Freedom Square () is a plaza on the southern end of the Old Town in

Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...

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 ...

, where state functions and various concerts take place. It is bounded on the east by St. John's Church (built 1862–67), on the south by Kaarli Boulevard and an underground shopping center (2008–09), and on the west by a

Victory Column A victory column, or monumental column or triumphal column, is a monument in the form of a column, erected in memory of a heroic commemoration, including victorious battle, war, or revolution. The column typically stands on a base and is crowned ...

(2009) commemorating the

Estonian War of Independence The Estonian War of Independence, also known as the War of Freedom in Estonia, was a defensive campaign of the Estonian Army and its allies, most notably the United Kingdom, against the Soviet Russian westward offensive of 1918–1919 and the ...

1918–1920.

Design

The current design was created by the architects

Tiit Trummal Tiit Trummal (born 18 July 1954 in Tartu) is a notable Estonian architect. Tiit Trummal graduated from the 2nd Secondary School of Tartu (today's Miina Härma Gymnasium). From 1972 he studied in the State Art Institute of the Estonian SSR (today ...

, Veljo Kaasik, and

Andres Alver Andres Alver (born 23 December 1953) is an Estonian architect. Born in Tartu, from 1961 to 1972, Alver studied in the 2nd Secondary School of Tartu (today's Miina Härma Gymnasium). From 1972, Alver studied in the State Art Institute of the Esto ...

. Before 2010, it was a parking lot. It has an area of and measures approximately .

Nearby places

* War of Independence Victory Column *

St. John's Church, Tallinn St. John's Church () is a large Lutheran parish church in Tallinn, Estonia. It is dedicated to John the Evangelist, Saint John the Evangelist, a disciple of Jesus Christ and author of the fourth Christian Gospel. Construction began in 1862, and th ...

* Palace Hotel *

Georg Ots Tallinn Music College Georg Ots Music School of Tallinn () was a music school in Tallinn, 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 t ...

* Russian Theatre *

Tallinn City Government Tallinn City Government () is the executive body, which conducts the work of all institutions (except City Council Office) and subinstitutions of Tallinn, Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. ...

Building * Tallinn Art Hall * Estonian Artists' Association *

Estonian Centre for Contemporary Art Estonian Centre for Contemporary Art (abbreviation CCA; ) is a non-profit expert institution, which via international projects activates and develops Estonian contemporary art scene. CCA office is located in Tallinn. It accommodates an archive of ...

History

Pre-republic

The square arose on the site of the Swedish bastion in front of the Harju Gate, which was demolished in the middle of the 19th century. In 1867, the St. John's Church was erected on the square. In 1910, the Haymarket was liquidated on the square, and the square was paved with stones. On the 200th anniversary of the capture of the city by the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

, a monument to Peter I was erected on the square, which was dismantled on 1 May 1922.

First Republic

In 1935, the area of the square was expanded. The boulevards were relocated and almost 2,500 square meters of new space was built under the square.

Soviet era

On 29 April 1941, Freedom Square was named to ''Victory'' Square after the beginning

Soviet occupation of Estonia The Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, (abbreviated Estonian SSR, Soviet Estonia, or simply Estonia ) was an administrative subunit ( union republic) of the former Soviet Union (USSR), covering the occupied and annexed territory of Estonia ...

. In the autumn of 1941, after the arrival of the German

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

, the name of Freedom Square was restored. On 22 September 1944, the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

entered Tallinn and by 1948, it was reverted to Victory Square. During the Soviet period, Freedom Square was known as the Victory Square (). In the USSR, the square hosted parades in honor of holidays like

Victory Day Victory Day is a commonly used name for public holidays in various countries, where it commemorates a nation's triumph over a hostile force in a war or the liberation of a country from hostile occupation. In many cases, multiple countries may ob ...

, the

October Revolution The October Revolution, also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution (in Historiography in the Soviet Union, Soviet historiography), October coup, Bolshevik coup, or Bolshevik revolution, was the second of Russian Revolution, two r ...

, and before 1969,

International Workers' Day International Workers' Day, also called Labour Day in some countries and often referred to as May Day, is a celebration of Wage labour, labourers and the working classes that is promoted by the international labour movement and occurs every yea ...

Modern Freedom Square

The Cross of Liberty and the Monument to the War of Independence was opened on 23 June 2009 as a memorial for those who fell during the

Gallery

Freedom_square_Tallinn.jpg, Postcard image of Freedom Square from 1900 Tallinn24Feb1919.jpg, The first celebration of Estonian Independence Day in 1919 Bundesarchiv Bild 146-2004-231, Reval, Freiheitsplatz.jpg, During the German occupation in 1943 Vabadusemyyrid.JPG,

Archaeological excavation In archaeology, excavation is the exposure, processing and recording of archaeological remains. An excavation site or "dig" is the area being studied. These locations range from one to several areas at a time during a project and can be condu ...

, June 2008 Vabaduse väljak,sept2008.JPG, The reconstruction process in 2008 Vabaduse väljaku väljakaevamine.jpg, Moat in July 2008 Independence War Victory Column.JPG,

Independence War Victory Column The Cross of Liberty and the Monument to the War of Independence () is located in Freedom Square, Tallinn, Estonia. It was opened on 23 June 2009 as a memorial for those who fell during the Estonian War of Independence, through which the peopl ...

Freedom Square (Tallinn 2014).JPG, Freedom Square in 2014 Tallinn asv2022-04 img13 StJohn Church.jpg, St. John's Church on the eastern side of the square Tallinn City Office, roof.JPG, Tallinn City Office on the southern side of the square

References

{{Coord, 59, 26, 1.52, N, 24, 44, 38.89, E, type:landmark_region:EE, display=title Squares in Tallinn