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The No. 94 Driving School of the Soviet Navy back in Soviet times now houses the Liepāja No. 3 Elementary School.
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Encircled by apartment buildings, some of which are abandoned, the Tosmare water tower, which was built in 1905 in a pseudo-Gothic style and is made of red bricks, stands tall and proud. It is 37 metres high. Steam pumps were once used to pump underground water into the tower (the pumps have survived to this very day). Water was delivered three times a day to the residents of Karosta. The tower is no longer used for its original purpose, however. The tower can be viewed from the outside at any time. This is a unique aspect of Latvia’s industrial heritage.
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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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Today it seems unbelievable that just 20 years ago there were buildings on the coastline with massive projectors that were rolled onto a platform at night so as to shed light on the nearby sea and beach and to look for potential violators of the border regime. Only the buildings and the ruins of the platform are still there – they have been seriously damaged by the waves of the sea.
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On the shore of the Daugava River, to the East of Lielupes Street and South-east of Jātnieku Street, there are the remnants of four battery positions that were blown up in their day. The batteries had 152-mm cannons, and this was part of the former system of fortifications in Rīga (see also Komētforts, the Daugavgrīva fortress, and the fortifications of Mangaļsala). The aim was to protect the city from invaders who came from the sea. From the top of the batteries you can see the Daugava and the northern segment of the manmade Krievu Island (a huge pile of sand). It does have to be said that the condition of this historical monument is quite pitiful.
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Forts were built and rebuilt at this location for many centuries by Germans, Swedes and Russians. In 1912, several forts were erected at Mangaļsala and Bolderāja. There were two forts with 254-mm cannons, six with 152-mm cannons, and three with 138-mm cannons. Each fort had two cannons.
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This is the rumoured location of a military aviation engine testing laboratory. The territory is now industrial and locked off, and nothing remains to suggest that such a lab was ever really there.
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In Soviet times, the border guards of Ventspils established a major complex of buildings, open areas and various objects. Most of these are no longer in use, and the area is not under guard.
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Today there’s a single-family farm and not much else, but at one time Olmaņi was the site of two important coastal batteries collectively known as “Krastnoflotskaya.” Until 1955, the one to the South of Olmaņi, there were four 152-mm Kane type cannons, which were manufactured during World War I and were widely used to protect the coastal territory of the Baltic Soviet republics of Latvia and Estonia during the rule of the Soviet regime. Small concentric ramparts of earth are all that’s left there today. After 1955, to the North of Olmaņi, another battery was installed with four MY-2 152-mm cannons. They had a range of 25 km. The battery remained in battle readiness until 1975, when it was turned into a reserve facility. It’s not easy to find, but it’s worth the search. The platforms for the cannons and the subterranean bunkers are still there. This was indeed one of the most impressive coastal batteries along the shores of the Baltic Sea.
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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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This was at one time an important element in the protection of Soviet Latvia’s shoreline. A visually interesting and impressive territory near the seashore, it has sadly not been properly managed and is thus full of trash.
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There are several partly preserved buildings here, but there is a lack of information as to what they were used for. The reason why the buildings are in such sad shape is that people have removed parts of them to use as building materials.
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The Pape airfield was used for arms training in Soviet times, with bombs being dropped on specific targets. The facility is owned by the regional local government and is not used. There are sunken ships and targets in the sea.
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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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This building was erected in 1903 and 1904 to be used for military training, exercises and ceremonial events. An addition to the South of the building held a small church, but it is gone. The building was used for gymnastics performances and competitions for horseback riders. Official meals for the garrison’s sailors were held there, too – the hall could hold up to 3,000 people. Only the outer walls survive today, sad to say. You can view the exterior and interior of the hall at any time. This is the only building of its size and type in Latvia. The roof once had bands of glass tiles.
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One of the largest tank bases in the Baltic War District was located during Soviet times just South of Gardene. The territory has largely been abandoned, and there are just a few remnants of the buildings that were once there. If you drive down the Dobele-Annenieki road, you will find a paved military road splitting off from it. It is still used today. The buildings and urban planning of Gardene are also of interest – during the Soviet era, soldiers and their families lived there.
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The former military field hospital is in the park, south from Ventspils Seaside Open-air Museum. A few of the small architectural forms of the building have been preserved.
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This facility was used in the past by communications officers, and it was also a training centre. The Ventspils Home Guard Battalion is housed here at this time. The facility is not open to civilians. Along the road there are metal structures which show where the entrance to the facility was once located.
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Nordeķu - Kalnciema kāpu grēdas daļa Kleistu meža austrumdaļā pie Dzirciema ielas. Padomju laikā šeit darbojās divi (vēlāk viens) P - 35 radars, kas griezās ap savu asi. Vietējie iedzīvotāji tolaik šo vietu bija iesaukuši par "Lokatoru kalniņu". Ziemeļos no tā atradās padomju armijas cūku ferma. |
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This is the only Soviet military object of its type and scope in Latvia – a long-distance communications base which was supposedly used to maintain contacts with Soviet naval ships and submarines all around the world. The facility had a central tower and six perimeter towers, each more than 200 metres high. Some of the towers remain in place and are used for mobile communications. It is rumoured that the Soviet communications system was never once turned on. The complex at Upīškalns can be seen by driving down the Skrunda-Kuldīga road. It is some 3 km before the Kuldīga ring road, at a populated location called Raidstacija.
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