Estonia placed itself under Swedish rule in 1561 to receive protection against Russia and Poland.
Sweden's defeat by Russia in the Great Northern War resulted in the Capitulation of Estonia and Livonia in 1710, confirmed by the Treaty of Nystad in 1721, and Russian rule was then imposed on what later became modern Estonia.
Finally, the Estonian Sovereignty Declaration of Independence was issued on November 16, 1988
A side street scene
Alexander Nevsky Cathedral
The city of Tallinn
Toompea Castle is the seat of the Parliament of the Republic of Estonia - the Riigikogu.
An Estonian woman outside the Nevsky church tries hard to smile for the camera...