Võidupüha (or Victory Day in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

or the Victory Day in the Battle of Võnnu in

Estonian Estonian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Estonia, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe * Estonians, people from Estonia, or of Estonian descent * Estonian language * Estonian cuisine * Estonian culture See also

...

) is a public holiday in Estonia which occurs on June 23. The holiday has been celebrated since 1934 and marks the victory of

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 ...

and neighboring

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

in the Battle of Cēsis against the

Baltische Landeswehr The Baltic Landwehr or ("Baltic Territorial Army") was the name of the unified armed forces of Couronian and Livonian nobility from 7 December 1918 to 3 July 1919. Command structure The Landeswehr was subordinated to the German VI Re ...

on June 23, 1919.

History

The battle was part of the 1918–1920 Estonian Liberation War of Independence, in which the new Estonian government fought the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

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 ...

and the ''

'', which consisted of

Baltic German Baltic Germans ( or , later ) are Germans, ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since Flight and expulsion of Germans (1944–1950), their resettlement in 1945 after the end ...

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

from

Courland Courland is one of the Historical Latvian Lands in western Latvia. Courland's largest city is Liepāja, which is the third largest city in Latvia. The regions of Semigallia and Selonia are sometimes considered as part of Courland as they were ...

and the

Governorate of Livonia The Governorate of Livonia, also known as the Livonia Governorate, was a province (''guberniya'') and one of the Baltic governorates of the Russian Empire, Baltic Governorate-General until 1876. Governorate of Livonia bordered Governorate of E ...

who served the

German Empire The German Empire (),; ; World Book, Inc. ''The World Book dictionary, Volume 1''. World Book, Inc., 2003. p. 572. States that Deutsches Reich translates as "German Realm" and was a former official name of Germany. also referred to as Imperia ...

and aimed to establish the

United Baltic Duchy The United Baltic Duchy (; ; ), or alternatively the Grand Duchy of Livonia, was the name of a short-lived state during World War I that was proclaimed by leaders of the local Baltic German nobility. The attempt to establish a new client state ...

. After the fighting began On 19 June, the combined force of the 3rd Division, the Kuperjanov Infantry Partisian Battalion and the Latvian Northern Brigade held out for reinforcements arriving on 21 June despite the fact that they did not have the advantage when it came to weaponry (German troops had 5,500–6,300 infantry, 500–600 cavalry as well as a high number of

cannon A cannon is a large-caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder during th ...

s and mortars). On 23 June, after pushing back the last of the German attacks, the combined contingent staged a large counter-attack which resulted in the recapture of

Cēsis Cēsis (; (, , , ) is a town in Latvia located in the northern part of the Central Vidzeme Upland. Cēsis is on the Gauja River valley, and is built on a series of ridges above the river, overlooking the woods below. Cēsis was selected to b ...

(Võnnu in Estonian). After this event, Major General

Ernst Põdder Ernst-Johannes Põdder VR I/1 (10 February 1879 – 24 June 1932) was an Estonian military commander in the 1918–1920 Estonian War of Independence. In 1900, Põdder graduated from the Vilnius Military Academy. In the Russo-Japanese war he a ...

ordered his command of the day, "the victories won over our stagnant and surrendered enemy, in cities and in the countryside, flags and armed units in the local garrisons were set up." On 16 February 1934, the

Riigikogu The Riigikogu (, from Estonian ''riigi-'', "of the state", and ''kogu'', "assembly") is the unicameral parliament of Estonia. In addition to approving legislation, the Parliament appoints high officials, including the prime minister and chi ...

decided to turn the 23 of June into a national holiday. The holiday was banned by the new Soviet authorities in Estonia after the

USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

re-established Soviet rule over Estonia in 1944. It was also banned by the previous

German occupation of Estonia during World War II In the course of Operation Barbarossa, Nazi Germany invaded Estonia in July–December 1941, and occupied the country until 1944. Estonia had gained Estonian War of Independence, independence in 1918 from the then-warring German Empire, German ...

. It became legal to celebrate Võidupüha again after Estonia regained its independence. The first celebrations of the holiday took place in 1992, in the yard of

Kadriorg Palace Kadriorg Palace (, ) is an 18th-century Petrine Baroque palace in Kadriorg, Tallinn, the capital of Estonia. Both the Estonian and the German names for the palace mean "Catherine's valley". It was built in 1718–1725 to Nicola Michetti's desi ...

Observances

Joint celebrations are observed by both the

Estonian Defence Forces The Estonian Defence Forces () is the unified military force of the Republic of Estonia. The Estonian Defence Forces consists of the Estonian Land Forces, the Estonian Navy, the Estonian Air Force, and the paramilitary Estonian Defence Leagu ...

and the

Latvian National Armed Forces The Latvian National Armed Forces (), or NBS, are the armed forces of Latvia. Latvia's defense concept is based on a mobile, professional rapid response force and a reserve segment that can be called upon relatively fast for mobilization should t ...

being that it was a joint victory between the two countries. Despite this, Estonia celebrates Victory Day more as a national holiday and event unlike their Latvian counterparts. Celebrations of Võidupüha has been organized by the

Estonian Defence League The Estonian Defence League (, 'Defence League') is a voluntary paramilitary national defence organization of the Republic of Estonia, under management of the Ministry of Defence. Its aim is to guarantee the preservation of the independence and s ...

since 2000. Ceremonially, the holiday is also tied to St John's Day (''Jaaniõhtu'') on June 24, celebrating the summer solstice observances and the

Nativity of Saint John the Baptist Nativity or The Nativity may refer to: Birth of Jesus Christ * Nativity of Jesus, the Gospel stories of the birth of Jesus Christ * Nativity of Jesus in art, any depiction of the nativity scene ** ''Nativity'' (Barocci), a 1597 painting by Fede ...

. The traditional lighting of a fire by the Estonian President on the morning of Victory Day was restored after the

Soviet occupation During World War II, the Soviet Union occupied and annexed several countries effectively handed over by Nazi Germany in the secret Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of 1939. These included the eastern regions of Poland (incorporated into three differe ...

. From this fire, the flame of independence would be carried across the country to light the many other bonfires in other cities. By Estonian laws, all

national symbols A national symbol is a manifestation of a nation or community, serving as a representation of their National identity, identity and values. National symbols may be not only applied to sovereign states but also nations and countries in a state of ...

must be present, which requires that the state flags are not to be lowered on any government buildings during the night that passes between these two days. Annual

military parades A military parade is a formation of military personnels whose movement is restricted by close-order manoeuvering known as drilling or marching. Large military parades are today held on major holidays and military events around the world. Mass ...

have taken place in honor of Võidupüha in different cities of Estonia, with the

President of Estonia The president of the Republic of Estonia () is the head of state of the Estonia, Republic of Estonia. The current president is Alar Karis, elected by Parliament on 31 August 2021, replacing Kersti Kaljulaid. Estonia is one of the few parliam ...

presiding over the event as Honorary Commander-in-Chief of the Defense Forces.

References

{{Reflist Public holidays in Estonia Victory days