Editing History of Latvia (section)

===Emancipation of peasantry===
[[File:Peasants-speading-hay-for-drying-by-Brotze.jpg|thumbnail|right|Latvian peasant couple working, 18–19th century]]

====Livonian peasant law, 1804====
After the October 1802 Kauguri rebellion, czarist authorities reacted with the law of February 20, 1804, which was aimed at improving peasant condition in the Livonian Governorate. Peasants no longer were tied to the land owner, but to the land, so they could be sold only together with the land. Peasants were divided in two classes – people of manors and plowmen. Plowmen were divided into farm-owners and free people. Farms from now on could be inherited within the family. Amount and length of socage now was regulated and limited. This law was opposed by the nobles, who in 1809 secured changes in the law which again gave them more power over peasants and socage.<ref name="Zemnieku brīvlaišana">{{Cite web |url=http://www.letonika.lv/groups/default.aspx?cid=31620 |title=Zemnieku brīvlaišana |access-date=April 2, 2016 |archive-date=October 21, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201021224026/https://www.letonika.lv/groups/default.aspx?cid=31620 |url-status=live }}</ref>

====Emancipation in Courland, 1819====
In 1816 Governorate of Estonia proposed a law for emancipation of serfs which was based on the model of the [[Prussian reforms]]. Czarist authorities ordered Courland Landtag to come up with a similar proposal, which was accepted on August 25, 1817, and proclaimed in Jelgava on August 30, 1818, in presence of Czar Alexander I. Emancipation came into force in 1819 and continued until 1832 as only a selected number of peasants was emancipated each year. Emancipation gave peasants personal freedom, but no land, which they had to lease from land-owners. Peasants were not completely free, as they still could not move to another governorate or city without land-lord's permit.

====Emancipation in Livonia, 1820====
After Emancipation in Estonia and Courland, the situation in Livonia was resolved by the law of March 26, 1819, which was very similar to the Emancipation law of Courland. It was proclaimed on early 1820 and was in force until 1832.

====Emancipation in Latgale, 1861====
As [[Latgale]] was part of the Russian Vitebsk Governorate, serfdom here lasted until 1861, when the [[Emancipation reform of 1861]] was proclaimed in the Russian Empire. Initially peasants kept their land, but had to continue performing socage and rent payments. This was ended by the new law of March 1, 1863.<ref name="Zemnieku brīvlaišana"/>