The Duchy of Estonia (; ; ), also known as Swedish Estonia (), was a

dominion A dominion was any of several largely self-governance, self-governing countries of the British Empire, once known collectively as the ''British Commonwealth of Nations''. Progressing from colonies, their degrees of self-governing colony, colon ...

of the

Swedish Empire The Swedish Empire or the Great Power era () was the period in Swedish history spanning much of the 17th and early 18th centuries during which Sweden became a European great power that exercised territorial control over much of the Baltic regi ...

from 1561 until 1721 during the time that most or all of Estonia was under Swedish rule. The territory was eventually ceded to

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

in the Treaty of Nystad, following its capitulation during a plague outbreak in the

Great Northern War In the Great Northern War (1700–1721) a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern Europe, Northern, Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the ant ...

. The dominion arose during the

Livonian War The Livonian War (1558–1583) concerned control of Terra Mariana, Old Livonia (in the territory of present-day Estonia and Latvia). The Tsardom of Russia faced a varying coalition of the Denmark–Norway, Dano-Norwegian Realm, the Kingdom ...

, when the northern parts of present-day

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 ...

— Reval (Tallinn) and the counties of , , and — submitted to the Swedish king in 1561, and in 1581. It is also colloquially known as the "good old Swedish times" () by Estonians, but this expression was not used before the following Russian rule, in the beginning of which the situation of Estonian peasantry declined rapidly; to gain the support of the German

Baltic nobility The Baltic German nobility was a privileged social class in the territories of modern-day Estonia and Latvia. It existed continuously from the Northern Crusades and the medieval foundation of Terra Mariana. Most of the nobility consisted of Bal ...

, Russia gave them more power over the peasantry.

List of governors

Governors (1561–1674)

* (2 August 1561 – 27 February 1562) * Klas Horn (acting; August 1561) * Henrik Klasson Horn (1st time; 27 February 1562 – June 1562) * Svante Stensson Sture (30 June 1562 – 27 July 1564) * (1564–1565) * Henrik Klasson Horn (2nd time; 30 January 1565 – 1568) * (November 1568 – 1570) * (9 October 1570 – 1572) * Clas Åkesson Tott (6 November 1572 – 1574) * Pontus De la Gardie (4 June 1574 – December 1575) * (1st time; January 1576 – May 1578) * (acting; 19 April 1576 – 1577) * (1st time; 1 August 1577 – 1580) * (1580–1581) * Göran Boije (2nd time; 25 April 1582 – 1583) * Pontus De la Gardie (1583 – 5 November 1585) * (8 November 1585 – 1588) * Hans Wachtmeister (acting; July 1588 – 13 October 1588) * Gustaf Axelsson Banér (13 October 1588 – 1590) * (1590 – July 1592) * Göran Boije (3rd time; 1592 – June 1600) * Karl Henriksson Horn (2nd time, acting; 1600 – 30 January 1601) * (1601 – October 1602) * Nils Turesson Bielke (10 May 1605 – June 1605) * Axel Nilsson Ryning (1605–1608) * Gabriel Bengtsson Oxenstierna (1611–1617) * Anders Eriksson Hästehufvud (1617–1619) * Jakob De la Gardie (July 1619 – 1622) * Per Gustafsson Banér (1622 – January 1626) * (1626 – October 1628) * (1628 – 17 July 1642) * (26 July 1642 – 1646) * (9 September 1646 – 1653) * (1st time, acting; May 1653 – 16 August 1653) * (16 August 1653 – 1655) * Wilhelm von Ulrich (2nd time, acting; 1655 – August 1655) *

Bengt Skytte Bengt Skytte af Duderhof (1614–1683) was a Swedish courtier and diplomat. He was a follower of Comenius and proposed a Pansophism, pansophic city, "Sophopolis". Early life He was the son of Johan Skytte and Maria Näf (Neaf) and brother of Vend ...

(1655–1656) * Wilhelm von Ulrich (3rd time, acting; 1655– 2 August 1656) * (2 August 1656 – November 1674) * Wilhelm von Ulrich (4th time, acting; 1656–1659) * (acting; 1674)

Governors-General (1674–1728)

* Andreas Lennartson Torstensson (1674–1681) * Robert Johannson Lichton (April 1681 – 1687) * Nils Turesson Bielke (20 January 1687 – 19 April 1687) * Axel Julius De la Gardie (1687 – December 1704) * Wolmar Anton von Schlippenbach (December 1704 – 6 July 1706) * Niels Jonsson Stromberg af Clastorp (6 July 1706 – 23 October 1709) * Carl Nieroth (23 October 1709 – 10 October 1710)

References

Sources

*
Online encyclopedia – WorldStatesmen.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Estonia, Duchy Of (1561-1721) 1721 disestablishments in Europe States and territories established in 1561 Dominions of Sweden Duchy of Estonia (1561–1721) Estonia–Sweden relations 1560s establishments in Sweden 1561 establishments in Europe States and territories disestablished in 1721

List of governors

Governors (1561–1674)

Governors-General (1674–1728)

See also

References

Sources