The Northern Fort Karosta in Liepaja

Overview of Northern Fort Karosta

At the end of the 19th century, fortifications were built on the site of the current Karosta (Liepaja district), which were supposed to protect the Liepaja naval base in case of an enemy attack, but in November 1908, the Libava Fortress was liquidated, as its construction was recognized as a strategic mistake. Some of the cannons were dismantled and taken to the Kaunas Fortress in Lithuania, and some were melted down. To destroy the fortification, they tried to blow up the fortifications twice.

In Soviet times, Liepaja received the status of a "closed city". Up to 26,000 troops were stationed here, and the military town (as the locals called it – "Karosta") occupied a third of the total area of the city, respectively, and the entire territory of the fort.

A French artist under the pseudonym Al Sticking, as part of his Vagabond ages project, created a unique drawing on the territory of the northern forts in Liepaja. An elderly woman, gazing into the sea, is depicted because the artist is visiting Liepaja in the Church of St. Nicholas. Anna saw this image that touched him very much, and he wanted to capture her in his work. With the support of the Municipality of Liepaja, he painted a portrait of this woman on the concrete wall of one of the ruins of the Northern Forts.

To this day, the surviving artillery batteries, underground structures and powder magazines have been preserved, which are half in the water and are a favorite place for tourists. When visiting the Northern Forts, one should be very careful, as the steep shore of the Baltic Sea in Karosta, as in other places on the Latvian coast, is very dangerous due to the risk of collapse.