Memelland

Memelland is a historic region along the Baltic coast in the western part of present-day Lithuania, centered on the city of Memel (German name for Klaipėda) on the Nemunas (Neman) River. The area lies on the coast between the Curonian Spit and the river’s delta and, in historical terms, formed the western portion of East Prussia before the changes of the 20th century. In German-language sources the term Memelland commonly denotes this western Prussian district and its surrounding countryside.

Historically, Memelland was part of East Prussia until the aftermath of World War I. Under the Treaty of Versailles, the Memel Territory was detached from Germany and placed under international administration. In 1923, Lithuanian forces seized the city of Memel in the Klaipėda Revolt, and in 1924 the Memel Territory was incorporated into Lithuania, remaining the Klaipėda Region of the Lithuanian state. In 1939, Nazi Germany annexed the area, and during World War II it was briefly part of Germany. After 1945 the territory was re-incorporated into Lithuania within the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic, and after Lithuania’s 1990 declaration of independence it became part of the independent Klaipėda Region.

Demographically, Memelland was historically dominated by a German-speaking population prior to 1945, with Lithuanian and other communities present as well. Following the war, large-scale population transfers altered the ethnic composition, and the region is now predominantly Lithuanian in modern Lithuania.

The region is notable for Klaipėda’s status as Lithuania’s principal port on the Baltic Sea and for its cross-cultural history within the broader East Prussia-Lithuania corridor.