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The former communications facilities at Pļavmalas are used as a farm warehouse at this time. They belong to a local farm.
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This coast guard facility was housed in a building that used to be a maritime school. In the post-Soviet era, accommodations were offered at the building. The coast guard tower is one of the best-preserved objects of its kind along the Latvian shoreline.
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An impressive set of military structures between the Baltic Sea and Lake Liepāja and Lake Tosmare. Construction of the fortress began in the late 19th century on the basis of a decree by Russian Tsar Alexander III, and it cost 45 million gold roubles. The fortress includes accommodations and elements of fortifications – sites for cannons, trenches, gunpowder cellars, systems of canals, a narrow-gauge rail line, etc. In 1908, the fortress was shut down because of a change in Russia’s defence concept, and the construction of it was declared to have been a strategic mistake. There were attempts to blow up the underground structures and cellars during World War I, but that did not really succeed. Some elements of the fortress were of great importance in Latvia’s liberation battles. Surviving today are the Northern forts, the Central fort, the Eastern fort, the Southern fort, the shoreline defensive batteries (No. 23, 3), Redāns, Lunete, and others. Most are not improved, so visits may be dangerous. The northern part of the fortress includes the Military Port, which has experienced seven different armies and regimes. During the Soviet years, it was closed to civilians. There are many outstanding monuments to military history. Tourists love the Karosta prison, which offers educational programmes. |
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This extensive territory to the South of Pāvilosta once was the site of warehouses and an oil base. The territory at this time is used for the extraction of raw materials. There is also a sawmill there. The sign at the entrance of the facility states that the area can be dangerous to visitors.
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In Soviet years, Ventspils was the site of tank training. The facility has been degraded, and only the former tank repair facility and some outbuildings are still being used. The rest of the territory is not used or guarded any more.
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In the small town of Pļaviņas, at the place where the Skanstupīte River flows into the Daugava (Friendship Park), there are the remnants of a set of small and low fortifications known as the Swedish bastions. This was a place of military and political importance, because here was the place where the boundaries of Vidzeme (under Swedish rule), Latgale (under Polish rule), and the Duchy of Kurzeme (on the opposite side of the river) all came together. In 1625, the Swedes were defeated by the Poles here, and Swedish King Gustav Adolf almost lost his life. Medieval bastions of this kind can be seen in some other places of Latvia, as well.
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The Jūrkalne Air Defence Division facility is privately owned at this time. A motor racing track has been installed there.
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The communications facility in the forests of Bārta has been abandoned and is not being used other than for dismantling of buildings to obtain building materials.
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The radio telescope at Irbene was at one time used for anti-espionage purposes. There were various military units and objects in Irbene, including a military housing estate that has now been abandoned. The radio telescope is now run by the Radio Astronomy Centre of the Latvian Academy of Sciences for scientific purposes. Guided tours of the object are available.
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Ramocku stacija atklāta 1889. gadā reizē ar dzelzceļa Pleskava-Rīga atklāšanu. 1916.gadā pēc jauna dzelzceļa izbūves līdz Gulbenei, šīs stacijas nozīme ievērojami pieauga. 1918.gadā tā kļuva par divu dažādu sliežu platumu dzelzceļa iecirkņu saskares staciju. Intensīva vilcienu kustība caur šo staciju tika izvērsta Brīvības cīņu laikā. Sadursmes pie Ieriķu stacijas notika jau 1918.gada decembrī. 1919.gadā jūnijā te sākās Cēsu kaujas. Starp Cēsīm un Ieriķiem vācieši uzbruka igauņu bruņuvilcienam. Par dažādiem nopelniem Brīvības cīņu laikā Ieriķu apkaimē, vairāki karavīri saņēma apbalvojumus, arī Lācplēša kara ordeņus.1919. gadā stacija nodēvēta par Ieriķiem. Otrā pasaules kara laikā te atradās lokomotīvju depo.1953.gadā depo vietā izveidoja stratēģiskās rezerves tvaika lokomotīvju bāzi. Pēdējā tvaika lokomotīve L-3599 Ieriķu bāzi pameta 2002.gadā un tagad ir redzama kinopilsētā Cinevilla.Ieriķu stacija vairākkārt pārbūvēta.Otrā pasaules kara laikā nodedzināta pavisam. 1956.gadā uzbūvē pašreizējo ēku. |
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In Soviet times, all lighthouses were military objects. Today the lighthouse at Pape is managed by the Latvian Maritime Administration, and it can only be viewed from the outside.
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The military communications facilities at Pāvilosta are along the southern part of the town. The facilities are owned by the local government, and there is no information about their use at this time.
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The bridge was built in 1906. Part of it was blown up during World War I and later restored. During the Soviet occupation, one needed special permits to cross the bridge. Military ships and other vessels used the canal, because one of the largest military bases in the USSR was sited here. In the summer of 2006, one month before the bridge’s centenary, a Georgian-flagged tanker, the Anna, rammed into the northern support structure of the bridge, and that destroyed the bridge’s turning part beyond recognition. The bridge was renovated and reopened in 2009. You can look at the bridge and cross it at any time.This is a unique engineering monument, and it is the only drawbridge of its kind in the Baltic States. It takes just five minutes to turn the two parts of the bridge.
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The air defence radar facilities at the Liepāja airport in Cimdenieki are gone now, although the man-made terrain in the area remains interesting today.
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The lighthouse at Akmeņrags supported maritime navigation in Soviet times. Today it is controlled by the Latvian Maritime Administration. The lighthouse is open for visitors.
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The former air defence missile base took up a large territory to the South of Pāvilosta in its day, but today that land has been abandoned and degraded. It can be dangerous for visitors.
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The current Ventspils airport began its life as a military object. Today regular passenger flights to and from Rīga have been suspended, and the airport is only used for small planes.
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The Plāņciems missile base is in the forests of Bārta and is not easy to access. This special air defence facility is being dismantled for the purpose of obtaining building materials.
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The zenith missile brigade and its communications headquarters were used for the provision, planning and co-ordination of radio communications. The object is all but abandoned, but it is owned by the Latvian Repatriation Centre and the Christian Mission.
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The hydroplane airfield is on the eastern shore of Lake Durbe, not far from Līguti. It was built between 1939 and 1941. During the Soviet era, the 43rd aviation escadrille was located here, and it had 13 MBR-2 hydroplanes. All that’s left today are the cement sheets on the shore of the lake. You can look at the site itself.
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