Tallinn

I

Introduction

Tallinn (German, Reval), capital city of Estonia, on the Bay of Tallinn (an inlet of the Gulf of Finland). The city consists of three sections: an upper town on a steep hill topped by a citadel (13th-14th century), a lower walled town built during medieval times (14th-16th century), and a newer, more modern district. Population 391,000 (2003 estimate).

II

Economy

Tallinn is a major Baltic port and naval station, and an important industrial centre. Industries here produce machinery, electrical equipment, ships, textiles, furniture, and canned fish. Tallinn is the home of the Estonian Academy of Sciences and a polytechnic college and has several theatres, a symphony orchestra, and an opera company. Over the past 20 years Tallinn has become a popular tourist destination, with visitors attracted by the historic city centre and relatively low prices.

III

Places of Interest

The Upper Town is dominated by a Russian Orthodox church, St Alexander Nevsky Cathedral (1894-1900), which sits in Castle Square. The cathedral is topped with five distinctive onion domes. Opposite is Toompea Loss (Toompea Castle), a baroque pink edifice that houses government buildings. The original structure was built in the Middle Ages and the 14th-century tower, Pikk Hermann, stands more than 45 m (150 ft) high. The Dome Church, Estonia’s major Lutheran church, also forms part of the Upper Town. The centre of the medieval Lower Town is Town Hall Square, a large marketplace bordered by restaurants and street cafes. The Gothic town hall is the oldest such extant building in northern Europe. The city walls are remarkable fortifications and encircle old Tallinn. There are 19 towers (originally they numbered more than 60) and 6 gates. Other sites include the Dominican Monastery; the House of the Brotherhood of Blackheads, a merchant society meeting-place; the Church of the Holy Ghost; the Great Guild Hall; and St Nicholas Orthodox Church. In 1997 the historic centre of Tallinn was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

IV

History

The first mention of a settlement on the site of Tallinn dates from 1154. After being taken by the Danes, Waldemar II of Denmark established a fortress at Tallinn in 1219. The name Tallinn comes from the Estonian Taani Linn, meaning “Danish Castle”. The town joined the Hanseatic League in 1285 and soon attained considerable commercial importance. Metalsmiths and artisans established, at the foot of this bluff, a small settlement that grew as the town prospered during medieval times. During the 14th and 15th centuries residents built churches, guild halls, and the Gothic town hall. Building continued into the 15th and 16th centuries, bestowing Tallinn with a legacy of medieval and Renaissance architecture.

In 1346 Tallinn was sold by Denmark to the Teutonic Knights. It was acquired by Sweden in 1561 and was annexed by Russia in 1710. During the 17th and 18th centuries war and disease took heavy human and economic tolls on Tallinn. In the 19th century the city finally reversed its economic decline when rail and industry were developed under Russian tutelage in the region. The city became a naval base for the Russian Baltic fleet during the 18th and 19th centuries. Tallinn was the capital of an independent Estonia from 1920 to 1940, when the republic was annexed by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). The city was occupied by German forces in 1941.

Retaken by the USSR in 1944, much of the city was destroyed in fierce fighting. Tallinn then served as the capital of the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic (SSR) and after World War II, the Soviet naval fleet used this port as its principal warm-water harbour. Under the rule of Moscow, the city saw centralized development in the oil, shale, and chemical industries. Soviet authorities relocated thousands of Russian workers here in the 1950s, and this influx continued for several more decades. The new residents were housed in government-built apartment blocks that created sprawling residential areas outside the city.

In 1991, Estonia broke away from the Soviet Union and again became an independent republic. The city’s historic trade ties to Scandinavia and western Europe have since helped Estonia lead the Baltic countries’ transition to market-driven economies.