The (''Presidential March'', also translated to ''Solemn March'') is the official honorary march of the

President of Estonia The president of the Republic of Estonia () is the head of state of the Estonia, Republic of Estonia. The current president is Alar Karis, elected by Parliament on 31 August 2021, replacing Kersti Kaljulaid. Estonia is one of the few parliam ...

which is played as a welcoming/inspection march for the president, who is also the Commander-in-Chief of the

Estonian Defence Forces The Estonian Defence Forces () is the unified military force of the Republic of Estonia. The Estonian Defence Forces consists of the Estonian Land Forces, the Estonian Navy, the Estonian Air Force, and the paramilitary Estonian Defence Leagu ...

. The march was composed by Estonian musician

Eero Liives Eero Liives (born 15 February 1892 Avispea, Vao borough, Väike-Maarja Parish, Virumaa – 25 April 1978 Tallinn) was an Estonian composer and violinist. Liives was the son of writer Ardi Liives. From 1918 until 1965, he played violin in Thea ...

(1892–1978). Today the march is played by the

Kaitseväe Orkester The Kaitseväe orkester, known in Anglophone countries as the Band of the Estonian Defence Forces, is the official military band service of the Estonian Defence Forces. The main task of the band is to play music at all national and military ceremo ...

during military reviews of troops such as the Estonian Honour Guard during

state visits A state visit is a formal visit by the head of a sovereign country (or representative of the head of a sovereign country) to another sovereign country, at the invitation of the head of state (or representative) of that foreign country, with th ...

and the ''

Eesti Kaitsevägi The Estonian Defence Forces () is the unified military force of the Republic of Estonia. The Estonian Defence Forces consists of the Estonian Land Forces, the Estonian Navy, the Estonian Air Force, and the paramilitary Estonian Defence League. T ...

'' during military parades in

Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...

. On 27 January 1923, it was adopted as the military march by of the Estonian Head of State. Prior to that, (known in Estonian as ''Porilaste marss'') was used as a presidential song. The government chose to abandon the natively Swedish march, to differentiate itself from Finland, which also uses it as an honorary march. The march is still used as official honorary music for high-ranking officials. The march would be performed for the last time in 4 decades on Independence Day in 1940, due to the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

and later

Soviet occupation of Estonia The Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, (abbreviated Estonian SSR, Soviet Estonia, or simply Estonia ) was an administrative subunit ( union republic) of the former Soviet Union (USSR), covering the occupied and annexed territory of Estonia ...

taking place in the following four years. Both governments tried to cultivate a separate identity and culture from the

Estonian people Estonians or Estonian people () are a Finnic ethnic group native to the Baltic Sea region in Northern Europe, primarily their nation state of Estonia. Estonians primarily speak the Estonian language, a language closely related to other Finnic ...

, which included banning traditional ceremonial pieces such as . The march was reinstated in 1991, after Estonia's declaration of independence became legal, and has been used by the state ever since.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Estonian military marches