When the privileged descendants of the medieval Livonian Knights who colonised present-day Latvia built this imposing Renaissance-style building as their so-called Landtag in 1867, they probably didn’t have the slightest inkling that it would later serve as the parliament of an independent Latvian state. Although a devastating fire and modifications by occupying powers have left their marks on the structure, its impressive eclectic interiors and marble stairs still survive, but the sculpture of Wolter von Plettenberg (1450 - 1535), one of the most memorable masters of the Livonian Order, was replaced by a depiction of Latvia’s own epic hero Lāčplēšis, the Bearslayer.