Sveaborg"},"image":{"wt":"Suomenlinna aerial.JPG"},"caption":{"wt":"An aerial view of Suomenlinna"},"coordinates":{"wt":"{{coord|60|08|37|N|24|59|04|E|region:FI_type:isle|display=inline,title}}"},"location":{"wt":"[[Helsinki]],Finland"},"area":{"wt":""},"built":{"wt":""},"architect":{"wt":""},"architecture":{"wt":""},"governing_body":{"wt":""},"owner":{"wt":""},"designation1":{"wt":"WHS"},"designation1_offname":{"wt":"Fortress of Suomenlinna"},"designation1_date":{"wt":"1991 (15th [[World Heritage Committee|session]])"},"designation1_number":{"wt":"[https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/583 583]"},"designation1_criteria":{"wt":"iv"},"designation1_type":{"wt":"Cultural"},"designation1_free1name":{"wt":"Region"},"designation1_free1value":{"wt":"[[List of World Heritage Sites in Europe|Europe and North America]]"}},"i":0}}]}" id="mwBw">.mw-parser-output .infobox-subbox{padding:0;border:none;margin:-3px;width:auto;min-width:100%;font-size:100%;clear:none;float:none;background-color:transparent}.mw-parser-output .infobox-3cols-child{margin:auto}.mw-parser-output .infobox .navbar{font-size:100%}@media screen{html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data:not(.notheme)>div:not(.notheme)[style]{background:#1f1f23!important;color:#f8f9fa}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data:not(.notheme) div:not(.notheme){background:#1f1f23!important;color:#f8f9fa}}@media(min-width:640px){body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table{display:table!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table>caption{display:table-caption!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table>tbody{display:table-row-group}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table tr{display:table-row!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table th,body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table td{padding-left:inherit;padding-right:inherit}}
Suomenlinna Sveaborg | |
---|---|
Location | Helsinki, Finland |
Coordinates | 60°08′37″N24°59′04″E / 60.14361°N 24.98444°E |
Official name | Fortress of Suomenlinna |
Type | Cultural |
Criteria | iv |
Designated | 1991 (15th session) |
Reference no. | 583 |
Region | Europe and North America |
Suomenlinna (Finnish: [ˈsuo̯menˌlinːɑ] ; until 1918 Viapori, Finnish: [ˈviaˌpori] ), or Sveaborg (Swedish: [ˈsvɛːɑˈborj] ), is a 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 (Castle of the Swedes), or Viapori as referred to by Finnish-speaking Finns, it was renamed in Finnish to Suomenlinna (Castle of Finland) in 1918 for patriotic and nationalistic reasons, though it is still known by its original name in Sweden and by Swedish-speaking Finns. Due to its strategic geographical location, it sometimes used to be known as Gibraltar of the North. [1]
The Swedish crown commenced the construction of the fortress in 1748 as protection against Russian expansionism. The general responsibility for the fortification work was given to Augustin Ehrensvärd. The original plan of the bastion fortress was strongly influenced by the ideas of Vauban, a Frenchman and the foremost military engineer of the time, and the principles of the star fort style of fortification, albeit adapted to a group of rocky islands. Famous for these bastion fortifications, Suomenlinna became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991. [2]
During the Finnish War, Sweden surrendered the fortress to Russia on 3 May 1808, paving the way for the occupation of Finland by Russian forces in 1809, and then the establishment of the Grand Duchy of Finland at the conclusion of the war. The islands were then used as a base for the Russian Baltic Fleet in World War I, with Russia beginning the construction of the Krepost Sveaborg in 1915. Russian forces left after Finland declared its independence in 1917. Finland then managed Suomenlinna through the Defense Department until turning most of it over to civilian control in 1973.
The Suomenlinna district of Helsinki lies southeast of downtown Helsinki and consists of eight islands. Five of the islands are connected by either bridges or a sandbar landbridge. Länsi-Mustasaari (sv: Västersvartö) is bridged to Pikku Mustasaari (sv: Lilla Östersvartö), which is bridged to Iso Mustasaari (sv: Stora Östersvartö), which is bridged to Susisaari (sv: Vargö), which was connected to Susiluoto (sv: Vargskär) by filling in the separating waterway during the Russian period. This island, which has the greatest concentration of fortifications was renamed Gustavssvärd (King Gustav's sword) (fi: Kustaanmiekka) during the construction by Sweden. The three unconnected islands are Särkkä (sv: Långören), Lonna (sv: Lonnan), and Pormestarinluodot (sv: Borgmästargrundet). The total land area is 80 hectares (0.80 square kilometres; 0.31 square miles). Instead of using the normal Finnish postal addressing scheme (consisting of a street name and a house number), the addresses at Suomenlinna consist of a letter code for the island and then a house number. For example, C 83 is house #83 on Iso-Mustasaari (code C). The postal code for the Suomenlinna district is 00190.
Early on in the Great Northern War, Russia took advantage of Swedish weakness in Ingria (sv: Ingermanland) and captured the area near the Neva River as well as the Swedish forts, Nyen and Nöteborg, built to protect it. In 1703, Peter the Great founded his new capital, Saint Petersburg, in that easternmost corner of the Gulf of Finland. In the approach to it he built the fortified naval base of Kronstadt. Russia soon became a maritime power and a force to be reckoned with in the Baltic Sea. The situation posed a threat to Sweden, which until that time had been the dominant power in the Baltic. This was visibly demonstrated by the use of naval forces in the Russian capture of Viborg in 1710. The main Swedish naval base at Karlskrona was too far to the south to meet Sweden's new needs for its navy in the 18th century, which often resulted in Swedish ships reaching the coast of Finland only after Russian ships and troops had either started or completed their spring campaigns. [3]
The lack of coastal defenses was keenly felt with Russian landings in Helsingfors in the spring of 1713 and the Swedish failure to blockade the Hanko Peninsula in 1714. A Russian naval campaign against the Swedish coast towards the end of the Great Northern War further outlined the need to develop Finnish coastal defenses. Immediately after the war ended the first plans were set in motion in Sweden to construct an archipelago fleet and a base of operations for it in Finland. However, nothing with regard to Sveaborg took place until the end of Russo-Swedish War of 1741–1743. Fortifications were left unfinished at Hamina and Lappeenranta while Hämeenlinna was being built into a supply base. Lack of funds, unwillingness to devote funds for defending Finland, and the belief (arising just before the war) that Russia would be pushed away from the Baltic Sea were the main causes for the lack of progress. [4]
The following Russo-Swedish War of 1741–1743, which quickly turned from a Swedish attack into a Russian occupation of Finland, again underlined the importance of developing fortifications in Finland. Lack of base of operations for naval forces made it difficult for the Swedish navy to operate in the area. [5] Other European states were also concerned about developments regarding Russia, especially France, with whom Sweden had concluded a military alliance. After lengthy debate, the Swedish parliament decided in 1747 to both fortify the Russian frontier and establish a naval base at Helsingfors as a counter to Kronstadt. Augustin Ehrensvärd (1710–1772), a young lieutenant colonel, was given the responsibility of designing the fortresses and directing construction operations.
Sweden started building the fortresses in January 1748. Ehrensvärd's plan contained two fortifications: a sea fortress at Svartholm near the small town of Lovisa, [6] and a larger sea fortress and naval base (Sveaborg) at Helsingfors. There were two main aspects to Ehrensvärd's design for Sveaborg: a series of independent fortifications across several linked islands and, at the very heart of the complex, a navy dockyard. In addition to the island fortress itself, seafacing fortifications on the mainland would ensure that an enemy could not acquire a beach-head from which to stage attacks on the sea fort. The plan was also to stock munitions for the whole Finnish contingent of the Swedish Army and Royal Swedish Navy there. Additional plans were made for fortifying the Hanko Peninsula, but these were postponed.
Construction started in early 1748 kept expanding, and by September there were around 2,500 men building the fortresses. Initially the soldiers were housed in the vaults of the fortifications, while the officers had specially built quarters integrated into the baroque cityscape composition of the overall plan. The most ambitious plan was left only half completed: a baroque square on Iso Mustasaari partly based on the model of Place Vendôme in Paris. As the construction work progressed, more residential buildings were built, many following the shape of the fortification lines. Ehrensvärd and some of the other officers were keen artists who made oil paintings presenting a view of life in the fortress during its construction, and giving the impression of a lively "fortress town" community.
Due to repeated Russian threats in 1749 and 1750, more effort was placed on the island fortifications at the expense of those on the mainland, so that a safe base of operations could be secured for the Swedish naval units along the Finnish coast. Using the military garrisoned in Finland as the workforce, construction continued with over 6,000 workers in 1750. Fortifications at Gustavssvärd were completed in 1751 and the main fortifications on Vargö were ready in 1754. The fortress was fully operational though unfinished. These accomplishments did not reduce the pace of construction and in 1755 there were 7,000 workers constructing the fortifications outside of Helsingfors which at the time had around 2,000 residents. The substantial fortification work on the islands south of the town brought it a new and unexpected importance. Swedish participation to the Seven Years' War halted the construction efforts in 1757, which also marked the end of the rapid construction phase of Sveaborg. [7]
This period in Swedish history was known as the Age of Liberty, during which the kingdom was under increased parliamentary control, divided into two political parties, the Hats and the Caps. Ehrensvärd had been supported by the Hats, so when the Caps rose to power in 1766 he was relieved of his post and replaced with ardent Caps supporter Christopher Falkengréen. However, after 1769 when the Hats regained power, Ehrensvärd was again placed in command of the Swedish archipelago fleet in Finland, officially the arméens flotta ("fleet of the army"), and returned to Sveaborg. But additional progress had not been made on the fortifications when Ehrensvärd died in 1772. Efforts to improve the fortress continued under Jacob Magnus Sprengtporten, but his tenure was cut short by disagreements with King Gustav III. Once again efforts slowed down as garrisons were reduced, and in 1776 Sveaborg's commander reported that he could not even man one-tenth of the artillery placed in the fort. Even at the start of the Russo-Swedish War in 1788 Sveaborg remained in an incomplete state. [8]
Facilities for constructing ships for the Swedish archipelago fleet were built at Sveaborg in the 1760s. In 1764 the first three archipelago frigates were launched from there. [9] In addition to the construction of the fortifications and ships, naval officer training was started by Ehrensvärd at his own expense at Sveaborg in 1770. It took until 1779 before a naval military school was formally founded there. [10]
Sveaborg was formed and stocked according to the needs of the Swedish archipelago fleet and thus was unable to repair and refit the Swedish battlefleet after the battle of Hogland. Facilities were also found lacking at Sveaborg, especially in the areas intended for taking care of the sick and wounded. Russian control of the waters outside of Sveaborg practically blockaded the Swedish battlefleet to Sveaborg. By cutting the coastal sea route past Hangö, Russians prevented supplies from being shipped from Sweden to Sveaborg. The Swedish fleet finally managed to set sail for its base at Karlskrona on 20 November when the Baltic Sea had already frozen severely enough that ice had to be sawed open before some ships could move. The fleet could not overwinter at Sveaborg since it lacked the facilities and supplies for fitting the ships. [11]
While the route to Sweden was open again in late 1788 and in early 1789, Russian ships cut the connection from Sveaborg to Sweden by forming a blockade at Porkkala cape. Sveaborg was the most important location for archipelago fleet's ship construction and fitting during the war. Even so, and despite efforts, several ships remained unfinished at Sveaborg until the end of the war. The importance of Sveaborg did not escape the Russians whose broad operational plan for 1790 included a siege of Sveaborg both from sea and land. [12]
Following a pact between Alexander I and Napoleon, Russia launched a campaign against Sweden and occupied Finland in 1808. The Russians easily took Helsingfors in early 1808 and began bombarding the fortress. [13] Its commander, Carl Olof Cronstedt, negotiated a cease-fire. When no Swedish reinforcements had arrived by May, Sveaborg, with almost 7,000 men, surrendered. The reasons for Cronstedt's actions remain somewhat unclear; but the hopeless situation, psychological warfare by the Russians, some (possibly) bribed advisors, fear for the lives of a large civilian population, lack of gunpowder, and their physical isolation are some likely causes for the surrender. By the Treaty of Fredrikshamn in 1809, Sweden ceded its eastern territory of Finland and the Grand Duchy of Finland was established within the Russian Empire. The Swedish period in Finnish history, which had lasted some seven centuries, came to an end.
After taking over the fortress, the Russians started an extensive building program, mostly extra barracks, and extended the dockyard and reinforced the fortification lines. The long period of peace following the transfer of power was shattered by the Crimean War of 1853–56. The French–British–Ottoman alliance decided to engage Russia on two fronts and sent an Anglo-French fleet to the Baltic Sea. For two summers during the Åland War the fleet shelled the towns and fortifications along the Finnish coast. The bombardment of Sveaborg (also known then as Viapori) by the forces of Richard Saunders Dundas and Charles Pénaud on 9–10 August 1855 lasted 47 hours and the fortress was badly damaged, but they were unable to knock out the Russian guns. After the bombardment, the Anglo-French fleet sent no troops ashore and instead set sail for Kronstadt.
After the Crimean War extensive restoration work was begun at Sveaborg. A new ring of earthworks with artillery emplacements was built at the western and southern edges of the islands.
The next stage in the arming of Sveaborg and the Gulf of Finland came in the build-up to World War I. The fortress and its surrounding islands became part of "Peter the Great's naval fortification" designed to safeguard the capital, Saint Petersburg.
Following the Russian Revolution in 1917, the fortress became a possession of a fully independent Finland. After the Finnish Civil War, a prison camp existed on the island. [14] The fortress was officially renamed Suomenlinna (castle of Finland) as part of the wave of nationalism.
No longer very practical as a military base, Suomenlinna was turned over to civilian administration in 1973. An independent government department, the Governing Body of Suomenlinna, was formed to administer the unique complex. At the time there was some debate over its Finnish name, with some suggesting that the old name Viapori be restored, but the newer name was retained. The presence of the military on the islands has been drastically scaled down in recent decades. The Suomenlinna garrison houses the Naval Academy (Finnish : Merisotakoulu) of the Finnish Navy on Pikku Mustasaari. Suomenlinna still flies the war flag, or the swallow-tailed state flag of Finland.
Suomenlinna is now one of the most popular tourist attractions in Helsinki as well as a popular picnicking spot for the city's inhabitants. In 2009, a record 713,000 people visited Suomenlinna, most between May and September. [15] A number of museums exist on the island, as well as the last surviving Finnish submarine, Vesikko.
There are about 900 permanent inhabitants on the islands, and 350 people work there year-round.
There is a minimum-security penal labor colony (Finnish : työsiirtola) in Suomenlinna, whose inmates work on the maintenance and reconstruction of the fortifications. Only volunteer inmates who pledge non-use of controlled substances are accepted to the labour colony.
For the general public, Suomenlinna is served by ferries all year, and a service tunnel supplying heating, water and electricity was built in 1982. In the beginning of the 1990s, the tunnel was modified so that it can also be used for emergency transport.
Transport to and from the island is generally ceased between the hours of 0300 and 0600 daily, but is otherwise regular and frequent. [16]
Suomenlinna has been known as a location for avant-garde culture. In the mid-1980s, the Nordic Arts Centre was established on the island. Several buildings have been converted into artists' studios, which are let by the administration at reasonable rates. During the summer there is an art school for children. The performances of the Suomenlinna summer theater regularly draw full houses.
Between 2 and 6 September 2015, the Finnish postal service ran a test of the use of drones to deliver parcels between Helsinki and Suomenlinna. The parcels were limited to 3 kg (7 lb) or less, and flights were under the control of a pilot. [17]
The island houses a backpackers' hostel operating in a converted school building, built in 1908 and having served as a Russian school (1909-1917), military office (1918-1919), Finnish school (1920-1959), and a canteen and entertainment venue for soldiers (1959-1972).
Suomenlinna Church, built in 1854, was adapted in 1929 to include a lighthouse beacon. [18] Both the church and beacon are still active today. [19] [18] The lighthouse beacon was modernised to use LED lighting in 2019. [20]
The Finnish-Swedish poet Johan Ludvig Runeberg wrote a poem called Sveaborg, one of the 35 short poems that together constitute his epic The Tales of Ensign Stål . It includes the following two verses about the fortress, which allude specifically to the "Gustav's Sword" (Gustavssvärd) bastion and its guns:
It looks out over sea and fjord,
With eyes of granite.
It raises its Gustav's sword high,
And proudly says: 'Come hither!'
This sword is not lowered to strike,
It only flashes and so destroys.
Do not let the island be defiantly approached
When the war comes.
Do not disturb the queen of the sea
In her moment of anger:
She slings messages of death toward you,
In the roar of a thousand cannons. [21]
Sveaborg is also mentioned in the lyrics of Gunnar Wennerberg's 1849 hymn O Gud, som styrer folkens öden ("Oh God, who steers the people's fate"), in which Sweden's "age-old freedom" is described as being "...our protection in gloomy dangers, our consolation in every bleached sorrow, our defence against the hegemon's forces, and stronger than Sveaborg". [22] As these words were written forty years after the Swedish cession of Finland to Russia, the use of Sveaborg as a simile has deliberately historic overtones.
George R. R. Martin wrote a short story about the surrender of Viapori, "The Fortress", when he was a college student. It was published in his 2007 volume of short stories, Dreamsongs.[ non-primary source needed ]
The Russo-Swedish War of 1741–1743 was instigated by the Hats, a Swedish political party that aspired to regain the territories lost to Russia during the Great Northern War, and by French diplomacy, which sought to divert Russia's attention from supporting its long-standing ally the Habsburg monarchy in the War of the Austrian Succession. The war was a disaster for Sweden, which lost more territory to Russia.
The Finnish War was fought between the Kingdom of Sweden and the Russian Empire from 21 February 1808 to 17 September 1809 as part of the Napoleonic Wars. As a result of the war, the eastern third of Sweden was established as the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland within the Russian Empire. Other notable effects were the Swedish parliament's adoption of a new constitution and the establishment of the House of Bernadotte, the new Swedish royal house, in 1818.
The Russo-Swedish War of 1788–1790 was fought between Sweden and Russia from June 1788 to August 1790. The war was ended by the Treaty of Värälä on 14 August 1790 and took place concomitantly with both the Austro-Turkish War (1788–1791), Russo-Turkish War (1787–1792) and Theatre War. The war was, overall, mostly insignificant for the parties involved.
Field Marshal count Augustin Ehrensvärd was a Swedish military officer, military architect, artist, creator of the Suomenlinna (Sveaborg) fortress, Svartholm fortress and the Swedish archipelago fleet. He was born in Fullerö Castle, Barkarö and died in the village of Saris, Mynämäki.
The Suomenlinna Church in Helsinki, Finland, was built in 1854 as an Eastern Orthodox garrison church for the Russian troops stationed at the Suomenlinna sea fortress. The fortress comprises five islands joined together by bridges, and the church is the central feature on the island of Iso Mustasaari, located at its highest point. It is surrounded by other fortress buildings, but the old parade ground is immediately to the east, and a park lies immediately to the south. It is oriented southwest to northeast so that it would align with the Crownwork Ehrensvärd defense front located to the southwest of the church.
The First Battle of Svensksund, also known as the First Battle of Rochensalm from the Russian version of the Finnish: Ruotsinsalmi, was a naval battle fought in the Gulf of Finland in the Baltic Sea, outside the present-day city of Kotka, on August 24, 1789, during the Russo-Swedish War (1788–1790).
The Battle of Hogland was a naval battle that took place on 17 July [O.S. 6 July] 1788 during the Russo-Swedish War (1788–1790).
The Battle of Vyborg Bay was a naval battle fought between Russia and Sweden on 3 July 1790 in Vyborg Bay off the coast of Vyborg during the Russo-Swedish War (1788–1790). The Swedish Navy suffered heavy losses, losing seven ships of the line and three frigates, but Gustav III of Sweden eventually ensured a Swedish naval escape through a Russian naval blockade composed of units of the Baltic Fleet, commanded by Admiral Vasily Chichagov. British historians would later call the Battle of Vyborg Bay the "Baltic Trafalgar". The battle ranks among the world's largest historical naval battles and also among the most influential, as it introduced the naval battle concept of "firepower over mobility".
The siege of Sveaborg was a siege by Imperial Russian forces of the sea fort of Sveaborg, off the coast of Helsingfors (Helsinki); at the time Finland was part of the Kingdom of Sweden. It took place in the spring of 1808, during the Finnish War. Despite its formidable reputation as "the Gibraltar of the North", the fortress surrendered after a siege of two months. As its capitulation was followed by the rapid collapse of Swedish resistance elsewhere, and ultimately the Russian conquest of Finland, the siege is often regarded as the decisive battle of the war.
Peter the Great's Naval Fortress or the Tallinn-Porkkala defence station was a Russian fortification line, which aimed to block access to the Russian capital Saint Petersburg via the sea. The plans for the fortress included heavy coastal artillery pieces along the northern and southern shores of the Gulf of Finland. The emphasis was put on the defenses of the gulf's narrowest point, between Porkkala, and Tallinn,. This was a strategic point, as the two fortresses of Mäkiluoto and Naissaar were only 36 kilometres (22 mi) apart. The coastal artillery had a range of about 25 km (16 mi) and could thus "close" the gap between the shores, trapping enemy ships in a crossfire. Furthermore, a new major naval base was constructed in Tallinn.
The Svartholm fortress was built between 1749 and 1764 outside Loviisa in Southern Finland by Augustin Ehrensvärd. The fortress, which lies at the mouth of the Bay of Loviisa, along with the planned land fortress at Loviisa, would have prevented invading Russian forces from entering what was then Swedish territory in present-day Finland.
Kuninkaanportti or Kungsporten is the principal entrance to the fortress Suomenlinna outside Helsinki. It is on the southernmost island of Suomenlinna, in front of the Kustaanmiekka strait, and is considered the main symbol of Suomenlinna.
The Krepost Sveaborg was an Imperial Russian system of land and coastal fortifications constructed around Helsinki during the First World War. The purpose of the fortress was to provide a secure naval base for the Russian Baltic fleet and to protect Helsinki and block routes to Saint Petersburg from a possible German invasion. Krepost Sveaborg was part of Peter the Great's Naval Fortress, a coastal fortification system protecting access to Saint Petersburg by sea. The central part of Krepost Sveaborg was the old fortress of Suomenlinna where the fortress headquarters were located. Due to technological advances in artillery the old fortress was no longer capable of providing a sufficient protection, and a new main defensive line was built well beyond the old fortress boundaries. New coastal artillery guns built on outlying islands protected Krepost Sveaborg from the sea, while fortified lines constructed around Helsinki were intended to stop any attacks on land. The primary coastal guns were 10 in (254 mm) model 1891 guns and 6 in (152 mm) model 1892 Canet guns. Older 11 in (279 mm) model 1877 guns were also used. In summer 1917 the fortress had two hundred coastal or anti-landing guns, of which 24 were 10-inch guns in six batteries, 16 were 6-inch Canet guns in four batteries and twelve were 11-inch guns in three batteries. The artillery used in land fortifications included older coastal guns, old fixed carriage guns and newer light field guns. In March 1917, Krepost Sveaborg had a total of 463 guns, although many of them were obsolescent. Krepost Sveaborg was still partly incomplete in 1917 when the February Revolution halted most of the construction work. Some further construction work was carried out during the remaining year, but all work halted during the October Revolution. Following the Finnish Declaration of Independence, parts of the land fortifications were used in the Finnish Civil War. The coastal fortifications were later taken over by Finland to protect Helsinki, while the land fortifications were mostly abandoned and disarmed.
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.
A turuma was a type of warship built for the Swedish archipelago fleet in the late 18th century. It was specifically developed for warfare in the Archipelago Sea and along the coasts of Svealand and Finland. The turuma was designed by the prolific naval architect Fredrik Henrik af Chapman for use in an area of mostly shallow waters and groups of islands and islets that extend from Stockholm all the way to the Gulf of Finland.
A hemmema was a type of warship built for the Swedish archipelago fleet and the Russian Baltic Fleet in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The hemmema was initially developed for use against the Imperial Russian Navy in the Archipelago Sea and along the coasts of Svealand and Finland. It was designed by the prolific and innovative Swedish naval architect Fredrik Henrik af Chapman (1721–1808) in collaboration with Augustin Ehrensvärd (1710–1772), an artillery officer and later commander of the Swedish archipelago fleet. The hemmema was a specialized vessel for use in the shallow waters and narrow passages that surround the thousands of islands and islets extending from the Swedish capital of Stockholm into the Gulf of Finland.
The archipelago fleet, officially the "fleet of the army", was a maritime branch of the Swedish Armed Forces which existed between 1756 and 1823. Its purpose was to protect the coasts of Sweden, which was surrounded by a natural barrier of archipelagoes. Throughout its existence, the fleet was a largely independent arm of the Swedish Army, separate from the Swedish Navy, with the exception of a few years in the late 1760s. In a number of respects, it was a precursor of the Swedish Coastal Artillery and its coastal fleet.
The Åland War was the operations of a Anglo-French naval force against military and civilian facilities on the coast of the Grand Duchy of Finland in 1854–1856, during the Crimean War between the Russian Empire and the allied France and Britain. The war is named after the Battle of Bomarsund in Åland. Although the name of the war refers to Åland, skirmishes were also fought in other coastal towns of Finland in the Gulf of Bothnia and the Gulf of Finland.
The Ehrensvärd grave is the final resting place and memorial of Augustin Ehrensvärd, the founder of the Suomenlinna island fortress in Helsinki, Finland, at the Linnanpiha yard on the island of Susisaari in Suomenlinna. Ehrensvärd was buried at the yard in 1783 but the memorial was only completed in its current form in 1805.
Suomenlinna is a village-like district of the city of Helsinki, Finland with about 700 inhabitants. Its best known part is the maritime fortress of Suomenlinna.