Riga Street

Facts

1693: J. A. Ulrich, the Swedish royal land surveyor, draws up a plan of Cesis, on which the subsoil of Riga Street is marked out.
1767: Michael Christoph Marnitz, the head of the town of Cesis, builds a stone house (now 7 Rīgas Street), which is later used as the town hall.
1788: The merchant and coppersmith Jonas Gustavs Fovelin completes the construction of a stone residential building (now 16 Rīgas iela), which becomes the most impressive residential building in the historical centre of Cesis.
1899: The three-storey building at 18 Rīgas Street is built and becomes one of the city’s visual landmarks.
1905: J. Ozols, an active supporter of the 1905 Revolution, runs a bookstore and printing house at 5 Rīgas Street.
1913: A magnificent Art Nouveau tenement house was built at 20 Rīgas iela with the initials “HD” of the landlady Hermine Danze above the entrance door.
1944: on 14 September, a Soviet air raid destroyed several buildings, including 28, 30, 32, 34 and 36 Rīgas Street.
1950: the first shop for the sale of collective farm produce is opened at 27 Rīgas Street.
1974: extensive restoration works are carried out in the Merchant Fauvelin’s House (16 Rīgas iela).

Some of the most striking buildings:

Riga Street, one of the historic and vital streets of Cesis, holds many interesting places with their own unique story. At 47 Rīgas iela is a house locals call “Princes’ House”. It was named after the daughters of Count Sievers, the Comtesse, who lived in the building. The people of Cesis called these ladies “princesses”, and their life in this house still retains its charm and mystery.

The Hotel Baltischer Hof is located at 21 Rīgas iela, where on 2 June 1919 important negotiations took place between representatives of the new Latvian army and the Landwehr, which formed an important part of Latvia’s independence struggle and military strategy.

At 11 Rīgas iela, in 1938, there was a popular café-candy store “Lita”, which offered not only delicious ice creams, but also provided a great atmosphere with music – there were even 9 varieties of ice creams available, and the Trio played attractive music for the guests. This place became a much-loved meeting point, adding vitality and charm to the cultural life of the city.

These sites and events are just a few examples of how the history of Cesis is linked to specific places and people that have shaped the city’s vitality and growth over the centuries.

Adrese	Riga Street

Riga Street is a historically important artery of the town of Cesis, whose buildings reflect the development of the town over the centuries. This street was once the main axis of trade and social life, connecting the city centre with the road to Riga. Originally, the part of the town from the Rauna Gate to the Market Square was called Rauna-Riga Street, but after the Market Square was Riga Street. In the Middle Ages, when entering Cesis, the traveller had to pass through the city’s defensive wall, the Rauna Gate, the impressiveness of which is attested by a well-preserved folk tale: “You have a mouth as big as the Rauna Gate.”

Riga Street’s buildings are a mix of architectural styles – from classicism and eclecticism to Art Nouveau. There are simple wooden houses, imposing stone houses, stately Art Nouveau and elaborate facade decorations. The street houses housed shops, workshops, cafés and apartments, which together made up a bustling city life. Riga Street was particularly active in the late 19th and first half of the 20th century, when the landlords were often merchants or craftsmen themselves.

Unfortunately, some of the historic buildings were destroyed during World War II, when air raids in September 1944 destroyed several buildings. However, many of the buildings have been preserved or restored, allowing modern-day Cēsis residents and visitors to still enjoy the historic aura of the street.

Source:
Dace Cepurīte, Mg. hist., Study “Cēsnieks un jego nams”