East Prussia

East Prussia (German: Ostpreußen; Lithuanian: Ryt? Pr?sija; Polish: Prusy Wschodnie; Russian: ????????? ??????? — Vostochnaya Prussiya; Dutch: Oost-Pruisen; Spanish: Prusia Oriental;) was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and of the German Empire, situated on the territory of former Ducal Prussia. Today the northern part of East Prussia, with the exception of the "Memelland" which is now part of Lithuania, corresponds to Russia's Kaliningrad Oblast (Königsberg); the southern parts form Poland's Warminsko-Mazurskie Voivodship. East Prussia enclosed the bulk of the ancient ancestral lands of the Baltic Prussians.

The Kingdom of Prussia

Although Brandenburg remained theoretically subordinate to the Holy Roman Emperor, the Prussian lands were not within the Holy Roman Empire and were outside the jurisdiction of the Emperor. This independence allowed Elector Frederick III to crown himself King Frederick I in Prussia in 1701. The new kingdom ruled by the Hohenzollern dynasty became known as the Kingdom of Prussia.

Related Topics:
Holy Roman Emperor - Holy Roman Empire - Elector Frederick III - Prussia - 1701 - Hohenzollern - Kingdom of Prussia

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After the First Partition of Poland in 1772, Warmia (Ermland in German), part of the former Polish Royal Prussia, was merged with the eastern Duchy of Prussia. On January 31, 1773 King Frederick II (Frederick the Great) announced that the newly annexed lands were to be known as "Westpreußen" (West Prussia) and the old Duchy of Prussia was to be known as "Ostpreußen" (East Prussia).

Related Topics:
First Partition of Poland - 1772 - Warmia - Royal Prussia - January 31 - 1773 - King Frederick II - West Prussia

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