Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
work and a better life, many Finns moved south to Helsinki or emigrated to North America
in the first decades of the 20th century.
The Russian Revolution of October 1917 enabled the Finnish parliament to declare in-
dependence on 6 December of that year. Although Russia recognised the new nation, it
hoped for a parallel workers' uprising; it fomented dissent and supplied arms to that end.
Following an attack by Russian-armed Finnish Reds on the civil guards in Vyborg, the
Finnish Civil War flared in late January 1918. During 108 days of heavy fighting, approx-
imately 30,000 Finns were killed. The Reds, comprising the rising working class, aspired
to a Russian-style socialist revolution while retaining independence. The nationalist
Whites, led by CGE Mannerheim, dreamed of monarchy and sought to emulate Germany.
The Whites, with substantial German help, eventually gained victory and the war ended
in May 1918. Friedrich Karl, Prince of Hessen, was elected king of Finland by the
Eduskunta on 9 October 1918, but the defeat of imperial Germany a month later made Fin-
land choose a republican state model, under its first president, KJ Ståhlberg.
Though internal struggles continued, and despite the crushing blows of WWII, Finland
gained fame internationally as a brave new nation. Significant events included Finland's
Winter War heroics, Paavo Nurmi's distinguished career as a long-distance runner, Ester
Toivonen's Miss Europe title in 1933, Artturi Virtanen's Nobel Prize for Chemistry in
1945, the Helsinki Olympics of 1952, and plaudits won by Finnish designers in interna-
tional expositions. These achievements fostered national confidence, helped Finland to
feel that it belonged at the table of nations, and gave it strength to survive the difficult
Cold War period that followed.
As well as being the biggest landowner in Sweden, Per Brahe was a gourmet and wrote
his own cookbook, which he took with him on his travels and insisted was followed to the
letter.
