Blizzard of Souls on the Plain of Tireli
The route is dedicated to the Christmas battles of the First World War. It starts at the Antiņi Brothers' Grave Memorial and leads through the Latvian Riflemen's battle sites in Tīrelpurva to Ložmetējkalns and the Christmas Battle Museum "Mangaļi". Along the way, you can see trenches, dugouts, a hospital warehouse, the LVM observation tower and the "German Wall", which is a unique section of German defensive fortifications in the Baltics, providing a vivid picture of the experience of the riflemen's battles. Finally, in the "Mangaļi" museum, you can explore both the indoor and outdoor exhibition with authentic fortification elements, as well as go on a 7 km educational trail with 18 stops, which expands your understanding of the place of historical events.
What the tour includes
The Christmas Battle Museum (a branch of the Latvian War Museum), located in the “Mangaļu” houses of Valgunde parish, Jelgava region, was opened in 2005 at the site where the Christmas Battles took place during the First World War. The museum has preserved unique fortifications of that time, and in the open-air exhibition - an authentically reconstructed section of the German army fortification system, including the armory and the first line of German defense - the so-called “German Wall”, which is the only object of its kind in the Baltics. The museum offers both an indoor exhibition with objects found at the battle sites and an open-air exhibition with the German Wall, adjacent fortification elements, a historical cannon, a replica of a grenade launcher, a historical railway fragment and new information stands. In the autumn of 2025, the outdoor area of the museum was opened after reconstruction, also providing adapted WCs and improved accessibility for visitors.