Manors of Estonia

Introduction

The first manors in Estonia were established in the 13th century, after the Livonian Crusade, during which the area was conquered by Germans and Danes. In order to administer the acquired territories the rulers, following the principles of feudalism, granted the lands to their vassals, who were mostly of German origin. Other manors were established by the rulers themselves as well as by monasteries and convents for the management of their business activities. These first manors were mostly wooden. A minority were made of stone (i.e., fortified manors). The latter were a novelty in the Baltics, as the lime burning skills had only arrived here together with the Crusaders.

Over the subsequent centuries the number of manors increased gradually. Many suffered great damage or were destroyed during the Livonian War (1558-1583) and the Great Northern War (1700-1721). The latter war ended the century-long Swedish rule in Estonia and the region was ceded to the Russian Empire. The Russian rule marked the heyday of the manors. The Treaty of Nystad (1721) preserved the rights and privileges of the Baltic nobility, and their self-government was later even strengthened. Many Baltic noble families rose to be a part of the ruling elite of the country. In the 1760s the mass construction of manor complexes began, which lasted until the First World War. At that time the Baltic region was the most developed in the Russian Empire.

The manors were large estates with multiple buildings. The most important of these was the residence of the landlord. These were, in general, simple one-storey wooden structures until the mid-18th century, when they were replaced by more palace-like buildings. They represent all the architectural styles that were in vogue in Europe from the 17th to early 20th centuries: Baroque, Neoclassicism, all the versions of Historicism, and Art Nouveau. In front of the landlord’s residence was usually a circular driveway, or the ‘circle of honour’, which allowed the access of horse-drawn carriages.

The manors were essentially large economic units which, until the 19th century, specialized mostly on agricultural production. The buildings which guaranteed the functioning of the manor as an enterprise were usually located near the landlord’s residence, usually in front of it. The most important of these – the granary and the stable and carriage house – were often on the sides of the circle of honour. Nearby were the other structures: the steward’s house, the servants’ house, cattle sheds, smithy, kiln house, etc.

On the back of the main building was usually a garden or a park. In the 18th century French formal gardens were prevalent, while in the 19th century English landscape parks became more popular. There was almost always a pond, a lake or a river in the manor park (often artificially modified), together with bridges and pavilions.

The manor complex was bordered by a fence, with a gate across the entrance of the main building on the opposite side of the circle of honour. A tree-lined avenue usually led here through the surrounding countryside and is even today the first indicator of the location of the manor when one approaches it by car. To the manor also belonged the cemetery of the landlords.

There were 1026 knight manors in Estonia, as counted in around 1910. If one includes all the other types of manors, the total number is around 2000.

The manors were the centre of Baltic German identity and culture for many centuries. Things started to change in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, along with the rise of Estonian nationalism. Tensions between the Estonian peasantry and the Baltic German elite increased, culminating with the Revolution of 1905, during which angry mobs set on fire over a hundred manors. In 1919 the young Republic of Estonia carried out a radical land reform, which meant the expropriation of the Baltic German lands and their division into small peasant holdings. Only a few landowners were allowed to keep their residence and its immediate surroundings. Many Baltic Germans left the country, either after 1919 or during the Umsiedlung in 1939-1940.

During the first Republic of Estonia and the Soviet occupation after World War II many manors were in public use (schools, culture centres, nursing homes, etc). New settlements came into being and cultural life developed around them. Often the buildings were severely altered. Many were just left in a state of disrepair.

Today a number of manors have been renovated and operate as museums, hotels, or restaurants. A bigger number is still left in (sometimes very picturesque) ruins. Some are used as private residences, while others still have the same public function as they were assigned after 1919. A vast majority of them are protected under the Heritage Conservation Act.

In the creation of these portfolios I consulted, among other online sources, the Estonian Manors portal. Of great help, too, was the monograph about the Estonian manor architecture from Historicism to Art Nouveau by Ants Hein (Eesti mõisaarhitektuur: historitsismist juugendini, Tallinn: Hattorpe, 2003).

Sites

Below I will introduce 76 manors from different parts of Estonia. I aim to give an overview of the development of manor architecture from the 13th to the early 20th century. This includes the main buildings as well as the auxiliary structures of the manors. Most of them were owned by Baltic German noble families, although there are some exceptions to this.

Koluvere Castle (Lode) | Lääne-Nigula | 13th-16th centuries
Vao Castle (Wack) | Väike-Maarja | late 14th or 15th century
Kiiu Tower (Kida, Kyda) | Kuusalu | c. 1520
Purtse Castle (Alt-Isenhof) | Lüganuse | 1530s
Maardu (Maart) | Jõelähtme | Jacob Staël von Holstein, 1660s; 18th & 19th centuries
Albu (Alp) | Järva | late 17th or first half of 18th century
Loodi (Kersel) | Viljandi | mid-18th century
Võisiku (Woiseck) | Põltsamaa | 1750s-1760s
Ingliste (Haehl) | Kehtna | c. 1760
Riidaja (Morsel-Podrigel) | Tõrva | 1762
Sargvere (Sarkfer) | Paide | 1762
Õisu (Euseküll) | Mulgi | 1760-1767; portico – 19th century
Maidla (Wrangelstein) | Lüganuse | Johann Paul Dürschmidt, 1764-1767
Ohtu (Ocht) | Lääne-Harju | Johann Schultz, 1769
Kabala (Kabbal) | Türi | 1774
Seidla (Seydell) | Järva | 1760s-1780s
Palmse (Palms) | Haljala | Jakob Staël von Holstein, 1697; Johann Caspar Mohr, 1782-1785
Roosna-Alliku (Kaltenbrunn) | Paide | Johann Schultz, 1780-1786
Saue (Friedrichshof) | Saue | Johann Schultz, 1786
Holstre (Holstfershof) | Viljandi | 1780s
Aa (Haakhof) | Lüganuse | 1696-1698; late 1780s; late 19th century
Kiltsi (Aß) | Väike-Maarja | 1292; 14th or 15th century; 1790
Koigi (Koik) | Järva | 1771/1792
Sagadi (Saggad) | Haljala | 1749-1750; 1793-1795
Varangu (Warrang) | Väike-Maarja | Johann Heinrich Bartholomäus Walter, 1795
Liigvalla (Löwenwolde) | Väike-Maarja | Johann Heinrich Bartholomäus Walther, 1797
Väätsa (Waetz) | Türi | Johann Heinrich Bartholomäus Walther (?), 1796-1800
Vasta (Waschel) | Viru-Nigula | c. 1800
Udriku (Uddrich) | Kadrina | 1796-1803
Kirna (Kirna) | Türi | late 1760s or early 1770s; after 1804 and before 1816 (?)
Kolga (Kolk, Kolck) | Kuusalu | 1642; 1765-1768; 1820
Aruküla (Arroküll) | Järva | 1782-1789; mid-1820s
Keila-Joa (Fall) | Lääne-Harju | Andrei Stackenschneider, 1831-1833
Kuremaa (Jensel) | Jõgeva | Emil Julius Strauss, 1836-1843
Karlova (Karlowa) | Tartu | late 18th century; 1805-1810; c. 1830; 1844
Vana-Võidu (Alt-Woidoma) | Viljandi | 1840s
Ropka (Ropkoy) | Tartu | second half of 18th century & mid-19th century
Oti (Peudehof) | Saaremaa | 18th century; 1850
Hellenurme (Hellenorm) | Elva | last quarter of 18th century; second half of 19th century
Jootme (Jotma) | Tapa | 1859
Heimtali (Heimthal) | Viljandi | late 1850s
Padise (Padis) | Lääne-Harju | 1770s; 1860
Lasila (Lassila) | Rakvere | 1862
Saka (Sackhof) | Toila | 1862-1864
Pärsti (Perst) | Viljandi | 1871-1872
Porkuni (Borkholm) | Tamsalu | 1870-1874
Arkna (Arknal) | Rakvere | 1877-1879
Kukulinna (Kuckulin) | Tartu | 18th century or first half of 19th century; 1870s
Kohala (Tolks) | Rakvere | Friedrich Modi, early 1880s
Puurmani (Talkhof) | Põltsamaa | Friedrich Hübbe, 1877-1881
Imastu (Mönnikorb) | Tapa | Friedrich Modi, 1882
Sangaste (Sagnitz) | Otepää | Otto Pius Hippius, 1874-1883
Malla (Malla) | Viru-Nigula | 1651-1654; 1770s; 1881-1883
Lehtse (Lechts) | Tapa | 19th century; tower – 1884
Alatskivi (Allatzkiwwi) | Peipsiääre | Arved von Nolcken, 1880-1885
Illuka (Illuck) | Alutaguse | Friedrich Modi, 1885-1888
Vihula (Viol) | Haljala | Friedrich Modi, 1880s
Hummuli (Hummelshof) | Tõrva | Wilhelm Sternfeld (?), late 1880s or early 1890s (?)
Kõltsu (Wellenhof) | Lääne-Harju | 1891
Inju (Innis) | Vinni | Rudolf von Engelhardt, 1894
Luua (Ludenhof) | Jõgeva | main building – 1736, late 19th century, 1949-1955; cavalier house – Rudolf von Engelhardt, c. 1899
Vedu (Fehtenhof) | Tartu | stable – late 19th or early 20th century
Väikemõisa (Kleinhof) | Viljandi | Rudolf von Engelhardt, 1902
Olustvere (Ollustfer) | Põhja-Sakala | Archibald MacPherson, 1903
Raadi (Ratshof) | Tartu | main building – 1783, 1840-1842, 1901-1905; gatehouse – first half of 19th century
Neeruti (Buxhöwden) | Kadrina | Carl Schmidt, 1903-1906
Kiiu (Kida, Kyda) | Kuusalu | late 18th century; c. 1907
Kehtna (Kechtel) | Kehtna | 1784-1790; before 1880; 1906-1910
Kärstna (Kerstenhof) | Viljandi | second half of 18th century; enlargement – Otto Wildau, after 1907
Holdre (Hollershof) | Tõrva | Otto Wildau, 1909-1910
Taagepera (Wagenküll) | Tõrva | Otto Wildau, 1907-1912
Eivere (Eyefer) | Paide | 1912
Tähtvere (Techlefer) | Tartu | old main building – 1820s-1830s; new main building – Rudolf Pohlmann, 1910-1913
Laupa (Laupa) | Türi | Jacques Rosenbaum, 1910-1913
Kalvi (Pöddes) | Viru-Nigula | Władysław Karpowicz, 1912-1914
Jäneda (Jendel) | Tapa | 1913-1915

The collection of photos is representative but far from complete. Among notable omissions are the following manors: Ääsmäe, Ahja, Hiiu-Suuremõisa, Illuste, Järlepa, Keeni, Kiltsi (Ridala), Kumna, Kõue, Laitse, Mooste, Pädaste, Riisipere, Räpina, Taali, Ungru, Vasalemma, Vihterpalu, and Välgita.