Tauragė

Taurage lies in western Lithuania, within the Samogitian country near routes toward Prussia. Rivers, woodland, and cultivated land supported a local economy of farming and exchange. Its borderward position gave markets and roads a significance beyond the immediate settlement, allowing goods and travellers to pass between different political and commercial worlds. Local communities experienced both the opportunities of contact and the insecurity that could accompany military competition.

Tauragė was mentioned as a town in 1507, when a Catholic church and parish school were established. A Lithuanian customs office began operating in 1567, reflecting its position near Prussia. The estate belonged to Prussian rulers from 1687 to 1793. In 1812, during Napoleon's retreat from Russia, Prussian and Russian commanders signed the Convention of Tauroggen at a mill near the town, agreeing to the neutrality of the Prussian corps.