Tallinn Trip – Estonian History Museum (1940 Street Sign)

This is another of those exhibits that I find fascinating, and I’m imagining someone at the museum does too given its on display, because of the period of history which this street sign represents. This street was originally known as Heina turg (Hay Market) and it was a bustling marketplace outside of the city walls. In the late nineteenth century it all became a bit more decadent with the construction of a grand boulevard with elegant buildings, somewhere fashionable for the elite of Tallinn to live. As it was near to the site of the 1905 Revolution, it was named Vabaduse puiestee (Freedom Boulevard) in 1918, but the Soviets renamed it 21 June Boulevard shortly after they invaded Estonia, in reference to the date they claimed the thrilled residents took part in a “worker’s demonstration” in Tallinn as they were so pleased they had been occupied. The Germans renamed it Victory Boulevard when they seized Estonia in 1941, but the Soviets restored the original name in 1944, not that they much believed in freedom. The street still bears the same name to this day and this sign is a reminder of the rather less than optimal time when the country was under occupation.