Estonia’s war museums draw visitors despite funding concerns

Estonia’s military history is presented in around ten diverse museums, attracting visitors from the country and abroad during the tourism season, ERR reports. The Jõgewa War Museum faces a shortage of funds and the risk of closure.

Hellar Lill, director of the Estonian War Museum, said visitor numbers had been rising and appeared likely to continue growing.

“Last year, nearly 50,000 people visited us, including regular visitors as well as those taking part in tours and museum events,” Lill said. He added that the figure was high for a museum of relatively modest size and infrastructure in Estonia.

The Estonian War Museum’s main premises in Viimsi include the main building and a heavy equipment hangar. The museum also takes a travelling exhibition around Estonia, participates in events such as Victory Day parades and holds lectures on military history across the country.

During the winter, visitors include students on educational trips, local residents and families. In summer, the museum also attracts tourists from abroad, mainly from European countries but also from destinations such as Japan. Lill said advertising, including at Tallinn Airport, had contributed to the museum’s international reach.

The museum collects objects and materials connected to Estonia’s military history rather than simply gathering unusual weapons or exotic uniforms. Its collection covers wars fought on Estonian territory, the Estonian War of Independence, Estonia’s foreign missions and the presence of different armed forces in the country.

This includes material on the Soviet army that occupied Estonia, as well as the participation of Estonians and other local communities in wars elsewhere, including service in Western armies and the Soviet army.

War Museum supports smaller institutions

The Estonian War Museum works closely with smaller museums across the country and also provides them with financial support, Lill said.

“We do not see them as competitors at all. We are pursuing the same cause and support them with training so that they can become more professional,” he said, describing the smaller museums as organisations driven by highly committed enthusiasts.

Lill said the Sinimäed Museum in Vaivara, the Hiiumaa Military Museum and the Saaremaa War Equipment Society are particularly popular during the tourism season. The Valga War Museum also attracts visitors and recently hosted a military history festival.

Lill said the site of the Battle of Sinimäed, the largest battle fought on Estonian territory, should have a larger museum and exhibition. He said projects for such a development had already been drawn up.

According to Lill, a larger museum in Ida-Viru County could help present tourists and local residents with a more objective and balanced account of the Second World War in Estonia, instead of the “Great Patriotic War” narrative that still exists there.

To increase interest in war museums, more people should be encouraged to visit them, Lill said. He added that museum education should be expanded. This year, the Estonian War Museum is organising a military history and national defence summer school for students and teachers for the first time.