Latgale has a long history dating back to the early centuries B.C. The inhabitants are Indo-European people who settled in the area long before the start of the Christian era. The historical development of Latgale begins with its social and political organization between the 7th and 13th centuries A.D.

The historical term “Latgale” refers to the land inhabited by the ancient Latvian people (known as “Letthigali” in Latin and latgali, or sometimes rendered letgali in Latvian).

The Letthigalli (Latgalians) referred to by the chroniclers in the 11th century inhabited a wide expanse of land in the area. The area was referred to as Letthia in Latin and Latygola in Slavic. It is far larger than the Latgale of the twentieth century when Independent Latvia was established. It consisted of the states of Jersika and Kukonys and the lands of Tolova and Atzele. Its rulers were Talvaldis, Vetseke, And Visvaldis. These states had economic relations with Byzantium, Rome and Arab traders via the Daugava and other waterways.

Christianity in Latgale first came from the East but was eventually replaced by that of the West. The Christian religion was already present in ancient Latgale before the arrival of the German missionaries in the twelfth century. There were priests and churches of eastern Christianity in Tolova and the various castles along the Daugava. Archeological excavations from the 9th to 12th centuries show Christian symbols among the ornaments in the burial sites.

The Teutonic Knights brought western Christianity to the region. These German forces defeated the Latgalians and destroyed their states. The Germans destroyed Jersika in 1209, Tolova in 1214 and incorporated the entire area into a state they called Livonia. The region was ruled by the archbishop of Riga and the Livonian Order as component of Livonia.

In 1215 the Lateran Council designated Latvian (and Estonian) territory as “Terra Mariana” (Land of Mary). During the Reformation this title was abandoned by the Lutherans but Latgale has preserved it as has the entire Latvian catholic church.

Latgale suffered greatly during the many wars in the region. The greatest devastation occurred in the Livonian Wars. In the 1577 the muscovite forces of Ivan the Terrible invaded criss-crossing the entire region and causing extensive damage. They destroyed castles, burned churches, and villages, killing many people and also capturing many others and taking them to Russia. Latgale suffered again during the Polish-Swedish War from 1601-1629 and during the Great Northern War, 1700-1721.

Latgale was separated from Livonia and existed as a territory separate from the rest of Latvian lands (de facto) since 1625 (the Peace of Altmark). The Protestant Reformation began in Latvia in the 1520’s but Latgale remained Catholic. In 1561 Latgale was acquired by Poland which governed it until 1772. Polish rule in Latgale meant that the people maintained the Catholic faith while the rest of Latvia adopted Lutheranism. Under Poland Latgale was referred to as Inflanty Polskie (“Polish Livland” ). Inflanty is the Polish corruption of Livland.

Latgale came under the control of Russia in 1772 through the First Partition of Poland. While all of Latvia was now within the Russian Empire, Latvian territory was not governed as a single administrative unit. Latvia’s three regions fell within different Russian political jurisdictions. Vidzeme (Livonia) and Kurzeme (Courland) were ruled as separate provinces which were able to maintain certain of their former privileges when they came under Russian rule. Latgale, which was first included in the Pskov guberniya in 1772, did not receive these special considerations. In 1802 Latgale was placed in the Vitebsk province (guberniya). Vitebsk was former Polish territory in which the Polonized old German nobility (and the Polish nobility) were dominant while in the Baltic provinces German barons were in charge. Until 1889 the Baltic provinces had greater autonomy with considerable self-government and special privileges in local matters not granted to the rest of Russia. The Vitebsk province, on the other hand, was an integral part of the Russian empire. Economically, politically and intellectually Vitebsk lagged behind the Baltic regions. An additional factor retarding Latgale’s development was the continuation of serfdom there until 1861 (as in the rest of Russia) whereas it was ended in Kurzeme in 1817 and in Vidzeme in 1819. Latgalian peasants remained very poor and backward.

Latgale was also influenced by the Polish nobility and increasingly, in the nineteenth century by the russification policy of tsarist officials. And importantly, while serfdom was abolished in Livonia and Courland by 1818 it remained in place in Latgale until 1861. Even after liberation Latgalian peasants were still restricted by the Russian village system. Russification had been introduced in the 1830’s, however it intensified in the latter half of the century. The failed Polish Revolt of 1863 brought Russian recrimination against the Polish nobility, the Catholic church and Polish influences, a policy which also greatly harmed Latgalians. The Russian officials imported Russian peasants as colonists, promoted the Russian language and the Orthodox faith, discriminated against Catholics, and applied other measures which ultimately had only limited success.

The most significant measure was the ban on printing in Latgalian, that is a ban on Latin letters, introduced in 1865. The Baltic Latvian language of Vidzeme and Kurzeme, which used the German Gothic orthography was not banned. Latgalians had to resort to handwritten books and the smuggling of books printed in Prussia, Lithuania and elsewhere. The Latgalians were a repressed group in their own land. They could not own land, start their schools or serve in any official capacity. All public officials and schoolteachers were Russians or Lutheran Latvians from Baltija.

In spite of these foreign political and cultural pressures Latgale retained its basic Latvian identity, its language and other cultural features. Latvian traditions were kept alive by the Catholic faith, prayer books in Latgalian, and underground schools. Also important were the widely popular ancient folk songs that preserved the language, the culture and customs. In the late nineteenth century a Latgalian intelligentsia appeared, mainly in St. Petersburg. A center of activity was the St. Petersburg Catholic seminary. Prominent were Francis Trasuns, Nikodems Rancans, Francis Kemps, Kazimers Skrynda, and others. They led a cultural and national awakening that began in St. Petersburg and quickly penetrated Latgale. After the repeal of the printing ban in 1904 the first Latgalian newspapers and books appeared. Latgalian schools, economic cooperatives, theater groups and other organizations also were started. Latvian Catholic clergy, mostly Latgalians themselves, played a leading role in promoting this national development.

Latgale was the scene of considerable revolutionary activity in 1905. Social and economic unrest was evident in petitions to the tsar, strikes, the burning of estates, the illegal cutting of forests and other activity. Tsarist forces responded with punitive expeditions.

World War I bought great damage to Latgale. There was much fighting on Latgalian soil causing great physical devastation and forcing tens of thousands residents to flee as war refugees.

The overthrow of the tsar in the Russian Revolution in February 1917 created the opportunity for Latgale to leave the Russian Empire. On April 26 and 27, 1917 the First Latgalian Congress convened in Rezekne, adopting a resolution for the union of Latgale with the rest of Latvia (Vidzeme and Kurzeme) in an independent state on the basis of the guarantee of Latgalian cultural rights, including language. The congress created a Latgalian Provisional Land Council which participated in the work of the Latvian Provisional National Council for the purpose of creating an independent Latvian republic.

In 1919 Communists briefly took control of Latgale. They were Latvian Bolsheviks connected to Lenin and his faction which wanted to maintain control of Latvia. Latgale was freed of the Bolsheviks in January 1920. On February 1 an armistice was declared with Soviet Russia. A treaty with Russia was signed on August 11, 1920 recognizing Latvia’s independence but with the loss of some historic Latgalian territory to Russia.

The Catholic church remained the chief faith in Latgale and the old Livonian diocese was restored as the diocese of Riga for independent Latvia. In 1920 Antonijs Springovics, the first Latvian bishop of the diocese was consecrated as bishop at Aglona on August 22, 1920. Aglona became the seat of the bishop and the site of the Catholic seminary. Aglona was the recognized Catholic center of Latvia.

At the start of independence Latgale compared to the rest of Latvia was behind in its socio-economic development. The progressive land reform program of the Latvian government helped improve conditions by creating an independent land owning peasantry of modest means but Latgale still lagged behind the rest of Latvia.

At first Latgalians were able to use their language rights and cultural autonomy as guaranteed in the Rezekne Congress agreement to unite with Latvia but under the authoritarian Ulmanis regime after May 15, 1934 Latgalian rights were severely curtailed.