Võru is unusual in Estonian terms in being a totally planned town that has retained its original layout of wide straight streets. Catherine II supervised its design during the 1780s and little has changed since. The surrounding county, which borders on Latvia and Russia, is the only hilly area in Estonia, so attracts walkers and skiers. To Estonians, Võru is best known as the town where the famous 19th-century author Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald lived.Võru is proud of its connection with Kreutzwald and is particularly conscious of
its Estonian heritage, which it actively promotes. Neither in Soviet times, when
there were no borders, nor now when there is one with both Russia and Latvia, has
Võru county been interested in either neighbour. International links elsewhere are
also fewer than in other counties. It is in no hurry to Westernise or expand in any
way, apart from in music festivals, so should remain for many years a congenial,
small, county town.
WHAT TO SEE
The Võrumaa Museum is recommended for coverage of the 1918-20 War of Independence, of the resistance to the Soviet occupation organised by the Forest Brothers in the late 1940s and of the independence movement of the late 1980s. A model of one of the Forest Brothers' hide-outs has been rebuilt. One room is devoted to Frits Suit, the mayor of Võru throughout the first independence period from 1919-40. It has been a major challenge for his successors to emulate the diversity of cultural achievements that he instigated. The three Kriisa brothers, Jakob, Juhan and Tannil, were Estonia's most famous organ builders and the museum has reconstructed their workshop for exhibition.
The Catherine Church is not named after the saint, but after the Russian
empress, who found the necessary money and who would approve of the way it
still dominates the town landscape; surprisingly it is Lutheran and not Orthodox. It was built between 1788 and 1793 and mixes Baroque and Classical styles. The
architect was Christoph Haberland, well known for his work in Riga, where he
designed the Town Hall and what would later become the Wager Concert Hall.
The organ is of course the work of the Kriisa brothers.
Between the wars, during the first period of Estonian independence, the church served both an Estonian and a German-speaking congregation. One bomb hit the church in 1944 but the necessary restoration was completed by 1949. The church has always had the plain interior seen today and was not imposed in Soviet times, as often happened elsewhere. The impressive altar painting dates from 1855 but nothing is known of the artist or other works of his that may still exist. The two sets of lights on each side of the altar represent St Paul and St Peter. Two of the chandeliers are from the 19th century but the more modern one dates from 1970 when a regular member of the congregation ordered it to commemorate her son. The park at the eastern side of the church was laid out in 1961 on what had previously been church land.
The monuments to Estonian freedom fighters that were destroyed during the Soviet period were all quickly and extensively restored in this area. It was sadly necessary in 1995 to build another memorial which is in the square beside the Catherine Church. It is to the 17 town councillors who lost their lives when the Estonia sank off the Finnish coast in September 1994. The sculptor is Mati Karmin, who also designed the monument to this tragedy on Hiiumaa Island, as well as the 'Kissing Students' in front of Tartu Town Hall.
Võru was the home town of Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald (1803-82) and his statue dominates the shoreline at the end of Katariina allee. It is by Amandus Adamson (1855-1929), Estonia's most famous sculptor, and copies of it can be seen in all large towns in Estonia. The Kreutzwald Memorial Museum is in the house where he practised as a doctor for 40 years but he is best known for his work in getting the Estonian language used in science and literature at a time when it was still seen as a language just for peasants and anything worthy of record had to be written in German. His most famous book is Kalevipoeg, a 20,000 verse epic on Estonia's mythical hero. Ironically it was first published in German because Tsarist censorship delayed the publication of an Estonian edition. He was a campaigner on many issues, particularly temperance. The house is much as he left it, modestly furnished, because of his constant financial problems. Kalevipoeg is currently not available in English although a German edition was published in 2004. Hopefully an Estonian publisher soon takes up this challenge. The museum also houses a collection of paintings by two exiled Estonian artists, Jüri Erik Hammer and Gunnar Neeme, who both lived in Australia.
Võru has a good beach on Lake Tamula, where a music festival takes place each July. More musical activities are now being arranged throughout the year. In 2003 the new floodlit ski-centre at Suur Munamägi was opened, offering several routes for cross-country skiing. Kreutzwald is always commemorated in early December with readings of his poetry. May is the month for cross-country races and for dancing competitions.
Neil Taylor "Estonia. The Bradt Travel Guide", 2007
