Russian statues and memorials removed in Latvia

 When I was in Latvia in August 2022, I did a tour to Sigulda. The tour guide told us a lot about the history of Latvia. She was also very proud of the fact that Latvia was part of the EU - they joined in 2004. And she stated that they would be the last country to leave!

She also told us how Latvia had passed between Russia and Germany over the years. From BBC :

1918 November - Latvian National Council proclaims independence.

1918-20 - Civil war ends in peace treaty with Soviet Russia.

1934 - Prime minister Karlis Ulmanis seizes power following succession of unstable governments.

1940 - Soviet Union annexes Latvia, along with neighbouring Estonia and Latvia. Mass deportations to Siberia and Central Asia.

1941 - Nazi Germany invades. Some 70,000 Latvian Jews are killed by Nazi death squads and Latvian paramilitary units.

1944 - Soviet Army returns, heralding further waves of deportations and repression of resistance to Soviet rule.

1986 - First major anti-Soviet demonstrations held by nationalist and environmental activists.

1991 March - Referendum produces large majority in favour of independence.

1991 August - During the attempted anti-Gorbachev coup in Moscow, Omon forces again strike in Riga, causing another six deaths. Parliament declares the full restoration of independence.

1991 November - Citizenship law passed, giving citizenship to those who held it before Soviet occupation of 1940 and their descendants.

1993 July - Guntis Ulmanis elected president.

1994 August - Last Russian troops leave.

1999 - Vaira Vike-Freiberga is elected president - the first woman president in eastern Europe.

2004 March - Latvia admitted to Nato.

2004 1 May - Latvia is one of 10 new states to join the European Union.

One of the longest and most important roads in Riga is Freedom Street. However it has had many names over the last century. During the Nazi occupation in the Second World War, the road was known as Adolf Hitler Street. Once the Soviets occupied Latvia, they also eliminated the name of Freedom, and called it Lenin Street. Upon the restoration of independence, Freedom Street regained its name, and maintains it to this day.

There are still Russian built buildings in Riga. And across the river from the city is Uzvaras Parks. In this park stood a large monument to the Liberators of Soviet Latvia and Riga from the German Fascist Invaders. On 26 Aug 2022 this monument was demolished. A video on BBC  - "Latvia's parliament has voted to remove all remaining Soviet statues and plaques. The country has joined Estonia in bringing down World War Two memorials in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Demolition machinery was used to remove the 79-metre (259-foot) monument."

A report on Sky news. The obelisk was built in 1985 when Latvia was still part of the USSR to mark the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany which occupied the Baltic states in World War Two.

In the main city is The Freedom Monument, a 42 m statue dedicated to Latvians who lost their lives fighting for independence between 1918 & 1920.

Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February 2022. See my blog on naval vessels I saw in the Baltic in August 2022.

Sigulda, Latvia

When in Latvia in August 2022, I did a tour to Sigulda as I wanted to see something of the countryside. Sigulda is 50 km from the capital Riga. Sigulda was bombed in the war. It is in Gauja National Park, which covers a huge area. Not much to the town, a railway station, then we drove past some Swiss chalets and the bobsleigh centre, then along by the Gauja valley. 

Our first stop was Siguldas viduslaiku pils, which has an old and also a new castle. The old medieval castle ruins date back to 1207. The walls have been fortified many times in recent years to allow access to paying visitors. 

The new castle was built in 1878 in Neo Gothic style. Originally it was the home of a wealthy family but now belongs to the District Council.

From the castle we went to Gutman's cave, see my separate blog.

After visiting the cave we went on to the Turaida museum reserve. This covers a large area and is the historical centre of Turaida. There is currently a lot of renovation of the approach road and car parks.  We walked through the grounds, saw the wooden Lutheran church which was built in 1750 but has been fully restored. Near the church is the Rose memorial, a place devoted to Maija – the Rose of Turaida, who lived in Sigulda at the beginning of the 17th century. Her life story and tragic death have grown into a romantic legend about love, courage and confidence. See is also connected with Gutman's Cave.

Also in the gardens are 26 granite sculptures all relating to folklore. We went onto the castle. This dates to the early 1200s. I climbed the main tower, which has 139 brick steps. At the top are good views over the Gauja National Park.  

I then went in the other buildings. Until the end of the 16th century, the castle was residence of Archbishops of Riga who ruled the lands. After a fire in 1776, it was no longer inhabited and gradually turned into ruins. Then in the second half of the 20th century, archaeological research led to restoration of the buildings. 

See more on Turaida Museum Reserve.

Naval vessels seen on Baltic cruise August 2022

Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February 2022. The next day cruise lines cancelled their cruises to the Black Sea and the Baltic Sea. Map showing Russia, Ukraine and the Baltic and Black Seas -

The Black Sea cruises were no longer going to Odessa, which is a major port on the south coast of Ukraine. Then in mid May cruises to Romania and Bulgaria were also cancelled, as the whole Black Sea was declared a war zone. 

Meanwhile cruises in the Baltic were not going to St. Petersburg. This Russian port city lies at the eastern end of the Baltic.

In late July 2022 I booked a Baltic cruise for August - it had originally been scheduled to go to St Petersburg, but of course that was off the itinerary. On the 16 night cruise we saw a lot of naval war ships from different countries, lots of helicopters, 2 Russian submarines and a military drone. So we were constantly reminded there was a war on in the area.

After we left Gothenburg on the west coast of Sweden, we entered the Great Belt strait, which connects the Baltic Sea to the North Sea. It goes between the major islands of Zealand and Funen in Denmark. Zealand is the island Copenhagen is on, and Odense is on Funen (Fyn). And the Great Belt Bridge connects the 2 islands, carrying the E20 highway.

We were due to sail under the bridge shortly before 7 am one morning and I had set my alarm to get up in time. The captain also made an announcement shortly before our arrival. The bridge is the third  largest suspension bridge in the world and the longest outside of Asia. It is 6790 m long, and with a connecting bridge, the total length is 13.4 km . The height is 254 m which makes it the highest point in Denmark! The clearance below is 65 m, which didn't leave much room for us to pass under! I think there was about 10 m to spare! See youtube video about Arcadia passing under the bridge.

A couple of hours later, some passengers saw a submarine being escorted by naval ships. I missed that, but later that day, I saw another submarine. I googled it later on, and read that "According to information published by Tass on July 20, 2022, Danish warships are escorting the Russian 140 m long nuclear-powered submarine Severodvinsk sailing through the kingdom’s territorial waters to the Baltic Sea for its participation in Russia’s Navy Day celebrations in St. Petersburg". Denmark is one of several NATO member states whose navies do not deploy submarines.

We saw the subs on 5 Aug when they were being escorted back from the St. Petersburg Navy Day parade on 31 July. I think the one in the morning was Severodvinsk.

I think the submarine I saw on 5th evening was the Vepr. See paragraph under Refurbishment on Wikipedia.

This submarine was escorted by at least 2 ships. Severomorsk 619 is a guided missile destroyer warship belonging to the Russian navy. 

P520 is a Danish ship, HDMS Diana.

Severodvinsk on Wikipedia and mention of the July 2022 sailing under History.

The 2 subs are based at the Kola Peninsula in extreme northwest Russia.

Our next port of call was Stockholm on 7th. We were berthed opposite an American warship, USS Arlington (24), which had just arrived. This is an amphibious transport dock ship and was carrying 4 helicopters.

She is currently (20 Aug) in Riga, Latvia.

On 11 Aug we sailed from Tallinn in Estonia to Riga. That evening I was watching the sunset from the starboard side when a large (military?) drone headed straight for our ship, checked us out and flew off. It was flying very fast but I managed to get some blurred photos -

One of many peaceful sunsets after all that military activity!