Semgallen
Semgallen
Names in other languages
Latvian/Russian: Zemgale; Polish: Semigalia; Lithuanian: Žiemgala; Livonian: Zemgāl.
Etymology
The name can be traced back to two Lithuanian terms for Semigallia: Žem̃gala or Žiẽmgala. The first form derives either from the Lithuanian žẽmė or the Latvian zeme (‘land’), or from the Lithuanian žẽmas or the Latvian zems (‘low’); the second probably derives from the Lithuanian žiemà or the Latvian ziema (‘winter’). Kazimieras Būga (1879–1924) and Jānis Endzelīns (1873–1961) argue that Žiẽmgala should be interpreted as ‘winter land’, i.e. ‘northern land’, whereas Žem̃gala is based on a folk etymology. O. Bušsa suggests a hydro-toponymic origin from the river name Žejmike or Žejmjana.[2] The Latvian term ‘Zėmgale ’ is a Latvianised equivalent of the German ‘Semgallen’. The name appears as ‘Semigalia’ in the Latin-Danish chronicle *Annales Ryenses* (13th century), and in Old Norse as ‘Sœimgala’ and ‘Sœimgalum’ on 11th-century runestones from southern Sweden. The namesZimigola/Zimjagola appear in the Old Russian Nestor Chronicle (1377).
Location
![The historical regions of Latvia [Photo: Wikimedia Commons].](/fileadmin/_processed/e/6/csm_Regionen_Lettlands_c09707be77.png "The historical regions of Latvia")
The present-day administrative region of Semigallia covers approximately 14,000 km². Geomorphologically, it is a basin (below 100 m above sea level) drained by the River Courland Aa (Latvian: Lielupe) and comprising areas south of the Daugava (Latvian: Daugava). Semigallia borders Livonia, Latgale and Courland, although the boundaries with these regions are not always clearly defined. The eastern part of Semigallia is also known as Upper Latvia (Latvian: Augšzeme) or Selonia (Latvian: Sēlija, Latin: Selonia).
Topography
Semgallen is characterised by woodland and, in terms of settlement geography, has the character of an open-field landscape (without boundary markers). The villages situated along the roads usually consist of a centre and an agricultural area (woodland, meadows, fields). The largest town and traditional administrative centre is Mitau/Jelgava. Other important towns are: Alt-Autz/Auce, Bauske/Bauska, Doblen/Dobele, Friedrichstadt/Jaunjelgava, Jakobstadt/Jēkabpils, Kalnzeem/Kalncielms and Tuckum/Tukums.
![Alt-Autz Castle before 1945 [Photo: Herder Institute, Marburg, Image Archive, Inv. No. 146697].](/fileadmin/_processed/a/d/csm_Alt-Autz_Schloss_HI_146697_5a13e58cfc.jpg "View of Alt-Autz Castle")
Historical Geography
In the Middle Ages, Semigallia referred to a settled region stretching roughly from Bauske to Dünaburg/Daugavpils, south of the Daugava. It is not possible to define precise boundaries with the settled areas of the Curonians to the west or the Latgalians to the north-east. Following the conquest of Livonia by the German Order, the area formed part of the territory under the jurisdiction of the Land Marshal of the German Order in Livonia; in the early modern period, it constituted a major part of the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia, which, from 1561, was a joint fief under the suzerainty of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (the Duchy of Semigallia was independent from 1596 to 1617). In 1795, the dual duchy came under the rule of the Russian emperors, and administratively, the Governorate of Courland within the Russian Empire was established.
During his Russian campaign in 1812, Napoleon I (1769–1821) established the Duchy of Courland, Semigallia and Pilten, which, however, ceased to exist following his defeat by Russia in the same year. In 1918, Semigallia became part of the new Republic of Latvia. Even whilst the First World War was still raging, a Duchy of Courland and Semigallia was initially proclaimed in 1918; in the same year, it became a territorial component of the ‘United Baltic Duchy’ initiated by the German Empire. Following the German defeat in 1918, this new state structure also came to an end. In modern Latvia (since 1920), Semigallia has the status of one of four historical regions.
Common symbolism
![Coat of arms of Semgallen [Photo: Urmas, Wikimedia Commons].](/fileadmin/_processed/6/c/csm_Landschaftswappen_Semgallens_a4dad6000d.png "Coat of arms of Semgallen")
In the Middle Ages, Semigallia did not constitute an independent administrative unit within Livonia, but was part of the Teutonic Order’s territories. In the early modern period, it belonged to the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia, and from 1795 to the Russian Governorate of Courland. For this reason, Semigallia was not granted its own star in the coat of arms of Latvia, but was represented jointly with Courland. The regional coat of arms of Semigallia depicts a grey elk on a dark blue round shield. The elk is also the heraldic animal of the town of Mitau.
Prehistory and Early History
Archaeological finds provide evidence that the Semgalians were a prehistoric people. From the 13th century onwards, Selonia was also regarded as part of Semgallen. The Semgallian language, an early form of the written Lithuanian language that emerged in the 16th century, was spoken until the 16th century.
Middle Ages
After the Livonians and Semgallians had settled the area between the Kurland Aa and Driksa rivers in the 10th century, German Crusaders established several fortified strongholds to defend against the Lithuanians, but also against the rebellious indigenous population. What is probably the oldest castle of the German Order was built in 1237: the ‘Cruczeborch’ (Kreuzburg) on the right bank of the Daugava in the Selen (Selonen) region, within the territory of Jersika (a castle and town on the Daugava). Further downstream, in the 13th century, there was also a fortified settlement on the site of what would later become Friedrichstadt, which was destroyed at that time by members of the Order of the Sword Brothers. Under Konrad von Mandern (c. 1232 – probably 1295), German knights of the Teutonic Order built Mitau Castle in 1265/66 on an island in the Aa River that had been fortified by the local Semigallian population. From here, in 1290, they subjugated the Livonians and Semigallians and repelled Lithuanian attacks. The settlement of Dobele, then a stronghold of the rebellious Semigallians, is mentioned as early as 1254. The fortified stronghold withstood attacks by the Order in 1280 and 1289 under Konrad von Feuchtwangen (before 1230–1296) and Konrad von Hattstein (d. 1290). Following the devastation of the surrounding countryside, the Semigallians withdrew to Lithuanian territory in 1290. In the 14th century, the Order built a castle on the site of the Semigallian fortification to defend against the Lithuanians and to control the local population. In 1443, at the confluence of the Mūsa and Mēmele rivers, where they join the Courland Aa, it built Bauske Castle, which served the same purpose.
![Map of Castles in Estonia and Latvia by Armin Tuulse [from: Armin Tuulse: The Castles of Estonia and Latvia. Dorpat 1942. BKGE Library, call number 13K101.C4].](/fileadmin/_processed/7/1/csm_Burgenkarte_Est-_und_Lettland_von__Armin_Tuulse_612b7e50a1.jpg "Map of castles in Estonia and Latvia")
Settlements sprang up around the castles, which soon developed into town-like economic centres with a population consisting of craftsmen and merchants. In addition to Mitau, Bauske and Doblen, Tuckum – mentioned in 1253 (and referred to as a market town in 1445) – is also to be counted amongst these central settlements. Agriculture retained the structures based on the Semigallian family and clan-based economy from the period before the conquest. Gradually, knightly vassal estates also became established there, displacing the Semigallian farms or turning their owners into dependent tenant farmers. This agricultural transformation was complete by the 14th century.
Modern times
![Gotthard Kettler, the last Landmaster of the German Order in Livonia and, from 1561, the first Duke of Courland and Semigallia, and his wife Anna of Mecklenburg-Güstrow [Photo: Wikimedia Commons].](/fileadmin/_processed/7/0/csm_Gothard_Kettler_and_Anna_von_Mecklenburg-Guestrow__1584_40b5d28260.jpg "Gothard Kettler and Anna von Mecklenburg-Guestrow, 1584")
Following the partition of the Livonian Order’s territories in 1561, the areas south of the Daugava came under the rule of the Dukes of Courland and Semigallia.
The 17th century was marked by a conflict between the Duke, who sought to establish absolutist rule, and the Courland nobility. The dukes sought to circumvent the medieval estate system and establish a mercantilist economic and financial policy that favoured, above all, the urban economy and manufacturing, whilst seeking to forge an alliance with the non-noble sections of the population. In the Semigallian territories, Mitau was granted town privileges in 1573, Bauske in 1609, Friedrichstadt in 1647 and Jakobstadt in 1670. Mitau became the capital of the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia in 1578 (and, during the partition of the duchy from 1596 to 1617, of the Duchy of Semigallia). The town developed into the most important industrial and commercial centre of Semgallen and the entire duchy.
The wars of the 17th century were accompanied by heavy population losses as a result of destruction, occupation, quartering of troops and epidemics. Following the Great Northern War (1700–1721), Courland and Semigallia came increasingly under the influence of Russia, which in 1721 had become the sovereign power over the neighbouring, formerly Swedish, governorates of Livonia and Estonia. The second wife of the Russian Tsar Peter I, Catherine I (1686–1727), was from Jakobstadt; her descendants were closely linked to Courland-Semigallia in the 18th century and played a decisive role in shaping the duchy’s pro-Russian foreign policy and economy.
The French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars found their easternmost echo in Courland and Semigallia: in 1789, the citizens of Mitau, inspired by the events in Paris, demanded greater rights. The future King Louis XVIII of France (1755–1824), who was among the exiles of the French Revolution, resided at Mitau Castle from 1798 to 1801 and from 1804 to 1807. In 1812, during Napoleon’s Russian campaign, Mitau served from July to December as the headquarters of the commander of the Prussian troops allied with him, General Ludwig Yorck von Wartenburg (1759–1830). The turn of the century around 1800 was also a period of administrative change. As part of the municipal reforms introduced by Catherine II (1729–1796), Mitau, Friedrichstadt and Tuckum were granted the status of district towns in 1795.
In many Semigallian towns, as indeed in the towns of the Courland Governorate as a whole, the 19th century was characterised by industrialisation, urbanisation and Latvianisation. Mitau developed into a centre for Latvian migrants from the countryside, who worked here as traders, craftsmen, teachers and civil servants. By the time of the First World War (1914), the town’s population had grown to around 45,000, the majority of whom were Latvians. One of the key factors driving urbanisation and industrialisation – and the associated social mobility – was the construction of the Russian railway network: In 1868, Mitau was connected to the railway line to Riga/Rīga; this was followed in 1873 by a link to Mežeikiai and, in 1877, by a line between Riga and Tuckum. The connection to Riga, in particular, brought about an upswing in Mitau’s trade. Internal development of the towns also progressed: from the 1860s onwards, paving, street lighting and electrification were a common feature of many Semigallian towns. In August 1915, the First World War led to the occupation of Mitau, Tukums and Bauska by German troops. At the same time, the town’s population was forcibly evacuated.
Contemporary History
During the Latvian War of Independence from 1918 to 1920, Mitau (now officially Jelgava) was the scene of clashes between communist, German-Baltic, German Reich and Latvian forces. From July 1919, the Baltic Landeswehr used Jakobstadt (now officially Jēkabpils) as a base for a defensive position facing east.
During the interwar period, the expansion of the towns continued. Jelgava developed into one of Latvia’s major cities, whilst Alt-Autz was granted town status in 1924 and Doblen in 1925. A new railway line from Jelgava to Libau/Liepāja connected Dobele to the Latvian railway network in 1927. A sugar factory was built in Jakobstadt in 1932, and in 1936 a bridge with a narrow-gauge connection to Kreutzburg/Krustpils was completed. The Latvian agrarian reform (1920) led to the expropriation of numerous large agricultural estates, in particular the traditional German-owned estates.
The Hitler–Stalin Pact (1939) forced the resettlement of a large part of the German population to the German Reich. Occupied by the USSR in 1940 – as was the whole of Latvia – Semigallia came under German occupation in 1941. A large proportion of the Jewish population, particularly in the larger towns, was murdered, in some cases with the assistance of the Latvian police. Semigallia suffered severe destruction in 1944 during the Red Army’s advance westwards.
After the German civil administration in Courland was dissolved in early March 1945 and the independent ‘Republic ofLatvia’ was proclaimed, the Latvian civil administration resumed control. Latvia’s forced integration into the Soviet Union after the end of the war led to the Sovietisation of everyday life in Semigallia as well, a process which was still hampered during the first decade by the Latvian resistance movement (‘Forest Brothers’) and the need for reconstruction. Soviet rule (1945–1990) was characterised by militarisation and forced industrialisation. Industrialisation, which served the purposes of reconstruction and defence capability, brought a large Russian-speaking population from other parts of the Soviet Union to Semigallia.
Following Latvia’s independence in 1991, many industrial enterprises became unprofitable, whilst other sectors of the economy came to the fore. In Mitau, the focus was on developing tourism and research. Accession to the European Union and NATO, the introduction of the euro and integration into the Schengen Area brought new international links, including a number of town twinning arrangements – notably in Germany: Jelgava – Herford (since 2000), Tukums – Scheeßel (since 1992), Dobele – Schmölln (since 1993) and Jēkabpils – Melle (since 1994).
Administration
In the Middle Ages, the territory of the Teutonic Order, including Semigallia, was divided into commanderies. The administrative centre for peasant levies was a parish (Latvian: pagasts), which, prior to the abolition of serfdom (19th century), had no administrative powers over the peasants, only legal authority. Following the establishment of the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia (1561), there were ten districts administered by the ducal administration, which continued to exist as part of the Russian Governorate of Courland (1795–1917). With the administrative reform of 1924, the Republic of Latvia established three districts (Latvian: apriņķi) with their centres in Jelgava, Bauska and Jēkabpils, which were in turn subdivided into municipalities (Latvian: pagasti). With Sovietisation, the number of districts (Russian: rajony) increased, before the Soviet government abolished the parishes in 1949. As part of the Soviet restructuring of traditionally individual and small-scale agriculture into a kolkhoz economy, and the general centralisation of administration, towns, workers’ settlements and other settlements eventually emerged without any overarching territorial structure. In the spirit of perestroika (lit. ‘restructuring’), an attempt at reform was made in 1990 by re-establishing the parishes. Under democratic auspices, the government introduced a single-tier administrative structure in 1999, dividing Latvia into 26 districts (Latvian: rajoni). In Zemgale, this resulted in the districts of Bauskas rajons, Dobeles rajons, Jēkabpils rajons, Jelgavas rajons and Tukuma rajons existing until 1 July 2009. In 2009, a further administrative reform created so-called ‘republican cities’ with corresponding administrative districts (Latvian: novads). In the Semigallia region, these are: Auces novads with the town of Auce, Bauskas novads with the town of Bauska, Dobeles novads with the town of Dobele, Jaunjelgavas novads with the town of Jaunjelgava, Jēkabpils novads excluding the town of Jēkabpils, Jelgava novads excluding the town of Jelgava, and Tukums novads including the town of Tukums – each of these towns had between six and 13 surrounding rural municipalities.
Population and Economy
A historical-demographic survey of Semgallen faces methodological challenges. Although so-called ‘censuses’ took place in 1797, 1798, 1803, 1811, 1815/16, 1834/1835, 1850 and 1857/1858, these so-called ‘censuses’ only recorded the male population and were, even within this scope, sometimes incomplete. Even the first all-Russian census of 1897, which included data on Semigallia, suffered from these shortcomings. For example, according to the 1797 population survey, 937 people lived in Bauske (i.e. men, of whom 504 were recorded as German). The 1897 census recorded 2,984‘Latvians’, 2,745‘Jews’, 536‘Germans’and a smaller numberof ‘Poles’,‘Russians’and‘Lithuanians’for the same town. It was not until the 20th century that comprehensive censuses were available for all sections of the population. In January 2006, Semigallia had a population of 286,408. A trend towards emigration, particularly among younger people, is leading to a progressive ageing of the population. Broken down by nationality (defined on the basis of self-reported ‘mother tongue’), the population of Semigallia is currently as follows: Latvians 67.8 per cent, Russian speakers (mostly former Soviet citizens) 19 per cent (of whom about a third live in Jelgava), Belarusians 4.64 per cent, Lithuanians 3.2 per cent (mainly in the border regions), others (Poles, Ukrainians, etc.) 5.3 per cent.
Population figures for 2014: Jelgava 62,447, Jēkabpils 24,839, Tukums 19,192, Dobele 10,540, Bauska 9,528, Auce 2,850, Jaunjelgava 2,183, Viesīte 1,773, Aknīste 1,172, Subate 721.[3]
Since Latvia gained independence in 1991, new industrial sectors, some with international links, have emerged (for example, the rail maintenance company EuroMaintRail operates a components workshop in Jelgava ). Since the 1990s, the Semigallian economy has increasingly focused on services, science and tourism.
Military history
Like the whole of Livonia, Semigallia was also marked by numerous armed conflicts. Key events included the 12th century (conquest of the region by the Teutonic Knights), the Livonian War (1558–1584), the Swedish–Polish Wars (1600–1629, 1654–1661), the Great Northern War (1700–1721), Napoleon’s Russian campaign (1812), the First World War (1914–1917), the Latvian War of Independence (1918–1920) and the Second World War (1940–1945).
History of Religion and the Church
In pre-Christian times, the Semigallian population practised a religion that followed the Baltic religious model, incorporating elements of nature worship. Following the conquest by the Teutonic Order and the Church, a gradual process of Catholicisation took place, modelled on the North German tradition. The Reformation took hold in the 16th century, initially in the towns and later in the countryside, although a significant proportion of the population remained Catholic or was influenced by Catholicism through intermarriage with Polish and Lithuanian families. Towards the end of the 17th and at the beginning of the 18th centuries, small groups of Russian Old Believers (mainly Fedoseevtsy) immigrated; some of their isolated settlements survived until the First World War. The 18th century saw the emergence of a Pietist movement and the establishment of Masonic lodges (particularly in Mitau). From 1763, the Courland government tolerated, and in 1799 legalised, the settlement of Jews in larger towns. From the 1860s onwards, the Protestant Synod pursued an intensive mission to convert Jews; during the First World War, Jews were expelled. They returned in the interwar period, until the Holocaust led to their almost complete annihilation. Through targeted missionary efforts in the second half of the 19th century, theRussian Orthodox Church achieved some conversions to Orthodoxy. The Latvian national movement’s return to the pre-Christian Semigallian (Latvian) religion from the second half of the 19th century onwards was accompanied by a partial de-Christianisation. The Soviet era was characterised by atheistic propaganda. Independence in the 1990s initially brought a degree of success for neo-Protestant missionary efforts (Evangelicals, Baptists, Pentecostals, Adventists, etc.) in the cities. The current denominational landscape is characterised by widespread agnosticism, a limited influence of Protestantism and Catholicism, and a small number of Jewish andRussian Orthodox communities.
Cultural institutions, education and science
As the seat of the Dukes of Courland and Semigallia, Mitau played a prominent role in education and science. In 1775, Duke Peter von Biron founded the ‘Academia Petrina’ here, based on plans by the Danish architect Severin Jensen (1723–1809), where figures such as the mathematicians Wilhelm Gottlieb Beitler (1745–1811) and Magnus Georg Paucker (1787–1855), and the naturalist Johann Jacob Färber (1743–1799), served as lecturers. Graduates who played an important role in the Latvian national movement included the folklorist Krišjānis Barons (1835–1923), the poet Juris Alunāns (1832–1864) and the playwright Adolfs Alunāns (1848–1912). Today, the building of the former academy houses the Ģ. Eliass Museum of History and Art of the City of Jelgava (Latvian: Ģ. Eliasa Jelgavas Vēstures un mākslas muzejs), which features exhibits on the regional culture of Courland and Semigallia.
In 1815, German burghers and nobles founded the Courland Society for Literature and Art, and in 1818 the Courland Provincial Museum. This was followed in 1824 by the Mitau Latvian Literary Society, also founded by Germans, dedicated to the study of the Latvian language, folk songs and culture. In Bauska during the 19th century, there was a Latvian commercial school alongside a private girls’ boarding school and a Jewish theological seminary. Further expansion took place during the interwar period: an experimental station run by the University of Latvia had been located in Auce since 1920, whilst Kautzmünde/Kaucminde was home to a school of agriculture. In 1939, Jelgava gained a Latvian University of Agricultural Sciences, which still exists today. Grammar schools, secondary schools, adult education centres, and schools of art, music and sport can be found in all the larger towns of Semgallen. Other museums in Jelgava also play a key role in education, including the Museum of the University of Agricultural Sciences and the Castle Museum.
Regionalism
The Courland-Semigallian pastor and Baltic scholar Gotthard Friedrich Stender (1714–1796) noted in his *Latvian Grammar* (1783) that the Latvian language is preserved in its purest form in, amongst other places, Mitau and Bauske; that is to say, it has been influenced only slightly by Polish, Russian or German. This observation drew the attention of Latvian nationalists to the Semigallian language, although no text in Semigallian has survived to this day. This probably explains, in part, why Semigallia is regarded in the Latvian Constitution as one of the Latvian ‘ancestral regions’, especially as archaeological finds attest to a distinct Semigallian culture and the history of the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia suggests an independent political consciousness, Semigallian regionalism nevertheless plays hardly any role culturally to this day. The absence of other typical elements of regional culture (regional tales, folklore, festivals, etc.) has also contributed to this. One indication of a regional identity (intended by politicians) is the regional coat of arms for Semigallia (the elk), which appears as a label on various products or features in political events.
Art History
During the feudal period and the modern era, castles and manor houses (“palaces”) were built; following the establishment of the Republic of Latvia, some were restored as part of the Latvian national movement, whilst others were nationalised as part of the Latvian agrarian reform of 1920 and the Sovietisation that followed 1945, and put to other uses. The palaces in Mitau, Ruhenthal/Rundāle, Mesothen/Mežotne and Kautzemünde/Saulaine are examples of larger architectural complexes.
Ruhenthal, a building designed by the Italian architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli (1700–1771) in the Versailles Baroque style, was built between 1736 and 1740 as a summer residence for Duke Ernst Johann von Biron (reigned 1737–1740 and 1763–1769) and has been state-owned since 1920. Today, it is used, amongst other things, for state receptions. Mitau Palace was also built from 1737 onwards, following the demolition of the 14th-century Teutonic Order castle, again to Rastrelli’s designs. It served as the residence of the Dukes and Governors of Courland and Semigallia, and as the residence of the future Tsarina Anna (1730–1741).
Built in the Neoclassical style for Charlotte von Lieven (1743–1828), governess to the children of the Russian Tsar Paul I, Alexander and Konstantin, was built between 1797 and 1802 by the Italian architect Giacomo Quarenghi (1744–1817). It was inhabited by the Lieven family until 1921, expropriated as part of the Latvian agrarian reform, and restored between 1958 and 1996 following war damage (1919, 1944). Today it is state-owned and is used as a ceremonial residence.
The early Classical-style castle at Kautzmünde/Saulaine was built at the end of the 18th century as the residence of Count Ludwig von der Pahlen (1745–1826), a Courland landowner and Foreign Minister of the Russian Empire. Following the establishment of the Republic of Latvia, it housed an agricultural college.
Notable manor houses include: Grünhof (Latvian: Zaļenieki), the country estate of the Dukes of Courland and Semigallia dating from 1562; Bornsmünde (Latvian: Bornsminde), one of the few estates in Latvia to have remained in the possession of a single family – the op dem Hamme, known as von Schoeppingk – for more than four centuries (from the late 15th century until 1920); Waldeck (Latvian: Valdeka), which was built in the 17th century as a hunting lodge for the von der Rekke family in the Romanesque-Gothic style, was rebuilt in the 19th century and now belongs to the University of Agricultural Sciences in Jelgava.
The old town of Mitau, which has been under reconstruction since the 1990s and consists of 18th- and 19th-century buildings, is of architectural and historical significance.
The palaces, manor houses and the History and Art Museum in what is now Jelgava house numerous exhibits relating to the history and art of Semgallen. From an earlier period, the woodcarvings by the brothers Johann and Tobias Heintz (1590–1617) in Mitau’s Church of the Holy Trinity are particularly noteworthy. Notable artistic figures from Semgallen included the portraitist Friedrich Hartmann Barisien (1724–1769), the painter Anna Louise von Berner (1795–1868), the painter, restorer and cultural historian Julius Döring (1818–1898), the landscape painter Julius Woldemar Fedders (1838–1909), the architect Oskar Alexander Johann Baar (1848–1914), and the draughtsman Wilhelm Siegfried Stavenhagen (1814–1881). In addition to these German artists, the painters Johann Walter-Kurau (born Jānis Valters, 1869–1932), Jānis Plase (1892–1923) and Karlis Baltgailis (1893–1979) are also worth mentioning.
Music and Theatre
The first notable figure in Courland-Semigallian musical culture was the German composer and violinist Franz Adam Veichtner (1741–1822), who joined the ducal court at Mitau in 1765 as concertmaster and kapellmeister. Also hailing from Mitau were the pianist and friend of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714–1788), Dietrich Ewald von Grotthuß (1751–1786), and the songwriter Julie von Hausmann (1826–1901). Following the end of the ducal era, German and Latvian musical societies (primarily choirs such as the Mitau Liedertafel) emerged in the towns during the first half of the 19th century, shaping musical life right up to the interwar period. In rural areas, there was a long tradition of folk music. Cultural centralism during the interwar period and under Soviet rule prevented the development of a distinct regional musical culture in Semigallia. Conversely, the singer Renārs Kaupers (born 1974), a native of Jelgava, has gained an international reputation. Semigallia is now the venue for international music events: every summer, early music festivals take place at Bauske Castle and Ruhenthal Palace.
Semigallian theatre culture is particularly associated with the court of Duke Ernst Johann von Biron. In the 19th century, a German theatre was established in Mitau. The first great actor and founder of Latvian theatre, Ādolfs Alunāns (1848–1912), came from this town. In his honour, Jelgava established a museum (Ādolfa Alunāna memoriālais muzejs), which still exists today.
History of Books, Printing and Media
From 1660, Michael Karnahl ran the first Courland-Semigallian court printing house in Mitau. In the 18th century, the publishing house of Johann Friedrich Hartknoch (1740–1789) was well known; it published the early works of Immanuel Kant (1724–1804) and Johann Gottfried Herder (1744–1803). The Academia Petrina ran a bookshop, a public library and a printing house (the Steffenhagen Press). It also initiated the first scholarly newspaper in Courland and Semigallia, the *Mitauschen Politischen und Gelehrten Zeitung*, which was first published in the year the Academy was founded (1775). Even before that, Christian Liedtke (1733–1766) had begun publishing the *Mitauische Nachrichten* on matters of state, scholarship and local affairs. From 1819 to 1939, the *Proceedings of the Courland Society for Literature and Art* were published. The Mitau Latvian Literary Society published the weekly newspaper *Latviešu avīzes* (Latvian Newspaper) from 1822 to 1915 and the monthly magazine *Vērotājs* (‘The Observer’) from 1903 to 1905. The Latvian patriotic journal *Tēvija* (‘Fatherland’) was published from 1901 to 1903, also in Mitau. The interwar period and the Soviet era were characterised by a high degree of media centralisation, which left little scope for regional activities. The writer, translator and publisher Johannes von Guenther (1886–1973) from Mitau was a figure of significance. Today, the most important newspapers are *Novaja Gazeta*, *Zemgales Ziņa*, *Zemgales Ziņas* (all in Jelgava), *Bauskas Dzive* (Bauska), *Večernye Vesti* (Tukums) and *Briva Daugava* (Jēkabpils, founded as early as 1940). The main radio station for the region is ‘Radio Zemgale’.
Culture of memory and remembrance
There is hardly any memorial culture that extends across the whole of Semigallia. It is a historical curiosity that the beer brand ‘Mitava Gaisais Alus’, which is significant for a possible regional identity of Courland and Semigallia, (since 2008) – which features the coat of arms of Jelgava and Semigallia, the elk’s head, on its label – is not brewed in Jelgava but in Wenden/Cēsis, that is, in the Livonia/Vīdzeme region. Memorial culture is predominantly centred on individual figures. Between Nereta and Aknīste, for example, lies the ‘Riekstiņi’ Museum dedicated to the writer Jānis Jaunsudrabiņš (1877–1962). In Tadenava, near Jēkabpils, a museum has been established in honour of the Latvian national poet Jānis Rainis (1865–1929).
Sources
- August Bielenstein: A Happy Life. An Autobiography. Riga 1904. Expanded new edition, Michelstadt 2002.
- Herbord Karl Friedrich von Bienenstamm: A New Geographical and Statistical Description of the Imperial Russian Governorate of Courland or the Former Duchies of Courland and Semigallia, including the Pilten Abbey (edited by E. A. Pfingsten). Mitau, Leipzig 1841.
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- Erwin Oberländer, Volker Keller (eds.): Courland. From the Polish-Lithuanian feudal duchy to a Russian province. Documents on constitutional history 1561–1795. Paderborn et al. 2008.
Bibliographies
- Volker Keller: Bibliography of Research on the History of the Duchy of Courland 1990–2000. In: Erwin Oberländer, Ilgvars Misāns (eds.): The Duchy of Courland. Constitution, Economy, Society. Vol. 2, Lüneburg 2001, pp. 295–301.
Bibliography
- Dainis Bruģis: Historisma pilis Latvijā [Historic Castles in Latvia]. Riga 1997.
- Dainis Bruģis: Neoclassical Manor Houses in Latvia and their Stylistic Roots in the Architecture of Courland and Livonia. In: Günter Krüger (ed.): Classicism in the Baltic States. Nine Papers from the 5th Baltic Seminar 1993. Lüneburg 2008 (Baltic Seminars 3), pp. 127–159.
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Web links
- www.pmlp.gov.lv/ (Official population statistics for Latvia as at 1 July 2014).
- www.jews.lv/en (Jewish Community of Latvia).
- dir.icm.edu.pl/pl/Slownik_geograficzny/Tom_X/429 (J. Krz.: Semigalia. In: Geographical Dictionary of the Kingdom of Poland. Vol. X. Warsaw 1889, p. 429).
- d-nb.info/1000059898/34 (Johann Heinrich Liebeskind: Memoirs of a Journey through Part of Germany, Prussia, Courland and Livonia, during the French Occupation of Mainz and the Unrest in Poland. Strasbourg 1795).
- riga.diplo.de/lv-de/themen/politik/staedtepartnerschaften-de-seite/1532974 (German-Latvian town twinning).
Notes
[1] Kaziemieras Būga: Rinktiniai raštai [Selected Works], 3 vols., Vilnius 1958–1962; Jānis Endzelīns: Latvian Place Names, no place, no date.
[2] Mentioned in Jānis Endzelīns: Latvian Water Names, no place, no date, pp. 115–150.
[3] Population statistics as at 1 July 2014 (PDF): www.pmlp.gov.lv/ (accessed 9 March 2017).
Citation
Ralph Tuchtenhagen: Semgallen. In: Online Encyclopaedia on the Culture and History of Germans in Eastern Europe, 2017. URL: ome-lexikon.uni-oldenburg.de/p51108 (as at 25 January 2022).
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