Details
Founded: ca. 1800Category: Palaces, manors and town halls in Finland
Historical period: The Age of Enlightenment (Finland)
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The history of Anjala manor dates back to 17th century. Carl IX, the king of Sweden, donated it to Henrik Wrede’s widow in 1608 after Wrede had saved his life in Kirkholm battle. Henrik Wrede himself died in battle. Anjala manor was the residence of powerful Wrede family until 1837. The original main building was destroyed in a fire caused by Russian artillery in 1789 and the current one was built some years later.
The Anjala conspiracy of 1788 was signed in the manor. It was a scheme by disgruntled Swedish officers to end Gustav III's Russian War of 1788–90. Declaring Finland an independent state was part of the plot, although it is disputed what importance the conspirators connected to that aspect.
Anjala manor was opened to the public as a museum in 1957. The aim of the furnished rooms is to give a glimpse of late 18th to late 19th century period’s historical style and way of life. The manor also has a Mathilda Wrede room displaying items which are part of her life’s work.
Claude Monet lived for forty-three years, from 1883 to 1926, in Giverny. With a passion for gardening as well as for colours, he conceived both his flower garden and water garden as true works of art. Walking through his house and gardens, visitors can still feel the atmosphere which reigned at the home of the Master of Impressionnism and marvel at the floral compositions and nymphéas, his greatest sources of inspiration.
In 1890 Monet had enough money to buy the house and land outright and set out to create the magnificent gardens he wanted to paint. Some of his most famous paintings were of his garden in Giverny, famous for its rectangular Clos normand, with archways of climbing plants entwined around colored shrubs, and the water garden, formed by a tributary to the Epte, with the Japanese bridge, the pond with the water lilies, the wisterias and the azaleas.
Today the Monet's Garden is open to the public.