| No | Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
 |
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.)
|
|
 |
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.
|
|
 |
The ship and coast guard missile repair workshops in the forests around Bārta in the Liepāja District are very impressive in visual terms. The facility is owned by the regional local government and is being dismantled to obtain building materials.
|
|
 |
Ein am Ende des 19. Jh. gebautes Teil der Festung. Ein Museum, das Verbrechen totalitäre Regimes gegen Menschlichkeit wiederspiegelt. |
|
 |
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.
|
|
 |
The first Dnyestr-M radar station was opened here in 1969 to calculate the trajectories of ballistic missiles. The trajectories of satellites were also calculated here. The range of the radar station was 5,000 km. In 1972, construction began on a second, more modern radar, the Dnyepr-M. In 1977, it was ready for use, and the first radar was modernised at the same time. The two radars were located in buildings that were 250 m long and 17 m high. During a 24/hour period, they could identify the height, speed and flight trajectory of up to 750 space objects. In 1985, work began on a third, even more modern radar – the Daryal-YM. This was a radar that could “peek” across the horizon. The antenna building was 117 m high (19 stories), 80 m long and 80 m wide. It had a planned range of 6,000 km, but it was not completed. After the withdrawal of the Russian army in 1995, the building was blown up. That cost LVL 6,172,311 and used up 360 kg of explosives. The territory of the radar stations took up 1,072 hectares, with barracks, a hotel, 551 apartments, a medical facility, a water tower, a war hospital, a bomb shelter, etc. The aim of the facility was to monitor space above Western Europe and North America, as well as to “intercept” any ballistic missiles that were fired at the USSR. The territory is closed to visitors, but it is an important part of Latvia’s military heritage. The abandoned territory can be viewed from the outside. The nearby bus stop is called “Kombināts.” This was the only facility of its kind in the Baltic States. !!! Since March 2018 the Skrunda army base is closed for visitors. |
|
 |
The former communications facilities at Pļavmalas are used as a farm warehouse at this time. They belong to a local farm.
|
|
 |
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.
|
|
 |
The Staldzene Zenith Missile Brigade used a large territory and a number of major buildings. Some of these are now privately owned, and a fish smoking facility has been installed at one of them.
|
|
 |
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.
|
|
 |
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.
|
|
 |
Metsavenna Farm organises forest brethren (or brothers) expeditions for visitors to search out forest brothers in their hideouts, visit an underground bunker, hear true stories of life after WWII, have a taste of home-brew and sing old songs along with the master. The more adventurous can stay a night in the bunker, while in winter a sledding hill is opened for snowy downhill rides. |
|
 |
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.
|
|
 |
The former military zone in this location is not in use at this time, and there is no specific information about what it was used for in the past. The territory is privately owned and is not open to visitors.
|
|
 |
The museum is in Gunpowder Tower, which was an important component in the Medieval fortifications system of Rīga. The basic subject of the museum is Latvia’s military and political history, and exhibits are related to these subjects.
|
|
 |
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.
|
|
 |
A rare monument survives in Skulte – a Soviet-era jet bomber, the IL-28, which supposedly was equipped to carry winged missiles. The airplane is on three cement pedestals.
|
|
 |
This café in Ciemupe in the Ogre District has an exhibit of military equipment, artillery and other objects.
|
|
 |
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.
|
|
 |
The former missile transport facility at Karaosta is not used any more. The territory is mostly closed off to visitors.
|
|
