Kaliningrad is an administrative province of Russia, with no land borders linked to it, as it overlooks the Baltic Sea and is located between Lithuania and Poland on the European continent, but throughout its history it was considered a military city.

The city was previously called "Königsberg" when it was the capital of Prussia, and that name means "Mountain of the King", before it changed its name after it fell to the Soviet Union during World War II in 1946.

The military importance of Kaliningrad appeared 4 centuries ago when the Russian Emperor Peter the Great began building the Baltic Fleet. Today, Russia considers it an important military region because of its strategic location in central Europe and its view of the Baltic Sea.

After the war that Russia launched against Ukraine in February 2022, Kaliningrad became the focus of important events, after Lithuania announced its intention not to allow the Russian railways to transport materials and goods through its territory to the province.


Strategic location

Although Kaliningrad is a Russian administrative province, it is not linked to Russia by any land borders, and it is 300 kilometers from Russian soil to the west.

Kaliningrad overlooks the Baltic Sea and is located in the heart of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) between Lithuania in the north and east and Poland in the south.

It is one of Russia's 46 regions.

With an area of ​​15,000 square kilometers, it is the second largest city in the North-West Federal District, after Saint Petersburg.

It takes 20 hours by train from Moscow.

The city is characterized by the presence of slopes, hills and low swamps, and its forests consist of oak, pine, fir and beech trees whose wood is used in the manufacture of furniture.

And Kaliningrad is one of the important regions for Russia militarily, geographically and politically, especially after the escalation of tension between Russia and the NATO countries, which Russia accuses of expanding towards its borders and sees this as a security threat to it.

Kaliningrad was considered a military city throughout its history, from Prussia and Germany to the Soviet Union. Its view of the Baltic Sea made it an excellent choice for establishing military bases to defend the eastern borders.

population

The population of Kaliningrad is estimated at about one million people, 80% of whom are of Russian origin, and the Germans left it or left after the Soviet Union took over it in 1946.

Date

The city was previously the capital of the Teutonic Knights (Temple Knights), then a province in the state of "East Prussia" until it became in 1946 under the control of the Soviet Union, and the Germans ceded it under the Potsdam Agreement in 1945.

Königsberg, its old name, grew up around a castle built by the Teutonic Knights on a hill in 1255 at the request of the King of Bohemia, after whom the city was named.

Its location was formerly close to the "Stendamm" area in present-day Germany.

But after it was destroyed by the Prussians in 1263, it was rebuilt within the present city limits.

The trade of the region was subjected to many obstacles due to the continuous change of control over it, and because of the severe destruction inflicted on it after the First Northern War, which was between 1655 and 1660, until it recovered at the end of the 17th century.

During the Seven Years' War (1756-63) the region was first considered part of Russia in 1758, but in 1762 it was returned to the Kingdom of Prussia.

During the 19th century, trade was active in the region after the opening of the railways in Prussia, which became the first outlet for Russian foodstuffs such as grain, seeds and flax.

During the First World War, the city was besieged, but the Soviets failed to take it, but they returned and besieged it during the Second World War for more than two months.


Much of the city and its most important landmarks were destroyed by World War II, including the historic 14th-century Königsberg Cathedral, the Teutonic Knights Castle, and Albert I University, founded in 1544.

After the Soviet Union took control of it, it was rebuilt and Mikhail Ivanovich changed its name to Kaliningrad in 1946, and it became a major industrial and commercial center in the region.

In 1947 the entire German population was evicted from it, settled in West and East Germany, and replaced by residents of Russia and Belarus, to live there.

For a long time Kaliningrad was a closed city due to its strategic location, but with the collapse of the Soviet Union, everything changed, and the status of the 200 square kilometer area changed after Lithuania declared independence in 1990.

The late Soviet leader Joseph Stalin had demanded before that - during the Tehran Conference in 1934 - the transfer of Koenigsberg and East Prussia to the Soviet Union, because the country did not have enough ice-free ports on the Baltic Sea.

After the Russian war on Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Lithuania restricted Russian rail transportation to the Kaliningrad region, and banned the transportation of sanctioned goods to the strategic region based on EU sanctions.

This ban includes products made of iron, steel and some other metals, as well as caviar, alcohol, fertilizers, wood, goods made of wood, glass containers and cement.

Russia has repeatedly threatened Poland and the Baltic states with military action since the start of the Russian war on Ukraine.

Estonian officials accused Russia of simulating a missile attack on their country and violating its airspace with a helicopter on June 18, 2022, the first time that a Russian helicopter entered Estonian airspace.

Landmarks

Kaliningrad - which is also called the city of amber stones - is characterized by its architecture influenced by ancient European history, specifically during the period of German and then Soviet control.

One of its most important landmarks is Königsberg Cathedral, a Christian church built in the Gothic style, and containing the tomb of the philosopher Immanuel Kant.

It is now a museum that includes many artifacts, such as buttons, coins, keys, books, and others.

Its second most prominent feature is the King's Gate, one of the seven surviving gates in the city when it was under German rule.

It was built in August 1843, with the participation of the city's nobles and the king of Prussia at the time, and its construction was completed in 1850, and its purpose was to fortify the city by building walls next to it, but due to military changes it lost its function at the beginning of the 20th century.


Economy

Kaliningrad is a major transport hub in Russia, due to the large and well-developed network of railways, highways, sea and river ports and the "Khrabrovo" International Airport, and the headquarters of the Baltic Sea Fleet of the Russian Navy is located in Kaliningrad.

Its industry depends on engineering, metalworking, papermaking, and amber production, and fishing on the coast is one of its main occupations.

The city's agriculture focuses on grain, potatoes and cow's milk.

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The city was famous for its distinguished personalities in several fields;

In the political sphere, the name of Frederick, Duke of Saxony, the 36th Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, was born in 1474 and ruled from 1498 to 1510 until he died in 1510.

In the scientific field, the famous scientist Philip Johann Ferdinand Schorr was a botanist, pharmacologist and chemist, of Austrian origin, but he was born in Königsberg when the Germans ruled the region in 1799, and he died in 1878.

Among its most prominent figures in philosophy at the time was Immanuel Kant, born in Königsberg on April 22, 1724, who composed his critical trilogy “Critique of Pure Reason”, “Critique of Practical Reason”, and “Critique of the Queen of Judgment”, and he died on February 12, 1804 and his tomb is located The cathedral was built in the 14th century.