Memorial stele to the Cavaliers of the Lāčplēsis War Order
Memorial site
246
Located next to the Sacred Heart of Jesus Roman Catholic Church in Viļaka.
A memorial stele for the cavaliers of the Lāčplēsis War Order in Viļaka municipality was unveiled on November 11, 2017. The fates of 28 cavaliers of the Lāčplēsis War Order are linked to the name of Viļaka municipality.
The granite stele was created as part of the project “Remember Lāčplēšis” dedicated to the centenary of the state of Latvia. In honor of the soldiers who fell in the Latvian War of Independence, memorial stele of a uniform model will be installed throughout Latvia. The initiator of the project is the Youth Guard and Information Center.
Five knights of the Lāčplēsis War Order, whose names are engraved on the memorial stele, lived in the territory of the present-day Viļaka district after the end of the War of Independence:
– Jānis Kuļšs was a young farmer in Apsīši, Šķilbēni parish,
– Aleksejs Ľubimovs (Lavrentjevs) lived on the Fortepjanova farm in Šķilbēni parish, later in Viļakas,
– Teodors Mende managed the farm assigned to him and was a forester in the village of Katleši, Žīguri parish,
– Eduards Tenisons lived at the Vecumu station, later lived in the village of Čabatrova and worked at the “Viļaka” post office,
– Jānis Burmeistars lived in Šķilbēni parish for some time after 1928.
The Brothers' Cemetery in Viļaka district is the resting place of 45 soldiers who gave their lives defending Latvia from the Bolsheviks in 1920. January 9 was the day when the attacks began in Northern Latgale, and despite the difficult weather conditions at the time, Viļaka was liberated on the same day.
During the battles for the liberation of Latgale in the Viļaka region, Estonian soldiers fought shoulder to shoulder with Latvian army soldiers and partisans against the Red Army. Many of them gave their lives for a free Latvia.
Used sources and references:
http://old.vilaka.lv/uploads/docs/avize/Vilakas%20novada_NOVEMBRIS_2017.pdf
http://old.vilaka.lv/index.php?mact=CGBlog,cntnt01,detail,0&cntnt01articleid=4645&cntnt01returnid=19
https://www.lsm.lv/raksts/dzive--stils/vesture/brivibas-cinam-ziemellatgale--100-gadadiena.a344388/
Related timeline
Related stories
Liberation of Northern Latgale from the Bolsheviks
On December 1, 1918, the Red Army units, based on the Red Riflemen units, invaded the territory of Latvia. In order to protect their homes, families, native region and escape from terror, the men of the Balvi area took up arms and went into the forests, the formation of the first “green” groups began. In the spring of 1919, when mobilization was announced, many men of the Balvi area found fighting in the Soviet Latvian Army unacceptable and joined the “green” groups. The Balvi, Silakrogs, Rugāji, Teteru-Dūrupe and Liepna groups were formed. The activities of the “green” groups in the Balvi area became more active in March 1919.