Finland (German Heritage)

Kingdom of Finland Suomen kuningaskunta (Finnish) Konungariket Finland (Swedish) Timeline: German Heritage
Flag Coat of arms
Anthem:  Maamme God save our king (Royal)
Location of Finland
Capital		Helsinki
Official languages		Finnish and Swedish
Regional languages		Sami
Religion		Protestant Orthodox
Demonym		Finnish, Finn
Government		Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy
-	Monarch	Frederik Kaarle II
-	Prime Minister	Juha Sipilä
Legislature		Riksdag/Eduskunta
Population
-	August 2018 estimate	5.6 million
GDP (PPP)		2018 estimate
-	Total	$257 billion
-	Per capita	$46,559
GDP (nominal)		2018 estimate
-	Total	$277 billion
-	Per capita	$50,068
Currency		Finnish Markkaa (FIM)
Time zone		CET
Date formats		dd.mm.yyyy
Drives on the		right
Internet TLD		.fi

Finland, officially known as the Kingdom of Finland (Finnish: Suomen kuningaskunta; Swedish: Konungariket Finland) is a nation located in Northern Europe.

Finland's population is 6 million (2018), and the majority of the population is concentrated in the southern region. The majority of the population speaks Finnish, with the next largest language being Swedish. Other notable languages include Sami and Russian.

From the late 13th century, Finland gradually became an integral part of Sweden through the Northern Crusades and the Swedish part-colonisation of coastal Finland, a legacy reflected in the prevalence of the Swedish language and its official status. In 1809, Finland was incorporated into the Russian Empire as the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland. In 1906, Finland became the first European state to grant all adult citizens the right to vote, and the first in the world to give all adult citizens the right to run for public office.

Following the 1917 Russian Revolution, Finland declared itself independent. In 1918, the fledgling state was divided by civil war, with the Bolshevik-leaning Red Guard supported by the equally new Soviet Russia, fighting the White Guard, supported by the German Empire. After the war, the current institution was created. The German Prince Frederick Charles of Hesse was nominated as the king and was crowned on the 9 October 1918.

Finland is a member of the Nordic Union, the EC and the LUN.

History

In March 1918, the German Empire successfully intervened in the Finnish Civil War on the side of the Finnish White Army. By May 1918, the German Baltic Sea Division had aided the Whites to gain control over most of the country, and its commander Rüdiger von der Goltz in practice ruled Finland as the "regent of Finland". Monarchists considered the monarchy and the German king to be, above all, an arrangement that would best safeguard the prevailing social order against internal threats and Finland's independence against external threats.

Prince Frederick Charles of Hesse was elected to the throne of Finland on 9 October 1918 by the Parliament of Finland. The pro-republican Social Democrats had been excluded from participating in the senate, having mostly fled to the neighbouring Soviet Union. The remaining republican politicians formed the National Progressive Party, while the conservative monarchists formed the National Coalition Party. Juho Kusti Paasikivi became prime minister in 1918 and went on to dominate Finnish politics for the next 30 years.

In 1927, under the direction of Frederik Kaarle, the Social Democratic Party was refounded with Väinö Tanner, who had remained neutral in the civil war. A strong proponent of the parliamentary system, Tanner helped to rehabilitate the SDP’s damaged reputation. Along with the remaining Agrarian and Progressive Parties, the SPD formed the main opposition to the National Coalition Party in Parliament. A prominent crisis in Finnish politics occurred when the Lapua Movement, a far-right Finnish Nationalist and extreme anti-communist party, staged a coup in 1932 in an attempt to overthrow democracy and replace it with an authoritarian dictatorship. Vihtori Kosola, a prominent leader in the Lapua, had been a active recruiter of the pro-German Jäger Movement. Though officially supportive of the Finnish government, Germany secretly supported Kosola and his movement with military training prior to the rebellion, as well as a small amount of weaponry.

Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim, the war-time commander-in-chief of the Finnish Army

Joseph Stalin thought that the pro-Finland movement in Karelia posed a direct threat to Leningrad and that the area and defences of Finland could be used to invade the Soviet Union or restrict fleet movements. During Stalin's rule, Soviet propaganda painted Finland's leadership as a "vicious and reactionary nationalist clique". In May 1941, the Soviet Union delivered an ultimatum to Finland demanding that the border between the USSR and Finland on the Karelian Isthmus be moved westward to a point only 30 km (19 mi) east of Vyborg. Likewise, the delegation demanded the cession of islands in the Gulf of Finland as well as Rybachy Peninsula. In exchange, the Soviet Union would cede Repola and Porajärvi municipalities from Eastern Karelia, an area twice the size of the territory demanded from Finland.

Wolfgang, monarch of Finland (1940-1989)

After deliberations, the Finnish government rejected the offer, and so the Soviets declared war, citing the earlier Shelling of Mainila as justification. The invasion started World War II, which would start a 5-year battle for Finland. The Soviet Army soon broke through the main Finnish defences in Karelia, and began to advance towards Finland interior. In accordance with pre-war plans, when the Soviets were about 50 Miles from Helsinki, the royal family moved to Uusikaupunki before fleeing to Stockholm, Sweden. By mid-1942, the Soviets had fully occupied Finland and established the Finnish Democratic Republic, led by the communist Otto “Willie” Kuusinen. A series of organised underground resistance distracted a notable number of Soviet Troops from the more important German Eastern Front. Later in 1942, Sweden declared war against the USSR. Finland was an essential part of the invasion of northern Sweden. In 1945, as the war started to turn against the USSR, the Soviets started to withdraw towards a final defence of Russia. The Government of the Finnish D.R. fled with the retreating army to avoid retribution from the “white army”, and continued to operate in Siberia until 1988. King Wolfgang, the royal family and government finally returned to Helsinki on the 8 August 1945, a date which is a National Holiday in Finland.

For the next few decades, Finland continued to rebuild and repair the damage done during the Soviet Occupation. A notable achievement was the 1952 Summer Olympics, which were held in Helsinki. Ten years later in 1962, Helsinki also hosted the GE Games. In 1955, Väinö Tanner became the first Social Democratic Prime Minister and instituted an expanded welfare state. Public Opinion, which was extremely anti-communist, was initially against any socialist-leaning party. Tanner moderated the party and turned its political position to the centre-left. Finland, similar to other nations in the EEU, experienced a slump in its economy during the late 1970s-1980s.