Otepää

In the eastern part of the city, on the hill of Linnamägi ( est. Linnamägi , City Mountain ) are the ruins of the Odenpe castle of the XIII century . The wooden castle was originally built in 1215 by Herman Buksgevden , the bishop of Lealsky (from 1224 - Dorpat) on the site of the Estonian fortified settlement, which was first mentioned in Russian chronicles in 1116 under the name of Bear Head . Later it was destroyed by the Slavs, and then restored by the Germans, but in 1223 it was again destroyed by the Slavs, and after them the rebels of the Estonians. The first owner of the castle after its restoration in stone in 1224 was the son-in-law of Bishop Engelbert Tizengausen . Thus, Odenpe is the first documented fief in Livonia .

Scientists believe that the site of a man on Linnamägi already existed 2,000 years ago, and archaeological finds on the site date back to the second half of the first millennium AD. er The original name of the settlement is unknown, but scientists are inclined to believe that the name was associated with the head of a bear. The Germans did not translate the name of the settlement in their chronicles and up to the XX century as the name of the castle, and later the village, they used the German transcription Odenpe ( German Odenpäh ) of the ancient Estonian name of the place that did not reach us.

Denmark and Sweden sought to take away these lands from Livonia. The Great Northern War led to the desolation of the region. In 1841 , a peasant uprising broke out in Odenpe, known as the war in Pühajärve .

Odenpe is the birthplace of the Estonian national movement. On September 20, 1876, the Derpt Estonian Agricultural Society held the first Estonian agricultural exhibition on a church estate. A student society was founded here, and on June 4, 1884, the first blue-black-and-white Estonian flag was consecrated in the church of the Odesa church. Therefore, the “Room of the Estonian flag” and a memorial plaque on this event are framed at the church. In addition, pastors who actively participated in the national movement also served here — this is Adrian Virginius and Jacob Hurt (1839-1907). Not far from the church is a monument to Jacob Hurt, who is also known as Estonian folklorist and linguist.

Public education in Otepää has a rich history: the first public school was opened in Odenpe in 1686. From 1872 to 1880 , when Jacob Hurt was the pastor in the village, there was a significant increase in the level of education and the economic condition of educational institutions. While working in Odenpe, Jacob Hurt also headed the General Committee for the Establishment of the Alexander II Estonian School under the Estonian Literary Society. In 1906 , the Odenpes Education Society was founded, which in 1907 was able to open a school where instruction took place in Estonian. Such schools already existed in Dorpat and Pernova , but the school in Odenpe became the first open in the countryside.

In 1929 , the first Estonian ski racing championship was held in Otepää. The first ski championship of the USSR in 1958 also took place in Otepa. In 1972 the ski school was founded.

On April 1, 1936, the village of Otepää became a city.

During World War II, the city ​​was completely destroyed due to the battles between the Soviet and German armies that took place in the Otepää area in 1944. After the war, the city began to revive, in 1957 the National Theater was opened, which until its death in 1996 . led Kalu Ruuven.

In 1950-1959, Otepää was the center of the Otepää region .

The city is located on the hill of Otepää and on the territory of the natural park of the same name. Otepää surrounds many lakes, including Pühajärv in the southeast and Pilkuse in the east. Otepää is divided into two parts: the old, which became a settlement at the beginning of the 20th century , and the southern part located near Lake Pühajärv - the summer cottage town of Otepää.

In Otepää, there is the Tehvandi Sport Center ski center , where sports events are regularly held: in particular, in 2010 and 2015, the city ​​became the venue for the European Biathlon Championship .

In Otepää you can practice many winter sports: skiing , ski jumping , speed skating . Kristina Shmigun-Vyahi , a two-time Olympic champion in ski racing, lives and trains in Otepää.

Odenpe Castle

Odenpe Castle was located on the top of a steep hill surrounded by a moat, which made this fortress one of the strongest in Livonia, and as a result, the village grew at its foot - the second largest settlement of the Dorpat Dorpat.

The stone castle, from which only ruins have survived to date, was built in 1224 , replacing the wooden fortifications of the Crusaders , who colonized the Baltic States, many times destroyed by the Slavs.

The castle was built of brick and granite in the Gothic style and became the first stone fortification in the lands of the Estonians.

The castle was destroyed in 1396 during the struggle between the knights of the Livonian Order and the bishops.

Estonian Flag Museum

The museum was opened on December 23, 1996 and is located in the building of the church. On June 4, 1884 , it was here that members of an association of Estonian students for the first time raised the national flag of Estonia, which in 1922 was adopted as the flag of an independent Estonian Republic.

The building, originally built in 1671 , in 1850 underwent a major renovation. The roof of the bell tower was completed in 1860 in neo - baroque style . In 1890 , the last restructuring of the church began, after which it took on a modern look in neo - gothic style. The nave of the church was divided into three parts and the number of Gothic elements was increased, like the English style. In 1853 an organ was installed in the church.

Near the church on a small hill is a monument dedicated to the victims of the war of independence, held in the years of the first independent republic. During the years of Soviet power, this monument was destroyed, and restored in 1989 .

In addition, the city has a local Otepää Museum, opened in 1992 , the exposition of which is devoted to the history and nature of the municipality.

Number of Otepää residents
Year	1922	1934	1941	1959	1970	1979	1989	2000	2003	2006	2009
Population, people	1777	2015	2445	2158	2424	2289	2424	2282	2178	2123	2189

• Estonian municipalities
• Estonian settlements
• Cities of Estonia
• Battle of Odenpe

• Official site of the city of Ootyp (est.) (Eng.) (Rus.)