As they say, there is no thin without good. It is precisely for its long-suffering history that Estonia owes such a great cultural and architectural heritage. A small state with a very good location has always been a "tasty morsel" for insidious and greedy neighbors. At different times, Estonian Estonians, Germans, Crusaders, Danes, merchants of the Hanseatic League, Knights of the Livonian Order and the Russian Empire established power on Estonian lands. That is why the medieval castles of Estonia are represented in such a rich variety.
Great castles and high fortresses were built here by knights and bishops, in order to strengthen their dominant position in the country and defend themselves against other invaders to power. Along with the defensive-military installations on the map of Estonia, new castles were built, built by rich landlords and merchants. Everyone wanted to become the owner of the most beautiful palace, the design and decoration of the estate attracted foreign architects and famous decorators. Thanks to the greed and vanity of the medieval rich people, we now have the opportunity to admire the extraordinary beauty of ancient palaces.
Today in Estonia there are about 60 medieval castles, as well as more than 1000 manors and manors (suburban noble houses built in the XIX century, which are often stylized as knight castles). Agree, quite a lot for a small country of an area of only 45 thousand km².
Castle castles of Estonia
Fortresses erected by the Knights of the Livonian Order, on the territory of Estonia most. They differ in size, architecture, design features and degree of safety.
We offer you a selection of the most famous surviving knight castles:
- Viljandi Castle - once the largest and most powerful fortress of the Order, was destroyed during the Polish-Swedish War and today is represented only in the form of ancient ruins;
- Herman Castle (Narva) is the first stone structure of this kind, built in the beginning of the 14th century, after numerous damages the castle was restored, now there is an active museum, craft workshops in its territory, demonstrations, exhibitions, festivals and concerts are often held here ;
- Castle Karksi - another Livonian fortress, "not lived" to our times, near the small town of Karksi-Nui only the ruins of the once famous knight forburg remained;
- Castle Paide - was restored in 1993, on the tower-dungeon there is an observation deck, inside the fortress there is a museum and a cafe for tourists;
- Põltsamaa Castle is one of the most beautiful medieval castles in Estonia, partially restored, there are artisan workshops, art galleries, cafes, shops, several museums (press, national food) in the territory, and there are wine cellars where tastings are held for everyone ;
- Rakvere Castle is one of the most attractive for tourists (there is an unusual interactive museum where you can visit the torture chamber, medieval armory room, chapel, wine cellars, knights' refectory, smithy and a peculiar shooting range for archery);
- Tools Castle - the "youngest" of all the Order Fortresses, built at the end of the Livonian rule on the high bank, was intended to repel pirate attacks, it was not subject to restoration after the destruction;
- The Toompea Castle is Estonia 's most famous and representative castle, located in the center of Tallinn , where the parliament of the Republic of Estonia sits. Of the 26 towers of the fortress, 18 are preserved (many of them are open to visitors, there are exhibition halls, cafes, souvenir shops inside).
Orden castles of Estonia on the map are marked with black circles. Given the high degree of influence of the knightly order in medieval times, it is not surprising that the Livonian fortresses are scattered almost throughout Estonia.
Episcopal Castles
If you look at the photos of Estonia's castles that belonged to the Ezel-Wicks and Dorpatian bishoprics, there are significant differences in architecture compared to the Order Fortresses. All of them at one time were residences of the supreme bishops, therefore, during construction, attention was paid not so much to defensive and military elements, as to the arrangement of living quarters and the beautiful decoration of facades. Although some of the castles of the bishops were of great strategic importance, especially if they were placed near the borders with enemy lands.
The most famous episcopal castles of Estonia:
- Vastseliyna Castle (Neuhausen) - after the Derbent bishop left his domain, the castle "passed from hand to hand" to Rusys, Swedes and Poles several times, the building was not reconstructed, it is now almost completely destroyed;
- Castle Colouvere - perfectly preserved, thanks to the fact that in it until the twentieth century lived noble families (the last owner of the estate - Russian Count Fedor Fedorovich Buksgewden);
- Porkuni Castle - entrance to the tower is forbidden, the medieval structure can only be viewed from the outside;
- Kuressaare Castle - another episcopal residence, well preserved until our times, the Saaremaa Museum works on the territory;
- Haapsalu Castle is one of the most visited by tourists, with it is connected the legend of the mysterious White Lady, on the territory of the castle there is a beautiful cathedral, a children's playground in medieval style, shooting range for archery competitions and craft workshops, you can visit interesting exhibition halls or rent audio guide programmed in six languages.
Episcopal castles of Estonia on the map are marked with white circles. All of them are located in the eastern and western parts of the country.
Castles of the Nobles
The preserved estates of noble nobles amaze with their greatness and variety of architectural styles. Looking at the photo of castles-estates of Estonia, you can call these constructions real palaces. Many of them were built in the likeness of famous world sights (Windsor Palace, Bran Castle).
The most outstanding castles of the nobility of Estonia:
- the castle of Maarjamägi - the estate of Count Orlov-Davydov, in this manor the screen version of the famous detective story "The Hound of the Baskervilles" was shot, today one of the branches of the Estonian Historical Museum is located in the building;
- Sangaste Castle - the initial project involved 99 rooms inside the palace (more than 100 were allowed only to the kings), a beautiful red brick building is surrounded by a park in aristocratic English style with emerald lawns, picturesque alleys and ponds, there is a museum on the territory of the complex;
- the castle of Taagepera - after the right to own this estate was lost by the nobles during the land reform, the sanatorium operated for a long time in the building, in the 21st century a hotel and restaurant was opened here, recently the Taagepera palace is one of the most popular places for a solemn marriage in Estonia;
- Alatskivi Castle is built in the Gothic style, special asymmetry is attached to the building (one wing is bigger than the other, there are single-storey and two-storey segments inside one building), the castle is surrounded by a huge park, inside there is a restaurant, a hotel, several conference halls, the Eduard Tubin Museum and an exposition wax figures of the former owners of the estate.
Estonian noble castles on the map are marked with triangles. Most of them are concentrated in the north-eastern part of the country.