Varbola: on the function of an 11th to 14th-century stronghold in northwestern Estonia based on location analysis and written sources

The Varbola hillfort is one of the largest prehistoric fortifications in the eastern Baltic. Although it stands out as a major political centre in literary sources from the 13th century, and the archaeological record points to a proto­-town with almost a hundred households, its location has puzzled scholars for nearly a century. While Varbola has been claimed to be situated in a peripheral area not suited for the emergence of a power centre, this notion of ‘peripherality’ has not been examined in a measurable way to allow for comparison with other strongholds. The article explores this issue by employing a GIS­-based methodology inspired by site catchment analysis and quantifying the amount of fertile soils, known archaeological settlement sites, burial places and early modern manors around Late Iron Age forts in northwestern Estonia within four different radii. Results demonstrate that Varbola is actually ‘average’ in terms of centrality, rather than ‘peripheral’. As Varbola is located at the edge of the area covered by the large Estonian list of the Liber Census Daniae, an important 13th­-century source for settlement history, it can be argued that perceptions of Varbola’s peripherality are influenced by the ‘edge effect’. Analysis of historical sources suggests that Varbola is more likely to have been a power centre than a trading hub, and its emergence might be related to the Lode magnate family.