Hanko, Finland
Encyclopedia
Hanko (ˈhɑŋko; ), is a bilingual port town and municipality on the south coast of Finland
, 130 kilometre west of Helsinki
. Its current population is , with a majority being Finnish
speakers and a strong minority being Swedish speakers.
in Hanko:
, on which the city is located, is the southernmost tip of continental Finland. The soil is a sandy moraine
, and vegetation consists mainly of pine
and low shrub
s. Hanko is known for its beautiful archipelago
.
The city has a coast
line of approximately 130 kilometre, of which 30 kilometre are sandy beaches. There are also over 90 small islands and islets within the city limits.
The skyline of Hanko is dominated by the church and the water tower
. Both of them received their current appearance after World War II
, as their predecessors were either damaged or destroyed by the Soviet Armed Forces
.
Scandlines serve the link between Hanko and Rostock
since October 2007 four times a week with two RoRo-vessel. The trip takes some 36 hours.
The Hangon Regatta has been a traditional fixture on the Finnish social scene, and is the major summer event in Hanko. Sailing
enthusiasts attend in order to compete, as well as mostly young people who have little or no interest in sailing; they attend only in order to party and drink. The latter constitute the "Regatta tail", not appreciated by most of the town's residents, since it causes huge expenses for clean-up of the parks and streets of all the litter left by those partying.
Other traditional summer activities are the "Tennis Week", the "Sea Horse" riding competitions, and the "Summer Theatre" events.
Several sandy beaches and a multitude of leisure harbors attract tourists during the summer months.
The site was already known by sailors in the 15th century. Petroglyphs from that time are carved into the rock at the island.
Hanko has a long history of wars and battles. The Battle of Gangut
between Swedish
and Russian
navies was fought in 1714 in the archipelago north of the peninsula. The battle was the first-ever victory of the Russian regular fleet.
The fortification
works on the Hanko Peninsula had already been started by the end of the 18th century, when the Swedish constructed three separate forts on the outlying islands. The forts were later bombarded by the Royal Navy
during the Crimean War
and they were eventually blown up during the hostilities by their own defenders.
The city was founded in 1874, soon after the Hanko-Hyvinkää railway was inaugurated in 1872. The Imperial Charter for the city was granted by Tsar
Alexander II
.
Hanko was the port of choice for emigrants leaving Finland for a new life in North America
in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. A memorial statue, showing birds in flight, commemorates this.
In the late 19th century, while Finland was still a Grand Duchy
under Russia
, Hanko was a popular spa
resort
for the Russian nobility
. Some of the buildings from that period survive, notably the Hanko Casino (which is not a gambling
establishment, but a former banquet hall of the spa
). It is nowadays a restaurant.
Field Marshal C. G. Mannerheim
owned a café
, ("The House of the Four Winds") which still is very popular among tourists and residents alike.
The Bengtskär
lighthouse
is the highest one (52 m (170.6 ft)) in the Nordic countries. It is situated 25 km (15.5 mi) southwest of Hanko. It was built in 1906 and it is the first lighthouse museum in Finland.
In the Moscow Peace Treaty
that ended the Winter War
on March 13, 1940, Hanko was leased
to the Soviet Union
as a military base for a period of 30 years. During the Continuation War
, Soviet troops were forced to evacuate Hanko in early December 1941. The Soviet Union renounced the lease formally in the Paris peace treaty of 1947. As a curiosity, it can be noted that the short Russo-Finnish front across the base of the peninsula on the Finnish side was held in part by volunteer troops from Sweden
. A museum has been established at this location, among the trenches
and other remnants of the war.
The role of the Hanko naval base was replaced by Porkkala
in the armistice
between Finland and the Soviet Union of September 19, 1944, released back to Finland in January 1956.
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, 130 kilometre west of Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
. Its current population is , with a majority being Finnish
Finnish language
Finnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...
speakers and a strong minority being Swedish speakers.
Politics
Results of the Finnish parliamentary election, 2011Finnish parliamentary election, 2011
An election to the Eduskunta was held on 17 April 2011 after the termination of the previous parliamentary term. Advance voting, which included voting by Finnish expatriates, was held between 6 and 12 April with a turnout of 31.2%....
in Hanko:
- Social Democratic PartySocial Democratic Party of FinlandThe Social Democratic Party of Finland is one of the three major political parties in Finland, along with the Centre Party and the National Coalition Party. Jutta Urpilainen is the current SDP leader. The party has been in the Finnish government cabinet for long periods and has set many...
29.8% - Swedish People's Party 25.9%
- National Coalition Party 13.4%
- True FinnsTrue FinnsTrue Finns or The Finns is a populist and nationalist political party in Finland, founded in 1995 following the dissolution of the Finnish Rural Party. The head of the movement is Timo Soini. In the 2011 Finnish parliamentary election, The party won 19.1% of votes, becoming the third largest party...
12.8% - Left AllianceLeft Alliance (Finland)The Left Alliance is a left-wing political party in Finland. It was founded on the basis of the Finnish People's Democratic League and the Communist Party of Finland in 1990....
6.3% - Green LeagueGreen LeagueThe Green League is a centrist green liberal political party in Finland. It has ten seats in the Finnish Parliament and two in the European Parliament. The current chairperson is Ville Niinistö....
3.8% - Christian DemocratsChristian Democrats (Finland)The Christian Democrats is a Christian democratic political party in Finland. Formerly known as the Finnish Christian League , the Christian Democrats have six seats in the Finnish Parliament and one in the European Parliament.The party was founded in 1958, chiefly from the Christian faction of...
3.6% - Centre PartyCentre Party (Finland)The Centre Party is a centrist and Nordic agrarian political party in Finland. It is one of the four largest political parties in the country, along with the Social Democratic Party , the National Coalition Party and the True Finns , and currently has 35 seats in the Finnish Parliament...
3.0%
Features
The Hanko PeninsulaHanko Peninsula
The Hanko Peninsula , also spelled Hango, is the southernmost point of mainland Finland. The soil is a sandy moraine, the last tip of the Salpausselkä ridge, and vegetation consists mainly of pine and low shrubs...
, on which the city is located, is the southernmost tip of continental Finland. The soil is a sandy moraine
Moraine
A moraine is any glacially formed accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris which can occur in currently glaciated and formerly glaciated regions, such as those areas acted upon by a past glacial maximum. This debris may have been plucked off a valley floor as a glacier advanced or it may have...
, and vegetation consists mainly of pine
Pine
Pines are trees in the genus Pinus ,in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Etymology:...
and low shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
s. Hanko is known for its beautiful archipelago
Archipelago
An archipelago , sometimes called an island group, is a chain or cluster of islands. The word archipelago is derived from the Greek ἄρχι- – arkhi- and πέλαγος – pélagos through the Italian arcipelago...
.
The city has a coast
Coast
A coastline or seashore is the area where land meets the sea or ocean. A precise line that can be called a coastline cannot be determined due to the dynamic nature of tides. The term "coastal zone" can be used instead, which is a spatial zone where interaction of the sea and land processes occurs...
line of approximately 130 kilometre, of which 30 kilometre are sandy beaches. There are also over 90 small islands and islets within the city limits.
The skyline of Hanko is dominated by the church and the water tower
Water tower
A water tower or elevated water tower is a large elevated drinking water storage container constructed to hold a water supply at a height sufficient to pressurize a water distribution system....
. Both of them received their current appearance after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, as their predecessors were either damaged or destroyed by the Soviet Armed Forces
Soviet Armed Forces
The Soviet Armed Forces, also called the Armed Forces of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and Armed Forces of the Soviet Union refers to the armed forces of the Russian SFSR , and Soviet Union from their beginnings in the...
.
Scandlines serve the link between Hanko and Rostock
Rostock
Rostock -Early history:In the 11th century Polabian Slavs founded a settlement at the Warnow river called Roztoc ; the name Rostock is derived from that designation. The Danish king Valdemar I set the town aflame in 1161.Afterwards the place was settled by German traders...
since October 2007 four times a week with two RoRo-vessel. The trip takes some 36 hours.
Events
Sailing
Sailing is the propulsion of a vehicle and the control of its movement with large foils called sails. By changing the rigging, rudder, and sometimes the keel or centre board, a sailor manages the force of the wind on the sails in order to move the boat relative to its surrounding medium and...
enthusiasts attend in order to compete, as well as mostly young people who have little or no interest in sailing; they attend only in order to party and drink. The latter constitute the "Regatta tail", not appreciated by most of the town's residents, since it causes huge expenses for clean-up of the parks and streets of all the litter left by those partying.
Other traditional summer activities are the "Tennis Week", the "Sea Horse" riding competitions, and the "Summer Theatre" events.
Several sandy beaches and a multitude of leisure harbors attract tourists during the summer months.
History
Hanko has a long history of wars and battles. The Battle of Gangut
Battle of Gangut
The Battle of Gangut took place on July 27Jul./ August 7, 1714Greg. during the Great Northern War , in the waters of Riilahti Bay, north of the Hanko Peninsula, near the site of the modern-day city of Hanko, Finland, between the Swedish Navy and Imperial Russian Navy...
between Swedish
Swedish Navy
The Royal Swedish Navy is the naval branch of the Swedish Armed Forces. It is composed of surface and submarine naval units – the Fleet – as well as marine units, the so-called Amphibious Corps .In Swedish, vessels of the Swedish Navy are given the prefix "HMS," short for Hans/Hennes...
and Russian
Imperial Russian Navy
The Imperial Russian Navy refers to the Tsarist fleets prior to the February Revolution.-First Romanovs:Under Tsar Mikhail Feodorovich, construction of the first three-masted ship, actually built within Russia, was completed in 1636. It was built in Balakhna by Danish shipbuilders from Holstein...
navies was fought in 1714 in the archipelago north of the peninsula. The battle was the first-ever victory of the Russian regular fleet.
The fortification
Fortification
Fortifications are military constructions and buildings designed for defence in warfare and military bases. Humans have constructed defensive works for many thousands of years, in a variety of increasingly complex designs...
works on the Hanko Peninsula had already been started by the end of the 18th century, when the Swedish constructed three separate forts on the outlying islands. The forts were later bombarded by the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
during the Crimean War
Crimean War
The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
and they were eventually blown up during the hostilities by their own defenders.
The city was founded in 1874, soon after the Hanko-Hyvinkää railway was inaugurated in 1872. The Imperial Charter for the city was granted by Tsar
Tsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
Alexander II
Alexander II of Russia
Alexander II , also known as Alexander the Liberator was the Emperor of the Russian Empire from 3 March 1855 until his assassination in 1881...
.
Hanko was the port of choice for emigrants leaving Finland for a new life in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. A memorial statue, showing birds in flight, commemorates this.
In the late 19th century, while Finland was still a Grand Duchy
Grand Duchy of Finland
The Grand Duchy of Finland was the predecessor state of modern Finland. It existed 1809–1917 as part of the Russian Empire and was ruled by the Russian czar as Grand Prince.- History :...
under Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, Hanko was a popular spa
Destination spa
A destination spa is a short term residential/lodging facility with the primary purpose of providing individual services for spa-goers to develop healthy habits. Historically many such spas were developed at the location of natural hot springs or sources of mineral waters...
resort
Resort
A resort is a place used for relaxation or recreation, attracting visitors for holidays or vacations. Resorts are places, towns or sometimes commercial establishment operated by a single company....
for the Russian nobility
Russian nobility
The Russian nobility arose in the 14th century and essentially governed Russia until the October Revolution of 1917.The Russian word for nobility, Dvoryanstvo , derives from the Russian word dvor , meaning the Court of a prince or duke and later, of the tsar. A nobleman is called dvoryanin...
. Some of the buildings from that period survive, notably the Hanko Casino (which is not a gambling
Gambling
Gambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods...
establishment, but a former banquet hall of the spa
Destination spa
A destination spa is a short term residential/lodging facility with the primary purpose of providing individual services for spa-goers to develop healthy habits. Historically many such spas were developed at the location of natural hot springs or sources of mineral waters...
). It is nowadays a restaurant.
Field Marshal C. G. Mannerheim
Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim
Baron Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim was the military leader of the Whites in the Finnish Civil War, Commander-in-Chief of Finland's Defence Forces during World War II, Marshal of Finland, and a Finnish statesman. He was Regent of Finland and the sixth President of Finland...
owned a café
Café
A café , also spelled cafe, in most countries refers to an establishment which focuses on serving coffee, like an American coffeehouse. In the United States, it may refer to an informal restaurant, offering a range of hot meals and made-to-order sandwiches...
, ("The House of the Four Winds") which still is very popular among tourists and residents alike.
The Bengtskär
Bengtskär
Bengtskär is a skerry southwest of Hanko, and part of the municipality of Dragsfjärd. This rocky skerry is the southernmost inhabited place in Finland, and is reached by ferry from the village of Kasnäs....
lighthouse
Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....
is the highest one (52 m (170.6 ft)) in the Nordic countries. It is situated 25 km (15.5 mi) southwest of Hanko. It was built in 1906 and it is the first lighthouse museum in Finland.
Soviet naval base
Moscow Peace Treaty (1940)
The Moscow Peace Treaty was signed by Finland and the Soviet Union on 12 March 1940, and the ratifications were exchanged on 21 March. It marked the end of the 105-day Winter War. The treaty ceded parts of Finland to the Soviet Union. However, it preserved Finland's independence, ending the Soviet...
that ended the Winter War
Winter War
The Winter War was a military conflict between the Soviet Union and Finland. It began with a Soviet offensive on 30 November 1939 – three months after the start of World War II and the Soviet invasion of Poland – and ended on 13 March 1940 with the Moscow Peace Treaty...
on March 13, 1940, Hanko was leased
Concession (territory)
In international law, a concession is a territory within a country that is administered by an entity other than the state which holds sovereignty over it. This is usually a colonizing power, or at least mandated by one, as in the case of colonial chartered companies.Usually, it is conceded, that...
to the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
as a military base for a period of 30 years. During the Continuation War
Continuation War
The Continuation War was the second of two wars fought between Finland and the Soviet Union during World War II.At the time of the war, the Finnish side used the name to make clear its perceived relationship to the preceding Winter War...
, Soviet troops were forced to evacuate Hanko in early December 1941. The Soviet Union renounced the lease formally in the Paris peace treaty of 1947. As a curiosity, it can be noted that the short Russo-Finnish front across the base of the peninsula on the Finnish side was held in part by volunteer troops from Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. A museum has been established at this location, among the trenches
Trench warfare
Trench warfare is a form of occupied fighting lines, consisting largely of trenches, in which troops are largely immune to the enemy's small arms fire and are substantially sheltered from artillery...
and other remnants of the war.
The role of the Hanko naval base was replaced by Porkkala
Porkkala
Porkkala is a peninsula in the Gulf of Finland located at Kirkkonummi in Southern Finland.The peninsula had great strategic value, as coastal artillery based there would be able to reach more than halfway across the Gulf of Finland...
in the armistice
Moscow Armistice
The Moscow Armistice was signed between Finland on one side and the Soviet Union and United Kingdom on the other side on September 19, 1944, ending the Continuation War...
between Finland and the Soviet Union of September 19, 1944, released back to Finland in January 1956.
External links
- Town of Hanko – official website
- The Front Museum on the Hanko Peninsula, documenting the wartime lease of Hanko to the USSR
- Details about Hanko and Porkkala leased bases, maps
- Bengtskär Lighthouse
- The Harparskog-line Finnish fortification line at Hanko front during WWII.
- Hanko and it's fortifications.