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Chronology

Some key dates

9000 BC: The oldest known traces of Human settlement in the Estonian territory.
1208: The Northern Crusades reach Estonia.
1224: Estonia becomes Christian.
1343-1347: St. George’s Night uprising by the native Estonians against the foreign rulers.
1523/1524: The Lutheran Reformation reaches Estonia.
1535: The first printed Lutheran cathechism in Estonian language is published. Due to the mistakes in the print the catechism in not distributed.
1563-1570: The Nordic Seven Years’ War. Northern and Western Estonia come under the Swedish rule.
1582: Southern Estonia becomes part of the Polish Kingdom.
1629: Treaty of Altmark. The whole territory of Estonia becomes part of the Swedish Kingdom.
1632: The University of Tartu (Academia Gustaviana) is established.
1684: First seminary for the school teachers. By the end of the Swedish rule in Estonia there is a school in every county.
1686: The first translation of New Testament in Southern-Estonian dialect is printed.
1715: The first translation of New Testament in Northern-Estonian dialect is printed.
1721: The Peace Treaty of Nystad between Sweden and Russia ends the Great Northern War. Estonia becomes part of the Russian Empire.
1729: Moravian brethren arrives to Estonia. The Moravian movement becomes one of the most important religious movements among native Estonians for the next century.
1739: A translation of the Bible in Northern-Estonian dialect is published.
1821: The first journal in Estonian is published on a regular basis.
1843: The first Estonian grammar is published.
1840s: The Russian Orthodox Church starts missionary activities.
1857: The first weekly newspaper in Estonian is published.
1865: The first Estonian cultural society “Vanemuine” is established.
1868: Villenage (tenure at the will of a feudal lord) is abolished.
1869: The first Estonian song festival, with 800 singers, takes place in Tartu. Beginning of the national awakening among native Estonians.
1884: The first Baptists arrive to Estonia.
1887-1905: Russification policy in Estonia. Education in schools is given in Russian from the third grade onward.
1891: First daily newspaper in Estonian.
1908: The Estonian National Museum is established.
1917: The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Estonia is organized as “people’s church”.
1918: Estonia is declared an independent democratic republic.
1918-1920: Independence War against the Soviet Russia and the army of the Baltic-German gentry.
1919: First Congress of the Orthodox Church in Estonia.
1919: The Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church adopts its constitution.
1920: Peace treaty between Estonia and the Soviet Russia.
1920: The first Constitution of the Estonian Republic.
1925: Religious Societies and their Associations Act.
1934: Second Estonian Constitution.
1934: Coup d’état by the ruling president of the Republic; beginning of “the silent period”.
1934: Churches and Religious Societies Act.
1940: Estonia is annexed by the Soviet Union; the theological faculty of the University of Tartu is closed.
1941: The Soviet regime deports over 10 000 people to prison camps in the Soviet Union.
1941-1944: German occupation.
1944: The Soviet occupation continues; over 70 000 Estonians flee to the West.
1944: The post of religious affairs commissioner is established in Soviet Estonia.
1949: Deportation of over 20 000 people to Siberia.
1987: Beginning of the national reawakening.
1987-1991: The Singing Revolution (a series of mass demonstrations which gathered many Estonians - up to 300 000 in Talinn in 1988) spontaneously singing national songs and hymns forbidden by the Soviet occupation).
1989: The Estonian Council of Churches, an Ecumenical organization, is established.
1991: Estonia reestablishes its independence.
1992: The Estonian Constitution is adopted by a national referendum.
1993: Churches and Congregations Act is adopted.
1993-2002: Controversy concerning the legal continuity of the Orthodox Church in Estonia. A conflict arose between the Patriarchate of Constantinople and the Patriarchate of Moscow, both claiming to be the Estonian Orthodox Church. The struggle was finally settled by common agreement.
1994: The last Soviet troops leave Estonia.
2002: The Estonian government and the Estonian Council of Churches sign the protocol of common interests.
2002: A new Churches and Congregations Act is adopted.
2004: Estonia becomes a member of the European Union and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

August 2012

D 18 September 2012   

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