Die älteste (16 Jh.) der drei Burge am Fluss Nemunas. Renoviert nach dem 2. Weltkrieg. Heutzutage – eine Schule. Ein Park. Blick vom Burgturm.

The Rudbārži Estate was built at the request of Baroness Thea von Firks from the aristocratic dynasty.  After a reconstruction in 1883, the building became an ornate example of Mannerism and Renaissance architecture, with decorative finishing and a larger size.  On December 15, 1905, the building was torched by revolutionaries.  The restoration began three years later under the leadership of architect L. Reinier.  The castle has a holiday hall with two marble fireplaces, the parquet in some of the rooms dates back to the early 20th century, and the outdoor doors have metal engravings.  The castle was reconstructed in 1938.  It housed a German field hospital during World War II, while after the war it housed a school for forestry workers.  In 1962, the Rudbārži school moved into the building, which is now named after Oskars Kalpaks.  A commemorative plaque outside the building is devoted to the Kalpaks battalion.  During Latvia’s liberation battles, on January 22, 1919, the Bolsheviks occupied Skrunda, and seven days later, Kalpaks’ battalion attacked from the direction of the Rudbārži Estate.  After a three-hour battle, the victory was won, with the battalion taking over a strategic line near the banks of the Venta River.   This was the first victory for Kalpaks’ men after many retreats, and that inspired the rest of the liberation battles.

The Eversmuiža Estate is in the centre of Cibla and is dominated by a 1680 mansion that was built in the style of Classicism and was rebuilt several times later.  There is a home for servants, a gatehouse and ancillary buildings that are in poor shape.  A stone wall surrounds the park of the estate.  Since the 17th century and for nearly two centuries, the estate belonged to an aristocratic Polish family, after it was owned by various others.  Today the mansion houses a boarding school and the Cibla Regional Research Museum, which offers tours.  A cultural and historical trail runs along the banks of the Ilža River.

The Castle of the Livonian Order in Ventspils was first listed in documents in the late 13^th century, and despite damaging wars, it has maintained its essence as a castle to this very day and only with minimal changes. The castle is also known as the oldest Medieval fortress in Latvia. Today it is home to a modern museum.

Several of the buildings of the Šlītere Semi-Estate have survived to the present day – the servants' house (late 19th century), the pump house (mid-19th century), the smokehouse (mid-19th century), the cattle barn, etc.  A forestry building was built here in 1936 and renovated in 2010.  Since the end of 2009, the administration of the Slītere National Park has been housed here.  Today the building also houses the Kurzeme regional branch of the Environmental Protection Board.  Opposite the building are two yews, and there is a productive ivy which has covered the northern side of the servants' house.  The common yew and the Baltic ivy are symbols of Šlītere, and you can see and photograph them here without "bothering" them in their natural environment.  The pump house contains a well that is unique in Latvia – it is 34 m deep, which is nearly the height of the Blue Hills of Šlītere.  It reportedly was active until the 1970s and delivered water to the forestry system.  A fragment of the stone well can be seen as a part of the wall of the pump house.  The semi-estate is surrounded by small elements of a park, including an impressive alley of elm trees.  Locals says that pre-war Latvian President Kārlis Ulmanis spent the night at the building once while on a hunt.

Atrodas Viļānu dienviddaļā, Maltas upītes krastos, kuras tecējumu pārtrauc Viļānu HES. Par muižu atrodamas ziņas jau no 15. gs. beigām, kad tā piederēja bruņiniekam J. Loem. Līdzīgi kā Vidsmuiža, arī šī bija viena no Latgales lielākajām muižām, kurai piederēja zemes > 49 000 ha platībā. 18. - 19. gs. mijā ap muižu sāka veidoties Viļānu miests. Muižas dzīvojamo ēku, kas apskatāma tikai no ārpuses, ieskauj parks.

The Jelgava Castle stands between the Lielupe and Driksa rivers. The Baroque castle was designed by the well known Italian architect Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli, and this was the most important piece of early work that he did. The Latvian Agriculture University is housed in the castle today. A museum was established in 1968. +371-6300-5617. The socle story of the south-eastern wing has the graves of rulers from the Duchy of Courland – members of the Kettler and Byron dynasties, which ruled from 1569 to 1791. There are 18 restored sarcophagi here.

The Castle was restored recently and now exhibits life and history of a noble family on three floors. Tour guides have numerous stories and legends to tell, visitors can make their personal castle souvenirs.
Kivi Kõrts (www.kivikorts.ee) near the castle is a pub with simple meals from locally sourced produce, characteristic to the Estonian cuisine and the Peipsi area.

The Pilkalne Estate is in a remote location on the border of Latvia and Lithuania, 5 km to the Southwest of Nereta. Lovers of history certain must visit this estate. Why? One reason is that the grain kiln of the estate, which is gradually being restored, and the grain drying stove, a few wooden parts of which have been preserved, are unique in Latvia. The stable and servants’ home have also survived and are populated today. The buildings were built in the 18^th century. The owner can tell you stories about interesting aspects of this location’s history.