Lettland

Republic of Latvia

A Hanseatic crossroads where Baltic Germans, Swedes and Russians followed one another, Latvia made its language and its songs the core of its resistance.

Erbe

Riga, founded in 1201 by a missionary bishop, became a Hanseatic capital and Europe's largest Art Nouveau ensemble. The Reformation translated the Bible into Latvian very early; the song festivals, born in 1873 on the German model, are listed as intangible heritage of humanity.

Geschichte

The Christianisation of Livonia, led from 1200 by the Livonian Brothers of the Sword, inserted the region into the Latin West. Riga joined the Hanse and became one of the great Baltic ports.

Swedish in the seventeenth century, Russian from 1710, Latvia retained a Baltic German elite that administered the country into the twentieth century. The national awakening rested on the first song festivals and on Lutheran literacy.

Independent in 1918, occupied successively by the USSR, Germany and the USSR again, Latvia lost a third of its population between 1940 and 1949. The Singing Revolution and the Baltic Way led to restored independence in 1991. The country joined the Union and NATO in 2004, the euro in 2014.

Meilensteine

1201 Christianisierung

Foundation of Riga

Bishop Albert establishes a mission city that will become the metropolis of the eastern Baltic.

1282 Mittelalter

Riga joins the Hanse

Trade in timber, flax and grain links Livonia to Lübeck, Bruges and Novgorod.

1685 Frühe Neuzeit

Bible in Latvian

Ernst Glück’s translation fixes the written language and spreads reading through the parishes.

1873 Frühe Neuzeit

First song festival

Dozens of choirs gather in Riga: song becomes the nation’s political expression.

1918 Frühe Neuzeit

Proclamation of independence

On 18 November the Republic of Latvia is proclaimed in Riga.

1991 Zeitgeschichte

Independence of Latvia restored

After the Singing Revolution, Latvia regains its sovereignty.

2004 Europäischer Aufbau war beteiligt

The big bang enlargement

Ten states, eight of them formerly communist, join the Union: the continent’s division ends.

2014 Europäischer Aufbau

Euro adoption in Latvia

The lats gives way to the euro five years after one of Europe’s severest financial crises.

Politische Landschaft

Ergebnisse der Europawahl vom Juni 2024 und ihre Übersetzung in Fraktionen des Europäischen Parlaments.

JV — Jaunā Vienotība 2
NA — Nacionālā apvienība 2
ZZS — Zaļo un Zemnieku savienība 1
PRO — Progresīvie 1
LPV — Latvija pirmajā vietā 1
S — Saskaņa 1
AS — Apvienotais saraksts 1

Verteilung der europäischen Sitze

Fraktion der Europäischen Volkspartei (Christdemokraten) 3
Fraktion der Europäischen Konservativen und Reformer 2
Fraktion Die Grünen/Europäische Freie Allianz 2
Fraktion Europa der Souveränen Nationen 1
Fraktion der Progressiven Allianz der Sozialdemokraten im Europäischen Parlament 1

Verwandte Nachrichten

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Verteidigung Bilateral

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Noch keine offene Diskussion.

Der Staat in Zahlen

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