Parks, Statues & Memorials, Tallinn

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My granddaughter went up into this park which was near the Viru Gate and took some photos of some of the statues there. It is a park in Tallinn City Center which has a statue dedicated to a famous Estonian writer Anton H. Tammsaare.

The park was established in 1948 on a former bombsite, and was originally called Stalin Square. After Stalin's death it was called 16th October Park, but in 1978 when the statue to Tammsaare was erected it was unofficially renamed for him. The park is used by many Tallinners to go in and out of the Old Town. Tammsaare’s expression, a combination of reflectiveness, scepticism and resignation, is deeply Estonian.

It is between Pärnu maantee and Estonia puiestee.

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Under construction

Dostojevski is a great name is connected with Tallinn. Between 1830 and 1840, Mikhail Dostoyevsky lived in Uus Street in the old part of Tallinn, being employed at the Reval Engineer Commando. His brother, the Russian writer Fyodor Dostoyevsky, frequently visited Tallinn at that time.

In Raekjoka Plats there is a stone slab.

This is supposed to be the 'Centre of Tallinn', and the text surrounding it says that. Apparently you can see the five main spires of the city from here, but I didn't try.

If you stand in front of the Town Hall cafe and then look across the square in front of you you should be able to spot the stone in amongst the other cobbles. It's a bit faded now, but still visible.

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Lindamagi (Linda's Hill) is a little woody bump just outside the Old Town Walls (near Kiek-in-die-Kok).

In Estonian legend, Linda was the wife of Kalev, who founded Tallinn. When Kalev died, she buildt the hill now known as Toompea as his memorial.

There is a rather nice statue of Linda, surrounded by a circle of ancient trees.

The statue was used during the Soviet era as a place of remembrance for those sent to the work camps (in Siberia). A plaque has now been added to the statue: 'To remember the ones who were taken away'.

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This monument is at the side of the Estonia Theatre & Concert Hall, on the outskirts of the Old Town.

It is a monument to the struggle for Estonian independence which occurred immediately after the First World War. General Laidoner, the Estonian Commander-in-Chief, had to call upon schoolboys to save the city when it was threatened by the Bolsheviks (1918-1919). The sculpture is dedicated to those boys who fought (and fell).

To the right of Fat Margaret's Tower, by the Great Coastal Gate, is a small 'park': well, it is really just a grassy area.

In it you will find the 'Broken Bridge', a monument to the ferry disaster on 1994. The car ferry 'Estonia', en route from Tallinn to Stockholm, went down with the loss of 852 lives.

I found this monument more moving than I expected: modern monuments rarely have much effect on me, so perhaps it was the gloom and chill of such a wet day which added atmosphere.

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I didn’t know anything about Michael Park until I saw this sculpture dedicated to him. A shiny metal cube with the name of a man who died at the age of 39. It was later that I found out who Michael Park was. Mr. Park was a british rallye driver, co-pilot of estonian pilot Markko Märtin. Michael Park died on September 18th 2005 after crashing into a tree during the Wales rallye. Märtin left the car without injuries and retired afterwards from the World Rallye series. Michael Park was a popular driver in Estonia and it is said that he adopted the country as a second home.

If you pay a lot of attention to the ground of Raekoja Plats (well, why not???), you might find some bricks which look like the letter "L". There is an interesting story behind this letter: Centuries ago, a preacher raped a virgin girl in Tallinn. Shocked about what he had done, he turned himself in to the authorities and was sentenced to death. His wish was to be executed on Raekoja Plats to show everyone what incredible misdeed he had committed. A cross marked this place, but nowadays only an "L" is left...
Before you start searching for too long, I give you a small hint: Look in front of Raekoja Apteek!