Soviet troops were still in Latvia when, on 23 August 1991, the Supreme Council adopted the law “On the National Guard of the Republic of Latvia.” This was not a ceremonial document: the National Guard was conceived as a voluntary public self-defence formation, with battalions in every district of the country. Already on 24 August, Anatolijs Gorbunovs issued the first order to begin registering National Guard candidates in municipalities—so state defence quite literally moved from the parliamentary chamber onto local government desks.

The law came only two days after the constitutional law by which Latvia declared full state independence. The beginning of the National Guard shows how quickly, in August 1991, a political declaration turned into the practical building of state institutions.