| Bagrationovsk (English) Багратионовск (Russian) Preußisch Eylau (German) |
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Location of Kaliningrad Oblast in Russia |
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Bagrationovsk
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| Administrative status | |
| Country | Russia |
| Federal subject | Kaliningrad Oblast |
| Statistics | |
| Population (2010 Census, preliminary) |
6,399 inhabitants[1] |
| Population (2002 Census) | 7,216 inhabitants[2] |
| Time zone | USZ1 (UTC+03:00)[3] |
| Founded | 1336[4] |
| Previous names | Preußisch Eylau (until 1945)[4] |
| Postal code(s) | 238420 |
Bagrationovsk (Russian: Багратио́новск; German: Preußisch Eylau; Lithuanian: Ylava or Prūsų Ylava; Polish: Pruska Iława or Iławka) is a town and the administrative center of Bagrationovsky District of Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia, located 37 kilometers (23 mi) south of Kaliningrad. Population: 6,399 (2010 Census preliminary results);[1] 7,216 (2002 Census);[2] 6,728 (1989 Census).[5]
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In 1325 the Teutonic Knights built a castle called "Yladia"[6] or "Ilaw", later known as "Preussisch Eylau", in the center of the Old Prussian region Natangia. Ylow is the Old Prussian term for mud or swamp. The settlement nearby developed slowly, but in 1348 the Teutonic Order gave the privilege to establish 12 pubs at the surrounding area of the castle. Even though the village had only a few inhabitants, due to its central position it was often used as meeting place for different officials of the Order. In 1427 e.g. the Eylau County Law (Eylauer Landesordnung) was published by the Order. Throughout the Thirteen Years' War the castle was besieged on May 24, 1455 by troops of the Prussian Confederation under the command of Remschel von Krixen, but the garrison defeated these troops. Also throughout the Horsemen's War in 1520 the castle was unsuccessfully besieged by Troops of the Polish Kingdom, which caused a devastation of the village itself.
Preußisch Eylau received its civic charter in 1585. In 1709 - 11 the Bubonic Plague caused the death of 2212 inhabitants of the Eylau area.
The bloody Battle of Eylau (7–8 February 1807) during the Napoleonic Wars involved the French troops of Napoleon Bonaparte, the Russian troops of General Bennigsen and Prussian troops of General Anton Wilhelm von L'Estocq.
While only three inhabitants of Eylau died throughout the battle, 605 persons died due to hunger and diseases in the year 1807 (average death rate in "normal" years: 80-90). Napoleon used the local courthouse as his headquarters in Eylau on February 7, - 17, 1807.
On April 1, 1819 the town became capital of the administrative district Preußisch Eylau (Kreis Pr. Eylau). In 1834 a Teachers' Seminary was founded, educating every East Prussian teacher until it was closed down in 1924. The town was connected to the railway on September 2, 1866. The town was occupied without a struggle by Russian troops on August 27, 1914, but these troops left again on September 3, 1914.
After 1933 large barracks were built by the Wehrmacht and in 1935 Infantry and Artillery units were stationed there.
On 9 February 1945, during the Soviet Red Army's East Prussian Offensive, the town was occupied by troops of the 55th Guards "Irkutsk-Pinsk" Division commanded by Major General Turtchinski. The German population that had not already fled during the evacuation of East Prussia was subsequently expelled, the last transport leaving on November 23, 1947. Soviet NKVD established a prison camp for German civilians inside the former Wehrmacht barracks in 1945-49. It held an estimated 13,000 inmates, of whom some 6,000 people died.[6] In early August 1945 Polish officials took over the administrative power in the town, but left again on January 1, 1946, as the new borderline between the Soviet Union and Poland was set just at the southern outskirts of the town. The Polish administrative area south of the border was called "Powiat Ilawka" until 1958.
In January 1946 the town became part of the Russian Kaliningrad Oblast and the town's name was changed to Bagrationovsk, honouring General Pyotr Bagration, who was one of the senior Russian leaders in the Napoleonic Wars.
Today the main border crossing point between Russia and Poland (Bezledy/Bagrationowsk) is located 2 km south of the town. Since April 2007, government restrictions on visits to border areas have been tightened and travel to the Sovetsk and Bagrationovsk areas is only allowed with special permission, unless in transit.
Bagrationovsk is twinned with:
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