Mežaparks (german: Kaiserwald) is a neighbourhood of Northern District in Riga, the capital of Latvia. It consists of a residential area to the South and a large

urban park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a municipal park (North America) or a public park, public open space, or municipal gardens ( UK), is a park in cities and other incorporated places that offer recreation and green space to r ...

to the North of the same name – Mežaparks. The neighbourhood is located on the western shore of Lake Ķīšezers. The name is literally translated as "forest park". The neighbourhood and park were built in the early 20th century and the area was originally called . It was one of the world's first garden cities.Mežaparks in Riga – One of the First Garden Cities in Europe
/ref> It had large number of Art Nouveau and Eclectic villas for upper class inhabitants of Riga. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, the

Kaiserwald concentration camp Kaiserwald (Ķeizarmežs) was a Nazi concentration camp near the Riga suburb of Mežaparks in modern-day Latvia. Kaiserwald was built in March 1943, during the period that the German army occupied Latvia. The first inmates of the camp were ...

was located in this park, and many

Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

Gypsies The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...

, Communists, and other opponents of Nazi rule were murdered in these woods. Today it is still one of the wealthier areas of Riga, the Mežaparks Great Bandstand hosts the

Latvian Song and Dance Festival The Latvian Song and Dance Festival ( lv, Vispārējie latviešu Dziesmu un Deju svētki) is one of the largest amateur choral and dancing events in the world and an important event in Latvian culture and social life. As one of the Baltic song ...

in early July every five years. Mežaparks is also host to the Riga Zoo and its lakeside locale allows for various water sporting activities. There is also an amusement park in Mežaparks, which makes the neighborhood a popular summer destination for Riga residents.

Park

There is a large

on the North side of the neighbourhood. The park is where the open-air Mežaparks Great Bandstand and Riga Zoo are located, as well as access to Ķīšezers lake. The territory is covered with

coastal dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, fl ...

s, much of it with

boreal forest Taiga (; rus, тайга́, p=tɐjˈɡa; relates to Mongolic and Turkic languages), generally referred to in North America as a boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruc ...

s, both protected conserved biotopes. The territory began to be used for recreation in 18th century and was added to Riga's territory in 19th century. In 1901, the Mežaparks neighbourhood became

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

's first architectural project to use the

garden city movement The garden city movement was a 20th century urban planning movement promoting satellite communities surrounding the central city and separated with greenbelts. These Garden Cities would contain proportionate areas of residences, industry, and ...

. The area was expanded and developed during the first half of 20th century, primarily serving as an elite sports complex. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

in 1949, the

Soviet Government The Government of the Soviet Union ( rus, Прави́тельство СССР, p=prɐˈvʲitʲɪlʲstvə ɛs ɛs ɛs ˈɛr, r=Pravítelstvo SSSR, lang=no), formally the All-Union Government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, commonly ab ...

carried out a major expansion of the park and inaugurated it as a public park with many recreational areas and buildings. Up until the end of 20th century, the park continued to serve as a public park. Although little of the Soviet architecture survives, the park has seen a resurgence after restoration of Latvia's independence and is currently a popular recreational location. The park along the neighbourhood is a

national heritage site A national heritage site is a heritage site having a value that has been registered by a governmental agency as being of national importance to the cultural heritage or history of that country. Usually such sites are listed in a heritage registe ...

and architectural cultural monument.

Gallery

File:Mezaparks.jpg File:Межапарк2.JPG File:11.tramvajs Mežaparkā.JPG, Trams in Mežaparks File:Ķeizarmežs.jpg, Mežaparks in the beginning of 20th century

References

External links

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Mežaparks: The Garden Suburb

Neighbourhoods in Riga Holocaust locations in Latvia Garden suburbs {{Riga-stub