Hidden Gems of Finnish Archipelago

Suomenlinna ("Sveaborg", "Viapori") sea fortress is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of Finland’s most popular tourist attractions. The construction of the fortress started by the king of Sweden in 1748 as protection against Russian expansionism. Suomenlinna was planned to be a principal base for naval military operations and the general responsibility for the fortification work was given to Augustin Ehrensvärd. The construction phase lasted for over four decades. During this time six islands were fortified to provide a safe harbor and dock for the archipelago fleet in Finland.In the Finnish War (1808-1809) Russians easily took Helsinki in early 1808 and began bombarding the fortress. Its commander, Carl Olof Cronstedt, negotiated a cease-fire, and when no Swedish reinforcements had arrived by May, Suomenlinna surrendered with almost 7,000 men. After taking over the fortress the Russians set about on an extensive building program, mostly extra barracks, but also extending the dockyard and reinforcing to the fortification lines.During the Crimean War in 1855 a combined Anglo-French fleet bombarded Viapori for two days in August. At this point, the repair work was nowhere near complete, and Viapori sustained heavy damage in the bombardment. The next stage in the arming of Suomenlinna 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. The fortress became part of an independent Finland in 1917, following the Russian Revolution.After the Finnish Civil War, a prison camp existed on the island. About 6000 red prisoners were held in Suomenlinna. Many of them were executed by the white army and others died of disease due to the poor conditions in the fortress.Suomenlinna is today one of the most popular tourist attractions in Helsinki as well as a popular picnicking spot for the city's inhabitants. A number of museums exist on the island, as well as the last surviving Finnish submarine, Vesikko.

Towering 52 meters above the sea, Bengtskär lighthouse is the tallest one in Scandinavia. The building started in in 1905 after the shipwreck of S/S Helsingfors and was completed in 1906. The lighthouse was designed by architect Florentin Granholm. On December a special petrol lantern, designed and built in Paris, was brought to Bengtskär and installed atop the tower.

Svartholma sea fortress was built by Swedish in the 18th century. Svartholma and near Loviisa land fortress were designated to defence strategic road from Turku tu Viborg and Sweden-Finland's eastern border against Russians. Svartholma construction started in 1748 and it was mostly completed in the 1760's. Svartholma was a typical bastion system including four bastions and an outer fortification.Svartholma played an significant role in Russo-Swedish War 1788-1790. It was a naval stronghold for the Swedish fleet when it defeated Russians in Ruotsinsalmi battle. In the Finnish War (1808-1809) Svartholma was first time attacked by eastern enemies. The Russian artillery fired sporadically at the fortress, but no serious damage was inflicted. However, the Swedish officers, led by Carl Magnus Gripenberg decided to capitulate the fortress, almost without a fight on March 18, 1808.Svartholma lost its strategical importance during the Russian period. It was used partly as a military base, and partly as a prison for Finnish prisoners. The empty fortress was largely destroyed by the British during the Crimean War (1855).The Finnish National Board of Antiquities were restoring the fortress since the 1960s, and the work was finally ready in 1998. Today Svartholma is a popular tourist attraction with a museum and guided walking tours. It's possible to visit there by ferry-boat in summer time.

Seili (Själo in Swedish) is a small island in the Archipelago Sea. The island is known for its church and nature, a research institute and a former hospital. The first hospital on Seili was established in the 1620s. Before that there were two farms on the islands belonging to the Crown and thus available when the authorities looked for a suitable island to which the leper hospital at the outskirts of Turku could be moved.According to a Royal Decree in 1619 by King Gustav Adolf of Sweden, the buildings of the hospital in Turku, with the exception of the chapel, were burned down and the inmates transported to Seili. The Selihospital for lepers was dedicated to St George. The last leper patient died in 1785, and the establishment on Seili became a hospital or a place of confinement for mentally afflicted people until 1962. The hospital was self-sufficient with agriculture, and fishing. The present-day buildings on the island, with the exception of the chapel, date from the 19th and the 20th centuries, and most of them have been built for the mental hospital.The wooden chapel of Seili was built in as a replacement of the Church of Saint George, the former hospital church which had been transferred to Seili from Turku in the beginning of the 17th century. The museum church has a cross-shaped plan and it is made of pinewood grown in archipelago islands. The original untreated wooden surface can still be seen inside the church and nowadays it is beautifully patinated by passed centuries. The only colourful objects in the otherwise quite barren but impressive interior are the pulpit decorated by C.J. von Holthusen and the modernistic altarpiece The Storm on Lake Genesaret painted by the Finnish artist Helge Stén.Currently the island hosts the Archipelago Research Institute that is a part of the University of Turku. The island is open to the public in summertime and there are guided tours available. During the summer season, the connecting ferry m/s Östern operates on the Nauvo-Seili-Hanka (Aasla, Rymättylä) route. Therefore, Seili is accessible from both Nauvo and Hanka.

Söderlångvik has been inhabited since the early 16th century. In the past it frequently changed hands. Owners in the sixteenth century were called de Jonsson or Jönsson, in the 17th century Michelsson, Tomasson, Sigfridsson and Faxell-Cronmarck. In the 18th century Söderlångvik was owned for a long period by the Thesleff family and in the early 19th century by the af Petersen and Ramsay families, owners of Björkboda manor.In 1927 Amos Anderson, famous Finnish businessman and art collector, purchased the manor and farm. The main building was totally reconstructed in 1934-1935. After Anderson’s death ownership was transferred to the art association Konstsamfundet. Today Söderångvik is an art and culture-historical museum. The exhibition tells about Amos Anderson and his art collections.

The island of Gaddtarmen (Hauensuoli, The Pike´s Gut) off Hanko forms a natural harbour on a sailing route in the east-west direction. Sailors have made more than 600 carvings on the rocks while awaiting favourable winds. The oldest drawings date from the 15th and 16th centuries. Most of the carvings decpict coats of arms of Swedish and Finnish gentry. Probably the most famous carving was made in 1754 by Field Marshal Augustin Ehrensvärd, the originator of Suomenlinna sea fortress.The site is a unique document relating to the history of the Baltic Sea. It’s added to the tentative list of Unesco World Heritage Site by the National Board of Antiquities.