Pakri Lighthouse Infrastructure

Pakri Lighthouse is located at the northwestern tip of the Pakri Peninsula, on the edge of a high cliff, on an important shipping route in the Gulf of Finland. The first lighthouse here was built in 1724 by order of Peter I, but the current, 52-meter-high red brick tower was built in 1889, approximately 80 meters from the old lighthouse. It is the tallest lighthouse on the Estonian coast.

The old lighthouse was partially demolished because it was dangerously close to the cliff edge due to erosion. A portion of it still stands today near the new lighthouse, although it too is in danger of falling into the sea. The lighthouse complex was severely damaged during World War II, but in 2001–2002 the lighthouse was carefully restored.

Today, the lighthouse still functions as a navigational marker; its light is located 73.9 m above sea level and is visible for about 12 nautical miles.

The Pakri Lighthouse was not just a navigational facility – in the 20th century it became part of a military observation, communications and navigation system that served one of the most important military districts of the USSR on the Estonian coast.