The history of Finland: from Swedish rule to independence and NATO

Quick answers

When did Finland become independent?

On 6 December 1917. That day the Parliament approved the Senate's declaration of independence. The date is now Finland's Independence Day (itsenäisyyspäivä).

How long was Finland part of Sweden?

About 500 years, from the Treaty of Nöteborg (Pähkinäsaaren rauha) in 1323 until 1809, when Russia conquered Finland.

What were the Winter War and the Continuation War?

Finland's wars against the Soviet Union during the Second World War. The Winter War (talvisota) was fought in 1939–1940 and the Continuation War (jatkosota) in 1941–1944.

When did Finland join the EU and NATO?

The European Union at the start of 1995, and NATO on 4 April 2023.

The history of Finland is one of the topics of the citizenship test (kansalaisuuskoe). It is based on public sources and will be updated when Migri publishes its study material.

How long was Finland part of Sweden?

About 500 years. In 1323 Sweden and Novgorod made the Treaty of Nöteborg (Pähkinäsaaren rauha). Novgorod was a state in today’s Russia. After the treaty most of Finland belonged to Sweden, while eastern Finland (Karelia) stayed with Novgorod.

The treaty also divided religions: the Catholic faith in the west, the Orthodox faith in the east. Later the Reformation (uskonpuhdistus) made the west Lutheran.

The Swedish period tied Finland to Western culture and Swedish law. The most important town was Turku, the oldest city in Finland, where the first university was founded in 1640.

What happened in 1809?

Russia conquered Finland from Sweden in the war of 1808–1809. Finland became an autonomous grand duchy (suuriruhtinaskunta) of the Russian Empire.

The Grand Duke was the Russian Emperor. The highest governing body was the Senate (senaatti), whose members were Finns. Most Swedish-era laws stayed in force. In 1812 Helsinki became the capital.

The Finnish national movement grew. The Kalevala, put together by Elias Lönnrot, was published in 1835, and Finland got its own currency, the markka, in 1860.

Why is 1906 an important year?

From 1899 Russia tried to tighten its grip on Finland. These periods of russification are called the eras of oppression (sortokaudet): 1899–1905 and 1909–1917.

In 1906 Finland made a major parliamentary reform (eduskuntauudistus). The old Diet of four estates was replaced by a single-chamber Parliament (eduskunta). Men and women got universal and equal voting rights, and women could also stand as candidates. Finland was the first country in the world where all women got both rights. In the first elections in 1907, 19 women were elected.

When did Finland become independent?

Finland declared independence on 6 December 1917. After the revolution in Russia, supreme power in Finland had moved to the Parliament. The Senate, led by P. E. Svinhufvud, presented the declaration of independence (itsenäisyysjulistus) to the Parliament on 4 December 1917. The Parliament approved it on 6 December 1917 by 100 votes to 88. This is why Independence Day is on 6 December.

The new Bolshevik government of Russia recognised Finland’s independence on 31 December 1917.

What happened in 1918?

Soon after independence, a civil war (sisällissota) broke out in Finland. At the end of January 1918 the left staged a coup, and the government had to flee Helsinki. The Reds (the labour movement) fought the Whites (the government troops). Germany supported the Whites and Russia the Reds.

The war ended in May 1918 with victory for the Whites. The Whites were led by General Gustaf Mannerheim.

In the summer of 1919 Finland became a republic. The first President was K. J. Ståhlberg.

What were the Winter War and the Continuation War?

In August 1939 a secret protocol between Germany and the Soviet Union placed Finland in the Soviet sphere of interest. Finland refused to let the Soviet Union build military bases on its territory.

The Winter War (talvisota). The Soviet Union attacked Finland on 30 November 1939. The war ended with the Moscow peace treaty on 13 March 1940. Finland had to give the Karelian Isthmus (Karjalankannas), Ladoga Karelia (Laatokan Karjala) and areas in the north (parts of Salla, Kuusamo and the Kalastajasaarento peninsula) to the Soviet Union. Finland also had to lease Hanko to the Soviet Union.

The Continuation War (jatkosota). When Germany attacked the Soviet Union in the summer of 1941, Finland went to war alongside Germany. The war ended with an armistice in September 1944. Finland lost the areas it had lost in the Winter War and also Petsamo on the Arctic Ocean. The Paris Peace Treaty confirmed the terms in 1947.

The Lapland War (Lapin sota). The armistice required Finland to disarm the German troops in the country, which led to the Lapland War. The last Germans left Lapland in April 1945.

Finland lost the wars, but it was not occupied. Because Finland defended its territory, the wars are seen as the time when its independence became established.

How did Finland change after the wars?

Finland had to pay heavy war reparations (sotakorvaukset) to the Soviet Union in goods, for example trains, ships and raw materials. Producing them helped turn the agricultural country into an industrial one, and people moved to the cities.

In 1948 Finland and the Soviet Union made the YYA Treaty, an agreement of friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance. During the Cold War, fear of the Soviet Union guided Finnish politics. Urho Kekkonen, elected President in 1956, pursued an active policy of neutrality.

At the same time, Finland built a welfare state (hyvinvointivaltio). The Social Insurance Institution Kela was founded already in 1937. In 1964 health insurance came to cover everyone living in Finland. The comprehensive school (peruskoulu) was created in 1968.

When did Finland join the EU and NATO?

The Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, and Finland fell into a deep recession (lama) with high unemployment and many bankruptcies.

Finland applied to join the European Community in March 1992. A referendum (kansanäänestys) was held in October 1994, and 57 percent of voters supported membership. Finland joined the European Union at the start of 1995. Finland was one of the first countries to adopt the euro, on 1 January 1999. Euro notes and coins came into use on 1 January 2002.

Finland applied for NATO membership on 17 May 2022 and became a member on 4 April 2023. Finland is now covered by the security guarantees of Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty.

What you should know from this chapter

• 1323: Treaty of Nöteborg, about 500 years under Sweden begin.
• 1809: autonomous grand duchy of Russia.
• 1906: parliamentary reform and votes for women.
• 6 December 1917: independence. 1918: civil war.
• 1939–1940 Winter War, 1941–1944 Continuation War, 1944–1945 Lapland War.
• 1948 YYA Treaty, 1995 EU, 1999 euro (notes and coins 2002), 2023 NATO.

Practise chapter 2

Test yourself with the chapter 2 questions. Some are open, the rest are part of the course. They are in Finnish, like the test, and written by us for practice, not taken from Migri’s test.

Difficult words in this chapter

suuriruhtinaskunta

grand duchy: an area ruled by a grand duke; Finland was a Russian grand duchy in 1809–1917

autonomia

autonomy: an area may run many of its own affairs itself

sortokausi

era of oppression: the periods when Russia tried to russify Finland (1899–1905 and 1909–1917)

eduskuntauudistus

the parliamentary reform of 1906: the Diet of four estates was replaced by the Parliament and equal voting rights for all

itsenäisyysjulistus

declaration of independence: the statement by which Finland declared itself an independent state in 1917

sisällissota

civil war: a war between people of the same country; in Finland in 1918

sotakorvaukset

war reparations: payments that the country that lost a war must make to the winner

hyvinvointivaltio

welfare state: a state that takes care of people's social security, health and education