ESTONIA, FLAG OF

horizontally striped blue-black-white national flag. Its width-to-length ratio is 7 to 11. The Estonian students' association Vironia was founded on September 29, 1881, when the country was part of the Russian Empire. The organization was dedicated to preserving the cultural traditions and language of Estonia, which were being suppressed. At its founding, Vironia adopted a flag with horizontal stripes of blue, black, and whitecolours said to stand for the sky (blue), the soil (black), and the aspiration toward freedom for their homeland (white). A dedication ceremony for the new flag took place in secret on June 4, 1884, and it flew again during the 1905 Russian Revolution. Finally, on February 24, 1918, Estonia became independent under the blue-black-white flag, which was officially recognized in the constitution of July 4, 1920. After the Soviet Union absorbed Estonia in 1940, the blue-black-white flag was outlawed, but most Estonians resented the subsequent imposition of Soviet Red Banner designs. Thus, with the loosening of Soviet controls in the 1980s, the Estonian government recognized the old blue-black-white colours on June 23, 1988. The flag itself was readopted on October 20 that year, and it completely replaced the Soviet Estonian flag on May 8, 1990. Memory of the 191840 flag had been kept alive by Estonians in exile in Sweden, the United States, and elsewhere. Whitney Smith History The Estonians are first mentioned by the Roman historian Tacitus (1st century AD) in Germania. Their political system was patriarchal, based on clans headed by elders. The first invaders of the country were Vikings, who from the mid-9th century passed through Estonia and Latvia on their way to the Slavonic hinterland. In the 11th and 12th centuries the Danes and the Swedes tried to Christianize the Estonians, without success. Between 1030 and 1192 the Russians made 13 incursions into Estonia but failed to establish supremacy. German conquest Meinhard, a monk from Holstein, landed in 1180 on what is now the Latvian coast and for 16 years preached Christianity to the Livs, a Finno-Ugric tribe. His successor, Berthold of Hanover, appointed bishop of Livonia, decided that the sword must be used against the recalcitrant pagans. He was killed in 1198 in battle. Albert of Buxhoevden, who succeeded him as bishop, proved himself a shrewd colonizer, pacifying the treacherous Livs and forcing them to build the fortress of Riga. To popularize recruitment for his army, Albert dedicated Livonia to the Virgin Mary. In 1202 he established the Order of the Brothers of the Sword. By 1208 the knights were firmly established on both banks of the Western Dvina (Daugava) River, and Albert felt strong enough to proceed northward to the conquest of Estonia. In the following years the Estonians lost steadily in manpower, while the knights replenished theirs with new crusaders from Germany. The Russian princes of Novgorod and Pskov also raided Estonia on many occasions, penetrating especially deep in 1212 and 1216. Finally, in a major battle in 1217, the knights defeated the Estonians and killed their commander, Lembitu. Northern Estonia and the islands, however, remained free for another 10 years. To complete the conquest, Albert concluded an alliance with King Valdemar II of Denmark, who in 1219 landed with a strong army on the northern coast, on the site of Tallinn. In 1237 the Brothers of the Sword, or Livonian Order, joined the Teutonic Order, which assumed control of Livonia. Northern Estonia and the islands were under Danish rule; Livonia (i.e., southern Estonia and Latvia) was shared between the Teutonic Order and the bishops. The terms under which the Estonian localities submitted were not severe, but the conquerors violated them as their position became stronger, provoking a series of revolts. After major risings in 134345, the Danish crown sold its sovereignty over northern Estonia to the Livonian Order in 1346. The Germans became the masters in the Land of the Virgin and, with minor exceptions, dominated its government, commerce, and the church for the next five centuries. The Estonians, the Latvians, and the Livs became the serfs of their conquerors, with little to sustain national feeling save their folklore and traditional crafts. The economy As part of the interrelated Soviet economy, Estonia was basically an industrial region, with agriculture also making a contribution. Industry and agriculture remain important components of the economy of independent Estonia, but their portion of gross domestic product (GDP) and the labour force are declining while those of commerce and the service industry are growing. The Estonian economy experienced a downturn during its transition to a market economy (characterized by declining production, inflation, and unemployment), but by the mid-1990s it was rebounding. Minerals The most important mineral is oil shale, of which Estonia is an important world producer. Reserves and production of peat also are substantial, and large deposits of high-quality phosphorites, limestone, dolomites, marl, and clay exist. The land Relief and drainage The Estonian landscape is largely the product of glacial activity; the south is covered with moraine hills, and the central part abounds in elongated hills with flat tops. The northern part of Estonia is characterized by long narrow swells consisting of deposits left by glacial rivers that formed during the melting of ice. Extensive sandy areas mark what was once the glacier's edge. The Estonian relief is thus generally undulating, with small hills and numerous lakes, rivers, and forests lending a mild and picturesque aspect to the scene, particularly in the south. The mean elevation is 164 feet (50 metres) above sea level; only one-tenth of the territory lies at altitudes exceeding 300 feet. In the southeast is the Haanja Upland containing Suur Munamgi, which at 1,043 feet (318 metres) is the highest point in Estonia. Estonia abounds in rivers, which flow to the Gulfs of Finland and Riga and into Lake Peipus. The longest river is the Prnu (89 miles, or 144 kilometres); other important rivers are the Pedja, Narva, and Kasari. Lakes occupy about 5 percent of the country's territory. The largest lake is Peipus, with a surface area of 1,370 square miles. Climate The temperate and humid climate of Estonia differs sharply from the climates of regions to the east (in Russia) situated at the same latitude. The country lies in the path of air masses brought in by cyclonic winds born in the North Atlantic Ocean that carry warm air in winter and cool air in summer. The northern and western coastal areas tend to be milder, but the eastern and southeastern regions tend to be continental. The mean temperature is 17 to 23 F (-7 to -5 C) in January and 61 to 63 F (16 to 17 C) in July. Annual precipitation is 24 to 28 inches (610 to 710 millimetres), which, coupled with negligible evaporation and low relief, leads to waterlogging. The Estonian climate is generally favourable to agriculture. The people Nearly two-thirds of the population are ethnic Estonians. There are Russians, Ukrainians, and Belarusians as well. The Estonian language is a member of the Finno-Ugric branch of the Uralic language family. The populace is largely Evangelical Lutheran. Estonia has experienced considerable internal migration since the mid-1950s. The population in the northern, industrially advanced part of the nation has increased appreciably at the expense of the southern and western regions, which are primarily agrarian. There was also extensive immigration from territories of the U.S.S.R., particularly from Russia, after Soviet annexation in 1940.