Martin M. Miles' photos with the keyword: Art Nouveau Jugendstil

The area was conquered by the Teutonic Order in 1283. A village was documented in the mid 14th century near a castle built by the Teutonic Knights, where on an island of Lake Lyck a former prussian stronghold had existed. After the outbreak of the Thirteen Years' War in 1454, the town sided with the Prussian Confederation, at whose request the Polish King Casimir IV Jagiello announced the incorporation of the region into the Kingdom of Poland. The town was briefly recaptured by the Teutonic Knights in 1455, and later on, it was conquered alternately by the Poles and the Teutonic Knights. After 1466 it came under Polish suzerainty as a fief. After the occupation of Ełk in 1945, the Red Army soldiers looted the buildings and deliberately destroyed them. Some of them are perfectly restored.