Riga District ( lv, Rīgas rajons) was an

administrative division Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...

of Latvia, located in

Semigallia Semigallia, also spelt Semigalia, ( lv, Zemgale; german: Semgallen; lt, Žiemgala; pl, Semigalia; liv, Zemgāl) is one of the Historical Latvian Lands located in the south of the Daugava river and the north of the Saule region of Samogitia. ...

and

Vidzeme Vidzeme (; Old Latvian orthography: ''Widda-semme'', liv, Vidūmō) is one of the Historical Latvian Lands. The capital of Latvia, Riga, is situated in the southwestern part of the region. Literally meaning "the Middle Land", it is situated in ...

regions, in the centre of the country. The district had the two cities of Riga and

Jūrmala Jūrmala (; "seaside") is a state city in Latvia, about west of Riga. Jūrmala is a resort town stretching and sandwiched between the Gulf of Riga and the Lielupe River. It has a stretch of white-sand beach, and a population of 49,325 in 2019 ...

with the

Gulf of Riga The Gulf of Riga, Bay of Riga, or Gulf of Livonia ( lv, Rīgas līcis, et, Liivi laht) is a bay of the Baltic Sea between Latvia and Estonia. The island of Saaremaa (Estonia) partially separates it from the rest of the Baltic Sea. The main c ...

to the north. Beginning from the west and counterclockwise to the east, Riga District had

Tukums Tukums (; german: Tuckum; liv, Tukāmō) is a town in the Zemgale region of Latvia. History The historical center of Tukums developed between trade routes leading from the mouth of the Daugava River to Prussia. The oldest part is today's Ta ...

Jelgava Jelgava (; german: Mitau, ; see also other names) is a state city in central Latvia about southwest of Riga with 55,972 inhabitants (2019). It is the largest town in the region of Zemgale (Semigalia). Jelgava was the capital of the united Du ...

Bauska Bauska () is a town in Bauska Municipality, in the Zemgale region of southern Latvia. Bauska is located from the Latvian capital Riga, 62 km (38.5 mi) from Jelgava and from the Lithuanian border on the busy European route E67. The to ...

Ogre An ogre (feminine: ogress) is a legendary monster depicted as a large, hideous, man-like being that eats ordinary human beings, especially infants and children. Ogres frequently feature in mythology, folklore, and fiction throughout the world ...

Cēsis Cēsis (), (german: Wenden, liv, Venden, et, Võnnu, pl, Kieś) is a town in Latvia located in the northern part of the Central Vidzeme Upland. Cēsis is on the Gauja River valley, and is built on a series of ridges above the river over ...

and

Limbaži Limbaži (, et, Lemsalu, german: Lemsal, liv, Limbaž) is a town in the Vidzeme region of northern Latvia. Limbaži is located 90 km northeast of the capital Riga. The population is 6888 people. During the Middle Ages, as part of Livonia, ...

former districts as neighbours. The area of the district was 3,058 km² with a population of 159,247. Riga District was one of the largest regions of Latvia, it was strategically important and also had some of the most developed infrastructure in Latvia. It was a cross-point of 10 major motorways and a junction of 6 important railroad lines. Districts were eliminated during the administrative-territorial reform in 2009.

Nature

The larger part of the former region lies in the sand-soil plains of Riga that are covered by pinewoods, low links, marshlands and level countryside that is typical for

littoral The littoral zone or nearshore is the part of a sea, lake, or river that is close to the shore. In coastal ecology, the littoral zone includes the intertidal zone extending from the high water mark (which is rarely inundated), to coastal a ...

lowlands. In the northern part, there are ridges of links and many lakes have formed in hollows between them. There are 132 lakes in the Riga Region and the biggest of them is the Babīte Lake, Lielais Baltezers, Mazais Baltezers, Dūņu Lake and Lilaste Lake. The former district is also crossed by three major rivers in Latvia –

Daugava , be, Заходняя Дзвіна (), liv, Vēna, et, Väina, german: Düna , image = Fluss-lv-Düna.png , image_caption = The drainage basin of the Daugava , source1_location = Valdai Hills, Russia , mouth_location = Gulf of Riga, Baltic ...

Lielupe The Lielupe ( in Latvian literally: ''Large River'', lt, Lielupė, german: Kurländische Aa) is a river in central Latvia. Its length is (the length would reach if the Mēmele River were counted as part of the Lielupe). The surface area o ...

and Gauja Rivers. The north-eastern part of former Riga District is covered by the largest deciduous forests in Latvia. The

Gauja National Park __NOTOC__ Gauja National Park ( lv, Gaujas nacionālais parks) in Vidzeme is the largest national park in Latvia, with an area of 917.86 km2 running from north-east of Sigulda to south-west of Cēsis along the valley of the Gauja River, f ...

is part of these forests and has more than 900 kinds of

plants Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae exclude ...

, 48 species of

mammals Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur o ...

and 149 species of birds.

History

One of the first ancient settlements was situated in this district and dates from the 9th century BC. Across time localities of the Riga District had their resurgence and downturns caused by wars and unrest. This land been occupied by German

crusaders The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...

and

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

, Polish–Lithuanian, Saxonian,

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

n armies. More than 300 monuments of cultural and historical significance that are on the list of cultural heritage protection tell us about the most important events of local history. The reasons for the rapid development of Riga District can be found in its geographic position, human and natural resources, and rich heritage of culture and history. For the same reasons this region is valuable for tourism, recreation and business travel.

External links

Photos of Riga and district

References

{{Authority control Riga District