Kyösti Kallio
Encyclopedia
Kyösti Kallio was the fourth President of Finland
(1937–1940). He was a prominent leader of the Agrarian League, and served as Prime Minister
four times and Speaker of the Parliament six times.
, Finland
. His father was a farmer and a prominent local politician.
1904–1906 as a member of the Estate of the Peasantry. He joined the newly founded Agrarian Union (a farmers' party) in 1906 and became one of its prominent leaders. He became an Agrarian minister in the Senates
of Oskari Tokoi
, Pehr Evind Svinhufvud
and Juho Kusti Paasikivi
.
and therefore a "class enemy"; he formed a new senate (government) in Helsinki after German troops had defeated the Reds in the city. Afterwards he became a moderate peace-maker and disapproved of retaliation against the Reds.
instead of constitutional monarchy
. Eventually, the monarchist
stand lost and he returned to the Cabinet to become Prime Minister
. He was a reformist who emphasized education, settlement and land reform. His greatest achievement was "Lex Kallio" in 1922, a legislation allowing the state to buy land to encourage new settlements, and to let the former tenant farmers and other landless rural people to buy small farms (see, for example, Seppo Zetterberg et al., ed., "Suomen historian pikkujättiläinen"). On the other hand, he did support Prohibition
in Finland, and was dismayed when it was repealed in 1932.
Kallio was an anti-communist
, suppressing the Finnish Communist Party (SKP) in 1923, but he resorted to legislative methods. When the violent right-wing
Lapua Movement
asked him to become their leader, he refused and was instead subjected to their death threats.
would not be re-elected. Kallio took a role of a parliamentarian president and avoided use of his personal power.
In the eve of the Winter War
, when Marshal Mannerheim
once again threatened to resign from his post as chairman of Finland's Defence Council due to schism with the Cabinet, Kallio convinced him to stay. During the war he resisted the idea of giving up any territory to the Soviet Union
, but was forced to agree to sign the Moscow Peace Treaty
in 1940. His health begun to fail – his right arm was paralyzed – and he was not active in the dealings with Germany leading to the Continuation War
. On August 27 he suffered a serious stroke. Prime Minister Risto Ryti
took over his duties. Kallio's heart became weak while he knowingly took risks by agreeing to the formal farewell ceremonies.
Kallio resigned formally on November 27, 1940. He was going to Nivala
to his farm after the farewell ceremonies on the evening of December 19, 1940, when he collapsed and died at the Helsinki Central Railway Station
, before a guard of honor and in the arms of his adjutant.
faith, which he had adopted already at home, and which was deepened during his marriage to Kaisa Kallio, who was also a devout
Christian. Although Kallio was often too busy to go to church, he prayed often when encountering difficulties in making political
decisions, and some of these prayers he recorded in his diary. He also read Christian books with his wife and often discussed them
by exchanging letters. He often referred to God in his speeches, and during the Winter War he asked the Finns who were serving
their country to read the Bible. When he was forced to sign the harsh Moscow Peace Treaty in March 1940, Kallio quoted freely from the Book of Zechariah
, saying: "May my hand, which is forced to sign such a paper, wither." His right arm was paralysed the following summer, and he was forced switch his writing hand. In the Presidential Palace
, shortly before leaving for Helsinki Central Railway Station for the last time, he sang a hymn with his family.
President of Finland
The President of the Republic of Finland is the nation's head of state. Under the Finnish constitution, executive power is vested in the President and the government, with the President possessing extensive powers. The President is elected directly by the people of Finland for a term of six years....
(1937–1940). He was a prominent leader of the Agrarian League, and served as Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Finland
The Prime Minister is the Head of Government of Finland. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President, who is the Head of State. The current Prime Minister is Jyrki Katainen of the National Coalition Party.-Overview:...
four times and Speaker of the Parliament six times.
Early life
Kyösti (originally Gustaf) Kallio was born in YlivieskaYlivieska
Ylivieska is a town and a municipality of Northern Ostrobothnia region, Finland. It has a population of , and it serves as the administrative centre for Kalajokilaakso and Pyhäjokilaakso, an area with about 90,000 inhabitants....
, Finland
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...
. His father was a farmer and a prominent local politician.
Start of career
Kallio served in the Diet of FinlandDiet of Finland
The Diet of Finland , was the legislative assembly of the Grand Duchy of Finland from 1809 to 1906 and the recipient of the powers of the Swedish Riksdag of the Estates....
1904–1906 as a member of the Estate of the Peasantry. He joined the newly founded Agrarian Union (a farmers' party) in 1906 and became one of its prominent leaders. He became an Agrarian minister in the Senates
Senate of Finland
The Senate of Finland combined the functions of cabinet and supreme court in the Grand Duchy of Finland from 1816 to 1917 and in the independent Republic of Finland from 1917 to 1918....
of Oskari Tokoi
Oskari Tokoi
Antti Oskari Tokoi was a Finnish socialist who served as a leader of the Social Democratic Party of Finland. During the short-lived Revolution of 1918, Tokoi participated as a leading figure in the revolutionary government....
, Pehr Evind Svinhufvud
Pehr Evind Svinhufvud
Pehr Evind Svinhufvud af Qvalstad , December 15, 1861 – February 29, 1944) was the third President of Finland from 1931 to 1937. Serving as a lawyer, judge, and politician in the Russian Grand Duchy of Finland, he played a major role in the movement for Finnish independence...
and Juho Kusti Paasikivi
Juho Kusti Paasikivi
Juho Kusti Paasikivi was the seventh President of Finland . Representing the Finnish Party and the National Coalition Party, he also served as Prime Minister of Finland , and was generally an influential figure in Finnish economics and politics for over fifty years...
.
Civil war
During the Civil War in Finland, he hid in Red-dominated Helsinki, because he was at least nominally on the White sideWhite Guard (Finland)
The White Guard was a voluntary militia that emerged victorious over the socialist Red Guard as part of the Whites in the Finnish Civil War of 1918...
and therefore a "class enemy"; he formed a new senate (government) in Helsinki after German troops had defeated the Reds in the city. Afterwards he became a moderate peace-maker and disapproved of retaliation against the Reds.
Formation of the republic
During the debates over the form of the new state in 1918, Kallio resigned from the Senate because he supported a republicRepublic
A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of...
instead of constitutional monarchy
Constitutional monarchy
Constitutional monarchy is a form of government in which a monarch acts as head of state within the parameters of a constitution, whether it be a written, uncodified or blended constitution...
. Eventually, the monarchist
Monarchism
Monarchism is the advocacy of the establishment, preservation, or restoration of a monarchy as a form of government in a nation. A monarchist is an individual who supports this form of government out of principle, independent from the person, the Monarch.In this system, the Monarch may be the...
stand lost and he returned to the Cabinet to become Prime Minister
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
. He was a reformist who emphasized education, settlement and land reform. His greatest achievement was "Lex Kallio" in 1922, a legislation allowing the state to buy land to encourage new settlements, and to let the former tenant farmers and other landless rural people to buy small farms (see, for example, Seppo Zetterberg et al., ed., "Suomen historian pikkujättiläinen"). On the other hand, he did support Prohibition
Prohibition
Prohibition of alcohol, often referred to simply as prohibition, is the practice of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation, import, export, sale, and consumption of alcohol and alcoholic beverages. The term can also apply to the periods in the histories of the countries during which the...
in Finland, and was dismayed when it was repealed in 1932.
Kallio was an anti-communist
Anti-communism
Anti-communism is opposition to communism. Organized anti-communism developed in reaction to the rise of communism, especially after the 1917 October Revolution in Russia and the beginning of the Cold War in 1947.-Objections to communist theory:...
, suppressing the Finnish Communist Party (SKP) in 1923, but he resorted to legislative methods. When the violent right-wing
Right-wing politics
In politics, Right, right-wing and rightist generally refer to support for a hierarchical society justified on the basis of an appeal to natural law or tradition. To varying degrees, the Right rejects the egalitarian objectives of left-wing politics, claiming that the imposition of equality is...
Lapua Movement
Lapua Movement
The Lapua Movement , was a Finnish radical nationalist and anti-communist political movement founded in and named after the town of Lapua. After radicalisation it turned towards far-right politics and was banned after a failed coup-d'état in 1932...
asked him to become their leader, he refused and was instead subjected to their death threats.
President
Kallio was elected president with the votes of centrist (Agrarian and Progressive) and social democratic coalition which wanted to ensure that President SvinhufvudPehr Evind Svinhufvud
Pehr Evind Svinhufvud af Qvalstad , December 15, 1861 – February 29, 1944) was the third President of Finland from 1931 to 1937. Serving as a lawyer, judge, and politician in the Russian Grand Duchy of Finland, he played a major role in the movement for Finnish independence...
would not be re-elected. Kallio took a role of a parliamentarian president and avoided use of his personal power.
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...
, when Marshal 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...
once again threatened to resign from his post as chairman of Finland's Defence Council due to schism with the Cabinet, Kallio convinced him to stay. During the war he resisted the idea of giving up any territory 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....
, but was forced to agree to sign the Moscow Peace Treaty
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...
in 1940. His health begun to fail – his right arm was paralyzed – and he was not active in the dealings with Germany leading to 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...
. On August 27 he suffered a serious stroke. Prime Minister Risto Ryti
Risto Ryti
Risto Heikki Ryti was the fifth President of Finland, from 1940 to 1944. Ryti started his career as a politician in the field of economics and as a political background figure during the interwar period. He made a wide range of international contacts in the world of banking and within the...
took over his duties. Kallio's heart became weak while he knowingly took risks by agreeing to the formal farewell ceremonies.
Kallio resigned formally on November 27, 1940. He was going to Nivala
Nivala
Nivala is a town and municipality of Finland.It is located in the province of Oulu and is part of the Northern Ostrobothnia region. The town has a population of and covers an area of ofwhich is water...
to his farm after the farewell ceremonies on the evening of December 19, 1940, when he collapsed and died at the Helsinki Central Railway Station
Helsinki Central railway station
Helsinki Central railway station is a widely recognised landmark in central Helsinki, Finland, and the focal point of public transport in the Greater Helsinki area. The station is used by approximately 200,000 passengers per day, making it Finland's most-visited building...
, before a guard of honor and in the arms of his adjutant.
Personality
A significant part of Kallio's personality and a motive for the social reforms which he supported and promoted was his deep Christianfaith, which he had adopted already at home, and which was deepened during his marriage to Kaisa Kallio, who was also a devout
Christian. Although Kallio was often too busy to go to church, he prayed often when encountering difficulties in making political
decisions, and some of these prayers he recorded in his diary. He also read Christian books with his wife and often discussed them
by exchanging letters. He often referred to God in his speeches, and during the Winter War he asked the Finns who were serving
their country to read the Bible. When he was forced to sign the harsh Moscow Peace Treaty in March 1940, Kallio quoted freely from the Book of Zechariah
Book of Zechariah
The Book of Zechariah is the penultimate book of the twelve minor prophets in the Hebrew and Christian Bible, attributed to the prophet Zechariah.-Historical context:...
, saying: "May my hand, which is forced to sign such a paper, wither." His right arm was paralysed the following summer, and he was forced switch his writing hand. In the Presidential Palace
Presidential Palace, Helsinki
The Presidential Palace in Helsinki , is one of the official residences in Helsinki of the President of the Republic of Finland. It is situated on the north side of Esplanadi, overlooking Market Square.-Origins and early history:...
, shortly before leaving for Helsinki Central Railway Station for the last time, he sang a hymn with his family.