Anton Õunapuu VR II/3 (7 November 1887 – 2 April 1919) was an

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

n PE teacher, soldier, and the founder of the

scouting movement Scouting or the Scout Movement is a youth movement which became popularly established in the first decade of the twentieth century. It follows the Scout method of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activities, includin ...

(Estonian: ''Eesti skaudiliikumine'') in Estonia.

Early life and work as a PE teacher

Anton Õunapuu was born as a son of a farmer near Vändra in 1887. He started his studies in Vaki Municipality School (1897–1901) and graduatuated from Vändra Parish School in 1903. Studied in the Gymnastics Institute of

University of Helsinki The University of Helsinki (, ; UH) is a public university in Helsinki, Finland. The university was founded in Turku in 1640 as the Royal Academy of Åbo under the Swedish Empire, and moved to Helsinki in 1828 under the sponsorship of Alexander ...

with the support of Estonian Sports Association Kalev. He graduated in 1913 and returned to

. From 1913 until 1918 he worked as a PE teacher in numerous schools in Tallinn, most notably in Tallinn Secondary School of Science (Tallinna Reaalkool) and in Tallinn Secondary School of Commerce (Tallinna Kommertskool). The first

Boy Scout A Scout, Boy Scout, Girl Scout or, in some countries, a Pathfinder is a participant in the Scout Movement, usually aged 10–18 years, who engage in learning scoutcraft and outdoor and other special interest activities. Some Scout organizatio ...

squads in

were formed during 1916 in these schools, mainly due to the work of Anton Õunapuu. From these squads the first Tallinn Troop of Boy Scouts was formed.

Before and during the Estonian War of Independence

In 1917 Õunapuu formed a Student

Home Guard Home guard is a title given to various military organizations at various times, with the implication of an emergency or reserve force raised for local defense. The term "home guard" was first officially used in the American Civil War, starting ...

Squad, which consisted of 340 of his students, of which 82 were boy scouts. Õunapuu's squad protected Estonian Salvation Committee on 24 February 1918 during the proclamation of Estonian Independence. During the German Occupation Õunapuu organized an underground squad of Estonian Defence League. On 16 December 1918 he was promoted to serve as the commander of the pioneer company of Kalevlaste Malev. He was wounded in the battle of Järveküla, near

Narva Narva is a municipality and city in Estonia. It is located in the Ida-Viru County, at the Extreme points of Estonia, eastern extreme point of Estonia, on the west bank of the Narva (river), Narva river which forms the Estonia–Russia border, E ...

Death

Anton Õunapuu fell in the battles for Petseri County on 2 April 1919. He was posthumously awarded Cross of Liberty (Grade II, Class 3) - "For Personal Courage". He was buried to Vändra Cemetery on 9 April 1919.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ounapuu, Anton 1887 births 1919 deaths People from Vändra People from Kreis Pernau Estonian schoolteachers 20th-century Estonian educators Scouting and Guiding in Estonia University of Helsinki alumni Estonian military personnel of the Estonian War of Independence Recipients of the Cross of Liberty (Estonia)