Saaremaa Churches

The church of St. Michael was built in the third quarter of the 13th century. The arches of the 13th-century church have been preserved. The bell tower, which is separate from the church, was built in 1638. The organ was built for the church in 1805 by the master Johann Andreas Stein and is one of the oldest in Estonia.

The Peter and Paul Church in Kaarma was probably built in 1261. The high bell tower, whose east side rests on the west side, was completed in the 15th century. The eastern wall of the choir hall is illustrated by a triple window, a rare feature in Estonia. The interior of the church contains the real treasures. Besides the 13th century paintings on the north wall of the choir, there are also 13th-century baptismal fonts as well as a wooden sculpture of Simon of Cyrene (mid 15th century) and an altar donated in 1547.

St. Jacob's Church is a fortified church dating from the 13th century. The church is one of the oldest buildings on the island of Saaremaa. After a great fire during the Livonian War (1558-1583), the church was subsequently plastered, which made its construction history much more hidden from researchers than that of other churches on Saaremaa. The west tower was designed by Johannes Gahlnbäck in 1924.

The church in Valjala is the oldest preserved stone church in Estonia. It was built in 1227, at the time of the Livonian Crusades (13th century). In the third quarter of the 13th century, the small church of that time was transformed into a fortified church. The defensive church contains both Romanesque and Gothic elements. In 1922, lightning struck the church and burnt the baroque steeple of the tower.

The church of Karja was built in the fourth quarter of the 13th or early 14th century by masters from Ojamaa (Gotland). Even before the construction of the stone church in 1254, there was a wooden church in Karja. Until 1896 the clergy was composed of Baltic Germans. The first Estonian clergyman was Karl Wöhrmann in 1896-1926.

Pöide Church is a fortified church probably completed in the 1230s. Only the lower part of the sidewalls of the two central vaults of the present church has survived. At the end of the 13th or early 14th century, the original church was extended by a vault in both directions. The imposing western tower of the church probably also dates from before the St. George's night uprising (1343-1345). After the conservation work in the Muhu church in 1958, roofing and conservation work was also undertaken in the Pöide church. The works were completed in 1961.

Located on the small Muhu island (between Saaremaa and mainland Estonia), the church of Muhu was built in the early Gothic style, probably in the 13th century. The present church owes much to a reconstruction in 1738 after it was destroyed during the Great Northern War (1700–1721). Given the church's few narrow windows and other architectural features, it is assumed that the church was built for defence purposes.