Salaspils
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Salaspils Kircholm, Kerkolm |
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Salaspils Railway Station in 2008.
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 Salaspils
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| Coordinates: 56°52′N 24°21′E / 56.867°N 24.350°ECoordinates: 56°52′N 24°21′E / 56.867°N 24.350°E | ||
| Country |
 Latvia
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| District | Riga District | |
| Town rights | 1993 | |
| Government | ||
| • Mayor | Raimonds Čudars [1] | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 12 km2 (5 sq mi) | |
| • Rural territory | 115 km2 (44 sq mi) | |
| Population | ||
| • Total | 21,102 | |
| • Density | 173/km2 (450/sq mi) | |
| Time zone | EET (UTC+2) | |
| • Summer (DST) | EEST (UTC+3) | |
| Postal code | LV-2121; LV-2169 | |
| Calling code | +371 67 | |
| Number of city council members | 13 | |
Salaspils (
pronunciation ; German: Kirchholm, Swedish: Kirkholm, Latin: Kerkolm) is a town in Latvia, the administrative centre of Salaspils municipality. The town is situated on the northern bank of the Daugava River 18 kilometers to the south-east of the city of Riga.
Salaspils is one of the oldest settlements in Latvia. Archaeological excavations of 1964-1975 (during the construction of Riga HES) in ancient settlements, burial grounds and castle mounds give evidence of very dense population of the region. At this time, the remains of 11,000-year-old reindeer hunters were found (the oldest known human settlement in all of Latvia) and 3500-year-old remains of Baltic hunters, buried in hollowed out oak-tree trunks, were found as well. There is evidence that both Livs and Balts built hill forts in the region.
At the end of the 12th century, German crusaders and merchants travelled up the Daugava, establishing missionaries among the Liv settlements. One important Daugava Liv centre, the small island Mārtiņsala (German:Kircholm) had a Christian church as early as 1186. So began the Christianizing and gradual subjection of the local Liv tribes. In 1206, in the early phases of the Livonian Crusade, the Liv chieftain Ako organized the first revolt against the German crusaders but suffered defeat.
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Wikipedia