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List of hillforts in Latvia

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Tērvete hillfort. Main Semigallian centre in the late Iron Age

Hillforts in Latvia offered not only military and administrative functions but they were also cultural and economic centres of some regions. The Latvian word for hillfort is pilskalns (plural: pilskalni), from pils (castle) and kalns (hill). Latvian hillforts generally were a part of a complex consisting of the main fortress, the settlement around it, one or more burial fields and nearby ritual sites. The first hillforts in Latvia, such as Daugmale hillfort, appeared during the Bronze Age.[1] Some were continuously inhabited until the late Iron Age.[2][3]

During the Roman Iron Age, some of the Latvian hillforts (like Ķivutkalns) were abandoned or became sparsely populated. A new period in hillfort development started during the 5th-8th centuries AD, when many new hillforts appeared, in most cases, along the main trades routes - rivers. During the 10th-11th centuries, some of the hillforts became military fortresses with strong fortifications (like hillforts in Tērvete, Talsi, Mežotne). Some of them are considered important political centres of the local peoples, who in this period were subjects of serious social political changes. That period was known for unrest and military activities, as well as power struggles between local aristocracy. Most of the Latvian hillforts were destroyed or abandoned during the Livonian Crusade in the 13th century, but some were still used in the 14th century. In total, there are about 470 hillforts in Latvia.[2][3]

Latgale

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Selonia

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Semigallia

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Courland

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Vidzeme

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See also

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hillforts in Latvia.

References

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  1. ^ Ancient History of Latvia (11 000 BC – 1200)
  2. ^ a b Bielenstein 1869
  3. ^ a b Moora 1929

Bibliography

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  • Bielenstein, August (1869). Die altlettischen Burgberge Kurlands. Riga.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • Moora, H (1929) [1929]. Die Eisenzeit in Lettland bis etwa 500 (paperback ed.).
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