Keskpolügoon or the Central training area is the main military training field

Proving ground

A proving ground is the US name for a military installation or reservation where weapons or other military technology are experimented or tested, or where military tactics are tested...

 of the six areas used by the Estonian Defence Forces. Defense Forces central training area covers 11951 ha (29,531.5 acre) and is located in the eastern part of the Kuusalu municipality in Harju County

Harju County

Harju County , or Harjumaa , nowadays one of 15 counties of Estonia. It is situated in northern Estonia, on the south coast of the Gulf of Finland, and borders Lääne-Viru County to the east, Järva County to the south-east, Rapla County to the south, and Lääne County to the south-west.528,468 people...

. It borders with three other rural municipalities: Kadrina to the east, Tapa

Tapa Parish

Tapa Parish is a rural municipality in Lääne-Viru County in northern Estonia. On January 1, 2008, the parish had 8,894 residents, down from 9,067 one year earlier.The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Tapa...

 to the south (both in Lääne-Viru County) and Anija Parish of Harju County to the south-west. To the west it borders the Põhja-Kõrvemaa Nature Reserve

Põhja-Kõrvemaa Nature Reserve

Põhja-Kõrvemaa Nature Reserve is a protected area in Harju County, Northern Estonia, some 50 km east of Tallinn. With an area of 130.9 km2, it is the third largest nature reserve in Estonia...

.

Organization

The Keskpolügoon is part of the North-East Defence District and operates the remaining five fields:

• Tsiatsungõlmaa training area
  Tsiatsungõlmaa training area
  Tsiatsungõlmaa training area is one of the six military training fields used by the Estonian Defence Forces. It is located in Võru Parish, Võru County, and covers . The Tsiatsungõlmaa training area is part of the Nursipalu training area.- Establishment :...
  
  
• Nursipalu training area
  Nursipalu training area
  Nursipalu training area is one of the six military training fields used by the Estonian Defence Forces. It is located in Sõmerpalu and Rõuge municipalities in Võru County...
  
  
• Männiku training area
  Männiku training area
  Männiku training area is one of the six military training fields used by the Estonian Defence Forces. It is located just outside the capital of Estonia, Tallinn, in Kiili and Saku municipalities...
  
  
• Sirgala training area
  Sirgala training area
  Sirgala training area is one of the six military training fields used by the Estonian Defence Forces. It is located in Vaivara Parish, Ida-Viru County, and covers approximately .- Establishment :...
  
  
• Klooga training area
  Klooga training area
  Klooga training area is one of the six military training fields used by the Estonian Defence Forces. It is located in Keila Parish, Harju County...
  
  

The Keskpolügoon operates the training area according to civil agreements with the local municipalities, plans, and organizes the combat firing exercises, prepares and carries out practical training in the use of the armed forces in accordance with the requirements.

History

During the Soviet occupation of Estonia, Central training area was part of the Soviet Army

Soviet Army

The Soviet Army is the name given to the main part of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union between 1946 and 1992. Previously, it had been known as the Red Army. Informally, Армия referred to all the MOD armed forces, except, in some cases, the Soviet Navy.This article covers the Soviet Ground...

artillery and tank training area with the area of 33,100 ha. The area was in active use from 1952 to 1992.

Establishment

Keskpolügoon was created on 15 May 1997 and was officially established as the central training area of the Maavägi on 23 October 2001, with the Government Order No. 713 "Establishment of the Defense Forces Central training area."

External links

• Map
• official web