From the late nineteenth to the late twentieth centuries, communism – used here as an umbrella term for revolutionary socialism, especially of the Marxist variety – was one of the dominant ideologies that shaped the political development of society in Latvia. Communism (like its antithesis, anti-communism) exerted an important influence at various times over different parts of society, whether it be in the mobilisation to mass action, or by attracting key elements with its visionary promises for solutions to society's problems. This paper will discuss the factors identified as contributing to communism's apparent long-term appeal to many Latvians (and hence also its perception as a threat, to be countered by anti-communism).
