Kyminlinna

Last updated
Kyminlinna
Part of South-Eastern Finland fortification system
Finland
Kyminlinna main gate.JPG
Kyminlinna main gate
Finland adm location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Kyminlinna
Kyminlinna
Coordinates 60°30′26″N26°53′19″E / 60.50722°N 26.88861°E / 60.50722; 26.88861
TypeCaponier fortress
Area74 hectares (180 acres)
Site information
Owner Senate Properties
Open to
the public
no
ConditionPartly in disrepair
Site history
Built1803 (1803)
Built byRussian Empire
In use1808 (1808)
MaterialsEarth, masonry

Kyminlinna (literally, 'the castle of Kymi') is a fortress located in the northern part of island of Hovinsaari in Kotka, on the south coast of Finland. Kyminlinna is part of the South-Eastern Finland fortification system built by Russia after the Russo-Swedish War of 1788-1790. Kyminlinna formed the northern part of a double fortification, together with Ruotsinsalmi sea fortress, where Kyminlinna was intended to repulse land-based attacks along the King's Road.

Contents

Physical description

Kyminlinna is a five-corner-caponier approximately 800 metres (870 yd) in diameter. The surface area of the fortress is approximately 74 hectares (180 acres).

The fortress is surrounded by incomplete moats, which also form part of the ditch system intended to drain the grounds. There is a pond in area despite of the draining intentions.

The eastern part of the ramparts are dissected by the Kotka railway built in 1890, and the Kymintie road built in the early 20th century. The national road 7 goes through the outer ramparts of the southern part of the fortress

The fortress houses 23 buildings, most of which have been empty after Finnish Defence Forces ceased using the fortress, and some of which are in varying states of disrepair.

History

The first fortification in the Kyminlinna location was a bastion fortress of a few hundred metres in diameter, built between 1791 and 1795. The construction of the fortress was initially supervised by the Russian Marshall Alexander Suvorov, later followed by the Dutch-born General Jan Pieter van Suchtelen. This so-called 'Suvorov fortress' was demolished to make room for the new, six times larger Kyminlinna, which was built in 1803–1808.

General Suchtelen designed the new fortress and supervised its construction. The fortress was not quite ready by the time Finnish War began, and lost its intended military usefulness after the border between Russia and Sweden moved from Kymi River to Torne River. Kyminlinna did not see action during the Crimean War, when the Ruotsinsalmi sea fortress was destroyed.

During the Finnish Civil War Kyminlinna was used by Red Guards as a training centre. Kyminlinna fortress saw its only battle during the civil war on April 9, 1918, when a German unit attacked the red guards based in the fortress. The battle resulted in few casualties, among them the German soldier Willy Heinz, who is buried in the Kotka old cemetery.

During World War II Kyminlinna was used as refugee camp for Ingrian Finns. The fortress was also used as a prisoner of war camp, tuberculosis hospital and civil guard firing range.

Kyminlinna was used by Finnish Defence Forces between 1939 and 2005.

The area is currently owned by the Finnish government real estate enterprise Senate Properties.

Sources

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suomenlinna</span> Sea fortress by Helsinki, Finland

Suomenlinna, or Sveaborg, is an inhabited sea fortress composed of eight islands, of which six have been fortified; it is about 4 km southeast of the city center of Helsinki, the capital of Finland. Suomenlinna is popular with tourists and locals, who enjoy it as a picturesque picnic site. Originally named Sveaborg, or Viapori as referred to by Finnish-speaking Finns, it was renamed in Finnish to Suomenlinna in 1918 for patriotic and nationalistic reasons, though it is still known by its original name in Sweden and by Swedish-speaking Finns.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loviisa</span> Town in Uusimaa, Finland

Loviisa is a municipality and town of 14,442 inhabitants on the southern coast of Finland. It is located 90 kilometres (56 mi) from Helsinki and 38 kilometres (24 mi) from Porvoo. About 43 per cent of the population is Swedish-speaking.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kotka</span> City in Kymenlaakso, Finland

Kotka is a city in the southern part of the Kymenlaakso province on the Gulf of Finland. Kotka is a major port and industrial city and also a diverse school and cultural city, which was formerly part of the old Kymi parish; later, Kymi with the Haapasaari island and Karhula, the latter of which once separate from Kymi as the market town, were incorporated into Kotka. The neighboring municipalities of Kotka are Hamina, Kouvola and Pyhtää. Kotka belongs to the Kotka-Hamina subdivision, and with Kouvola, Kotka is one of the capital center of the Kymenlaakso region. It is the 19th largest city in terms of population as a single city, but the 12th largest city of Finland in terms of population as an urban area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Svensksund</span> Naval battle – Russo-Swedish War 1788–1790

The Second Battle of Svensksund was a naval battle fought in the Gulf of Finland outside the present day city of Kotka on 9 and 10 July 1790. The Swedish naval forces dealt the Russian fleet a devastating defeat that brought an end to the Russo-Swedish War (1788–1790). The battle is the biggest Swedish naval victory and the largest naval battle ever in the Baltic Sea. It qualifies among the largest naval battles in history in terms of the number of vessels involved.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Modlin Fortress</span> Large fortress in Poland

Modlin Fortress is one of the largest 19th-century fortresses in Poland. It is located in the town of Nowy Dwór Mazowiecki in district Modlin on the Narew river, approximately 50 kilometers north of Warsaw. It was originally constructed by the French from 1806 to 1812.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siege of Izmail</span> 1790 battle of the Russo-Turkish War (1787–1792)

The siege of Izmail or Ismail / Ishmael / İzmail, also called the storming of Izmail, was a military investment fought in 1790 on the Black Sea during the Russo-Turkish War (1787–1792). The Russians were led by Alexander Suvorov, who had defeated the Ottomans at Kinburn, Focsani, and Rymnik, as well as participating in the siege of Ochakov. The Black Sea flotilla was commanded by the Spanish admiral José de Ribas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Langinkoski</span> Rapid on the Kymi, Kotka, Finland

Langinkoski is a rapid on the Kymi river in Kotka, Finland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kymi (river)</span> River in Finland

The Kymi is a river in Finland. It begins at Lake Päijänne, flows through the provinces of Päijänne Tavastia, Uusimaa and Kymenlaakso, and discharges into the Gulf of Finland. The river passes the towns of Heinola and Kouvola. The town of Kotka is located on the river delta. The length of the river is 204 kilometres (127 mi), but its drainage basin of 37,107 square kilometres (14,327 sq mi) extends to almost 600 kilometres (370 mi) inside the Tavastia, Central Finland, Savonia and Ostrobothnia. The furthest source of the river is Lake Pielavesi, its furthest point being some 570 kilometres (350 mi) from the sea measured by flow route. The name of the river, itself, kymi, means "large river", in Old Finnish.

Finnish gunboat <i>Turunmaa</i>

Turunmaa was a Finnish gunboat built in 1918. She served in the Finnish Navy during World War II. The ship was named after Turuma, a type of frigate designed for use in shallow waters of the archipelago and served in the Swedish Archipelago fleet in the late 18th century. The frigates had in turn been named after the region of Finland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ruotsinsalmi sea fortress</span> Fortress in Kotka, Finland

Ruotsinsalmi sea fortress is a fortification system in Kotka, Finland. It is part of the South-Eastern Finland fortification system built by Russia after Russo-Swedish War of 1788-1790. Ruotsinsalmi sea fortress formed the southern part of a double fortress together with Kyminlinna and it was built to counter the Swedish sea fortresses of Svartholm in Loviisa and Sveaborg (Suomenlinna) in Helsinki. Ruotsinsalmi also acted as an outpost of the Kronstadt sea fortress in Saint Petersburg. During the Crimean War, a British-French fleet destroyed the Ruotsinsalmi fortifications in 1855.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South-Eastern Finland fortification system</span> Defensive systemin South-East Finland built by Russia in the 1790s

South-Eastern Finland fortification system is an extensive defensive system formed by three concentric fortress chains in South-East Finland built by Russia in the 1790s. The purpose of the fortification system was to protect the capital of the Russian Empire, Saint Petersburg, from a possible Swedish attack.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hamina Fortress</span> Fortress in Finland

Hamina Fortress is located in Finland on the coast of the Gulf of Finland and it is an integral part of the Hamina city centre. Hamina fortress is a Star fort, representing the Renaissance ideal city embodied by Palmanova city in northeastern Italy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kärnäkoski Fortress</span> Fortress in Savitaipale, Finland

Kärnäkoski Fortress is a bastion fortress in Finland located in Kärnäkoski, Savitaipale built by Russia between 1791 and 1793 to protect Saint Petersburg.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suvorov military canals</span>

Suvorov military canals is a series of four open canals on Saimaa lake in Finland. The four canals of Kutvele, Käyhkää, Kukonharju and Telataipale are located in Puumala, Ruokolahti and Sulkava. They were built between 1791 and 1798 as part of the South-Eastern Finland fortification system and are the oldest canals in Finland. The canals are named after general Alexander Suvorov who ordered their construction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Ahvenkoski</span>

The Battle of Ahvenkoski was fought during the Finnish Civil War between 10 April and 5 May 1918 at Ahvenkoski, Finland between the German Empire and the Red Guards of the Finnish Socialist Workers' Republic, more commonly known as Red Finland. For most of the battle both sides occupied trenches along the Kymi river. Ahvenkoski and the surrounding Kymi valley region were the last strongholds of the Reds. The battle ended with the surrender of the last of the Red Guards on 5 May, which ended the war with White Finland and Germany defeating Red Finland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Nicholas Church, Kotka</span> Church in Kotka, Finland

The St. Nicholas Church is the main church of the Kotka Orthodox Church in Kotka, Finland, surrounded by the Isopuisto park The church was built between 1799 and 1801 according to the drawings of architect Jakov Perrin. The church dates back to the time of the active years of the sea fortress of Ruotsinsalmi, when the Russians built the Ruotsinsalmi–Kyminlinna double fortress in the Kymi parish and a fortress town was created on Kotkansaari. The church is the oldest building in present-day Kotka, and it is a notable representative of neoclassicism in Finland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haapasaari (Kotka)</span> Former municipality in Kymi Province, Finland

Haapasaari is an island and a former municipality of Finland in the former Kymi Province, now in the Kymenlaakso region. It was consolidated with the town of Kotka in 1974.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lappeenranta Fortress</span>

Lappeenranta Fortress is a fortress located in Lappeenranta, Finland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taavetti Fortress</span> Fortress in Finland

Taavetti Fortress, is a fortress located in Taavetti in the municipality of Luumäki in Finland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Järvitaipale Fortress</span> Fortress in Finland

Järvitaipalle Fortress is part of the fortifications of southeastern Finland, designed and built by General Alexander Suvorov, located in Savitaipalle, about 40 km from Kärnäkoski Fortress.