The Estonian Knighthood House (Estonian: Eestimaa rüütelkonna hoone, German: Haus der Estländischen Ritterschaft) is a building in Toompea, the upper part of Vanalinn, the historic inner town of Tallinn, the capital of Estonia. Its address is Kiriku plats (Dome Square) 1. The Dome Church is situated at the same square.
Estonia[1] was occupied by the Livonian Brothers of the Sword, a religious order of German nobles, in the 13th century. Since then German nobles were the actual rulers in Estonia. They stayed in power when Estonia was occupied by Sweden in the 17th century and by the Russian Empire in the 18th century. Apart from a few Russians, all magistrates were German nobles. As large landowners they also possessed large parts of the Estonian soil. There were also many German nobles who opted for a career in the Imperial Russian Army.
The German nobles in Estonia were united in the Estonian Knighthood. The Estonian Knighthood House was the building where the Knights met and held their festivities and where their peerage register was kept.
The present building is the fourth Knighthood House. The first two were lost in fire and the third House soon became too small. The present building in Renaissance Revival style was designed by the architect Georg Winterhalter (1822–1894) and built in the years 1845-1848.[2]
In 1920, when Estonia had become independent, all privileges of the German Knights were cancelled. The building was then put into use as Estonia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
After the Soviet occupation of Estonia in 1940 the country had no Ministry of Foreign Affairs of its own anymore. Between 1948 and 1992 the building functioned as National Library of Estonia. In 1992 the book collection was transferred to a newly built library in the subdistrict of Tõnismäe.
In 1993 a part of the art collection from Kadriorg Palace was accommodated in the Estonian Knighthood House. Kadriorg Palace needed a restoration; moreover, in the subdistrict of Kadriorg a new art museum was being built, so that the collection could be extended too.
After 2000 the art collection was gradually returned to the restored Kadriorg Palace and the newly built Kumu (an abbreviation of Kunstimuuseum). Since 2009 the Estonian Knighthood House houses the Estonian Academy of Arts, but that will move too. In 2016 the Estonian Academy of Arts will move into a reconstructed historical factory building in the Kalamaja quarter at the corner of Kotzebue tänav and Põhja puiestee.[3]
^Historic Estonia was smaller than present-day Estonia. It included only the northern part, with Reval (Tallinn) as its capital. The southern part belonged to Livonia. Livonia's capital was Riga. The Livonian Knighthood held the same position as the Estonian Knighthood in Estonia. There was a Livonian Knighthood House in Riga. Today it is the seat of the Saeima, the Latvian parliament.
estonian, knighthood, house, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Estonian Knighthood House news newspapers books scholar JSTOR October 2012 Learn how and when to remove this message The Estonian Knighthood House Estonian Eestimaa ruutelkonna hoone German Haus der Estlandischen Ritterschaft is a building in Toompea the upper part of Vanalinn the historic inner town of Tallinn the capital of Estonia Its address is Kiriku plats Dome Square 1 The Dome Church is situated at the same square The Estonian Knighthood House Contents 1 History 2 Gallery 3 See also 4 References 5 External linksHistory editEstonia 1 was occupied by the Livonian Brothers of the Sword a religious order of German nobles in the 13th century Since then German nobles were the actual rulers in Estonia They stayed in power when Estonia was occupied by Sweden in the 17th century and by the Russian Empire in the 18th century Apart from a few Russians all magistrates were German nobles As large landowners they also possessed large parts of the Estonian soil There were also many German nobles who opted for a career in the Imperial Russian Army The German nobles in Estonia were united in the Estonian Knighthood The Estonian Knighthood House was the building where the Knights met and held their festivities and where their peerage register was kept The present building is the fourth Knighthood House The first two were lost in fire and the third House soon became too small The present building in Renaissance Revival style was designed by the architect Georg Winterhalter 1822 1894 and built in the years 1845 1848 2 In 1920 when Estonia had become independent all privileges of the German Knights were cancelled The building was then put into use as Estonia s Ministry of Foreign Affairs After the Soviet occupation of Estonia in 1940 the country had no Ministry of Foreign Affairs of its own anymore Between 1948 and 1992 the building functioned as National Library of Estonia In 1992 the book collection was transferred to a newly built library in the subdistrict of Tonismae In 1993 a part of the art collection from Kadriorg Palace was accommodated in the Estonian Knighthood House Kadriorg Palace needed a restoration moreover in the subdistrict of Kadriorg a new art museum was being built so that the collection could be extended too After 2000 the art collection was gradually returned to the restored Kadriorg Palace and the newly built Kumu an abbreviation of Kunstimuuseum Since 2009 the Estonian Knighthood House houses the Estonian Academy of Arts but that will move too In 2016 the Estonian Academy of Arts will move into a reconstructed historical factory building in the Kalamaja quarter at the corner of Kotzebue tanav and Pohja puiestee 3 Gallery edit nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp See also editHouse of the Livonian Noble CorporationReferences edit Historic Estonia was smaller than present day Estonia It included only the northern part with Reval Tallinn as its capital The southern part belonged to Livonia Livonia s capital was Riga The Livonian Knighthood held the same position as the Estonian Knighthood in Estonia There was a Livonian Knighthood House in Riga Today it is the seat of the Saeima the Latvian parliament Brief history of the building The Academy s new building External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to House of the Knighthood Tallinn Brief history of the building the website dates from the time the art museum was housed here Dates about the building in Estonian Website of the Estonian Academy of Arts 59 26 13 N 24 44 24 E 59 43694 N 24 74000 E 59 43694 24 74000 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Estonian Knighthood House amp oldid 1221833223, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
