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In 1944, between November 14 and December 9, there were fierce battles between SD and SS units from the German 16th Army, under the command of Police General Friedrich Jekeln, and a separate battalion of the Kurelians, under the command of Lt Roberts Rubenis. The battles were waged in the Ugāle, Usma, Renda and Zlēki parishes. Rubenis’ men were well-armed and organised. There were more than 600 troops, and the soldiers saw themselves as a national force which stood apart from the two hostile occupant regimes. This was the longest and most extensive battle in the history of Latvian national resistance. As the military force of the Latvian Central Council, the unit enjoyed extensive public support and confirmed a high level of morality in fighting for the restoration of a democratic Latvia. (The preceding text comes from the Rubenis Fund.)
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Few Soviet military objects are associated with more legends than this one. During Soviet times, this was a reserve airfield, as well as a storage site (just 50 kilometres from the republic’s capital city) for nuclear weapons. These were hidden in two cement hangars that were covered with soil and vegetation. Public information suggests that an RX-24 nuclear bomb weighing 430 kg and a RX-26 nuclear bomb weighing 1,030 kg were stored here, as were air-to-land missiles equipped with nuclear explosives. If there had been an accident here, what would have happened to Rīga, to Latvia, to the Baltic States and to Northern Europe? The airfield is a closed territory today.
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The Lūžņa radio equipment company was part of the Naval Border Guard in Soviet Times. The car park in the centre of Lūžņa offers a fine view of the former military complex. Some buildings are used as apartment buildings at this time.
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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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A coast guard facility was located near the village of Užava during Soviet times. There is a lack of information about the use of the facility at this time.
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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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The No. 521 Border Guard post at Ovīši is owned by the Defence Ministry and is closed to civilians. Visitors can only look at the ruins of some buildings in the dunes.
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The Cape of Kolka is freely accessible to local residents and tourists today, but the border guard facility still serves its purposes and is not open to civilians.
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Viena no slepenākajām vietām kādreizējā Padomju Latvijā - bunkuri ir bijušais raķešu vadības punkts un patvertne. Bunkurus izveidoja 1950. un 1960. gadu mijā Padomju armijas vajadzībām. Par atrašanos šajā teritorijā draudēja bargs sods. Celtnes izveidošanai ar milzīgām 16- riteņu kravas automašīnām tika atvesti lieli dzelzbetona bloki. Pēc trīs bunkuru izveidošanas, papildus nostiprināšanai un nosiltināšanai tos apbēra ar granti. Celtne sastāv no 2 x 3 sekcijām, kas pievienotas vidējam gaitenim. Blakus ēkā atradās skola, kad 1946. gadā tā daļēji bija izdegusi, tika noslēgts līgums ar Padomju armijas garnizonu par telpu īri. Tā Valkas pilsētas centrā radās militārais centrs un Valka kļuva par Padomju Savienībai svarīgu kodolbruņojuma objektu. Objekts pieejams tikai no ārpuses! |
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This military object ensured radio communications. Now the facility is owned by the Latvian Defence Ministry, and it can only be viewed from the outside.
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Ezeres kultūrvēstures un novadpētniecības materiālu krātuve “Muitas nams” ir izveidota vēsturiski nozīmīgā ēkā, kur, II pasaules kara noslēgumam tuvojoties, 1945. gada 8. maijā tika parakstīts Kurzemes katlā ielenkto vācu karaspēka daļu kapitulācijas akts. Ar to tiek uzskatīts, ka Ezerē faktiski beidzies II pasaules karš. Krātuves materiālu ekspozīcijas ir no Ezeres pagasta senvēstures līdz šodienai, tai skaitā ezernieku vaļasprieki. |
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This was Coastal Defence Battery No. 500 at one time, and it was dismantled in 1955. There were four 130 mm cannons, and their foundations can still be spotted in the forest northeast from the lighthouse. They are mostly covered by moss and can be very hard to find. Those who are not familiar with the region will probably have the most trouble of all.
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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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This former training route runs through the shoreline forests from the northern part of Ventspils (there was once a tank division in Ziemeļu Street there) all the way to Ovīši. Today it is a wide, sandy and overgrown track.
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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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The Swedish army built a modern fortress during the 1640s with five bastions and two gates. There were 120 cannons and mortar throwers, barracks for soldiers, flats for officers, a garrison church and warehouses for food at munitions. After the Great Northern War in 1710, the fortress was taken over by the Russian army. After the Soviet occupation in 1940, the Soviet navy took over the fortress. Alongside it is a former Soviet army facility with abandoned buildings and a monument to sailors who served in submarines. The fortress is open for tours on Saturdays and Sundays. |
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Only indirect evidence of the former tank base that was here is still available (see the story).
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Ar Kara muzeja informatīvo atbalstu Garā kāpā pie Antiņiem ir rekonstruēta daļa latviešu strēlnieku nocietinājumu sistēmas. Aspkatāmas ierakumu pozīcijas un vairākas zemnīcas. Netālu atrodas bijusī un no dzelzsbetona veidotā medikamentu glabātuve. |
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The No. 14 Border Guard facility at Akmeņrags was a naval observatory. The facility belongs to the regional local government and is not used for any purpose at this time.
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Until the 1680s, where the Vecdaugava neighbourhood is located, there was a castle which, because of natural changes in the riverbed of the Daugava, was then dismantled and “moved” to the Left Bank of the Daugava. Nothing remains of the castle, but people can still see the remnants of old barriers and moats. Swedish soldiers used the facility at the beginning of the Great Northern War. The place is certainly interesting in the context of Rīga’s history and military heritage, and if you’re in the northern reaches of the city, we recommend that you go and have a look.
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