TOOMPEA CASTLE (TOOMPEA LOSS)

A symbol of power in Estonia, this castle has evolved many times since its creation around the 13th century, first welcoming Danish power from 1219 to 1227. Every empire that dominated the country used this castle as a base! In 1227, it was the order of the knights Porte-Glaive, which later became the Livonian order. Their goal: to Christianize the then pagan Baltic countries. In 1238, the Danes returned to the castle for almost a century. Then the castle passed successively into the hands of the Livonian order, the Swedes and then the Russians. In 1767-1773, on the foundations of the wall, a late Baroque castle was built, where the services of the Russian territorial administration were installed until 1918, when Estonia became an independent country for the first time.

The Upper Town Castle now houses the Estonian Parliament, and the Estonian flag flies at the top of the tower, the Long Hermann, the highest of the corner towers. Behind this tower are the hill and the statue of Linda, widow of the hero Kalev, to whom Toompea owed his existence, if legend is to be believed. The Neitsitorn tower, transformed into a bar, was in the Middle Ages a prison for prostitutes. In 1959, in front of the entrance to the castle, a bust of Johanne Lauristin, a great national writer, was installed.
Be careful, however, if you use the name of castle, it is not really a castle. Its pink facade evokes a baroque palace.