#018 - From Königsberg to Kaliningrad with Nicole Eaton

Michael Kimmage speaks with historian Nicole Eaton about the remarkable transformation of Königsberg into Kaliningrad and the ways Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union each sought to remake the city and its inhabitants.

Drawing on her book, German Blood, Slavic Soil, Eaton explores the history of East Prussia, the destruction of Königsberg during World War II, the expulsion of its German population, and the Soviet effort to build an entirely new society in its place.

The conversation examines how ideology, war, migration, and memory shaped one of Europe’s most consequential territorial transformations and what Kaliningrad’s history can tell us about twentieth-century Europe.

Nicole Eaton is Associate Professor of History at Boston College and a specialist in the history of Eastern Europe, the Soviet Union, and World War II.

A production of the Kennan Institute.