Construction of the sea fortress now known as Patarei Prison started in 1829.
In the second half of the 19th Century it was rebuilt into barracks, and in 1920 it became a detention center. Twenty years later, its transformation into a harsher prison began.
In 2002, the prison’s last inmates were moved to a new facility in Tartu, and the Patarei was finally closed down.
In the fall of 2005, the Foundation of Virumaa Museums began organizing tours of the prison, but these were suspended after one month due to the discovery of toxic mold spores. After a thorough decontamination, a new scientific study deemed that short-term visits to the prison are perfectly safe.
At the beginning of May, the recently decommissioned Tallinn Central Prison, or Patarei Prison, was reopened for visitors interested in taking tours or participating in prison adventures. The museum, which is constantly being supplemented, displays prison guard equipment as well as contraband items confiscated from inmates.
While a visit to the prison can be disturbing, especially to people with hidden guilt complexes, it can also be therapeutic, serving as a powerful reminder of the value of freedom.
The hour-long prison tour begins with an explanation of the history of the building, which was constructed in the 19th Century and originally functioned as a sea fortress. Everything that follows deals with the detention regime and regulations that were in force there, including the carrying out of death sentences.
The tour gives an overview of the intake and search of prisoners, their living, eating, and hygiene conditions, and their sleeping habits. Guides also explain the special regime that applied to those with life sentences, showing their cells, exercise boxes and lock-ups. The tour ends with the rooms related to executions by shooting.
Visitors participating in the three-hour prison adventure are in for a much harsher experience. In the administration rooms, the participants’ – or rather the prisoners’ – papers are accepted; they are searched, and their photos and fingerprints are taken. Soon after, they are taken to their cells, then escorted to eat prison food and to exercise. Those deemed hardened criminals are interrogated and transferred to death row or to the execution room, where their sentence is read and their punishment carried out. Those who are freed after serving their sentence receive their files from the prison director, and they have to promise not to commit any more crimes.
The safety of the participants is guaranteed throughout the adventure. They can quit the game at any time, or alternatively, opt to become a prison guard.
Group tours (minimum ten people) must be pre-booked.
Tours for individuals take place Wednesdays to Fridays at noon, 2pm and 4pm, and on Saturdays and Sundays at 10am and noon. .
Additional information and tour bookings
Tags: Education, Interesting
