View of Löbenicht from the Pregel, including its
church and
gymnasium, as well as the nearby
Propsteikirche
Löbenicht (; ) was a
quarter of central
Königsberg
Königsberg (; ; ; ; ; ; , ) is the historic Germany, German and Prussian name of the city now called Kaliningrad, Russia. The city was founded in 1255 on the site of the small Old Prussians, Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teuton ...
,
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. During the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...
it was the weakest of the three
town
A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city.
The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...
s that composed the city of Königsberg, the others being
Altstadt
''Altstadt'' () is the German language word for "old town", and generally refers to the historical town or city centre within the old town or city wall, in contrast to younger suburbs outside. '' Neustadt'' (new town), the logical opposite of ...
and
Kneiphof. Its territory is now part of the
Leningradsky District Leningradsky District (Russian language, Russian: Ленинградский район) is the name of several administrative and municipal districts in Russia.
Districts of the federal subjects
*Leningradsky District, Krasnodar Krai, an adminis ...
of
Kaliningrad
Kaliningrad,. known as Königsberg; ; . until 1946, is the largest city and administrative centre of Kaliningrad Oblast, an Enclave and exclave, exclave of Russia between Lithuania and Poland ( west of the bulk of Russia), located on the Prego ...
,
Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
.
History
Early history
The predecessor of Löbenicht was the
Old Prussian
Old Prussian is an extinct West Baltic language belonging to the Baltic branch of the Indo-European languages, which was once spoken by the Old Prussians, the Baltic peoples of the Prussian region. The language is called Old Prussian to av ...
fishing village Lipnick (also ''Liepenick'' and ''Lipnicken'', meaning swamp village) with its harbor Lipza,
[Guttzeit, p. 11] which was conquered by the
Teutonic Knights
The Teutonic Order is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem was formed to aid Christians on their pilgrimages to t ...
during the 1255 conquest of
Samland. Although an initial
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany, the country of the Germans and German things
**Germania (Roman era)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
colony northwest of
Königsberg Castle
Königsberg Castle (, ) was the seat of the grand masters of the Teutonic Order and of the dukes and kings of Prussia in the city of Königsberg (since 1946 Kaliningrad, Russia). The original fortress on the site was built by the Teutonic Knights ...
was destroyed during the 1262
Siege of Königsberg, the Altstadt (
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany, the country of the Germans and German things
**Germania (Roman era)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
for "old town") south of the castle was granted
Kulm town rights in 1286. By the end of the 13th century settlement had spread east of Altstadt to Löbenicht. Altstadt and the new settlement of craftsmen and farmers were divided by the Lebo or Löbe, later known as the Katzbach, a stream running from the
Schlossteich to the
Pregel River. The Königsberg
Komtur
Commander (; ; ; ; ), or Knight Commander, is a title of honor prevalent in chivalric orders and fraternal orders.
The title of Commander occurred in the medieval military orders, such as the Knights Hospitaller, for a member senior to a Knight. ...
,
Berthold Brühaven, awarded the new settlement Kulm town rights in 1300. Although it was documented in 1299 as ''Nova civitas'' (''Neustadt'', new town), it was known as Löbenicht by 1338.
Königsberg's third town, Kneiphof, was founded in 1327. Each town had its own charter, market rights, church, and fortifications.
Löbenicht was the least powerful of Königsberg's three towns; unlike Kneiphof, Löbenicht was not a rival to Altstadt. Löbenicht's small ''
Freiheiten'' suburbs were Anger to the east and Stegen to the southeast. These districts were granted to Löbenicht by Grand Master
Frederick of Saxony in 1506. Anger contained Löbenicht's warehouses (see also
Lastadie) and farmland. Stegen (or Steegen), originally used for lumber, developed into the ''Neuer Markt'' (new market). Outlying villages and estates eventually controlled by Löbenicht included
Ponarth,
Maraunen,
Quednau, Radnicken, and the tile factory near the
Oberteich. Aside from Anger and Stegen, Löbenicht was bordered by
Burgfreiheit to the north,
Rossgarten to the northeast,
Neue Sorge to the east,
Sackheim to the southeast, and Altstadt to the west.
Thirteen Years' War
Altstadt and Kneiphof sent representatives to the
Prussian Confederation in 1440, although Löbenicht did not. As members of the Confederation, the Königsberg towns rebelled against the
Teutonic Knights
The Teutonic Order is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem was formed to aid Christians on their pilgrimages to t ...
on 4 February 1454 at the beginning of the
Thirteen Years' War and allied with King
Casimir IV Jagiellon
Casimir IV (Casimir Andrew Jagiellon; ; Lithuanian: ; 30 November 1427 – 7 June 1492) was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1440 and King of Poland from 1447 until his death in 1492. He was one of the most active Polish-Lithuanian rulers; under ...
of Poland. The rebellion in Königsberg was supported by the merchant class and led by Altstadt's
Bürgermeister, Andreas Brunau. Based upon the example of
Danzig, Brunau hoped to turn Königsberg into an autonomous city with control over all Sambia. On 19 June Löbenicht's Bürgermeister, Hermann Stulmacher, paid fealty to the Polish chancellor,
Jan Taszka Koniecpolski. However, Brunau lost the support of Altstadt and Löbenicht on 24 March 1455 due to spontaneous opposition from craftsmen and workers, with the rebels retreating to Kneiphof.
[Armstedt, p. 97] Löbenicht supported Plauen and Altstadt during the siege of the Kneiphof. The island town surrendered to Komtur
Heinrich Reuß von Plauen on 14 July.
Later history
left, View of the Neuer Markt and Löbenicht Church
Löbenicht became part of the
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia (, ) was a German state that existed from 1701 to 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1946. It played a signif ...
in 1701. In the same year the three towns resisted the efforts of Burgfreiheit to form a proposed fourth town, Friedrichsstadt. By the ''Rathäusliche Reglement'' of 13 June 1724, King
Frederick William I of Prussia
Frederick William I (; 14 August 1688 – 31 May 1740), known as the Soldier King (), was King in Prussia and Elector of Brandenburg from 1713 until his death in 1740, as well as Prince of Neuchâtel.
Born in Berlin, he was raised by the Hugu ...
merged Altstadt, Löbenicht, Kneiphof, and their respective suburbs into the united city of Königsberg. Königsberg Castle and its suburbs remained separate until the ''
Städteordnung'' of
Stein on 19 November 1808 during the era of
Prussian reforms.
[Gause II, p. 334] Much of Löbenicht, including its church, school, and hospital, burned down in a widespread fire on 11 November 1764 and had to be rebuilt.
Löbenicht was heavily damaged during the 1944
Bombing of Königsberg and 1945
Battle of Königsberg
The Battle of Königsberg, also known as the Königsberg offensive, was one of the last operations of the East Prussian offensive during World War II. In four days of urban warfare, Soviet Union, Soviet forces of the 1st Baltic Front and the 3 ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. Buildings which survived the war were subsequently demolished by the
Soviet
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
administration in Kaliningrad.
Buildings
The
Löbenicht Town Hall was later used by
Hartung Verlag, one of the city's largest newspaper publishers. The Protestant
Löbenicht Church dated back to the 14th century and was rebuilt in the Rococo style in the 18th century. The quarter's secondary school was
Löbenicht Realgymnasium, also known as the ''Städtisches Realgymnasium''.
In 1531 a convent in Löbenicht was converted into a hospital, which lasted until the great fire of 1764. The large rebuilt Löbenicht Hospital was dedicated in 1772. It was deteriorating by the 20th century, however, and was dismantled in 1903. Löbenicht Hospital's third incarnation was built not in Löbenicht, but on Heidemannstraße near
Sackheim Gate in eastern Sackheim.
Most of Königberg's breweries were located in Löbenicht during the 19th century, but by the 20th century they had been replaced by larger breweries in
Ponarth,
Schönbusch, and
Wickbold.
Notes
References
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*Karl, G. (1924). ''Geschichtliches Straßenverzeichnis der Stadt Königsberg in Preußen. Einleitung und Ergänzungen bis 1941 von Peter Wörster.'' Königsberg Pr.: Verlag der Königsberger Allgemeinen Zeitung und Verlagsdruckerei. pp. 176. Reprinted by Verein für Familienforschung in Ost- und Westpreußen e.V. Nr. 4. Hamburg, 1992.
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lobenicht
1300 establishments in Europe
1945 disestablishments in Germany
Former subdivisions of Königsberg
Members of the Hanseatic League
Populated places established in the 13th century