Chapter 4.2: The War

(As the war was very complex, I will just give a very quick summary.)

The Russian forces encountered minimal resistance, and the Bishopric of Dorpat fell into their hands already by the summer. They also conquered Virumaa. The Livonian side agreed to pay the tax to achieve peace, but Muscovy refused. By 1559, Russian forces reached Tallinn and Riga

In the same year, the bishop of Ösel-Wiek sold his land to the king of Denmark, who lended the lands to his brother Magnus, the duke of Holstein. The last landmeister of the Livonian order Gotthard Kettler declared fealty to the Polish king in 1561, and the nobility of Northern Estonia and Tallinn voluntarily joined Sweden in the same year. The order was dismantled in 1562 and thus ended the Mediaeval Era in Estonia.



The siege of Narva in 1558.

The new order did not mean however that the war ended. The land was just under new management, and the new rulers had to step up against the foreign invader.


The political map in 1562: Denmark (Yellow), Sweden (Green), Poland (Purple), Russia (Red).

In 1562 the main focus of fighting moved to Lithuania, modern day Belarus. A year later a war broke out between Sweden and Denmark, fighting between the powers also happens in Estonia. In 1570, Russia began a new campaign in Estonia, which would last until 1577. They sieged Tallinn twice, and in 1577, almost all of Estonia was under the control of the czar. The luck however turned in favour of the Swedish, with Pontus De la Gardie leading the forces. The Swedes pushed the Russians out of Estonia entirely, and into Ingria. In 1573 a ceasefire was signed. The war between Poland and Russia continued until 1582.

(Sidenote, from the Livonian war onwards, Southern Estonia and Northern Latvia would be classified as Livonia and Northern Estonia would be classified as Estonia. I will refer to the Province of Estonia when I talk about the province and Estonia when I talk about the modern day borders.)

Although the Livonian war ended in 1583, warfare and changes of power would continue until 1645.

Fighting between Sweden and Russia once again began in 1590, mostly taking place in Ingria and around Novgorod. In 1595 a ceasefire was signed. There was another war between 1610 and 1617, which was won by Sweden.

Between 1600 and 1629, Sweden and Poland also fought a war. By the end, Sweden acquired Southern Estonia.

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