Mamonovo


Mamonovo, prior to 1945 known by its German name Heiligenbeil, is a town in Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia. Population figures:

Etymology

Mamonovo is named after a Soviet Commander, Nikolay Mamonov, killed in action near Pułtusk on October 26, 1944, who was posthumously awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union on March 24, 1945.

History

Under the Teutonic Knights Heiligenstadt was built near an Old Prussian settlement. It was later renamed Heiligenbeil after a holy axe used by Augustinian monks, established in the area by Grand Master Winrich von Kniprode after the Battle of Rudau, to cut down an oak tree worshiped by pagan Prussians. It came under the bishopric Warmia, then to the territory of Natangia. Part of the Kingdom of Prussia, in Germany it was in the province of East Prussia.
Towards the end World War II in fierce fighting between January and March 1945 the Heiligenbeil pocket fell to the Red Army. It was captured by Red Army on March 26, 1945 and was soon integrated into the Kaliningrad Oblast. It took its present name in 1946. The defending 4th Army's archives were buried in a forest near the town and found in 2004, in an area still littered with debris from the final battles.

Administrative and municipal status

Within the framework of administrative divisions, it is, together with four rural localities, incorporated as the town of oblast significance of Mamonovo—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the districts. As a municipal division, the town of oblast significance of Mamonovo is incorporated as Mamonovsky Urban Okrug.

Notable people