Soviet Occupation of Latvia: KGB Museum

Corner House

The Corner House, or KGB Building in Riga attracts tourists with its dark but rich history. It’s hard to believe that such an exquisite building was a prison for decades, torturing and killing people for their thoughts during the Soviet occupation of Latvia. I’ve been to this museum four times and it left a lasting impression.

A Beautiful Building with a Terrible History

The building on Brivibas Street was built in 1912 under the project of architect Alexander Vanagas, who chose to decorate it in Art Nouveau style with arches and columns. In 1940, with the beginning of the Soviet occupation, the KGB settled here. Rumours quickly spread around the city that the secret service officers could pick up a person literally from the street and send them for interrogation. During the Soviet occupation of Latvia, activists of the Latvian liberation movement and anyone suspected of opposing Soviet power were brought here. As a result, an estimated 45,000 political prisoners passed through the Corner House at some point during their imprisonment. 

Inside a Soviet Prison

On the ground floor in the general hall, a guide meets organized tour groups. From here the real journey into history begins. The tour guide started by showing us a special lift with two entrances, so that the political prisoners could not see the KGB officers. It looked like a vertical coffin. Next, we entered the registration room, where information about new prisoners was recorded. All the chairs and tables have been preserved from the Soviet era and are branded with the KGB mark. Later we entered the interrogation room, or to put it simply – the torture room, with a double-sided mirror. After this, the guide directed us into special holding cells (1x1m), with no light, windows, or toilet. Political prisoners could be left there without food and water for up to a few days. The tour continued down into the basement, where there were more cells, the prison kitchen, and the courtyard. The final room of the tour was the execution room. Here, there were many bullet holes in the wall, and a hole in the floor for draining blood.

Up to the Present Day

After the liberation of Latvia, the Latvian state police used the house from 1991 to 2008. However, because of the building’s historical significance, it now houses a branch of the Museum of the Occupation of Latvia. When you start learning Russian, you talk about food and culture – the positives. But this is also part of the story, which is worth learning to better understand Latvians and their country.

Izzy, currently studying Russian at Liden and Denz Riga