Early history The village of
Laoküla, situated just south-east of Paldiski, was first mentioned in the Danish Census Book in 1241 CE as
Laiduscæ. It was part of the historical Keila parish and had an area of 18
ploughlands. The Pakri islands, situated just off the coast of the current town, were first mentioned in 1283 as
insula Rogoy, meaning "the rye island," but it is unknown if the islands had any inhabitants at the time or which island was referred to. It is speculated that the sales happened as a result of the
Saint George's Night Uprising of 1343, to shield the coast from rebellious
Estonians. Some of the settlers may have been from
Uusimaa, as Padise Monastery owned territories there. The first written records of human activity on this site are about Pakri in 1377. The village would have been on the eastern edge of modern Paldiski, in the middle of the peninsula. In Estonian, Pakri Peninsula and the Pakri Islands are named after Pakri. On the north-eastern coast of the peninsula, the village of Leetse was first mentioned in 1561, and a manor was established there in 1677. It was only during the 19th century that this village was renamed Leetse (previously referred to as
Perraste,
Paresta, or
Pärast). The village of Pallaste was first mentioned in 1582, with its manor being established in 1802. The manor was located 1.5 kilometers north-east of the port. The village of Ohtra, just south of Pakri, had existed since at least the end of the 17th century. Two
artillery batteries were finished on the mainland in 1726 and at least one on Väike-Pakri in 1731. Two additional batteries were built on the mainland during the
Russo-Swedish War of 1741–1743. In 1746,
Elizabeth of Russia ordered for work to continue, but not much was done.
Soviet era Soviet naval base headquarters were located in Paldiski. During
World War II, Germans occupied the town on 28 August 1941 and left in 1944. During the retreat, most of the town was burnt down, and only 20 buildings survived. In 1962, Paldiski became a
nuclear submarine training centre for the
Soviet Navy. The training center had a nuclear submarine constructed piece-by-piece for naval personnel training purposes. The center, known by locals as the Pentagon, was demolished by 2007. Employing some 16,000 people, and with two land-based
nuclear reactors (at 70 MW and 90 MW power, respectively), it was the largest such facility in the
Soviet Union. In total, the Soviet navy used the facility for 27 years. Because of its importance, the whole city was
closed off with barbed wire until the military base was shut down on 31 August 1994. The Paldiski nuclear centre was handed off to the Estonian authorities on 30 September 1995. In 1991 the
Soviet Union collapsed and Estonia regained independence. To house Russian troops and those in training, many barracks had been built, which have since been left in disrepair. The nuclear reactors were shut down in 1989, first on a temporary basis because of
the Chernobyl accident and later, due to the
collapse of Soviet union, it became permanent. Nuclear material was transported back to Russia in 1994. The reactors were thereafter decommissioned. The reactors were protected with a
sarcophagus, finished by 2006, as they were potentially dangerous due to radioactivity. When Paldiski was a Soviet
closed military townlet, incidents occurred rarely and if something did happen, it was classified. At the time
Jüri Liim, the Estonian government special representative in Paldiski, had undercover access to the closed city. Per his testimony, the
Pakri Islands just next to Paldiski were practice bombing targets for the Soviet air force, including nuclear bombers. There were no actual
nuclear bombs used, but bombs that were in similar weight and size categories. When real bombs were used, small tremors could sometimes be felt in Paldiski and at the nuclear reactors. Nuclear personnel were concerned about potential cracks or other issues with the reactor because of the bombs. Practice flight paths were often routed over Paldiski. Once, a live bomb fell by accident into the local kindergarten's cabbage field. The bomb malfunctioned and caused no damage. On another occasion, a bomb accidentally fell 15 meters from the working nuclear reactors. This bomb also malfunctioned and did not explode.
After Estonia regained independence After Estonia restored its independence, the city had few Estonian citizens, and Paldiski was subordinated to
Keila until 30 October 1996. Located some 45 km west of
Tallinn, Paldiski was then made a
municipality within
Harju County. Derelict Soviet-style apartment buildings made up much of the town, and the relics of military bases were widespread. A significant portion of the town's residents are ethnic Russians, originally from other parts of Soviet Union and were relocated to
Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic by
Soviet policy. The
ferry company
Tallink operates a regular connection with
Kapellskär in
Sweden. Danish ferry operator DFDS is also operates a regular connection on the same route. Operation "Ämblik" (Spider) was conducted in Paldiski on 16 March 1993 by 33
Estonian police officers and 40
border guards to establish law in the area, including in the
Russian military base. At the time, there were around 1,500 members of the
Russian armed forces still in the town. The aim of the police operation was to contain illegal activities, including the weapons trade, and to restrict the activities of career criminals in Paldiski, who formerly had the run of the town. On 9 March 1993, several Russian armed forces officers were detained by Estonian authorities in Tallinn due to an attempt to sell illegal firearms. The Russian government did not agree to participate in Operation Ämblik, as preparations were kept in secrecy. Confusion in Paldiski among Russian military personnel helped Estonian officials to curb their activities.
Politics On 20 July 1718,
Peter the Great of Russia ceremoniously initiated the construction of the
breakwater between
Väike-Pakri island and the mainland, which was never fully completed. Nowadays, Paldiski commemorates this event by celebrating its birthday on July 20th. Paldiski received town rights on 3 July 1783. File:Flag of Paldiski.svg|The flag of Paldiski between September 27, 1994, and October 24, 2017 File:Paldiski coatofarms.png|The coat of arms of Paldiski between December 1, 1994, and October 24, 2017 == Demographics ==