George Armitstead was an Englishman who became the Mayor of Riga at the turn of the twentieth century. As the Mayor between 1901 and 1912, George Armitstead entered our history as one of the greatest leaders Riga had ever known. Riga became a major modern city during his tenure as Mayor. The State Museum of Art, the National Theatre, and sixteen schools were built when he was at the helm of the city - several beautiful parks came into being, and the electric tramway first began to operate. The Riga Zoo was opened and many other. Riga was transformed into one of the most important cities in Northern Europe under his administration. Riga is once again the most dynamic city in this region - a cultural and financial centre worthy of Mayor Armitstead's legacy.
We are writing this research work because we wanted to gather more information about Mayor Armitstead’s life and his achievements. Today there are not many people who can tell anything about him and most of the young generation haven’t even heard about him. Since his monument was unveiled, people are more interested in him. This year his 160th birthday anniversary was organized in Jaunmoku castle. In this research work we would like to give people more information about him, his life, his work and achievements. And also it will reveal many facts information about the city of Riga and its development in the time between 1901 and 1912. Unfortunately many of his works were damaged or disregarded because of the World War I. …
