Bauska
Encyclopedia
Bauska is a town
in Bauska municipality
, in the Zemgale region of southern Latvia
. The town is situated at the confluence of the rivers Mūsa
and Mēmele
where they form the Lielupe
River. Bauska is located 66 km from the Latvia
n capital Riga
and 20 km from the Lithuania
n border.
The city is known in German
as Bauske and in Lithuanian
as Bauskė.
tribes. In the mid-15th century, Bauska castle
was built by Germans of the Livonian Order
. The city started developing in its present day location around 1580, receiving its city rights in 1609.
After the Livonian War
Bauska became part of the Duchy of Courland. The castle and city suffered heavily in the 17th and 18th centuries, under attack from Sweden
in the Polish-Swedish War and the Russians in the Great Northern War
. In 1711 an outbreak of plague ravaged Bauska, exterminating half of the population, and war returned once more in 1812, when Bauska became one of Napoleon's army's transit point en route to Moscow
.
After the wars, Bauska enjoyed a period of stability, and grew as a trade center between Riga and Lithuania. Many inhabitants were merchants or worked in ceramic-making, but there was a large brewery as well. Bauska was primarily built of wooden houses: in 1823, only 6 of the 120 houses within the city were built of brick or stone. For this reason, devastating fires were not uncommon. Historically, all social affairs had been in the hands of the German gentry. In the 18th century, however, many Jews moved to the city, and by 1850 made up half the population, diluting the strong German influence.
The city was taken by the German Imperial Army in 1915, and roughly half the population fled. In 1916, the Germans installed the city's first electrical grid. After a short occupation by the Red Army
, the Germans retook and held the city, until 1919, when the Latvian army drove the Bermontians out of Bauska for good.
From 1918 to 1940, the proportion of ethnic Latvians in the population grew strongly, making up 75% of the population, though the Jews and Germans still maintained a noticeable presence. In 1939, just before World War II, virtually the entire German population of Bauska repatriated to Germany, causing the city to lose one of its traditional ethnic populations. As part of the Holocaust in 1941, Bauska's other traditional minority, the Jews was destroyed as well. In 1944, the Red Army
invaded. Six weeks of Soviet shelling and air raids destroyed one third of the city's buildings. Rubble remained in the streets until the 1950s.
During the Soviet period, the population surpassed 10,000, and both the Latvian and Russian populations strongly increased.
, the future chief rabbi
of Israel
, and Mordechai Eliasberg.
In 1850, Jews made up 50% of Bauska's population. By 1920, the Jewish population had dwindled to about a sixth of the size it had been 40 years earlier. In 1941, following the Nazi invasion, the remaining Jews of Bauska and environs were tortured and executed.
An exhibition on the city'sš Jewish history was opened following a conference on Bauska's Jewish cultural heritage in the 1990s.
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
in Bauska municipality
Bauska municipality
Bauska municipality is a municipality in Zemgale, Latvia. The municipality was formed in 2009 by merging Brunava parish, Ceraukste parish, Code parish, Dāviņi parish, Gailīši parish, Īslīce parish, Mežotne parish, Vecsaule parish and Bauska town the administrative centre being Bauska.-References:...
, in the Zemgale region of southern Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
. The town is situated at the confluence of the rivers Mūsa
Muša
Mūša is a river in Northern Lithuania and Southern Latvia , having its confluence with river Nemunėlis , in Latvia, near city Bauska. Mūša is a tributary of the river Lielupė. Mūša is 164 kilometres long....
and Mēmele
Nemunelis
Nemunėlis is a river in northern Lithuania and southern Latvia. It originates 6 km south of Rokiškis. It is 191 kilometres long before its confluence with the Mūša, near Bauska, forming the Lielupe.This river does not belong to the basin of the larger river Neman, but the two rivers' names are...
where they form the Lielupe
Lielupe
The Lielupe is a river in central Latvia. Its length is 119 km . The surface area of its basin is 17,600 km²...
River. Bauska is located 66 km from the Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
n capital Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
and 20 km from the Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
n border.
The city is known in German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
as Bauske and in Lithuanian
Lithuanian language
Lithuanian is the official state language of Lithuania and is recognized as one of the official languages of the European Union. There are about 2.96 million native Lithuanian speakers in Lithuania and about 170,000 abroad. Lithuanian is a Baltic language, closely related to Latvian, although they...
as Bauskė.
History
The territory around Bauska was originally inhabited by SemigallianSemigallian
Semigallian may refer to:*Semigallians - a Baltic tribe*Semigallian language - an extinct Baltic language*Zemgale - a region in Latvia...
tribes. In the mid-15th century, Bauska castle
Bauska castle
Bauska Castle is a complex consisting of the ruins of an earlier castle and a later palace on the outskirts of the Latvian city of Bauska.- History :...
was built by Germans of the Livonian Order
Livonian Order
The Livonian Order was an autonomous Livonian branch of the Teutonic Order and a member of the Livonian Confederation from 1435–1561. After being defeated by Samogitians in the 1236 Battle of Schaulen , the remnants of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword were incorporated into the Teutonic Knights...
. The city started developing in its present day location around 1580, receiving its city rights in 1609.
After the Livonian War
Livonian War
The Livonian War was fought for control of Old Livonia in the territory of present-day Estonia and Latvia when the Tsardom of Russia faced a varying coalition of Denmark–Norway, the Kingdom of Sweden, the Union of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland.During the period 1558–1578,...
Bauska became part of the Duchy of Courland. The castle and city suffered heavily in the 17th and 18th centuries, under attack from Sweden
Swedish Empire
The Swedish Empire refers to the Kingdom of Sweden between 1561 and 1721 . During this time, Sweden was one of the great European powers. In Swedish, the period is called Stormaktstiden, literally meaning "the Great Power Era"...
in the Polish-Swedish War and the Russians in the Great Northern War
Great Northern War
The Great Northern War was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in northern Central Europe and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swedish alliance were Peter I the Great of Russia, Frederick IV of...
. In 1711 an outbreak of plague ravaged Bauska, exterminating half of the population, and war returned once more in 1812, when Bauska became one of Napoleon's army's transit point en route to Moscow
French invasion of Russia
The French invasion of Russia of 1812 was a turning point in the Napoleonic Wars. It reduced the French and allied invasion forces to a tiny fraction of their initial strength and triggered a major shift in European politics as it dramatically weakened French hegemony in Europe...
.
After the wars, Bauska enjoyed a period of stability, and grew as a trade center between Riga and Lithuania. Many inhabitants were merchants or worked in ceramic-making, but there was a large brewery as well. Bauska was primarily built of wooden houses: in 1823, only 6 of the 120 houses within the city were built of brick or stone. For this reason, devastating fires were not uncommon. Historically, all social affairs had been in the hands of the German gentry. In the 18th century, however, many Jews moved to the city, and by 1850 made up half the population, diluting the strong German influence.
The city was taken by the German Imperial Army in 1915, and roughly half the population fled. In 1916, the Germans installed the city's first electrical grid. After a short occupation by the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
, the Germans retook and held the city, until 1919, when the Latvian army drove the Bermontians out of Bauska for good.
From 1918 to 1940, the proportion of ethnic Latvians in the population grew strongly, making up 75% of the population, though the Jews and Germans still maintained a noticeable presence. In 1939, just before World War II, virtually the entire German population of Bauska repatriated to Germany, causing the city to lose one of its traditional ethnic populations. As part of the Holocaust in 1941, Bauska's other traditional minority, the Jews was destroyed as well. In 1944, the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
invaded. Six weeks of Soviet shelling and air raids destroyed one third of the city's buildings. Rubble remained in the streets until the 1950s.
During the Soviet period, the population surpassed 10,000, and both the Latvian and Russian populations strongly increased.
Demographics
In December 2004, there were 10,178 inhabitants, 55% female and 45% male.Jewish community
Bauska was home to a thriving Jewish community in the 19th century, many employed as scholars or in occupations such as baking and distilling. The town hosted several notable rabbis, including Abraham Isaac KookAbraham Isaac Kook
Abraham Isaac Kook was the first Ashkenazi chief rabbi of the British Mandate for Palestine, the founder of the Religious Zionist Yeshiva Merkaz HaRav, Jewish thinker, Halachist, Kabbalist and a renowned Torah scholar...
, the future chief rabbi
Chief Rabbi
Chief Rabbi is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities...
of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, and Mordechai Eliasberg.
In 1850, Jews made up 50% of Bauska's population. By 1920, the Jewish population had dwindled to about a sixth of the size it had been 40 years earlier. In 1941, following the Nazi invasion, the remaining Jews of Bauska and environs were tortured and executed.
An exhibition on the city'sš Jewish history was opened following a conference on Bauska's Jewish cultural heritage in the 1990s.
See also
- Bauska CastleBauska castleBauska Castle is a complex consisting of the ruins of an earlier castle and a later palace on the outskirts of the Latvian city of Bauska.- History :...
- List of cities in Latvia
- Livonian Brothers of the SwordLivonian Brothers of the SwordThe Livonian Brothers of the Sword were a military order founded by Bishop Albert of Riga in 1202. Pope Innocent III sanctioned the establishment in 1204. The membership of the order comprised German "warrior monks"...