About the place

In 1252, where political will met spiritual vision, the idea of building a castle was born – and from it grew Klaipėda, a city with a centuries-old maritime history. Klaipėda Castle was first mentioned in a document in which Grand Master Eberhard von Seyne and Heinrich, Bishop of Courland, agreed to build it between the Nemunas and the Danė. At the time, the Curonian Lagoon was believed to be a branch of the Nemunas, known in German as the Memel, and the castle was therefore named Memelburg.

The first wooden castle rose on marshy ground at the southern point of the Danė. As early as 1253, a masonry enclosure-type castle with wooden and brick buildings in its courtyard was built on the right bank. It was protected by ramparts and moats. In the 14th–15th centuries, the castle was repeatedly burned during Samogitian and Lithuanian attacks. Later it was reinforced to withstand firearms, with towers, a wall, fortified ramparts and moats.

In the 17th century, the castle was attacked by the Swedes and ravaged by fires. Bastions were added in 1686, and the final fortification works were completed during the Seven Years’ War (1756–1763).

Today, the castle site recalls not only the origins of the city but also centuries of struggle to defend it.