Women in the Latvian War of Independence 1918 – 1920 in historical memory: nurses’ example

The research deals with a subject that has not been investigated previously, but is a significant topic in the historical memory of Latvian culture – participation and importance of nurses in the War of Independence of Latvia. Many nurses worked in the military units and war medicine institutions of the Latvian Army. They fulfilled their professional responsibilities with selflessness and often died in the line of duty. Unfortunately nurses’ role in this military conflict is not clarified. The objective of this paper is to study the role of nurses during the War of Independence of 1918–1920 and the impact of the activity of nurses related to the military sphere on historical memory. Chronological confines include the period of time from November 18, 1918, when the democratic and independent state of Latvia was established, till August 11, 1920, when the Peace Treaty was signed between Latvia and Soviet Russia. To reach that purpose, we need to look at many aspects – study the change of women’s role at the beginning of the 20th century, especially under the circumstances of World War I; consider the significance of the War of Independence in the region and investigate the contribution of nurses in the War of Independence, what professional responsibilities they fulfilled and what were the difficulties they encountered and, finally, how their commitment has been preserved in historical memory.