Latvian fleet that fought for the Allies in World War II
Encyclopedia
The part of the Latvian fleet that fought for the Allies in World War II under the flag of Latvia
consisted of eight freighters: Abagra, Ciltvaira, Regent, Everasma, Everalda, Everelza, Ķegums, and Everagra. Only two of them: Everagra and Ķegums survived the war.
After the USSR
took over Latvia
on June 17, 1940 and the country was annexed to the Soviet Union
, the Soviet authorities issued orders for Latvian fleet to return home. Some of the ships obeyed the order, and their crews were deported to Gulag
labor camp
s. The eight ships denied the order.
A town of Nags Head, North Carolina
has a street named after Ciltvaira, which was the first Latvian ship sunk by Germans. It was torpedoed by German submarine U-123 in the nearby coastal waters on 19 January 1942.
The same year five more ships were sunk: the Everasma on Feb. 28, the Abagra on May 6, the Regent on June 14, the Everalda on June 29, the Everelza on Aug. 13. Everagra was torpedoed on July 8, 1943, but survived and served until 1957. Ķegums served until 1948.
Flag of Latvia
The national flag of Latvia was used by independent Latvia from 1918 until the country was occupied by the Soviet Union in 1940. Its use was suppressed during Soviet rule. After regaining its independence, Latvia re-adopted on February 27, 1990 the same red-white-red flag.Though officially adopted...
consisted of eight freighters: Abagra, Ciltvaira, Regent, Everasma, Everalda, Everelza, Ķegums, and Everagra. Only two of them: Everagra and Ķegums survived the war.
After the USSR
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...
took over Latvia
Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940
The Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940 refers, according to the European Court of Human Rights, the Government of Latvia, the State Department of the United States of America, and the European Union, to the military occupation of the Republic of Latvia by the Soviet Union ostensibly under the...
on June 17, 1940 and the country was annexed to the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, the Soviet authorities issued orders for Latvian fleet to return home. Some of the ships obeyed the order, and their crews were deported to Gulag
Gulag
The Gulag was the government agency that administered the main Soviet forced labor camp systems. While the camps housed a wide range of convicts, from petty criminals to political prisoners, large numbers were convicted by simplified procedures, such as NKVD troikas and other instruments of...
labor camp
Labor camp
A labor camp is a simplified detention facility where inmates are forced to engage in penal labor. Labor camps have many common aspects with slavery and with prisons...
s. The eight ships denied the order.
A town of Nags Head, North Carolina
Nags Head, North Carolina
Nags Head is a town in Dare County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 2,700 at the 2000 census.-History:Early maps of the area show Nags Head as a promontory of land characterized by high sand dunes visible from miles at sea...
has a street named after Ciltvaira, which was the first Latvian ship sunk by Germans. It was torpedoed by German submarine U-123 in the nearby coastal waters on 19 January 1942.
The same year five more ships were sunk: the Everasma on Feb. 28, the Abagra on May 6, the Regent on June 14, the Everalda on June 29, the Everelza on Aug. 13. Everagra was torpedoed on July 8, 1943, but survived and served until 1957. Ķegums served until 1948.