Estonian students raise flag to mark Day honoring past Resistance
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Students from Tallinn School No. XXI in Estonia raised the national flag on the Pikk Hermann tower on September 22 to commemorate Resistance Day.
The school’s flag guard has performed this ceremony for over twenty years, continuing a tradition begun in 2001. Following the sunrise flag raising, the students met with Riigikogu President Lauri Hussar at Toompea Castle, where he toured the historic building with them.
Hussar emphasized the importance of remembering history and connecting with younger generations, noting that Estonia’s freedom depended on people upholding their beliefs during difficult times. He also connected the students’ actions to a symbolic moment in 1944 when the flag flew over the same tower under the government of Otto Tief, who attempted to restore Estonian independence as German forces withdrew.
Resistance Day, also known as Otto Tief Government Day, honors Tief’s efforts and remembers the victims of the subsequent Soviet occupation. Estonia never formally surrendered, and resistance continued until the country regained independence in 1991. Pikk Hermann, a part of Toompea Castle, serves as the location for national flag ceremonies, with different schools providing the flag guard each year.
