How the Finns lived in the Russian Empire. History of Finland as part of the Russian Empire

They settled in Eastern Karelia and in the Tver region. The departed Russian and Orthodox Karelians were replaced by Swedes, Lutheran Finns and German colonists.

Withdrawal of Finland from Russia

The national movement for the independence of Finland developed during the First World War with the support of Kaiser Germany, which supported many of the anti-government movements of the Entente countries, seeking to weaken the enemies from within.

Having granted independence to Finland, the Bolsheviks did not interfere in its internal affairs for a long time. The revolution of January 28, 1918 did not move them to active actions. First of all, the Council of People's Commissars, not without reason, feared the intervention of the Germans, and the Finnish revolutionaries themselves did not inspire confidence in them. Most of the Red Finns, strictly speaking, were not red either. As in the later Bavarian and Hungarian Soviet republics, the leadership of the FSSR was dominated by rosy social democrats, whom the Bolsheviks strongly disliked. In turn, the Finnish left was not eager to give up independence and did not carry out significant expropriations of bourgeois property.

In a conversation with the mayor of Stockholm, Liidhagen, Lenin called the Finnish Social Democrats traitors to the revolution, and the Council of People's Commissars officially declared that: "Russia will remain neutral and not interfere in the internal affairs of Finland."

But in early February, a group of 84 officers arrived from Sweden, who formed the headquarters of the Finnish army, planned operations and organized communications.

On February 23, 1918, Mannerheim made a statement known as the sword oath, stating that he "would not sheathe his sword until East Karelia was liberated from the Bolsheviks".

On February 25, 1918, about two thousand Finnish rangers (elite units of lightly armed infantry from among the Finnish separatists who were trained in Germany) returned from the Baltic states, who fought there on the side of Germany, about two thousand Finnish rangers, which meant that the white army received commanders and teachers of military affairs. The army of the White Finns consisted mainly of poorly trained individual peasants, as well as officials and other civilians.

In Petrograd, Mannerheim's words about Eastern Karelia were taken into account and radically changed the attitude towards the FSSR. As early as March 1, 1918 Soviet Russia concluded with her an agreement of friendship and fraternity and provided her with military assistance.

Representatives of Finland in Berlin, having received an offer to ask to send a German military group to the country, accepted it, and the 15,000th German division of Rüdiger von der Goltz, which landed in the rear of the Reds, also entered the civil war in Finland.

Mannerheim strongly objected to German intervention, believing that he could handle it himself. If the Finnish government did not overcome the resistance of its commander-in-chief, the Red Finns, who had a fair advantage in numbers and weapons, could have won. Moreover, Soviet Russia took their side, whose intervention provoked Mannerheim's statement about East Karelia and Germany's military assistance.

Germany planned to turn Finland into a protectorate. The German prince Friedrich Karl of Hesse-Kassel, brother-in-law of Kaiser Wilhelm II, was to become the King of Finland. Friedrich Karl of Hesse-Kassel was indeed elected King of Finland on October 9, 1918 (at that time the Finnish Social Democratic Party, which aspired to proclaim Finland a republic, was expelled from parliament), however, due to the defeat of Germany in the First World War, it was already 14 December 1918, he was forced to abdicate. Finland was proclaimed a republic.

1918-1922

Relations between the newly formed Soviet Russia and Finland in the first years after secession were uneven and ambivalent. The question of Finland's official recognition of Soviet Russia for a long time remained "suspended in the air." On the one hand, Finland turned out to be a haven for anti-Soviet forces, fighting for the return of power, and recognition new Russia would be perceived by these forces as a betrayal. On the other hand, Russia was the only state that recognized an independent Finland; everyone else continued to consider Finland only as part of the Russian Empire, seized by turmoil.

By the end of May 1918, the pro-German Finnish government had already taken control of the entire territory of the former Grand Duchy of Finland. Eastern Karelia turned out to be the theater of long-term, then fading, then flaring up hostilities. Back in January 1918, at a congress in the village of Ukhta (now the village of Kalevala in Karelia), a resolution was adopted on the need to create the Karelian Republic, at the same time, armed detachments of Finnish nationalists invaded Russian territory and occupied a number of areas of Eastern Karelia.

On March 15, 1918, the White Finns took Ukhta, and already on March 18, the Provisional Committee of Eastern Karelia, which arrived there from Helsinki, announced the annexation of Karelia to Finland.

In the spring of 1918, after the defeat of the Bolsheviks in Finland and the massive punitive actions that followed (up to 10,000 "enemies of the regime" were executed in Fort Ino alone on the direct order of Mannerheim), several thousand people who had combat experience and weapons moved from Finland to Russia , mainly in Karelia. Under the pretext of a possible attack by them on the northern part of Finland, the Finns preferred to strike first, and from March 1918 several Finnish detachments invaded East Karelia. The Finnish government did not officially recognize the invading troops as its own, it was believed that only volunteers who were not controlled by the central government were fighting in Karelia. Although back in winter, in February, Mannerheim made a statement known as the sword oath, promising to "liberate" East Karelia.

On May 5, 1918, without declaring war, Finnish regular units, under the pretext of pursuing the retreating "Red Finns", launched an attack on Petrograd from Sestroretsk and along the Finland Railway, but by May 7 they were stopped by units of the Red Guard and driven back beyond the border of the Vyborg province. After this failure, on 15 May the government of Finland officially declared war on the Russian SFSR and formed the puppet Olonets government. On May 22, at a meeting of the Finnish Sejm, deputy Rafael Voldemar Erich (future prime minister) stated:

“Finland will sue Russia for damages caused by the war. These losses can be covered only accession to Finland of Eastern Karelia and the Murmansk coast.

The day after this speech, Germany officially offered its services as an intermediary between the Bolsheviks and the Finnish government of Mannerheim, on May 25, People's Commissar Chicherin announced the consent of the Soviet side.

Until mid-1919, Finland was used to form anti-Bolshevik troops. In January 1919, the "Russian Political Committee" was created in Helsingfors under the chairmanship of the cadet Kartashev. The oilman Stepan Georgievich Lianozov, who took over the financial affairs of the committee, received about 2 million marks from Finnish banks for the needs of the future northwestern government. The organizer of military activities was Yudenich, who planned the creation of a unified North-Western Front against the Bolsheviks, based on the Baltic self-proclaimed states and Finland, with the financial and military assistance of the British. Yudenich was supported by Mannerheim.

1922-1938

Non-aggression pact between Finland and Soviet Union (1932)

Relations between Finland and the USSR during the period between the two world wars remained cold and tense. In 1932, activities were banned in Finland. communist party. After the Nazis came to power in Germany, the Finns maintained friendly relations with Germany. Nazi Germany initially considered the USSR as a possible military adversary, as a result of which Finland was looked at mainly as a possible future military ally of Germany. In 1932, the USSR and Finland signed a non-aggression pact. In 1934, this agreement was extended for 10 years.

At the same time, in the early 1930s, Finland concluded secret agreements with the Baltic states and Poland on joint actions in the event of a war of one or more countries with the USSR.

Every year the position of the ruling circles of Finland in relation to the USSR became more and more hostile, on this occasion, on February 27, 1935, in a conversation with the Finnish envoy to the USSR A. S. Iryo-Koskinen, M. M. Litvinov noted that: The press does not wage such a systematic campaign against us as in Finland. In no neighboring country is there such open propaganda for attacking the USSR and seizing its territory as in Finland.

Yartsev's negotiations in 1938-1939

The negotiations were initiated by the USSR, initially they were held in secret mode, which suited both sides: the Soviet Union preferred to officially maintain "freedom of hands" in the face of an unclear prospect in relations with Western countries, and for Finnish officials, the announcement of the fact of negotiations was inconvenient from the point of view of vision domestic policy, since the population of Finland generally had a negative attitude towards the USSR.

Moscow negotiations on the territory of Finland

On October 5, 1939, Finnish representatives were invited to Moscow for talks "on specific political issues." The negotiations were held in three stages: October 12-14, November 3-4, and November 9. For the first time, Finland was represented by an envoy, State Councilor J. K. Paasikivi, Finnish Ambassador to Moscow Aarno Koskinen, Foreign Ministry official Johan Nykopp and Colonel Aladar Paasonen. On the second and third trips, Finance Minister Tanner was authorized to negotiate along with Paasikivi. State Councilor R. Hakkarainen was added on the third trip.

The latest version of the agreement presented the Soviet side Finnish delegation in Moscow looked like this:

1. Finland transfers part of the Karelian Isthmus to the USSR.
2. Finland agrees to lease the Hanko peninsula to the USSR for a period of 30 years for the construction of a naval base and the deployment of a 4,000-strong military contingent there for its defense.
3. The Soviet navy is provided with ports on the Hanko peninsula in Hanko itself and in Lappohya
4. Finland transfers the islands of Gogland, Laavansaari (now Powerful), Tytyarsaari (Fin.), Seiskari to the USSR.
5. The existing Soviet-Finnish non-aggression pact is supplemented by an article on mutual obligations not to join groups and coalitions of states hostile to one side or the other.
6. Both states are disarming their fortifications on the Karelian Isthmus.
7. The USSR transfers to Finland the territory in Karelia with a total area twice the amount received by Finland (5,529 km²).
8. The USSR undertakes not to object to the arming of the Aland Islands on your own Finland.

The USSR proposed an exchange of territories, in which Finland would receive more extensive territories in Eastern Karelia in Reboly and in Porajärvi. These were the territories that declared independence and tried to join Finland in -1920, but according to the Tartu Peace Treaty, they remained with Soviet Russia. State Council didn't make a deal because public opinion and parliament were against it. The Soviet Union was offered only the territories closest to Leningrad in Terioki and Kuokkala, deepened into Soviet territory. Negotiations ended on November 9, 1939.

Earlier, a similar proposal was made to the Baltic countries and they agreed to provide the USSR with military bases on their territory. Finland chose something else: on October 10, soldiers were called up from the reserve for unscheduled exercises, which meant full mobilization.

Both on its own initiative and at the insistence of Great Britain, France and the United States, Finland took the most uncompromising position. Among the allies, Great Britain was especially zealous, recommending not to stop even before the war - British politicians expected that the complication of Soviet-Finnish relations would lead to a confrontation between the USSR and Germany, which Western policy had been aimed at since the Munich Agreement. Simultaneously with provoking Finland, Great Britain informally assured the Soviet Union that it would not intervene in the event of a Soviet-Finnish war. Supported by Great Britain, France and the United States, Finnish politicians were fully confident that the USSR would not decide on a military solution to the issue and, given Finland's rather tough position, would sooner or later agree to concessions.

The Finnish military highly valued their defensive capabilities and believed that the Red Army was not strong enough and organized enough to enter the war. AT Western countries the prevailing opinion was that the Red Army was a mass of apolitical people who were completely unwilling to fight, who were literally driven into battle at gunpoint by political officers. The politicians counted on the help of the allies (Great Britain, France, the USA, Germany and the Scandinavian countries), they were sure that the USSR was only waging a “war of nerves”, and after all the formidable statements, it would soften its demands. The confidence of the Finns was so great that in late October - early November, plans for demobilization were already being developed. The Soviet government, confident in its army, believing Finland to be obviously the weakest, and knowing that beyond verbal condemnation the Western powers, already drawn into world war, would not go, expected to intimidate the Finns with the threat of war or, in extreme cases, to hold a short victorious war and achieve their goal by force. The concentration of troops on the border was completed by the end of November. The stumbling block was the issue of a military base on the Hanko Peninsula, since the positions of the parties were tough and diametrically opposed: the USSR did not want to give up the demand, and Finland categorically did not want to agree to it. The proposal for an exchange of territories was also met negatively: although it was proposed to exchange the Karelian Isthmus for twice the territory rich in forests, the Karelian Isthmus was well developed and used for agricultural purposes, and the territory offered in exchange had practically no infrastructure. In addition, the cession of even part of the Karelian Isthmus reduced the defensive capabilities of the Mannerheim Line. The Soviet proposals were not accepted by the Finnish delegation even after Molotov's statement was published by the Pravda newspaper in late October, which stated, in part, that the Soviet Union might use force if Finland did not soften its position.

It was not possible to reach an agreement, on November 13 the negotiations were interrupted and the Finnish delegation left Moscow. According to some accounts, Molotov commented on the Finns' departure with the words: “The politicians did everything they could. Now it's up to the military."

Territories ceded by Finland to the USSR, as well as leased by the USSR under the Moscow Treaty of 1940.

Current state

After gaining Russian Federation independence on 06/12/1944 and its withdrawal from the USSR, Finland on January 20, 1992 concluded with Russia "Treaty between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Finland on the basics of relations." Modern Relations Russia and Finland are in character economic cooperation. The state border is not defined and so far passes through the ganitsa former USSR. In the post-Soviet period, the Russian-speaking diaspora (Russians in Finland) has significantly increased in the country, reaching an estimated 50 thousand people in 2007 (about 1% of the country's population). Also, about 100,000 Finns and more than 200,000 Russians make visits (mostly tourist and also economic) a year across the Russian-Finnish border. At the same time, there are problems and contradictions in relations between the two countries. During the years of the so-called "Finlandization", the Finnish economy "got used" to a certain profile of cooperation with the USSR, which exported cheap raw materials to the country (oil, timber, etc.), and in return received finished products with a high added value (paper, petrochemicals, etc.). ). But since the late 1990s, with the support of the government of the Russian Federation, the Russian economy has taken a course towards a gradual departure from a primitive export and raw material base in order to weaken the country's dependence on world oil prices and increase its competitiveness through the development of high-quality industries. The Finnish economy turned out to be unprepared for such a development of events, which caused repeated friction with the Finnish side, which is striving to maintain the status quo. In parallel, with the development of private property institutions in the Russian Federation, the question arose about the property of the Finns deported from the territories of Karelia, transferred to the USSR under the Paris Peace Treaty of 1947. Also, due to limited resources, Finland considers the Russian decision to expand the border zone between Russia and Finland six times from 5 to 30 km problematic for itself.

see also

Notes

1. Map of Sweden 1323 http://www.zum.de/whkmla/histatlas/scandinavia/sw1323.gif
2. Sipols V. Ya. "Diplomatic struggle on the eve of the Second World War" - M .: International relationships, 1979.
3. (fin.) Jakobson, Max Diplomaattien talvisota. - Helsinki: WSOY, 2002. - P. 9. - ISBN 9789510356739
4. Jakobsson 2002: p.7.
5. Jakobsson 2002: p.28
6. (fin.) Mannerheim, C.G.E. & Virkkunen, Sakari Suomen Marsalkan muistelmat. - Suuri suomalainen kirjakerho, 1995. - P. 172. - ISBN 951-643-469-X
7. Mannerheim-Virkkunen 1995: 172.
8. (fin.) Tanner, Vaino Neuvotteluvaihe // Olin ulkoministerinä talvisodan aikana. - Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Tammi, 1979. - P. 44, 57, 84. - ISBN 951-30-4813-6
9. (fin.) Leskinen, Jari & Juutilainen, Antti (toim.) Talvisodan pikkujättiläinen. - Porvoo: WSOY, 1999. - ISBN 951-0-23536-9
10. (fin.) Siilasvuo, Ensio (toim.) Talvisodan kronikka. - Jyväskylä: Gummerus, 1989. - ISBN 951-20-3446-8
11. 1989
12. (fin.) Haataja, Lauri Kun kansa kokosi itsensä. - Tammi, 1989. - ISBN 951-30-9170-8

Links

• About relations with Russia on the official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland

April 1, 1808 Russian tsar Alexander I issued a manifesto “On the conquest of Swedish Finland and on its annexation forever to Russia”, by which he extended his power to the lands inhabited by the Finns, conquered from Sweden.

Unnecessary lands

Middle Ages on the territory North Eastern Europe passed under the sign of competition between the Swedes and the Russians. Karelia in the XII-XIII centuries was under the influence of Veliky Novgorod, and most of Finland at the turn of the 1st and 2nd millennium AD. e. conquered by the Swedish Vikings.

The Swedes, using Finland as a springboard, for centuries tried to expand to the east, but for a long time they suffered one defeat after another from the Novgorodians, including from Prince Alexander Nevsky.

Only in the Livonian (1558-1583) and Russian-Swedish (1614-1617) wars did the Swedes manage to inflict sensitive defeats on our ancestors, forcing Russia to temporarily leave the lands on the shores of the Baltic Sea.

• Painting by Mikhail Shankov "Charles XII near Narva"

However, during the Northern War of 1700-1721, Tsar Peter I defeated Sweden and took Ingermanland back from her ( historical area in North-west modern Russia), part of Karelia and the Baltic states.

“After the Northern War, Russia solved its geopolitical tasks in the Baltic, when not only a window was cut through to Europe, but also a door was thrown open. However, Peter I did not go further than the Vyborg region on the Karelian Isthmus, ”the doctor said in an interview with RT historical sciences, Head of the Department of History of Modern and Contemporary Times, Professor of St. Petersburg State University Vladimir Baryshnikov.

According to the expert, Peter needed Vyborg in order to secure St. Petersburg. Finland itself was of no particular value in his eyes. In the 18th century, Sweden initiated military conflicts with Russia twice more, trying to regain what was lost in the Northern War, but could not achieve anything. Russian troops both times entered the territory of Finland, and then left it - the authorities of the Russian Empire did not see the need to annex the undeveloped northern region.

The geopolitical aspirations of Russia at that time were directed to the Black Sea region. And the fact that Alexander I nevertheless turned to the north, according to Vladimir Baryshnikov, is a great merit of the diplomatic talent of Napoleon Bonaparte, who once again pushed Russia against Sweden.

During the hostilities of 1808, on March 22, Abo (Turku) was taken by Russian troops without a fight, and on April 1, Emperor Alexander I officially announced the accession of Finland to Russia as a separate Grand Duchy.

“Finland went to Russia to a certain extent by accident, and this largely determined the attitude of official St. Petersburg to the newly acquired territories,” said Professor Baryshnikov.

Under the rule of Russian emperors

In 1809, Sweden, finally defeated, officially transferred Finland to Russia. “Finland retained its parliament, gave whole line benefits, did not change the rules established under the Swedes, ”added Vladimir Baryshnikov.

According to Alexandra Bakhturina, Doctor of Historical Sciences, professor at the Russian State Humanitarian University, Swedish influence in Finland remained for several decades. However, from the middle of the 19th century political life The Finns themselves became increasingly involved in the Grand Duchy.

“Under Tsar Alexander II, the Finns became full-fledged participants in the political process in Finland, and therefore many of them still respect the emperor, consider him one of the founders of the Finnish state,” Alexandra Bakhturina said in an interview with RT.

• Painting by Emanuel Telning "Alexander I opens the Diet of Borgo 1809"

In 1863, the tsar recognized Finnish as the state language in the territory of the principality along with Swedish. The socio-economic situation in Finland also improved in the 19th century. “Sweden squeezed all the juice out of the territories inhabited by Finns, and Russia did not even particularly seek to collect taxes, leaving a significant part of local fees for the development of the region itself. Something resembling modern free economic zones was created,” Baryshnikov explained.

From 1815 to 1870, the population of Finland increased from 1 million to 1.75 million. industrial production in 1840-1905 it increased 300 times. In terms of the pace of industrialization, Finland overtook even St. Petersburg, Donbass and the Urals.

The Grand Duchy had its own postal service and its own justice system. General conscription did not apply on its territory, but since 1855, Finland received the right to create its own armed forces for the purpose of "self-defense". And in the 1860s, a monetary system separate from Russia, based on the Finnish mark, even appeared in the principality.

Although the Seimas did not convene from 1809 to 1863, the Russian governors-general pursued a fairly accurate policy and acted as a kind of "lawyers" of Finland in the face of the emperor. In the 1860s-1880s, the Finnish parliament began to convene regularly, and a multi-party system began to take shape in the principality.

"Western perimeter" of the empire

However, Alexander III and Nicholas II headed for curtailing the autonomy of Finland. In 1890-1899, regulations were adopted, according to which a number of internal political issues were removed from the competence of the Seimas and transferred to the central authorities of the empire for consideration, the liquidation of the armed forces was launched and monetary system Finland, the scope of the Russian language was expanding, gendarmes fighting separatism began to work on the territory of the principality.

“The actions of Nicholas II cannot be considered outside the international context. A crisis began in Europe, everything went to big war, and the "western perimeter" of the empire - Ukraine, Poland, the Baltic states, Finland - was of great interest to the Germans. The king tried to strengthen national security”, - Alexandra Bakhturina shared her opinion with RT.

The measures taken by the Russian authorities began to irritate the Finnish society. Terrorist attacks began, directed both against Russian administrators and against representatives of the local government, focused on St. Petersburg.

The Russo-Japanese War and the Revolution of 1905 distracted the tsar from the problems of Finland. The Finns went along and were allowed to hold parliamentary elections, in which for the first time in Europe the right to vote was granted to women. However, after the revolutionary events came to naught, a new wave of Russification began.

Despite the fact that with the outbreak of the First World War, Finland found itself in a privileged position (there was no general mobilization in it, it was half provided with Russian bread), pro-German groups arose in the principality. Young people who became members of the so-called Jaeger movement traveled to Germany and fought as part of the German army against Russia.

In the regular parliamentary elections, the Social Democrats won a landslide victory, immediately demanding greater autonomy for Finland, and the left-wing Sejm was dissolved in 1917 by the Provisional Government. But the conservatives who came to power instead of the Social Democrats turned out to be even more radical, and against the backdrop of an acute socio-economic crisis that erupted in the autumn of 1917, they raised the question of Finland's independence point-blank.

From love to hate

At the end of 1917, the Finnish deputies desperately tried to achieve recognition of the sovereignty of Finland, but the world community was silent - the future of the territory was considered an internal issue for Russia. However, the Soviet authorities, realizing how strong social democratic sentiments were among the Finns and hoping to get an ally in the international arena, unexpectedly went towards the former principality. On December 31, 1917, the Council of People's Commissars recognized Finland as an independent state.

At the end of January 1918, an uprising of the Social Democrats began in Finland. Power in Helsinki and other southern cities passed to the Reds. The conservatives who won the 1917 elections fled to northern Finland. started in the country Civil War.

Former tsarist officers played an important role in the fighting on both sides of the front line. Lieutenant Colonel Mikhail Svechnikov, who joined the Social Democratic Party, fought in the ranks of the Reds, and Tsarist General Karl Mannerheim became one of the founders of the Finnish White movement.

According to Vladimir Baryshnikov, the forces of the parties were approximately equal, none of them had a decisive advantage. The outcome of the war was actually decided by the Germans, who landed in Finland in April 1918 and hit the rear with the Reds. The Whites, who had won power with German bayonets, staged a massacre in Finland, during which, according to some sources, up to 30 thousand people died.

The government of Finland turned out to be implacable enemies of the Soviets. In 1918, the troops of the White Finns invaded the territory of Russia.

For two years, the First Soviet-Finnish War was waged with varying success, culminating in the signing of a peace treaty in 1920, under which the territories that had been part of Russia for centuries, in particular Western Karelia, were transferred under the control of Helsinki.

The conflict of 1921-1922, initiated by Finland, had no effect on the configuration of the border. However, in the 1930s, against the backdrop of an international crisis engulfing Europe, the Soviet authorities tried to negotiate with the Finns on the exchange of territories and the lease of a naval base in order to protect themselves from the possibility of the Germans striking Leningrad from the territory of a neighboring state. Finland rejected the Soviet proposals, which eventually led to a new war. During the hostilities of 1939-1940, the troops of the Soviet Union reached the lines where Peter I had stood two centuries earlier.

During the Second World War, Finland became one of the closest allies of the Third Reich, providing the Nazis with a springboard for attacking the Soviet Union, trying to break into Leningrad and destroying tens of thousands of Soviet citizens in concentration camps in Karelia.

However, after the turning point in the Great Patriotic War Finland turned its back on the Third Reich and signed an armistice with the Soviet Union in September 1944.

Finland's foreign policy motto long years became the words of its post-war president Urho Kekkonen: "Do not look for friends far, but enemies close."

According to archeology, it is known that people settled in Finland in the Paleolithic era. The first information about this country in historical documents dates back to 98, when the Roman historian Cornelius Tacitus mentioned the Finns as an unusually wild and poor tribe.

In 800-1100, the lands of Finland become military trading bases for the Swedish Vikings. And in 1155, King Eric IX of Sweden commits crusade against the pagan Finns, which marked the beginning of more than 650 years of "Swedish period" in the history of Finland.

Finland is part of Russia

During the XVIII-XIX centuries, relations between Russia and Sweden were full of tension and dramatic moments, which could not but affect Finnish history.

The first Finnish lands became part of the Russian Empire in 1721, after the end of the Northern War. Russia received even larger territories of Finland, including South Karelia, as a result of the Russo-Swedish War in 1743.

final accession of Finland to Russia happened under Emperor Alexander I, after the end of the war of 1808-09. The country received the status of the Grand Duchy of Finland, its own Constitution and parliament, becoming one of the most autonomous parts of the Russian Empire.

Finland becomes an independent state

Independent history of Finland began on December 6, 1917, when a decision was made at a meeting of parliament to change the state system to a republican one and separate from Russia. Since then, Independence Day has been celebrated as one of the main public holidays in Finland.

Although the first state to officially recognize the independence of Finland was Soviet Russia, further relations between the two countries were not easy. In 1939-40, the USSR and Finland waged the so-called Winter War, during which a significant part of the Finnish territory was annexed in favor of a more powerful neighbor.

The opportunity to restore historical justice presented itself to the Finns with the beginning of World War II. In 1941, when Germany attacked the USSR, Finland actively supported the allies, occupying a significant part of Karelia, and later taking part in the blockade of Leningrad. The Russian-Finnish war continued until 1944, when Finland concluded a separate peace with the USSR, thus drawing itself into fighting with the former ally Germany (Lapland War).

Modern history of Finland

After the end of World War II, Finland did not become, like many European neighbors of the USSR, a socialist country. Remaining in the mainstream of capitalist development, Finland was able to build the most warm and good-neighborly relations with the Soviet Union, receiving considerable benefits from intermediary services in the latter's trade with the West.

The rapid economic recovery that began in the mid-80s brought Finland closer to the countries Western Europe. And in the 1994 national referendum most of Finns voted for the entry of this country into the European Union. On January 1, 1995, Finland became a full member of the EU and the European Monetary Union.

To the question In what year did Finland become part of the Russian Empire? given by the author Kisa the best answer is For the first time, the border between Russia and Sweden was determined in 1323 according to the Peace of Orekhov, according to which all of modern Finland went to Sweden. In 1581 Finland received the title of Grand Duchy. According to the Treaty of Nystad, Sweden returned South-East Finland and Vyborg to Russia. After the Northern War, anti-Swedish sentiments intensified in Finland, and according to the Treaty of Abos in 1743, South-East Finland was ceded to Russia. And only in 1809, after the Russian-Swedish war of 1808-1809, the whole of Finland went to Russia. After the war of 1808-09. Finland has changed a lot. The cause of the war was the Peace of Tilsit between Fr. and Russia, after which England found an ally in the person of the Swedes and directed him against Russia. The Swedish king announced the impossibility of reconciliation with Russia while she holds Eastern Finland. Russia started hostilities first. Its goal was to conquer all of Finland and secure the northern borders by eliminating the common border with Sweden. After successful hostilities in 1808, a declaration was issued on the accession of "Swedish Finland" to Russia. In 1809, the Friedrichsham Peace was signed, according to which all of Finland retreated to Russia. The Seim of Borovsk in 1809 approved the entry of Finland into Russia. The annexed lands received the status of the Grand Duchy of Finland.
As a result of the Russian-Swedish war of 1808-1809, all of Finland, which had previously belonged to Sweden, was included in Russia as the Grand Duchy of Finland.
In 1809, under the Friedrichsham Peace Treaty, Russia annexed the entire territory of Finland.
From 1809 to 1917, Finland (the Grand Duchy of Finland) was part of the Russian Empire, which enjoyed the widest autonomy (for example, it had its own currency - the Finnish mark). On December 11 (23), 1811, the Vyborg province was transferred to the Grand Duchy, which included the lands that had been ceded to Russia under the peace treaties of 1721 and 1743. As a result, the administrative border of Finland came close to St. Petersburg. Immediately before the October Revolution - October 23 (November 6), 1917 - the Finnish Seimas proclaimed Finland an independent state
Source: www.ulver.com/frg/20.html

Answer from philosophy[guru]
1806 After the war with Sweden, Finland was annexed

Answer from put down[guru]
In 1908.
For about 600 years, Finland was under the dominion of the Swedish crown, and from 1809 to 1917. was part of the Russian Empire on the rights of autonomy as the Grand Duchy of Finland.

Answer from Alexey Belyaev-Avdeev[guru]
in general, until 1809, back in the 9th century, she went near Novgorod, and after that she was recaptured as a result of the war with Sweden in 1808-1809

Answer from Alina bardina[newbie]
in general, in 1808-1809.

Answer from Mikhail Basmanov[expert]
In 1809.
People moved to Europe no earlier than 6000 years ago because it was under a glacier. Finland -Finland - Finnish land (land). Suomi - Suomi - from the Omi, a river in Russia, flowing into the Irtysh River, in ancient times part of the territory of Belovodye. The name of the people - Suomi was preserved by the Finns because this word was used among the people, but over time, its meaning was forgotten. It is no coincidence that Slavic runic inscriptions are found on the territory of Scandinavia. The Finns (more correctly, the Finns) are the ancient Slavs-Russians, like the Icelanders, Danes, Norwegians, Swedes, British, Scots, etc. A single people was territorially divided into countries after the collapse of the Slavic-Aryan empire. Replacing their script with the Latin alphabet and writing new story, got different languages, although earlier, the differences between peoples were only in dialect, dialect. In 1697, the Swedish court master of ceremonies Sparvenfeld, in an official speech, still called himself "a true bitter-hearted date." And he wrote in Latin in Russian. Finland, like many countries that were Slavic, was made non-Slavic. To do this, they made it autonomous and imposed a language, rewrote history. Are they trying to do something in Ukraine now?

On September 17, 1809, Finland became part of the Russian Empire in the form of a Grand Duchy. On this day, the Friedrichsham Peace Treaty was signed between Russia and Sweden, which ended the war by establishing new frontier between states.

The Russo-Swedish War began in 1808 and became part of countless Napoleonic Wars. In fact, there was no conflict between Russia and Sweden and no serious reason for war. Russia at that moment reached an agreement with Napoleon and joined the English blockade. The British preemptively attacked the sizable but emphatically neutral Denmark in order to seize control of its ships. In response, Russia called to account the Swedish king, who was supposed to control the Baltic by agreement and not allow other powers to roam there without permission. However, the Swedish king went over to the side of the British and said that he might think about it, but certainly not in favor of the nasty French. In turn, Napoleon wanted to weaken England by breaking her close ties with Sweden, which began to look at Norway, which belonged to Denmark, with the blessing of the British.

As a result, it was decided to unravel this tangle of contradictions by another war. With the British, the war in Russia was sluggish, with the Swedes - the real one. The Swedes were encouraged by the British, who consistently subsidized their budget large sums for the period of the war.

In addition, the British sent a rather large expeditionary force, but the Swedish king quarreled with them about further actions, and English soldiers came back home.

The course of the war with the Swedes was in favor of Russia. The participants in the conflict were military leaders who later became famous in the war with Napoleon: Bagration, Barclay de Tolly, Tuchkov, etc. For Sweden, the situation was complicated by the fact that public opinion was sharply against the war, which the aristocrats considered senseless and destructive. There was no Swedish interest in it, rather English. In addition, the war on two fronts significantly undermined the Swedish budget, to replenish which ruinous taxes were introduced in the country.

As a result, after several military defeats in Sweden, there was palace coup. King Gustavus Adolf IV was overthrown, and power passed to the Riksdag (parliament), which, taking advantage of the moment, adopted a constitution. Despite the fact that it was adopted in a hurry and seemed to be a temporary tool created by certain circumstances, it turned out to be one of the most stable and unshakable documents and acted as the main document of the country until the mid-1970s.

New power signed a peace treaty with Russia on harsh terms. All of Finland, including the Aland Islands, was transferred to Russia. Sweden also joined the British blockade and closed ports to the British.

The Grand Duchy of Finland retained all the rights and privileges that it enjoyed in Sweden. This was announced in advance, even before the signing of a peace treaty with the Swedes, when Russian troops occupied the region and the emperor issued a manifesto on the annexation of Finland. Alexander I also spoke at the first Diet after the annexation of the principality, once again promising not to curtail the former rights and liberties.

Until the very revolution, Finland remained part of Russia, but with the right to broad autonomy. The Finns were not drafted into the Russian army (until 1901 they served in a few Finnish units that were not used outside the region), they had their own courts, their own currency (the ruble was in use until 1860, then the Finnish mark), their own police, etc. In a word, they enjoyed very broad self-government. In addition, practically no attempts were made by the Russian side to Russify the region. Russian officials in Finland have always been a small minority, as well as Russian settlers. The replacement of the former Swedish elite (the Finns were a rural people, the Swedes were considered the urban elite) to the Russian did not happen.

Finland remained part of the Russian Empire for more than a hundred years and left it only after the October Revolution of 1917. After that, a very fleeting, but rather fascinating civil war also took place in Finland. Suffice it to say that the usual situation of the war in Finland was the clash of white Poles, Finns and Germans and the Red Finns, Russians and British opposing them. True, it all ended so quickly that by the time the war was just beginning in Russia, it was already over in Finland.