Project start 10.6.2018. Under construction

Narva I Tallinn-Reval I Tartto I

Riga I Daugavpils I

Historical affiliations
Terra Mariana (condominium of Archbishops of Riga and Livonian Order) 1201–1561
Imperial Free City 1561–1582
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth 1582–1629
Swedish Empire 1629–1721
Russian Empire 1721–1917
German Empire 1917–1918
Latvia Republic of Latvia 1918–1940
Soviet Union 1940–1941
Nazi Germany 1941–1944
Soviet UnionLatvian Soviet Socialist Republic Soviet Union 1944–1991
Latvia Republic of Latvia 1991–present

History

Founding
The river Daugava has been a trade route since antiquity, part of the Vikings' Dvina-Dnieper navigation route to Byzantium.[17] A sheltered natural harbour 15 km (9.3 mi) upriver from the mouth of the Daugava — the site of today's Riga — has been recorded, as Duna Urbs, as early as the 2nd century.[17] It was settled by the Livs, an ancient Finnic tribe.[14]

The building of the Brotherhood of Blackheads is one of the most iconic buildings of Old Riga (Vecrīga) Riga began to develop as a centre of Viking trade during the early Middle Ages.[17] Riga's inhabitants occupied themselves mainly with fishing, animal husbandry, and trading, later developing crafts (in bone, wood, amber, and iron).[17]

The Livonian Chronicle of Henry testifies to Riga having long been a trading centre by the 12th century, referring to it as portus antiquus (ancient port), and describes dwellings and warehouses used to store mostly flax, and hides.[17] German traders began visiting Riga, establishing a nearby outpost in 1158.

Along with German traders also arrived the monk Meinhard of Segeberg[16] to convert the Livonian pagans to Christianity. Catholic and Orthodox Christianity had already arrived in Latvia more than a century earlier, and many Latvians baptised.[16][17] Meinhard settled among the Livs, building a castle and church at Ikšķile, upstream from Riga, and established his bishopric there.[16] The Livs, however, continued to practice paganism and Meinhard died in Ikšķile in 1196, having failed his mission.[21] In 1198, the Bishop Berthold arrived with a contingent of crusaders[21] and commenced a campaign of forced Christianization.[16][17] Berthold was killed soon afterwards and his forces defeated.[21]

The Church mobilised to avenge. Pope Innocent III issued a bull declaring a crusade against the Livonians.[21] Bishop Albert was proclaimed Bishop of Livonia by his uncle Hartwig of Uthlede, Prince-Archbishop of Bremen and Hamburg in 1199. Albert landed in Riga in 1200[17][21] with 23 ships[22] and 500 Westphalian crusaders.[23] In 1201, he transferred the seat of the Livonian bishopric from Ikšķile to Riga, extorting agreement to do so from the elders of Riga by force.[17]

Under Bishop Albert The year 1201 also marked the first arrival of German merchants in Novgorod, via the Dvina.[24] To defend territory[25] and trade, Albert established the Order of Livonian Brothers of the Sword in 1202, open to nobles and merchants.[24]

Christianization of the Livs continued. In 1207, Albert started on fortification of the town.[24][26] Emperor Philip invested Albert with Livonia as a fief[27] and principality of the Holy Roman Empire.[17] To promote a permanent military presence, territorial ownership was divided between the Church and the Order, with the Church taking Riga and two-thirds of all lands conquered and granting the Order a third.[28] Until then, it had been customary for crusaders to serve for a year and then return home.[28]

Albert had ensured Riga's commercial future by obtaining papal bulls which decreed that all German merchants had to carry on their Baltic trade through Riga.[28] In 1211, Riga minted its first coinage,[17] and Albert laid the cornerstone for the Riga Dom.[29] Riga was not yet secure as an alliance of tribes failed to take Riga.[28] In 1212, Albert led a campaign to compel Polotsk to grant German merchants free river passage.[24] Polotsk conceded Kukenois (Koknese) and Jersika to Albert, also ending the Livs' tribute to Polotsk.[30]

Riga's merchant citizenry chafed and sought greater autonomy from the Church. In 1221, they acquired the right to independently self-administer Riga[25] and adopted a city constitution.[31]

That same year Albert was compelled to recognise Danish rule over lands they had conquered in Estonia and Livonia.[32] Albert had sought the aid of King Valdemar of Denmark to protect Riga and Livonian lands against Liv insurrection when reinforcements could not reach Riga. The Danes landed in Livonia, built a fortress at Reval (Tallinn) and set about conquering Estonian and Livonian lands. The Germans attempted, but failed, to assassinate Valdemar.[33] Albert was able to reach an accommodation with them a year later, however and, in 1222, Valdemar returned all Livonian lands and possessions to Albert's control.[34]

Albert's difficulties with Riga's citizenry continued; with papal intervention, a settlement was reached in 1225 whereby they no longer had to pay tax to the Bishop of Riga,[35] and Riga's citizens acquired the right to elect their magistrates and town councillors.[35] In 1226, Albert consecrated the Dom Cathedral,[17] built St. James's Church,[17] (now a cathedral) and founded a parochial school at the Church of St. George.[16]

In 1227, Albert conquered Oesel[36] and the city of Riga concluded a treaty with the Principality of Smolensk giving Polotsk to Riga.[37]

Albert died in January 1229.[38] He failed in his aspiration to be anointed archbishop[27] but the German hegemony he established over the Baltic would last for seven centuries.[28]

Riga in the 16th century Hanseatic League In 1282, Riga became a member of the Hanseatic League. The Hansa was instrumental in giving Riga economic and political stability, thus providing the city with a strong foundation which endured the political conflagrations that were to come, down to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riga

Holy Roman Empire, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Swedish and Russian Empires As the influence of the Hanseatic League waned, Riga became the object of foreign military, political, religious and economic aspirations. Riga accepted the Reformation in 1522, ending the power of the archbishops. In 1524, iconoclasts targeted a statue of the Virgin Mary in the Cathedral to make a statement against religious icons. It was accused of being a witch, and given a trial by water in the Daugava River. The statue floated, so it was denounced as a witch and burnt at Kubsberg.[39] With the demise of the Livonian Order during the Livonian War, Riga for twenty years had the status of a Free Imperial City of the Holy Roman Empire before it came under the influence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth by the Treaty of Drohiczyn, which ended the war for Riga in 1581. In 1621, during the Polish–Swedish War (1621–1625), Riga and the outlying fortress of Daugavgriva came under the rule of Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden, who intervened in the Thirty Years' War not only for political and economic gain but also in favour of German Lutheran Protestantism. During the Russo-Swedish War (1656–1658), Riga withstood a siege by Russian forces. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riga

Riga remained the largest city in Sweden until 1710,[citation needed] a period during which the city retained a great deal of autonomous self-government. In that year, in the course of the Great Northern War, Russia under Tsar Peter the Great besieged plague-stricken Riga. Along with the other Livonian towns and gentry, Riga capitulated to Russia, but largely retained their privileges. Riga was made the capital of the Governorate of Riga (later: Livonia). Sweden's northern dominance had ended, and Russia's emergence as the strongest Northern power was formalised through the Treaty of Nystad in 1721. Riga became an industrialised port city of the Russian empire, in which it remained until World War I. By 1900, Riga was the third largest city in Russia after Moscow and Saint Petersburg in terms of the number of industrial workers and number of theatres.[citation needed]

German troops entering Riga during World War I. During these many centuries of war and changes of power in the Baltic, and despite demographic changes, the Baltic Germans in Riga had maintained a dominant position. By 1867, Riga's population was 42.9% German.[40] Riga employed German as its official language of administration until the installation of Russian in 1891 as the official language in the Baltic provinces, as part of the policy of Russification of the non-Russian speaking territories of the Russian Empire, including Congress Poland, Finland and the Baltics, undertaken by Tsar Alexander III. More and more Latvians started moving to the city during the mid-19th century. The rise of a Latvian bourgeoisie made Riga a centre of the Latvian National Awakening with the founding of the Riga Latvian Association in 1868 and the organisation of the first national song festival in 1873. The nationalist movement of the Neo-Latvians was followed by the socialist New Current during the city's rapid industrialisation, culminating in the 1905 Revolution led by the Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riga

Photo Public Domain File:Old Riga City Hall.jpg Uploaded: 18 August 2005 This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 70 years or less. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_Riga_City_Hall.jpg

Project start 10.6.2018.
Under construction

Narva
Tallinn-Reval
Tartto
Riika
Väinänlinna

Historialliset yhteydet
Terra Mariana (condominium of Archbishops of Riga and Livonian Order) 1201–1561
Imperial Free City 1561–1582
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth 1582–1629
Swedish Empire 1629–1721
Russian Empire 1721–1917
German Empire 1917–1918
Latvia Republic of Latvia 1918–1940
Soviet Union 1940–1941
Nazi Germany 1941–1944
Soviet UnionLatvian Soviet Socialist Republic Soviet Union 1944–1991
Latvia Republic of Latvia 1991–present

History

Founding
The river Daugava has been a trade route since antiquity, part of the Vikings' Dvina-Dnieper navigation route to Byzantium.[17] A sheltered natural harbour 15 km (9.3 mi) upriver from the mouth of the Daugava — the site of today's Riga — has been recorded, as Duna Urbs, as early as the 2nd century.[17] It was settled by the Livs, an ancient Finnic tribe.[14]

The building of the Brotherhood of Blackheads is one of the most iconic buildings of Old Riga (Vecrīga)
Riga began to develop as a centre of Viking trade during the early Middle Ages.[17] Riga's inhabitants occupied themselves mainly with fishing, animal husbandry, and trading, later developing crafts (in bone, wood, amber, and iron).[17]

The Livonian Chronicle of Henry testifies to Riga having long been a trading centre by the 12th century, referring to it as portus antiquus (ancient port), and describes dwellings and warehouses used to store mostly flax, and hides.[17] German traders began visiting Riga, establishing a nearby outpost in 1158.

Along with German traders also arrived the monk Meinhard of Segeberg[16] to convert the Livonian pagans to Christianity. Catholic and Orthodox Christianity had already arrived in Latvia more than a century earlier, and many Latvians baptised.[16][17] Meinhard settled among the Livs, building a castle and church at Ikšķile, upstream from Riga, and established his bishopric there.[16] The Livs, however, continued to practice paganism and Meinhard died in Ikšķile in 1196, having failed his mission.[21] In 1198, the Bishop Berthold arrived with a contingent of crusaders[21] and commenced a campaign of forced Christianization.[16][17] Berthold was killed soon afterwards and his forces defeated.[21]

The Church mobilised to avenge. Pope Innocent III issued a bull declaring a crusade against the Livonians.[21] Bishop Albert was proclaimed Bishop of Livonia by his uncle Hartwig of Uthlede, Prince-Archbishop of Bremen and Hamburg in 1199. Albert landed in Riga in 1200[17][21] with 23 ships[22] and 500 Westphalian crusaders.[23] In 1201, he transferred the seat of the Livonian bishopric from Ikšķile to Riga, extorting agreement to do so from the elders of Riga by force.[17]

Under Bishop Albert
The year 1201 also marked the first arrival of German merchants in Novgorod, via the Dvina.[24] To defend territory[25] and trade, Albert established the Order of Livonian Brothers of the Sword in 1202, open to nobles and merchants.[24]

Christianization of the Livs continued. In 1207, Albert started on fortification of the town.[24][26] Emperor Philip invested Albert with Livonia as a fief[27] and principality of the Holy Roman Empire.[17] To promote a permanent military presence, territorial ownership was divided between the Church and the Order, with the Church taking Riga and two-thirds of all lands conquered and granting the Order a third.[28] Until then, it had been customary for crusaders to serve for a year and then return home.[28]

Albert had ensured Riga's commercial future by obtaining papal bulls which decreed that all German merchants had to carry on their Baltic trade through Riga.[28] In 1211, Riga minted its first coinage,[17] and Albert laid the cornerstone for the Riga Dom.[29] Riga was not yet secure as an alliance of tribes failed to take Riga.[28] In 1212, Albert led a campaign to compel Polotsk to grant German merchants free river passage.[24] Polotsk conceded Kukenois (Koknese) and Jersika to Albert, also ending the Livs' tribute to Polotsk.[30]

Riga's merchant citizenry chafed and sought greater autonomy from the Church. In 1221, they acquired the right to independently self-administer Riga[25] and adopted a city constitution.[31]

That same year Albert was compelled to recognise Danish rule over lands they had conquered in Estonia and Livonia.[32] Albert had sought the aid of King Valdemar of Denmark to protect Riga and Livonian lands against Liv insurrection when reinforcements could not reach Riga. The Danes landed in Livonia, built a fortress at Reval (Tallinn) and set about conquering Estonian and Livonian lands. The Germans attempted, but failed, to assassinate Valdemar.[33] Albert was able to reach an accommodation with them a year later, however and, in 1222, Valdemar returned all Livonian lands and possessions to Albert's control.[34]

Albert's difficulties with Riga's citizenry continued; with papal intervention, a settlement was reached in 1225 whereby they no longer had to pay tax to the Bishop of Riga,[35] and Riga's citizens acquired the right to elect their magistrates and town councillors.[35] In 1226, Albert consecrated the Dom Cathedral,[17] built St. James's Church,[17] (now a cathedral) and founded a parochial school at the Church of St. George.[16]

In 1227, Albert conquered Oesel[36] and the city of Riga concluded a treaty with the Principality of Smolensk giving Polotsk to Riga.[37]

Albert died in January 1229.[38] He failed in his aspiration to be anointed archbishop[27] but the German hegemony he established over the Baltic would last for seven centuries.[28]

Riga in the 16th century
Hanseatic League
In 1282, Riga became a member of the Hanseatic League. The Hansa was instrumental in giving Riga economic and political stability, thus providing the city with a strong foundation which endured the political conflagrations that were to come, down to
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riga

Holy Roman Empire, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Swedish and Russian Empires
As the influence of the Hanseatic League waned, Riga became the object of foreign military, political, religious and economic aspirations. Riga accepted the Reformation in 1522, ending the power of the archbishops. In 1524, iconoclasts targeted a statue of the Virgin Mary in the Cathedral to make a statement against religious icons. It was accused of being a witch, and given a trial by water in the Daugava River. The statue floated, so it was denounced as a witch and burnt at Kubsberg.[39] With the demise of the Livonian Order during the Livonian War, Riga for twenty years had the status of a Free Imperial City of the Holy Roman Empire before it came under the influence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth by the Treaty of Drohiczyn, which ended the war for Riga in 1581. In 1621, during the Polish–Swedish War (1621–1625), Riga and the outlying fortress of Daugavgriva came under the rule of Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden, who intervened in the Thirty Years' War not only for political and economic gain but also in favour of German Lutheran Protestantism. During the Russo-Swedish War (1656–1658), Riga withstood a siege by Russian forces.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riga

Riga remained the largest city in Sweden until 1710,[citation needed] a period during which the city retained a great deal of autonomous self-government. In that year, in the course of the Great Northern War, Russia under Tsar Peter the Great besieged plague-stricken Riga. Along with the other Livonian towns and gentry, Riga capitulated to Russia, but largely retained their privileges. Riga was made the capital of the Governorate of Riga (later: Livonia). Sweden's northern dominance had ended, and Russia's emergence as the strongest Northern power was formalised through the Treaty of Nystad in 1721. Riga became an industrialised port city of the Russian empire, in which it remained until World War I. By 1900, Riga was the third largest city in Russia after Moscow and Saint Petersburg in terms of the number of industrial workers and number of theatres.[citation needed]

German troops entering Riga during World War I.
During these many centuries of war and changes of power in the Baltic, and despite demographic changes, the Baltic Germans in Riga had maintained a dominant position. By 1867, Riga's population was 42.9% German.[40] Riga employed German as its official language of administration until the installation of Russian in 1891 as the official language in the Baltic provinces, as part of the policy of Russification of the non-Russian speaking territories of the Russian Empire, including Congress Poland, Finland and the Baltics, undertaken by Tsar Alexander III. More and more Latvians started moving to the city during the mid-19th century. The rise of a Latvian bourgeoisie made Riga a centre of the Latvian National Awakening with the founding of the Riga Latvian Association in 1868 and the organisation of the first national song festival in 1873. The nationalist movement of the Neo-Latvians was followed by the socialist New Current during the city's rapid industrialisation, culminating in the 1905 Revolution led by the Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riga

Photo:
English: Albert of Riga, Riga Dome Cathedral
Date 23 May 2010
Source Own work
Author Artifex
I, the copyright holder of this work, release this work into the public domain. This applies worldwide.
In some countries this may not be legally possible; if so:
I grant anyone the right to use this work for any purpose, without any conditions, unless such conditions are required by law.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Albert_of_Riga.JPG

Photo
Public Domain
File:Old Riga City Hall.jpg in the 17th century.
Uploaded: 18 August 2005
This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 70 years or less.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_Riga_City_Hall.jpg

Photo
Валерий Дед
CC BY 3.0hide terms
File:2013 - panoramio (53).jpg
Created: 18 March 2013
Location: 56° 56′ 59.6″ N, 24° 6′ 11.36″ E
This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license.
Attribution: Валерий Дед
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Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en

Project start 10.6.2018.
Under construction

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riga

Narva I
Tallinn-Reval I
Tartto I

Riga I
Daugavpils I

Historical affiliations
Terra Mariana (condominium of Archbishops of Riga and Livonian Order) 1201–1561
Imperial Free City 1561–1582
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth 1582–1629
Swedish Empire 1629–1721
Russian Empire 1721–1917
German Empire 1917–1918
Latvia Republic of Latvia 1918–1940
Soviet Union 1940–1941
Nazi Germany 1941–1944
Soviet UnionLatvian Soviet Socialist Republic Soviet Union 1944–1991
Latvia Republic of Latvia 1991–present

History

Founding
The river Daugava has been a trade route since antiquity, part of the Vikings' Dvina-Dnieper navigation route to Byzantium.[17] A sheltered natural harbour 15 km (9.3 mi) upriver from the mouth of the Daugava — the site of today's Riga — has been recorded, as Duna Urbs, as early as the 2nd century.[17] It was settled by the Livs, an ancient Finnic tribe.[14]

The building of the Brotherhood of Blackheads is one of the most iconic buildings of Old Riga (Vecrīga)
Riga began to develop as a centre of Viking trade during the early Middle Ages.[17] Riga's inhabitants occupied themselves mainly with fishing, animal husbandry, and trading, later developing crafts (in bone, wood, amber, and iron).[17]

The Livonian Chronicle of Henry testifies to Riga having long been a trading centre by the 12th century, referring to it as portus antiquus (ancient port), and describes dwellings and warehouses used to store mostly flax, and hides.[17] German traders began visiting Riga, establishing a nearby outpost in 1158.

Along with German traders also arrived the monk Meinhard of Segeberg[16] to convert the Livonian pagans to Christianity. Catholic and Orthodox Christianity had already arrived in Latvia more than a century earlier, and many Latvians baptised.[16][17] Meinhard settled among the Livs, building a castle and church at Ikšķile, upstream from Riga, and established his bishopric there.[16] The Livs, however, continued to practice paganism and Meinhard died in Ikšķile in 1196, having failed his mission.[21] In 1198, the Bishop Berthold arrived with a contingent of crusaders[21] and commenced a campaign of forced Christianization.[16][17] Berthold was killed soon afterwards and his forces defeated.[21]

The Church mobilised to avenge. Pope Innocent III issued a bull declaring a crusade against the Livonians.[21] Bishop Albert was proclaimed Bishop of Livonia by his uncle Hartwig of Uthlede, Prince-Archbishop of Bremen and Hamburg in 1199. Albert landed in Riga in 1200[17][21] with 23 ships[22] and 500 Westphalian crusaders.[23] In 1201, he transferred the seat of the Livonian bishopric from Ikšķile to Riga, extorting agreement to do so from the elders of Riga by force.[17]

Under Bishop Albert
The year 1201 also marked the first arrival of German merchants in Novgorod, via the Dvina.[24] To defend territory[25] and trade, Albert established the Order of Livonian Brothers of the Sword in 1202, open to nobles and merchants.[24]

Christianization of the Livs continued. In 1207, Albert started on fortification of the town.[24][26] Emperor Philip invested Albert with Livonia as a fief[27] and principality of the Holy Roman Empire.[17] To promote a permanent military presence, territorial ownership was divided between the Church and the Order, with the Church taking Riga and two-thirds of all lands conquered and granting the Order a third.[28] Until then, it had been customary for crusaders to serve for a year and then return home.[28]

Albert had ensured Riga's commercial future by obtaining papal bulls which decreed that all German merchants had to carry on their Baltic trade through Riga.[28] In 1211, Riga minted its first coinage,[17] and Albert laid the cornerstone for the Riga Dom.[29] Riga was not yet secure as an alliance of tribes failed to take Riga.[28] In 1212, Albert led a campaign to compel Polotsk to grant German merchants free river passage.[24] Polotsk conceded Kukenois (Koknese) and Jersika to Albert, also ending the Livs' tribute to Polotsk.[30]

Riga's merchant citizenry chafed and sought greater autonomy from the Church. In 1221, they acquired the right to independently self-administer Riga[25] and adopted a city constitution.[31]

That same year Albert was compelled to recognise Danish rule over lands they had conquered in Estonia and Livonia.[32] Albert had sought the aid of King Valdemar of Denmark to protect Riga and Livonian lands against Liv insurrection when reinforcements could not reach Riga. The Danes landed in Livonia, built a fortress at Reval (Tallinn) and set about conquering Estonian and Livonian lands. The Germans attempted, but failed, to assassinate Valdemar.[33] Albert was able to reach an accommodation with them a year later, however and, in 1222, Valdemar returned all Livonian lands and possessions to Albert's control.[34]

Albert's difficulties with Riga's citizenry continued; with papal intervention, a settlement was reached in 1225 whereby they no longer had to pay tax to the Bishop of Riga,[35] and Riga's citizens acquired the right to elect their magistrates and town councillors.[35] In 1226, Albert consecrated the Dom Cathedral,[17] built St. James's Church,[17] (now a cathedral) and founded a parochial school at the Church of St. George.[16]

In 1227, Albert conquered Oesel[36] and the city of Riga concluded a treaty with the Principality of Smolensk giving Polotsk to Riga.[37]

Albert died in January 1229.[38] He failed in his aspiration to be anointed archbishop[27] but the German hegemony he established over the Baltic would last for seven centuries.[28]

Riga in the 16th century
Hanseatic League
In 1282, Riga became a member of the Hanseatic League. The Hansa was instrumental in giving Riga economic and political stability, thus providing the city with a strong foundation which endured the political conflagrations that were to come, down to
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riga

Holy Roman Empire, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Swedish and Russian Empires
As the influence of the Hanseatic League waned, Riga became the object of foreign military, political, religious and economic aspirations. Riga accepted the Reformation in 1522, ending the power of the archbishops. In 1524, iconoclasts targeted a statue of the Virgin Mary in the Cathedral to make a statement against religious icons. It was accused of being a witch, and given a trial by water in the Daugava River. The statue floated, so it was denounced as a witch and burnt at Kubsberg.[39] With the demise of the Livonian Order during the Livonian War, Riga for twenty years had the status of a Free Imperial City of the Holy Roman Empire before it came under the influence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth by the Treaty of Drohiczyn, which ended the war for Riga in 1581. In 1621, during the Polish–Swedish War (1621–1625), Riga and the outlying fortress of Daugavgriva came under the rule of Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden, who intervened in the Thirty Years' War not only for political and economic gain but also in favour of German Lutheran Protestantism. During the Russo-Swedish War (1656–1658), Riga withstood a siege by Russian forces.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riga

Riga remained the largest city in Sweden until 1710,[citation needed] a period during which the city retained a great deal of autonomous self-government. In that year, in the course of the Great Northern War, Russia under Tsar Peter the Great besieged plague-stricken Riga. Along with the other Livonian towns and gentry, Riga capitulated to Russia, but largely retained their privileges. Riga was made the capital of the Governorate of Riga (later: Livonia). Sweden's northern dominance had ended, and Russia's emergence as the strongest Northern power was formalised through the Treaty of Nystad in 1721. Riga became an industrialised port city of the Russian empire, in which it remained until World War I. By 1900, Riga was the third largest city in Russia after Moscow and Saint Petersburg in terms of the number of industrial workers and number of theatres.[citation needed]

German troops entering Riga during World War I.
During these many centuries of war and changes of power in the Baltic, and despite demographic changes, the Baltic Germans in Riga had maintained a dominant position. By 1867, Riga's population was 42.9% German.[40] Riga employed German as its official language of administration until the installation of Russian in 1891 as the official language in the Baltic provinces, as part of the policy of Russification of the non-Russian speaking territories of the Russian Empire, including Congress Poland, Finland and the Baltics, undertaken by Tsar Alexander III. More and more Latvians started moving to the city during the mid-19th century. The rise of a Latvian bourgeoisie made Riga a centre of the Latvian National Awakening with the founding of the Riga Latvian Association in 1868 and the organisation of the first national song festival in 1873. The nationalist movement of the Neo-Latvians was followed by the socialist New Current during the city's rapid industrialisation, culminating in the 1905 Revolution led by the Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riga

Photo
Public Domain
File:Old Riga City Hall.jpg
Uploaded: 18 August 2005
This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 70 years or less.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_Riga_City_Hall.jpg

Project start 10.6.2018.
Under construction

Narva I
Tallinn-Reval I
Tartto I

Riga I
Daugavpils I

Historical affiliations
Terra Mariana (condominium of Archbishops of Riga and Livonian Order) 1201–1561
Imperial Free City 1561–1582
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth 1582–1629
Swedish Empire 1629–1721
Russian Empire 1721–1917
German Empire 1917–1918
Latvia Republic of Latvia 1918–1940
Soviet Union 1940–1941
Nazi Germany 1941–1944
Soviet UnionLatvian Soviet Socialist Republic Soviet Union 1944–1991
Latvia Republic of Latvia 1991–present

History

Founding
The river Daugava has been a trade route since antiquity, part of the Vikings' Dvina-Dnieper navigation route to Byzantium.[17] A sheltered natural harbour 15 km (9.3 mi) upriver from the mouth of the Daugava — the site of today's Riga — has been recorded, as Duna Urbs, as early as the 2nd century.[17] It was settled by the Livs, an ancient Finnic tribe.[14]

The building of the Brotherhood of Blackheads is one of the most iconic buildings of Old Riga (Vecrīga)
Riga began to develop as a centre of Viking trade during the early Middle Ages.[17] Riga's inhabitants occupied themselves mainly with fishing, animal husbandry, and trading, later developing crafts (in bone, wood, amber, and iron).[17]

The Livonian Chronicle of Henry testifies to Riga having long been a trading centre by the 12th century, referring to it as portus antiquus (ancient port), and describes dwellings and warehouses used to store mostly flax, and hides.[17] German traders began visiting Riga, establishing a nearby outpost in 1158.

Along with German traders also arrived the monk Meinhard of Segeberg[16] to convert the Livonian pagans to Christianity. Catholic and Orthodox Christianity had already arrived in Latvia more than a century earlier, and many Latvians baptised.[16][17] Meinhard settled among the Livs, building a castle and church at Ikšķile, upstream from Riga, and established his bishopric there.[16] The Livs, however, continued to practice paganism and Meinhard died in Ikšķile in 1196, having failed his mission.[21] In 1198, the Bishop Berthold arrived with a contingent of crusaders[21] and commenced a campaign of forced Christianization.[16][17] Berthold was killed soon afterwards and his forces defeated.[21]

The Church mobilised to avenge. Pope Innocent III issued a bull declaring a crusade against the Livonians.[21] Bishop Albert was proclaimed Bishop of Livonia by his uncle Hartwig of Uthlede, Prince-Archbishop of Bremen and Hamburg in 1199. Albert landed in Riga in 1200[17][21] with 23 ships[22] and 500 Westphalian crusaders.[23] In 1201, he transferred the seat of the Livonian bishopric from Ikšķile to Riga, extorting agreement to do so from the elders of Riga by force.[17]

Under Bishop Albert
The year 1201 also marked the first arrival of German merchants in Novgorod, via the Dvina.[24] To defend territory[25] and trade, Albert established the Order of Livonian Brothers of the Sword in 1202, open to nobles and merchants.[24]

Christianization of the Livs continued. In 1207, Albert started on fortification of the town.[24][26] Emperor Philip invested Albert with Livonia as a fief[27] and principality of the Holy Roman Empire.[17] To promote a permanent military presence, territorial ownership was divided between the Church and the Order, with the Church taking Riga and two-thirds of all lands conquered and granting the Order a third.[28] Until then, it had been customary for crusaders to serve for a year and then return home.[28]

Albert had ensured Riga's commercial future by obtaining papal bulls which decreed that all German merchants had to carry on their Baltic trade through Riga.[28] In 1211, Riga minted its first coinage,[17] and Albert laid the cornerstone for the Riga Dom.[29] Riga was not yet secure as an alliance of tribes failed to take Riga.[28] In 1212, Albert led a campaign to compel Polotsk to grant German merchants free river passage.[24] Polotsk conceded Kukenois (Koknese) and Jersika to Albert, also ending the Livs' tribute to Polotsk.[30]

Riga's merchant citizenry chafed and sought greater autonomy from the Church. In 1221, they acquired the right to independently self-administer Riga[25] and adopted a city constitution.[31]

That same year Albert was compelled to recognise Danish rule over lands they had conquered in Estonia and Livonia.[32] Albert had sought the aid of King Valdemar of Denmark to protect Riga and Livonian lands against Liv insurrection when reinforcements could not reach Riga. The Danes landed in Livonia, built a fortress at Reval (Tallinn) and set about conquering Estonian and Livonian lands. The Germans attempted, but failed, to assassinate Valdemar.[33] Albert was able to reach an accommodation with them a year later, however and, in 1222, Valdemar returned all Livonian lands and possessions to Albert's control.[34]

Albert's difficulties with Riga's citizenry continued; with papal intervention, a settlement was reached in 1225 whereby they no longer had to pay tax to the Bishop of Riga,[35] and Riga's citizens acquired the right to elect their magistrates and town councillors.[35] In 1226, Albert consecrated the Dom Cathedral,[17] built St. James's Church,[17] (now a cathedral) and founded a parochial school at the Church of St. George.[16]

In 1227, Albert conquered Oesel[36] and the city of Riga concluded a treaty with the Principality of Smolensk giving Polotsk to Riga.[37]

Albert died in January 1229.[38] He failed in his aspiration to be anointed archbishop[27] but the German hegemony he established over the Baltic would last for seven centuries.[28]

Riga in the 16th century
Hanseatic League
In 1282, Riga became a member of the Hanseatic League. The Hansa was instrumental in giving Riga economic and political stability, thus providing the city with a strong foundation which endured the political conflagrations that were to come, down to
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riga

Holy Roman Empire, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Swedish and Russian Empires
As the influence of the Hanseatic League waned, Riga became the object of foreign military, political, religious and economic aspirations. Riga accepted the Reformation in 1522, ending the power of the archbishops. In 1524, iconoclasts targeted a statue of the Virgin Mary in the Cathedral to make a statement against religious icons. It was accused of being a witch, and given a trial by water in the Daugava River. The statue floated, so it was denounced as a witch and burnt at Kubsberg.[39] With the demise of the Livonian Order during the Livonian War, Riga for twenty years had the status of a Free Imperial City of the Holy Roman Empire before it came under the influence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth by the Treaty of Drohiczyn, which ended the war for Riga in 1581. In 1621, during the Polish–Swedish War (1621–1625), Riga and the outlying fortress of Daugavgriva came under the rule of Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden, who intervened in the Thirty Years' War not only for political and economic gain but also in favour of German Lutheran Protestantism. During the Russo-Swedish War (1656–1658), Riga withstood a siege by Russian forces.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riga

Riga remained the largest city in Sweden until 1710,[citation needed] a period during which the city retained a great deal of autonomous self-government. In that year, in the course of the Great Northern War, Russia under Tsar Peter the Great besieged plague-stricken Riga. Along with the other Livonian towns and gentry, Riga capitulated to Russia, but largely retained their privileges. Riga was made the capital of the Governorate of Riga (later: Livonia). Sweden's northern dominance had ended, and Russia's emergence as the strongest Northern power was formalised through the Treaty of Nystad in 1721. Riga became an industrialised port city of the Russian empire, in which it remained until World War I. By 1900, Riga was the third largest city in Russia after Moscow and Saint Petersburg in terms of the number of industrial workers and number of theatres.[citation needed]

German troops entering Riga during World War I.
During these many centuries of war and changes of power in the Baltic, and despite demographic changes, the Baltic Germans in Riga had maintained a dominant position. By 1867, Riga's population was 42.9% German.[40] Riga employed German as its official language of administration until the installation of Russian in 1891 as the official language in the Baltic provinces, as part of the policy of Russification of the non-Russian speaking territories of the Russian Empire, including Congress Poland, Finland and the Baltics, undertaken by Tsar Alexander III. More and more Latvians started moving to the city during the mid-19th century. The rise of a Latvian bourgeoisie made Riga a centre of the Latvian National Awakening with the founding of the Riga Latvian Association in 1868 and the organisation of the first national song festival in 1873. The nationalist movement of the Neo-Latvians was followed by the socialist New Current during the city's rapid industrialisation, culminating in the 1905 Revolution led by the Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riga

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