Gauliga Ostpreußen
Encyclopedia
| Gauliga Ostpreußen |
|---|
| Founded |
| 1933 |
| Disbanded |
| 1944 |
| Nation |
 Nazi Germany Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by... |
 |
| State League of Nations mandate A League of Nations mandate was a legal status for certain territories transferred from the control of one country to another following World War I, or the legal instruments that contained the internationally agreed-upon terms for administering the territory on behalf of the League... & Province Provinces of Prussia The Provinces of Prussia constituted the main administrative divisions of Prussia. Following the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806 and the Congress of Vienna in 1815 the various princely states in Germany gained their nominal sovereignty, but the reunification process that culminated in... |
| Province of East Prussia Province of East Prussia The Province of East Prussia was a province of Prussia from 1773–1829 and 1878-1945. Composed of the historical region East Prussia, the province's capital was Königsberg .... |
 Free City of Danzig The Free City of Danzig was a semi-autonomous city-state that existed between 1920 and 1939, consisting of the Baltic Sea port of Danzig and surrounding areas.... |
| Gau (from 1934) |
| East Prussia |
| Number of Seasons |
| 11 |
| Replaced by |
| Region became part of Poland and the Soviet Union |
| Level on Pyramid |
| Level 1 German football league system The German football league system, or league pyramid, refers to a series of hierarchically interconnected leagues for association football clubs in Germany that consists of over 2,300 men's divisions, in which all leagues are bound together by the principle of promotion and relegation... |
| Domestic Cup |
| Tschammerpokal DFB-Pokal The DFB-Pokal or DFB Cup is a German knockout football cup competition held annually. 64 teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundesliga and the 2nd Bundesliga. It is considered the second most important national title in German football after the Bundesliga... |
| Last Champions 1943-44 |
| VfB Königsberg VfB Königsberg VfB Königsberg was a German association football club from the city of Königsberg, East Prussia.-History:The club was established on 7 July 1900 as Fußball-Club Königsberg, later being renamed VfB Königsberg in 1907... |
The Gauliga Ostpreußen was the highest football league in the Prussian
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
province of East Prussia
Province of East Prussia
The Province of East Prussia was a province of Prussia from 1773–1829 and 1878-1945. Composed of the historical region East Prussia, the province's capital was Königsberg ....
(German: Ostpreußen) and the Free City of Danzig
Free City of Danzig
The Free City of Danzig was a semi-autonomous city-state that existed between 1920 and 1939, consisting of the Baltic Sea port of Danzig and surrounding areas....
from 1933 to 1945. Shortly after the formation of the league, the Nazis reorganised the administrative regions in Germany, and the Gau East Prussia the Prussian province. Danzig however did not became part of this Gau, being integrated in the Gau Danzig-West Prussia in 1939 instead.
Overview
The league was introduced in 1933, after the Nazi take over of powerMachtergreifung
Machtergreifung is a German word meaning "seizure of power". It is normally used specifically to refer to the Nazi takeover of power in the democratic Weimar Republic on 30 January 1933, the day Hitler was sworn in as Chancellor of Germany, turning it into the Nazi German dictatorship.-Term:The...
in Germany. It replaced the Bezirksliga as the highest level of play in German football competitions.
The Gauliga Ostpreußen was established with fourteen clubs in two divisions of seven each. As such, the league consisted of clubs from Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and the city-state
City-state
A city-state is an independent or autonomous entity whose territory consists of a city which is not administered as a part of another local government.-Historical city-states:...
of Danzig, which was under the protection of the League of Nations
League of Nations
The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...
and not part of Germany.
The Gauliga replaced as such the Bezirksliga Ostpreußen and the Bezirksliga Grenzmark, the highest leagues in the region until then. Both were part of the Baltenverband, the German Baltic Football Association, which determined its own Baltic champion.
In its first season, the league had fourteen clubs in two groups. Teams in the same division played each other once at home and once away. The Gauliga champion was determined by a home-and-away final of the two division winners. This club then qualified for the German championship
German football champions
The German football champions are the annual winners of the highest association football competition in Germany. The history of the German football championship is complex and reflects the turbulent history of the country through the course of the 20th century.Brought to the country by English...
while the bottom team in each group was relegated. This system remained in place for the 1934-35 season.
From 1935, the Gauliga was expanded to four divisions of seven clubs. The two top teams of each division then entered a finals round which consisted of two four-team groups. The two group winners then played out the Gauliga champion.
In 1938, the league system was simplified by introducing a single-division ten-team league. The bottom two teams were supposed to be relegated but the increasingly restrictive politics of the Nazis meant, that the club of the Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
minority, KS Gedania Danzig, had to resign from the league and was disbanded.
In 1939-40, the league was supposed to play with only eight clubs. In January 1940, the competition was cancelled altogether and four selected teams played a Gauliga championship tournament instead. At the end of this season, the clubs from the Danzig region, Preußen Danzig
Preußen Danzig
Preußen Danzig was a German association football club from the city of Danzig, West Prussia .-History:The club was established in 1909 as Turn- und Fechtverein Preußen Danzig, a gymnastics and fencing club...
, SV 19 Neufahrwasser and SG Elbing, left the Gauliga Ostpreußen and joined the new Gauliga Danzig-Westpreußen
Gauliga Danzig-Westpreußen
The Gauliga Danzig-Westpreußen was the highest football league in the former Reichsgau Danzig-West Prussia , a Nazi administrative unit established partly from German and partly from annexed territory.-Overview:...
instead. The Gau Ostpreußen
East Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...
was in itself enlarged when parts of occupied Poland were added to it from the end of 1939.
The 1940-41 season was played as a single division again, now with seven clubs. This system remained in place until the disbanding of the league in 1944.
The imminent collapse of Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
in 1945 gravely affected all Gauligas and football in East Prussia ceased in 1944 due to the arrival of the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
in the region. The 1944-45 season was most likely not started anymore. With the beginning of the East Prussian Offensive
East Prussian Offensive
The East Prussian Offensive was a strategic offensive by the Red Army against the German Wehrmacht on the Eastern Front . It lasted from 13 January to 25 April 1945, though some German units did not surrender until 9 May...
in January 1945, the region was completely engulfed by war.
Aftermath
With the end of the Nazi era, the Gauligas ceased to exist. East Prussia came under Soviet control. The region was split into a northern half, now part of RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and a southern half, part of Poland. The German population was almost completely expelled from the region, especially in the Soviet half. Football clubs in the two halves now either play in the Russian or Polish leagues. All German football clubs were dissolved.
Founding members of the league
The fourteen founding members and their positions in the 1932-33 Bezirksliga Ostpreußen and Bezirksliga Grenzmark season were:- Group I
- Preußen DanzigPreußen DanzigPreußen Danzig was a German association football club from the city of Danzig, West Prussia .-History:The club was established in 1909 as Turn- und Fechtverein Preußen Danzig, a gymnastics and fencing club...
, 2nd Bezirksliga Grenzmark - VfB KönigsbergVfB KönigsbergVfB Königsberg was a German association football club from the city of Königsberg, East Prussia.-History:The club was established on 7 July 1900 as Fußball-Club Königsberg, later being renamed VfB Königsberg in 1907...
, 4th Bezirksliga Ostpreußen - SV Prussia-Samland KönigsbergSV Prussia-Samland KönigsbergSV Prussia-Samland Königsberg was a German association football club from the city of Königsberg, East Prussia .The club was founded in early 1904 as Fußball-Club Prussia Königsberg and in 1908 merged with Sportzirkel Samland Königsberg 1904 to form Sportvereinigung Prussia-Samland Königsberg...
, 2nd Bezirksliga Ostpreußen, Baltic champion - Rasensport-Preußen KönigsbergRasensport-Preußen KönigsbergRasensport-Preußen Königsberg was a German association football club from the city of Königsberg, East Prussia.-History:The club was established in 1905 as Sportclub Preußen 05 Königsberg. After a merger with VfR Königsberg in 1920 it took the name Rasensport-Preußen Königsberg.In 1927–28 the club...
, - BuEV DanzigBuEV DanzigBuEV Danzig was a German association football club formed in 1903, from the city of Danzig, West Prussia .-History:The city's first football side, Fußball Club Danzig was established 18 April 1903, and by 1905 was playing as Ballspiel- und Eislauf-Verein Danzig to reflect the club's interest in...
, winner Bezirksliga Grenzmark - KS Gedania Danzig
- Viktoria Elbing
- Group II
- MSV Hindenburg Allenstein, winner Bezirksliga Ostpreußen
- SV Yorck Insterburg
- SV Masovia Lyck
- SV Viktoria Allenstein
- Tilsiter SC, 3rd Bezirksliga Ostpreußen
- FC Preußen Gumbinnen
- Rastenburger SV 08, 5th Bezirksliga Ostpreußen
Winners and runners-up of the Gauliga Ostpreußen
| Season | Winner | Runner-Up |
| 1933-34 | Preußen Danzig | MSV Hindenburg Allenstein |
| 1934-35 | MSV Yorck-Boyen Insterburg | SV Prussia-Samland Königsberg |
| 1935-36 | MSV Hindenburg Allenstein | SV Prussia-Samland Königsberg |
| 1936-37 | MSV Hindenburg Allenstein | MSV Yorck-Boyen Insterburg |
| 1937-38 | MSV Yorck-Boyen Insterburg | BuEV Danzig |
| 1938-39 | MSV Hindenburg Allenstein | SV Masovia Lyck |
| 1939-40 | VfB Königsberg | Preußen Danzig |
| 1940-41 | VfB Königsberg | SV Preußen Mielau |
| 1941-42 | VfB Königsberg | SV Preußen Mielau |
| 1942-43 | VfB Königsberg | SV Prussia-Samland Königsberg |
| 1943-44 | VfB Königsberg | SV Insterburg |
Placings in the Gauliga Ostpreußen 1933-44
| Club | 1934 | 1935 | 1936 | 1937 | 1938 | 1939 | 1940 | 1941 | 1942 | 1943 | 1944 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Preußen Danzig Preußen Danzig Preußen Danzig was a German association football club from the city of Danzig, West Prussia .-History:The club was established in 1909 as Turn- und Fechtverein Preußen Danzig, a gymnastics and fencing club... |
1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 2 | |||||
| VfB Königsberg VfB Königsberg VfB Königsberg was a German association football club from the city of Königsberg, East Prussia.-History:The club was established on 7 July 1900 as Fußball-Club Königsberg, later being renamed VfB Königsberg in 1907... |
2 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Prussia Samland Königsberg | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| Rasensport-Preußen Königsberg Rasensport-Preußen Königsberg Rasensport-Preußen Königsberg was a German association football club from the city of Königsberg, East Prussia.-History:The club was established in 1905 as Sportclub Preußen 05 Königsberg. After a merger with VfR Königsberg in 1920 it took the name Rasensport-Preußen Königsberg.In 1927–28 the club... |
4 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 8 | ||||
| BuEV Danzig BuEV Danzig BuEV Danzig was a German association football club formed in 1903, from the city of Danzig, West Prussia .-History:The city's first football side, Fußball Club Danzig was established 18 April 1903, and by 1905 was playing as Ballspiel- und Eislauf-Verein Danzig to reflect the club's interest in... |
5 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 | ||||
| Gedania Danzig Gedania Danzig KS Gedania Danzig was an ethnically-Polish association football club that was part of German football competition in the inter-war period. It was formed in 1922 in what was at the time the Free City of Danzig... |
6 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 5 | |||||
| Viktoria Elbing | 7 | 4 | 4 | 4 | |||||||
| SV Hindenburg Allenstein SV Hindenburg Allenstein SV Hindenburg Allenstein was a German football club from the city of Allenstein, East Prussia .The club was formed in 1921 as Sportvereinigung Hindenburg Allenstein and was named for German Field Marshal and Reichs President Paul von Hindenburg. Sometime in 1935 it became a military side and played... |
1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | |||||
| MSV York Insterburg | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 | |||||
| Masovia Lyck | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | |||||
| Viktoria Allenstein Viktoria Allenstein Viktoria Allenstein was a German football club from what was the city of Allenstein, East Prussia in Germany and is today Olsztyn, Poland. The club was established in 1916 and played as a lower tier local side making only a single season appearance in the top flight regional Baltenverband in... |
4 | 7 | 3 | 5 | 4 | ||||||
| SC Tilsit | 5 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 6 | ||||||
| Preußen Gumbinnen | 6 | 3 | 4 | 4 | |||||||
| SV Rastenburg | 7 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 6 | ||||||
| Polizei Danzig SG OrPo Danzig SG OrPo Danzig was a German association football club from the city of Danzig, West Prussia . It was established in 1920 as Sportverein Schutzpolizei Danzig as the sports club of the city's police force. Through the 1920s the club made regular appearances in the playoff rounds of the regional... |
2 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 4 | ||||||
| SV Insterburg | 5 | 7 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 2 | ||||
| SV Allenstein 10 | 4 | 6 | 5 | 3 | |||||||
| VfB Osterode | 6 | 4 | 3 | 8 | |||||||
| RSV Ortelsburg | 7 | 7 | 7 | ||||||||
| SV Neufahrwasser 1919 | 5 | 5 | 7 | ||||||||
| SC Lauenthal | 6 | ||||||||||
| SpVgg ASCO Königsberg SpVgg ASCO Königsberg SpVgg ASCO Königsberg was a German association football club from the city of Königsberg, East Prussia. The club was formed in 1919 out of the merger of Sportclub Ostpreußen 1902 Königsberg and Akademischer Sportclub Königsberg... |
4 | 5 | 7 | ||||||||
| RSV Heiligenbeil | 5 | 7 | |||||||||
| Königsberger TSV | 6 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 7 | ||||||
| RSV Braunsberg | 7 | ||||||||||
| Polizei Tilsit | 2 | 3 | 2 | 7 | |||||||
| VfB Tilsit | 5 | 6 | 5 | ||||||||
| Preußen Insterburg | 6 | 7 | |||||||||
| Hansa Elbing | 7 | 6 | |||||||||
| Concordia Königsberg | 4 | 4 | |||||||||
| SV Goldap | 2 | 7 | |||||||||
| VfB Labiau | 6 | ||||||||||
| Preußen Mielau | 2 | 2 | 8 | ||||||||
| Luftwaffen-SV Richthofen Neukuhren | 3 | 5 | |||||||||
| Reichsbahn Königsberg Reichsbahn Königsberg Reichsbahn Königsberg was a German association football club from the city of Königsberg, East Prussia.-History:The team was established in 1927 as the railway workers' club Reichsbahn Turn- und Sportverein Königsberg. In 1939, TSV became Reichsbahn SG Königsberg and the following year was promoted... |
5 | 5 | 3 | 5 | |||||||
| Freya Memel | 7 | ||||||||||
| Luftwaffen-SV Heiligenbeil | 4 | ||||||||||
| MTV Ponarth | 6 | 4 | |||||||||
Source:
- In 1939-40, the championship was strongly affected by the war. All military and police teams were unable to compete. Eventually, an eight-team championship was started on 26 November 1939 but because of the severe winter conditions, it was cancelled in January and replaced by a four-team championship.
Sources
- Die deutschen Gauligen 1933-45 - Heft 1-3 Tables of the Gauligas 1933-45, publisher: DSFS
- Kicker Almanach, The yearbook on German football from Bundesliga to Oberliga, since 1937, published by the Kicker Sports MagazineKicker (sports magazine)kicker Sportmagazin is Germany's leading sports magazine and is focused primarily on football. The magazine was founded in 1920 by German football pioneer Walther Bensemann and is published twice a week, usually Monday and Thursday, in Nuremberg...
External links
The Gauligas Das Deutsche Fussball Archiv- Germany - Championships 1902-1945 at RSSSF.com
- Where's My Country? Article on cross-border movements of football clubs, at RSSSF.com