On the territory of the Old Town there are many unique and interesting places that have absorbed more than one historical era. Such structures include the Fat Margaret Tower (in Estonian Paks Margareeta). It was built in the 16th century and at first was called the "New Tower", later it was given the aforementioned name.

Why did the tower get such a "talking" name? It's all about its colossal dimensions: the thickness of the walls in some places reaches 6.5 meters; The building is 20 meters high and 25 meters in diameter. The tower holds many secrets and unsolved mysteries. For example, according to one of them, a living person was walled up in the tower during construction. In the Middle Ages, that is, during its construction, such a ritual did not seem so barbaric. The builders performed this action in order to appease the heavenly forces. It is readily believed that this was done during the construction of the Fat Margaret tower.

Relatively low walls and massiveness made the Fat Margaret tower almost impregnable. Initially, the tower was used as a defensive fortress with guns, later it was turned into a barracks, and at one time it was even given over to a warehouse. At the beginning of the 20th century, there were numerous rooms for political prisoners in the premises of "Fat Margaret". During the February Revolution, the tower suffered the fate of many cultural buildings - it was burned down. For sixty years the building had no owner, it had a deplorable appearance (there was no roof, there were only “bare” walls).

But, thanks to the efforts of local historians and historians, the Fat Margarita tower was restored. In 1981, it was opened on its territory, which operates to this day. It receives many visitors every day. In you can get acquainted with a unique exhibition about the development of Estonian navigation and shipbuilding, see with your own eyes the finds of archaeologists raised from the bottom of the sea.

Looking around the streets of the Old City, moving along, be sure to visit the monumental building that survived so many tragic events. Take the unique opportunity to visit these majestic walls that both inspire fear and admiration. Fans of seascapes should definitely climb to the very top of the tower, where a breathtaking view of the sea opens up and the seaport is perfectly visible. "Fat Margarita" will not leave indifferent any tourist!

The Fat Margaret Tower is located at the end of Pikk Street and is the largest city wall tower in Tallinn due to its diameter.

From the history

The gun tower Margarita was built in the 16th century in front of the large sea gates and was originally called the New Tower. Its dimensions are 20 meters in height and 25 meters in diameter, the thickness of the walls is from 4.5 to 5.2 meters, and the number of loopholes on it is 155. Fat Margarita received its modern name about 150 years ago.

Even today, when there are many large buildings around, this building surprises with its power. And four hundred years ago it made an even stronger impression.

Above the Great Sea Gate between two embrasures on a dolomite slab, a small coat of arms of the city is carved in stone, presented in the form of a battle shield with a cross, supported by two griffins and crowned with a knight's helmet.

Currently, the old building houses the Estonian Maritime Museum, whose exhibits tell about the history of seafaring and fish farming, shipbuilding and navigation in Estonia. The museum displays a scale model of the ferry "Estonia", which sank between Tallinn and Stockholm. Quite ancient items created even before our era are exhibited - these are fishing accessories made of bone and horn.

  • At a time when the belligerents were armed with bows and arrows, crossbows and stones, the higher the tower, the more convenient it was to attack the enemy. Therefore, they tried to build towers as high as possible. At the end of the 14th century, firearms appeared in the European north - cannons and arquebuses. The more powerful the cores were, the heavier they were and the wider walls were required for the towers. Then they began to build thicker and squat.
  • All fortresses eventually become unnecessary and useless structures, which are very difficult to find a use for. At the end of the 19th century, an annex was erected, which housed a prison. It was the first building in Tallinn built especially for a prison. From 1905 to 1917 it housed political prisoners. During the revolution of 1917, an uprising arose in the city and detachments of workers, soldiers and sailors dealt with the guards of the prison.

The Fat Margaret Tower protected the entrance to the city and the harbor and thus guarded the treasury of Tallinn.

Opening hours of the Tallinn Maritime Museum in 2019

The exposition of the Maritime Museum in the Fat Margaret Tower is closed for reconstruction. The opening is expected in autumn 2019.

Address: Estonia, Tallinn, st. Pikk
Coordinates: 59°26"33.1"N 24°44"58.7"E

Content:

Short description

In the Lower Town of Tallinn, surrounded by defensive fortifications in the Middle Ages, numerous fragments of walls, gates and towers have been preserved.

Great Sea Gate and Fat Margaret Tower from a bird's eye view

The title of "the most impregnable defense structures" may well be claimed by the Great Sea Gate, located in the northern part of Old Tallinn, next to the harbor. The defensive ensemble with watchtowers protected the city from pirate raids and contributed to the prosperity of the trading harbor, attracting the attention of overseas merchants.

The Great Sea Gate, originally connecting the port of Tallinn with Toompea along the line of modern Pikk Street, was built in 1265 by order of the Danish Queen Margaret. In the 16th century, during the reconstruction of the Sea Gate, the Westphalian master Gert Koning added a gun turret with 155 loopholes to it. This squat tower, only 20 meters high, thanks to thick walls - from 4.5 to 5.2 meters - was a formidable weapon against the attackers. For its impressive size - 25 meters in diameter - the tower was called "Fat Margarita".

View of the Fat Margaret Tower from Rannamee Street

Protecting the entrance to the harbor and the city, "Fat Margarita" served as the guardian of Tallinn's income. The artistic value of the ensemble is increased by the small coat of arms of the city carved in stone, located on a dolomite slab, between two embrasures, above the Great Sea Gate. The heraldic emblem is made in the form of a combat shield with a cross supported by two griffins and crowned with a knight's helmet. In the Middle Ages, a guard was on duty at each loophole of the tower.

In connection with the development of artillery, medieval fortifications were replaced by bastions and reduits, and the Fat Margaret tower, having lost its defensive significance, began to be used as a barracks, a warehouse, and since the 1830s there was a prison within its walls. In 1905-1917 political prisoners were kept in the prison. In 1917, the Estonian proletarians set fire to the tower. However, "Fat Margarita" was lucky - on April 23, 1981, a branch of the Estonian Maritime Museum was opened in the tower restored by Polish restorers.

View of the Great Sea Gate from Pikk Street

"Fat Margarita" and "Long Herman" - a cheerful couple

Estonians often joke that "Fat Margarita" is the wife of "Long German". Surely the reader guessed that "Long Herman" is also a tower. "Herman" reaches 45.6 meters in height, but its volume is much more modest than that of his wife "Margarita" - only 9.5 meters in diameter. It is worth noting that the "long boy" and "fat girl" are far from each other, in different parts of Old Tallinn.

Maritime Museum within the walls of the Fat Margaret Tower

Reminding the guests of the city and the people of Tallinn about the terrible times, "Fat Margarita" keeps 70 thousand exhibits in its museum funds, but in view of the limited space, only a small part of them is exhibited. The Maritime Museum of the Tower (70, Pikk Street) exhibits a rich collection of old ship models, navigational instruments, models of the most important Baltic lighthouses, the steering wheel of the English steamer Auk, which sank during the First World War, barrels, ropes, anchors and other items related to with the sea and sailors, fishing tools, etc.

View of the Great Sea Gate and the Fat Margaret Tower from the west

From the observation deck, located on the roof of the tower "Fat Margaret", offers amazing views of the street. Pikk,

When I first saw the panorama of the old part of Tallinn, I was struck by the abundance of towers and spiers rising above the main buildings. It is noteworthy that all these buildings, whether it be the town hall, the Church of St. Olaf or the Dome Cathedral, to one degree or another are the hallmarks of the Estonian capital.

At the same time, having descended into the Lower City, I saw with my own eyes that its face is determined not only by the majestic spiers visible from afar. So, for example, it is difficult to imagine the Old without fortress walls, which, unfortunately, have not been fully preserved. But even those sites that have survived to this day are enough to mentally travel back several centuries at a glance.

If we talk about the defensive towers of the Tallinn fortifications, then most of them are made quite laconically and are in many ways similar to each other. But among them there is one that stands out significantly against the background of other elements of the fortification system of the Old City. So, Fat Margaret tower.

The story of Fat Margarita

The tower was built at the beginning of the 16th century. Since it was located at the northernmost point of the city wall, it is quite logical that the tower is a mini-bastion, from which, if necessary, massive shelling of the enemy can be carried out, and thanks to the increased thickness of the walls, its defenders were much safer than those who led fire from the fortress walls.

Adjacent to the tower is the Great Sea Gate, built two centuries before Fat Margaret. They got this name because they are closest to the port of Tallinn, and merchants and foreign ambassadors arriving in the city by sea entered through them.

About the name of the tower

I could not find any reliable information about the origin of its name, but there is a legend about two lovers who were cursed to prevent them from being together after midnight. No wonder they say that they don’t notice happy hours, because once they stayed together longer than usual, and when, realizing this, they rushed to run in different directions, it was already too late. As a result, a young man named Herman turned into the Long Herman tower of Toompea Castle, and the girl Margarita became the heroine of my today's story.

How to get to the Fat Margaret Tower

First of all, we should get to the historical part of the city. Fat Margaret Tower (in Estonian Paks Margareeta) is part of the preserved fortifications of the Old Town and is located on its northeastern border. The address where the tower is located, st. Pikk, 70.

From the railway station and the port, the tower is within walking distance, and the average travel time is 15 and 10 minutes, respectively. In addition, the Linnahall tram stop is very close to the tower. The cost of one trip is 1.2 euros, unless, of course, you are a holder of the Tallinn Card tourist card, which will be discussed below.

Maritime Museum of Estonia

Today, inside the tower is the main exposition of the Estonian Maritime Museum. The exhibits collected there are in one way or another connected with the history of navigation, as well as studies of the deep sea and underwater archeology. Of the exhibits, a mast with a sail stands out, installed in the center of the tower and reaching almost to the ceiling of the upper tier.


Signatures under the exhibits are made in five languages, including Russian, and among the curious artifacts I was impressed by the first diving suits.


Observation deck of Tolstoy Margarita

In addition to the exposition, visitors to the Maritime Museum have the opportunity to climb the observation deck of the tower. Of course, in height it is significantly inferior to the tower of the Olavista Cathedral, but thanks to this fact, from it you can look at the historical part of the city not only from top to bottom, but also from bottom to top.


Opening hours of the Estonian Maritime Museum

The museum is open to the public daily from 10.00 to 19.00, despite the fact that most of the expositions in the Old City close at 18.00.

The cost of the entrance ticket is:

  • for adults - 5 euros,
  • for minors and students - 3 euros.

You can visit the museum for free with the TallinnCard tourist card. It gives you the right to free visits to several dozen museums in the Estonian capital, the right to free travel on intracity transport, the right to receive discounts in some shops and restaurants, and a number of other nice bonuses. The validity period is 1, 2 or 3 days, and the cost is 32, 42 and 52 euros, respectively.

You can buy a map at the tourist information center, not far from the Niguliste Church, at ul. Niguliste, 2.


Instead of a conclusion

Traveling around countries and cities, I have long noted for myself that each medieval fortress has one or more details that are a kind of hallmark of a particular fortification. The sea gates of old Rhodes, the Bokar bastion and the Minceta tower in Croatian Dubrovnik, and finally, the Spasskaya tower of the Moscow Kremlin - if you wish, this list can be continued for a very long time, and if you set a goal to bring it to the end, it will inevitably include the Long German and Fat Margaret towers in Tallinn.

All people who look at the panorama of the Estonian capital for the first time see a rather interesting feature of the city. In which direction they would not look, various towers will be visible. It does not matter what kind of building it is: the Church of St. Olaf, the Dome Cathedral or the Sea Gate, all these structures have massive towers. That is why they are a kind of hallmark of Tallinn.

When a tourist descends into the lower city, he can see with his own eyes how majestic all these structures with spiers at the top look. It is very difficult to imagine Old Tallinn without large fortress walls, which nevertheless have not survived to our time, such as they were 300 years ago. However, even what has been preserved is enough to fully experience the power of the Middle Ages.

Most of all the defensive buildings in Tallinn look somehow the same, however, there is one building that stands out against the general background - this tower is called Fat Margarita.

According to the surviving documents, Fat Margarita was built in the 16th century. At that time, the tower was located at the extreme northern point, and due to its location, at one time it served as an excellent place for aimed fire at all invaders, of which there were many in the Middle Ages. The walls of the tower are quite massive and very powerful, everyone inside was very well protected from various attacks, so there were many archers there, hitting their targets.

The Great Sea Gate adjoins Tolstaya Margarita, which was erected 200 years before the construction of the tower. Naturally, they acquired this name because of the close proximity to the port, where all kinds of merchants, ambassadors and other personalities came. All sailors who arrived in the city passed through this structure.

As for the name of the tower, there are no supporting documents of its origin. However, there is one fairly popular legend about two lovers. A curse was put on this young couple, they could not see each other after midnight. But, as it happens, they were so carried away by each other that they forgot about the time. When the couple noticed that it was already after midnight, they began to run from each other in different directions, but it was already too late. The young man's name was Herman, he turned into the "Long German" tower, and the girl's name was Margarita, respectively, she turned into the "Fat Margarita" tower.

Maritime Museum of Estonia

This museum is the main one in the country in terms of the maritime theme. All the exhibits that are located here are directly related to the history of the development of navigation. Also here are various artifacts necessary for underwater exploration of the seas. The first diving suit is quite interesting, a lot of tourists pay special attention to it.

The pride of the museum is a large mast with a sail. It was installed in the center of the tower, and the extreme point of the mast almost reaches the very top of Fat Margarita.

It should be noted separately that all the signs that are near the exhibits are written in five languages ​​at once (including Russian).

Observation deck

Here is not only the best maritime museum in the country, but also an observation deck. All visitors to this museum have the right to visit this site. It is worth noting that it is far from the highest in the city, however, tourists have the opportunity to see the historical part of the city from a new angle, because it is a little higher even from this tower.

Address on the map

This attraction is located a little north of the Old Town. Thick Margarine is located at:

  • Pikk tanav 70

How to get to the Fat Margaret Tower

Walking to the tower from the railway station is only 10 - 15 minutes walk. Tourists need to focus on the northeastern part of the Old Town. If a person gets from another place, then in this case you can use the tram, very close to the tower there is a tram stop - Linnahall. It is worth noting that the tram fare is 1.2 Euro.

Working hours

Depending on the season, the museum and the observation deck are open until different times. From May 1 to September 31 Fat Margarita is open from 10:00 to 19:00, from October 1 to April 30 the museum opens as usual, but only closes one hour earlier, at 18:00.

May to October

  • Monday-Sunday: from 10:00 to 19:00

October to April

  • Monday-Sunday: from 10:00 to 18:00

Ticket price

The entrance ticket for an adult is 6 euros, a child and student ticket is 3 euros. If a tourist possesses, then in this case the entrance to the museum and to the observation deck is completely free.