Old Town (Koenigsberg)
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Altstadt was one of the three sub-cities of Königsberg . In 1785 the suburbs Steindamm , Neurossgarten , Laak and the Lastadie , the Lomse with the Weidendamm , the Royal Castle , Tragheim and part of the castle freedom belonged to it . From 1255 to 1701, the old town with the Königsberg Castle located there was the residence of the Teutonic Order State and the later Duchy of Prussia . Therefore, administrative institutions have always been formative for this city.
history
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In 1262 the city was attacked and burned down by the Prussian leader Nalube from Quednau . After Nalube was defeated, the city was rebuilt in 1264. Because of its convenient location, protected by walls and towers, the city was settled by German craftsmen and merchants and visited by ships coming from the sea. In 1286 the old town received its first privilege from Landmeister Konrad von Tierberg . This oldest part of town was initially only called Königsberg and was only called the old town when the new town was created with the Löbenicht around 1300.
Along with the castle, the Steindamm is the oldest built-up part of the old town. The old town's own power increased after the order's lost battle of Tannenberg , and every now and then lawlessness broke out, for example when some citizens in Löbenicht demolished houses in 1414, allegedly because they were too close to the city wall. Ultimately, Grand Master Küchmeister von Sternberg had to agree to accept two members of the old town into the regional council. In 1445 the old towners were given permission to build the high bridge so that they did not always have to cross the Kneiphof .
Famous were the craftsmen's festivals in the old town, which were held in baroque splendor: the boatman's stabbing, the carpenters' ax dance, the cutler's sword dance, the baker's big striezel and the butcher's long sausage . May 1st was the feast day of the brewers and maltsters who went with their wives from the Kneiphöf'schen common garden through all three cities to Maraunenhof and made all sorts of jokes. On Ascension Day, the Schmeckbierfest was held in the castle courtyard and was celebrated for the last time in 1619. At the fair, the butchers led an ox decorated with colored ribbons through the town, around which dice were then rolled in the old town garden. This festival lasted until 1766. About the carnival time, the clergy complained about the annoying and pagan nature, because not only the same time to eat a lot of money to the wretched Satan, drink, play, mumming, sing around the Worst, thereby collecting all sorts of loose servants to drink money, and others Carelessness is not wasted without pain from pious and hardworking masters, but also our Christianity is defended and God's name is defeated by the adversaries, Calvinists and adversaries . In 1595 and 1606, dress codes stipulated what everyone had to wear down to the smallest detail, while other regulations stipulated the amount of effort that was allowed to go into weddings, funeral ceremonies and other celebrations and how long they could last. In 1639 the Königsbergers could see an elephant for the first time.
"In the old town the power,
in the Kneiphof the splendor,
in the Löbenicht the field,
on the Sackheim the rascals."
Today, in the area of the former old town, there are partly the Lenin Prospect (formerly Steindamm), the so-called Zentralplatz (former location of the castle) and extensive green spaces along the banks of the Pregel .
Sacred buildings
The old town church of St. Nicholas was consecrated to the patron saint of seafarers. After the Reformation it was given to the Poles living in the city as a place of worship.
The cathedral chapter dedicated to the Holy Spirit (Old Cathedral) in the neighborhood was later moved to the Kneiphof .
In 1785 the Polish Lutheran Church and the New Roßgärtsche Church are given as subsidiary churches of the Old Town Parish Church. In 1820 the churches belonging to the old town are listed: Royal Castle Church, Evangelical Parish Church in the old town, Evangelical Polish, the Neue Roßgärtsche, the Tragheimer, the prayer room of the Evangelical Brothers and the Mennonite Church on Tränkgasse.
literature
- Ludwig von Baczko : An attempt at a history and description of Königsberg. 2nd edition, Goebbels and Ungar, Königsberg 1804 ( online version ).
- Fritz Gause : Königsberg in Prussia . Rautenberg, Leer 1987, ISBN 3-7921-0345-1 , p. 76f.
- Johann Friedrich Goldbeck (Ed.): Complete topography of the Kingdom of Prussia . Part I: Topography of East Prussia , Königsberg and Leipzig 1785, reprint Hamburg 1990 ( full text )
- Samuel Gottlieb Wald : Topographical overview of the administrative district of the Royal Prussian Government in Königsberg Prussia , Königsberg 1820