Viljandi


Viljandi

(vĭl`yändē), Ger. Fellin, town (1994 pop. 22,669), S Estonia. Founded in 1283, Viljandi was an important medieval trade center and a member of the Hanseatic League. Walls of the castle of the grand master of the Livonian Knights remain standing.

Viljandi

 

a city, the center of Viljandi Raion, Estonian SSR. Situated on the shore of Lake Viljandi. Railroad station 163 km south of Tallinn. Population, 21,000 (1970).

The city has a dairy and timber combines and a shop of the Tallinn Excavating Plant. There is production of linen, matches, furniture, leather haberdashery, and canned foods (fruits and vegetables). The city also has a cultural-education school, a drama theater, and a museum of local lore. Viljandi is first mentioned in the chronicles for 1211 and was consolidated as a city in 1783. The ruins of a medieval castle have been preserved.

REFERENCE

Joost R., H. Moora, and U. Roozimaa. Vil’iandi: Priroda, istoriia i dostoprimechatel’nosti. Viljandi, 1963.