- Address: Toolse, 45443 Lääne-Virumaa, Estonia;
- Year of foundation: 1471 g;
- Opening hours: 24 hours.
Tooles castle, as its name sounds in Estonian, or Tolsburg, is the youngest building built by the crusaders in Estonia , and also the most northern one. It is located in Lääne-Virumaa county, 4 km from the city of Kunda . The castle was built on the coast of the Gulf of Finland, just a few meters from the water's edge. From the majestic construction there is not much left, but for the remaining ruins tourists will be able to imagine all of its former scale.
History of the castle
The year of foundation of the building is 1471, the decree on the beginning of construction was issued by the Master of the Livonian Order Johann von Volthuzen-Hertz. But with him the work was not finished, but stretched out for many years, for which the order was managed by two other masters. It took a little more than two centuries to build. First, the castle was christened Frederburgom, which means "Peace Castle". Its main purpose was to protect the harbor and the coast of the pirates.
Much of the history of the castle remains a mystery, because in historical chronicles, it is not mentioned so often. It is known that, according to the original design, it was a three-story building, but as a result of the restructuring during the 15th-16th centuries it turned into a structure with several inner courtyards. The total length of the building was 55 m, the walls in height reached 15 m, and the thickness was 2 m. Three towers were attached to the southern facade, and in the north-west there was a large round tower.
All that is left today are the walls of the building, while those that are facing the land, are much better preserved than those facing the sea. To leave even the slightest memory of the ancient castle, the walls were preserved and fortified in the 20th century. This can be guessed, even without visiting Tools, because in almost all the photographs are clearly visible yellow diamond from fastening stretch marks.
Tools Castle (Estonia) today
The current condition of the building can be called satisfactory, so it quickly became a popular tourist attraction in Estonia . The image of Tooles Castle can be found on the postage stamp.
Of all the castles in the country, tourists dubbed Tolsburg the most wild and picturesque. Which is not surprising, considering the surrounding plains, forests and a small number of modern buildings.
To date, tourists can see part of the Gate Tower, as well as Western and one of the walls of the kitchen. A part of the chimney, Square Tower, has also been preserved. Visit Tooles Castle in Estonia is worth to arrange an original photo shoot. Such photos, as will be obtained here, can not be done in any other corner of the country. Among other things, you can admire the beautiful white swans that live in the bay near the castle.
On the way to the castle it is difficult to drive past the picturesque fishing village, which fits perfectly into the surrounding landscape. Here you can see both drying nets and an abandoned longboat on the shore.
How to get to the castle?
To get to the castle, from the St. Petersburg - Tallinn highway, turn right after turning to the village of Pada. Next, you need to get to the city of Kund and to the fork, from where you should take a direction to the village of Toolele. From there, the pointer will tell you the way to the castle, which is at the very end of the cape. The car can be left in front of the barrier in the parking lot.
Another way to get to the castle is to buy a three-day tour of the castles of Estonia, which includes visiting the castle of Tools (Tolsburg).