The Latvians: A Short History (Studies of Nationalities)

This is the first English-language volume that brings the history of Latvia to the threshold of the twenty-first century. Until the reestablishment of Latvian independence in 1991, Stoviet dominance served for nearly fifty years to hinder publication of any complete and objective historical record of the region. Plakans now places the evolution and formation of the Latvian nation in a balanced, historical framework that stretches from the early medieval period to the present. Particular emphasis is given to the period between the Latvian "national awakening" of 1816—1819 and the emergence of an independent Latvia in 1918. From this point forward, the book extensively chronicles an evolving Latvian state structure, provides an appendix that summarizes all changes and important officeholders, and explains the current systems of political parties. This post perestroika historical narrative should contribute significantly to assessing the likely hood of Latvia's survival as an independent republic.

The book attempts to cover the proto-Balt period to contemporary Latvia. One of the questions the book poses is at what juncture did the Lett tribes/clans consider themselves to be Latvians or "tauta." Unfortunately, unlike our fellow Balts, the Lithuanians, Latvians or Letts took longer to form that identity.

This book belongs in every library. I consider this a must read for those who wonder why their relatives left Courland or Livonia after 1905--discussed in Chapter 6.

The book is organized thus: 1 The Population of the Eastern Baltic Littoral; 2 Invasion, Conquest, the Creation of Livonia;
3 Politics, Economics, and Religion in the Sixteenth Century; 4 The Trifurcated Littoral in the Seventeenth Century; 5 The Baltic Littoral in the Russian Empire; 6 A Century of Reforms; 7 The Latvian Nation Acquires a State; 8 The Loss of Independence; 9 The Reemergence of an Independent Latvia; 10 Continuities and Discontinuities.


A highly recommend and professional work.   March 27, 2001
 10 out of 10 found this review helpful

Unlike most significant histories of Latvia to date (with Bilmanis' seminal work of 1951 being arguably the most important in English), this one is written by a professional historian - and it shows. In addition, the end of the Cold War has facilitated a dispassionate yet well informed account of Latvia's history, so far totally unavailable to my knowledge. Prof. Plakans' insights have helped me to clarify, in my mind, things which did not quite make sense up until now.

I am the son of emigre Latvians, and for me the period 1918-1940 has always been of paramount importance. Latvia's history outside that period seemed somehow irrelevant. But times have changed. Plakans restores the balance and by the end we focus on Latvia of today, not some ever dimmer "ideal".

Initially Prof. Plakans' emphasis was hard to come to terms with. I was disappointed that the first independence period got only 25 pages out of 198 (c.f. Bilmanis' 100 of 408). Bilmanis does of course fill in the gaps to 1942, but his obvious and understandable bias, together with his florid style stand in stark contrast to Plakans' professionalism.

Prof. Plakans' work is of course a _short_ history. Perhaps he will publish a lengthier piece in the future and further share his insights with those of us hungry for them. This is nonetheless a highly recommended and challenging (though brief) introduction to Latvian history.


Just what Latvia needed...   July 11, 2000
 16 out of 17 found this review helpful

Latvian history is so often flawed with political ideology, personnal opinion or blatant ignorance. This is one of the only qualitative objective academic works out there. There is no better review of Latvian history. Even if Plakans himself is a Latvian WWII refugee, his life experience and opinions (whatever they might be) do not seem to color his text. Plakans' book however will not provide readers with profound analysis or long-winded dicussions of political regimes, cultural movements or wartime strategies. It is a simple but thourough review of the events and facts that lead Latvia and the Latvians to their contemporary position, politically, economically, socially and culturally. A recommended, quality read for anyone wanting to learn more about the Latvians.