Paldiski is a
town
A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world.
Origin and use
The word "town" shares an o ...
and
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain.
The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...
port
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as H ...
situated on the
Pakri Peninsula
Pakri Peninsula extends from northwestern mainland Estonia's Harju County into the Baltic Sea. Its length is 12 km and its area is about 40 km2.
Portions of the peninsula were protected in 1998 as the Pakri Landscape Conservation Area on the b ...
of northwestern
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, an ...
. Since 2017, it's the administrative centre of
Lääne-Harju Parish
Lääne-Harju Parish ( et, Lääne-Harju vald) is a rural municipality in northern Estonia. It is a part of Harju County. The municipality has a population of 12,865 (as of 1 January 2019) and covers an area of 645.71 km². The population de ...
of
Harju County
Harju County ( et, Harju maakond or ''Harjumaa''), is one of the fifteen counties of Estonia. It is situated in Northern Estonia, on the southern coast of the Gulf of Finland, and borders Lääne-Viru County to the east, Järva County to the so ...
. Previously a village of
Estonia-Swedes known by the historical name ''Rågervik'', it was extended into a
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...
n naval base in the 18th century.
The Russian authorities renamed it ''Балтийский Порт'' ("Baltiyskiy Port", i.e., Baltic Port, german: Baltisch-Port) in 1762. In written
Estonian
Estonian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Estonia, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe
* Estonians, people from Estonia, or of Estonian descent
* Estonian language
* Estonian cuisine
* Estonian culture
See also
*
...
, the name was spelled ''Baltiski'' until 1933, when the phonetically spelled version ''Paldiski'' became official.
History
Swedish Empire
Paldiski was founded as a fishing village by Estonian Swedes with the name Rågervik.
Russian Empire
Peter the Great
Peter I ( – ), most commonly known as Peter the Great,) or Pyotr Alekséyevich ( rus, Пётр Алексе́евич, p=ˈpʲɵtr ɐlʲɪˈksʲejɪvʲɪtɕ, , group=pron was a Russian monarch who ruled the Tsardom of Russia from t ...
chose the location in 1715 for a naval base, and construction started in 1716. It was meant to be a sea fortress and in 1790, during the Russo-Swedish War, it was conquered by the Swedes through trickery, when a Swedish warship sailing under a Dutch flag was allowed to dock.
On 23 June 1912 the Russian emperor
Nikolai II
Nicholas II or Nikolai II Alexandrovich Romanov; spelled in pre-revolutionary script. ( 186817 July 1918), known in the Russian Orthodox Church as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer,. was the last Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Pol ...
and German kaiser
Wilhelm II
, house = Hohenzollern
, father = Frederick III, German Emperor
, mother = Victoria, Princess Royal
, religion = Lutheranism (Prussian United)
, signature = Wilhelm II, German Emperor Signature-.svg
Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor ...
met for the last time before
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
in Paldiski.
Since the 18th century, Leetse manor existed there. In the 1910s the manor ceased to exist and was formed the populated place called ''Leetse'' ( et, Leetse asundus).
Soviet era
Paldiski came under Soviet rule due to the "Soviet–Estonian Mutual Assistance Treaty" of 1939. From that year Paldiski became gradually closed city for average Estonian residents until 1990.
In 1962, Paldiski became a
Soviet Navy nuclear submarine
A nuclear submarine is a submarine powered by a nuclear reactor, but not necessarily nuclear-armed. Nuclear submarines have considerable performance advantages over "conventional" (typically diesel-electric) submarines. Nuclear propulsion, ...
training centre. Employing some 16,000 people, and with two land-based
nuclear reactor
A nuclear reactor is a device used to initiate and control a fission nuclear chain reaction or nuclear fusion reactions. Nuclear reactors are used at nuclear power plants for electricity generation and in nuclear marine propulsion. Heat fr ...
s (at 70 MW and 90 MW power, respectively), it was the largest such facility in the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
. Because of its importance, the whole city was
closed off with barbed wire until the last Russian warship left in August 1994, when the city ceased to be a closed city.
This followed the events of 1991, when the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
collapsed and Estonia regained independence. To house the stationing troops and those in training, many barracks buildings were built, which have since been left in disrepair. Russia relinquished control of reactor facilities in September 1995; the nuclear reactors were shut down, and nuclear material was transported back to Russia. The reactors were thereafter decommissioned.
Incidents, when Paldiski was a closed military town under Soviet/Russian jurisdiction, did happen rarely and if something happened, it was classified. At the time Jüri Liim, member of Supreme Council, had an undercover and secret access to the closed city. As per his testimony, the Pakri Islands just next to Paldiski were the practice bombing targets for Soviet air force, including the soviet nuclear bombers. There was no actual nuclear bombs used but bombs that were in similar weight and size category. Sometimes when the real combat bombs were used, the small earthquakes created from it could be felt in Paldiski and at the nuclear reactors.
The personnel working at the site were concerned about potential cracks or other issues with the reactor due to this shaking. When approaching the Pakri Islands or leaving from the target, the flight routes were often over Paldiski and this led to few incidents. Once a live bomb fell by accident to the local kindergartens cabbage field. Fortunately the bomb malfunctioned and caused no damage. On another occasion, a bomb fell by accident 15 meters from the working nuclear reactors. This bomb also malfunctioned and did not explode.
After Estonia regaining independence
After Estonia restored its independence, the city had not enough Estonian citizens, and Paldiski was then subordinated to
Keila
Keila (german: Kegel) is a town and an urban municipality in Harju County in north-western Estonia, 25 km southwest of Tallinn. Keila is also the location of administrative buildings of the surrounding Keila Parish, a rural municipality se ...
until 30 October 1996. Located some 45 km west of
Tallinn
Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju '' ...
, Paldiski was then made a
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...
within
Harju County
Harju County ( et, Harju maakond or ''Harjumaa''), is one of the fifteen counties of Estonia. It is situated in Northern Estonia, on the southern coast of the Gulf of Finland, and borders Lääne-Viru County to the east, Järva County to the so ...
. Derelict Soviet-style apartment buildings made up much of the town, and the relics of military bases were widespread. The majority of the town's residents are ethnic Russians. The
ferry
A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water ta ...
company
Tallink
Tallink () is an Estonian shipping company operating Baltic Sea cruiseferries and ropax ships from Estonia to Finland, Estonia to Sweden to Sweden and Finland to Sweden. It is the largest passenger and cargo shipping company in the Baltic Se ...
operates a regular connection with
Kapellskär
Kapellskär () is a port about north of Stockholm, in Sweden. It is located by the Baltic Sea, in Norrtälje Municipality, Stockholm County.
Services
The port is served by frequent passenger ferry services to Mariehamn, Åland, Finland, operated ...
in
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic countries, Nordic c ...
. Danish ferry operator DFDS is also operates a regular connection on the same route.
Operation «Ämblik» (Spider) was conducted in Paldiski on 16 March 1993 by 33 Estonian police officers and 40 border guards to establish Estonian law in the area, including in the Russian military base. At the time in Paldiski, there was about 1,500 members of the Russian armed forces. The aim of the police operation was to contain illegal activities including weapons trade and to restrict the activities of thugs in Paldiski, who behaved like they ran the town. For example on 9 March 1993, several Russian armed forces officers were detained by Estonian authorities in Tallinn due to an attempt to sell firearms. This operation was not agreed to with the Russian government beforehand and preparations were kept in secrecy. Confusion in Paldiski among Russian military personnel helped to achieve the goals of the operation.
Today
The amenities in Paldiski include three grocery stores, a pizza place, a tavern, and a café.
The housing blocks in the town do not all appear dilapidated and abandoned, and several have been refitted and re-painted in recent years. There are also several new apartment buildings, and the green areas along with children's parks have been restored.
The
Logistics Battalion of the Estonian Defence Forces is stationed in Paldiski.
The Pakri Science and Industrial Park with its 60 hectare Pakri Smart Industrial City lies within the limits of the city.
Climate
Education and community
Paldiski has two schools: Paldiski Gümnaasium and Vene Gümnaasium (Russian Gymnasium).
In addition, there is a private pre-school facility, called Paladski Beebi Maja.
There are several churches in town. The
Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church
The Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church (EELC; Estonian: ''Eesti Evangeelne Luterlik Kirik'', abbreviated EELK) is a Lutheran church in Estonia. EELC is member of the Lutheran World Federation and belongs to the Community of Protestant Church ...
is dedicated to St Nicholas. Although closed for some years, this church has now reopened, with services held every Sunday at lunchtime. There are also a Pentecostal church, a Methodist church, and an Orthodox church.
Transport
Paldiski has a terminus station on the
Elron rail line, providing a convenient link to the capital city. As part of the town's redevelopment, this once near-derelict station has been renovated and painted in bright yellow and white colours.
A great deal of investment has been put into the two ports and their facilities with a number of new berths having been created. From Paldiski Southern Port, Transfennica runs a number of ships to the port from
Hanko (Finland) and
Lübeck
Lübeck (; Low German also ), officially the Hanseatic City of Lübeck (german: Hansestadt Lübeck), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 217,000 inhabitants, Lübeck is the second-largest city on the German Baltic coast and in the state ...
(Germany). From Paldiski Northern Port, DFDS runs a six-roundtrip operation to
Kapellskär
Kapellskär () is a port about north of Stockholm, in Sweden. It is located by the Baltic Sea, in Norrtälje Municipality, Stockholm County.
Services
The port is served by frequent passenger ferry services to Mariehamn, Åland, Finland, operated ...
(Sweden) for passengers, and a Cargo and Navirail operation to and from
Hanko (Finland).
The old Soviet 'Pentagon' building has been demolished at some point between 2006 and 2009 to make way for a large and modern logistics park.
Energy
The Pakri
wind farm
A wind farm or wind park, also called a wind power station or wind power plant, is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electricity. Wind farms vary in size from a small number of turbines to several hundred wind turb ...
is located in Paldiski at the tip of the Pakri peninsula near the old
lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways.
Lighthouses m ...
. It consists of eight wind turbines of type Nordex N-90, and generates 18.4 MW of clean electricity, when the wind matches the parametres of the turbines.
Since 2007 Pakri Smart Industrial City is developing a 75MW renewable power network, which combined with its own Pakri Smart Grid enables total control of energy prices.
Construction of a receiving
LNG terminal near the town is considered.
Estonia's
long-term plans for nuclear power envisage the adjacent
Pakri Islands
, image_name =
, image_caption =
, image_size =
, map_image = Pakri location map.svg
, map_caption =
, native_name = Pakri saared
, native_name_link =
, sobriquet =
, location = Baltic Sea
, ...
as a potential site for the country's first power plant.
[Japanese events affect attitude towards nuclear power plants in Estonia](_blank)
/ref>
In popular culture
The 1999 film '' Screwed in Tallinn'' takes place at a hotel in Paldiski.
The 2002 film '' Lilya 4-ever'', set in an unnamed "former republic of the Soviet Union", was largely filmed in Paldiski.
The 2015 music video for Alan Walker
Alan Olav Walker (born 24 August 1997) is a British-born Norwegian music producer and DJ primarily known for the critically acclaimed single " Faded" (2015), which was certified platinum in 14 countries. He has also made several songs including ...
's popular song " Faded" was in part filmed in or around Paldiski.
Paldiski is featured in the video game ''Euro Truck Simulator 2
''Euro Truck Simulator 2'' is an open world
truck simulator game developed and published by SCS Software for Microsoft Windows, Linux, and macOS and was initially released as open development on 18 October 2012. The game is a direct sequel t ...
''.
YouTuber '' Bald and Bankrupt'' visited Paldiski in 2021 as part of his series on his adventures in Estonia.
The town and port feature prominently in Arthur Ransome
Arthur Michell Ransome (18 January 1884 – 3 June 1967) was an English author and journalist. He is best known for writing and illustrating the ''Swallows and Amazons'' series of children's books about the school-holiday adventures of childre ...
's yacht cruising memoir ''Racundra's First Cruise
''Racundra's First Cruise'' is the first book about sailing written by Arthur Ransome, author of the ''Swallows and Amazons'' series. It describes a trip he made across the Baltic Sea from Riga in Latvia to Helsinki in Finland and back in a 9 m ...
''['']Racundra's First Cruise
''Racundra's First Cruise'' is the first book about sailing written by Arthur Ransome, author of the ''Swallows and Amazons'' series. It describes a trip he made across the Baltic Sea from Riga in Latvia to Helsinki in Finland and back in a 9 m ...
'' by Arthur Ransome, 1923
Notable people
*Amandus Adamson
Amandus Heinrich Adamson (12 November 1855 in Uuga-Rätsepa, near Paldiski, Estonia, then Russian Empire — 26 June 1929 in Paldiski, Estonia) was an Estonian sculptor and painter.
Life
Born into a seafaring family, Adamson excelled in wood car ...
(1855–1929), Estonian sculptor and painter; lived and worked in Paldiski
* Balder Tomasberg (1897–1919), Estonian painter
*Viire Valdma
Viire Valdma (born 29 August 1960) is an Estonian stage, television and film actress.
Early life and education
Viire Valdma was born in the port town of Paldiski in Harju County. She has two sisters and a half-sister from her mother's second marr ...
(born 1960), Estonian actress
*Salawat Yulayev
Salawat Yulayev ( ba, Салауат Юлай-улы; russian: Салават Юлаев; 16 June 1756 – 8 October 1800) was a Bashkir national hero who participated in Pugachev's Rebellion, warrior, poet and singer.
Biography
Salawat Yula ...
(1754–1800), Bashkir national hero
Gallery
File:Pakri aerial.jpg, In this photo Paldiski can be seen located on the Pakri Peninsula
Pakri Peninsula extends from northwestern mainland Estonia's Harju County into the Baltic Sea. Its length is 12 km and its area is about 40 km2.
Portions of the peninsula were protected in 1998 as the Pakri Landscape Conservation Area on the b ...
File:Ulica w Paldiski.JPG, Street in Paldiski
File:Paldiski Lighthouse edit.jpg, Pakri Lighthouse
File:Православная церковь Палдиски.jpg, St Sergius Orthodox Church
File:Лютеранская церковь Палдиски.jpg, St. Nicholas Lutheran Church
File:Таможня Палдиски.jpg, Previously, the custom of Peter the Great (now café)
File:Скалистый берег Палдиски.jpg, Rocky shore near the town
File:Улица Тууле Палдиски.jpg, Tuule Street
File:Paldiski Northern Port, 2010-11.jpg, Northern Port
References
External links
{{Authority control
Cities and towns in Estonia
Former municipalities of Estonia
Lääne-Harju Parish
Populated places in Harju County
Populated coastal places in Estonia
Port cities and towns of the Baltic Sea
Russian and Soviet Navy bases
Planned cities
Russian and Soviet Navy submarine bases
Kreis Harrien
Port cities and towns in Estonia