Memel is the German name for Klaipeda, a town and port of Lithuania on the Baltic Sea at the mouth of the Nemunas River. It is the base of a large fishing fleet, and has major shipbuilding and repair yards. ,Founded as fort in the early 13th century, Klaipeda was seized and destroyed in 1252 by the Teutonic Knights, who built a new fortress called Memelburg. The town, later called Memel, and adjacent territory was held by the Swedes through most of the 17th century. After the Swedish occupation, the area became part of East Prussia through briefly occupied by the Russians in 1757 and 1813. During World War I, Memel was captured by the Russians again and after 1919 was administered by France under a League of Nations mandate. On Jan. 15, 1923, it was seized by the Lithuanians as their only good port and made a part of the autonomous Klaipeda territory. It was taken by Soviet forces in Jan. 1945 and made a part of the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic until Lithuanian independence was achieved in 1991.,, Monetary Systems:,,, ,1 Mark = 100 Pfennig,,