
History


This year's May 4 military parade in honor of Latvia's restoration of independence day is taking place in Alūksne in north-east Latvia.

The coalition of the Rīga City Council expressed its support for the relocation of the Russian poet Alexander Pushkin's monument, the head of Riga City Council Vice-President Linda Ozola's office, Kaspars Adijāns, told LETA on April 25.

Russia's attack on Ukraine has topicalized refugee issues in Latvia once again. In the past, many Latvians were also forced to flee their homes due to hostilities. The exhibition "Refugee Paths" opened in March displays items Latvians had taken with them when fleeing and tells the stories of Latvian refugees from 1944 onward, Latvian Radio reported on March 25.

On March 25 of this year at 11:00 there will be a simultaneous commemoration of the 74th anniversary of the deportations of March 25, 1949, when 42,300 Latvians were forcibly deported to Russia.

On Saturday, March 25, Latvia commemorates the victims of the 1949 deportations and communist genocide. 42 thousand Latvian residents were stuffed in cattle trains and taken to Siberia on that day. To mark the event and remember the victims, Rīga municipality organizes various events in the city.

Several hundred people participated in a controversial annual parade through the streets of the Latvian capital, Rīga on March 16, Latvian Television observed.

On March 25 of this year at 11:00 there will be a simultaneous commemoration of the 74th anniversary of the deportations of March 25, 1949, when 42,300 Latvians were forcibly deported to Russia.

In commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the prominent Latvian architect Edgars Šēnbergs, an exhibition titled "Attraction. City. Art" has opened at the Bulduri Exhibition House.

A cross border project between Latvia and Lithuania has resulted in a new offering for tourists with an interest in history – a special route named "Following the footsteps of the First World War" which joins Latvia's Augšdaugava region and Lithuania's Zarasai district.

Monuments for the writer Andrejs Upīts, Soviet mathematician Mstislavs Keldišs, poet Alexander Pushkin, and other figures should be taken away from Rīga city center, according to Rīga City Council's Monument board, Latvian Television reported March 3.

Because of the war in Ukraine, Latvia has taken to remove Soviet-glorifying symbols from the public environment, including changing street names, also some that are simply linked to Russia in some way. Residents of Staraja Rusas Street in Rīga are dissatisfied with the new name and encourage studying history, Latvian Television's 4. studija reported on February 22.

The latest controversy in Latvia's second-largest city, Daugavpils, concerns the status and future of its best-known and most interesting district – the nineteenth century Fortress region.

A special law will be developed for the protection and restoration of Tetera House on Brīvības Street 61, Rīga, the so-called Corner House, where the KGB museum is located, said State JSC “State Real Estate” (Valsts nekustamie īpašumi, VNĪ) board member Andris Vārna on January 31.

An eagerly-anticipated new historical exhibition opens to the public January 30, and its subject is one that always sparks fierce debate among Latvians: Kārlis Ulmanis.

International Holocaust Remembrance Day was observed in Latvia on January 27 with a ceremony taking place at noon at the Biķernieki memorial near Rīga, attended by officials and foreign ambassadors.

On January 26, 2023, Latvia marks the 102nd anniversary of the international recognition of the Republic of Latvia, when at the meeting of the Supreme Council of the Allied Powers, with the participation of the Prime Ministers of Belgium, France, Great Britain, and Italy, and the representative of Japan, it was decided to grant de jure recognition to Latvia.

Celebrating the 103rd anniversary of the liberation of Latgale, the 3rd Latgale Brigade of the National Guard will organize a series of commemorative events in cooperation with local municipalities in Latvia's eastern region.

Rīga City Council has announced a series of commemorative events to mark this year's anniversary of the 1991 barricades which saw Latvia defending its right to self-determination.

Officials and members of the public commemorated the 'Christmas Battles' of more than a century ago on January 7, events which marked an important staging-post in Latvia's move towards independence.

Celebrating the 100th birthday of Dietrich André Loeber (1923-2004), Latvian President Egils Levits this week participated in a conference about the life and work of an important figure in Latvian legal history – but someone who until now has not been well-known outside legal circles.

January 4 brings with it an interesting conference about an important figure in Latvian history: Dietrich André Loeber, or to give him his Latvianized name, Dītrihs Andrejs Lēbers (1923-2004).

On December 21, 2022 an exhibition “Famine as a weapon – Ukraine. 1932–1933, 2022” will be opened at the Latvian Museum of Occupation, the museum's representatives said on December 16.

The Rīga City Council decided on December 14 to change the names of Brantkalna, Pikuļa, Staraja Rusas, and Keldiša Street in the capital, LETA reported.

On December 5, an exhibition dedicated to the politically repressed women in the Soviet regime, "Rožu iela" (Street of Roses) will be unveiled at the KGB museum ('corner house'), Brīvības Street 61. The exhibition will focus on women who gave their lives to the resistance movement in Latvia and served a sentence, LSM reported.

One of the most tragic days in Latvia's history wis marked on Wednesday.

Uzvaras parks (Victory Park) in Rīga was the scene of one of this year's major news stories when a Soviet-era monument was spectacularly toppled, as reported by LSM at the time.

Rīga – which we barely need to remind you is the home of the Christmas tree – has chosen two prime specimens to stand in the center of the city this year.

On Friday, November 18, Latvia celebrates the 104th anniversary of the country's proclamation, with various events taking place throughout the country. Some of these are streamed live on Latvian Television (LTV) and on LSM.

According to the information provided by Latvian local governments, all 69 Soviet regime-glorifying objects included in the regulation of the Cabinet of Ministers have been dismantled within the specified deadline – until November 15. 55 more objects have been dismantled on municipalities' own initiative, Ministry of Culture's representative Lita Kokale told LETA Monday.

November 10 is 'Mārtiņdiena' or St. Martin's Day, another significant day in the traditional Latvian seasonal calendar.
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