Overview[]
Baltiysk (Russian: Балти́йск), known prior to 1945 as Pillau (Polish: Piława; Lithuanian: Piliava), is a seaport town and the administrative center of Baltiysky District of Kaliningrad Oblast. Baltiysk is the westernmost town of Russia since it is located on the northern part of the Vistula Spit, on the shore of the Strait of Baltiysk separating the Vistula Bay from the Gdańsk Bay. The town is a major naval base of the Baltic Fleet and a ferry port on the route to St. Petersburg. The Population was: 32,670 (2010 Census preliminary results); 33,252 (2002 Census); 27,070 (1989 Census).
History[]
It was once a Prussian fishing village that came in to existence at some point in the 13th century, taking its name from 'pils', the Old Prussian word for "fort".
A major sea storm created the navigable lagoon in front of the village on 10 September 1510, which fostered the growth of Pillau into one of the most important port of the Duchy of Prussia. A blockhouse was constructed in 1537, followed by a system of storehouses in 1543 and the earliest recorded fortifications in 1550.
During the Thirty Years' War, the Swedes occupied the harbour in the aftermath of their victory over the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Sweden’s King Gustavus Adolphus landed at Pillau with reinforcements in May 1626. After the Ceasefire of Altmark (1629) took place the Swedes retained Pillau and upgraded its fortifications. They constructed a star fort which remains one of the town's landmarks. In 1635 the citizens of Pillau paid a ransom of 10,000 Thalers, whereupon Swedish forces handed over the settlement to the Elector of Brandenburg.
In June 1807, Napoleon's Grand Army took Pillau by storm. Records of a rumored Scottish "Colony" established here in 1815 appeared in a local 1890 Publication, although its authenticity is at best questionable. The port's lighthouse was built up to a height of 3,138 meters, and the entire fortress was updated and rebuilt by the Prussians in 1871.
The evacuation of German civilians fleeing the Red Army as it aprocehed Pillau was on 26 January 1945, and the rest were forcibly expelled by the Soviets.
During the Cold War the port was served by the Baltiysk air base. The Port, along with the port at Kaliningrad, remains one of only two, all year-round, ice-free ports along Kaliningrad Oblast's Baltic Sea coastline.
Historic buildings[]
The historical buildings associated with town include the pentagonal Pillau Citadel, founded by the Swedes in 1626, which was completed by the Prussians in 1670, renovated in 1870 and currently holding a naval museum.