History of Latvia
Latvian history goes back to almost 2000 BC, although the
modern country was formed due to more recent events. In about 2000 BC the Baltic
people arrived in the region and settled what is today Latvia.
In 1190 there was a push from the south to convert the people of
Latvia to Christianity, but they had little interest in this religion, which
encouraged the Germans to conquer the region in 1201 in
order to more successfully convert these people. Despite the people's fight
against Christianity, the region thrived as Riga became a major trading post between
Russia and Germany as well as an important Baltic Sea port
city. Unfortunately, this didn't solve any religious conflicts and the foreign
church, merchants, and soldiers constantly fought over power.
In 1561 modern-day Latvia was taken over by
Poland and, soon after, Christianity was accepted and became the most common
religion in the region. About 70 years later the Swedes took
over, converting much of the population to Protestantism and they continued to rule
until the early 1700s when the region was transferred to Russian
control. Since that point Latvia remained primarily under Russian control until
1991.