Võru

{{Infobox settlement

| name = Võru

| native_name = {{native name|vro|Võro}}

| settlement_type = Town

| image_skyline = File:Võru central square.jpg

| image_caption = Võru city centre

| image_flag = Flag of et-Võru.svg

| flag_size = 125px

| image_seal =

| seal_size =

| image_shield = Võru vapp.svg

| shield_size = 75px

| image_blank_emblem =

| blank_emblem_type =

| blank_emblem_size =

| nickname =

| motto =

| pushpin_map = Estonia

| pushpin_label_position =

| pushpin_map_caption = Location in Estonia

| coordinates = {{coord|region:EE|format=dms|display=inline,title}}

| subdivision_type = Country

| subdivision_name = {{flag|Estonia}}

| subdivision_type1 = County

| subdivision_name1 = 25px Võru County

| established_title =

| established_date =

| established_title1 = Founded

| established_date1 = 21 August 1784

| government_type =

| leader_party =

| leader_title = Mayor

| leader_name = Kalvi Kõva

| area_total_km2 = 14.01

| elevation_m = 84

| population_total = 12112

| population_as_of = 2024

| population_density_km2 = 846,7

| population_rank = 12th

| demographics_type1 = Ethnicity

| demographics1_footnotes =

| demographics1_title1 = Estonians

| postal_code_type = Postal code

| postal_code =

| website = {{URL|http://www.voru.ee}}

| demographics1_info1 = 93%

| demographics1_title2 = Russians

| demographics1_info2 = 5%

| demographics1_title3 = other

| demographics1_info3 = 2%

| timezone = EET

| utc_offset = +2

| timezone_DST = EEST

| utc_offset_DST = +3

| iso_code = EE-919

}}

Võru ({{IPA|et|ˈvɤru|lang}}; {{langx|vro|Võro}}; {{langx|de|Werro}}) is a town and a municipality in south-eastern Estonia. It is the capital of Võru County and the centre of Võru Parish.

History

Võru was founded on 21 August 1784, at the request of the Empress Catherine II of Russia, by the order of Riga Governor general count George Browne, on the site of the former Võru estate as the center of the new county.

From 1797 until today, Võru has been the administrative center of the surrounding region.

In 1827, the Võru Town Hospital was opened and Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald, who lived and worked as a doctor in Võru from 1833 to 1877, also wrote the Estonian national epic "Kalevipoeg" in Võru.

The development of the town was facilitated by the Pskov-Riga railway completed in 1889, which enabled Võru to have a direct connection with Riga and St. Petersburg. As a result, trade was developed, a flour mill, a sawmill and a distillery were built. Võru became the center of the surrounding rural area.{{cite book|last=Pullat|first=R.|title=Võru linna ajalugu|year=1984}}

Geography and climate

The town is situated on the shore of Lake Tamula.

Võru has a humid continental climate (Dfb according to the Köppen climate classification) with warm summers and cold winters. Võru has one of the most continental climates in Estonia: both the temperatures of {{Convert|35.6|C}}, which is the highest temperature ever recorded in the country and {{Convert|-43.4|C}}, which is very close to the coldest temperature ever recorded in the country (after Jõgeva) are recorded here. {{cite web |url= https://www.ilmateenistus.ee/kliima/rekordid/ohutemperatuur|title=Õhutemperatuur | }} Precipitation is usually higher in early summer to late autumn, and lower in late winter to early spring.

{{Weather box|width=auto

|location= Võru (normals 1991–2020, extremes 1868–present)

|metric first=yes

|single line=yes

|Jan record high C = 9.6

|Feb record high C = 12.9

|Mar record high C = 19.9

|Apr record high C = 27.5

|May record high C = 31.1

|Jun record high C = 33.8

|Jul record high C = 35.2

|Aug record high C = 35.6

|Sep record high C = 29.9

|Oct record high C = 22.2

|Nov record high C = 14.2

|Dec record high C = 11.7

|year record high C = 35.6

|Jan high C = −1.8

|Feb high C = −1.3

|Mar high C = 3.7

|Apr high C = 11.4

|May high C = 17.6

|Jun high C = 21.1

|Jul high C = 23.6

|Aug high C = 22.1

|Sep high C = 16.5

|Oct high C = 9.4

|Nov high C = 3.4

|Dec high C = -0.1

|year high C = 10.5

|Jan mean C = -4.2

|Feb mean C = -4.5

|Mar mean C = -0.4

|Apr mean C = 6.1

|May mean C = 11.9

|Jun mean C = 15.9

|Jul mean C = 18.4

|Aug mean C = 16.9

|Sep mean C = 11.9

|Oct mean C = 6.2

|Nov mean C = 1.3

|Dec mean C = -2.1

|year mean C = 6.5

|Jan low C = -6.7

|Feb low C = −7.6

|Mar low C = −4.2

|Apr low C = 1.2

|May low C = 6.0

|Jun low C = 10.7

|Jul low C = 13.3

|Aug low C = 12.1

|Sep low C = 8.0

|Oct low C = 3.3

|Nov low C = −0.8

|Dec low C = −4.3

|year low C = 2.6

|Jan record low C = −43.4

|Feb record low C = −37.9

|Mar record low C = −30.2

|Apr record low C = −18.8

|May record low C = −9.4

|Jun record low C = -1.0

|Jul record low C = 1.7

|Aug record low C = 1.0

|Sep record low C = −5.0

|Oct record low C = −14.4

|Nov record low C = −21.9

|Dec record low C = −40.5

|year record low C = −43.4

|precipitation colour = green

|Jan precipitation mm = 45

|Feb precipitation mm = 36

|Mar precipitation mm = 34

|Apr precipitation mm = 35

|May precipitation mm = 53

|Jun precipitation mm = 83

|Jul precipitation mm = 75

|Aug precipitation mm = 79

|Sep precipitation mm = 57

|Oct precipitation mm = 64

|Nov precipitation mm = 51

|Dec precipitation mm = 45

|year precipitation mm = 658

|unit precipitation days = 1.0 mm

|Jan precipitation days = 12.3

|Feb precipitation days = 9.5

|Mar precipitation days = 8.9

|Apr precipitation days = 8.1

|May precipitation days = 8.7

|Jun precipitation days = 10.8

|Jul precipitation days = 9.6

|Aug precipitation days = 10.8

|Sep precipitation days = 9.6

|Oct precipitation days = 11.4

|Nov precipitation days = 10.7

|Dec precipitation days = 11.6

|year precipitation days = 122.0

|Jan humidity = 88

|Feb humidity = 85

|Mar humidity = 77

|Apr humidity = 69

|May humidity = 67

|Jun humidity = 71

|Jul humidity = 74

|Aug humidity = 77

|Sep humidity = 82

|Oct humidity = 86

|Nov humidity = 89

|Dec humidity = 89

|year humidity = 79

|Jan sun = 29.3

|Feb sun = 60.5

|Mar sun = 136.6

|Apr sun = 194.8

|May sun = 271.8

|Jun sun = 261.1

|Jul sun = 276.1

|Aug sun = 237.4

|Sep sun = 150.8

|Oct sun = 75.2

|Nov sun = 27.3

|Dec sun = 17.3

|year sun = 1738.2

|source 1 = Estonian Weather Service

{{cite web

| url = http://www.ilmateenistus.ee/kliima/kliimanormid/ohutemperatuur/?lang=en

| title = Climate normals-Temperature