80th Anniversary of the first mass deportations of Estonians

On the 14th of June 1941, Estonia experienced one of the darkest days in its history. During the early hours of the morning, innocent people were forcibly removed from their homes, packed into cattle trains and deported to remotes parts of Siberia.  Over 10,000 Estonians were taken - men, women, children, the elderly, babies, no-one was spared if their names appeared on the list. Most of these people perished, some in transit, some from hunger but many from being subjected to harsh conditions in rural Russia. This horrific event not only took place in Estonia, the occupying Soviet forces orchestrated this evil act in Latvia and Lithuania too. Ultimately over 100,000 people had their lives robbed from them in this manner.

We must never forget these crimes committed by the Soviet Union. Nearly every Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian family lost at least one person to the deportations and today we remember and honour them.

Estonia – making the impossible possible

Mini documentary about Estonia's event industry during the COVID-19 crisis. 

Estonia triumphs at the Baltic Cup

It's been a long 83 year wait for football fans in Estonia but last night Estonia finally achieved victory when they beat Lativa 2:1 to win the Baltic Cup. The event took place at the A. Le Coq Arena in Tallinn and Estonian supporters were ecstatic when the final whistle blew. Estonia has not won the Baltic Cup since 1938.

2021 Baltic Cup winners.

Estonia's team from 1938.

The men's national football team is on a hot streak at the moment, they have won three consecutive games for the first time since 2017. Excellent!

Tallinn's Oldest Museum: House of Peter the Great

The House of Peter the Great is the oldest museum in Tallinn, it was opened in 1806 on the orders of Russian Emperor Alexander I. Tsar Peter I of Russia acquired the 17th-century building in 1714 and used it as his residence during his visits to Tallinn. Both Peter The Great and his wife Catherine I stayed in this house and the Tzar particularly liked the view of the sea and the harbour from Lasnamägi Hill.  In 1718 Peter I acquired the surrounding land and built Kadriorg Palace in honour of his wife. 

Address: Mäekalda tn 2, Tallinn

The House of Peter the Great has a unique collection of paintings,

 including an original portrait of Michael I.

After the construction of Kadriorg Palace this building became

known as the "old palace".

It's well worth the visit!

More information can be found here: House of Peter the Great

Happy National Flag Day! Head Eesti lipu päeva!

Today we celebrate the 137th anniversary of the Estonian flag. The beloved blue, black and white (sinimustvalge) flag of Estonia was first created by a university students' society before being adopted as the national flag of Estonia in 1918. It is dear to us all!

It's the most beautiful flag in the world!

Estonian names for other European countries

We are all aware that different countries are known by different names throughout the world. English speakers often refer to Deutschland as Germany and Polska as Poland. But what do Estonians call other European countries? This map will show you. It is interesting to note that Great Britain is sometimes called Ühendkuningriik - 'ühend' means 'united' and 'kuningriik' (kingdom) comes from the words 'kuningas' (king) and 'riik' (state). 

A look at Estonian Bogs (raba)

All Estonians are familiar with bogs and the environmental benefits associated with them. Estonia is rich in peatlands, it is the oldest organic landscape that started to emerge some 10,000 years ago, right after the last ice age. Bogs cover 6-7% of Estonia's territory and the government have projects underway to preserve them. This video by Artur Rehi explains many things about bogs and Estonia's fondness for them.

More informationm about bogs can be found here.