The cathedral in Kaliningrad. Kaliningrad: sightseeing

The amber region, so called the Kaliningrad region, is soaked through with history. Every stone here is a tourist attraction. The capital, the city of Kaliningrad, is the center of all that this region is famous for. Photos, attractions, lists of routes, descriptions of interesting excursions are widely available.

One of the tourist Mecca

The birthplace of Immanuel Kant is the most popular tourist destination. The richest history of the city, founded in 1255 by the King of Bohemia Przemysl II and the Master of the Teutonic Order von Wertgaint, is embodied in numerous buildings of various times. Each of the objects is a historical or architectural monument of some era. The city organically combines all styles and is one of the most beautiful "open-air museums" in Europe and the world. Therefore, the map of Kaliningrad with attractions is very popular. The main treasures of the city include the Museum of Amber and the Holy Family of the Holy Family, the Brandenburg Gate and the New Liberal Synagogue, the Cross Exaltation Cathedral and the Kaliningrad Zoo, the Lower Pond, the grave of the founder of the German classical philosophy of Immanuel Kant and the Christ the Savior Cathedral.

Business card of the city

But, perhaps, the main attraction is the Cathedral in Kaliningrad, a city that until July 4, 1946 was called Koenigsberg. Its name is a medieval settlement that arose on the site of the present hotel "Kaliningrad", received from the castle with the same name. At its walls a settlement of German colonists Altstadt (the old city) was formed, where from 1297 to 1302 the first cathedral of Koenigsberg, which was quite small in size, was erected by the efforts of Bishop Siegfried. And so already in 1327, at the request of the new Bishop Johann, the Master of the Teutonic Order singles out a plot of land for the construction of the main church on the island of Kneipkof (a peculiar feature of the city is its partial location on the islands).

Uniqueness of the Cathedral

The top quality of island soil and at times, when each house was a fortress, explains the unique architecture of the temple, which was originally planned as a mole house exclusively for knights. And only the extension to the one-nave part, called "High Choruses", the three-nave corps ("Lower Choruses"), the church became accessible to ordinary residents of the city. It is necessary to stipulate that the Cathedral in Kaliningrad during its existence was entrusted with the main and other functions. So, for a long time he was a church at the University of Albertina.

Multifunctionality of the main temple

In addition, the cathedral is the burial-vault of important historical figures, such as the first Prussian ruler and the last master of the legendary Teutonic Order, Duke Albrecht. A fragment of the tomb of his grave has survived to this day.
Lutter von Braunschweit, the founder of the cathedral, found peace here. The professors of the University of Albertina, the oldest in Prussia, were buried here, too. The last of them was Immanuel Kant. The professor's tomb connects the cathedral with the university, which is also famous for its Wallenrod Library, which is a unique collection of ancient manuscripts and scrolls.

Born Again

Needless to say that while in the heart of Europe, the Cathedral in Kaliningrad was repeatedly captured by the opposing forces, collapsed, burned and rebuilt. After the bombing of the Allies (British aviation) in 1944, which destroyed all load-bearing structures and ceilings, the temple, like the whole of Kneipkof, was destroyed. There are few walls of the cathedral, Kant's grave, some underground rooms. The old organ, restored in 1905, was also destroyed. The temple itself was completely restored only in 1992. He also had a new organ. Nowadays, the musical complex of the cathedral, consisting of their two organs (large and small), has no analogues. It is the largest in Europe. Dignity and uniqueness of the complex - the ability to play two instruments at the same time. The largest body is the largest in Russia, it has 90 registers. It is crowned by Phoenix, a bird that is the symbol of rebirth, in this case both the organ and the cathedral.

Rich History

Major destruction, as well as extensive restoration work, as a result of which the cathedral was transformed or enriched, the symbol of the city suffered much earlier. The history of the cathedral is very eventful. For its initial erection in a new place, a bridge was built, called the Cathedral. On it were delivered building materials from the disassembled old church to the island, because the new church was partially built from them. The cathedral in Kaliningrad is now inactive, it is a cultural and religious center. But at one time it was the main Catholic church in the city, and after the Reformation of the 16th century, the main Lutheran council was not only the city, but the whole of Prussia.

The fate of the organ is also unique

Over a long life the cathedral was refreshed. After the first major restoration of 1833, a new organ appeared here. The Cathedral (Kaliningrad) for its history had several of these tools. The first one was installed in 1695, the second one - in 1833, the current complex - in 2008. There is a lot written about this religious and cultural center, it is rightly considered a symbol of the city, its business card. But there is another cathedral in Kaliningrad - the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. This is an Orthodox church. Despite his more than a young age (he was consecrated by Alexis II on September 10, 2006), the cathedral, built in the center of the city on Victory Square, has its own history and is certainly a landmark of the city. Its lower part, in which the "Memel" iconostasis, donated in 1996, is a temple of military glory.

Temple-monument

The German Holy Prince-Vladimir brotherhood passed the iconostasis, created during the Seven Years' War (1756-1763) in Memel (Klaipeda) in honor of the dead Russian soldiers. Now, at the suggestion of the chairman of the brotherhood of Mr. GA Rahr, the lower part of the iconostasis is a monument-monument to all Russian soldiers who died on the territory of Prussia in the Seven-year and Napoleonic, First and Second World Wars. The main Orthodox church in the region is rightfully proud of Kaliningrad. The cathedral of Christ the Savior, executed in the style of Vladimir-Suzdal architecture, height of 73 meters, organically blended with the architecture of the ancient European city. Literally every object of the capital of the Amber Region can be spoken endlessly. But it is better to see the beauty that Kaliningrad is so rich in. Photos, attractions on which are depicted in the most favorable perspectives, are the best recommendations for visiting the city.

The westernmost territory of Russia

It should be noted that the peculiarity of the Kaliningrad region located in Central Europe lies in the fact that it is a semi-exclave of the Russian Federation that has access to the sea but does not have a common land border with the Russian Federation.

Naturally, such a unique location adds to its other merits halo attractive to many fans of the "Western world". And travel agencies take this into account. For residents of Russia, the city of Kaliningrad-Koenigsberg is full of attractiveness. He and the capital of the amber region, where the beaches are periodically covered, as it was just recently, these precious gifts of the sea, it is also the focus of the historical and architectural monuments of Europe. And all this is on the territory of Russia. For the older generation of the inhabitants of the CIS countries, Koenigsberg is one of the symbols of victory over fascist Germany. The great artist Vladimir Etush among the numerous military awards has a medal "For the capture of Koenigsberg". Among other advantages, this city is one of the symbols of Russia's military glory.

In a word, there are many reasons to visit this extraordinary city. The map of Kaliningrad with sights will allow you to give in advance a certain concept about how best to organize your acquaintance with this unique city of Russia, to chart for yourself the most desired objects, to find out their location, availability near the hotels, food outlets and the most convenient entrances to them both publicly And personal transport.