History of Latvia: a Brief Survey

A scene from the film ‘Latvian Wedding in Nīca’ (Latviešu kāzas Nīcā), produced in 1931.The Latvian national currency, a twentylat bill, 1925.Once the situation stabilised and the country was liberated from foreign troops, theConstitutional Assembly (Satversmes Sapulce) convened and on 15 February 1922, adoptedthe Constitution of the Republic of Latvia. From here on the Constitution accorded thehighest power in Latvia to the parliament, the Saeima, which was to elect the presidentand approve the Cabinet of Ministers. Jānis Čakste was elected first President of Latvia. Themost influential political parties in Latvia after the war were the LSDSP and the civic-orientedLatvian Farmers’ Union (Latviešu Zemnieku savienība). National minorities in Latvia (Germans,Jews and Russians) were also actively involved in the political process.28One of the most important tasks now was the revival of the economy, which had sufferedtremendously during the war. The Latvian national monetary unit, the lat, was issuedin 1922. That same year the state began to implement agrarian reform, which calledfor the distribution of state property and land that had once been held by the BalticGerman landed gentry. Agrarian changes averted social tension in the country bymaking land available to former landless peasants and small farmers. This was areturn to historic justice, as now the land belonged to those who actually livedand farmed on it. Latvian agriculture was fully able to supply the country with food, andalso introduced wide possibilities for the export of agricultural products (butter, bacon, flax,etc.) Agriculture was the largest sector of the economy, and it employed about two-thirdsof the work force.