Königsberg

Königsberg (, ) was the historic German name of the city that is now modern-day Kaliningrad, Russia. The city was founded in 1255 on the site of the Old Prussian settlement Twangste by the Teutonic Knights during the Baltic Crusades. It was named in honour of King Ottokar II of Bohemia, who led a campaign against the pagan Old Prussians, a Baltic tribe that was native to the area.

A Baltic port city, it successively became the capital of the State of the Teutonic Order and the Duchy of Prussia. Königsberg remained the coronation city of the Prussian monarchy from 1701 onwards, though the capital was Berlin. From the thirteenth century, it was inhabited by Germans and Old Prussians, then also by Poles, Lithuanians and French from the 14th, 15th and 17th centuries, respectively. Although a predominantly German-speaking city, it had a profound influence upon the Lithuanian and Polish cultures. It was a publishing center of Lutheran literature; this included the first Polish translation of the New Testament, printed in the city in 1551, as well as the first book in Lithuanian and the first Lutheran catechism, both printed in Königsberg in 1547.