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of Latvia on 7 November 1922 Čakste was elected unopposed as the first
President of the Republic of Latvia, with 92 Saeima members voting for his candidacy and 6 against – the highest number of votes ever given to a candidate in a Latvian presidential election. As President, Čakste's responsibilities
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were largely ceremonial, even though he continued to pay close attention to foreign affairs, especially to the international position of Latvia as a young
European state in the world. During his tenure, he promulgated 402 laws, sent three laws back to the Saeima for review, and
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In the autumn of 1917 Čakste worked in the foreign department of the
Provisional Latvian National Council, where he prepared addresses to foreign governments protesting against the German occupation of Baltic territories. On 17 November 1918 at the first session of the Latvian
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states. On 13 July 1919 he returned to Latvia and assumed his duties as the
Chairman of the Tautas Padome (the National Assembly). While undertaking his responsibilities as a statesman, Čakste continued teaching at the law school of the newly founded
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and, from 1888, as a doctor in
Jelgava. In 1889 he became the editor of the newspaper "Tēvija", which became one of the most widely read Latvian-language newspapers in Courland. In 1895 he became one of the chief organisers of the 4th
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Affairs and in 1917 became its chairman. In 1915 Čakste organised a demonstration to honour Major
General Aleksey Potapov, the commanding officer of the defence of Jelgava, who later became one of the advocates of the formation of the
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He was married to Justīne Čakste, born Vesere, and they had nine children. His son, Junior
Lieutenant Visvaldis Čakste, died from wounds received in the defence of
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332:(14 September 1859 – 14 March 1927) was a Latvian politician and lawyer who served as the first head of an independent Latvian state as the Chairman of the
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549 people. He caused some controversy in 1926 when he pardoned a prominent writer and a former head of the rival pro-German
Latvian
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district, the son of a farmer. He received his primary education at St Anne's
Primary School, and entered the
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682:(1901–1945), a lawyer like his father, became one of the leaders of the Latvian national resistance during
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After graduating from St. Petersburg State
University, he worked at the legal department of the
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on 14 March 1927 before the expiration of his second three-year term, and was buried at the
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in Jelgava, and partly financed the event out of his own pocket. In the course of the
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and actively participated in the activities of the local Latvian community along with
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with the news of the Russian Revolution. In Stockholm he published a pamphlet
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For the presidential elections of 1925, Čakste's name was proposed by his
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Prezidenti : Latvijas valsts un ministru prezidenti (1918–1940)
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Latvian national government. Konstantīns Čakste was arrested by the
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Establishment of Latvian Riflemen Battalions in the Summer of 1915
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party, while Rainis was put forward by the Social Democrats and
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in Riga. He is the only President of Latvia to die in office.
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Jānis Čakste: The First President of Latvia, 1922–1927
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where he co-founded the Central Committee for Latvian
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Members of the 1st State Duma of the Russian Empire
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Memorial Album, Biographical Sketch and Photographs
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463:he collaborated on a project for creating Latvian
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516:Die Letten und ihre Latvia: Eine lettische Stimme
996:Russian Constitutional Democratic Party members
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558:First head of state of an independent Latvia
169:Acting: 17 December 1918 – 14 November 1922
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1021:Members of the People's Council of Latvia
573:during Relander's 1926 official visit to
438:Learn how and when to remove this message
166:17 December 1918 – 14 March 1927
109:Learn how and when to remove this message
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1006:Democratic Centre (Latvia) politicians
827:Newspaper clippings about Jānis Čakste
774:. Trīs Zvaigznes, Stockholm. 1950–1951
588:After the first free elections to the
16:President of Latvia from 1918 to 1927
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698:and died in a forced march from
537:In 1919 Čakste travelled to the
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336:(1918–1920), the Speaker of the
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407:needs additional citations for
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388:Career and entry into politics
340:(1920–1922), and as the first
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486:where he joined the liberal
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688:Latvian Central Council
571:Lauri Kristian Relander
352:Čakste was born in the
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272:14 March 1927 (aged 67)
1041:Latvian legal scholars
789:accessed 29 March 2009
772:Latvijas Encyclopēdija
678:in 1915. Another son,
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637:Latvian Farmers' Union
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568:President of Finland
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478:Jānis Čakste in 1906
452:Courland Governorate
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262:Jelgava Municipality
253:Courland Governorate
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582:Eemil Nestor Setälä
382:Fricis Brīvzemnieks
378:Krišjānis Valdemārs
342:President of Latvia
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981:1927 deaths
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692:underground
566:Čakste and
528:in absentia
467:within the
306:(1922–1927)
298:(1917–1919)
970:Categories
916:G. Ulmanis
905:K. Ulmanis
706:References
374:"Austrums"
354:Lielsesava
69:newspapers
946:Rinkēvičs
635:– by the
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312:Signature
264:, Latvia)
162:In office
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725:(2004).
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552:Dr. jur.
277:, Latvia
228:(Acting)
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894:Zemgals
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660:Riga
455:All-
380:and
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269:Died
243:Born
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