Rēzekne (Latgalian: Rēzne, Russian: Резекне, previously (-1893) Розиттен, (1893-1917) Режица; German: Rositten, Estonian: Räisaku, Polish: Rzeżyca) is a city in the Latgale region of eastern Latvia, 242 km east of Rīga. It has a population of around 40,000 (2005 estimate).

Built on seven hills, Rēzekne is situated at the intersection of the Moscow-Rīga and Saint Petersburg-Warsaw railways, at 56°30′N 27°19′E / 56.500°N 27.317°E / 56.500; 27.317.

A Latgalian castle is known to have existed at Rēzekne from the 9th to the 13th centuries, until its destruction at the hands of German crusaders belonging to the Livonian Order. The Livonian knights built a stone fortress on the site to serve as a border post on their eastern frontier.

The name Rēzekne is first documented in 1285. The town came under Polish overlordship in 1582. Rēzekne received Magdeburg rights from Poland in the 17th century. It fell to the Russian Empire following the Partitions of Poland.

The first congress of Latgalian Latvians was held in Rēzekne in the spring of 1917 during World War I, and following Latvia's declaration of independence in 1918 the city became a cultural centre for the Latgale region. Rēzekne was heavily damaged by both Nazi and Soviet armies during World War II; out of a pre-war population of 13,300, only 5,000 people remained in the city at the end of the war.

Rēzekne was rebuilt after the war with an emphasis on industrial development and currently has a significant population of Russians (54% in the census of 1998).

The town has a famous statue by Leons Tomašickis named "Latgales Mara" and dedicated to Latgalian independence. Destroyed by the Soviets, it was recreated in 1992.

External links

• Official city website (in English)
• Rēzekne on wikimapia

Template:List of latvian's district