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Elbląg

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Kpjas (talk | contribs) at 11:45, 23 August 2002 (Elbing and Elblag is the same place so it doen't make sense to make two separate External links sections). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Elblag (used to be named Elbing) is a city in northern Poland.

History of Elblag

The city of Elbing in Prussia was founded in 1237 by German tradesmen near the ruins of the Prussian fortress and trading settlement of Truso, on the ancient Amber Road in Pomesania.

Elbing as well as all of Prussia were by Holy Roman Emperor Friedrich II assigned to the government of the Deutsche Orden (German Order of Teutonic Knights), a religious order directly under the pope. The Teutonic Knights built a castle.

In 1241 Elbing received city rights modelled on those of Lübeck, unlike many other cities in east-central Europe, which received Magdeburg rights. A vocabulary was written in Elbing around 1350 in the Baltic Old Prussian language.

The trade cities Elbing , Danzig and Thorn were cities , who under the leadership of Imperial Cologne unified into the Hanseatic League. Luebeck and Danzig became leaders of quarter sections of the Hanseatic League.

In 1440 the eastern Prussian cities formed the Prussian Confederation which led the successful rising (1454) of Prussia against the rule of the Teutonic Order. Under imperial rule a new overlord was now needed to replace the Teutonig knights governship of Prussia. Prussian Confederation rule was offered to other German princes, then was offered to Lithuania's Jagiello ruler Casimir IV, husband of imperial member Elizabeth Habsburg and they agreed. When Casimir however tried to annex Prussia, the War of the Cities or Thirteen Years War broke out and a confusing time lead right into the Reformation. The government of Prussia, at that time still performed by the Deutsche Orden was only held by subjects of the imperial government and they did not pledge allegiance to the Polish crown, the grandmaster Friedrich of Saxony, refused and so did Albert of Prussia (Albrecht of Brandenburg Ansbach), grandmaster from 1511-1525.

Elbing in Pomesania came under the archdiocese of Ermeland, an excempt diocese ruled by a Prince-Bishop.

In the Congress at Vienna in 1515 emperor Maximilian I made an arrangement with Hungarian and Polish crown, held by Lithuanian grand duke Sigismund I, son of Casimir IV. Sigismund I Jagiello was already imperial duke of Silesia and was also king of Poland. In 1515 at the Conference of Vienna, emperor Maximilian I granted the fief of Prussia to Sigismund I. Grandmaster Albrecht of Brandenburg Prussia tried to rid Prussia of this arrangement in the Reiterkrieg which ended in a four year truce. Completely different arrangements came about with the Reformation and Abrecht secularized Prussia in 1525.

In 1535 the first Protestant Gymnasium was established in Elbing. Famous inhabitants of the city included Hans von Bodeck.

From 1579 Elbing had close trade relations with England, to which the city accorded free trade. English and Scots merchants settled in Elbing, and formed the Schottische Reformierte Kirche Elbing (Scots Reformed Church of Elbing). They remaining after occupation by Sweden and rivalry from nearby Danzig interrupted trading links. By 1618 Elbing left the Hanseatic League due to its close business dealings with England.

In 1772 Elbing lost its free-city status with annexation to the kingdom of Prussia, from 1871 a part of the German Empire. After [[World War I]], Elbing became a part of German province of East Prussia in 1920.

A large proportion of German-speaking inhabitants of Elbing fled when the Soviet armies approached the city. Almost all who had returned or remained, were expelled after it was taken over by the Soviet army and then transferred to Poland in 1945.

External links :

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