Lennuk Vol 1 No 8 - British Estonian Association

Lennuk Vol 2 No 5_Lennuk Vol 1 No 8 25/02/2010 12:48 Page 1
LENNUK
Journal of the British Estonian
Association
Volume 2 Number 5 Spring 2010 ISSN 1744-5744
Lennuk Vol 2 No 5_Lennuk Vol 1 No 8 25/02/2010 12:49 Page 2
Lennuk Vol 2 No 5_Lennuk Vol 1 No 8 25/02/2010 12:49 Page 1
Photographs
Front cover: Raekoja plats, Tallinn, November
2009. Photograph by the editor.
Other photographs in this edition have been
kindly provided by the Estonian Embassy,
the authors themselves, or were drawn
from the editor’s own files.
In this issue
Editorial
3
Letter to the Editor
4
Recent meetings of BEST: Angus Murray
4
BEST Website
www.britishestonianassociation.co.uk
Education and Research: Tõnis Lukas
6
Honorary President of BEST
The R.H. Charles Clarke MP
The Estonian Guild in London: Heleri Rande
10
SmartPOST: The Editor
11
LENNUK is the journal of the British
Estonian Association (BEST) which
was founded in 2002. It is published twice
per year and is sent to BEST members free
of charge.
BEST Committee members
Neil Taylor (Chairman)
Gwyn Davies (retiring Editor of Lennuk)
Tina Tamman (new Editor of Lennuk)
Elisabeth Tamm (Estonian Embassy)
Maris Hakman (Treasurer)
Ann Alari
John Beevor
Denis Filby
Katrin Legrain
Tonia Markus
Angus Murray
Editor of LENNUK
Gwyn Davies, to be succeeded by Tina
Tamman
BEST membership fees
Ordinary £25.00
Household £25.00
Sustaining £50.00
Corporate from £250.00
Application forms for membership may be
obtained from BEST, c/o the Estonian
Embassy, 16 Hyde Park Gate, London SW7
5DG. Membership fees may be paid by
cheque, (payable to BEST), and sent to the
above address or remitted electronically to
the BEST account: Barclays Bank, sort code
20-20-15, account number 90083895.
Advertising
Advertising is accepted at the discretion of the
Editor and is charged at the following rates:
Whole page £90.00
Half page £50.00
Quarter page £30.00
Contributions to LENNUK
The Editor welcomes contributions from
BEST members and from others who have
an interest in UK-Estonian affairs.
Please contact:
Tina Tamman
Editor of LENNUK
c/o The Estonian Embassy
16 Hyde Park Gate
London SW7 5DG
or directly by email:
[email protected]
Disclaimer
Views expressed in LENNUK are those of
the writers and not necessarily those of
either the Editor or of the British Estonian
Association
Estonia and the Paris Peace Conference of 1919:
Charlotte Alston
14
A Meeting with Vello Mäss: The Editor
17
Sub’s Wartime Grave Discovered: James Landale
22
The Re-emergence of National Cultures Following
Independence in the Baltic States: Charles de Chassiron
24
Windows on Estonia: Denis Filby
30
Welcome (again) to Estonia: Neil Taylor
35
Joey Dunlop OBE: The Editor
36
British Visitors to Tallinn in the Interwar Years: Ian Thomson
37
Detsembrikuumus: The Editor
43
Uprising of 1st December 1924: Dr Hannes Walter
43
Book Review: A Moth on the Fence: The Editor
50
Book Review: Mary Tamm Autobiography: The Editor
52
Outside In Book Reviews: Neil Taylor
54
A Little Lake Music: Dennis Filby
56
From Tartu to Bury St Edmunds: a musical bridge:
Michael Akehurst
59
Eesti leib (Estonian bread): The Editor
60
Michael Parks: The Editor
62
Charles Leroux: The Editor
63
An alternative valediction from the Editor
64
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Editorial
Welcome to the 15th edition of LENNUK
Historical issues are considered in the articles on Estonia and the Paris Peace Conference
of 1919 by Charlotte Alston, and in December 1st 1924, (the date of the attempted
uprising in Tallinn), by the late Hannes Walter; the reproduction of Walter’s article is
considered timely given that the film Detsembrikuumus (December Heat), set against the
background of the events of that day in 1924, was put forward for a 2010 Academy
Award (by the Estonian nomination committee).
Vello Mäss, Estonia’s distinguished marine archaeologist estimates that many
thousands of ships have foundered off the Estonian coast. He reveals to LENNUK
readers some of his most significant seabed investigations, many of which have a
British connection. He also discusses development plans for the Tallinn lennusadam
complex, plans timed to coincide with Tallinn’s reign as European Capital of
Culture in 2011.
Ian Thomson engagingly describes the visits of eminent British citizens to Tallinn in
the interwar period, whilst the re-emergence of national cultures in the three Baltic
states since the restoration of their independence in 1991 is the theme of a paper by
Charles de Chassiron.
Unsurprisingly, Tõnis Lukas, the Estonian Minister of Education and Research
preferred to look ahead (rather than back) in a keynote paper he gave to an
education conference in Cambridge. He is confident that the nation’s educational
successes together with that of its cutting-edge IT applications will provide Estonia
with the competitive advantage which it seeks. He might well have had SmartPOST
in mind; how many readers would approve if this Estonian-developed, parcel
delivery system were to be introduced to the UK? Perhaps the new and vibrant
Estonian Guild in London might help bring that about. Heleri Rande gives an insight
into the Guild’s aims and activities.
Neil Taylor describes BEST members as “Estonia addicts”; he is clearly looking
beyond them in assessing Estonia’s future prospects as a tourist destination after the
economic tribulations of 2008/2009. Denis Filby has no doubts about the potential
of Estonia’s diverse photogenic attractions, for tourists and addicts alike!
Denis also brings to readers’ attention the Leigo summer music featival near
Otepää, (I can vouch for its unique character), whilst Mike Akehurst invites
LENNUK readers to a choral concert in East Anglia at the end of March. His choir,
the St Edmunsbury Male Voice Choir, who participated in the XXV Laulupidu, will
be performing with the Emajõe laulikud from Tartu.
Of the five books reviewed in this edition of LENNUK, the three considered by
Neil Taylor are the works of non-Estonian authors who reflect on how Estonia and
Estonians have changed since the heady days of the early 1990s. The other two books
are autobiographies by Mary Tamm (of Dr Who fame), and by Nikolaj Andreyev,
until his retirement a Reader in Russian Studies at Cambridge University. The
Andreyev book, in particular, is highly recommended! A sixth book, Eesti leib,
(Estonian bread) published by the Estonian Association of Bakeries, is sadly not on
general sale; nevertheless, four of its recipes are shared with readers. Would anyone
care to try them and report back to the new editor of LENNUK?
Yes, after the fun (and hard work) of editing the last nine editions of LENNUK I am
passing on the editorial baton to the very capable hands of Tina Tamman. Already
well known to BEST members and readers of LENNUK, Tina was a Senior Editor at
BBC Monitoring and has just completed her PhD on the life and times of August
Torma. I know that she shares my enthusiasm for LENNUK and am confident that
she will take it to new heights! I wish her good fortune in this endeavour as, I am
sure, do you.
Gwyn Davies, Editor
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The Estonian Guild in London
Heleri Rande
Citigroup, London
T
he Estonian Guild in London is a newly formed
society, bringing together all the active people
originally from Estonia in the great city of
London. The guild, founded by Sten Saar and Kalle
Kadakas, has been active since November 2009 and has
put on three great and highly successful events thus far.
The goal is to meet regularly, to exchange
information, experiences and contacts, and to
encourage and help fellow countrymen who wish to
become active in business in the United Kingdom.
At the moment, there are six individuals who are
heading this endeavor with full support from the
Estonian Embassy in London and Enterprise Estonia in
London.
Sten Saar, who was one of the founders, and Heleri
Heleri and Sten
Rande, who joined the core group after the first event,
have taken on the organization of the monthly events.
Sten (23) is an entrepreneur who invented the product Valemivihik that has become a major success in
Estonia. He moved to London to find new business ventures and challenge himself in a different
environment.
Heleri (25) is currently working as an finance analyst at Citigroup; she lived and studied in New York
prior to relocating to London. She was also an active member of the Estonian Educational Society in NYC.
Heleri and Sten both feel that this venture is worth pursuing since it provides an opportunity to meet
new people, exchange ideas and even find business partners here in the UK.
Since Estonia is a small nation of only 1.3 million people, meeting up with fellow countrymen once a
month has its own added value. The feedback from people who have attended the events has been very
positive, which only goes to show that this kind of association is necessary and really serves a purpose in
the eyes of the local Estonians here in London.
The next event is taking place on February
22nd. It will be in the form of a fundraiser to
collect money for the production of a play by a
famous Estonian playwright, Jaan Tätte. This
will be the first time the guild has organized a
cultural soiree, the previous events have had
more of a networking and informational
nature. This evening is open to all and since it
will be in both languages, friends of Estonians
are welcome as well!
The Estonian Guild in London has its
own webpage http://gild.edicypages.com/, and
you can contact the organization at
At a recent gathering of Guild members
[email protected]
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Smart POST
From Estonia the new, self service,
high technology world of Parcel Post
The Editor
The article was prepared after a demonstration of the SmartPOST
system to the Editor at the Pirita Selver SmartPOST terminal in
Tallinn by Indrek Oolup, CEO, SmartPOST Ltd.
arrive home to discover a ‘failed
delivery’ card from the Royal Mail or
courier company together with an
invitation to rearrange the delivery,
visit the courier depot, or attend the
postal sorting office during restricted
opening hours. To make matters
worse, you face having to join a
queue.
How often has this happened to you?
In the UK, at the end of 2009, the
problem was made even more
uncertain as postal strikes interfered
with delivery schedules. Many courier
services who employ the Royal Mail ‘to
cover the last mile’ of deliveries to an
addressee’s front door were similarly
affected.
Indrek Oolup, CEO, SmartPOST Ltd
Is there not a more convenient, secure,
reliable and even cheaper way of
transporting packages and parcels to a
customer?
SO, YOU HAVE BOUGHT SOMETHING
over the internet or by mail order,
and that ‘something’ is too large to
fit through your letter box. A
signature may also be required on
delivery. You therefore need to be at
home on the anticipated delivery
date.
This may entail making
complex personal arrangements or
taking time off from work; even then
the ‘something’ may not arrive on
schedule!
For many Estonians,
certainly is!
there
most
It takes the name Delivery Point
Solution (DPS) by SmartPOST who
describe their system as a “high
technology, self-service alternative to
regular post offices and courier
services”.
In practice, you collect your package or
parcel from a SmartPOST terminal in
your local supermarket or shopping
If you cannot be there to receive the
package or parcel you will instead
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Having gone to the terminal, at a time
which you deem convenient, you
identify yourself as the receiver of a
package or parcel, using the touch
screen, and enter the collection code.
At this point, one of the doors in the
vertical array of red lockers swings
open and the package or parcel can be
retrieved. If delivery is undertaken on a
Cash on Delivery (COD) basis, credit
card payment must be made using the
terminal’s payment facility before
collection. Your shopping probably
then already completed, you can return
to your car and head for home.
SmartPOST Parcel Terminal
mall during its opening hours and,
when it is convenient for you. (Not only
that, but you can also use the terminal
to send packages and parcels, as you
will learn!)
The largest SmartPOST terminal, in
Lasnamäe Centrum shopping centre,
has 198 parcel lockers and is 17 metres
long.
How does it work in practice?
When internet shopping or buying by
mail order you can usually elect to
employ the SmartPOST system; (more
than 100 internet and mail order
retailers in Estonia offer this facility).
Once you have done this, you choose
the SmartPOST terminal location at
which you wish to collect your
purchase. There are 36 such terminals
in Estonia.
SmartPOST is even more versatile and
smarter than this, however. Not only
can you receive packages and parcels
but you can also send them to
SmartPOST terminals elsewhere in
Estonia. (Very recently SmartPOST
reached an agreement with the
Finnish Post Office enabling packages
and parcels to be sent from Estonia to
Finland, and vice versa. In the case,of
delivery to Finland, however, the
destination is either a named post
office or the recipient’s address; the
latter option attracts a higher
charge).
Of these, 11 are in Tallinn and 2
elsewhere in Harjumaa (Laagri and
Keila), 1 in Hiiumaa (Kärdla), 3 in IdaVirumaa, (Jõhvi, Kohtla-Järve and
Narva), 2 in Jõgevamaa (Jõgeva and
Põltsamaa), 1 each in Järvamaa (Paide),
Läänemaa (Uuemõisa), Lääne-Virumaa
(Rakvere), and Põlvamaa (Põlva), 3 in
Pärnu, 1 in Raplamaa (Rapla), 2 in
Saaremaa (Kuressaare), 4 in Tartu and
1
each
in
Valgamaa
(Valga),
Viljandimaa (Viljandi) and Võrumaa
(Võru).
Your mobile telephone number also
has to be advised to the vendor.
SmartPOST Parcel Terminals cater for four different
parcel sizes for outgoing mail
You are notified of the package or
parcel’s arrival at your chosen
SmartPOST terminal by a call to your
mobile phone, and you are given a
unique, collection code.
To send a package or parcel by
SmartPOST the procedure is very
similar to that for receipt, except that
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the sender must also determine the
size of the package or parcel: (1) up to
12x60x60 cm; (2) up to 20x60x60 cm;
(3) up to 38x60x60 cm; or (4) up to
60x60x60 cm. These correspond to
the different locker sizes. The weight
of any package must not exceed 25kg;
packages and parcels are not
individually weighed, thus saving
time
and
avoiding
potential
problems.
elsewhere, next day delivery to most
of the mainland receiving terminals
being achieved by about 13:00h in
Tallinn and about 17:00h elsewhere.
Delivery to Saaremaa and Hiiumaa
takes
longer.
Collections
from
mainland terminals are made on 6
days each week, (not on Sundays or on
national holidays).
Procedures for picking up the packages
or parcels at the designated terminals
are as described earlier.
SmartPOST OÜ, a logistics company,
was founded in 2006 and its personto-person parcel delivery service
using terminals was launched in April
2009.
SmartPOST DPS is a provider of
technical solutions for logistics
companies and welcomes commercial
interest in its Delivery Point
Solutions.
For a company to introduce SmartPOST
DPS units into its operation requires:
• a power supply;
• a direct internet connection;
• dry, heated, indoor premises.
DPS software can be integrated into a
client’s existing software systems.
Demonstration package with SmartPOST label
SmartPOST is now seeking to sell its
DPS technology abroad.
The sender identifies the parcel size on
the touch screen, chooses a SmartPOST
terminal for delivery, enters the
recipient’s mobile phone number and
pays for despatch and delivery by credit
card. The cost varies by size: (1) 39EEK;
(2) 49EEK; (3) 59EEK; and (4) 79EEK. A
receipt and a self-adhesive bar code
label is printed out, the latter being
attached to the package or parcel. This
is then inserted into a locker of
appropriate size, the door of which has
automatically opened.
Once the
package or parcel is safely within the
locker the door is closed.
Anyone interested in introducing this
exciting new technology to the UK
should contact:
Indrek Oolup
CEO
SmartPOST Ltd
Tallinna 45
71008 Viljandi
Estonia
+372 43 54 540
[email protected]
More information on SmartPOST can
be found on www.smart-post.eu
Collection times vary between about
16:00h in Tallinn and about 13:00h
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A meeting with
Vello Mäss
Estonia’s distinguished
marine archaeologist
(The meeting is recounted by the Editor)
Vello Mäss
Marine archaeologist
Estonian Maritime Museum
Meri annab, meri võtab
(The sea giveth and the sea taketh away)
V
ello Mäss of the Eesti meremuuseum, the
Estonian Maritime Museum, is the author of at
least four books and 150 articles on maritime
history and marine archaeology. I met him at the
Museum, housed in Paks Margareeta at the harbour
end of Pikk Street, on a wintry November day. On the
ground floor of the building there is an extensive
exhibition of the fruits of his archaeological labour.
His interest in marine archaeology developed in the
1970s. Some years earlier, countries in the Baltic sea
area had become active in locating, and sometimes
recovering, historical shipwrecks. (For example,
more than three centuries after the Vasa capsized on
its maiden voyage from Stockholm in 1628, its seabed
resting place was re-discovered in 1956 and the
wreck salvaged in 1961).
But, Vello is no closeted landlubber; he is a man of the
sea, through and through. Clearly he is most at home
on Mare, his research boat, berthed at the Museum’s
Lennusadam harbour, a 20 minute walk away.
In 1978, Mäss persuaded the Estonian Maritime
Museum to embrace marine archaeology as part of its
activities, registering objects of interest and diving to
investigate wrecks. The support of the Estonian
Institute of History and the Academy of Sciences
helped overcome the authorities’ resistance to his
ideas, and an out-of-service trawler was duly rented
from the Kirov Fishing Collective based in Viimsi.
Nevertheless, Mäss and his
crew had to remain in their fulltime jobs - marine archaeology
could only be their ‘hobby’. Not
until 1982 was this boat
scrapped and another trawler
renovated and commissioned as
an archaeological research
vessel of professional quality,
equipped with side scan sonar.
Mare remains Mäss’s and
the
museum’s
marine
archaeological research vessel.
A 1962 graduate of the Tallinn Technical Fishing
college, he became a fishing trawler captain, often
encountering wrecks on the seabed during his work!
Juminda map (from Vana tuletorni jutud)
17
The first entry in Mäss’s
register of wrecks was made in
1978. Now there are hundreds
of such entries. He estimates
that several thousand ships
have foundered near Estonia,
so his task is far from
complete!
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One area of the Estonian coastline in which Mäss and
his crew have been very active is near to the Juminda
peninsula between the Gulf of Kolga and the Gulf of
Hara where 65 ships out of 160 in four Soviet
evacuation convoys were lost on 28th and 29th
August 1941.
By 27th August, German troops had surrounded
Tallinn and the Soviets began implementing an
evacuation by sea of 28,000 people; (the Communist
leaders and their families, army and navy personnel,
and 10,000 Estonians – as forced labour).
Anticipating such an evacuation, the German and
Finnish navies had deployed 2,400 mines; there were
already 600 mines in the sea lanes outside Tallinn.
When the ships reached the heavily mined waters off
Cape Juminda they were attacked not only by
German bombers and Finnish coastal artillery but
also by Finnish and German torpedo boats. It is
estimated that 16,000 of the 28,000 evacuees
perished.
The Vironia
western Baltic and North Sea routes (including that
between Harwich and Esbjerg) until 1938. Sold to
Pärnu Laeva A/S, she was renamed Vironia and
served on the Tallinn-Stockholm route until siezed by
the Soviet navy in April 1940 for use as a staff vessel.
Part of the evacuation convoy which left Tallinn on
27th August 1941 it sank, with the loss of 1,300 lives,
after striking a mine.
The Krisjanis Valdemars was the pride of the Latvian
fleet in the 1920s and 1930s, ensuring that Riga was
navigable in winter and escorting state visits to
Latvia. Built in Glasgow, jointly by William
Beardmore and Vickers, the icebreaker made its
maiden voyage in 1926. After the Soviet occupation
of Latvia in 1940, it was also seized by the Soviet
authorities. As the German forces advanced into
Latvia in 1941, it sailed to (still Soviet-occupied)
Tallinn before joining the ill-fated evacuation
convoys. It struck a mine and sank on 28th August.
Both wrecks are lying at a depth of between 90 and
100 metres.
Earlier, in 2003, Mäss and his crew, on board Mare,
began what was arguably their most renowned, (and
successful) search for Rusalka, (Mermaid), the 204
feet long and 42 feet wide Czarist Russian ‘ironclad’
battleship. A magnificent turret ship, built in St
Petersburg in 1864, it disappeared during a voyage
from Tallinn to Helsinki on 7th September 1893. The
ship’s complement of 12 officers and 165 crew
perished with their ship. For 37 days other vessels
had searched for it, but without success. Only one
body was found together with unused lifeboats.
Juminda memorial stone
The Juminda peninsula is now a beautiful and
peaceful area, a small memorial offering the only
reminder of events in August 1941 to the few tourists
who venture there.
In 1902, the ‘Russalka’ memorial to the Rusalka, its
officers and crew, was erected in Kadriorg, (near the
current junction of Narva maantee and Pirita tee).
Taking the form of an angel with outstretched arms,
pointing at 23°, the ship’s course to Helsinki, it was
carved from Finnish granite by Estonian sculptor
Amandus Adamson (1855–1929).
Mäss and his crew aboard Mare have spent many
summer diving seasons exploring the seabed off
Juminda. They have now found almost 50 wrecks
there. Two significant wrecks, the Estonian
passenger vessel Vironia, and the Latvian icebreaker
Krisjanis Valdemars, were found in 2008.
In 1893, after the search for the Rusalka had been
abandoned, it was concluded that “only heaven
knows where it lies,” a comment which Mäss
considers, mischievously, to be not far wide of the
mark. Without ‘help from above’ in the form of
satellite navigation and positioning, Mäss and his
The Vironia, considered a ‘luxury’ passenger vessel,
when launched in Copenhagen as Kong Haakon
carried up to 336 passengers on a variety of DFDS’
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Amongst the wrecks which lie on the seabed around
Estonia, at least 17 are British, dating back to WWI
and the Estonian War of Independence. One of them
is HMS Myrtle which struck a mine off Saaremaa on
15th July 1919. Discovered by Saaremaa fishermen
in the 1980s, Mäss led an expedition to the wreck in
2001 and placed a memorial plaque close to it. He
also wrote and helped direct the photography for a
documentary film about the Myrtle. Entitled “His
Majesty’s Warship”, (“Tema Majesteedi sõjalaev”),
directed by Indrek Kangur and produced by Reet
Sokmann and Urmas Dresen, the film was released
on 21st June 2001 by F-Seitse and the Eesti
Meremuuseum, and has been shown both in Estonia
and in the UK.
In recent years, Mäss has been seeking the last
resting place of a British submarine E18 which was
lost, with all hands, off Hiiumaa in May 1916. Only
recently has awareness grown in the UK about the
exploits of pioneering British submariners who were
sent to the Baltic in 1915 to support Britain’s Russian
allies and disrupt German supply routes.
Excellent reference texts include “Forgotten Flotilla,
British submariners in Russia 1914-1919”, by L H
Ashmore, Manuscript Press, Portsmouth 2001 ISBN
1-903702-01-1; and “Baltic Assignment, British
submariners in Russia 1914-1919” by Michael
Wison, Leo Cooper with Secker and Warburg,
London 1985 ISBN 0-436-57801-8.
The Russalka memorial.
crew aboard Mare might never have found it!
It was located at a depth of 74 metres some 40km
south of Helsinki. Most unusually, the wreck, which
is now a ‘sea grave’ stands vertically, its bow buried
deep in the mud and its stern rising about 35 metres
above the sea bed.
Heavily armoured, but with decks barely 60cm above
the water, ships of this type were not designed to battle
far from shore because of their intrinsic instability. By
the time of its loss, after 25 years’ service, never having
fired a shot in anger, the Rusalka had become militarily
obsolete, being demoted from front line battleship
status to that of a training ship assigned to the
Gunnery Training Squadron.
On the short Baltic crossing to Helsinki, the Rusalka
encountered a fierce Baltic storm and 6 meter rolling
waves. Clearly, it was not sufficiently seaworthy to
cope with such conditions.
Book by Michael Wilson
Working in close co-operation with an Australian,
Darren Brown, whose great grandfather had served
on E18, Mäss was confident by the Summer of 2009
that he had narrowed down the possible routes taken
by the E18 to avoid the minefields off Hiiumaa, He
believed that he and his crew would soon locate the
wreck. Their investigative work is detailed in his
The Rusalka
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latest book “Vana tuletorni jutud, Laeved, mehed ja
maeri” (“Tales of an Old Lighthouse”) Kirjastus ILO
Tallinn 2009 ISBN978-9949-17-071-5.
The story of E18’s disappearance and the discovery
of its wreckage was recounted on the BBC News
website by James Landale, BBC News’ deputy
Political Editor, on 23rd October 2009 and is
reproduced at the end of this article.
Another submarine, (this time Estonian but Britishbuilt), that Mäss continues to search for in the Gulf
of Finland is the Kalev. One of two minelaying
submarines of the Kalev class, (the other was
Lembit), built in Barrow-in-Furness by Vickers
Armstrong and commissioned by the Estonian Navy
in 1937, both were taken over by the Soviet Navy in
September 1940 and joined its Baltic Fleet. They
retained their names, however.
Having survived the war, in 1957 Lembit became a
training vessel in Gorky. More than two decades
later, it was towed to Tallinn and handed over to the
Naval Museum of the USSR’s Baltic Fleet. Berthed
in Pirita harbour it was opened to visitors in 1985. It
was subsequently taken over by the Eesti
Meremuuseum and is currently berthed in their
Lennusdam harbour; it is the oldest submarine in the
world which is still afloat.
After the outbreak of the Russo-German War in
June 1941, Kalev was re-complemented with an
entirely Russian-speaking crew, and was reported
missing on 29th October 1941, having failed to return
from her second patrol. Though it is widely believed
Vana tuletorni jutud. Vello Mäss's latest book
To his great dismay, however, Mäss learned that a
Swedish survey vessel, working with the same
Australian, had located the wreck in mid-October
2009. They had been surveying the seabed off
Hiiumaa without the necessary permits, insisted
Mäss, and when challenged by the Estonian Border
Guards had claimed that they were trying to retrieve
their dinghy. The Swedish survey vessel MV Triad
belongs to MMT, a globally active Gothenburg-based
survey company which operates five fully equipped
survey vessels, is capable of surveying to a depth of
2,000 metres and has 150 people on its payroll. (Mäss
was clearly playing David to MMT’s Goliath!)
Suur Tõll and Lembit
that she struck a mine, the location of the wreck is
still unknown; “it might be anywhere between
Kronstadt and Hanko”. Mäss and his crew are clearly
on the trail of Kalev but are saying little!
Mäss’s vessel the Mare has a berth in the Seaplane
harbour where the Meremuuseum’s ‘historical ships’,
the submarine ‘Lembit’, the icebreaker ‘Suur Tõll’,
the Coast Guard vessel PVL 105 ‘Torm’, the
minesweeper ‘Kalev’, and the patrol boat ‘Grif’ are
Minefield disposition off Hiiumaa,
(from Vana tuletorni jutud)
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The Lennusadam hangars
also berthed. The museum began development of the
harbour in 2003 but ownership issues were not
resolved until 2006.
By early 1919, the Naval Air Squadron of the new
Estonian Defence Forces was located there and, in
1930, it became the operational headquarters of the
Estonian Air Force. Four Hawker Hart light
bombers, (two-seater biplanes), and two Avro 626
(biplane) training aircraft, all British made, were
based there. The Estonian variant of the Hawker
Hart, eight of which were built, was equipped with
It was in 1913 that plans were drawn up to construct
an aircraft base next to Peter the Great’s fortress,
(now the Paterei).
Officially named the
Lennusadam, the (sea) plane harbour, the contract
for the design and construction of three aircraft
hangars was awarded to the Danish Company
Christiani and Nielsen, and building began in July
1916. Construction was suspended in July 1917
because of the war and because of the political and
social confusion which arose as the Russian empire
Avro 626
an interchangeable wheel or float undercarriage.
Similarly, the Estonian Air Force’s Avro 626 aircraft
were equipped with floats. The aircraft were drawn
from the harbour into the hangars on trolleys.
By 2011, when Tallinn becomes a European Capital
of Culture not only will the unique architectural and
engineering monuments which are the three
Lennusadam shell concrete hangars be fully restored
but the submarine Lembit will also be displayed
within them. The Lennusadam may be linked to the
centre of Tallinn by a coastal promenade. It will be
well worth waiting for!
Hawker Hart
imploded. By that time, however, the truly iconic
three shell concrete domes were complete; only the
very large sliding doors, the launching ramps for the
sea planes and the wooden floor coverings for the
hangars remained to be installed.
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A Little Lake Music
Leigo-style
Denis Filby
Member of BEST
I
am sure that most visitors to Tallinn last summer
were all too well aware of the posters and
billboards advertising the lakeside concerts at
Leigo, near Otepää, in southern Estonia; I certainly
was. Over the years, these open air concerts have
become a much-loved, must-go-to, part of Estonian
summer entertainment, come fair weather or foul.
As one visitor to Leigo wrote in 2008, “Where else in
the world could you sit on the banks of a lake while the
sounds of a pipe organ, like the voice of an ancient
deity, rebound from the evergreen forest, candles float
into the air and bonfires go up on the opposite shore?”
View over the original lake to Mall’s garden on the far bank
Unfortunately, I left Estonia before the first, and
only, concert weekend, which featured a musical mix
as diverse as a Pink Floyd tribute and Beethoven’s
9th. Earlier, however, I had the good fortune to visit
Leigo and meet Tõnu Tamm, the man behind the
Liego concerts, and his charming wife Mall. Their
drive and enthusiasm, which has kept the Leigo
concerts going for 12 years, was clear for all to see.
delightful guesthouse and providing banqueting
facilities. Other evidence of his wife’s contribution
is the colourful garden that she has created on the
far bank of the, first, small lake. It serves as a
‘cooling off pool’ for the guesthouse sauna that sits
on its bank.
In the past, Tõnu made a number of award-winning
documentary nature films of his many journeys
through Siberia. Now, in Leigo he lives close to the
wildlife that inhabits the area. He had just been
swimming in one of his lakes, trying to clear
branches that were clogging it whilst nearby a beaver
was countering the effect of his hard work by
dragging more branches in to water.
Tõnu looks every bit the scientist and inventor that
he is, with his unruly shock of white hair and boiler
suit. At the time of my visit he was busy at the
kitchen table creating floating containers, for a
lightshow project, using empty meat tins ‘rescued’
from the local tip. He said that his neighbours have
become used to his ‘liberating’ useful bits and pieces
from their rubbish bins.
Leigo gives the clear impression of being an idyllic
spot, at one with nature. It is therefore hard to
believe that much of the landscape, and in particular
the lakes, is man-made.
The kitchen also displayed the fruits of his wife’s
endeavours – preserves and foods that go to
support their main business which is running a
Leigo – the realisation of a dream
It was from Tõnu Tamm’s love of music and nature
that the idea of organising concerts in the beautiful
landscape of Leigo originally sprang. He recalled
dreaming of his favourite organ music during his
travels in the Siberian wilderness.
It was their search for a summer cottage that
brought Tõnu and his family to Leigo in 1981.
Captivated by the natural surroundings, they
decided to stay.
Originally there was only one, rather overgrown, lake
near the house. The new ‘master of the house’ had a
The original house, now the guesthouse and banqueting halls
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designed pyrotechnic display. “Everything you hear is
linked to what you see”. Concerts ‘meld the world of
image and sound into an audiovisual whole, uniting the
musical adventure with the landscape, seeking a
harmony of fire, water, and sound’. According to the
mood of the music, the fire sometimes blazes and
crackles but may then fade to a quiet smouldering.
Gigantic pyramids and zones of fire are kindled as is
appropriate for the music being played. Finally, all
Leigo performances culminate in the release of
hundreds of burning candles on to surface of the lake.
Concerts in Leigo are not merely good music
performed by top musicians, but they also provide a
unique venue, beautiful scenery, lakes with specially
constructed stages and that feeling of relaxation. On
performance days, many visitors even arrive by midday
whilst those who are not in a hurry to go home
immediately a concert ends, or wish to avoid
congestion in the car parks, can pitch a tent in the Leigo
camp site. They can even stay there for some days.
The first man-made lake
vision about transforming this disordered
wilderness, however, and started to modify the
landscape, creating new lakes. It took a few years’
hard work to complete the first self-made lake.
Within it was a small island populated by willow
trees. Viewed from the lake’s gently sloping back, the
shallow valley seemed to be ‘a cathedral of nature’!.
So, from his dreams of listening to beautiful music
in the Siberian wilderness grew an idea, then a plan,
for a symphony orchestra to perform on Leigo’s
little island in the middle of the lake. It was after
Tõnu shared his idea with musician Jüri Leiten, who
was visiting him in Leigo, that things started to take
shape. In 1998 Tallinn Brass were the first to
perform on the little lake island. No charge was
made for listening to the concert. Their was no
profit-making aim. Instead, the purpose was to give
the audience the ‘time of their lives’ audiovisually,
listening to inspiring music against the backdrop of
magnificent ‘nordic’ nature.
Early evening at Leigo in 2007
Three years later, in 2001 a new, bigger, ‘concert
lake’ was completed; this incorporated an island
which could accommodate a symphonic orchestra.
That year, the Estonian National Philharmonic
Orchestra gave a performance on the island.
Food, drink and souvenirs are available for purchase
by visitors, many of whom cook their own food on
barbecues which are lit around the Leigo grounds.
As the Leigo festival grew each year, so did
performers’ fees. Funding the festival became a
problem despite the profits from other Leigo
Each concert is now accompanied by a specially
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Though the Leigo festival is unmistakingly Estonian,
many of the musicians performing there have been
from abroad, primarily from the Nordic countries
and from Russia. Among the foreign performers
have been Pelagea (Russia), Loyko (Russia), Mari
Boine ( Norway), Eivor Pallsdottir (Iceland), Kimmo
Pohjonen ( Finland), Rinneradio (Finland), Värttinä (
Finland). Last year the non-Estonian performers
included Nils-Petter Molvaer ( Norway), Wimme (
Finland), Marilin Mazur (Denemark), Anders
Jormin (Sweden), Per Jorgensen (Norway), Emiliana
Torrini (Iceland), Kristian Blak (Faroe Islands) and
the Nordic Symphony Orchestra.
Performance gets under way
The festival has also been the subject of several
films, one of the most noteworthy being that shot
by Erkki Määtaneni of YLE, (the Finnish
activities, including the guesthouse and banquetting,
being used to subsidise the musical festival by the
lake. In its fourth year an entrance fee had to be
introduced. Despite this income stream and income
from commercial sponsorship, the festival is still in
deficit. Last year the concerts were staged over one
weekend instead of two.
Local people can still attend the concerts free of
charge, however. It is hard enough for those living in
the countryside to access quality culture; even if
they could, many would find it beyond their means.
It is now 12 years since the first concert was given at
Leigo and the festival continues to evolve; a recent
development is the staging of theatrical
performances in the nearby woods.
Performance in full flight
In the early years of the festival, only classical music
was performed but, in an attempt to make ends
Broadcasting Company).
Tõnu Kaljuste, the eminent choral conductor, and
founder of the world-renowned Estonian
Philharmonic Chamber Choir, has his own, succinct
view of Leigo: “Harmony and pure nature are very
important at Leigo. I think that the best part of this
whole experience is that people do not feel
themselves to be the rulers of nature, but instead are
in awe of the grandiosity of the hills and lakes.”
Sven Grünberg, a musician, put it another way:
“Sunsets are so lovely at Leigo, with thousands of
people sitting and listening. All those bonfires,
fireworks and flying candles. On the one hand, it is
about beauty and nature but, on the other hand, it is
about the wise, thoughtful and admirable human
complement to nature.”
Performance in full flight
meet by attracting a larger audience, it was decided
to introduce other musical genres. This was a
success and the Leigo festival is now home not only
to classical music, but also to jazz, rock and ethnic
music. At Leigo the fans of classical music listen to
rock, and vice versa. In the beautiful, South Estonia
setting of Leigo, everything seems to blend!
With the enthusiastic support of a loyal audience,
the continued benevolence of its sponsors, and
good weather, may the Leigo festival, Tõnu Tamm’s
dream-made-reality, entertain and delight for many
years to come!
Contact details: www.leigo.ee [email protected]
+3725091344
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