Rēzekne

Rēzekne lies in the river valley of the same name in Latgale, eastern Latvia. A Latgalian hill fort stood here before the Livonian Order built a stone fortress on the site in 1285. The stronghold guarded the order's eastern frontier and was repeatedly attacked by Russian and Lithuanian forces.

During the Livonian War, Russian forces occupied the town in 1567 and 1577; it returned to Polish rule under the 1582 Peace of Jam Zapolski. Swedish forces occupied it during the war of 1655–1660 and demolished the castle's ramparts. The first partition of Poland brought Rēzekne under Russian rule in 1772. It received city rights in 1773 and became a district centre known as Rezhitsa.