Estonian Cultural Heritage. Preservation and Conservation. 2005-2012. Tallinn Culture And Herit Arts

      Lilian Hansar

      Transformation of town structures in Estonian small towns

      The aim of the thesis2 that was the basis of this article was to highlight the historical layers of old towns in Estonia i.e. the signs and patterns that enable better understanding of the significance of historical towns. Another objective of the thesis was to improve the knowledge about the construction history of Estonian towns because without knowing old towns it is not possible to understand their need for protection. The extended scope of knowledge is a precondition for meaningful understanding of heritage conservation.

      Today, historical centres of Estonian towns as conveyers of cultural memory are protected as national heritage conservation areas. In 1973, the centres of such towns as Lihula, Haapsalu, Kuressaare, Paide, Pärnu, Rakvere, Tartu, Viljandi and Võru were listed as conservation areas. The same was done with Valga in 1995. In 1966, the first national conservation area of an old town was established in Tallinn. However, the thesis does not cover that town.

      Ancient roads and settlements have been the basis for the formation of many old towns in Estonia. The oldest streets in Lihula, Rakvere and Valga are built on prehistoric paths. These paths can be also traced in Tartu and Viljandi and probably in Paide.

      All medieval Estonian towns have developed around stone castles with the only exception of Valga. The medieval street pattern has been rather well preserved in most of the old towns. Thus, the networks of streets are the oldest and most completely preserved components of town planning in the heritage conservation areas.

      The fortification from the Swedish era and renovation plans drafted in the 17th century did not change the medieval town plans much as the grid plans characteristic of the period were merged in Narva and Pärnu with the existing street patterns. The medieval street pattern of Tartu remained also unchanged.

      Most of the building layers of urban environment formed during the previous five hundred years were destroyed during the Livonian War (1558–1583) and the Great Northern War (1700–1721).

      During the following decades the destroyed towns were restored within their medieval boundaries. Despite the changes in buildings the street pattern of medieval downtowns was preserved during that period as an important structural element of old towns and the tradition of densely populated street fronts returned.

      In 1783, the development of towns was given a new impetus by proclaiming them district towns of the Russian Empire. The following two centuries were of crucial importance to the development of the historical towns in Estonia – it was the period when the scope and appearance of the towns protected today was formed. Võru, founded in 1784, is the best example of the town planning of that period. The structure of its grid plan has been preserved to date. Next to the old town centres new districts featuring regular street networks were built in Viljandi, Rakvere and Kuressaare. The plan structure was dominated by long and narrow plots which are partly preserved only in Lihula and Rakvere.