The Varbola Stronghold ( la, Castrum Warbole, et, Varbola Jaanilinn) was the largest

circular rampart A circular rampart (German: ''Ringwall'') is an embankment built in the shape of a circle that was used as part of the defences for a military fortification, hill fort or refuge, or was built for religious purposes or as a place of gathering. The ...

fortress A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

and trading centre built in

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 ...

, in

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 sou ...

( la, Harria) in the 10th – 12th centuries. Parts of the ruins of the long and high limestone wall of the fortress stand to this day. The long gateways with multiple gates were built to defend the entrances. In these sections higher defensive towers were erected. There was a deep well in the middle of the fortress and the territory held about 90 structures with

furnace A furnace is a structure in which heat is produced with the help of combustion. Furnace may also refer to: Appliances Buildings * Furnace (central heating): a furnace , or a heater or boiler , used to generate heat for buildings * Boiler, used t ...

s for accommodation built with limestone floors and foundations.Varbola at guide to Estonia
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History

First mention

Henry of Livonia Henry of Latvia ( la, Henricus de Lettis, german: Heinrich von Lettland, lv, Latviešu Indriķis, et, Läti Henrik; 1187 – after 1259), also known in the English-speaking world as Henry of Livonia, was a priest, missionary and historian. ...

mentions the Castrum Warbole being besieged in 1211 for several days by

Mstislav the Bold Mstislav Mstislavich the Daring (russian: Мстисла́в II Мстисла́вич Удатный, uk, Мстислав Мстиславич Удатний, translit=Mstyslav Mstyslavych Udatnyi; died c. 1228) prince of Tmutarakan and Chern ...

Novgorod Veliky Novgorod ( rus, links=no, Великий Новгород, t=Great Newtown, p=vʲɪˈlʲikʲɪj ˈnovɡərət), also known as just Novgorod (), is the largest city and administrative centre of Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It is one of the ol ...

. The conflict was resolved with a payment of seven hundred

Marks Marks may refer to: Business * Mark's, a Canadian retail chain * Marks & Spencer, a British retail chain * Collective trade marks, trademarks owned by an organisation for the benefit of its members * Marks & Co, the inspiration for the novel ...

Danish rule

During the

Livonian crusade The Livonian crusade refers to the various military Christianisation campaigns in medieval Livonia – in what is now Latvia and Estonia – during the Papal -sanctioned Northern Crusades in the 12–13th century. The Livonian crusade was cond ...

Livonian Brothers of the Sword german: Schwertbrüderordenfrench: Ordre des Chevaliers Porte-Glaive , image= , caption= , dates=1204–1237 , country= Terra Mariana , allegiance= Catholic Church , garrison= Wenden (Cēsis), Fellin (Viljandi), Segewold (Sigulda). Aschera ...

invaded the territory and the people from Varbola asked for the terms of peace. The terms offered by

Volquin Volkwin von Naumburg zu Winterstätten (also ''Wolquin, Folkwin, Folkvin, Wolguinus, Wolgulin'', Middle High German: ''Volkewîn''; died 22 September 1236) was the Master (''Herrenmeister'') of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword from 1209 to 123 ...

, the Master of the

were: accepting

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

and giving hostages. The proposal was accepted by Varbolians. The hostages were freed at the request of the envoys of the Danish king

Valdemar II Valdemar (28 June 1170 – 28 March 1241), later remembered as Valdemar the Victorious (), was the King of Denmark (being Valdemar II) from 1202 until his death in 1241. Background He was the second son of King Valdemar I of Denmark and Sophi ...

who had taken control over Northern Estonia. They asked that the hostages be turned over to them, as part of Estonia already belonged to the king of Denmark since it was promised by the bishops of Livonia. Master Volquin, unaware of the promise, honored the king of Denmark and the request under condition ''that the rights of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword shall not be diminished thereby'' and returned the hostages to their fathers. Thereafter the people of Varbola became the subjects of the King of Denmark. On the basis of the

Danish Census Book The Danish Census Book or the Danish book of land taxation ( la, Liber Census Daniæ), ( da, Kong Valdemars Jordebog) dates from the 13th century and consists of a number of separate manuscripts. The original manuscripts are now housed in the Da ...

( la, Liber Census Daniae) the estate surrounding the Varbola trading center remained a possession of the Lode family, nobility of Estonian origin at the time. The Danish king and his son Knut owned parts of the Lohu stronghold area, and the entire Keava stronghold area in Harju County.

Decline in 14th century

The Varbola stronghold lost its importance only in the second quarter of the 14th century, after having played in important part in the anti-Christian and anti-German St. George's Night Uprising of 1343.Vahtre, Sulev (ed.). 1960. ''Bartholomäus Hoeneke: Liivimaa noorem riimkroonika''. Tallinn: Eesti Riiklik Kirjastus.

Later history

In the 16th and 17th centuries, the stronghold was used as a cemetery. The first known fort plan dates from 1786 and was drawn by Ludwig August von Mellin. Archaeological excavations at the site have been undertaken in 1938–41, 1953 and 1974. Among the archaeological finds were

dice Dice (singular die or dice) are small, throwable objects with marked sides that can rest in multiple positions. They are used for generating random values, commonly as part of tabletop games, including dice games, board games, role-playing g ...

made of bone.

References

External links

{{Commons category, Varbola hill fort Livonian Crusade Castles in Estonia Märjamaa Parish Buildings and structures in Rapla County Ruined castles in Estonia Tourist attractions in Rapla County