A referendum on the transfer of church property was held in

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

on 1 and 2 September 1923,

Dieter Nohlen Dieter Nohlen (born 6 November 1939) is a German academic and political scientist. He currently holds the position of Emeritus Professor of Political Science in the Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences of the University of Heidelberg. An ex ...

& Philip Stöver (2010) ''Elections in Europe: A data handbook'', p1122 the first time a referendum had been held in the country.Hiden, J (2004) ''Defender of minorities: Paul Schiemann, 1876-1944'', p92 Voters were asked whether the government should be stopped from transferring the

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

St James's Church in

Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...

to the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. Although a large majority voted for the proposal, voter turnout was well below the level required, and the church building was subsequently given to the Catholic Church.Nohlen & Stöver, p1135

Background

The government led by Prime Minister

Zigfrīds Anna Meierovics Zigfrīds Anna Meierovics (, Durbe – 22 August 1925, near Tukums) was a Latvian politician and diplomat who served as the first Foreign Minister of Latvia from its independence until 1924 and again from December of the same year until his dea ...

had started legislating for the transfer of

Baltic German Baltic Germans ( or , later ) are Germans, ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since Flight and expulsion of Germans (1944–1950), their resettlement in 1945 after the end ...

St James's Church to the Roman Catholic Church as well as forcing the Lutheran Church to share

Riga Cathedral Riga Cathedral (; ) formally The Cathedral Church of Saint Mary, is the Evangelical Lutheran cathedral in Riga, Latvia. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Riga. The cathedral is one of the most recognizable landmarks in Latvia, and is featur ...

with the Catholics. The moves were vigorously opposed by Paul Schiemann, a prominent defender of minority rights, who claimed the bill would "abandon the principles of a state of culture and law" during a parliamentary debate. Schiemann attracted international sympathy for the Lutheran Church's fight, and managed to force the country's first ever referendum. However, supporters of the transfer called for a boycott of the referendum.

Results

Aftermath

Although the referendum was passed by a large margin, turnout was just 21.4%. The referendum had required 400,000 to vote in favour for it to succeed, but achieved only just over half the number. Subsequently the church building was given over to the Roman Catholic Church, who took it over as their cathedral the following May. The Lutherans were also forced to share Riga Cathedral with the Catholics.

References

{{Latvian elections 1923 referendums 1923 in Latvia Referendums in Latvia

Background

Results

Aftermath

See also

References