Friday 19 June 2015

Military History Photo Friday: The Medieval Walls of Tallinn, Estonia


In keeping with the theme of this week's Travel Tuesday post about Tallinn, here are some shots of Tallinn's medieval fortifications. The old city in Estonia's capital is ringed by a 14th century wall strengthened by several towers. Large stretches of it are open to the public.

Above you can see the wall from the back, where the catwalk is open to view. The wooden hoardings are, of course, modern. Hoardings were usually temporary structures put in when there was a threat of siege. Given the conditions in Tallinn, however, I bet the sentries wanted a little extra protection not from arrows, but the elements, and kept them up all the time.


Here's what it's like walking along it. Not as sheltered as I would like! Jump the cut for more photos.




A view from outside. As you can see I went in the dead of winter. I actually preferred to go at this time because the snow made everything beautiful (although the gray skies made for bad photos) and I often had the museums and sights almost to myself.



Strolling through the Old City. I have to get back for another winter!

1 comment:

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

The snow adds to the magical setting.

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