Kaiu manor was founded in 1663 in place of an ancient village of the same name and belonged to the Estonian Knighthood from its founding until expropriation in 1919. It had two outlying estates, Karitsa and Oraniku. During the 1905 revolution the manor’s timber main house was set on fire. It was rebuilt as a Historicist building of exposed brick.
The manor is privately owned and the main house stands abandoned.
Owners
Eestimaa rüütelkond1663–1919
Good to know
Kaiu was a knighthood estate whose income went to the Estonian Knighthood.
The 1818 land census credited the estate with 46 plow-lands and 653 registered serfs.
Its German names were Catharinen and Kay.
Photos through time
1906 · Kaiu manor after the burning of manors in the 1905 uprising Nikolai Königsfest · Eesti Ajaloomuuseum, AM _ 13814:4 F 14387 · CC BY2021 · The abandoned main house, 2021 Salajane123 · CC BY 4.0
