The city and its castle have experienced their fair share of wars, foreign rule and other upheavals over the past eight centuries, yet it has persevered. It has developed into a modern, fast-growing, and innovative town where history and the present day intertwine, Rakvere city government wrote.

Throughout the year, local residents and visitors alike will be treated to a wide range of events highlighting the town's rich history, cultural heritage, and strong sense of community.

While the town's first mention is 800 years ago, there is evidence of human settlement in the area dating back to prehistoric times. As early as the 12th century, one of the largest ancient strongholds in the region stood on Vallimägi hill — Tarvanpea, or "the head of the bull."

This is reflected in the modern-day bull statue on the castle hill, and it was in 1226 in the Chronicle of Henry of Livonia that the town was first recorded, when it was known as Tarvanpea, or Tarvanpää.

Later, the Rakvere Order Castle was built on the same site and over the centuries a town grew up around it.

Less than 80 years later, in 1302, Danish King Eric VI granted Germany's Lübeck city rights, a significant medieval legal code originating in the city of the same name.

While events commemorating the anniversary reach their climax June 8-12, there will be a variety of different goings on starting from the end of this month, with the opening of the Ukuaru Music House dedicated to Arvo Pärt.

Highlights will include dance festivals, hikes and runs, including some at night, concerts and plays, fairs, reenactments and sporting events.

A fuller list is here (link in Estonian).

The county town of Lääne-Viru County, Rakvere, was along with much of the rest of northern Estonia passed from pillar to post between Denmark (from the 13th century), to the Livonian Order of Teutonic Knights (14th century), to Muscovy, Sweden and then the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (all 16th century), then back under Swedish rule until the Great Northern War of the early 18th century saw it fall under Imperial Russian control. With the arrival of the railroad, the town grew. It thrived in the interwar period, when many of the buildings in the town center were erected. Unusually, in 2000, the town suffered an upheaval of a wholly natural origin, when a tornado hit it, damaging homes, destroying outbuildings and even killing one person.

The castle is open to the public, and other local highlights include its theater, with which many prominent Estonian actors have a long association with composer Arvo Pärt attended school in Rakvere, which is why the Ukuaru was opened there.

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