Estonia's Founding: Independence Declared February 24, 1918

The modern sovereign state of Estonia was born on 24 February 1918, when the Estonian Declaration of Independence (Manifest Eestile) was publicly read in Tallinn (Reval), ending centuries of Danish, German, Swedish, and Russian rule.

Context

• WWI chaos and the Russian Revolution created a power vacuum.
• The Maapäev (Estonian Provincial Assembly) declared itself the supreme authority.
• German occupation forces (Ober Ost) controlled the territory but did not prevent the declaration.

Subsequent Struggles

Independence required winning the Estonian War of Independence (1918–1920) against Soviet Russia and German Baltische Landeswehr. The 1920 Treaty of Tartu recognized Estonia's sovereignty de jure.

Interruption and Restoration

• 1940: Soviet annexation
• 1941–1944: Nazi German occupation
• 1944–1991: Soviet occupation (Estonian SSR)
• 20 August 1991: Restoration of independence during the Soviet collapse

Estonia celebrates 24 February as its National Day (Independence Day), commemorating the 1918 declaration as the foundational moment of modern Estonian statehood.