Cēsis
The town of Cēsis, in Latvia, is located in the northern part of Vidzeme Central upland, on the river Gauja, on high hillocks with terraces, overlooking the blue woods of the Gauja ancient river valley. The town has also been known under its German name, Wenden.
The castle park with castle mound and ruins
The most ancient settlement centre in Cēsis is the hillfort - Riekstu hill -with a fortified wooden castle of Vends. The 18 m high mound with its partly preserved fortification system can still be seen in the Castle Park. This settlement was located near major trade routes from the West to the East, therefore it is not by accident that it was chosen as the basis for further conquests of other countries by the German Crusaders, and the construction of the Stone castle began on the hillock opposite the Vend hill-fort in the 13th century.
When the castle was enlarged and fortified, it served as the residence for the Livonian Order Master from 1237 till 1561, with periodical interruptions. During the Northern War in 1703, the castle was destroyed by the Russian army, and later it was not rebuilt. Already from the end of the 16th century, the premises of the Order Castle were adjusted to the requirements of the Cēsis castle estate. When in 1777 the Cēsis Castle Estate was obtained by Count Sievers, he had his new residence house built on the site of the Eastern block of the Order Castle, joining its end wall with the fortification tower. Since 1949, the Cēsis History Museum has been located in this New Castle of the Cēsis castle estate. The front yard of the New Castle is enclosed by a granary and a stable-coach house, which now houses the Exhibition Hall of the Museum. Down beside the granary there is a brewery which was built in 1878 at Count Sievers' time, but its origins date back to the period of the Livonian Order. Further on, the Cēsis castle park is situated, which was laid out in 1812. The park has the romantic image characteristic of that time, with its foot-paths winding up and down, and the waters of the pond reflecting the Order Castle ruins and the exotic plants.
The town
The planning of the Cēsis town was done in the second half of the 13th century. The market place with a church was in the centre of the town. The centre of the housing was the stone Castle of the Livonian Order with its three fortified forecastles. The town was also encircled by a dolomite stone wall with eight towers and five gates. St. John's Church, built in 1281-1284, ruins of the Order Castle and fragments of the fortification walls in Vaļņu and Palasta Streets, as well as the ancient street network and building plots, with the buildings ruined during the wars and fires (the last big one in 1748) have survived from the medieval times. Today we can see the buildings of the 18th century at 16 and 25 Rīgas Street, houses built in the first part of the 19th century at 15 and 47 Rīgas Street, 6 Gaujas Street, etc.
In the second half of the 19th century, the construction of the Rīga-Pleskava highway (1868) and Rīga-Valka railway line (1889) facilitated the development of the town. Raunas Street, leading from the railway station to the Old Town, was developed as a wide, presentable street with the Latvian Society House at 10 Raunas Street (architect A. Malvess), the Building of the Regional Court at 14 Raunas Street (architect P. Mengelis), etc.
Cēsis developed as a health resort, too. Posh summer houses — health centres were built in the vicinity of the Gauja. 'Cīrulīši' is the most famous of them, near the Svētavots (Holy Spring) Cave, with a spring believed to possess healing powers.
Cēsis is still a favourite with far and near guests, who appreciate its calm and peaceful flow of life, so characteristic of a small town.