Former East Prussia Architecture and Landscapes

[pofoka]

Thank you for your visit and your comments Karelia!

[pofoka]

In memoriam city of Königsberg

Königsberg is the former name of Kaliningrad (Калинингра́д) in the Russian Federation.
It was the easternmost large city in Germany until it was captured by the Soviet Union near the end of World War II.
City of Königsberg, the capital of the former German province of East Prussia. As a result of WWII, neither Königsberg nor East Prussia exists anymore.
Prior to 1945 Königsberg was the cultural and economic centre in the German province of East Prussia.
In 1944 the medieval city of Königsberg, which had never been severely damaged by warfare in its 700 years of existence, was almost completely destroyed by two Allied air raids on the night of 26/27 August 1944 and three nights later on the 29/30 August 1944.
The city was captured and annexed by the Soviet Union, its German population mostly expelled, and it was repopulated with Russians and other people from the Soviet Union.
The city is now the capital of Russia's Kaliningrad Oblast.
(Source: Wikipedia, and all photos source: http://canitz.org/)

Königsberg before World War 2

[pofoka]

In memoriam city of Königsberg

Königsberg before World War 2

[pofoka]

In memoriam city of Königsberg

Königsberg's symbol the castle the Königsberger Schloss

The Königsberg Castle (German: Königsberger Schloss) was a castle in Königsberg, and was one of the landmarks of the East Prussian capital Königsberg. Following the bombing of Königsberg by the Royal Air Force in the Second World War in 1944, the castle completely burnt down. However, the thick walls were able to withstand both the aerial bombing and Soviet artillery, as well as urban fighting in April 1945, allowing the ruins of the castle to stay standing. The largely demolished Königsberg became part of the Soviet Union and was renamed Kaliningrad in 1946.
Kaliningrad was to be rebuilt as a model town on the remains of Königsberg, without reminders of the German past left standing. Leonid Brezhnev consequently ordered that the remains of the castle be disposed of so they would no longer stand as a reminder of "Prussian militarism." Despite protests from students and intellectuals from Kaliningrad, the ruins of the castle were blown up on Brezhnev's personal orders in 1968. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The pictures source: http://foto-history.livejournal.com

[pofoka]

In memoriam city of Königsberg

Königsberg's symbol the castle the Königsberger Schloss

(The pictures source: http://foto-history.livejournal.com)

[pofoka]

In memoriam city of Königsberg

The "happy time of peace" in Königsberg

source: https://www.facebook.com/museumkoenigsberg (Музей города Кёнигсберг) and
https://www.facebook.com/myownkonigsberg

[pofoka]

In memoriam city of Königsberg

The "happy time of peace" in Königsberg

source: https://www.facebook.com/museumkoenigsberg (Музей города Кёнигсберг) and
https://www.facebook.com/myownkonigsberg

[pofoka]

In memoriam city of Königsberg

The "happy time of peace" in Königsberg

source: https://www.facebook.com/museumkoenigsberg (Музей города Кёнигсберг) and
https://www.facebook.com/myownkonigsberg

[pofoka]

In memoriam city of Königsberg

The "happy time of peace" in Königsberg

source: https://www.facebook.com/museumkoenigsberg (Музей города Кёнигсберг) and
https://www.facebook.com/myownkonigsberg

[pofoka]

In memoriam city of Königsberg

The "happy time of peace" in Königsberg

source: https://www.facebook.com/museumkoenigsberg (Музей города Кёнигсберг) and
https://www.facebook.com/myownkonigsberg

[pofoka]

In memoriam city of Königsberg

The "happy time of peace" in Königsberg

source: https://www.facebook.com/museumkoenigsberg (Музей города Кёнигсберг) and
https://www.facebook.com/myownkonigsberg

[Doktor Krollspell]

Hello Pofoka!

I would just like to thank you for collecting such wonderful pictures of pre-war Ostpreussen and presenting them in this thread. It's especially interesting to see the buildings, streets and city life of cities like Königsberg, Elbing et al, so please continue with your postings...


With best regards,

Krollspell

[pofoka]

In memoriam city of Königsberg

Dead of Königsberg - (During WW2 and 1945)


The bombing of Königsberg was a series of attacks made on the city of Königsberg in East Prussia during World War II. Extensive attacks carried by RAF Bomber Command destroyed most of the city's historic quarters in the summer of 1944. Königsberg was also heavily bombed during the Battle of Königsberg during the final weeks of the war. Estimated that 20% of industry and 41% of all the housing in Königsberg was destroyed. The historic city centre was badly damaged and the districts of Altstadt, Löbenicht, and Kneiphof were nearly destroyed. The city's 14th-century cathedral was reduced to a shell. Extensive damage was also done to the castle, all churches in the old city, the university, and the old shipping quarter.
In 1945, the prolonged battle of Königsberg inflicted further damage. More than 90% of the city had been destroyed when the Soviets occupied the city in April 1945. Under Soviet occupation, the entire German population was forcibly expelled from the city. It was then rebuilt as the Russian city of Kaliningrad.

source:
https://www.facebook.com/museumkoenigsberg (Музей города Кёнигсберг) and
https://www.facebook.com/myownkonigsberg
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[pofoka]

Hello Pofoka!

I would just like to thank you for collecting such wonderful pictures of pre-war Ostpreussen and presenting them in this thread. It's especially interesting to see the buildings, streets and city life of cities like Königsberg, Elbing et al, so please continue with your postings...


With best regards,

Krollspell

Thank you for your visit and your comments Krollspell! I really say thank you for it. I continue this post!
Greetings: Pofoka

[EPAZ1]

Awesome pictures, thank you for posting them.
One question: Why is there a photo of a B-29?