Kuldīga
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Kuldīga | |
---|---|
Town | |
![]() Kuldīga Old Town | |
UTC+3 (EEST) | |
Postal code | LV-330(1–3) |
Calling code | +371 633 |
Number of city council members | 11 |
Website | http://www.kuldiga.lv/ |
Europe |
Kuldīga (German: Goldingen) is a town in the Courland region of Latvia, in the western part of the country.[4][5] It is the center of Kuldīga Municipality with a population of approximately 13,500.[6]
) (Kuldīga was first mentioned in 1242. It joined the Hanseatic League in 1368.[7] In the 17th century, Kuldīga (along with Jelgava) was one of the capitals of the Duchy of Courland from 1596 to 1616.[8]
Kuldīga is an ancient town in Latvia's western region of
Kuldīga was recognized as an EDEN destination in 2007.[12]
History
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ca/Goldingen_um_1680.jpg/220px-Goldingen_um_1680.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/Coat_of_arms_of_Kuld%C4%ABga%2C_1681.png/130px-Coat_of_arms_of_Kuld%C4%ABga%2C_1681.png)
The origin of the ancient town Kuldīga can be explained by its location on the crossroads: the waterways of River Venta and land routes joining the Prussian lands with the lower reaches of River Daugava. The ancient Kuldiga town of
On April 19, 1242 the Livonian Order of Knights received the master's permission to build a castle on the banks of River Venta. As this is the oldest preserved written document where Kuldiga is mentioned, it is considered to be the year of the foundation of Kuldiga. The Castle of the Livonian Order of Knights was built on the left bank of River Venta by the ford, and the dolomite from the riverbed was used as the construction material. In 1263, the castle and settlements around it were already mentioned as the town Goldingen, and its rights as for a town were based on Riga city rights.
On April 28, 1355, the Order's master
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d7/Livonia_Islande.jpg/220px-Livonia_Islande.jpg)
After establishing the
During World War II, the town was under Soviet occupation from 1940, and then under German occupation from 1941 to 1944.
Sightseeing objects
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c3/Kuld%C4%ABga%2C_Kurzeme%2C_Latvija%2C_vecpils%C4%93ta.jpg/220px-Kuld%C4%ABga%2C_Kurzeme%2C_Latvija%2C_vecpils%C4%93ta.jpg)
Kuldīga is a small and attractive town in Kurzeme which has always been admired and praised by poets and painters. The 'historical city centre, which developed in the 17th and 18th centuries, has still preserved the old wooden buildings which form small and narrow streets. The oldest wooden building in Kurzeme put up in 1670 can be found near the Town square. The Old Town hall was built in the 17th century. The town square, since the very origins of the settlement, was a place where townspeople used to gather. The tradition has survived: the pulse of the town is best felt in the central square, a venue for weavers' exhibitions, traditional festivities and other events.
The Venta waterfall (
The old brick bridge across the Venta was built in 1874 and is the longest bridge of this kind in Europe – 164 m. It was built according to 19th century standards – 500 feet long and 26 feet wide, allowing two carriages to pass each other. It consists of seven spans of brick vaults. During World War I two of the spans were blown up. The 'race of the naked' over the bridge has become an annual tradition for Midsummer nights.[13]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/Kuldiga_bridge.jpg/220px-Kuldiga_bridge.jpg)
The Alekšupīte River flows directly along the walls of many buildings which is why Kuldīga has been called the Venice of Latvia. Initially the buildings of the town centre were constructed as the suburb of Kuldīga. In 1701, during the Great Northern War, the Swedish army invaded Kuldīga Castle and in 1709 it became uninhabitable, but in the 19th century the castle ruins were relocated.
Alekšupīte Waterfall was created in the 17th century to use the stream to operate the first paper mill in Kurzeme. An annual race is held on the Alekšupīte, when the contestants run directly along the river bottom.
St Catherine's Church was originally built in 1252. However, it was built anew with
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9c/Kuld%C4%ABga%2C_kostel_svat%C3%A9_Kate%C5%99iny.jpg/170px-Kuld%C4%ABga%2C_kostel_svat%C3%A9_Kate%C5%99iny.jpg)
Liepājas street is a pedestrian street with several 17th–20th-century buildings, interesting doors and special windows.
Sculptress Livija Rezevska's sculpture museum was founded in 2003. The visitors may see more than 15 sculptures characterizing Latvian nation, its strength, unity and love.
The Riežupe Sand Caves make up the longest cave labyrinth in Latvia (about 2 km total, 460 m can be toured). During Duke Jacob's reign the sand from Riežupe sand caves was taken by ships abroad for glass production.
Synagogue
One of the largest buildings in Kuldiga (1905 street 6) known for its splendorous interior in marble with gilded details, is the Jewish synagogue. Documents in ancient Hebrew describing the construction of the building in 1875 are located in the Kuldiga District Museum. It was built during the reign of the tsar Alexander II and was the centre of a vibrant Jewish community. The synagogue was part of a larger complex with an adjacent prayer house, the Jewish sepulchre, and Jewish school, which can still be seen today. The Jewish community had been active since the settlement in the duchy of Courtland in the 16th century. Most of the first immigrants came from north western German territories, but around the mid-17th century unrest in Poland caused an influx of Jews from that region. By the 18th century, the Jewish population of Kurzeme played an active role in the economic life of the province. In 1941 the synagogue became a trap when all of Kuldigas' Jews were imprisoned in the synagogue and held there for several days by Nazis and Latvian sympathizers, before being divided into smaller groups and shot in the nearby forests. Shortly after the extermination of Jews, Germans set up food storage in the synagogue. Later during the first years of the Soviet Union a grain house was set up inside, and later abandoned for a couple of years. In 1958 the synagogue was transformed into the cinema Kurzeme. It contained 450 seats and a reading room. It remained a cinema until 2003, after the reinstatement of Latvian independence. In later years there was also a café and night club. As of 2011[update], the synagogue was completely transformed into the central library of Kuldiga and a performance space. The building in its present state is stately and pristine, but there are no exterior signs of the building's Jewish past (such as stars of David). The roof ornaments which can be seen in old photographs of the synagogue are still missing: three bare plinths, like chimneys, mark the gables on either side of the building. There is (as of August 2017) a plaque explaining the history of the building.
Gallery
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Street in Kuldīga old town
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Former synagogue, now a library in Kuldīga.
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Former Duke's Pharmacy
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Street in Kuldīga
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Old architecture with town hall in background
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Kuldīga Castle watermill
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Tourist information centre in Kuldīga
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Kuldīga stadium
Sports
Kuldīga Half Marathon – an annual road marathon is held in Kuldīga since 2006.
Latvia's first indoor arena for athletics was opened in Kuldīga in 2008.
Notable residents
- Jacob Kettler (1610–1682), the Duke of Courland and Semigallia
- Jewishphilologist, translator and historian
- Ben-Zion Harel (1892–1972), Israeli doctor, politician
- Max Weinreich (1894–1969), the linguist
- James Martin Eder (1838-1921), Pioneer of the sugar industry in Colombia
- Aivis Ronis (born 1968), politician, diplomat
- Jānis Miņins (born 1980), bobsledder
- Dana Reizniece-Ozola (born 1981), politician, chess player
- Jānis Šmēdiņš (born 1987), beach volleyball player
- Roberts Ozols (born 1995), footballer
Twin towns — sister cities
Kuldīga is
Drøbak, Norway
Geesthacht, Germany
Mtskheta, Georgia
See also
References
- ^ "Reģionu, novadu, pilsētu un pagastu kopējā un sauszemes platība gada sākumā". Central Statistical Bureau of Latvia. Retrieved 18 January 2023.
- ^ "Iedzīvotāju skaits pēc tautības reģionos, pilsētās, novados, pagastos, apkaimēs un blīvi apdzīvotās teritorijās gada sākumā (pēc administratīvi teritoriālās reformas 2021. gadā)". Central Statistical Bureau of Latvia. Retrieved 19 June 2024.
- ^ "Old town of Kuldīga". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Archived from the original on 18 September 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
- ^ "Town - Kuldīgas novads". Kuldiga.lv (in Latvian). Retrieved 25 May 2022.
- ^ "Kuldiga". Latvia.travel. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
- ^ "Municipality". Kuldiga.lv (in Latvian). Retrieved 25 May 2022.
- ^ "History". City of Kuldiga.
- ^ "History". Kuldiga.lv. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
- ^ "The Historical Centre of Kuldiga". Latvia.travel. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
- ^ "Alekšupīte Waterfall". Lonely Planet. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
- ^ "The Old Brick Bridge across the Venta river". Latvia.travel. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
- ^ "Kuldīga, the pearl of small towns, shines ever brighter". Latvia.travel. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
- ^ "LUSTĪGU LĪGOŠANU: Jāņu naktī Kuldīgā kā katru gadu notiks pliko skrējiens" (in Latvian). nra.lv. 22 June 2016. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
- ^ "Sadraudzības pilsētas". kuldiga.lv (in Latvian). Kuldīga. Retrieved 2019-08-31.
External links
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