Latgale - Latvijas austrumu pierobeža
Border Guard Museum
The museum is located on the outskirts of Rēzekne. The museum has an exposition of the border guard's history research department, which reflects the chronological development of the Latvian border guard. An integral part of the excursion is a visit to the Kennel Center, where you can watch demonstrations of service dogs in person.
The object is available only with prior reservation.
Treasure House of the Free State
A unique exposition on the history of military and civil awards of the first free state of Latvia, as well as various organizations related to the activities of state and civil organizations in the period from the Latvian War of Independence to the Second World War.
Several hundred different historical evidences from Latvian and foreign private collections are exhibited in the exhibition house, covering the period from 1918 to 1940, revealing the pages of the history of Latgale and Rēzekne.
Exposition “Abrene Rooms”
The exhibit ‘Abrene Rooms’ is located near the city centre of Viļaka. It covers the period from 1920 to 1960 when Viļaka was part of Jaunlatgale, Abrene district, and became the centre of Viļaka district and Abrene municipality. The exhibit is located in the building with the most interesting and diverse history in Viļaka. Initially located on the old Marienhausen Market Square, it later housed apartments, offices and various shops and, during World War II, the Latvian Self-Defence headquarters, the Gestapo and also the Cheka. The exhibit features items from the national partisan camp in the Stompaki Bog, which are related to the national partisan movement in the Latgale region, as well as documents and photos associated with the War of Independence. With a guided tour booked in advance, the owner, Dzintars Dvinskis, will present the testimonies available in the exhibit.
In 2023, an exhibition for military heritage in Northern Latgale was created.
Trail and partisan memorial in Stompaki bog
The Stompaki Bog Area is a specially protected nature and NATURA 2000 territory located between the cities of Balvi and Viļaka. The eastern part of the bog features a marked 1.5-kilometre trail that crosses the forest and also a small part of the high bog (wooden footbridges), leading to five islands within the bog where the national partisans had built residential bunkers. Information stands along the edges of the trail tell about the local natural values and historical events. There is a rest area by the trail. Directions from the P35 road will help visitors find the trail. In early March 1945, one of the largest national partisan settlements in the Baltic States was established at the Stompaki Camp. About 350 to 360 people lived here, including 40 to 50 women. Starting from January 1945, national partisans carried out regular attacks on the military personnel of the occupation regime and their supporters. The camp had a bakery, a church bunker and 25 residential bunkers, immersed halfway into the ground, for accommodating 8 to 30 people. The bunker sites are still visible today. The Battle of Stompaki, the largest battle in the history of Latvian national partisan battles, took place here on 2-3 March 1945. The anti-partisan forces consisted of a total of about 483 soldiers, including subunits of the 2nd and 3rd Rifle Battalions of the 143rd Rifle Regiment of the NKVD 5th Rifle Division, the rifle platoon (armed with submachine guns), mortar company, reconnaissance and sapper platoons, as well as the so-called ‘istrebitel’ (destruction) fighters.
Exhibition "Ziemeļlatgale in the freedom struggle" in Balvu County Museum
The exhibition allows you to look into the history of Latvian Independence from the point of view of Northern Latgale. What is the contribution of the people of our side, how did our grandfathers get involved in the fight for the common cause of Latvia, what are their fates, how is their memory preserved? Answers to these and other questions can be found in Latvian, Russian and English.
The Northern Latgale liberation operation, also called the Viļakas-Jaunlatgale capture operation, was part of the Latgale liberation attack operation carried out by the Latvian armed forces during the Latvian freedom struggle. Its purpose was to occupy the northern part of Latgale and cut the Pskov-Daugavpils railway line in order to prevent the arrival of additional units of Soviet Russian troops from the Estonian front and from inside Russia. The most important battles took place between January 9 and 20, 1920, when control over the railway line from Pitalova (Abrene) to Kārsava was gained.
Preiļi Museum of History and Applied Art exhibition "Museum stories for Latvia"
It is located in the premises of the Preiļi Cultural Center.
Preiļi Museum of History and Applied Art (PVLMM) exhibition "Museum stories for Latvia" about the First World War, the War of Independence and the Second World War can be viewed.
The "Story of Drywys" section of the exhibition "Museum Stories for Latvia" (opened in 2018) of the Museum of Preiļi History and Applied Arts is dedicated to the First World War, the War of Independence and the liberation of Latgale, as well as to the knights of the Lāčplešana War Order. The exhibition section "The story of the flag" tells about the difficult events of the Second World War period, during which the people of Preila were affected by deportations, the Holocaust, involvement in the military units of the warring parties, and after the war - in the ranks of national partisans. The "Righteous Among the Nations" medal awarded to Vladislav Vuškānas, the savior of the Jews from Preiliat, can also be viewed.
Upon prior application, a tour is available in Russian and English.