Ulmanis

Ulmanis may refer to Kārlis Augusts Ulmanis (1877–1942), a Latvian politician who was the dominant figure in interwar Latvia. Ulmanis rose to power in 1934 when he led a self-coup that dissolved the Saeima and banned political parties, establishing an authoritarian regime that lasted until the Soviet occupation in 1940. In 1937 a new constitution formalized his authority and reshaped the state's institutions. His government promoted Latvian nationalism, language and culture, and pursued economic stabilization and modernization, while suppressing opposition, civil liberties, and press freedom.

With the Soviet Union's invasion of Latvia in 1940, Ulmanis was removed from power, deported to the Soviet Union, and died in captivity in 1942. His era is debated by historians: supporters credit it with restoring orderly government during a period of political instability, while critics view it as a dictatorship that curtailed democracy and civil rights. The interwar period under Ulmanis remains a central chapter in Latvia's national memory, especially in the context of the later Soviet and Nazi occupations of the Baltic region.