Proclamation Day of the Republic of Latvia is celebrated annually on 18 November. It marks the anniversary of the Proclamation of Independence of Latvia by the

People's Council of Latvia The People's Council of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Tautas padome, LTP) was a temporary council which declared Latvia's independence on November 18, 1918 and then acted as the temporary parliament of the country until a Constitutional Assembly was elect ...

in 1918.

Observances

18th November Torchlight procession 2013

Various public events take place all over the country, including concerts and fireworks. Torchlight processions held by various organizations have been part of Proclamation Day celebrations and

Lāčplēsis Day Lāčplēsis Day ( lv, Lāčplēša diena) is a memorial day for soldiers who fought for the independence of Latvia. It is celebrated on November 11th, marking the decisive victory by the Latvian Army over the West Russian Volunteer Army – a ...

celebrations since the 1920s. The largest torchlight procession organized by the National Alliance takes place in the capital city Riga and attracts thousands of participants every year. Its route through the streets of the city centre traditionally starts at the monument of

Kārlis Ulmanis Kārlis Augusts Vilhelms Ulmanis (; 4 September 1877 – 20 September 1942) was a Latvian politician. He was one of the most prominent Latvian politicians of pre-World War II Latvia during the Interwar period of independence from November 1918 to ...

, the first prime minister of Latvia, and ends at the

Freedom Monument The Freedom Monument ( lv, Brīvības piemineklis, ) is located in Riga, Latvia, honouring soldiers killed during the Latvian War of Independence (1918–1920). It is considered an important symbol of the freedom, independence, and sovereignty ...

. A popular modern tradition established in 2009, is for people all over the world to sing the Latvian

national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and Europea ...

Dievs, svētī Latviju! "" (; "God Bless Latvia!") is the national anthem of Latvia. Created in 1873 as a patriotic song, it did not gain official status until 1920. History and composition The music and lyrics were written in 1873 by Kārlis Baumanis, a teacher wh ...

'' at the same time (21:00

EET "Eet" is a song from Regina Spektor's fifth studio album, ''Far (album), Far''. It was released as the album's second official single in October 2009. In Europe it was released as a digital download on November 27, 2009. Music video A Viral vide ...

Parade

Another tradition with a long history is the

Latvian National Armed Forces The Latvian National Armed Forces ( lv, Latvijas Nacionālie bruņotie spēki), or NBS, are the armed forces of Latvia. Latvia's defense concept is based on a mobile professional rapid response force and reserve segment that can be called upon re ...

parade, which nowadays is held at 11 November Embankment in Riga and was reintroduced in 1998. After the restoration of the independence, the first parade of the National Armed Forces took place in Riga at the Freedom Monument in 1993, which was dedicated to the 75th anniversary of the founding of the Latvian state. The parade was also broadcast on Latvian Television. In 1998, the national holiday parade was held for the first time on 11 November Embankment. The limited and small area near the Freedom Monument was mentioned as the main reason for the change of the parade venue, as it did not allow the demonstration of all types of units of the National Armed Forces, as well as heavy weapons and military equipment. In 1998, armed formations of the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of the Interior, as well as a company from the Baltic Battalion, stood in the parade dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the proclamation of Latvia. For the first time, the Navy ships, which were anchored in the Daugava opposite the embankment, took part in the parade. There was also the introduction of a 21-gun salute from cannons fired from the Ballast Dam with 100 mm anti-tank cannons by soldiers of the Artillery Division of the Mobile Rifle Brigade. For the first time, the staff of all five National Guard brigades also took part in the National Day parade and the young guards of Kazdanga Agricultural Technical School marched as the closing unit. Since Latvia joined

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

in 2004, allied partner countries have participated in the parade.

References

External links

* Mārtiņš Ķibilds (18 November 2018)
Latvia's independence day – but a single step in a long journey
''Atslēgas''.

Public Broadcasting of Latvia Public Broadcasting of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas sabiedriskais medijs, lit=Latvian Public Media – LSM) is a publicly funded radio and television organization operated by both of Latvia's public broadcasters – Latvian Television and Radio Latvi ...

. Retrieved 19 November 2018. * {{cite web, title=18.novembra parāde (1999), publisher=Youtube, url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bBwK9AG_fE& Public holidays in Latvia Latvia November observances Autumn events in Latvia Independence of Latvia