Käsmu (, ) is a village in
Haljala Parish,
Lääne-Viru County
Lääne-Viru County ( or ''Lääne-Virumaa'') is one of 15 counties of Estonia. It is in northern Estonia, on the south coast of the Gulf of Finland. In Estonian, ''lääne'' means western and ''ida'' means east or eastern. Lääne-Viru borders Id ...
, in northern
Estonia
Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...
,
[ (retrieved 28 July 2021)] on the territory of
Lahemaa National Park. It's located northwest of
Võsu, on the Käsmu Peninsula in the
Gulf of Finland
The Gulf of Finland (; ; ; ) is the easternmost arm of the Baltic Sea. It extends between Finland to the north and Estonia to the south, to Saint Petersburg—the second largest city of Russia—to the east, where the river Neva drains into it. ...
, surrounded by the
Eru Bay to the west and the
Käsmu Bay to the east.
Käsmu was first mentioned in 1453 as ''Kesemo'', a beach belonging to the
Aaspere Manor. Later in 1524 it is affirmed that Käsmu exists as a village.
Due to the location the food was mostly acquired from the sea. Main fishes included
Baltic herring and
flounder
Flounders are a group of flatfish species. They are demersal fish, found at the bottom of oceans around the world; some species will also enter estuary, estuaries.
Taxonomy
The name "flounder" is used for several only distantly related speci ...
.
In 1697 the first ship in Käsmu was built to the baron of
Palmse Manor. On the 2nd half of the 19th century they started building large
sailing ship
A sailing ship is a sea-going vessel that uses sails mounted on Mast (sailing), masts to harness the power of wind and propel the vessel. There is a variety of sail plans that propel sailing ships, employing Square rig, square-rigged or Fore-an ...
s in Käsmu. In 1891 a lighthouse was built. The Käsmu harbour became one of the main sites for wintering in the region.
1884–1931 a maritime school operated in Käsmu.
The summering in Käsmu started in 1840 after the owner of Aaspere Manor General Nikolai von Dellingshausen built his family summer manor there. Since then, many intellectuals and artists have stayed in Käsmu. Those celebrities include
Edmund Russow, Anastasia Tsvetaeva,
Peter Ustinov
Sir Peter Alexander Ustinov (16 April 192128 March 2004) was a British actor, director and writer. An internationally known raconteur, he was a fixture on television talk shows and lecture circuits for much of his career. Ustinov received #Awa ...
, Romulus Tiitus, Igor Vsevoloþski (buried in Käsmu),
Nikolai Rakov,
Ülo Vinter (buried in Käsmu),
Arvo Pärt
Arvo Pärt (; born 11 September 1935) is an Estonian composer of contemporary classical music. Since the late 1970s, Pärt has worked in a minimalist style that employs tintinnabuli, a compositional technique he invented. Pärt's music is in p ...
and
Gustav Ernesaks.
[
Käsmu Sea Museum operates in the former cordon building since 1993. The main sights in Käsmu also include the Dellingshausen's chapel (General's Chapel) and a wooden church with churchyard.
Since 2008 a folk music festival Viru Folk is held annually all around Käsmu.
]
Gallery
File:Käsmu facing South.jpg, Village panorama
File:Käsmu kirik.jpg, Käsmu church
File:Käsmu Dellingshauseni matusekabel, 2010, regnr 16072.jpg, The Dellinghausen's chapel
File:Käsmu merekooli hoone.jpg, The building of former Käsmu Maritime School
File:Kasmu museum.jpg, Käsmu Maritime Museum on the coast of Käsmu Harbour.
File:Meremuuseum.JPG, Käsmu Sea Museum
See also
* Lake Käsmu
References
External links
Käsmu Sea Museum
Käsmu Village Society
Villages in Lääne-Viru County
{{LääneViru-geo-stub