The Powder Tower is the round brick tower on Smilšu iela at the north-eastern edge of Riga's Old Town, beside the Bastion Hill park. It is one of the last pieces of the city's medieval fortifications, which once had more than 20 towers and gates. Look closely at its walls: nine cannonballs are still lodged in the brickwork.
The Powder Tower at a glance
- Where: Smilšu iela 20, at the edge of the Old Town next to Bastejkalns (Bastion Hill), about five minutes' walk from the Freedom Monument.
- Built: first recorded around 1330 as the Sand Tower; destroyed in 1621 and rebuilt around 1650, which is the tower you see today.
- What it is today: part of the Latvian War Museum, whose exhibitions fill the tower and the adjoining red-brick wing.
- Time needed: 10 minutes for the outside; 1–2 hours if you visit the museum.
From Sand Tower to War Museum
The tower first appears in records around 1330 as the Sand Tower (Smilšu tornis), named after the sandy ground and the road that led into the city here, still called Smilšu iela, Sand Street. It guarded one of the main entrances on the landward side of medieval Riga. In 1621 Swedish troops besieging the city destroyed it, leaving only the foundations. It was rebuilt around 1650 with walls about 3 metres thick, and because gunpowder was now stored inside, it became known as the Powder Tower. The rebuilt tower is 25.6 metres high and 14.3 metres across, and it held 11 cannons.
In the 19th century the city walls were pulled down to make room for the boulevards and the canal park, but the Powder Tower was kept. In 1919, soon after Latvia declared independence, a museum of the Latvian Riflemen moved in; it became the Latvian War Museum, and a red-brick annex was added beside the tower before the Second World War. After the Soviet occupation in 1940 the museum was closed and the building was used for other purposes. Following the restoration of independence in the early 1990s, the Latvian War Museum returned.
What to look for
- The cannonballs: nine of them are set into the outer walls. Walk around the tower and look up to find them.
- The proportions: a squat round tower almost as wide as it is tall, built to absorb artillery fire rather than to look elegant.
- The narrow slit openings and the conical roof, a reminder that this was a gun tower, not a watchtower.
- The red-brick museum wing joined to the tower, a 20th-century addition that tries to fit in with the medieval brickwork.
- Inside, if you visit the museum: chronological exhibitions that run from medieval warriors through the Latvian War of Independence of 1918–1920 and the Second World War to the Soviet occupation and the restoration of independence in 1991.
Two stories about the cannonballs
The cannonballs are Russian, and Riga's guides tell their story in two ways. The first is that they hit the tower during Russian sieges of Riga, such as the one in 1709–1710 that ended Swedish rule over the city, and stayed stuck in the thick walls. The second is that the balls barely dented the walls and builders later set them into the brickwork as a kind of trophy. There is no record that settles the question, so enjoy both versions.
Tips for your visit
- The outside is free to see at any time. Come in the morning, when Smilšu iela is quiet, to look for the cannonballs without crowds.
- For a photo of the whole tower, step back towards the Bastion Hill park; from the narrow street you only see part of it.
- Combine it with a short walk along Torņa iela to the Swedish Gate. Together they show what is left of Riga's walls.
Nearby
- Swedish Gate (Zviedru vārti): the only surviving gate of Riga's old city wall, built in 1698 through the ground floor of a house, a few minutes' walk away.
- Jacob's Barracks (Jēkaba kazarmas): the long row of 18th-century barracks on Torņa iela, now shops and cafés, facing a reconstructed stretch of the city wall.
- Freedom Monument: Latvia's national memorial with the copper figure of Milda holding three stars, about five minutes' walk across the canal park.
- The Three Brothers (Trīs brāļi): three medieval and later merchants' houses side by side on Mazā Pils iela, the oldest group of residential houses in Riga.
See Riga with World City Trail
Our Riga scavenger hunt turns the old town into a game you play on your phone. The route links 10 stops and takes around 3 hours, with about 40 minutes of walking. It includes places such as the Freedom Monument, the Laima Clock and the Latvian National Museum of Art.
If you prefer a different format, there is also a self-guided walking tour and an outdoor escape game in Riga.
Play the Riga scavenger hunt →
Take the self-guided walking tour of Riga →
Play the outdoor escape game in Riga →
Facts checked in October 2026.