Victory Memorial to the Soviet Army, Riga

The Victory Memorial to the Soviet Army, more commonly known as the Victory Monument, was a Soviet-era memorial complex in Victory Park, Riga. Its official name was the Monument to the Liberators of Soviet Latvia and Riga from the German Fascist Invaders.

Opened in 1985, the monument was built to commemorate the Soviet Army’s victory over Nazi Germany during the Second World War. For some, it represented victory over Nazism. For many Latvians, however, it symbolised something very different: the return of Soviet rule and the re-occupation of Latvia after the war.

The monument was demolished in August 2022, following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and a wider move across Latvia to remove objects seen as glorifying Soviet and Nazi regimes.

Demolished site: The Victory Monument in Riga no longer exists. It was dismantled in August 2022, and the surrounding area of Victory Park has since been redeveloped as a public recreation space.

Victory Park Before the Soviet Monument

Victory Park’s history is older than the Soviet memorial that once dominated it. The park was created in 1909 during the Russian Empire, when Latvia was still part of the empire ruled by Tsar Nicholas II. At that time it was known as Peter’s Park.

The meaning of the park changed after the Latvian War of Independence. In 1919, Latvian forces defeated the army of Pavel Bermondt-Avalov, also known as the West Russian Volunteer Army. In honour of that victory, the park was renamed Victory Park in 1923.

This older Latvian meaning of “victory” would later clash with the Soviet use of the site. The same park that once commemorated Latvia’s fight for independence became the location of one of the most prominent Soviet memorials in the country.

The Soviet Memorial

Plans for a Soviet victory monument in the park were approved in 1974, and a design competition followed in 1977. The final monument was built between 1982 and 1985, during the late Soviet period.

The memorial was unveiled on 5th November 1985, marking the 40th anniversary period of the Soviet victory in the Second World War. It became one of the largest and most visible Soviet monuments in Latvia.

At the centre of the complex was a 79-metre-high reinforced concrete obelisk. It was made up of five vertical elements and crowned with bronze five-pointed stars. These stars referred to the five years of the “Great Patriotic War”, the Soviet term used for the eastern front of the Second World War between 1941 and 1945.

The monument also included two major bronze sculptural groups. On one side stood three Soviet soldiers, created by sculptor Ļevs Bukovskis. On the other side stood a female figure representing the Motherland, created by Aivars Gulbis. The complex also included a large formal pool, granite and dolomite facing, and a wide ceremonial setting.

The architects of the monument were Ermēns Bāliņš, Edvīns Vecumnieks and Viktors Zilgalvis. Other contributors included artist Aleksejs Bugajevs and structural designer Gunārs Beitiņš.

A Contested Monument

After Latvia restored independence in 1991, the Victory Monument became one of the country’s most contested public monuments.

To many Russian-speaking residents and Soviet veterans, the monument remained a place of remembrance for the defeat of Nazi Germany. Large gatherings were held there on 9 May, the date marked in the Soviet and Russian tradition as Victory Day.

For many Latvians, however, the monument did not represent liberation. Instead, it symbolised Soviet occupation. Latvia had first been occupied by the Soviet Union in 1940, then by Nazi Germany, and then again by the Soviet Union after the Red Army returned in 1944. Soviet rule continued until Latvia restored independence in 1991.

This made the monument politically and emotionally difficult. It stood not just as a war memorial, but as a symbol of competing memories: victory for one community, occupation for another.

The obelisk was sometimes nicknamed “Moscow’s Finger” by critics, reflecting the way it dominated the skyline of Pārdaugava and the political memory of the city.

Attempted Demolition and Petitions

The monument was physically attacked in 1997, when members of the Latvian ultra-nationalist group Pērkonkrusts attempted to destroy it with explosives. The attempt failed, but two members of the group died. The monument survived and was later repaired.

Calls for removal continued over the following decades. In 2013, more than 11,000 signatures were collected through the online platform ManaBalss.lv calling for the monument to be removed and for Victory Park to be redesigned. The proposal argued that the park should instead commemorate Latvia’s 1919 victory over Bermondt-Avalov’s forces during the Latvian War of Independence.

A later removal petition, launched in 2017, reached the Saeima in 2019. At the same time, a counter-petition led by Tatjana Ždanoka of the Latvian Russian Union called for the protection of the monument and similar memorials.

These petitions showed how sharply divided public memory remained. Some wanted the monument demolished, some wanted it protected, and others suggested reinterpretation, relocation, renaming or the addition of explanatory material.

Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine and the 2022 Decision

Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 changed the political context around Soviet-era monuments across Latvia.

In May 2022, Riga City Council voted to dismantle the Victory Monument. The decision followed a wider national debate over Soviet symbols and monuments. On 16th June 2022, the Saeima adopted a law banning the display of objects glorifying the Soviet and Nazi regimes and requiring their dismantling.

Riga City Council described the Victory Park monument as an ideologically charged symbol of the Soviet totalitarian regime. The council also stated that, in the context of Russia’s war against Ukraine, the continued presence of the monument risked polarising society.

The estimated cost of dismantling the complex was €2,131,899 including VAT. The work involved more than just the visible obelisk and statues. It also included the removal of foundations, technical spaces, the pool, landscaping and reinforced concrete structures across a large area of the park.

Demolition of the Monument

Demolition works began in August 2022. The bronze figures were removed first, including the group of Soviet soldiers and the Motherland figure.

On 25th August 2022, the central obelisk was toppled. LSM reported that it came down at 16:42 after several hours of work using heavy demolition equipment. The surrounding area was closed to pedestrians, vehicles and drones for safety and security reasons.

The demolition was carried out without explosives. Once the obelisk fell, the most recognisable part of the Victory Monument was gone.

By the end of the works, the former memorial complex, pool and underground structures had been removed. The site was no longer a Soviet ceremonial space, and attention turned to what Victory Park should become next.

What Replaced the Monument?

After demolition, Victory Park was redeveloped as a public recreation area. The first major phase reopened to the public on 11th November 2023, Lāčplēsis Day, a Latvian day of remembrance connected to the War of Independence.

The renewed park included restored landscaping, new paths, thousands of trees, plants and shrubs, bridges, tunnels and a large skatepark. LSM reported that nothing obvious remained of the former pool and monument that had dominated the area for decades.

A second phase opened in August 2025, adding a five-hectare active and sports zone. This included children’s play areas, water play equipment, cycling tracks, a pump track, outdoor fitness equipment and accessible facilities.

Today, the Victory Monument itself is gone, but the site remains historically important. It tells the story of changing power, memory and identity in Latvia: from imperial parkland, to Latvian independence memory, to Soviet monument, to contested public space, and finally to a redeveloped city park.

June 2019:

June 2022: