- Valga, Estonia
Infobox Settlement
subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = EST
subdivision_type1 = County
timezone=EET
utc_offset=+2
timezone_DST=EEST
utc_offset_DST=+3
map_caption = Location of Valga, Estonia
|official_name=Valga linn
other_name=Valga
image_shield=Valga_coatofarms.png
subdivision_name1=Valga County
leader_name=Margus Lepik
area_total_km2=16.54
population_total=14055|population_footnotes=
population_as_of=2004
population_density_km2=849.8
coor=57°47′ N 26°02′ E
latd=57|latm=47|latNS=N|longd=26|longm=02|longEW=EValga is a town in southern
Estonia and the capital ofValga County . Until their separation in 1920, Valga and the town ofValka in northernLatvia were one town. They are now twin-towns. The area of Valga is 16.5 km² and that of Valka is 14.2 km². Their populations are respectively 15,330 and 7,100. As of December 21, 2007 all border-crossing points were removed and roads and fences opened between the two countries with both countries joining theSchengen Agreement .Location
Valga is situated at the junction of roads and railways. The
Tallinn -Tartu -Riga railway is connected viaTapa with theTallinn -Narva -St Petersburg main line. Valga is an international railway junction. Since there is no railway station inValka , trains coming fromRiga stop at nearbyLugaži , before continuing to Valga. During theCold War , Valga was home to Valga air base.With the expansion of the Schengen Agreement and the abolishment of systematicborder controls between Estonia and Latvia, it was announced that common public bus transport would be launched between Valga andValka . [http://www.euregio-heltal.org/files/2006298537.pdf Establishment of common public bus transport (Presentation)] In April 2008 the three daily trains fromRiga which previously terminated atLugaži were extended across the border toValga .The distance to
Tartu is 89 km,Pärnu 144 km,Tallinn 245 km,Riga 175 km andPskov 170 km.Activity
Since 1944, a local newspaper, "
Valgamaalane ", has been published (3 times a week). Since 2003, there has also been a local newspaper " [http://www.walk.ee/ Walk] " (in theRussian language ). There also is a local correspondence office of Estonian Television ("Eesti Televisioon") and a local radio - "Raadio Ruut".Valga has concluded several cooperation agreements. The nearest is an agreement (from the year 1995) with the neighbouring town of
Valka . There are also cooperation agreements withOakland, Maryland [http://estonia.usembassy.gov/otepaa.php] (USA ) andÖsthammar Municipality (Sweden ). There are long-term friendly relations withHallsberg Municipality inSweden and the towns ofLübz inGermany andTornio inFinland .Valga is developing quickly. Since 1996, the populace's quality of life has improved due to the renovation of several buildings, including the Central Library, Valga Stadium, the Museum, Valga Hospital, and the Culture and Hobby Centre. Step by step, the schools and kindergartens are also being modernized. Since 2003, a new water treatment plant has improved the quality of water in the town.
In the private sector, there have been extensive investments in trade, light industry, and forestry.
port
FC Valga Warrior represents the town in the Estonian football championship.History
* 1286: Valga (under German name "Walk") appears for the first time in the credit register of the city of
Riga .
* 1298, 1329, 1345: Walk suffers from looting raids made byLithuanians who are led by Grand DukeGediminas andAlgirdas on the second and third occasions.
* 1419 Walk becomes the seat of theLandtag of theLivonian Confederation .
* 1481: A looting raid byRussia ns; the settlement burns down for the fourth time.
* 1500: Walk, a settlement in the heart of Old Livonia that is not fortified, is chosen as the location for town assembly days 36 times up to 1500.
* 1501: During another raid byRussia ns the settlement gets burnt down for the fifth time.
* 1558: During theLivonian War the medieval settlement of Walk is completely destroyed.
*1584 11 June : Valga is granted the same charter and byelaws asRiga byStefan Batory , the King ofPoland .
*1590 17 April : TheKing of Poland ,Sigismund III Vasa , ratifies the charter for the second time. Valga is granted its city arms.
* 1600: The first town map, showing 42 house properties. The town is 7 km long and between 0.5 and 0.25 km wide.
* 1626: After thePolish-Swedish War Valga becomes the subject ofSweden . On6 March , KingGustavus Adolphus of Sweden confirms the existing privileges.
* 1710: As the result of theGreat Northern War , Valga is subjected toRussia n rule together with the rest ofEstonia .
*1764 5 October : EmpressCatherine II confirms the town's privileges.
* 1783: The district of Valga is formed during theRegency ofCatherine II .
* 1780: The first stone buildings are erected: a church, a school and county offices.
* 1789: Land surveyor O.S. Engell drafts the map of Valga showing 76 plots with houses.
* 1816: The building of St. John's Church is finished.
* 1876: "Walkscher Anzeiger", the first newspaper in Valga, in German, is issued.
* 1889: Valga Railway Station is opened. On22 July theTartu -Valga railway line is officially opened.
*1890 16 December : The Valga Temperance Society is founded.
* 1896: ThePärnu -Valganarrow-gauge railway is opened.
*1901 7 December : Together withLatvians ,Estonians succeed in winning the elections overBaltic Germans in Valga – the first occasion on Estonian territory. The chemistJohannes Märtson is elected mayor.
* 1902: In the building of the Temperance Society the social society Säde is founded;Andres Alver , the county medical officer, is elected chairman. The Valga-Marienburg narrow-gauge railway is opened.
*1904 22 May : Estonian poet and writerPaul Viiding is born in Valga.
*1908 24 June : Estonian military commanderAlfons Rebane is born in Valga.
* 1908: The Girls' Progymnasium is changed into the Gymnasium withMarta Pärna as principal.
* 1909: The construction of the Säde building is begun (architectGeorg Hellat ).
* 1917: A Germanzeppelin flies over the town and drops forty high-explosive bombs without hitting the main target, the railway station.
*1918 11 January : The Council of Delegates of Valga County Workers, Soldiers and Landless Men gains power in the town. On12 February theGerman Army occupies Valga.
*1919 11 January : The Valga Estonian Gymnasium is opened at 22 Kesk Street. For the first time in the history of secondary education in Valga the teaching language is Estonian instead of German. At the end of January, 107 victims ofBolshevik acts of terror are found in five mass graves around Valga; 67 people are taken away as hostages. On31 January theBattle of Paju takes place and consequently Valga is freed from the Bolsheviks.
*1920 1 July : The British envoy Colonel S. G. Tallents conclusively establishes the border betweenEstonia andLatvia . Valga proper, as far as Konnaoja and Luke graveyard, remains intact underEstonia n rule.
*1921 11 February : The decree of theEstonia n government establishes the territory of Valga county. Valga becomes a county centre.
*1940 17 August : TheSoviet occupation begins and with it the mass deportations of Estonians and Latvians from Valga/Valka
*1941 9 July : Valga is occupied by German troops.
*1944 19 September : In the course of heavy fighting Valga is liberated from the German occupation of Estonia. It is immediately replaced by the Soviet occupation of Estonia.
* 1988. The Valga Society for the Protection of Antiquities is founded. On27 November , on the initiative of the Society, the beginning of the War of Liberation is commemorated at the memorial for those killed in the war.
*1989 24 February : The firstEstonia n flag of the re-established independence period is hoisted on the flagpole of 12 Aia Street.
*1992 24 May : TheRussia n army base in Valga is taken over, and later on becomes the border guard's post.
*1993 17 October : The first free elections of the municipal council after the restoration of independence take place.
*1994 31 January : On the 75th anniversary of the battle of Paju a memorial to it is opened. On 21-25 June, worldwide days of Valga county people take place .External links
* [http://www.valgalv.ee/?node=2&lang=en Valga Linn] Official website
* [http://geosite.jankrogh.com/borders/valga_valka.htm Valga/Valka] Illustrations and detailed descriptions of the border, in the period before SchengenReferences
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