Located on the banks of the Daugava, Riga Castle is the official residence for the President of Latvia. The foundation stone for the castle was laid in the early fourteenth century, but it has been destroyed several times in the fighting that has dominated the history of Latvia. The castle was built as the result of a treaty between the Livonian Order and the native Rigans, who had burned down the Order’s previous castle during an uprising. As part of their truce, a new castle was built beyond the borders of the town of Riga, in an effort to keep the peace. This did not work, and the two sides went back to fighting almost immediately – the Livonians eventually moved their headquarters to the Castle of Cesis, more than eighty five kilometres away. Most recently, about ten years ago, a fire gutted the castle, with the Red Hall being almost completely destroyed. Luckily, none of the castle’s important artworks or other collections were lost, and it was completely renovated and repaired. The castle is the subject of a famous Latvian legend, too. Around 450 years ago, the Russian Empire under Tsar Ivan the Terrible invaded Livonia, comprising much of the modern-day Baltic states, including Riga. A few years later, the Livonian King Stephen Bathory laid siege to the Russian town of Polotsk, eventually forcing the Russians to negotiate a truce, and relinquish their conquered lands. At the same time as this was happening, a black raven in Riga Castle was chased and hounded by a white stork, which wanted to make its nest in the same location. The raven eventually gave up and flew away, with many Rigans declaring it was a symbol of King Stephen chasing out the invaders. After taking in the sight of the castle let’s head back to explore more of the old town. Follow the map to get to our next stop.