Manor · Jõgeva County
Põltsamaa Oberpahlen
The Livonian Order founded the castle in 1272. In the mid-1700s Woldemar Johann von Lauw had the ruins rebuilt into a grand palace with the richest rococo interiors in Estonia. On 14 July 1941 both the palace and the church burned to the ground.
Built / first recorded castle 1272 · palace 1750s
Style Rococo inside an Order castle
Condition Lost 1941
German name Oberpahlen Today
The rococo halls are lost. The ruined castle was restored and reopened in 2023; it houses the Põltsamaa Museum and the Estonian Press Museum.
Owners Liivi ordu1272–1558 hertsog Magnus1570–1577 von Lauw1750. a Bobrinski1794 Gagarin1919 Good to know From 1570 to 1577 Duke Magnus of Holstein ruled from here as “King of Livonia”. The rococo interiors were by stucco master Johann Michael Graff, who had worked at Rundāle Palace. Aleksei Bobrinski, son of Catherine II and Grigori Orlov, set up a telescope observatory in the tower. Photos through time 1800s · The castle and palace in a picture by Wilhelm Tusch1828 · Põltsamaa castle from the southwest1845 · Põltsamaa castle, album leaf1848 · Põltsamaa castle and an Estonian wedding1866 · Põltsamaa (Oberpahlen) castle1939 · The castle courtyard in 1939, two years before the fire1945 · Põltsamaa castlearchive · Põltsamaa castle, interior view (from architect Johann Ostrat’s collection)archive · Põltsamaa castle seen from the riverarchive · The former Order castle at Põltsamaaarchive · Põltsamaa church and castle after the fire2021 · Põltsamaa castle, 2021Nearby
The buildings are stylized impressions, not surveyed models. Facts: mois.ee, Museum of Estonian Architecture, ERR, Wikipedia. Photos: MuIS and Wikimedia Commons, credited with each photo.
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