Kaliningrad and its new US$300m “Arena Baltika” stadium has been thrown into the spotlight by the football World Cup. But will the city’s latest project finally succeed in eclipsing its pre-war German history? Nestled between Lithuania to the north and east, Poland to the south, and the Baltic Sea to the west, Kaliningrad is today an “exclave” of Russia. But the region was once at the centre of European history and culture. Founded by the Teutonic knights in 1255, Königsberg or “King’s Mountain” – as Kaliningrad was once known – first developed as a Hanseatic commercial centre, and was made rich through trade in people, goods, and ideas. Expanding as a Baltic port city, it became the capital of East Prussia, and remained the coronation city of the Prussian monarchy even after the capital was moved to Berlin. A city of high culture, Königsberg became a capital for museums, theatre, art, and music. It was a hub in the German-speaking world for artists, musicians, philosophers and scholars of all kinds – famously serving as the lifelong home of the philosopher Immanuel Kant. Although separated from Germany proper by the Treaty of Versailles, and undoubtedly tarnished by Nazi rule, prior to World War II Königsberg had existed as a vibrant and significant centre of modernist culture at Germany’s easternmost frontier. Yet the outbreak of war in September 1939 was to have profound consequences for the region. Naruedom Yaempongsa / shutterstock Annexed by the Soviet Union in the wake of World War II, the region underwent one of the most radical erasures of history ever experienced. Due to its status as the USSR’s new westernmost frontier, the region took on a particular symbolic significance. From the outset, a clean break with the past was deemed essential for the Soviet project, and both city and region were renamed Kaliningrad, after Bolshevik revolutionary Mikhail Kalinin. The indigenous German population was expelled, and the territory was almost entirely repopulated with citizens from elsewhere in the Soviet Union. Kaliningrad was envisaged as functioning like a Soviet version of turn-of-the-century New York City – creating Soviet citizens from a melting pot of peoples of different backgrounds in the same way that Americans had emerged from a diverse New York. Central to this reorientation towards the east was to replace the remaining German architecture – already heavily damaged by RAF bomber raids during the war – with gleaming examples of Soviet Modernism. Most symbolically, following direct orders from Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev in 1967, the remains of the former Königsberg Castle that had once adorned the highest point in the landscape were levelled and replaced by a new building, the House of Soviets (Dom Sovetov). Overtly futuristic in design, it was to provide the physical manifestation of the societal transformation brought about by communism – a beacon of Soviet power at its westernmost frontier. Jamie Freeman , Author provided Yet the House of Soviets was never finished. Today, it stands empty, as it has done for more than 30 years. Referred to by locals as “The Monster”, it continues to occupy the central part of the city, standing as an uncomfortable monument to a history trying to be forgotten. In the official 2018 World Cup tourist guide, for example, the only reference to this founding pillar of Soviet Kaliningrad is as a point from which to direct visitors to the city to a plaque located on the rear wall of the castle ruins, on which is written one of Kant’s most famous quotes: “Two things fill the mind with ever new and increasing admiration and awe, the more often and steadily we reflect upon them: the starry heavens above and the moral law within.” Soviet history purged In fact, visitors to the city will find little mention at all of the Soviet history upon which Russian Kaliningrad is built. Since the fall of the Soviet Union, far greater focus has instead been devoted to pointing towards the region’s former German heritage, such as the 19th-century Koenig Gate, or Kant Island and its restored Königsberg Cathedral, which dates back to 1333 but was a ruin as recently as the 1990s. Even the “fishing village” gets a mention – a Disneyland-like “German” complex said to represent what the future centre of Kaliningrad will look like following its eventual reconstruction. Jamie Freeman , Author provided In other words, the focus has been on the history not just of, literally, a foreign country, but that of a city that had ceased to exist prior to the arrival of Kaliningrad’s current inhabitants – and the very same history that the Soviets spent nearly half a century trying to erase. Olga Popova / shutterstock But the extravagance of the new 35,000 capacity Arena Baltika – in a city where the local team, FC Baltika, typically attracts just 4,000 fans – is an attempt to once again use bold architectural statements as a means of shifting the region’s focus back towards the east. Yet it is also a reminder to the West of Vladimir Putin’s exclave in the very heart of Europe; home to the Russian Baltic Fleet base and, most recently, a permanent holder of the “Iskander-M” mobile short-range nuclear-capable ballistic missile. As one of the most militarised regions of Russia, there is undoubtedly more at play here than just football. More evidence-based articles related to the World Cup:<doc-sep>If you want to experience a snapshot of the many identities of Kaliningrad, the host of England’s final group match, it is enough to take a trip to the vacant, marshy island in the middle of the city. In the centre of that island is the restored German cathedral, the final resting place of philosopher Immanuel Kant. There you experience the city’s past, its life as Königsberg, trading port and capital of East Prussia. Look up and you see the city’s more overwhelming Soviet identity in the House of Soviets, an unmistakable brutalist structure. Built on the grounds of a 700-year-old castle, the building is known locally as “the monster” or “buried robot”. Recommended What to do in Kaliningrad besides the football To your left, you see checkpoints and security officers consistent with the region’s present status as a militarised exclave. And to your right, past the fishing village, is a new 35,000-seater £200m football stadium – a vision of shining modernity that authorities hope represents the city’s future. Russia’s westernmost territory – nestling between Belarus, Lithuania and Poland – was handed to the Soviet Union as part of the Potsdam settlement. Then, its isolation was but a theoretical matter. Everyone, after all, was a happy comrade. But after the fall of the Soviet empire, borders suddenly mattered. Kaliningrad found itself as an exclave, separated from “big Russia”, as the mainland is known locally, by 200 miles. Ever since then Kaliningrad has served as a weather vane of external relations – acting either as a bridge or a geopolitical bubble, depending on the Kremlin’s mood. Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia Show all 28 1 /28 Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A boy hangs from a goalpost in St. Petersburg Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia Self-made goalposts stand on a soccer pitch in Verkhnyaya Biryusa village, located in the Taiga area near the Russian Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A boy rides a bicycle near a goalpost in Yevpatoria, Crimea Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia Hay fills a goalpost during the traditional Cossack games outside the village of Arkhonskaya in the Republic of North Ossetia, Alania Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A car is seen through a goalpost while driving along a road in the Siberian village of Tyulkovo Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia Children play at a goalpost during the traditional Cossack games outside the village of Arkhonskaya in the Republic of North Ossetia, Alania Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A goalpost stands in the village of Pribrezhnoye, Crimea Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia People and dogs walk near a goalpost on the Ostrov Otdykha (the Island of Rest), located in the middle of the Yenisei River Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A boy rides a gyro-scooter near a goalpost on a football pitch in the Siberian town of Divnogorsk Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia Cossacks sit on a bench next to a goalpost covered with a screen during the traditional Cossack games outside the village of Arkhonskaya in the Republic of North Ossetia Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A goalpost stands in front of an Orthodox church in the Siberian village of Tyulkovo Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia Goalposts lay on the ground as people gather at a flooded beach on the bank of the Volga River in Samara Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A goalpost stands in Yevpatoria Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A man sits on a goalpost in the settlement of Novo-Schedrinskaya, Chechnya Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A participant is seen through a goalpost during an amateur football tournament at the Zenit Arena, a stadium made from straw, in Stravropol Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A goalpost in a yard of a Stalin-era high-rise building in Moscow Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia Goats walk near a goalpost in the village of Pervomayskoye, Crimea Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A goalpost stands at a tourist centre on the bank of the Belyo Lake in the Republic of Khakassia, Siberia Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A goalpost stands in the town of Dolgoprudny in the Moscow region Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A man runs near goalposts on a football pitch in a settlement in Stavropol region Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A dog stands near a goalpost in Ryazantsevo settlement in Yaroslavl region Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia Children play with a puppy near a goalpost on a football pitch in the Siberian settlement of Novosyolovo Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A goalpost stands in the village of Lesnovka, Saksky district, Crimea Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A goalpost stands in the village of Zhuravli, Crimea Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A man rides a horse near a goalpost in the village of Bolshaya Dzhalga in Stavropol region Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A goalpost stands in Sevastopol, Crimea Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A cadet holds a model of a sword in front of a goalpost as he trains at the stadium of the General Yermolov Cadet School in Stavropol Reuters Away from the World Cup: the secret lives of goalposts in Russia A goalpost stands in the village of Glinka, Saksky region, Crimea Reuters In the 1990s, following nearly half a century as a closed armed garrison, the region transformed itself into Russia’s Hong Kong. European business made it their tax-free Russian home. In the early Putin years, issues over visa-free travel for locals were the harbinger of the larger impasse that would come. Today, Kaliningrad has become an unforgiving mirror on east-west anxieties. It has become, in the words of Nato commander General Philip M Breedlove, a “very militarised piece of capital”. The strategic importance of Kaliningrad comes down to two things, says Justin Bronk, a research fellow at the RUSI defence and security think tank based in London. First, the exclave extends the range of Russia’s powerful anti-ship and anti-aircraft missiles significantly; now they cover much of Nato’s eastern territories in Poland and the Baltic states. Second, its position limits the capacity of Nato ground forces to defend the Baltic border by reducing the gap through which troops can move. ✕ England fans celebrate after beating Tunisia in first game at Russia 2018 World Cup In recent years, Russia has invested in a huge modernisation of Kaliningrad’s missile systems. It brought in nuclear-capable, dual-purpose Iskander-M systems to the region – temporarily, the Kremlin insists. There is evidence that Russia may be upgrading nuclear missile storage facilities. Mr Bronk says the west is right to be concerned: “The Russians may insist the redeployment is temporary, but in the absence of inspections we have to assume the missiles remain.”<doc-sep>England fans are being warned to allow themselves at least five hours to cross the land borders into the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad as security forces remained on high alert to prevent possible attacks. Soldiers carrying Kalashnikovs interrogated one supporter with a misspelling on his Fan ID, a document that allows visa-free travel into the country for those with match tickets, while road blocks were established on routes into the city. About 5,000 England supporters are expected in Kaliningrad for the World Cup match against Belgium. Many have taken advantage of cheaper flights into Poland and Lithuania, the countries that border the Russian territory. Some have arranged bus transfers with others arriving by taxi or even hitchhiking over the two land entry points in a bid to see whether England, with passage to the knockout stages assured, can beat Belgium and top their World Cup group. But on Wednesday, at the border between the Polish town of Braniewo and the Russian settlement of Mamonovo they were subjected to fastidious security checks. Ronnie Glassgow and Charlie Smith, friends from Romford in Essex paid £500 each for their tickets for the match. They took a seven-hour taxi transfer from Warsaw to Kaliningrad, the westernmost World Cup host city, which was German until 1946. “The police and soldiers at the border weren’t taking any chances,” said Glassgow. “It took at least two hours to get in. My name on the Fan ID is incorrectly spelt Glasgow, like the city, so they pulled me to one side and a soldier carrying a gun was forcefully asking me a load of questions.” The pair decided they were going to travel to Russia on Sunday, convinced in their decision by a notable absence of the trouble in the country that had been feared. “We’d heard about all the issues but it seems like none of that has happened and everyone was having a great time,” said Smith. “So we decided to come over. You can’t help but get excited about England particularly after their 6-1 win over Panama.” World Cup fever has not yet hit Mamonovo, the first Russian town England fans will hit as they travel over the Polish border by rail or road. About 3 miles (5km) from the crossing, the town was formerly known by its German name Heiligenbeil until after it fell to the Red Army in 1945. Amid monuments paying tribute to Nikolay Mamonov, the Soviet commander from which the town received its name, there are many signposts of its German history. The dilapidated red brick post office still bears the horn, a German institution emblem. Several England fans paid 100 roubles (£1.20) to take the hour long minibus journey from here to Kaliningrad. But while the host city is overtaken by Russia 2018 branding and billboards there was no obvious sign of a football frenzy in Mamanovo – as two men rode wild horses through the main square and locals gathered around a stall selling kvass, a popular Russian drink. Fans are also set to face extra checks at road blocks on the tree-lined highway between Mamonovo and Kaliningrad. One reported having a picture of their passport taken by a soldier demanding to know their future travel plans. Security was also tight at Kaliningrad’s main bus terminal as a few dozen England fans arrived on coaches from Lithuania. Military police used bomb detectors to scan the undercarriage of the vehicles. The fan zone, overlooked by the House of Soviets, a 21-storey derelict behemoth often referenced as one of the ugliest buildings in Russia, was also fiercely protected by hefty concrete blocks and soldiers carrying guns.<doc-sep>
The world’s biggest country has a geopolitical oddity: the region of Kaliningrad. This enclave is a fragment of Russian territory the size of Yorkshire, squeezed between Poland and Lithuania. The capital is also called Kaliningrad, and is the westernmost host city in the 2018 World Cup. It is far from the vast majority of Russia; Amsterdam is as close to Kaliningrad as Moscow is. Recommended What to do in St Petersburg besides watching the World Cup As Königsberg, it was the capital of Prussia, which in turn became the mainstay of the German Empire. During the Second World War the city and its Baltic shore was a key military base, and was flattened first by British bombing in 1944 and a bloody attack waged by the Soviet Red Army. The region was assigned to the USSR at the Potsdam Conference, and resurrected as Kaliningrad – named for Mikhail Kalinin, chairman of the Central Executive Committee of the Congress of Soviets during the first part of the Stalin era. Today, Kaliningrad is one of the most cosmopolitan cities in Russia, with an attractive strip of seaside to the north. Culturally, the region is firmly Russian, but Kaliningrad has plenty in common with the Baltic Republics of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, as well as eastern Poland. Getting there The easiest access from the UK is via Gdansk in Poland, which has direct flights from many British airports. Some direct buses run from Gdansk airport to Kaliningrad, but if there are none ready to go then catch regular bus 210 to the main railway station in Gdansk. Spend the equivalent of £5 on the one-hour inter-city train to the small city of Elblag, from where there will be buses to Kaliningrad or as far as the border at Braniewo in Poland. (From here, it is standard practice to hitch-hike across the frontier; pedestrians are not allowed.) Trains run from the westernmost station in Russia, Mamonovo, to Kaliningrad’s Yuzhny (South) railway station in the south of the city, and adjacent to the international bus station. Getting around Buses, trolleybuses, trams and minibuses (known as marshrutki, or route taxis) are efficient. Network maps appear unobtainable so ask locals for the right number to catch to your destination. (The tourist authorities recommend approaching people under 30, since they are likely to speak English.) On match days, supporters with a Fan-ID travel free. On other days the flat fare is only 20 roubles, the equivalent of 25p. Taxis are reasonably cheap and drivers usually honest. Check in On match nights, conventional hotel accommodation is thin on the ground, but many citizens are advertising beds in their apartments for typically £30 per night. Be warned that for “informal” accommodation, you may need to go to the police to register your presence in Russia; proper hotels will do this routinely at no charge. For the England game there’s a pop-up campground nine miles out which is asking £50 a night for a place in a two-person tent. Seeing the sights Points of interest begin as soon as you leave Yuzhny station: the statue of Kalinin stands opposite. Five minutes’ walk to the west stands Brandenburg Gate: one of eight impressive entrances to the city, and the only one still to be used. The main attraction is the redbrick Gothic Königsberg cathedral, rebuilt with the help of German donations. It was once the heart of a vibrant city-centre community. But everything around it was destroyed in the Second World War, and it now stands amid greenery on Kant Island – named for Immanuel Kant, the philosopher who believed perpetual peace could be secured through universal democracy and international cooperation. The final days of German control are chronicled in the Bunker Museum, which is rather hard to find north-east of Lenin Avenue; it’s hidden in a patch of waste ground near the junction of Shevchenko Street. If you can see the mural of Soviet goalkeeping legend Lev Yashin, you are close. Team spirit: the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, overlooking Victory Square in Kaliningrad (Simon Calder) The admission fee of 150 roubles (£2) gives access to a warren of 21 rooms buried 20ft below the ground. It was the headquarters of General Lyash, who in April 1945 surrendered to the Soviet Red Army in a bid to save the lives of the surviving citizens. The hub of the 21st-century city is Victory Square (Ploshchad Pobedy), dominated by the modern Cathedral of Christ the Saviour.