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Similar Viljandi Museum, Vastseliina Castle, Lake Viljandi, Koluvere Castle, Château de Tolsburg |
Viljandi castle
Viljandi castle (Estonian: Viljandi ordulinnus, German: Ordensburg Fellin) of Livonian Order, construction of which started 1224 in place of a former hillfort, was one of the strongest castles in Livonia. Finally destroyed in the Polish-Swedish wars in the early 17th century, ruins of it now form a popular resort area in Viljandi, Estonia.
Contents
![Viljandi Castle Viljandi Castle Wikipedia](https://alchetron.com/cdn/viljandi-castle-01660e3b-38c6-49d0-971f-7104bb67e09-resize-750.jpg)
History
![Viljandi Castle FileViljandi Castle and Town planjpeg Wikimedia Commons](https://alchetron.com/cdn/viljandi-castle-292660a1-6cb9-417d-b121-bf5240fc4e9-resize-750.jpg)
The crusaders of Sword Brethren conquered the hill fort at the place of later main castle in 1223. A year later, construction of stone fortifications started. Viljandi was chosen as the high seat of the order.
The convent house, a typical form of castle of Teutonic Knights, was erected in the late 13th – early 14th century. In the following centuries the castle was extended and fortified further. It was badly damaged in the Polish-Swedish wars in the early 17th century and not repaired any more. In the 18th century, the ruins were used for quarrying stones for construction work in Viljandi.
![Viljandi Castle httpsuploadwikimediaorgwikipediacommonsthu](https://alchetron.com/cdn/viljandi-castle-9a5bf1e1-7cee-4237-a4e6-16339bc5689-resize-750.jpg)
The first excavations in the castle were performed in 1878–1879. In recent decades, these have turned to almost yearly events.
Currently the ruins form a popular resort area just outside central Viljandi. An open-air stage is located in the former central courtyard.