Riga

Riga is the capital city of the European country of Latvia. Riga is on river Daugava near the Baltic Sea.  The historical center of Riga is in the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List and is notable for its Art Nouveau architecture, which, according to UNESCO, has no equal in the world. 

The mayor of Riga was Mārtiņš Staķis.  He resigned in July 2023. 

The current mayor of Riga is Vilnis Ķirsis. He became the mayor on July 5, 2023.

 History 

 Founding 
The location of Riga was nearby a trade route from the Vikings to the Byzantine Empire. A sheltered harbor near the current location of Riga was created in the 2nd century. It was settled by a Finnic tribe called the Livonians.

During the early Middle Ages, Riga began to develop as a center for Viking trade. In 1158, Germans began visiting Riga. They created an outpost nearby.

The monk Meinhard of Segeberg arrived and tried to convert the Livonian pagans to Christianity.

founded in 1201. It was a castle of the Teutonic Order. He built a castle and a church close to Riga. Meinhard died in 1196, and the Livonians continued to practice Paganism. In 1198, Bishop Berthold arrived with some Crusaders and tried to force the Livonians to become Christian. However, Berthold soon died and the Crusaders were defeated.

Pope Innocent III declared a crusade against the Livonians. Bishop Albert became Bishop of Livonia in 1199. In 1200, Albert landed in Riga with 23 ships and 500 crusaders.

In 1282, Riga joined the Hanseatic League. This gave Riga economic and political stability.

 Holy Roman Empire 
In 1522, Riga joined the Protestant Reformation, which ended the power of the archbishops. After the end of the Livonian Order, Riga because a free imperial city as part of the Holy Roman Empire.

 Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Swedish Empire 
Riga came under the influence of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth after the Treaty of Drohiczyn in 1581. In 1621, Riga became part of the Swedish Empire after the Polish-Swedish War (1621-1625). Riga resisted a Russian siege during the Russo-Swedish War (1656–1658).

 The Russian Empire 
Between 1709 and 1710, the Russian Empire captured Riga, forcing the city to surrender. Riga retained most of their autonomy.

 World War I 
The German Army marched into Riga and captured it in 1917. In 1918 after the Russian surrender, Riga was made a part of the German Empire. On 11 November 1918, Germany surrendered and gave up Latvia. Latvia declared independence on 18 November. The United Kingdom and Germany were Latvia's main trading partners.

 World War II 
In 1940, Latvia was occupied by the Soviet Union. A rigged election took place in Latvia. Many anti-Soviet men were arrested and many others were deported. Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union in 1941, and occupied Riga. During the invasion, Latvian Jews were brought into concentration camps. By the end of the war, most Jews were brought to Germany. The Soviet Union reclaimed Riga in 1944. Riga was made part of the Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic. Latvia gained independence from the Soviet Union in August of 1991. Riga became the capital of Latvia.

 People 
The Riga inhabitants are named “Rīdzinieki” on Latvian and “рижане”(rizhani) on Russian.

Most of the people by ethnic origin are Latvian (45%) and 40% are Russian. Historically the city had large German population. Among other ethnic groups there are Byelorussians, Poles and Jews.

In the 16th century, Riga was one of the largest cities on the Baltic Sea coast, with a population of about 16,000. The population fell to about 6000 in 1720, but grew rapidly later, reaching 517,000 in 1913. The world wars reduced the population. It reached its peak in 1990 with 909,135 people.

 Economy 
During the Soviet period the Riga wagon building factory made a very big number of local trains.

The Latvian National Theatre is in Riga.

Transportation 
The are 8 tram and 18 trolley routes run by Rīgas Satiksme.

 Notable people 
Vera Mukhina, sculptor.
Sergey Eisenstein, movie director.
Mikhail Zadornov, writer.
Oleg Znarok, ice hockey player and coach.

References

 Other websites 
 Riga Photos 


Category:1201 establishments
Category:Establishments in Latvia
Category:1200s establishments in Europe