Courland is a historical region of western Latvia, with Liepaja serving as its capital. Named for the Baltic Curonians, Courland was converted to Christianity by the Livonian Brothers of the Sword in the first quarter of the 13th century, and the area later passed into the rule of the Teutonic Order in 1237 and to the Livonian Confederation from 1228 to the 1560s. In 1561, the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia was formed as a vassal of Poland-Lithuania, and Russia acquired great influence over the duchy during the 18th century. The duchy established short-lived outposts on the Caribbean islands of Tobago and Trinidad and at the mouth of the Gambia River in Africa, becoming one of Europe's smallest colonial powers. In 1795, Courland was annexed by the Russian Empire after Duke Peter von Biron ceded his duchy to Czarina Catherine the Great during Russia's partitioning of Poland. Under Russian rule, Courland became known as the "Courland Governorate", which existed until 1918. The German Empire formed a client state in Courland that existed from 3 March to 18 November 1918 during World War I, and Courland later joined newly-independent Latvia. On 17 June 1940, Latvia was annexed by the Soviet Union, and the country was occupied by Nazi Germany from 1941 to 1945 during World War II; in 1944-1945, the Germans' Army Group North was encircled by the Red Army in the "Courland Pocket". Courland became "Liepaja Oblast" in the Latvian SSR, and it became a part of an independent Latvia after 1990. In 2008, Courland had a population of 301,621 people.
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