The Latvian Red Cross () is a

non-governmental A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

volunteer-led

humanitarian organization An aid agency, also known as development charity, is an organization dedicated to distributing aid. Many professional aid organisations exist, both within government, between governments as multilateral donors and as private voluntary organizatio ...

, and the national

Red Cross Society The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, the world's largest group of non-governmental organizations working on humanitarian aid, is composed of the following bodies: *The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), is an indep ...

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 ...

. The Latvian Red Cross was established 20 November 1918 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 ...

, only two days after the proclamation of the independent Republic of Latvia. During the earliest time of the Latvian republic, the Latvian Red Cross took care of

refugee A refugee, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is a person "forced to flee their own country and seek safety in another country. They are unable to return to their own country because of feared persecution as ...

s and

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

of the recently ended World War I. During the

Latvian War of Independence The Latvian War of Independence (), sometimes called Latvia's freedom battles () or the Latvian War of Liberation (), was a series of military conflicts in Latvia between 5 December 1918, after the newly proclaimed Republic of Latvia was invade ...

the Latvian Red Cross also aided the wounded and sick. In the beginning of 1919 the Latvian Red Cross operated hospitals in

Jelgava Jelgava () is a state city in central Latvia. It is located about southwest of Riga. It is the largest town in the Semigallia region of Latvia. Jelgava was the capital of the united Duchy of Courland and Semigallia (1578–1795) and was the ad ...

Liepāja Liepāja () (formerly: Libau) is a Administrative divisions of Latvia, state city in western Latvia, located on the Baltic Sea. It is the largest city in the Courland region and the third-largest in the country after Riga and Daugavpils. It is an ...

Valka Valka (; ) is a town and municipality in the Vidzeme region of Latvia, on the border with Estonia along both banks of the river Pedele. Valka and the Estonian town Valga are twins, separated by the Estonian/Latvian border but using the slogan " ...

and

Rūjiena Rūjiena (; ; ) is a town in Valmiera Municipality, in the Vidzeme region of Latvia. As of 2017 its population was 3,007. Geography The town is located in northern Latvia, near the border with Estonia, in the historical region of Vidzeme (ancientl ...

; in the second half of 1919—Riga,

Pļaviņas Pļaviņas (; ) is a town in Aizkraukle Municipality in Latvia. The town is located on the Daugava river. The population in 2020 was 2,974. Latvian law defines the town of Pļaviņas as belonging partly to the Vidzeme region and partly to Latgale ...

Smiltene Smiltene () is a town in the Vidzeme region in northern Latvia, 132 km northeast of the capital Riga, and the administrative centre of Smiltene Municipality. It has a population of 5,536 (2015). Name Its original name was Smiltesele (the end ...

and

Gulbene Gulbene (; ) is a town in the Vidzeme region of Latvia. It is an administrative center of Gulbene Municipality. History Historical documents first mention the 1224 land division act between the Livonian Order, Order of the Sword Brothers and ...

. The Latvian Red Cross was recognized by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent in 1923. In 1938 the Latvian Red Cross had 3,500 members, 10 hospitals with 1,000 beds,

tuberculosis sanatorium A sanatorium (from Latin '' sānāre'' 'to heal'), also sanitarium or sanitorium, is a historic name for a specialised hospital for the treatment of specific diseases, related ailments, and convalescence. Sanatoriums are often in a healthy ...

s in

Tērvete Tērvete (liv. ''Terwenden'', ) is a village in Tērvete Parish, Dobele Municipality in the Semigallia region of Latvia. It is famous for the historic hillfort built for the kings of Western Semigallia (Zemgale) in the Middle Ages. History Acc ...

, Krimulda, Liepāja and

Cēsis Cēsis (; (, , , ) 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, overlooking the woods below. Cēsis was selected to b ...

with room for 800 clients. It also had 92

health care Health care, or healthcare, is the improvement or maintenance of health via the preventive healthcare, prevention, diagnosis, therapy, treatment, wikt:amelioration, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other disability, physic ...

units, 159

ambulance An ambulance is a medically-equipped vehicle used to transport patients to treatment facilities, such as hospitals. Typically, out-of-hospital medical care is provided to the patient during the transport. Ambulances are used to respond to ...

s, 10 emergency stations, three

pharmacies Pharmacy is the science and practice of discovering, producing, preparing, dispensing, reviewing and monitoring medications, aiming to ensure the safe, effective, and affordable use of medication, medicines. It is a miscellaneous science as it ...

, two

nursing school Nursing is a health care profession that "integrates the art and science of caring and focuses on the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and human functioning; prevention of illness and injury; facilitation of healing; and alle ...

s, a storage facility and an orthopedic workshop. The economy of the Latvian Red Cross was mainly supported by sales of

lottery ticket A lottery (or lotto) is a form of gambling that involves the drawing of numbers at random for a prize. Some governments outlaw lotteries, while others endorse it to the extent of organizing a national or state lottery. It is common to find som ...

s, a state monopoly on the sale of

playing card A playing card is a piece of specially prepared card stock, heavy paper, thin cardboard, plastic-coated paper, cotton-paper blend, or thin plastic that is marked with distinguishing motifs. Often the front (face) and back of each card has a f ...

s, a surcharge to railway tickets and

donation A donation is a gift for Charity (practice), charity, humanitarian aid, or to benefit a cause. A donation may take various forms, including money, alms, Service (economics), services, or goods such as clothing, toys, food, or vehicles. A donati ...

s. Heads of the Latvian Red Cross were professor, surgeon

Jānis Jankovskis Jānis is a Latvian masculine given name, the equivalent of the English John. The first written use of the name Jānis dates back to 1290. It may refer to: * Jānis Ādamsons (born 1956), Latvian politician * Jānis Akuraters (1876–1937), La ...

(1918–25), doctor Kārlis Kasparsons (1926–29) and dentist Kārlis Barons (1930–40). The Latvian Red Cross was

liquidated Liquidation is the process in accounting by which a company is brought to an end. The assets and property of the business are redistributed. When a firm has been liquidated, it is sometimes referred to as wound-up or dissolved, although di ...

after the

Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940 The Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940 refers to the military occupation of the Republic of Latvia by the Soviet Union under the provisions of the 1939 Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact with Nazi Germany and its Secret Additional Protocol signed i ...

. Initially operations resumed after the German occupation of Latvia in 1941, but were interrupted later by the German authorities. The Latvian Red Cross was restored 1945 in exile after World War II ended. It was restored in wartorn Germany by Latvian refugees, headquarters were in

Münster Münster (; ) is an independent city#Germany, independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a ...

. On 26 April 1991 the 11th Latvian Red Cross congress took place in Riga. At this congress it was proclaimed, that the current Latvian Red Cross is the only legal successor of the 1918 founded organization.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Red Cross and Red Crescent national societies 1918 establishments in Latvia Medical and health organisations based in Latvia Organizations established in 1918

References

Further reading

External links