The story of the Mennonites of Prussian Lithuania has rarely been told. Most descendants of the Old Colony (Chortitza colony) are not aware of our connection to this group. These Mennonites (and the region where they lived) have been referred to by many names – Plauschwarren (the location of the church and name of the congregation), Tilsit (the name of the nearby city), Memel (the name of the nearby river whose lowland the Mennonites settled), East Prussia (the Prussian province where these places were located for most of the time that Mennonites lived there), Gumbinnen (the name of the East Prussian district), and Lithuania (the present-day country and, for many centuries, the commonly used term for that general area).

Nearly all of the Prussian Mennonite immigrants to the Chortitza colony were from Flemish congregations. The Plauschwarren congregation was Frisian. As a result of the immigration of nearly 50 families with connections to Lithuania between 1788 and 1795, the Frisian congregation of Kronsweide was established. In the 1795 census of Chortitza colony, there were 257 families counted. This means that nearly one-fifth of the Chortitza colony settler families had previously been part of the Lithuanian Mennonite congregation.

People who have ancestry in the Chortitza colony with names such as Arend, Banmann, Eds/Eitzen, Ewert, Falk, Franz, Froese, Funk, Goertzen, Harms, Heinrichs, Hiebert, Janzen, Kettler, Krause, Martens, Neufeld, Nickel, Pauls, Siemens or Vogt, may be descended from one of the Lithuanian Mennonite families who settled in the Old Colony.¹Fortunately, part of the Lithuanian Mennonite church records was microfilmed before they were destroyed at the end of World War Two, and transcriptions are available.²

---

The First Settlements

At the beginning of the first half of the seventeenth century, nearly 15,000 Mennonites lived in western Prussia (Polish Prussia, later West Prussia). By the end of the seventeenth century, the narrow Vistula Valley at Graudenz was overpopulated and more land was desperately needed for the settlement of large families. In 1709–11, an unanticipated opportunity appeared because of the devastating plague in East Prussia.³The Great Plague depopulated large stretches of land in northern East Prussia. In the northern regions of Memel, Tilsit, Ragnit, Insterburg, and Labiau, more than 53 percent of the population (160,000 inhabitants) died. Almost 11,000 farm settlements were desolated.⁴ In 1710, with the plague still raging, the Prussian government became concerned over these empty tracts of land. During this period, we can already find mention of “Mennonites” in a document discussing how to find people of means who are capable of farming such large tracts of land.⁵

At the same time, Mennonites remaining in Switzerland endured strong threats of persecution. The Anabaptist communities of Holland and Hamburg begged the Prussian King Friedrich I to intervene on their behalf; in response he advocated for the free emigration of the Anabaptists. However, there is no indication that Swiss Mennonites settled in East Prussia. Instead, they chose to settle in the Netherlands and in the United States of America.

The Mennonites of West Prussia and the Palatinate were invited by messengers of the king to settle in Prussian Lithuania. The king’s interest in the West Prussian Mennonites probably arose from reports originating from the Polish area. Mennonites had developed a reputation for being competent and industrious farmers who could transform uncultivated areas, often wetlands, into productive agricultural land. In overpopulated West Prussia Mennonites showed great interest in the king’s invitation. They were to settle in enclosed areas: “These Mennonites are not to be scattered over the land … but live as closely as possible to one another in adjacent districts.”⁶

In 1713, the first Mennonite settlers from Polish West Prussia arrived in the Tilsit Valley. The Prussian government informed the king that these were not Swiss Mennonites,⁷ but rather they originated from the neighboring diocese of Kulm. Among the settlers one could find not only Frisian Mennonites, but also some Flemish. They were allowed to settle in one of three outlying villages: Alt and Neu Sköpen as well as Neusorge. In their contract, these Mennonites were given far-reaching rights: freedom to practise their religion, as well as freedom from all military service, billeting, and military obligations for themselves, their descendants and their servants. They were allowed to buy and operate a mill, to fish in their waters, to brew brown beer, and to have up to three beehives without paying taxes, as well as operate a ferry. This contract was drawn up for thirty years with forty-two tenants. In 1714 Mennonite families from Polish Prussia took over the outpost Calwen.⁸

It appears that the first Mennonites farmed successfully, as in subsequent years more families moved to the region. In 1718 the “Preussische Teutsche Amtskammer” announced that Mennonites from Poland wanted to settle in Königsberg or in the country. However, this particular petition was denied by the government, although Mennonites received a positive evaluation as having “people of good means among them.” On the whole, however, the Prussian government continued to press forward with repopulation. On 4 December 1721, Mennonites were again invited to settle in Prussia “since they strive to live a pious, quiet, and honorable life wherever they are.”⁹ Astonishingly, in 1721 sixty thousand Hufen¹⁰ of unsettled land in Prussian Lithuania was still available.¹¹

Origin of the Settlers

The state archives of Berlin have detailed information about new settlers to the region, such as names, spouses, ages of the children, places of origin, as well as conditions of ownership. However, this was not the case for Mennonite settlers. Nonetheless, from legal files of the 1720s it can be concluded that Mennonites from the Vistula Valley arrived from Graudenz and Kulm (congregations of Schönsee, Montau and Przechowka), but also from the Vistula Delta (around Elbing and Danzig).¹²

Families settled under difficult conditions in the Memel Valley. Although they found suitable pastureland, they had to build their houses and barns at their own expense. This was evident from a report by a delegation of Mennonites from the Danzig congregation which travelled to East Prussia in June 1714 to visit the “new congregation in Samland.” Although they founded “a beautiful congregation, consisting of over three hundred fifty brothers and sisters” – approximately one hundred families – their living conditions were “wretched.” The report described the situation as follows: “They have beautiful estates; however, they are without buildings and most of them have to build their own homes; on the whole they are poor, owning nothing. We found many families living in old barns, many on fields in small huts.” It also anticipated that more Mennonite families from West Prussia would arrive in the region because of the situation in Poland.¹³ Finally the report communicated that the settlement could only develop by “receiving much encouragement and financial aid from the Dutch Mennonite Church.”¹⁴

Under these conditions, some Mennonites gave up and left. Already in the first year of settlement they suffered a flood in the region of Kuckerneese and as a result had to plead for a suspension of their tax payments. However, the skills they had brought from the Vistula and the Werder helped them to overcome their difficulties and have “significant achievements” (as state documents confirm) in reclaiming the former desert-like, uncultivated land, prone to flooding without the security of dams or ditches. At their own expense they drained the low-lying land by digging ditches. In 1718 they dammed the Alte Gilge in Sköpen.¹⁵

The quality of the land, which was especially suited for pasturing and grazing cattle, as well as their own ingenuity helped Mennonites to become extremely successful farmers. They were trailblazers particularly in the area of cheesemaking. Within a five-year period, by 1723, they had increased the production of “Mennonite Cheese” by 245 percent (or 370,000 kg).¹⁶ Within a short period of time Mennonites were so well respected by the officials in the area that in 1723 the president of the war and dominion office told the general director, “the Lowlands would be considerably improved if more Mennonites would move there.” They were viewed as being not only capable farmers, but also as leading a “humble and sober lifestyle.”¹⁷

Church Revival

Some people who belonged to other faith-based groups were attracted to the Mennonite faith. This was especially true of the domestic help that had come to Lithuania with Mennonite farmers. The congregation in the Memel Lowland is the only one of the Mennonite congregations in East and West Prussia in which a significant number of conversions to the Mennonite faith took place.¹⁸ The rest of the Mennonite congregations were not particularly keen on these conversions because they were not accustomed to recruiting members of other confessions. This trait was obvious in a letter to the Lithuanians sent on 21 April 1724 by the congregation in Amsterdam. It stated that the baptism of those belonging to other confessions was very seldom performed and should only be done with the utmost caution.

The Lutheran congregations of the Memel Lowland protested strongly against these apostates and demanded an investigation by the state. Also, Berend Janson from Brattwin near Graudenz denounced the Mennonite congregation for attempting to convert people to the faith. He had been excommunicated from that congregation but his son, Berend, had moved to the Memel Lowland and had re-joined the religious community. An investigation was conducted over several weeks in June 1772 by a representative of the state from Königsberg. Another case under investigation was that of adultery against the Mennonite Hans Quapp. He had impregnated his maid and then fled to Poland. A report about the case is still available in the state archives of Berlin. It not only includes sixty names and accurate information about possessions and origins, but also paints a lively picture of events during that time.¹⁹

Expulsion of 1724

For Mennonites, this investigation of conversions had a tolerable outcome: under pressure from the Lutheran consistory and with dire threats of punishment they were warned not to tolerate or accept any members of another confession in their congregations. However, dark clouds were beginning to form. In February and September 1723, the Prussian military tried to forcibly recruit young Mennonites. They attempted to incorporate sixteen young Mennonites into the elite unit of large soldiers called the “Tall Fellows” (langen Kerls). Two Mennonites were especially mistreated, probably because they were former Lutherans.²⁰

The incarcerated Mennonites remained true to their faith principles. George Grubert describes the pain and torture to which they were exposed as their beards were forcefully cut off and for many days they received no food or water. This report shows the strength of the faith of these young men (“they can do no more to us than what God allows”).²¹ Although they were set free, Mennonites were no longer sure of their rights. In response, they cancelled their rental contracts with the king in case their rights would not be respected. Friedrich Wilhelm I did not hesitate in his response. He had no patience with such a “rogue nation” that did not want to become soldiers and Mennonites were asked to leave the country.²² Although they had cancelled their rental contracts, they did not expect to be expelled from the country.

A report from the War and Dominion Chamber in December 1723 provides evidence that Mennonites had paid 3,604 Taler in rent as required.²³ Furthermore, the chamber explained that a substitute for this amount could hardly be obtained elsewhere. In February of 1724 the chamber pointed out that Mennonites should be compensated for their investments because they had built their houses with their own means.²⁴

Mennonites were unsure of their next destination. They wished to remain together, but they were aware that this might not be possible.²⁵ During the first months of 1724, the congregation in Danzig, the congregations in Holland, and the congregation that was to be expelled desperately tried to find a permanent place for the exiled. Those exiled favored emigrating to Holland because they feared reprisals if they settled in Polish Prussia (especially because they had converts from the Catholic and Lutheran churches among them).²⁶ The congregations in Holland, however, refused this solution. They advised them to delay the emigration to Poland as long as possible because of the threat of persecution, and then to move to “the Gross and Klein Werder, to Schönsee and other places.” Financial support from congregations in Hamburg and Danzig was guaranteed.²⁷ The king’s deadline for the expulsion was extended from 1 May to 10 June 1724 (Trinity Day). On this date one hundred sixty Mennonite families – approximately three hundred fifty to four hundred people²⁸ – were supposed to leave the Tilsit Valley.

David Penner, an elder of the Mennonite Church in Prussian Lithuania, wrote the following letter in March 1724 shortly before the expulsion from East Prussia: “Now, worthy and beloved friends in the Lord Jesus, according to the holy will of our God, it is no longer possible to do anything else except to leave this country. With all our heart, like Abraham, we want to be obedient to the holy will of God and ask to which place we are called. We do not yet know where we are going, but we want to leave that up to our God. He will take pity on us and give us the ways and means to do this according to his will. We want to immerse ourselves completely into his holy will and leave everything behind, begging and pleading that, through the strength we receive from Christ, he will make us worthy and skillful to bear all our trials in the faith patiently in order to honor him.”²⁹

Despite these words, there was great confusion among Mennonites. A number of the settlers left several weeks before the deadline. As Penner wrote, “Already twenty families have left, but only the young, who do not yet possess any of the king’s property.”³⁰ It was assumed that more would follow in order to be “divided up between the congregations in the Klein and the Gross Werder, in Schönsee and in Danzig.”³¹ “In addition some [of the expelled] escaped to the Netherlands.”³² Several people of the congregation who were not yet baptized (converts), secretly fled – probably sometime during 1724 –and asked for baptism in Amsterdam.³³ Finally, several members of the congregation remained in the country incognito, which is evident through entries in Evangelical Church records of that time. No reasons were given as to why this happened.³⁴

A number of the wealthy families could rent or buy land, at least in their congregations of origin in West Prussia. But to house practically destitute refugee families (two compilations of the Dutch support funds of 1724 and 1726 list 115 families)³⁵ proved to be a challenge for the Dutch and West Prussian congregations. Nevertheless, the West Prussian congregations showed willingness to help. In the congregation of Thiensdorf each landowner agreed to provide housing for one family as well as grazing land for two cows. In Elbing’s Klein Werder, forty-five destitute families could hardly be accommodated and another eighteen settled there temporarily. Eleven families found temporary accommodation in the Gross Werder, another twenty-three families in “Culmschen,”³⁶thirteen families in “Montauschen,” and two families in the District of Danzig. The makeshift accommodation must have lasted longer than a year and the situation was described as “extremely difficult.” It was especially difficult for approximately forty completely destitute families.

Marienburger Werder

On 10 November 1724, two immigrants from Prussian Lithuania purchased two thirds of Tragheimerweide from representatives of Große Werder for 2,200 Prussian guilders and became the founders of the last large Mennonite settlement in West Prussia.

In the same year, fourteen Hufen from Rudnerweide were allocated to Mennonites from the Tilsit Valley. Further pastureland in Schweingrube, Zwanzigerweide, Montauerweide, Zieglershuben, and Klein and Gross Schardau was entrusted to Mennonites. A closed settlement, therefore, began in the second quarter of the eighteenth century. A congregation with a Frisian outlook was formed. It became known as “the Lithuanian congregation in Schweingrube.”³⁷ At first the new congregation was situated in Schweingrube, later it moved to Tragheimerweide. Already in 1728 it received permission from the Bishop of Kulm to construct a church building. Originally most of these settlers came from the congregations of Montau and Schönsee.³⁸

Jeziorken

In 1726, twenty-three families from Prussian Lithuania settled in the region of Culm (congregation Schönsee). Some of them bought or rented land in the vicinity. In 1727, twelve families from the Old-Flemish congregation of Schönsee took over a deserted strip of land (possibly near the area of Jeziorken). They had originally planned to move to Lithuania, but then changed their plan. Financially overextended, they had to plead for help from Holland several times.³⁹ Pastors Heinrich Nickel and Gabriel Frantz were among these settlers. Their correspondence with the Dutch Commissie voor Buitenlandsche Nooden (Committee for Foreign Needs) is found in the Mennonite archives in Amsterdam. It describes the situation of Mennonites in Schönsee around the year 1730.⁴⁰ The other half of the refugee families who found shelter in the Culm region (at least ten of the twenty-three families listed)⁴¹ accepted the offer – together with those expelled from other congregations – to resettle in the area of Prussian Lithuania and Dannenberg.

Dannenberg

Likely in the fall and winter of 1726–27 forty impoverished families had the opportunity to settle as renters on the estate Rautenburg belonging to Count Truchsess in Waldburg, East Prussia. The exact time period is not given anywhere, but most sources assume it was “shortly after they were expelled.” The later Dannenberg settlers are still reported to be in their original regions in a list from 10 October 1726. However, in a letter of 19 March 1727, Dirk Wiechert, the teacher of the Frisian congregation of Schönsee, reported that several families had moved to Lithuania and settled on thirty Hufen.⁴² Therefore, a significant number of the Dannenberg settlers must have arrived from Schönsee and the surrounding area. Obviously not all the families belonged to the Frisian group. Based on the similarity of their names, however, it is probable that members of the Old-Flemish congregation of Przechowka were among the settlers. Furthermore, the congregation at Dannenberg later called itself the “Frisian, Flemish and High German congregation of Dannenberg.”

Renewed Expulsion

In 1732, these Mennonites also received the expulsion order of the Prussian king. At this point immigrants from Salzburger had arrived, and the king probably thought he did not need this difficult group of Mennonites. Count Truchseß of Waldburg, who had put Mennonites in charge of his estates, advocated for them. Several times he spoke favorably about Mennonites to the king. He also mentioned the damage this renewed expulsion would cause as they had made fertile the desert-like land where only straw and mud had existed.⁴³

The hope of some Mennonites that the count would successfully intervene soon proved to be misguided. All one hundred fifty persons had to leave the country by Friday before Trinity day. They moved along the Memel toward Poland and camped in the fields. Finally, they were allowed to stay in Prussia for three months in order to sell their possessions. Some Mennonites, however, had already left on their own. At the end of 1732 several Mennonites had left the Dannenberg region (Rautenburgische Güter) including those who did not immigrate to Holland. In the dukedom of Rautenburg no Mennonite family names appear on a list of farmers from the year 1752.⁴⁴

Interestingly, Königsberg developed differently: here the magistrate intervened to stop the expulsion of Mennonites. The city leaders had emphasized that Mennonites distilled the best liquor, paid a lot of taxes and were important for the economy. They were wool-combers, silk-dyers, had several weaving looms, and gave nourishment and bread to fifty-two evangelical journeymen. Even those Mennonite Königsbergers who had already sold their possessions and left the country were allowed to return.⁴⁵

Immigration to Holland

Due to the expulsion of these families, the Dannenberg settlers were split up once again. The earlier plan to go together to Polish Lithuania, about ten to fifteen miles away from Tilsit, was discarded after a short time.⁴⁶ About half of the Dannenbergers, 24 families altogether, (another source speaks of 29 families or 180 souls)⁴⁷ decided to settle in Holland while the rest moved to the Werder or turned north toward Polish Lithuania.

Those who went to Holland had planned to return to their area of origin permanently. However, their trip to Holland turned out to be extraordinarily difficult. In November 1732 several people had been asked to check out the land in Wageningen. In December 1732, the deal was closed. In the meantime, those who had been expelled were on the ship going to Holland. Just before Christmas, their situation took a dramatic turn. On 20 December 1732, their ship was stranded due to ice floes and the settlers had to be rescued. They found shelter in just a few rooms. Following this event, they settled in Wageningen and on the Island of Walcheren.

From the beginning, however, their stay in Holland was destined to fail. Already by 1736, the settlers in Wageningen had moved away, some back to Prussia, others to Walcheren. In 1738–39 almost all the Walcheren settlers turned their backs on the land of their dreams. By 1739, most of the families could be found in West Prussia again. Only a few members of the Block, Grunau, Lucht and Pauls families stayed in Walcheren. In later years some of the family members who had left returned to Walcheren. This is evident from the entries in the church records of the Mennonite congregation of Middelburg from 1742 to 1759.

Dutch Aid

The Dutch Relief Fund for Foreign Needs played an important role in supporting the expelled Mennonites of 1724 and 1732. The Mennonites in Poland, Switzerland, the Palatinate, and Prussia were subjected to countless recriminations and persecutions. Collections were taken up for the congregations in Danzig (1660), Poland (1662), Moravia (1665), Switzerland (1672), and the Palatinate (1674 and 1678). At the beginning of the eighteenth century collections were taken up for the congregations in Polish Prussia. The reason for setting up a permanent fund was the oppression experienced in Polish Prussia that caused Mennonites to immigrate to Prussian Lithuania.

Those controlling the fund blamed the failure of the settlers in Wageningen and Walcheren on the stubbornness of the East Prussian Mennonites. For this reason, in 1744, it was decided not to support anyone who resettled out of their own free will. Only those who were expelled and thus impoverished due to their faith or to circumstances beyond their control (such as war, flooding, and fire) would receive support.

The Amsterdam Commission also received word that some of the settlers who had fled Lithuania had secretly returned to Prussian Lithuania before 1740. The commission sharply condemned this independent action and decided that these settlers could not count on support from the Dutch Relief Fund for Foreign Needs.

Friedrichsgraben

The situation of Mennonites in Prussia changed radically when Frederick the Great came to power in 1740. The enlightened monarch advocated for the return of Mennonites to his domain. Already on 14 August 1740 an invitation was issued.⁴⁸ It was to be printed in the weekly announcement notices or distributed in the so-called Intelligenzzetteln. The Prussian representatives were to announce this invitation in Danzig and the Hague.⁴⁹

On 3 March 1741, the Chamber of War and Domains suggested the land belonging to the farms of Seckenburg, Ginkelsmittel, and Polenzhof as well as those in Friedrichsgraben be made available to the newly arrived Mennonites from Prussian Poland. The contract of 21 November 1741,⁵⁰ was signed by Abraham Görtzen and Michael Schütt and named 32 tenants for the farms. The most important promises of the contract included: the freedom to practise their religion and permission for a building for this purpose; the right to choose the leaders and teachers of their confession; the right to perform their own church discipline; and freedom from military service.

According to an inspection of the land, it was in terrible shape. A report from Labiau dated May 18, 1740 shows the conditions of that time. It stated that the livestock and the horses could not be put out to pasture but had to be fed in their stalls.⁵¹ There was also a lack of feed, and flooding in the region. Because of these adversities, and because they had brought their own building material for houses and barns, Mennonite settlers were granted a tax-free year.

The difficulties in this region continued. Crop failures contributed to many renters not being able to pay their taxes. In June 1744, Jan Pauls, Jan Görtzen, Salomon Kohnert and Cornelius Gronau from the Marienburg area reported that they and their fellow citizens could now also settle in Seckenburg because the Mennonite settlers could not pay their taxes and were in danger of losing their land.⁵²

In December 1746 Mennonite settlers were exempted from outstanding payments, but the conditions for how this should happen were not accepted. On 8 May 1747, the head landholder Posser demanded that Mennonites leave their farms within eight days and pay their debts, otherwise their possessions (buildings and livestock) would be auctioned off and their land given to others. Consequently, Mennonites tried to pay their debts with the help of money lenders (probably the businessman Brunwish from Königsberg), but they were not successful. The sale went on, “over their heads, and everything was sold dirt cheap.”

On 15 December 1747, the contract was dissolved and in May 1748 other settlers took their place. The documents do not indicate where these Mennonites went. At the beginning of 1748 they sent a petition to the Prussian king. According to this petition, 50 families originally from Polish Prussia had settled on this land. Due to incidents, it was reported, 50 souls had already moved away. The rest were left completely impoverished and would have to leave their land. An offer to settle in other places (Prussian Lithuania) was not possible because those concerned were impoverished. They pleaded that they should receive the same conditions as the “new” landowners, paying 13 Taler per Hufe instead of the required 30 Taler per Hufe. Furthermore, other Mennonites “from their West Prussian colony” were interested in settling in Prussian Lithuania.⁵³ In a petition of 23 January 1750⁵⁴ they informed the Prussian king in great detail about the wrong that had been done to them and noted that twenty families had already left their land. They were now only 34 families and were suffering because they only had 320 head of cattle, no land of their own, and high payments to make.

Unfortunately, the documents yield no information as to which families had already left the land and which ones were still waiting for a favorable decision from the Prussian ruler. It can be verified that nine families that settled in the region of Friedrichsgraben were tenants in various places in the Memel Valley. It is known that one family went to Holland (Walcheren).

In spite of these difficult circumstances the congregation seems to have survived. In the first Mennonite list of names of congregational leaders (Naamlijst) of 1743 the congregation Litauen was already mentioned. It belonged to the “Waterländern” (Frisians). The church elders were Adrian Sievert (Siebert) and Hans Vooth (Voth), pastors Hendrik Dirksz (Dirks), and Hendrik Casper.⁵⁵ There was also evidence of pastors during the years after they left the region of Friedrichsgraben.

The Church

It is interesting to compare family names in the church records of Plauschwarren after 1769 with those of the expelled settlers of 1724. It is evident that about half the expelled families never returned to East Prussia. Also, some of the settlers of 1741 left the country because of difficult circumstances. The number of Mennonite families in Prussian Lithuania after 1769 and especially after the exodus to Russia in 1789 diminished greatly, even though some new family names were added.

Close ties between the congregation in Plauschwarren and congregations in West Prussia were maintained. At special occasions such as a baptism or voting for a church elder in Plauschwarren, at least one elder from West Prussia was in attendance. In the beginning, the Plauschwarren congregation was not allowed to vote for their own church elder. The West Prussian congregations were too concerned that (as in 1724) they would be forced to support this congregation due to some rash or thoughtless action. In earlier entries for baptism in the congregation Thiensdorf (transferred to the church records of the congregation Orlofferfelde) during the years of 1758, 1759, and 1763 there are names which are designated “aus Littauen”. It is obvious that the ties of the congregation Thiensdorf to the Plauschwarren congregation were especially strong due to the fact that so many brothers of the faith had settled there in 1724. Eventually the West Prussian congregations arrived at the conclusion that it was a significant burden for them to lead the congregation from such a distance. In 1769, a meeting in the Stuhmsche (Schweingrube/Tragheimerweide) congregation was arranged and it was determined that the trips for the elder were difficult and costly. The Plauschwarren congregation was given permission to elect its own elder.

In 1767 the congregation in Plauschwarren was able to build its own church. The document of permission from the Prussian king stated: “According to our all gracious lord, the kingly majesty of Prussia, Mennonites and inherent renters of the outlying estate Plauschwarren in the region of Belgrade in Prussia, have with all due respect, petitioned that in order to practise their free religious exercises as per rental agreement and with the gracious agreement of permitting them to have their own schoolmaster, would request that on the aforementioned estate, at their own expense, they would build a house of prayer and a school class room. Considering the given circumstances, his kingly majesty, seeing that neither the Prussian government nor the Gumbian military domain office has objected, graciously concedes this request. Not alone the request of constructing a house of prayer and a classroom, but we also grant them all the rights and freedom of other similar houses of prayer here in Prussia. However, it must be understood that, like other houses of prayer, they must keep their rental agreement and give their dues to the Tilsit church as well as to other churches and those serving in the schools, as per the rental agreement. If this agreement is kept, then the Prussian government and its offices must pledge to obediently and respectfully protect, as needed, the aforementioned Mennonites and renters of the estate Plauschwarren. May it be witnessed that this present concession is signed by us and imprinted with our royal seal. Thus, taking place and determined in Berlin, July 31, 1767. Friedrich (L.S.).”⁵⁶

Soon after this decree (around 1776) a pastor’s office (Predigtstube) was prepared in Grigolienen. This property was bought and shared by seven Mennonite families. The stately residence with nearby fields was purchased by the Elder Heinrich Janz. On 1 May 1776,⁵⁷ the congregation bought a room from him which was to serve as a pastor’s office.

The room in Grigolienen proved to be too small and the congregation soon searched for a larger space. The owner of the estate known as Adlig Pokraken had to sell it due to difficult economic circumstances and it was purchased by Dietrich Janz, an elder of the congregation. He soon encountered financial difficulties and lost everything he owned. Four Mennonites then purchased the estate for 25,000 Taler. The congregation bought the residence for 1,000 Taler.

A number of factors affected the growth of the congregation. Like everywhere at this time, the death rate of children in the Mennonite community was extremely high. In the first ten years during which church record dates are available (1769–78) there were no fewer than 70 children (ages not noted) listed among the 105 deceased. In 1782, a year in which there were especially many deaths, 35 children out of 40 died, and at least 16 were below the age of seven. Jacob Ewert (born ca. 1755), for example, experienced the deaths of seven of his fourteen children.

Another factor which slowed church growth was the so called “Außentrau” (outside marriage). In a report in 1789, the Elder Heinrich Jantzen complained that since 1775 the tendency to marry outside the Mennonite faith (especially to a Lutheran partner) had increased among Mennonites of the Memel Valley. In 1765 two out of three marriages occurred outside the fold. A mutual prohibition in the West and East Prussian congregations was not, however, obtainable.

Immigration to South Russia

Many members of the Mennonite congregation in the Memel Valley participated in the immigration to South Russia beginning in 1789. At least 40 families from the congregation Plauschwarren searched for a new home in the Chortitza region. This resulted in the loss of one third of its adult members. Mostly young families emigrated. Out of forty-three new young couples, twenty remained in East Prussia, and twenty-three immigrated to South Russia.

1. Henry Schapansky’s book Mennonite Migrations and the Old Colony (2006) provides some details on which of the Chortitza colony settlers had Lithuanian connections. ↩︎
2. http://www.mennonitegenealogy.com/prussia PlauschwarrenBirths1769-1855.pdf, http://www.mennonite genealogy.com/prussia PlauschwarrenBaptisms1771-1862.pdf, http://www.mennonitegenealogy.com/prussia/ PlauschwarrenMarriages1778-1862.pdf, http://www.mennonitegenealogy.com/prussia/Plauschwarren Deaths1769-1869.pdf ↩︎
3. This article has been translated and adapted from Erwin Wittenberg and Manuel Janz, “Geschichte der mennonitischen Siedler in Preussisch Litauen,” Mennonitische Geschichtsblaetter 74 (2017): 73–97. ↩︎
4. Andreas Kossert, Ostpreußen. Geschichte und Mythos, (Munich 2008), 108. ↩︎
5. GStAPK, II.HA, Abt.7 II, Nr.7971. ↩︎
6. Erich Randt, Die Mennoniten in Ostpreussen und Litauen bis zum Jahre 1722, Königsberg 1912 (contains the rescript of 1.7. 1711 on p.8). ↩︎
7. GStAPK, II. HA, Hofkammer, Tit.45, Nr.6. ↩︎
8. Wilhelm Mannhardt, Die Wehrfreiheit der altpreussischen Mennoniten. Denkschrift, Marienburg 1863,118. ↩︎
9. GStAPK I. HA, Rep.7, Nr.68. ↩︎
10. 1 Hufe (pl. Hufen) = 30 Morgen = 41 acres. ↩︎
11. GStAPK, II. HA, Hofkammer, Tit.45, Nr.7. ↩︎
12. Art. Lithuania, in Mennonite Encyclopedia Glenn H. Penner, Mennonites Expelled from Lithuania in 1724 (Internet, called up on the 15.2.2012): Mennonites from various Frisian congregations in West Prussia began settling in what is now Lithuania in 1713. Even Randt stated that the settlers in Sköpen, Neu-Sorge and Calwen originated “from the Weichsel Valley (Weichseltal)”. Randt, Die Mennoniten, 11. ↩︎
13. Gemeentearchief Amsterdam AA C701, letter of the Elder of the Danzig congregation, July 13,1714. ↩︎
14. Gemeentearchief Amsterdam C 720, letter of 5.3.1724. ↩︎
15. Randt, Die Mennoniten, 24. ↩︎
16. Ibid, 28. ↩︎
17. Ibid, 29. ↩︎
18. Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online, Horst Quiring and Nanne van der Zijpp, accessed 14.4.2016. ↩︎
19. GStAPK, XX. HA, EM 38d, Nr.29 (Investigation report of 1722). ↩︎
20. Gemeentearchief Amsterdam C706 and C713. ↩︎
21. Gemeentearchief Amsterdam C713, 3. ↩︎
22. GStAPK, II.HA, Abt.7, XCI Nr.6101. ↩︎
23. Ibid. ↩︎
24. Ibid. ↩︎
25. Gemeentearchief Amsterdam C724 from 1.4.1724. ↩︎
26. Ibid. ↩︎
27. Antje Brons, Ursprung, Entwicklung und Schicksale der Taufgesinnten oder Mennoniten in kurzen Zügen übersichtlich dargestellt von Frauenhand, Norden 1884, 27. ↩︎
28. Gemeentearchief Amsterdam C733. ↩︎
29. Gemeentearchief Amsterdam C720; the Elder of the congregation David Penner in a letter in March 1724 shortly before the expulsion from East Prussia. ↩︎
30. Gemeentearchief Amsterdam C734, Letter of David Penner, May 18, 1724. ↩︎
31. Gemeentearchief Amsterdam C737. ↩︎
32. Johan Sjouke Postma, Das niederländische Erbe der preußisch-russländischen Mennoniten in Europa, Asien und Amerika. Dissertation, Marburg/Lahn 1958. ↩︎
33. Gemeentearchief Amsterdam C735, Letter of 9.3.1725. ↩︎
34. Furthermore, it seems that some East Prussian settlers of 1724 did not leave, but rather stayed in the country. In the Evangelical Church records, one finds occasional mention of “ex-Mennonite” or “part Mennonite.” In 1729 the Mennonite, Peter Jahnke, (who later settled in the district of Friedrichsgraben and in Plauschwarren) had settled in Hohenwiese. In 1731 an infant of the “part” Mennonite Greger Fryer and his Mennonite wife Anna is baptized in Neukirch. In Killucken (church records of Kaukehmen) the birth of Helena Rosenfeld, daughter of Dietrich and Anna Rosenfeld is noted. Relating to Jedwilleiten, a report of 1892 declares that “the forebears of Peter Goetzke did not emigrate and they have had a canton’s position since 1740.” Other names found in the list of the exiled of 1726, are Peter Goetzke, at that time settling in the Gross Werder and Jakob Goetzke, settling in the Klein Werder. ↩︎
35. Horst Penner, Die ost-und westpreußischen Mennoniten in ihrem religiösen und sozialen Leben, in ihren kulturellen und wirtschaftlichen Leistungen, Teil:1526 bis 1722, Kirchheimbolanden 1978, 407f. ↩︎
36. Ibid. Penner lists these families as “in Stuhmschen” which is probably a misspelling. Culmschen refers to the Schoensee congregation and Montauschen to the Montau congregation. Both were Frisian Mennonite congregations. ↩︎
37. Gemeentearchief Amsterdam 1632. Letter of Jan van Hoek (Danzig) from October 1736. ↩︎
38. Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online, Horst Quiring and Nanne van der Zijpp, accessed on the 14.4.2017. ↩︎
39. Gemeentearchief Amsterdam A 1581. Letter from Peter Bekker from Schönsee 9.3.1727. ↩︎
40. Herbert Wiebe, Daß Siedlungswerk niederländischer Mennoniten im Weichseltal, dissertation, Marburg/Lahn 1952, 11. ↩︎
41. Gemeentearchief Amsterdam C844. ↩︎
42. Gemeentearchief Amsterdam A 1581. ↩︎
43. GStAPK II.HA, Abt.7, Ostpreußen II. Nr.6102 Acta wegen Wegschaffung der Mennonisten aus Preußen, 1732. ↩︎
44. Horst Kenkel, Bauern der Rautenburgischen Güter 1752, Verein für Familienforschung in Ost-und Westpreußen, Altpreußischer Geschlechterkunde 1959,143-148. ↩︎
45. GStAPK. Also see Gemeentearchief Amsterdam A 1581. ↩︎
46. Gemeentearchief Amsterdam C752f. ↩︎
47. Gemeentearchief Amsterdam C758. ↩︎
48. GStAPK, II. HA,Rep.5. Title 151, No.17. Also see Gemeentearchief Amsterdam A 1581. ↩︎
49. Randt, Die Mennoniten, 77. Also see GStAPK, II.HA, Abt.7 II, Nr.7971. ↩︎
50. GStAPK, II. HA, Gen. Dir., OPR and Litauen III. AEmter Nr.391. ↩︎
51. Randt, Die Mennoniten,88. ↩︎
52. GStAPK,92. Also see Randt, Die Mennoniten,77. ↩︎
53. Ibid. ↩︎
54. Ibid. ↩︎
55. Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online, 1957 Article, Horst Quiring and Nanne van der Ziipp, accessed 16.4.2017. ↩︎
56. Wilhelm Crichton, Zur Geschichte der Mennoniten, Königsberg 1786, insertion B. ↩︎
57. Church Records B 787,165. ↩︎