History of Latvia: a Brief Survey

Krišjānis Valdemārs (1825-1891), main ideologue ofthe New Latvian movement and the most prominentsocial and political figure of the time; publicist,editor of the Peterburgas Awizes. Valdemārs’ ideashave been very influential in the development ofnational romanticism and the history of Latvianpublic opinion. He also played a large role in the thedevelopment of Latvian seafaring.Barquentine Anna Wictoria, built in 1878 in Ainaži. The firsttwo Latvian peasant-built ships were built in 1857: the PeterSofia in Mangaļi and the Victoria in Pabaži.The first newspapers printed in theLatvian language from the 1800s:Latweeschu Awizes (‘Latvian Newspaper’,est. 1824), Peterburgas Awizes(‘St Petersburg Newspaper’, est. 1862) andliterary magazine Austrums (est. 1885).Industry spread quickly in the late 1700s, bringing with it a major population growth. Vidzemeand Kurzeme became Russia’s most developed provinces, but conditions for peasantsbecame worse: they were poor, and noblemen’s power was unlimited after the annexationto the Russian Empire. Despite this, however, political preconditions and the developingeconomy caused serfdom to be abolished in Vidzeme in 1817, in Kurzeme in 1819, and inLatgale in 1861.Krišjānis Barons (1835-1923), promoterof the Latvian national awakening of the19th century; collector, compiler andresearcher of Latvian folksongs (dainas)— some dating back hundreds of years;editor of the newspaper PeterburgasAwizes.18In the mid-19th century, with the rise of national consciousness throughout Europe, ethnicLatvians experienced a powerful ‘awakening’ of national identity. The first newspapers in theLatvian language were printed, and active cultural development took place. The first LatvianNational Song Festival was held in 1873 — the beginning of a long-standing tradition withstrong national overtones.The latter half of the 19th century marked a period of national rebirth — the most activemembers of Latvian social and cultural life, the so-called New-Latvians (jaunlatvieši),demanded the same rights long-enjoyed by other nations. Starting from 1862, the weeklyLatvian language newspaper Peterburgas Awizes parodied and criticised Baltic German claimsto cultural and political superiority.