Latvian Central Council
Latvian Central Council | |
---|---|
Latvijas Centrālā padome | |
Krepa Kaszubska, Poland | |
Founder | Konstantīns Čakste |
Leaders | Konstantīns Čakste General Verners Tepfers Jāzeps Rancāns |
Dates of operation | 1943–1951 |
Dissolved | 1994 |
Allegiance | ![]() |
Motives | Restoration of an independent and democratic Republic of Latvia |
Opponents | ![]() ![]() |
Battles and wars | World War II |
The Latvian Central Council (LCC,
Latvia had gained its independence from Russia at the end of World War I, but in June 1940 the country was
On March 17, 1944, 189 Latvian political leaders and public figures signed the Memorandum of the Latvian Central Council, which declared the urgent need to restore the de facto sovereignty of the Republic of Latvia and create a Latvian government. The memorandum was a call to resist the reoccupation of Latvia by the Soviet Union following the defeat of Germany, which by that time was widely expected. The memorandum was drawn up in several original copies and photographically reproduced with the aim of taking it out of Latvia and getting it into the hands of the governments of the Western allies and the German occupation government.
On 8 September 1944 in
Some of the most prominent LCC accomplishments are related to its military branch – the group led by General Jānis Kurelis (the so-called “Kurelieši”) with Lieutenant Roberts Rubenis' battalion which carried out the armed resistance against Waffen SS forces. Moreover, LCC helped Latvians escape to Sweden by boat in 1943-45 from Courland in Western Latvia, thereby rescuing thousands including Jews.[4]
On 3 October 1945 the Latvian Central Council in Lustenau (Austria) held its first meeting . After the death of Dr. Pauls Kalniņš on 27 August 1945, the chairing of the LCC was undertaken by Bishop Jāzeps Rancāns , the former Deputy Speaker of the Latvian Parliament. The CC Latvia comprised the officials of the Presidium of the Parliament and the largest parties of the pre-war Latvia, its headquarters were located in Esslingen.[5]
The LCC prepared several petitions and memorandums on the policies of the Bolshevik and Nazi occupation powers in Latvia and submitted them to the governments of the important western powers. Bishop J. Rancāns and other LCC members repeatedly visited American and British occupation authorities in Germany to achieve improvement of the situation of former Latvian soldiers and refugees. Authorised by the LCC, they arrived at international conferences where the arrangement of the post-war Europe was decided, to unofficially inform the representatives of western powers on issues related to the Latvian state and its citizens.
The Latvian Central Council established contacts with Lithuanian and Estonian political organisations to apply common efforts in the fight against the occupation regime in the Baltic States.
See also
- Latvian Diplomatic Service
References
- ^ Geoffrey Swain, Latvia’s Democratic Resistance: a Forgotten Episode from the Second World War[permanent dead link], European History Quarterly, No. 2, 2009.
- ^ Latvian Resistance Against the Nazi Occupation. Latvianhistory.com
- ISBN 9163017466
- ^ The national resistance movement during WWII the “Latvian Central Council” turns 70
- ^ Latvian Central Council
Bibliography
- Memorandum of the Latvian Central Council Archived 2016-04-02 at the Wayback Machine — UNESCO
- Edgars Andersons, Leonīds Siliņš “Latvijas Centrālā padome – LCP” — LCP, Upsala 1994. ISBN 9163017466
- Jānis Pleps, Role of the Latvian Central Council’s Practice in Interpretation of the Constitution of Latvia — Juridiskā zinātne, No. 9, 2016.
- Biogrāfiskā vārdnīca “Ar parakstu par Latviju. Latvijas Centrālās Padomes Memoranda parakstītāju biogrāfijas” — Rīga 2015. ISBN 9934827050
- “Virzība uz demokrātisko Eiropu 2. pasaules kara laikā. Latvijas Centrālā padome un kurelieši” — LU Akadēmiskais apgāds, Rīga 2010. ISBN 9984452352