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Helsinki

The city was founded in 1550 by the Swedish King Gustav Vasa as a port that could compete with Tallinn and other ports on the Baltic Sea. In 1641 the city was moved 5 km off the original location place. The fortress of Sveaborg was built nearby in the second half of the 18th century to protect the port-city, which enlarged considerably the area occupied by the city. From 1812 to 1917 Helsinki was the main city of the Grand Principality of Finland (the part of Russia until 1917. In 1917, as a result of the Russian revolution, the city became the capital of the new sovereign state: Finland.

Last update: 10.04.2005