KGB cells Tallinn

KGB Cells Tallinn - Part of the basement of a large building in the Old Town of Tallinn in which the infamous KGB had some of its cells for incarceration and interrogation during the Soviet era. After Estonia ’s regaining independence in 1991, the place was long ignored and merely marked by a single Estonian-only plaque, while the rest of the building was converted to luxury flats. But more recently part of the basement has been opened up to the public too. It’s much less substantial a site than the equivalents in the other Baltic capital cities or in Estonia’s second city Tartu, but it’s still an improvement that these cells have now been commodified for visitors as well. > More background info > What there is to see > Location > Access and costs > Time required > Combinations with other dark destinations > Combinations with non-dark destinations > Photos More background info: For the topic of the KGB see also under the KGB Museum Vilnius , KGB Cells Riga , and the equivalent in Tartu . In Tallinn , the KGB requisitioned a grand Art Nouveau building right in the Old Town. Originally constructed as a residential apartment building, it became the seat of the provisional government of the newly established Republic of Estonia . The 1918-20 War of Independence (cf. Estonian War Museum ) was co-ordinated from here. And after that the building served as the seat of the Ministry of War. Then in 1940 the first Soviet occupation of Estonia began and shortly after the building was made the headquarters of the NKVD, the KGB’s predecessor. Interrupted by the Nazi German occupation (when the building was used by a local auxiliary police force but not as a prison), the HQ was re-established after the Soviets’ return in 1944. This time the Soviets’ presence was to last for another 47 years.