Helsinki 1812–2012
By the start of the eighteenth century, Helsinki had become the fourth most important port of importation after Stockholm, Gävle, and Gothenburg. The town had grown into an important military centre also. The fortification of Sveaborg – Viapori in Finnish – was the home port of the Swedish coastal fleet. Between the town, Sveaborg fortification, and the town garrison, Helsinki had a population of almost 8000. Turku had about 10,000 residents at that time.
The Sweden-Russia War was waged on Finnish soil from 1808-1809. Russia occupied Helsinki on 3 March 1808, with Sveaborg surrendering in a bloodless siege on 8 May 1808.
Helsinki burned down on Thursday 17 November of that year – the last great fire it endured, which destroyed a quarter of the town. The fire started on the site owned by the widow Dobbin in the eastern part of the town, which is nowadays the beginning of Aleksanterinkatu.
The Diet of Porvoo took place from 25 March until 19 July 1809, during which Emperor Alexander I of Russia granted his sovereign pledge to Finland’s estates. The King of Sweden ceded his kingdom’s eastern provinces, which constituted Finland’s Grand Duchy, in the Treaty of Fredrikshamn (Hamina in Finnish) on 17 September 1809. Alexander I thereby became Grand Duke of Finland, until 1825.
The Committee for Finnish Affairs was formed in November 1811, operating under the principle that all its members had to be Finns. R.H. Rehbinder was chosen as State Secretary, and G.M. Armfelt as the committee’s chairman. 1811 saw the establishment of a host of central bureaus: the State Medical Collegium, the postal authority, the Office of the Superintendent of Public Works and Loans Bureau. The Vyborg Governorate became part of Finland in 1812. Viipuri and the Karelian isthmus had been lost to Russia in the Treaty of Nystad in 1721.
1819
The Government Council, later renamed the Imperial Senate of Finland, and all its central bureaus are relocated to Helsinki.
1825 – 1855
Nicholas I is Grand Duke of Finland.
1826 – 1827
The Church of Ulrika Eleonora is demolished. (read more)
1828
The seat of the county governor is transferred to Helsinki. The province of Häme-Uusimaa is divided into two separate provinces in 1831.
1837
Steamboat traffic begins, connecting Stockholm, Helsinki, and St. Petersburg.
1837
The Heidenstrauch merchant’s house is purchased, to become the Emperor’s palace. Moving work is completed in 1843. The building is nowadays the President’s Castle.
1852
St. Nicholas’ Church – now Helsinki Cathedral – is consecrated.
1853 – 1856
The Crimean War or “Eastern War”, as it was also known in Finland. Russia at war with Turkey and its allies, England and France.
1855
A telegraph connection between Helsinki and St. Petersburg comes into operation.
1855 – 1881
Emperor Alexander II becomes Grand Duke of Finland. A period of political reform gets underway.
1860
The first gasworks is founded, and the first gaslight is lit at the inauguration of the New Theatre.
1860
Finland receives its own currency. The Finnish mark is valued at one-quarter of a gold rouble.
1861
Gas lamps are used for street lighting, and remain in use until as late as 1945, when the last gas lamps were removed.
1862
Finland’s first railway line is opened between Helsinki and Hämeenlinna.
1863
The first regular parliamentary sessions of the Grand Duchy of Finland are held in Helsinki. In the newspapers, they are heralded as “the birth of national liberation”. The Finnish language is accorded equal status with Swedish.
1865
The Finnish mark is index-linked to the price of silver, and delinked from the rouble.
1867 – 1868
The last years of severe hunger in Finland. During the famine years, eight percent of the Finnish population died of hunger.
1868
Uspenski Cathedral is completed.
1868
The Russian-language Alexander Theatre is founded.
1872
A Finnish-language theatre is founded.
1875
A new local government act and the first session of Helsinki City Council, chaired by Senator Leo Mechelin.
1876
The Finnish Mark is index-linked to the gold standard.
1876
The Industrial Exhibition in Kaivopuisto. The Exhibition showcases Finland’s homegrown industry, and is also a broad overview of developments in the arts. The Imperial family visits the Exhibition.
1881 – 1894
Emperor Alexander III is Grand Duke of Finland.
1882
Finland’s first cross-country skiing competition, from the front of Valkosaari to Harmaja and back. A ski jumping competition is held at the same time, on the hill behind Uspenski Cathedral.
1884
The electricity company is founded. The city is developed and modelled after cities in Central Europe, Germany in particular. Urban conveniences such as gas, water, electricity and public transport are quickly adopted in Helsinki and other major cities.
1885
6 May 1885 The statue of national poet J.L. Runeberg is unveiled on the Esplanade.
1890
12 June 1890 The so-called Postimanifesti (“Postal Manifesto”) marks the beginning of nationalization attempts, in contravention of Finnish law.
1894 – 1917
Emperor Nicholas II is Grand Duke of Finland.
1900
The census shows that for the first time, the Finnish-speaking population is in the majority in Helsinki.
1902
18 April 1902 Cossacks violently disrupt a protest against the army draft.
1903
The coastal railway connection (Rantarata) between Helsinki and Karjaa is completed.
1905
General strike, “the Great Strike”. There are large protests and gatherings in Senate Square and at the Central Railway Station. The unrest in Russia spread to Finland, and even more so to what are nowadays the Baltic countries.
1905
The Emperor issues the November Manifesto, in which he retracts his earlier decrees that are contrary to Finnish law.
1906
Parliamentary reform. The four Estates of the Assembly of the Estates were replaced with a unicameral parliament.
1906
Meilahti and Toukola become part of Helsinki.
1907
Parliamentary elections. Women and men are granted universal suffrage and equal and universal eligibility to stand as candidates in State elections.
1912
Pasila becomes part of Helsinki.
1914
The new programme for the Russification of Finland is made public.
1914 – 1917
The Great War, World War I. (read more)
1917
Emperor Nicholas II relinquishes power. Russia’s interim government abolishes the illegal measures put in place by the March Manifesto.
1918
16 June 1918 The blue-and-white flage of the Republic of Finland is raised on the roof of the Senate for the first time.
1919
The form of government is confirmed: the newly independent Finland is to be a parliamentary republic.
1919 – 1925
K. J. Ståhlberg is appointed as the first President of the Republic of Finland.
1920 – 1939
Construction of Töölö, Vallila, Käpylä, and Torkkelinmäki. The wooden houses of the city centre and Kallio are demolished to make way for modern stone buildings. (read more)
1920
Finland accedes to the League of Nations.
1920
The Treaty of Tartu is signed between Russia and Finland. The borders of the Finnish republic are confirmed.
1920
The first Finnish Trade Fair is held, in Helsinki. The first Finnish-made film, Ollin oppivuodet ,“Oliver’s Apprenticeship”, is premiered in the Bio-Bio cinema in Helsinki.
1921
Through the diplomatic intervention of the League of Nations, a peaceful settlement is reached between Sweden and Finland regarding the Åland Islands.
1922
Rationing of foodstuffs is brought to an end, as is rent control. There is a severe housing shortage in Helsinki.
1922
14 February 1922 Minister for Internal Affairs Heikki Ritavuori is murdered on Nervanderinkatu in Töölö.
1925 – 1931
Lauri Kristian Relander is President of Finland.
1926
Finland’s state-run broadcasting service Suomen Yleisradio is founded.
1930
7 July 1930 Farmers stage a protest in Helsinki. The right-wing Lapua Movement mobilizes a 12,000-strong protest march in Helsinki to further its political demands.
1930
24 September 1930 The Graf Zeppelin airship arrives from Germany and flies over Helsinki.
1931
9 March 1931 The new Parliament Building is inaugurated.
1931 – 1937
P.E. Svinhufvud is President of Finland.
1937 – 1940
Kyösti Kallio is President of Finland.
1938
1938 Malmi airfield and the Olympic Stadium are completed. Helsinki is selected as host of the 1940 Summer Olympics, which are later cancelled when war breaks out.
1939
The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact is agreed between Russia and Germany. According to the agreement, Finland and the other countries of the Baltic region come within the Soviet Union’s sphere of influence.
1939
30 November 1939 The Soviet Union conducts an aerial bombardment of Helsinki, killing almost one hundred civilians. War begins on the Karelian isthmus, and the Finnish town of Viipuri is also bombed.
1939 – 1940
30 November 1939 – 13 March 1940 The Winter War is fought between Finland and the Soviet Union, which results in the deaths of 23,000 soldiers and 1000 civilians.
1940 – 1944
Risto Ryti is President of Finland.
1941 – 1944
The Continuation War. The Soviet Union bombards Helsinki through the entire duration of the war, with the worst damage being caused by three large-scale bombardments in February of 1944. (read more)
1944 – 1946
Carl Gustaf Mannerheim is President of Finland.
1944 – 1947
The Soviet-led Allied Commission is based in Helsinki.
1946 – 1956
Juho Kusti Paasikivi is President of Finland.
1950
Helsinki is 400 years old.
1952
Finland pays off the last of the 300 million US dollars in war reparations to the Soviet Union.
1954
Ration stamps are taken out of use, and rationing of coffee comes to an end.
1956
The Soviet Union’s lease on Porkkala ends and the region is returned to Finland.
1956 – 1982
Urho Kekkonen is the President of Finland.
1956
General strike.
1967
There are 1138 registered unemployed in Helsinki, all of whom are put to work for the City.
1981
The Nordic Mobile Telephone (NMT) network is built in Helsinki.
1982
1 June 1982 The first section of the Helsinki metro line, from Itäkeskus to Hakaniemi, comes into operation.
1982 – 1994
Mauno Koivisto is President of Finland, for two consecutive six-year terms.
1994 – 2000
Martti Ahtisaari is President of Finland.
1995
A referendum on EU membership is held, as a result of which Finland joins the Union.
1998
The Kiasma Museum of Modern Art opens.
1999
Finland adopts the European Union’s common currency. The Euro comes into use in cash form on 1 January 2002.
2000
Tarja Halonen is elected to her first term of office as President of Finland. For the first time ever, a born-and-bred “Helsinkian” becomes President.
2000
Helsinki celebrates 450 years, and is also a European Capital of Culture.
2009
Parts of Vantaa and Sipoo are amalgamated into Helsinki.
2012
8 April 2012 Helsinki, now 462 years old, has been the Finnish capital for 200 years.
