THE ARCHITECTURE OF RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCHES DESIGNED BY ROBERT PFLUG IN LATVIA (Roberta Augusta Pfluga projekteto pareizticigo baznicu arhitektura Latvija)

Robert August Pflug (1832-1885) is an important figure in late 19th century Latvian architecture, especially concerning Riga. He had studied at St. Petersburg Technological Institute (1846-1850); from 1859 he studied architecture at the Imperial Academy of Art where he obtained the artist's degree in 1863. In 1862 together with the architect Janis Fridrihs Baumanis he won the first prize in the project competition of Vidzeme Knighthood House (present house of Parliament of the Republic of Latvia). Soon afterwards Pflug set out to Riga to participate in the realisation of the project. In 1870 he received the title of the Academician of Architecture from the Imperial Academy of Art for a substantial, neatly elaborated architectural project. Pflug worked as an instructor at the Riga Polytechnic Institute (1869-1875). He designed 12 buildings in the Riga Boulevard Circle, also private houses, storages and more than 10 Orthodox churches in the territory of Latvia. Construction of Pflug's Orthodox churches coincides with the period in the history of Latvia when Latvian peasants on a mass scale converted to Orthodox faith since the 1840s and the need for new buildings became especially evident in the 2nd half of the 19th century. Church construction went on in two periods - from 1871 to 1873 and from 1875 to 1878. Churches designed by Pflug were built is a very short period of time, still they create a group of different and interesting churches that typify the architect as a versatile specialist, attempting to diversify the architectonic solutions of buildings and enrich the Latvian architectural heritage with high-quality and attractive buildings of churches.