On east coast of the big river which Lithuanians name is Njamunas, Russian - Neman, and Germans have named Memel (shoaliness), the town of Ragnit lays, and in the center of it the fortress - memory of the Teutonic Award which with a cross and a sword approved here the domination towers and has won it further on the east. How the town and a fortress have received such name, it is precisely not known, though the ancient official version about an origin of the name of the town is Raganita, the lovely small magician, a witch.
The first knights of the Teutonic Award having the letter on possession by all grounds won at Prussian tribes have been directed to 1231 on command of the Roman Pop and emperor Fridrih to Prussia
In 1289 on high southern coast of the river Memel, on a place of the former Prussian settlement "Raganita", knights - monks of the Teutonic Award have based the fortress as the strong point against Lithuanians who did not wish to be reconciled with such dangerous neighbourhood and constantly have made attacks on a fortress, aspiring to destroy it, thus to force out crusaders from the occupied boundary.
Till to disbandment of the Award and formation of the secular state (1525), Ragnit was the center of the comtouration (so the administrative-territorial district in the Medal state was called), and the fortress, since time of the basis, was a residence of the comtour (the manager of the grounds of the Teutonic Award). All other fortresses were submitted by the comtour and were coped by his deputies. The first comtour of Ragnit was Berthold von Bruhaven, he was replaced on this post by the military leaders. Constant attacks to Lithuania, an opposition, revenge and a devastation were included in a daily life of the town, and many comtours have fallen in this awful and fierce struggle.
From times of a bookmark of fortress Ragnit around of it there is a settlement which gradually expands and gets features of the center of Ragnit District.
Ragnit, based in 1289 and received town rights in 1722 from king Friedrich Wilhelm 1, in the past had a lot of names - Landeshut, Ragneta, Schalauenburg, Ragaine, till 1947 - Ragnit. In 1724 the arms of the town of Ragnit with the description has been authorized: "" In the bottom of the arms - the river, on its high coast stretches the town, named Ragnit. Above the town - the eagle, and above the eagle - an eye of the God ". The motto on Latin: "Sub eis tuta Ragneta" (Let it stand eternally Ragnit).