JELGAVA

German (formerly) Mitau, Russian (formerly) Mitava, city, Latvia, on the Lielupe River southwest of Riga. In 1226 the Brothers of the Sword built there the castle of Mitau; town status was conferred on the settlement in 1376. In 1561, when the Brothers of the Sword were dissolved, it became the capital of the dukes of Courland, and in 1795 it passed to Russia in the Third Partition of Poland. The city suffered severe damage in fighting in both 1919 and 1944. Modern Jelgava is an important railway junction and industrial city, manufacturing agricultural and other machinery, locks, and linen and processing sugar, vegetables, and other foodstuffs. Pop. (1991 est.) 74,500.