Aizsargi
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| Aizsargi | |
|---|---|
 Aizsargu motorcyclists during a 20-year anniversary in 1939. | |
| Active | 1919 - 1940 |
| Country |  Latvia |
| Type | Infantry |
| Size | 60,684 (1940) |
| Motto(s) | "Everything for Latvia" |
| Engagements | Latvian War of Independence 1934 Latvian coup d'état |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Ludvigs Bolšteins Augusts Tons Kārlis Prauls |
Aizsargi (lit. 'Defenders' or 'Guards') was a volunteer paramilitary organization, militia with some characteristics of a military reserve force (Latvian: Latvijas Aizsargu organizācija, lit. 'Guards Organization of Latvia', or LAO) in Latvia during the interbellum period (1918–1939). The Aizsargi was created on March 30, 1919, by the Latvian Provisional Government as a self-defense force, a kind of National Guard, during the Latvian War of Independence.[1] In 1921 it was reorganized to follow the example of the Finnish Suojeluskunta (known as the "White Guard").[2]
The Aizsargi published a newspaper, entitled Aizsargs ("Defender"/"Guard"), and the movement had subsidiary sections for women ("Aizsardzes") and youth ("Jaunsargi").
The organization was among those which militarily supported the 1934 coup d'état of Kārlis Ulmanis.
By 1 January 1940 the organization had a membership of 60,684: 31,874 guards (aizsargi), 14,810 women members (aizsardzes), and 14,000 youth members (jaunsargu).[2] The organization consisted of 19 infantry regiments and the separate Railroad and Aviation Regiments.[3][4]
On 16 June 1940 the organization was disbanded as a result of the Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940. During the Soviet occupation, the former members of the LAO were heavily persecuted.
After the restoration of the independence of Latvia, the Aizsargi organization was not re-established by the government, as the Latvian National Guard was formed in 1991 as the main volunteer defence force of the country. Since then, separate small-scale NGOs have claimed to be the successors of the original LAO, which sometimes espoused fringe political views (e.g. the group led by Jānis Rība and others).[5][6]
References
[edit]- ^ "Documents of the Latvian Aizsargi Organization" (PDF) (in Latvian). A Latvian state archive exhibition catalog
- ^ a b Latvian Armed Forces in 1940
- ^ "MILITARY AIRCRAFT - National Guard (Aizsargi) - Latvian Aviation". latvianaviation.com. Archived from the original on 2021-04-10. Retrieved 2020-11-15.
- ^ "Organization of the Aizsargi". aizsargi.org. Retrieved 2020-11-15.
- ^ Refugees, United Nations High Commissioner for. "Refworld | Latvia: Information on a paramilitary organization, reportedly neo-Nazi, called "Zemessarge", which apparently existed prior to WWII as well as today, and one of whose leaders is named Janis Riba". Refworld. Retrieved 2021-10-16.
- ^ Mudde, Cas (2005). Racist Extremism in Central and Eastern Europe. Psychology Press. p. 96. ISBN 978-0-415-35594-0.
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