Lenin statue in Narva relocated to Estonian War Museum near Tallinn

TALLINN - A statue of Lenin, which stood in the courtyard of Narva Castle for almost 29 years, was moved to the Estonian War Museum in Viimsi right outside Tallinn on Wednesday, where the Narva tank, which was moved in August, is also located, the regional Pohjarannik writes.

The plan is to hand over the Lenin monument to the History Museum in Tallinn next spring. The museum collects material reflecting the political history of Estonia and has already opened an outdoor exhibition of Soviet-era memorials.

The removal of the Lenin statue from Narva has been opposed by former major Aleksei Jevgrafov, who is running for parliament on the Center Party's list.

"It is undoubtedly bad. Narva is a self-sufficient municipality and we are simply obliged to do everything in order to preserve things that are close to the hearts of the city's residents and related to the city's history. And this monument is related namely to the city of Narva," Jevgrafov recently told Pohjarannik.

The statue of Lenin, created by sculptor Olav Manni, was erected on Peter Square in Narva on Nov. 7, 1957. It was taken down in 1993 and transported to the castle's courtyard.

Major construction works have been taking place on the territory of Narva Castle since December 2021.

"The project that preceded this, which envisaged the removal of the Lenin statue from its current location, was coordinated with the city of Narva and approved in 2018," the museum operating in Narva Castle said.

The ongoing reconstruction works of Narva Castle will end at the end of 2023. An exhibition will be opened in the restored Kristervall bastion, the north wall of the castle and the gallery located on it will be renovated and the infrastructure of the courtyard will be updated.

The reconstruction of the castle courtyard will cost approximately six million euros.