Rakvere Castle

Rakvere, Estonia

The earliest data regarding human settlement at Vallimäe in Rakvere come from the Viking Age, an arrowhead from the 9th century and some broken pieces of pottery from this period have been found on the territory of the castle. There is more information about the last centuries of the prehistoric age when an ancient wooden stronghold surrounded by a fence stood in the place of the present convent building.

First written records about the stronghold called Tarvanpea come from the year 1226. In the middle of the 13th century the Danes started to replace the wooden stronghold with a more modern stone fortress.

After Virumaa and Harjumaa passed into the possession of the Livonian Order in 1347, a grand-scale reconstruction of the castle was carried out in several stages. In the first half of the 16th century a convent-type castle with a rectangular main tower was completed, it had strong flanks, a large front yard and an eastern gate consisting of several parts: the outer gate included a pitfall and a drawbridge and the inner gate had a lowered lattice. Living quarters and outbuildings were located in the front yard, near the circular wall.

During the Livonian war (1558–1583) the castle was attacked and damaged by the Russians, but it ended up under Swedish control. From 1602 to 1605 Rakvere fortress fell under the control of the Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth. When they retreated from Rakvere in 1605 during the war with Sweden, they blew up the castle.

Today Rakvere castle is open to the public. In addition to the museum you can taste knights’ favourite drink, a Malvasia wine, made after the oldest recipe at the wine cellar.

References: Museums of Virumaa, 7is7.com

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Address

Vallimäe tee 5, Rakvere, Estonia
See all sites in Rakvere

Details

Founded: 1226
Category: Castles and fortifications in Estonia
Historical period: Danish and Livonian Order (Estonia)

More Information

www.svm.ee
www.7is7.com
www.visitestonia.com
www.muuseum.ee

Rating

4.7/5 (based on Google user reviews)

Interesting Sites Nearby


Rakvere Church of the Holy Trinity (0,2 km)
Rakvere Manor (0,3 km)
Rakvere Town Hall (0,3 km)
Rakvere Birth of the Holy Mother Orthodox Church (0,5 km)
Mõdriku Manor (7,5 km)


Toolse Castle (21,8 km)
Palmse Manor (28,9 km)
Käsmu Sea Museum (37,5 km)
Sagadi Manor (25,9 km)
Vihula Manor (24,1 km)
Kunda Manor Ruins (19,9 km)
Koeru Church (46,5 km)
Porkuni Castle Tower (20 km)
Väike-Maarja Church (25 km)

User Reviews

Ramunas Kaz (5 months ago)
Very interesting historical place and castle of Estonia.
Ashraf Zaher (8 months ago)
Very interesting place. Takes you fare back to the medieval time. worth to visit.
George On tour (8 months ago)
Throughout the ages, Rakvere Castle has belonged to Danish kings, knight-monks of the Livonian Order and the Swedish and Polish states. The longest period was the age of the Order, when Rakvere Castle was an important link in the defence system of the eastern border of the Teutonic Order. The bailiffs of Rakvere Castle were usually smart and capable young knights for whom the castle was a good springboard to gaining leading positions in the Order. At the end of the prehistoric times, there was an Estonian stronghold called Tarvanpää at the present location of Rakvere Castle.
Jesper Bexkens (10 months ago)
The entrance fee is quite high, which might be worth it if you check out all the "shows". Somehow they couldn't choose to keep the castle as a historic place or turn it into a theme park/playground. Quite a few rooms are only visible at certain times, but then at the given times: no staff members present. Staff seems to be more busy with hanging out, talking on their phones, chasing each other or the chickens and geese on the premises. Some staff members hardly speak any English. This place does have potential but at the moment it does not live up to it.
Rott Puna (10 months ago)
There are adventures for kids and adults. Coming in winter or in summer - always something to do. We liked the puppet theatre and horse and donkey riding. You can visit the Hell, if you have strong nerves. Prices are average.
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The Porta Nigra was built in grey sandstone between 186 and 200 AD. The original gate consisted of two four-storied towers, projecting as near semicircles on the outer side. A narrow courtyard separated the two gate openings on either side. For unknown reasons, however, the construction of the gate remained unfinished. For example, the stones at the northern (outer) side of the gate were never abraded, and the protruding stones would have made it impossible to install movable gates. Nonetheless, the gate was used for several centuries until the end of the Roman era in Trier.

In Roman times, the Porta Nigra was part of a system of four city gates, one of which stood at each side of the roughly rectangular Roman city. The Porta Nigra guarded the northern entry to the Roman city, while the Porta Alba (White Gate) was built in the east, the Porta Media (Middle Gate) in the south, and the Porta Inclyta (Famous Gate) in the west, next to the Roman bridge across the Moselle. The gates stood at the ends of the two main streets of the Roman Trier, one of which led north-south and the other east-west. Of these gates, only the Porta Nigra still exists today.

In the early Middle Ages the Roman city gates were no longer used for their original function and their stones were taken and reused for other buildings. Also iron and lead braces were broken out of the walls of the Porta Nigra for reuse. Traces of this destruction are still clearly visible on the north side of the gate.

After 1028, the Greek monk Simeon lived as a hermit in the ruins of the Porta Nigra. After his death (1035) and sanctification, the Simeonstift monastery was built next to the Porta Nigra to honor him. Saving it from further destruction, the Porta Nigra was transformed into a church: The inner court of the gate was roofed and intermediate ceilings were inserted. The two middle storeys of the former gate were converted into church naves: the upper storey being for the monks and the lower storey for the general public. The ground floor with the large gates was sealed, and a large outside staircase was constructed alongside the south side (the town side) of the gate, up to the lower storey of the church. A small staircase led further up to the upper storey. The church rooms were accessible through former windows of the western tower of the Porta Nigra that were enlarged to become entrance doors (still visible today). The top floor of the western tower was used as church tower, the eastern tower was leveled, and an apse added at its east side. An additional gate - the much smaller Simeon Gate - was built adjacent to the East side of the Porta Nigra and served as a city gate in medieval times.

In 1802 Napoleon Bonaparte dissolved the church in the Porta Nigra and the monastery beside it, along with the vast majority of Trier"s numerous churches and monasteries. On his visit to Trier in 1804, Napoleon ordered that the Porta Nigra be converted back to its Roman form. Only the apse was kept; but the eastern tower was not rebuilt to its original height. Local legend has it that Napoleon originally wanted to completely tear down the church, but locals convinced him that the church had actually been a Gaulish festival hall before being turned into a church. Another version of the story is that they told him about its Roman origins, persuading him to convert the gate back to its original form.

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