Käsmu (german: Kaspervik, ) is a village in

Haljala Parish Haljala Parish ( et, Haljala vald) is a rural municipality of Estonia, in Lääne-Viru County. It has a population of 4297 (2021) and an area of 549 km². Populated places Small borough Haljala - Võsu Villages Aaspere - Aasu - Aasume ...

Lääne-Viru County Lääne-Viru County ( et, Lääne-Viru maakond or ''Lääne-Virumaa'') is one of 15 counties of Estonia. It is in northern Estonia, on the south coast of the Gulf of Finland. In Estonian, ''lääne'' means western and ''ida'' means east or eastern ...

, in northern

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

, (retrieved 28 July 2021) on the territory of

Lahemaa National Park Lahemaa National Park is a park in northern Estonia, 70 kilometers east from the capital Tallinn. The Gulf of Finland is to the north of the park and the Tallinn-Narva highway (E20) is to the south. Its area covers 747 km2 (including 274.9&nbs ...

. It's located northwest of Võsu, on the Käsmu Peninsula in the

Gulf of Finland The Gulf of Finland ( fi, Suomenlahti; et, Soome laht; rus, Фи́нский зали́в, r=Finskiy zaliv, p=ˈfʲinskʲɪj zɐˈlʲif; sv, Finska viken) is the easternmost arm of the Baltic Sea. It extends between Finland to the north and E ...

, surrounded by the

Eru Bay Eru Bay ( et, Eru laht, also et, Mungalaht) is bay in Kuusalu Parish (Harju County) and Haljala Parish, Lääne-Viru County in Estonia; the bay is part of Gulf of Finland. Area of the bay is 7656 ha. The bay is bordered by Pärispea Peninsula a ...

to the west and the

Käsmu Bay Käsmu Bay ( et, Käsmu laht) is a bay in Lääne-Viru County, Estonia. The bay is located between Käsmu and Vergi Peninsula. The bay's width is up to 4 km and depth of 12-27 m. Käsmu Stream and Võsu River flows into the bay. Borough of V� ...

to the east. Käsmu was first mentioned in 1453 as ''Kesemo'', a beach belonging to the

Aaspere Aaspere is a village in Haljala Parish, Lääne-Viru County, in northeastern Estonia. It is about 20 kilometres away from Rakvere. Aaspere manor Aaspere manor (german: Kattentack) was mentioned for the first time in the 16th century. The curren ...

Manor. Later in 1524 it is affirmed that Käsmu exists as a village. Due to the location the food was mostly acquired from the sea. Main fishes included

Baltic herring Atlantic herring (''Clupea harengus'') is a herring in the family Clupeidae. It is one of the most abundant fish species in the world. Atlantic herrings can be found on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, congregating in large schools. They can ...

and

flounder Flounders are a group of flatfish species. They are demersal fish, found at the bottom of oceans around the world; some species will also enter estuaries. Taxonomy The name "flounder" is used for several only distantly related species, thou ...

. In 1697 the first ship in Käsmu was built to the baron of Palmse Manor. On the 2nd half of the 19th century they started building large

sailing ship A sailing ship is a sea-going vessel that uses sails mounted on masts to harness the power of wind and propel the vessel. There is a variety of sail plans that propel sailing ships, employing square-rigged or fore-and-aft sails. Some ships c ...

s in Käsmu. In 1891 a lighthouse was built. The Käsmu harbour became one of the main sites for wintering in the region. 1884–1931 a maritime school operated in Käsmu. The summering in Käsmu started in 1840 after the owner of Aaspere Manor General Nikolai von Dellingshausen built his family summer manor there. Since then, many intellectuals and artists have stayed in Käsmu. Those celebrities include Edmund Russow, Anastasia Tsvetaeva,

Peter Ustinov Sir Peter Alexander Ustinov (born Peter Alexander Freiherr von Ustinov ; 16 April 192128 March 2004) was a British actor, filmmaker and writer. An internationally known raconteur, he was a fixture on television talk shows and lecture circuits ...

, Romulus Tiitus, Igor Vsevoloþski (buried in Käsmu), Nikolai Rakov,

Ülo Vinter Ülo Vinter (3 January 1934 in Tallinn – 2 July 2000 in Käsmu) was an Estonian composer. In 1951 he graduated from Tallinn Music High School in music theory. Afterwards he graduated from Tallinn State Conservatory in composition speciality. ...

(buried in Käsmu),

Arvo Pärt Arvo Pärt (; born 11 September 1935) is an Estonian composer of contemporary classical music. Since the late 1970s, Pärt has worked in a minimalist style that employs tintinnabuli, a compositional technique he invented. Pärt's music is in pa ...

and

Gustav Ernesaks Gustav Ernesaks (12 December 1908 – 24 January 1993) was an Estonian composer and a choir conductor. Biography Ernesaks was born in Perila, Peningi Parish. He played an integral role in the Singing Revolution and was one of the father figu ...

. Käsmu Sea Museum operates in the former cordon building since 1993. The main sights in Käsmu also include the Dellingshausen's chapel (General's Chapel) and a wooden church with churchyard. Since 2008 a folk music festival Viru Folk is held annually all around Käsmu.

Gallery

File:Käsmu facing South.jpg, Village panorama File:Käsmu kirik.jpg, Käsmu church File:Käsmu Dellingshauseni matusekabel, 2010, regnr 16072.jpg, The Dellinghausen's chapel File:Käsmu merekooli hoone.jpg, The building of former Käsmu Maritime School File:Kasmu museum.jpg, Käsmu Maritime Museum on the coast of Käsmu Harbour. File:Meremuuseum.JPG, Käsmu Sea Museum

References

External links

Käsmu Sea Museum

Käsmu Village Society
Villages in Lääne-Viru County {{LääneViru-geo-stub

Gallery

See also

References

External links