Taking a Closer Look at the Castles and Forts in the Baltics

Photo: Peter and Paul Fortress Saint Petersburg, Russia

I love touring castles and fortresses. I don't care if they are 10, 100, or 1000 years old. I really don't even care about their current condition although it is a shame to see some of the dilapidated structures that were once grand defensive bastions.

One of the great things about living in St. Petersburg is that I have the opportunity to visit some wonderful historic sites and interesting castles. I recently returned from a 5-day trip that took me to Estonia, Latvia and the Pskov Region of Russia. We visited some amazing fortresses and castles built by many different cultures over the course of a couple millennia.

The Importance of Protecting Trade

During this recent adventure I was discussing the reasoning behind building such fortifications and why we see so many of these castles and fortresses in the Baltics. The top reasons are trade, raiding, and expansion. Trade routes in particular were significant in this area of the world because they connected the Varangians (often known a vikings, but meaning any Scandinavians) with civilizations as far south as Constantinople and Persia.
Varangian Trade Route Map. St. Petersburg is located just West of Ladoga on the map.

The red line travels from St. Petersburg to Ladoga and then down the Volga river all the way to the Caspian Sea. The purple lines follow river systems that lead to the Black Sea. The river systems that start right here in St. Petersburg were able to take these Northmen to the other side of Europe while along the way they raided, traded, and created settlements.

Of course, the natural response of the people of the Baltics, Novgorod, Kievan Rus, and others were to create fortifications that would repel raiders and invaders. For this reason there is a network of wonderful castles and fortresses throughout the St. Petersburg area and I will be spending this year exploring many of these historic treasures. Some are older than others and many have evolved to serve multiple purposes over time.

Photo: One of the forts of Kronstadt in the Gulf of Finland.

The Project

Each week I will feature and article and possibly a video of one fortress/castle or a group of them. We will discuss some their history, significance, and get some interesting facts from locals about each. Our photos and video should help bring these treasures to life for those of you that can't make the journey to see them on your own.

Our first stop next week on our tour will be the Peter and Paul Fortress located on the Neva River in the heart of St. Petersburg. Future stops will include Vyborg, Kronstadt, Narva, Tallinn, and Novgorod. I hope that you will join us.

Photo: The outer wall of the fort at Veliky (Great) Novgorod.

If you have a particular fortress/castle in mind that you'd like to see or hear about in our posts, send a comment and we will try to add it to the list.

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Photos: https://pixabay.com/

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