Unrecognized soldiers. The story of a battle officer.
The Battle of Mores is an episode of the end of the Second World War, which was of great importance in the further course of the war in the territory of Latvia. The Battle of Mores marks the war in the Sigulda line of defense in the territory of Mores Parish, which took place from September 25 to October 5, 1944. In the trenches of the Sigulda line of defense, about 12 km long, the soldiers of the 19th Division of the Latvian Legion, fighting heavy battles with 10 to 15 times the enemy's defeat for 10 days, stopped the Red / Soviet army units moving towards Riga.
“2001. In July, Mori was visited by the Bundeswehr Major with a companion. The main interest was in the tactics of the Second World War. According to the history of the war, it is known that the 19th Latvian Grenadier Division of More was attacked by one of the most famous Russian divisions, which was commanded by Gen. Shatilov. The soldiers of this division were very well trained and used German attack tactics. Moré was defeated, and this was of interest to the Germans. The main issues discussed were the tactics of combat. For the first time, they heard about some aspects as German officers, which means that they have lost a lot since the Second World War. For example, the fact that during the Battle of Mores the command post of the company was not traditionally on the first line of battle, as taught by the German school, was new to them. The anti-tank guns justified themselves as a weapon of defense on the front line. The Russians used the anti-tank weapon in the attack, involving it in the first echelon, but the German forces used this tactical solution at the very beginning of the war. It was nothing new to them. Mori was also visited by members of the Second World War - men from General Steiner's tank corps, from the tank division "Wiking", from the tank grenadiers division "Gotz von Berlichingen" and others. And there has always been interest in tactical issues. ”
Roland Convintenko “Unchilled Soldiers. The story of a battle officer. ”R: Circle. 2004.
Related objects
Mores Battle Memorial Park
The park was created in the former battle place in the Centre of More Parish where during the first two weeks of 1944 in the Second World War, major battles were held, holding thestrategically created defence line and preventing the Red Army from breaking through to Riga, thus affecting the further course of history.
You can see fragments of wartime relics and bunker sites here. A commemorative stone created by the sculptor H. Sprincis, as well as a Memorial Plaque with 186 soldiers names carved into the granite, are located in the Battles of More Memorial Park.
Red Army Brethren Cemetery in More
The Red Army Military Cemetery is located on the side of the main road through More. It is the final resting place for approximately 2000 soldiers who were killed during the Battle of More. In 1974 the cemetery was landscaped and a monument by sculptor B. Grīsle was unveiled.
Brethren Cemetery of Latvian Legionnaires
Brothers’ Cemetery of Latvian Legionnaires of the Second World War is located on the side of Sigulda-More Road, where 117 soldiers killed during the battles of More from 25 September to 6 October, 1944, are buried.
Reburial, landscaping and other improvements were made from 1988 till 1995. The monument, made by the sculptor A. Jansons, was unveiled on November 11, 1990 A remembrance ceremony in honour of fallen soldiers takes place every year on the last Saturday of September.
Museum of Battles in More
The museum is located in More, on the side of the V319 motorway. It is dedicated to the Battles of More between the Red Army and the Latvian Legion of the German Army in the autumn of 1944. The exhibit includes a mock-up of the battlefield, weapons, awards, soldiers’ uniforms and military equipment. The Battles of More Museum and Memorial Park was established by former soldiers of the Latvian Legion who participated in the Battles of More. The memorial park features trenches, dugouts and battlefields. The battles in the More area were only part of a large-scale operation of the Red Army Baltic Offensive involving a total of 900,000 soldiers and large numbers of military equipment units. A part of the German Army fortification system where Latvian legionnaires prevented the Red Army’s attempt to break out to Riga was located in the vicinity of More. This allowed the German Army to withdraw its forces from Estonia and avoid defeat. Red Army leaders expected the enemy’s resistance near More to be short-lived and stubbornly continued its unprepared and uncoordinated attacks, suffering heavy losses. Local advantages and the combat capabilities of the Latvian legionnaires played a significant role in the subsequent course of the war. More is home to the Latvian Legionnaires’ Brothers’ Cemetery and a Red Army Soldiers’ Cemetery.
