After Estonia came under the control of the Teutonic and Livonian Orders in the early 14th century, the region remained a battleground for dominance over the Baltic. This set the stage for the Livonian War (1558–1583), a conflict that reshaped the region's political landscape. The war was fought between Russia, under Tsar Ivan IV, and a shifting coalition of Denmark-Norway, Sweden, and Poland-Lithuania, all seeking control of Livonia, which included modern-day Estonia and Latvia.
Russia initially dominated the war, seizing key Estonian cities such as Narva and Tartu in the late 1550s. The Livonian Confederation, weakened by internal divisions and lacking strong defenses, quickly fell apart. As Russia pushed west, Poland-Lithuania, Denmark, and Sweden intervened, each seeking their own share of the territory.
By 1561, Sweden established control over northern Estonia, creating Swedish Estonia, while Denmark acquired the Bishopric of Ösel-Wiek. The Teutonic Order's remnants, led by Gotthard Kettler, secularized and created the Duchy of Courland under Polish-Lithuanian protection. Sweden, meanwhile, solidified its grip on Estonia despite repeated Russian invasions.
The tide of the war turned in the late 1570s when Polish-Lithuanian King Stephen Báthory launched successful counterattacks, culminating in the Siege of Pskov (1581). The conflict ended with the Truce of Jam Zapolski in 1582, which forced Russia to relinquish its Livonian conquests to Poland-Lithuania. The following year, the Truce of Plussa between Sweden and Russia secured Swedish control over northern Estonia, further cementing Swedish dominance in the region.
Estonia's incorporation into the Swedish Empire marked the end of the Teutonic and Livonian Orders’ influence. The Livonian War set the stage for Swedish Estonia, which would last until the early 18th century when Estonia fell under Russian control during the Great Northern War.
History of Estonia
References
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- Lieven, Anatol. The Baltic Revolution: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and the Path to Independence (Yale University Press, 1993)
- Mäesalu, Ain; Lukas, Tonis; Laur, Mati; Tannberg, Tonu; Pajur, Ago (2004). History of Estonia. Tallinn, Estonia: Avita. ISBN 9985-2-0606-1.
- Made, Tiit; 'Estonians Liberation Way' (20 August Club, Tallinn, 2015)
- O'Connor; Kevin The History of the Baltic States (Greenwood Press, 2003) online edition Archived 28 June 2008 at the Wayback Machine
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- Parming, Toenu. The Collapse of Liberal Democracy and the Rise of Authoritarianism in Estonia (SAGE, 1975)
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- Raun, Toivo U. Estonia and the Estonians, 2nd ed. (Hoover Institution Press, 2002), long the standard work
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- Ruutsoo, Rein. 'The Cultural Profile of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania Between the Two World Wars,' Acta Bibliothecae Nationalis Estoniae (2004), Vol. 10, pp. 13-59. Compares national culture, state formation, civil society, and elite social groups in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
- Smith, David James; Pabriks, Artis; Purs, Aldis; Lane, Thomas (2002). The Baltic states: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. London: Routledge. p. 24. ISBN 0-415-28580-1.
- Subrenat, Jean-Jacques (2004). Estonia: identity and independence. Rodopi. ISBN 90-420-0890-3. online edition
- Taagepera, Rein. Estonia: Return to Independence (Westview Press, 1993) online edition Archived 7 January 2005 at the Wayback Machine