The port city of
TALLINN ,
Estonia's compact, human-scale
capital, has been shaped by nearly a
millennium of outside influence. Its
name, derived from
taani linnus
, meaning "Danish Fort",
is a reminder of the fact that the
city was founded by the Danes at the
beginning of the thirteenth century,
and since that time political
control has nearly always been in
the hands of foreigners - Germans,
Swedes and Russians. The Germans
have undoubtedly had the most
lasting influence on the city;
Tallinn was one of the leading
cities of the Hanseatic League, the
German-dominated association of
Baltic trading cities, and for
centuries it was known to the
outside world by its German name,
Reval. Even when Estonia was ruled
by the kings of Sweden or the tsars
of Russia, the city's public life
was controlled by the German
nobility, and its commerce run by
German merchants. Today reminders of
foreign rule abound in the streets
of Tallinn, where each of the city's
one-time rulers have left their
mark. Everything about Tallinn, from
the fortress of the Germanic knights
above the Old Town to the grimmest
Soviet-era satellite suburbs,
reveals something of its past,
making it a fascinating place to
explore.
