District of Mohrungen

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
District area around 1910
Location in East Prussia
Coat of arms of the Mohrungen district, designed by Otto Hupp , awarded by the Prussian State Ministry in 1928

The Mohrungen district was a district in the southwest of the Prussian province of East Prussia . It existed from 1818 to 1945 and belonged to the Königsberg administrative district . The seat of the district administration was the city of Mohrungen .

geography

The district of Mohrungen in its borders from 1815 was the westernmost district in East Prussia. It was in the Oberland , a hilly, wooded landscape with height differences of up to 100 meters. Large parts belonged to the Eylauer Seenplatte , and with the Geserichsee the longest lake in East Prussia with a length of 27 kilometers lay in the district area. The Geserichsee was also the starting point of the Oberland Canal , which, leading to Elbing , crossed the district from south to north. Another important body of water was the Passarge , which also formed the eastern border.

In terms of the number of lakes, the district of Mohrungen with 88 lakes was the district with the most lakes in the province of East Prussia. The total water surface of the district was 8,652.87 hectares . The largest lakes (each with over 200 hectares of water) were the Geserichsee (2384.27 hectares in the district), the Nariensee (1096.71 hectares), the Flachsee (635.81 hectares), the Röthloffsee (617.73 hectares), the Ewingsee (525.32 hectares), the Bärtingsee (363.11 hectares), the Große Gehlsee (260.42 hectares in the district) and the Große Rotzungsee (235.47 hectares); eight other lakes had a water surface of over 100 hectares.

From time immemorial the important trade route Elblag - Warsaw led through the area of ​​the later district. It was expanded into a permanent road in the middle of the 19th century . The railway construction reached the district in 1882 with the section of the Prussian State Railway Marienburg - Allenstein with a train station in Mohrungen. The city of Saalfeld was connected to the rail network in 1893 with the Elbing – Osterode line . From Mohrungen, a line to Wormditt was built in 1896 , which was extended south to Osterode in 1902. In 1860 the Oberland Canal was opened, which cut through the district in the west and was an important waterway in East Prussia until the First World War .

There were 83,832 hectares of agricultural land and 24,552 hectares of forest land in the district. A total of 64 percent of those employed in the district worked in both areas. In 1939, 4667 farms were registered. In addition, the industry was relatively underdeveloped. The only major operation was the spinning mill on Gut Workallen , which started operations in 1937, with around 800 employees. A sawmill in Mohrungen processed the wood cut in the nearby forests.

Administrative history

prehistory

The district of Mohrungen was in the area of ​​the historical landscapes Pomesania and Pogesania described by the chronicler Peter von Dusburg in 1324 . This area between the Vistula and the Passarge was already settled in the Neolithic Age (4000 BC) and has remained continuously inhabited until modern times. At the latest in the Roman Empire (1st to 3rd century AD) Germanic tribes already lived here . When they withdrew to the west during the migration of peoples from the 6th century, the Prussians followed them from the Baltic region . They lived in the area until they were pushed back to the east by the Teutonic Order from 1231 onwards.

After the conquered territories of the order had been merged into an orderly state through the move of the Grand Master to the Marienburg in 1309, commanderies were set up to administer the country . The area of ​​the later district of Mohrungen belonged in the north to the Elbing Commandery, the south to the Christburg Commandery. Under the protection of the castles erected by the order, immigrants mainly from Central Germany (Thuringia and Harz) were settled in these commanderies. The first town charter was granted at the beginning of the 14th century. Of the towns in the district in 1939, Saalfeld received town charter as early as 1305. After the defeat of the order against Poland in the Battle of Tannenberg in 1410 until the conclusion of the Second Peace of Thorne in 1466, the district was under Polish rule.

As a result of the Reformation , the Teutonic Order was secularized in 1525 and the Order State was converted into the Duchy of Prussia . The commanderies were replaced by circles, the later district of Mohrungen became part of the Oberland district. Of the also newly formed main offices, the offices of Mohrungen and Prussian Mark were located in the later district area.

The Mohrungen District from 1752 to 1818

After the establishment of the Kingdom of Prussia , the administrative system was reorganized and the individual parts of the country were divided into new districts. For the later East Prussia this regulation came into force in 1752, and with it a district Mohrungen was created, with the seat of the district administrator in the city of Mohrungen. The following cities belonged to the then district area:

From the administrative reform in 1818 until after the end of the Second World War

With the "Ordinance due to improved establishment of the provincial authorities" of April 30, 1815, with effect from 1818, the newly formed districts of Osterode and Prussian Holland brought about a territorial change in the district area. The district of Mohrungen was subordinated to the administrative district of Königsberg , and the district area now only included the three cities of Liebstadt, Mohrungen and Saalfeld. As the first district administrator, Carl von Sydow took up his official duties in the district town of Mohrungen on February 1, 1818.

The new district included the parishes of Alt Christburg , Altstadt , Arnsdorf, Eckersdorf, Herzogswalde, Jäskendorf , Kahlau, Liebstadt , Liebwalde, Miswalde, Mohrungen , Reichau, Saalfeld , Samrodt, Schnellwalde , Silberbach, Simnau , Sonnenborn and Venedien, Weinsdorf and Wilmsdorf.

Since December 3, 1829 the district - after the merger of the previous provinces of Prussia ( not : East Prussia) and West Prussia - belonged to the new province of Prussia with its seat in Königsberg .

Since July 1, 1867, the district belonged to the North German Confederation and from January 1, 1871 to the German Empire . After the division of the province of Prussia into the new provinces of East Prussia and West Prussia, the Mohrungen district became part of East Prussia on April 1, 1878.

On September 30, 1928, a regional reform took place in the Mohrungen district in line with developments in the rest of Prussia, in which almost all previously independent manor districts were dissolved and assigned to neighboring rural communities. In 1908 the district of Mohrungen still had 101 manor districts, in 1945 it was only one.

In 1939 the following figures were published:

  • Area: 1265 km²
  • Population: 55,046 (including 51,711 Evangelicals, 2,665 Catholics, six Jews)
  • 112 municipalities, of which with more than 1000 inhabitants:

In January 1945 the Red Army had reached the borders of the district in the course of their winter offensive. The district's National Socialist Gauleitung issued an evacuation order on January 22, according to which the population of the western district area should flee towards Elbing and from the eastern part via Heilsberg . However, given the poor road conditions and the rapid advance of the enemy troops, the escape ended in chaos. At the end of January 1945, the entire district was taken by the Red Army.

In the summer of 1945, the district of Mohrungen was placed under Polish administration by the Soviet occupying power in accordance with the Potsdam Agreement, along with the southern half of East Prussia and all of West Prussia .

After the takeover by the Polish administration, the Powiat Morąski ( Mohrunger Kreis ) was created, which took over the borders and the district seat of the Mohrungen district , but was not subject to the same. In the period that followed, the German population, unless they had fled, was largely expelled from the district by the local Polish administrative authorities . Some of the newly settled residents came from the areas east of the Curzon Line that fell to the Soviet Union .

Today the district is in the north-west of the Polish Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship . The eastern part of the former district belongs to the powiat Ostródzki ( Osteroder district ), the west mainly to the powiat Iławski ( German Eylauer district ).

District administrators

Compilation partly after Wrangel, page 429

Administrative division on January 1, 1945

The administrative districts were introduced in 1874 and existed until 1945 with only minor changes. In 1928, as in all of Prussia, the estate districts in the Mohrungen district were dissolved. Therefore there were some administrative districts that only consisted of one or two municipalities, because the number of administrative districts (at least in the Mohrungen district) was not reduced at the same time.

District associated communities and manor districts
Old Bestendorf Municipalities of Alt Bestendorf, Groß Wilmsdorf and Samrodt
Old Christburg Municipalities of Alt Christburg , Bensee, Buchwalde, Görken , Mortung and Mothalen
Old Christburg Forest (only) manor district Alt Christburg, Forst
Arnsdorf Communities Barten , Bündtken and Great Arnsdorf
Except Municipalities of Auer, Kerpen, Schliewe and Weepers
Bauditten (only) municipality of Bauditten
Bolitten Bolitten municipality (only)
Eckersdorf Municipalities of Eckersdorf, Gubitten, Horn, Kranthau, Reußen and Schwenkendorf
Georgenthal Municipalities of Georgenthal, Groß Hermenau and Wiese
Gerswalde Gerswalde , Motitten and Schwalgendorf
Gottswalde (only) community Groß Gottswalde
Great Simnau (only) municipality of Simnau
Hanswalde Municipalities of Bagnitten, Groß Hanswalde , Klein Hanswalde and Linkenau
Herzogswalde Municipalities of Banners, Groß Trukainen, Herzogswalde, Pittehnen, Prägsden and Reichenthal
Himmelforth Municipalities of Golbitten, Güldenboden, Himmelforth, Paradies and Schertingswalde
Jäskendorf (only) Jäskendorf municipality
Kahlau Municipalities of Hagenau, Kahlau, Königsdorf and Rollnau
Carcuts Municipalities of Dittersdorf, Karnitte, Schnellwalde and Schönaich
Koschainen Municipalities of Kornellen, Koschainen, Sadlauken and Skollwitten
Crests Municipalities of knolls and sorbers
Liebwalde Municipalities of Boyden, Heinrichsdorf, Liebwalde and Taabern
Maldeuten Municipalities Freiwalde and Seegertswalde
Miswalde Municipalities of Kolteney and Miswalde
Munsterberg (only) community Groß Münsterberg
Nickelshagen Municipalities of Groß Sauerken, Nickelshagen, Winkenhagen and Wodigehnen
Poerschken (only) municipality of Pörschken
Ponaria (only) municipality of Ponarien
Prussian mark Municipalities of Goyden , Kunzendorf, Preußisch Mark and Vorwerk
Prökelwitz Municipalities of the old town and Prökelwitz
Reichau Municipalities of Reichau and Willnau
Reichertswalde Municipalities of Goldbach , Reichertswalde, Silberbach and Sorrehnen
Sassen Municipalities of Löpen, Pollwitten and Sassen
Sonnenborn Bärting and Sonnenborn communities
stollen Communities of Klogehnen, Paulken, Polkehnen, Sportehnen and Stollen
Terpene Gergehnen and Terpen municipalities
Venice (only) Municipality of Venice
Waltersdorf Towns of Kallisten, Seubersdorf and Waltersdorf
Weinsdorf Municipalities of Kämmen, Paulehnen and Weinsdorf

literature

  • Gustav Neumann : Geography of the Prussian State. 2nd edition, Volume 2, Berlin 1874, pp. 21-22, item 17.
  • Prussian Ministry of Finance: The results of the property and building tax assessment in the Königsberg administrative district : Berlin 1966, Mohrungen district, pp. 1–35.
  • Adolf Schlott: Topographical-statistical overview of the government district of Königsberg, according to official sources . Hartung, Königsberg 1861, pp. 163-172.
  • From the past and present of the Mohrungen district. Published as an annex to the administrative report for 1928 by the district committee of the Mohrungen district. Mohrungen: Self-published by the district committee in 1930. Entry in the catalog of the German National Library
  • Wolf Freiherr von Wrangel, Der Kreis Mohrungen. An East Prussian homeland book. Würzburg: Holzner 1967. Entry in the catalog of the German National Library
  • Contributions to the customer of Prussia . Volume 2, Koenigsberg 1819, pp. 494-495.
  • Ernst Vogelsang, Die Post in the district of Mohrungen. A contribution to the history of the post in East Prussia. Hermannsburg: Missionshandlung Hermannsburg 1980. ISBN 3-87546-019-7
  • Between Narien and Geserich: Pictures from the Mohrungen district. Compiled by Ernst Vogelsang on behalf of the Mohrungen district community. With the collaboration of Erich Przetak and a contribution by Willy Binding. Leer: Rautenberg 1982. ISBN 3-7921-0263-3
  • Ilmar Degen, escape, expulsion and deportation: using the example of the district of Mohrungen, East Prussia. Kreisgemeinschaft Mohrungen, 2001. Google Books (also online)
  • Mohrunger Heimatkreis-Nachrichten . Published by the Kreisgemeinschaft Mohrungen eV (in the East Prussian Landsmannschaft) with the support of the sponsored city of Gießen. Eitorf u. a .: District community Mohrungen 1971ff. Entry in the catalog of the German National Library

See also

Web links

Commons : Kreis Mohrungen  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ The standing waters of the province of East Prussia. List of lakes in the administrative districts of Allenstein, Gumbinnen, Königsberg. Neudamm and Berlin: Neumann 1931. Digitized
  2. ↑ http://territorial.de/ostp/mohr/gem1908.htm
  3. ^ Rolf Straubel : Biographical manual of the Prussian administrative and judicial officials 1740–1806 / 15 . In: Historical Commission to Berlin (Ed.): Individual publications . 85. KG Saur Verlag, Munich 2009, ISBN 978-3-598-23229-9 , pp. 462 ( limited preview in Google Book search).
  4. ↑ Ludwig Wilhelm Brüggemann : Detailed description of the current state of the Kgl. Prussian Duchy of Western and Western Pomerania . Part II, Volume 2, Stettin 1784, p. 1082, No. 90 .
  5. ↑ Von Sydow had been the district administrator of the previous Mohrungen district since 1813.
  6. ↑ Detailed information on the individual administrative districts can be found on this page: