he reign of National Romanticism in Art nouveau architecture of Riga was brief (1905-1911), but productive. Fuelled by half-a-century long process of national awakening, aspirations of Latvian developers and architects (E. Laube, A. Vanags and J. Alksnis being the most productive among them) created a new face for the city. Romanticizing early medieval history of Latvia, the style got inspiration both from local vernacular architecture and general Nordic, especially Finnish, trends. Rapidly developing poetry, literature, arts and stage design provided a general background for the castle-shaped apartment buildings in angular forms displaying creative composition of volumes and creative interpretation of folk ornaments. Buildings located on street corners were the most impressive examples often anticipating the principles later used in Modern Movement and Art Deco architecture. Romantic attitude towards nations past came back in various artistic forms during the 20th century, but never gained such an apprehension in architecture like on the very dawn of the century.