Lennart Meri.

As a child, Lennart Meri spent many years abroad with his family, learning to speak French, German, English, and Finnish fluently. He was born on 29 March 1929 in Tallinn, Estonia, to Georg Meri. He attended Lycée Janson-de-Sailly in Paris, Tallinn Nõmme Upper Secondary School, and later studied at the University of Tartu.

Meri began working as a screenwriter and producer for a film company in Tallinn from the 1960s to the 1980s. His ethnographic films, including Veelinnurahvas 1973 and Linnutee tuuled 1978, depicted the hardships of ethnic peoples behind the Iron Curtain and were banned in the Soviet Union but earned critical praise abroad through smuggled copies. He also wrote and translated many books. In 1992, after a brief stint as ambassador to Finland, he was elected the first post-Soviet President of Estonia.

Meri was married twice: first to Regina Meri née Regina Ojavere and later to Helle Meri née Helle Pihlakas. He had three children: sons Mart born 1959 and Kristjan born 1966, and daughter Tuule born 1985. His brother Hindrek Meri and son Mart Meri also became notable figures.

Lennart Meri served as the first post-Soviet president of Estonia from 6 October 1992 to 8 October 2001, guiding Estonia through its early years of restored independence. He was a leader of the Estonian independence movement and worked as an ethnographer, creating films such as Veelinnurahvas 1973 and Linnutee tuuled 1978. Banned in the Soviet Union, these films influenced perceptions of life behind the Iron Curtain through smuggled copies. He received honors including the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour and the Order of the White Eagle.