Fellin (Vilyandi)

58° 21′ 15″ N, 25° 35′ 45″ E

Fellin Castle was founded in 1224 on the site of an Estonian fortification. It was situated on three hills and consisted of individual fortifications connected with walls over moats. It ranked among the largest castles in Estonia. Several Fellin commanders were promoted to Master rank, and in 1471 the major seat of the Master was temporarily to this castle on a temporary basis. In 1560 Fellin Castle was besieged by the Russian army for three weeks. The last Master of the Order Wilhelm von Fürstenberg was captured here. The mercenary defenders of the castle negotiated the right to leave in exchange for withdrawal from the battle. The Russians released them, yet once Master Kettler had found out about their defection, he ordered to to execute the mercenaries who arrived in Pernau (modern Pärnu). Okolnichy Alexey Aldashev, one Russian state leaders and authors of the 1550-s reforms, was appointed for the position of Fellin voevode as an actual and informal exile. He died here in 1560. The castle was under Russian control of Livonia until 1582, when it was returned to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The ruins of the castle are situated in the modern Estonian town Viljandi.

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Tags: castles and fortresses