Pāvilosta: Difference between revisions

| subdivision_name1 = [[PāvilostaSouth municipalityKurzeme Municipality]]

'''Pāvilosta''' ({{audio|Lv-Pāvilosta.ogg|pronunciation}}; {{lang-de|Paulshafen}}) is a small port [[town]] in [[LatviaSouth Kurzeme Municipality]] located atin the mouth of [[Saka (river)|SakaCourland]] riverregion inof [[CourlandLatvia]]. It is located at the mouth of Saka river. The population in 2020 was 881.<ref name=LVannual>{{Cite web | url=http://data.csb.gov.lv/pxweb/en/iedz/iedz__iedzskaits__ikgad/ISG020.px/ | title=ISG020. Population number and its change by statistical region, city, town, 21 development centres and county | publisher=Central Statistical Bureau of Latvia|date=2020-01-01|access-date=2021-02-12}}</ref>

The territory of modern Pāvilosta has been inhabited since the [[Stone Age]]. During the late [[Iron Age]] and the [[Livonian crusade]] the territory was inhabited by [[Curonians]] and was part of the [[Piemare]] land. In 1253 in an agreement between [[Bishop of Courland]] and [[Livonian Order]] a port at the mouth of Saka river is mentioned for the first time. In the later years small port named Sackenhausen was part of the [[Bishopric of Courland]], [[Duchy of Courland and Semigallia]] and since 1795 [[Russian Empire]].

In 1879 local landlord from nearby [[Upesmuiža manor]] Otto Friedrich von Lilienfeld started extensive reconstruction works of the small port. The new port town was named Paulshafen, after baron's brother General governor of the [[Courland Governorate]] [[Paul von Lilienfeld]]. However, development of the town iswas not soas fastquick as von Lilienfeld has planned. Many buildingconstruction plots arewere available for rent but during ten years only ten buildings arewere built. PortThe port iswas used only by several fishermen and three small sailerssailboats owned by nearby [[Manorialism|manor]]s.

The real development of the town started in 1893 when the buildingconstruction of the Liepāja military port ([[Karosta]]) started. Pāvilosta became the main centrehub for transporting stonesstone to the [[Liepāja]]. PortThe port was adjusted for stone shipment and many builders, workers and sailors came to the town. When stone shipmentshipments stopped, the town already had a good port and shipping infrastructure. Until First World War there were three [[shipyard]]s in the town where small one mast ships were built. However several bigger two-mast [[schooner]]s for international voyages also were built in the town. Overall 15 ships were built in the Pāvilosta. In 1913 Pāvilosta received limited town rights.

After the [[Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940]] all fishermen were forced to unite ininto an [[artel]]. During battles in the [[Courland Pocket]] several fishermen families fled from the [[Soviet re-occupation of Latvia in 1944]] with motorboats to [[Gotland]], only 150 kilometres to the west. After the war, Pāvilosta became a port town in the [[Latvian SSR]]. Local fishermen artel used motor boats until 1949 when the first fishing ship was bought. In 1951 the artel was transformed into fishermen [[kolkhoz]] ''Dzintarjūra'' (Amber sea). In 1975 the kolkhoz was merged with Liepāja fishermen kolkhoz ''Boļševiks'' (The Bolshevik). In the 1970s there were around 20 [[fishing trawler]]s in Pāvilosta port.

[[Category:PāvilostaSouth Kurzeme Municipality]]