chiefdom · Scandinavia and the Baltic

Rävala

800 CE – 1219 CE (approx.) · capital Lindanise

Coastal Estonian county around Lindanise, the site of modern Tallinn, conquered by King Valdemar II of Denmark in 1219.

Origins

Rävala occupied the northern coast of Estonia around the bay where Tallinn now stands. A harbour and stronghold at Lindanise served Baltic shipping, and the Arab geographer al-Idrisi's 1154 map may record it as a town called Qlwry. The county appears in Henry of Livonia's chronicle in the early 13th century.

Rule and society

Its elders controlled the harbour and the trade passing between Scandinavia, Finland and Novgorod. The county farmed the coastal plain and kept close ties with Harjumaa inland. Little else is known of its institutions.

Decline and legacy

In 1219 Valdemar II of Denmark landed with a crusading army, defeated the Estonians at the Battle of Lindanise and built a castle on Toompea; legend places the falling of the Danish flag, the Dannebrog, from the sky at this battle. Rävala became the core of the Duchy of Estonia (1219-1346), and Lindanise grew into Reval.

Lineage

RävalaDuchy of Estonia (1219-1346) 1219 CE – 1346 CE

More states of Scandinavia and the Baltic →

Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Rävala. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/ravala
MLA
“Rävala.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/ravala. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Rävala.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/ravala.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Rävala’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/ravala (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻