kaliningrad: Coping with a German Past and a Russian Future", National Geographic, March 1997.
[edit] External links
- Kaliningrad Castles (In English)
- Online guide to Kaliningrad — Kaliningradcity.ru (In english)
- Information Tourist Center of Kaliningrad Region — Kaliningrad.ucoz.ru (In english)
- City and Reagen news Portal - RuGrad.eu
- City Portal — Kaliningrad.ru
- Online Kaliningrad guide & listing
- Official site of Kaliningrad City Hall
- Photos of Kaliningrad
- Kaliningrad Photo Gallery — Reisebilder aus Königsberg
- The Film Königsberg is dead, France/Germany 2004 by Max & Gilbert (German) (English)
- Territory's history from 1815 to 1945 (German)
- BBC News profile of Kaliningrad
- Photos of Pre-War Koenigsberg and Castle photos
- Interactive Map with photos of Königsberg and modern Kaliningrad
- Direct link to photo album from above site
- Site with 400+ side-by-side photos of 1939/2005 identical locations in Königsberg/Kaliningrad (Russian) (German)
- Northeast Prussia 2000: Travel Photos
- An argument in favour of changing the name back to Königsberg
- Kaliningrad and the Konigsberg Bridge Problem at Convergence
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