Võry Orthodox Church, Võru, Estonia

The late-classicism style church was designed by M. Schons, chief architect of the Livonian Province. The master carpenter was Johann Karl Otto, a resident of Võru. The church was completed in 1804 and named the Greatmartyr Catherine’s Church in honour of Catherine II. The building has a simple rectangular ground planning, a sturdy western spire, a cupola-like ridge roof on the high tambour and arched windows in sham niches.

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Kiizu Miizu (3 years ago)
Häid jõule ja hea koht.

Janno Kuuƨ (5 years ago)
Kiriku ehitamist alustati Katariina II valitsusajal 1793. aastal. Kiriku projekteeris Liivimaa kubermanguarhitekt Matthias Schons. Ehitusmeister oli võrulane Johann Karl Otto. Kiriku pühitsemine toimus 6. novembril (vkj) 1804. aastal Riia arhimandriidi Benedikti poolt Aleksandria Katariina auks ja kannab tema nime. Kiriku ülalpidamiseks andis riik sellele 1870. aastal Võru mõisa hooned, loomad, inventari ja 248 ha maad, seega ulatusid kiriku valduse piirid Mustjärvest Kirumpää linnuseni. Kirikul lubati ka Tamula ja Vagula järvest püüda kala. Kirikus on palju pühakujusid ja rikkalik ikonostaas. 1922. aastal võõrandati riigi poolt suurem osa kiriku maast. Kirikule jäi vaid 72 ha. 1944. aastal vähendati maavaldust 14 hektarini, 1949. aastal võõrandati ka see maa koos sinna külvatud rukkiga. 1933. aastal ehitas kogudus Võru surnuaiale väikese kabeli. 1999. aasta septembris leidsid restaureerijad kiriku ristimunast laeka, milles oli ülempreestri Joann Jelenini 17. juunil 1854 kirjutatud kiri, kus ta annab ülevaate õigeusu levikust Võrumaal, tolleaegsetest kirikutegelastest ja Võru eluolust. Laekast leiti veel kolm ajalehte Severnaja Ptšela aastast 1854, Eesti rahva kalender 1854, Riias 1848. aastal trükitud aabits, kolm eestikeelset õigeusuteemalist trükist ja 22 vaskmünti. Dokumendid anti üle Võrumaa Muuseumile.

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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.

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