Estonia’s coastal waters are rather shallow and stony. Due to the close proximity of the shoal of Hiiumadal, or Neckmansgrund, to the Baltic Sea major shipping lane, construction of Estonia’s first lighthouse, the Kõpu lighthouse on Hiiumaa Island began on the initiative of Tallinn municipal authorities and at the request of Tallinn Hanseatic merchants as early as at the end of the 15th century. However, the lighthouse was completed only in 1531.

Next lighthouses were built by the Swedes right after they had occupied the land: in 1645 on Ruhnu island and in 1646 at the very tip of the Sõrve peninsula.

With expansion of the territory of the Russian Empire to the Baltic Sea and formation of the Russian fleet during the reign of Peter I it became necessary to mark the dangerous areas of the seaway of the Gulf of Finland. In the first quarter of the 18th century, by order of tsar Peter the Great, on Keri (Kokskär) and Vaindloo (Stenskär) islands stone columns/posts/stands were build on top of which fire could be made at night and during dark periods. Peter I also initiated the construction of aids to navigation in the form of log structures loaded with stones on the shoals of Kuradimuna (Develsei) and Neugrund both located in the vicinity of the islands of Prangli (Wrangelsholm) and Osmussaar (Odensholm). There was also a decree on building an aid to navigation on the bank of Tallinn (Revalstein). By the end of the reign of Peter I in 1725, permanent lighthouses were built also on the cape of Pakri (Rogerviik) and on Keri island. According to the Uusinkaupunki peace treaty (1721) Kõpu, Ruhnu, Sõrve, Riga, Kolka (Domesnäs) and Seiskari lighthouses also went under the jurisdiction of Russia. With a Peter I decree fire was made in these lighthouses only in case the Russian fleet used these waterways.

After Peter the Great’s death there was a decades-long stagnation in maritime activities in Russia. New developments appeared in the second half of the 18th century and even some new stone lighthouses were built: in 1760 in Suurupi and Pakri cape, in 1765 in Osmussaar and in 1770 a sturdy rectangular lighthouse destroyed in World War II was completed in Sõrve.

Tsar Alexander I who came to the throne in 1801 gave more attention to the marine and maritime issues and enormous work was done in building new aids to navigation. Thanks to the contribution of commander Leonti Spafarjev were reconstructed the lighthouses of Keri (1803), Osmussaar (1804) and Pakri (1808). New lighthouses were built at Lasnamäe in Tallinn and Mohni island (1806), in Narva–Jõesuu (1808) and Vilsandi island (1809).

In early lighthouses the source of light was fire. For making fire mostly wood, brushwood and occasionally coal imported from overseas was used. According to records, Kõpu lighthouse used about 1000 cords of firewood a year. I took several centuries until open fire was replaced by simple lighting equipment. Despite the fact that many European countries had applied the catoptrical lighting device immediately after its invention at the end of the 18th century, in Russia mostly old traditional wood and coal, at rare occasions candles or oil lanterns were used.
In the first quarter of the 19th century candles and oil lanterns with reflectors were introduced in this country. To differentiate between neighbouring lighthouses special flashing lights were used. In 1817, first flashing lights with a revolving screen were introduced in Vilsandi and Naissaar lighthouses.