ISMA Secondary School “Premjers”

Form 11 “A”

Oleg Kanashkov

Riga, 2013

Prehistoric period

The proto-Baltic forefathers of the Latvian people have

lived on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea since the

third millennium BC.

At the beginning of this era the territory known today

as Latvia became famous as a trading crossroads. The

famous "route from the Vikings to the Greeks"

mentioned in ancient chronicles stretched

from Scandinavia through Latvian territory via

the Daugava River to the ancient Rus and Byzantine

Empire.

The ancient Balts of this time actively participated in the

trading network. Across the European

continent, Latvia's coast was known as a place for

obtaining amber. Up to and into the Middle Ages amber

was more valuable than gold in many places. Latvian

amber was known in places as far away as Ancient

Greece and the Roman Empire and the Amber

Road was intensively used for the transfer of amber to

the south of Europe. In the 10th century, the ancient

Balts started to form specific tribal realms.

Gradually, five individual Baltic tribal cultures

developed: Curonians, Livonians, Latgalians, Selonians,

Semigallians (Latvian: kurši, līvi, latgaļi, sēļi, zemgaļi). The

largest of them was the Latgalian tribe, which was the

most advanced in its socio-political development. The

main Latgalian principality was Jersika, ruled by the Greek

Orthodox princes from Latgalian-Polotsk branch

of Rurik dynasty. The last ruler of Jersika, mentioned in

the Chronicle of Henry of Livonia was prince Visvaldis.

During dividing of his realm in 1211 part of the country was

called "Latvia“, probably the first time this name was

mentioned in written sources. In contrast, the Curonians

maintained a lifestyle of intensive invasions that included

looting and pillaging. On the west coast of the Baltic Sea,

they became known as the "Baltic Vikings". But Selonians

and Semigallians, closely related

to Lithuanians, were known as peace-

loving and prosperous farmers. Livonians lived along the

shores of the Gulf of Riga and were fishers and traders.

Early historical period

In the 8th century, the territory of West Latvia

became a Scandinavian colony.

Approximately at the same time, the inhabitants

of Latvia started exploring the technology of a

potter's wheel. Latvia started developing as the

significant point for international trade. From

medieval chronicles we can get information that

Finnish tribes, Livs, Slavics and Baltic were

living on Latvian territory.

Up to the 12th century there were attempts to

make a principality and states on Latvian

territory but they weren’t successful.

German period (1207-1561)

Because of its strategic geographic location, Latvian

territory has always been invaded by other larger

nations, and this situation has defined the fate of Latvia

and its people.

At the end of the 12th century, Latvia was more often

visited by traders from Western Europe who set out on

trading journeys along Latvia's longest river, the

Daugava, to Russia. At the very end of the 12th

century, German traders arrived. Preachers of

the Christian faith who attempted to convert

the pagan Baltic and Finno-Ugric tribes to the Christian

faith came together with them. The Livs did not willingly

convert to the new and different beliefs and

practices, and particularly opposed the ritual

of baptism. News of this reached the Pope in Rome

and it was decided that Crusaders would be sent into

Latvia to influence the situation.

The Germans founded Riga in 1201, and gradually it

became the largest city in the Southern part of the Baltic

Sea. Order of the Sword Brothers was founded in 1202 to

subjugate the local people. The Livs were conquered by

1207 and the most of Latgalians by 1214. But the Sword

Brothers were defeated in Battle of Saule (1236) and its

remnants accepted incorporation into the Teutonic Order.

By the end of the 13th century also the Curonians and

Semigallians were subjugated and the development of

separate tribal realms of the ancient Latvians came to an

end.

In the 13th century, an ecclesiastical state

Livonia was established under the Germanic authorities

consisting of Latvia and Estonia. In 1282, Riga and

later Cēsis, Limbaži, Koknese and Valmiera were included

in the Northern German Trading Organisation, or

the Hanseatic League (Hansa). From this time, Riga

became an important point in west-east trading. Riga, being

the centre of the Eastern Baltic region, formed close cultural

contacts with Western Europe.

The reformation started in Germany and later reached

Livonia in 1521. It was supported in particular in the cities

and by the middle of the15th century the majority of the

population had already converted to Lutheranism.

Lithuanian-Polish and Swedish period

(1561—1721)One of the decisive factors of the fall of the Livonian Order

was the Reformation. The Order was in subordinate to the

Roman Catholic Church, but most of its members were the

Germans, who were inspired by sermon of their

countryman Luther. After the transition of knights to

Lutheranism, the value of Order was lost.

At the same time Poland declared itself as a bastion of

Catholicism and the Counter-Reformation. King of Sweden

declared himself to be the protector of the Lutherans.

Thus, the Counter-Reformation in Latvia resulted in the

Polish-Swedish War (1617-1629). As a result, Latvian

territory was divided between 2 countries: Riga belonged

to Sweden, but Courland, Zemgalia and Latgale belonged

to Poland.

The Russian Empire put the end to the opposition. During

the Great Northern War the Russian Empire occupied the

territory of Estonia and Livonia. In 1721, according to the

Nystad peace treaty the territory of modern Latvia,

including Riga which belonged to Sweden, became part of

the Russian Empire.

Gotthard Kettler, the last Master of the Order of Livonia,

became the first duke of Courland. Other members of the

Order became the Couronian nobility. In all, Kettler received

nearly one-third of the land in the new duchy. Mitau (Jelgava)

was designated as the new capital.

Like the other members of the Order, Kettler was German

and set about establishing the Duchy along the lines of

similar German states. When Gotthard Kettler died in 1587,

his sons, Friedrich and Wilhelm, became the dukes of

Courland. They divided the Duchy into two parts in 1596.

Friedrich controlled the eastern part, Semigalia (Zemgale),

with his residence in Mitau. Wilhelm owned the western part,

Courland (Kurzeme), with his residence in Goldingen

(Kuldīga). In Piltene he developed metalworking, shipyards,

and the new ships delivered the goods of Courland to other

Countries.

Duchy of Courland and

Semigallia

Colonization and prosperity of

duchyUnder the next duke, Jacob Kettler, the Duchy reached the peak of its prosperity. During his travels

in Western Europe, Jacob became the eager proponent of mercantilist ideas. Metalworking and ship

building became much more developed, and powder mills began producing gunpowder. Trading

relations developed not only with nearby countries, but also

with Britain, France, the Netherlands and Portugal. Jacob

established the merchant fleet of the Duchy of Courland,

with its main ports in Ventspils and Libau.

In 1651 the Duchy established its first colony in Africa,

St. Andrews Island at the Gambia River and founded Jacob

Fort there. The main export goods included ivory, gold, furs

and spices. Soon afterwards, in 1652, Courlanders

established another colony, in Tobago in the West Indies.

There the main export goods included sugar, tobacco,

coffee and spices. However, during this time, the Duchy of Courland remained an object of interest

for both Sweden and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. In 1655 the Swedish army entered the

territory of the Duchy and the Swedish–Polish war had begun. The Swedish army captured Duke

Jacob. During this period, the Dutch took over both of Courland's colonies, and the merchant fleet

and factories suffered destruction. This war ended with the peace Treaty of Oliwa

Courland regained Tobago on the basis of the treaty and held it until 1689. Duke

Jacob set about restoring the fleet and factories, but the Duchy of

Courland never again reached its pre-war level of prosperity.

Latvia as part of the Russian

Empire (1721-1917)In 1700, the Great Northern War broke out. The course of this war

was directly linked with today's Latvian territory and the territorial

claims of the Russian Empire. One of its goals was to secure the

famous and rich town of Riga. In 1710, the Russian Tsar, Peter I,

managed to secure Vidzeme. Through Vidzeme to Riga, Russia

obtained a clear passage to Europe. By the end of the 18th century,

due to the Partitions of Poland, all of Latvia's territory was under

Russian rule.

In 1812 Napoleon's troops invaded Russia and the Prussian units under the leadership of the field

marshal Yorck occupied Courland and approached Riga. The governor-general of Riga Ivan Essen

set the wooden houses of the Riga suburbs on fire to deflect the invaders and thousands of city

residents were left homeless. However , Yorck did not attack Riga and in December the Napoleon's

army retreated. Serfdom was abolished in Courland Governorate in 1818 and Governorate of

Livonia in 1819. However , all the land stayed in the hands of the German nobility. Only in 1849,

a law granted a legal basis for the creation of peasant-owned farms. In the middle of the19th

century industry developed quickly and the number of the inhabitants grew. Courland and

Vidzeme became one of Russia's most developed provinces.

In the 19th century, the first Latvian National Awakening began among ethnic Latvian

intellectuals, a movement that partly reflected similar nationalist trends elsewhere in

Europe. This revival was led by the "Young Latvians" (in Latvian: jaunlatvieši) from the

1850s to the 1880s. Primarily a literary and cultural movement with significant political

implications, the Young Latvians soon came into severe conflict with the Baltic

Germans. In the 1880s and 1890s the russification policy began by Alexander III was

aimed at reducing the autonomy of Baltic provinces and the introduction of the Russian

language in administration, court and education replacing German.

With increasing pauperization in rural areas and growing urbanization, a loose but

broad leftist movement called the "New Current" arose in the late 1880s. Led by Rainis

and Pēteris Stučka, editors of the newspaper Dienas Lapa, this movement was soon

influenced by Marxism and led to the creation of the Latvian Social Democratic

Labour Party. Latvia in the 20th century saw an explosion of

popular discontent in the 1905 Revolution.

World War I

On August 1, 1914 Germany declared war on Russia and

by 1915, the conflict reached Latvia. On May 7 the

Germans captured Liepāja and on May

18, Talsi, Tukums and Ventspils. On June 29 the Russian

Supreme Command ordered the whole population

of Kurzeme to evacuate, and around 400,000 refugees fled

to the east. Some of them settled in Vidzeme but most

continued their way to Russia. On July 19 the Russian War

Minister ordered the factories of Riga to evacuate together

with their workers. In the summer of 1915, 30,000 railway

wagons loaded with machines and equipment from factories

were taken away. In August the formation of Latvian

battalions known as Latvian Riflemen started. From 1915 to

1917, the Riflemen fought in the Russian army against the

Germans in positions along the Daugava River. In

December 1916 and January 1917, they suffered heavy

casualties in month-long Christmas Battles. In February

1917, Revolution broke out in Russia and in the summer the

Russian army collapsed. The German offensive was

successful and on 3 September 1917 they entered Riga.

IndependenceThe idea of an independent Latvia

became a reality at the beginning of the

20th century. The course of World War I

activated the idea of independence. The

post-war confusion was a suitable

opportunity for the development of an

independent nation. Latvia proclaimed

independence shortly after the end of

World War I – on November 18, 1918

which is now the Independence Day in

Latvia.

The Soviet Union guaranteed its interests in

the Baltics with the signing of the Molotov–

Ribbentrop Pact between the Soviet Union and

Third Reich on August 23, 1939. Under threat

of invasion, Latvia (along with Estonia and

Lithuania) signed a mutual assistance pact

with Soviet Union, providing for the stationing

of up to 25,000 Soviet troops on Latvian soil.

Latvia was incorporated into the Soviet Union

on August 5, 1940 .

The Third Reich troops occupied Riga on July

1, 1941. A large number of Latvians resisted

the German occupation.

World War II

Soviet era

In the post-war period, a lot of people arrived in

Latvia from other Soviet republics and the ethnic

composition of the population changed a lot. An

extensive programme to impose bilingualism was

initiated in Latvia.

There was well-developed infrastructure and lots

of educated specialists were sent to Latvia from

other Soviet republics. It was decided in Moscow

that some of the Soviet Union's most advanced

manufacturing factories were to be based in

Latvia. New industry was created in Latvia,

including a major machinery factory

RAF in Jelgava, electrotechnical factories

in Riga, chemical factories

in Daugavpils, Valmiera and Olaine, as well as

food and oil processing plants.

Restoration of

IndependenceOn the 50th anniversary of the Molotov-

Ribbentrop pact (August 23, 1989) to the

fate of the Baltic

nations, Latvians, Lithuanians and

Estonians joined hands in a human chain,

the Baltic Way, that stretched 600

kilometers from Tallinn, to Riga, to Vilnius. It

symbolically represented the united wish of

the Baltic States for independence.

Subsequent steps towards full

independence were taken on May 4, 1990.

On August 21, after unsuccessful attempt at

a coup in Moscow, parliament voted for an

end to the transition period, thus restoring

Latvia's pre-war independence.

On September 6, 1991 Latvian

independence was once again recognized

by the Soviet Union.

Modern historySoon after reinstating independence, Latvia, which had

been a member of the League of Nations prior to World

War II, became a member of the United Nations. In

1992, Latvia became eligible for the International

Monetary Fund and in 1994 took part in

the NATO Partnership for Peace program in addition to

signing the free trade agreement with the European

Union. Latvia became a member of the European

Council as well as a candidate for the membership in the

European Union and NATO. Latvia was the first of the

three Baltic nations to be accepted into the World Trade

Organization.

At the end of 1999 in Helsinki, the heads of the

European Union governments invited Latvia to begin

negotiations regarding accession to the European Union.

In 2004, Latvia's most important foreign policy goals,

membership of the European Union and NATO, were

fulfilled. On April 2, Latvia became a member of NATO

and on May 1, Latvia, along with the other two Baltic

States, became a member of the European Union.