 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Neman, Russia" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(August 2011) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Neman Неман | |
|---|---|
 Castle ruins | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
Location of Neman  | |
  Neman Location of Neman Show map of Russia Neman Neman (Kaliningrad Oblast) Show map of Kaliningrad Oblast | |
| Coordinates:55°02′N22°02′E / 55.033°N 22.033°E /55.033; 22.033 | |
| Country | Russia |
| Federal subject | Kaliningrad Oblast[1] |
| Administrative district | Nemansky District[1] |
| Town of district significance | Neman[1] |
| Founded | 1288[2] |
| Town status since | 1722 |
| Elevation | 20 m (70 ft) |
| Population | |
• Total | 11,798 |
| • Capital of | Nemansky District,[1] town of district significance of Neman[1] |
| • Municipal district | Nemansky Municipal District[4] |
| • Urban settlement | Nemanskoye Urban Settlement[4] |
| • Capital of | Nemansky Municipal District,[4] Nemanskoye Urban Settlement[4] |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (MSK–1  [5]) |
| Postal code(s)[6] | 238710, 238711 |
| Dialing code(s) | +7 40162 |
| OKTMO ID | 27514000001 |
| Website | neman |
Neman (Russian:Не́ман;German:Ragnit;Lithuanian:Ragaĩnė), is atown and theadministrative center ofNemansky District inKaliningrad Oblast,Russia, located in the historic region ofLithuania Minor, on the steep southern bank of theNeman River, where it forms the Russian border with theKlaipėda Region inLithuania, and 130 kilometers (81 mi) northeast ofKaliningrad, the administrative center of theoblast. Population figures:11,798 (2010 Census);[3]12,714 (2002 Census);[7]13,821 (1989 Soviet census).[8]
Ragnita (fromOld Prussian:ragas, "spur"), founded in 1288,[2] was a settlement of theBaltic (Old Prussian) tribe ofSkalvians. It was contested by theGrand Duchy of Lithuania since its creation in the 13th century, and on April 23, 1289 it was conquered by theTeutonic Knights, who built a castle there between 1397 and 1409, which later became the seat of aKomtur. Construction works were supervised by the Master of the Teutonic Order Konrad Fellenstein of Marienburg.[9] A few decades later, a now-destroyed 25 meter guard tower was built onto the castle. The stronghold was calledLandeshut, but the name did not become popular and the name Ragnit, after a local river, atributary of the Memel (outside of Prussia calledNeman), continued to be used.
Although the settlement had an important castle not only guarding the Prussian lands of theState of the Teutonic Order from the north but also serving as a military base for the Knights' campaigns into adjacentSamogitia, it was living in the shadow of the nearby city of Tilsit (present-daySovetsk). After the dissolution of the Order's State under its last Grand MasterAlbrecht von Hohenzollern, Ragnit on April 10, 1525 became a part of theDuchy of Prussia, which was ruled by theHouse of Hohenzollern as a fief of theKingdom of Poland until 1657. The duchy was inherited by the Hohenzollern margraves ofBrandenburg in 1618, becoming an integral part ofBrandenburg-Prussia, whereby remote Ragnit retained its status as a regional capital.
Ragnit was devastated by Tatars during theSecond Northern War in 1656 and again bySwedish forces during theScanian War in 1678, while the "Great Elector"Frederick William of Brandenburg had achieved full sovereignty over Ducal Prussia by the 1657Treaty of Wehlau. His son and successor ElectorFrederick III elevated himself to aKingin Prussia in 1701. He granted Ragnittown privileges on April 6, 1722. It was again destroyed during theSeven Years' War, this time byRussian forces in 1757.
Incorporated into theProvince of East Prussia from 1815, Ragnit became a part of theGerman Empire upon the Prussian-ledunification of Germany in 1871. Its castle, having long lost its defensive purpose, became a court and prison. On November 1, 1892, a railroad line linking the town with Tilsit (now Sovetsk) was opened. It was built to develop the wood industry in the area, but the development did not actually start and the area's economy remained dominated by food production. When Germany had to cede theKlaipėda Region north of the Neman River to theConference of Ambassadors according to the 1919Treaty of Versailles, Ragnit became a border town. In 1922, it lost its status as an administrative capital in favor of Tilsit. It was the location of a Nazi prison underNazi Germany.[10]
DuringWorld War II, on January 19, 1945, Ragnit was captured without a fight by the3rd Belorussian Front of theRed Army in the course of theEast Prussian Offensive. Much of the town was destroyed, including the castle, which remains ruined. In accordance to the 1945Potsdam Agreement, the town became a part ofKaliningrad Oblast of theRussian SFSR. It was renamed to Neman in 1946.[2] Most of the local inhabitants who had not fled during the Soviet conquest ofEast Prussia were subsequentlyexpelled to Germany in accordance with the Potsdam Agreement.
Within theframework of administrative divisions, Neman serves as theadministrative center ofNemansky District.[1] As an administrative division, it is, together with nineteenrural localities, incorporated within Nemansky District as thetown of district significance of Neman.[1] As amunicipal division, the town of district significance of Neman is incorporated within Nemansky Municipal District asNemanskoye Urban Settlement.[4]
Located in the historic region ofLithuania Minor, for centuries Ragnit was an important center ofLithuanian culture. From 1549 to 1563, famous Lithuanian writer and translator (who wrote the first book in the Lithuanian language, "Catechismusa Prasty Szadei" ("The Simple Words of Catechism"))Martynas Mažvydas was priest and Archdiacon of Ragainė. While living in Ragainė he wrote "The Song of St. Ambrosy" (with a dedication in Lithuanian), translated "The Form of Baptism" from German into Lithuanian, published "The Prussian Agenda" into the prayer "Paraphrasis". One of his major works was "The Christian Songs" (Giesmės Krikščioniškos). In the 19th century, after theJanuary Uprising when theLithuanian language was banned from the office in all ofRussian-ruled Lithuania, books in that language were printed in Ragnit and then smuggled to Russia by theLithuanian book smugglers (knygnešiai). The first issue of the Lithuanian newspaperAuszra was published in the town in 1883. According to German data 17,500Lithuanians lived in the Ragnit district in 1890 (32% of the population).[11] In 2010Lithuanians composed 2.8% of the town population, being the third largest ethnic group afterRussians andBelarusians.
Neman istwinned with:
| National | |
|---|---|
| Geographic | |
