Kneiphof Town Hall () was the

town hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...

of insular

Kneiphof Coat of arms of Kneiphof Postcard of Kneiphöfsche Langgasse Reconstruction of Kneiphof in Kaliningrad's museum Kneiphof (; ; ) was a quarter of central Königsberg (Kaliningrad). During the Middle Ages it was one of the three towns that co ...

, first an independent town and later a quarter of

Königsberg Königsberg (; ; ; ; ; ; , ) is the historic Germany, German and Prussian name of the city now called Kaliningrad, Russia. The city was founded in 1255 on the site of the small Old Prussians, Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teuton ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. It served as Königsberg's city hall from 1724 to 1927, after which it became a museum until its destruction in 1944. The town hall, or

Rathaus In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...

, was located along Brodbänkenstraße. First documented in 1374, it was renovated in 1387. Political and religious disputes between the

Prussian estates The Prussian estates (, ) were representative bodies of Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), P ...

and ducal Prussian officials during the 1560s led to involvement by King

Sigismund II Augustus Sigismund II Augustus (, ; 1 August 1520 – 7 July 1572) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, the son of Sigismund I the Old, whom Sigismund II succeeded in 1548. He was the first ruler of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and t ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, sovereign of the

Duchy of Prussia The Duchy of Prussia (, , ) or Ducal Prussia (; ) was a duchy in the region of Prussia established as a result of secularization of the Monastic Prussia, the territory that remained under the control of the State of the Teutonic Order until t ...

. On 28 October 1566

Albert I, Duke of Prussia Albert may refer to: Companies * Albert Computers, Inc., a computer manufacturer in the 1980s * Albert Czech Republic, a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic * Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands * Albert Market, a street ...

, had the councilors

Johann Funck Johann Funck, Funk or Funccius (7 February 1518 – 28 October 1566) was a German Lutheran theologian. He was beheaded after a court intrigue. Life Funck was born in Wöhrd, now part of Nuremberg. After obtaining an M.A. at the University of Witt ...

, Matthias Horst, and Hans Schnell beheaded at the town hall's marketplace, with Johann Steinbach and Paul Skalich fleeing the country. From 1695 to 1697 the town hall received a Baroque restyling with pilasters, bell tower, roof sculptures, and a gilded staircase with a pair of shield-holding bear statues. With the unification of Kneiphof,

Altstadt ''Altstadt'' () is the German language word for "old town", and generally refers to the historical town or city centre within the old town or city wall, in contrast to younger suburbs outside. '' Neustadt'' (new town), the logical opposite of ...

, and

Löbenicht View of Löbenicht from the Pregel, including its church and gymnasium, as well as the nearby Propsteikirche Löbenicht (; ) was a quarter of central Königsberg, Germany. During the Middle Ages it was the weakest of the three towns that com ...

into Königsberg in 1724, the Kneiphof Town Hall was chosen as the city hall. In 1838 the building was expanded to the east with three windows. The magister's hall was decorated with a stucco roof by an unknown master. The city council met in the Junkersaal wing. Before the building was a monument of Hans von Sagan. In 1927 the city administration moved to the

Stadthaus Stadthaus is a nine-storey residential building in Hackney, London, completed in 2009. With nine stories (30 meters/98 feet), it was considered the second tallest timber residential building made of wood in the world at the time of its construc ...

in northern Königsberg, with a few departments remaining in Kneiphof. In the same year the painter Eduard Anderson advocated for the creation of the

Königsberg City Museum The former Kneiphof Town Hall housed the Königsberg City Museum The Königsberg City Museum () was a local museum in Königsberg, Germany. Kneiphof Town Hall had served as the city hall for united Königsberg since 1724. In 1927 the municipa ...

within the town hall, which opened in 1928. The Kneiphof Town Hall was destroyed in August 1944 during the

Bombing of Königsberg in World War II The bombing of Königsberg was a series of attacks made on the city of Königsberg in East Prussia during World War II. The Soviet Air Force had made several raids on the city since 1941. Extensive attacks carried out by RAF Bomber Command de ...

. Image:RathBrodbaenkenstrv.jpg, Postcard depicting the town hall and Brodbänkenstraße, ca. 1907 Image:RathausfassadeKönigsberg.jpg, Facade of the town hall

References

* * {{Authority control 1374 establishments in Europe 1944 disestablishments in Germany Buildings and structures completed in 1374 Buildings and structures demolished in 1944 Baroque architecture in Germany Buildings and structures in Germany destroyed during World War II City and town halls in Germany Former buildings and structures in Königsberg

See also

References