the Order of the Polar Star. Nonetheless, Irbe encountered significant problems during his term as bishop notably the mutual intolerance and oppression of the German and Latvian Lutherans, the loss of the Church of St. James and issues with Riga Cathedral. Irbe actively, but unsuccessfully, opposed the return of the Church of St James to the Latvian Roman Catholic Church and the transfer of the Dome Church to the Latvian church from the German-speaking Lutherans. On 10 November 1931 Bishop Irbe convened an extraordinary synod in which he announced his resignation, the reason being that the government passed laws which interfered with church autonomy. He spent the last years actively working on the development of the youth industry. He died on 23 March 1934 at his desk in Riga. He was buried in Riga Forest Cemetery. References 1861 births 1934 deaths People from Saldus Municipality People from Courland Governorate Latvian Lutheran bishops 20th-century Lutheran archbishops Recipients of the Order of the Three Stars Burials at Forest Cemetery, Riga