Posted on 11/11/2011 8:35:54 AM PST by ken21
In 1945, Stalin seized East Prussia, Germany's venerable redoubt on the Baltic Sea, as a spoil of war. A portion went to the "People's Republic" that the Soviets had just created in Poland. He kept the rest. The last surviving Germans were killed or deported. The cozy old Königsberg of the Teutonic Knights—the home, during the Enlightenment, of no less than Immanuel Kant—was transformed into Kaliningrad—a bleak Soviet place named after Mikhail Kalinin, the token peasant who was titular head of Stalin's USSR.
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How about a Right of Return?
doubtful.
putin’s working to re-establish the soviet sphere of influence.
Ironically, even though Koenigsberg was a German city, the king it was named for was a Slav—Ottokar II “the Great,” king of Bohemia from 1253 to 1278 (who was killed in a battle with Rudolf von Habsburg, the first Habsburg to be elected Holy Roman Emperor).
I pretty much covered that territory this past year. Many of the homes left by the Germans, have over the years, been neglected. Cemeteries where the Germans lived have also been uncared for. Not saying much, but even areas where the Russian soldiers are buried are also neglected. many old, what were beautiful German estates, were left to crumble. We could have bought what would cost here about 10M, a Chateau for about 250k-300k. But could we afford to heat it and keep it up? Not too many people spoke German, I had a Russian German with me so it made things easier. I wasn’t there to see the night life and follow the tourist trail, I was there to see what people don’t normally see, and I saw that for the most part they are us.
interesting.
what a cool name! ottokar ii.
we have our own gm
autocar 2 obama king.
Apparently Ottokar II rates a mention by Dante in the Divine Comedy (in the Purgatorio).
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