Top Historic Sights in Eurajoki, Finland
Explore the historic highlights of Eurajoki
Irjanne Church
The church in Irjanne village is the oldest wooden church in Satakunta county. It was built in 1731 to replace the older medieval church. The bell tower wad erected in 1758. Old cemetery and church park surround the church.Vuojoki Mansion
The manor house of Vuojoki is one of the most beautiful empire mansions in Finland. Vuojoki is mentioned in historical documents in the 16th century. First manor was established in 1626 by Gottfrid von Falkenberg.Vuojoki Mansion did not really flourish until the 1830s, when captain Lars Magnus Björkman (ennobled in 1834 Björkenheim) bought it. Lars Magnus Björkenheim built the current buildings and drafted ...Liinmaa Castle
Liinmaa Castle ("Vreghdenborch") was a medieval castle in Eura. In 1367 Albrecht von Mecklenburg, the king of Sweden, ordered to demolish a castle in Kokemäki. It was replaced by two new castles, one in Liinmaa and another in Linnaluoto (Aborch). Liinmaa castle contained two inner ground walls, wooden structures and a moat. The story of Liinmaa castle was very short: it was abandoded in the beginning of the 15th century ...Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings
Historic Site of the week
Cesis Castle
German crusaders known as the Livonian Brothers of the Sword began construction of the Cēsis castle (Wenden) near the hill fort in 1209. When the castle was enlarged and fortified, it served as the residence for the Order's Master from 1237 till 1561, with periodic interruptions. Its ruins are some of the most majestic castle ruins in the Baltic states. Once the most important castle of the Livonian Order, it was the official residence for the masters of the order.
In 1577, during the Livonian War, the garrison destroyed the castle to prevent it from falling into the control of Ivan the Terrible, who was decisively defeated in the Battle of Wenden (1578).
In 1598 it was incorporated into the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Wenden Voivodship was created here. In 1620 Wenden was conquered by Sweden. It was rebuilt afterwards, but was destroyed again in 1703 during the Great Northern War by the Russian army and left in a ruined state. Already from the end of the 16th century, the premises of the Order's castle were adjusted to the requirements of the Cēsis Castle estate. When in 1777 the Cēsis Castle estate was obtained by Count Carl Sievers, he had his new residence house built on the site of the eastern block of the castle, joining its end wall with the fortification tower.
Since 1949, the Cēsis History Museum has been located in this New Castle of the Cēsis Castle estate. The front yard of the New Castle is enclosed by a granary and a stable-coach house, which now houses the Exhibition Hall of the Museum. Beside the granary there is the oldest brewery in Latvia, Cēsu alus darītava, which was built in 1878 during the later Count Sievers' time, but its origins date back to the period of the Livonian Order. Further on, the Cēsis Castle park is situated, which was laid out in 1812. The park has the romantic characteristic of that time, with its winding footpaths, exotic plants, and the waters of the pond reflecting the castle's ruins. Nowadays also one of the towers is open for tourists.