Every year on November 11, Lāčplēsis Day, candles are lit in memory of the victory of the Latvian army over Bermont's army in 1919, and in honor of all the freedom fighters of the country. It is customary to light candles on the stone wall of the Riga Castle on this day.
The State Joint Stock Company Valsts nekustamie īpašumi (VNĪ) has previously installed a special protective screen on the historic wall of the Riga Castle to avoid damaging the wall itself. VNĪ urges people to choose candles in glass holders, which will help protect the restored stone wall from the effects of the candles. The protective net for placing candles consists of 175 sections, measuring 184 meters in length and one meter in width. One section can hold 60 candles, totaling 10,500 candles along the entire length.
In the last two years, after the events for Lāčplēsis Day, around 200 kilograms of candle remnants have been collected annually at the wall of the Riga Castle, from which about 1,000 trench candles are made for the freedom fighters of Ukraine. This year, they will also be sent to candle-making workshops for recycling into trench candles and sent to Ukraine.
