Brandenburg Castle
Brandenburg Castle
On the right bank of the Prokhladnaya River, directly by the bay shore, there are ruins of the Brandenburg castle. The castle was founded in 1266 by Margrave Otto III of Brandenburg during the third Crusade against the Prussian pagans, as a significant strategic point by the bay and a starting point for the development of nearby lands.
From the south and east the castle was surrounded by a moat filled with water, the level of which was regulated by a locks system. Only fragmentarily preserved elements, the remains of moats, foundations, protrusions of the relief, allow us to judge the former layout of the castle.
The first castle building (of wood and earth), dating from 1266, was soon destroyed in the course of the Prussian rebellion, but in 1267 it was rebuilt again (using stones in the defensive wall). In 1272-1290 the castle was built of bricks. The castle was a fortress of the irregular quadrangular form, which was separated from the faubourg by moats occupied by a lofty site. The faubourg square located to the south-west of the fortress was formed from two-storey extended buildings and a wall with a tower in the north.
The main entrance gate was located in the east, on the side from the present Kaliningrad highway. With the course of time, near the faubourg walls the village of Brandenburg appeared, which in 1513 received the rights of the urban settlement from the Grand Master of Brandenburg. In the village there was a parish church of the ??V century in which in 1380 the Order Komtur Guenther von Hohenstein was buried.
In 1266-1467 the castle of Brandenburg was the centre of the komturship. As early as 1437, 40 members of the Convent met there. From 1467 to 1499 after the resettlement of the Grand Master's residence from Marienburg to Koenigsberg, the castle was also the residence of the suzerain Hospitaller, in 1525 - 1752 it was the residence of the chief administrator, the administrator of the domain and the judicial officer.
Until the middle of the 18th century the citadel of the castle was completely preserved. After moving official housing to the faubourg in 1776, the destruction and decline began. In the 1800-1820s the ruins of the citadel were used for getting building materials.
At present, the reconstructed walls of the southern and western faubourg buildings can be seen. The castle citadel is now ruins overgrown with trees.
The information has been taken from the reference book Cultural Heritage Sites of the Kaliningrad Region. Compiled and edited by A.M. Tarunov (2013-2015)