Harku (german: Hark) is a small borough ( et, alevik) in Harku Parish,

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 ...

, 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 ...

. As of 2011 Census, the settlement's population was 868, of which the

Estonians Estonians or Estonian people ( et, eestlased) are a Finnic ethnic group native to Estonia who speak the Estonian language. The Estonian language is spoken as the first language by the vast majority of Estonians; it is closely related to oth ...

were 539 (62.1%). Harku was first mentioned probably in 1242 as ''Harkua''. The only women's prison in Estonia

Harku Prison Harku Prison ( et, Harku vangla) was an Estonian prison. The prison was located in Harku, Harju County. The prison was established in 1926. 1965 the prison was adapted to women's prison. 2011 Harku Prison was merged to Murru Prison. 2016 Ha ...

is located in Harku. Politician

Edgar Savisaar Edgar Savisaar (31 May 1950 – 29 December 2022) was an Estonian politician, one of the founding members of Popular Front of Estonia and the Centre Party. He served as the acting Prime Minister of Estonia, Minister of the Interior, Ministe ...

(1950–2022) was born in the prison.

Harku manor

Harku manor (german: Hark) was founded in 1372 by the

Teutonic Order The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians on ...

. In 1583 it became a private property and was subsequently owned by several

Baltic German Baltic Germans (german: Deutsch-Balten or , later ) were ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their coerced resettlement in 1939, Baltic Germans have markedly declined ...

families from the

Baltic nobility Baltic German nobility was a privileged social class in the territories of today's Estonia and Latvia. It existed continuously since the Northern Crusades and the medieval foundation of Terra Mariana. Most of the nobility were Baltic Germans, bu ...

. Following the

Estonian Declaration of Independence __NOTOC__ The Estonian Declaration of Independence, also known as the Manifesto to the Peoples of Estonia ( et, Manifest Eestimaa rahvastele), is the founding act of the Republic of Estonia from 1918. It is celebrated on 24 February, the Nation ...

, it was taken over by the state and used as a youth prison until the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. Following the war the main building befell what is today known as the

Estonian Agricultural University The Estonian University of Life Sciences (Estonian: ''Eesti Maaülikool'', EMÜ) located in Tartu, Estonia, is the former Estonian Agricultural University, which was established in 1951 and renamed and restructured in November 2005. Eesti Maaül ...

. The main building that we see today dates from the 18th century and has been rebuilt several times. It received its present external look during a reconstruction in 1875. The

Capitulation of Estonia and Livonia With the Capitulation of Estonia and Livonia in 1710 the Swedish dominions Estonia and Livonia were integrated into the Russian EmpireLuts (2006), p. 159 following their conquest during the Great Northern War.Frost (2000), p. 294 The Livonia ...

during the

Great Northern War The Great Northern War (1700–1721) was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swed ...

was negotiated in the manor (1710).

References

External links

Harku Parish
{{Boroughs of Estonia Boroughs and small boroughs in Estonia Kreis Harrien