From Sveaborg to Suomenlinna

The maritime fortress has always been home to a small community. The number of residents has varied over time, depending on the size of the garrison. The garrison community has always been full of life socially and culturally as well. The tourism services were started in the 1960s, and soon the traditional garrison island began to be seen also as a tourist attraction.

Shortage of flats in the Swedish era

The construction of the Sveaborg fortress began in 1748. From that date onwards, the islands turned into a massive construction site. The new fortress suffered from a constant shortage of flats. The drawings by Augustin Ehrensvärd included the building of curtain houses, which would be used for both residential and practical use. Wooden houses were also built in Sveaborg. During the Swedish era, Sveaborg was a cultural centre, and the officers’ social scene was rather lively. In 1880, during a visit to Sveaborg, Daniel Clarke described the society: “The Sveaborg officers live rather comfortably, and they have all brought their families with them. The society is lively: sometimes more than 40 women can be seen at the balls and parties, and many of them are true beauties.”

Normal soldiers, however, lived in closer quarters, and everyday life was bleak. The Sveaborg population reached its peak in the 1700s. The fortification works were underway, and the fortress was home to approximately 6,000 people. Most of these were soldiers working on the construction of the fortress, and there were not many civilians. Life in the fortress was harsh, particularly during the cold winters. In the winter of 1781, Local Major Abraham de Frese reported that two or three wolves had threatened his pet bears. Many of the dogs and cats living in the fortress did end up as dinner for wolves.

Thanks to Augustin Ehrensvärd, a school was founded in the fortress. In the 1760s, a school for ordinary seamen was founded in Sveaborg, mostly educating the children of Finnish soldiers.

New barracks and a church built during the Russian era

During the Russian period, a Russian garrison operated in Sveaborg, protecting Helsinki – the new capital of Finland. At the beginning of the 1800s, the population of the garrison was larger than that of Helsinki. New barracks, a hospital and a church were built in the fortress during the Russian period. At the lowest, the amount of regular staff was less than 1,000, but additionally there were over 3,000 workers – i.e. prisoners and soldiers – in the fortress. Both a Russian Orthodox and a Lutheran church operated in the fortress during the Russian period. In addition, there were Polish Catholics, Jewish soldiers and a few Muslims in the Russian army, which meant that the garrison community in 1800s was very diverse.

Sveaborg of the 1800s was filled with dozens of gardens and small wooden buildings. Large-scale construction work took place in the fortress, when the large barracks were built on Iso-Mustasaari island. The Russian Orthodox church was completed in 1854 and the Jetty Barracks in 1868–70. It became the new, handsome main entrance to the fortress.

Russian journalist Faddei Bulgarin visited the fortress in 1840. The massive structures and stones as well as the gardens and small houses made a lasting impression. “I saw Sveaborg from a poetic perspective only. To truly understand the structure of the fortress, it is not enough to just look at the fortifications. You would have to really examine the fortress and live there for a long time, but I haven't got the slightest interest in doing that,” Bulgarin writes. He admired the construction works and reservoirs of the fortress. The visit to the chief engineer Nybäck had an effect on him. “The home of the honourable N.I. Nybäck was located in a wonderful place! It is a small wooden house by the sea. There is a tiny vegetable patch under the windows only a few steps away on the rocks, against which the waves dash. During stormy weather, the splashes are sure to fly all the way to the windows. The view from the windows towards the sea and islands is beyond compare.”

After independence, a Finnish garrison community populated the fortress

The Russian garrison left Sveaborg after Finland gained independence. In the 1900s, the population of Suomenlinna reached its peak in 1918–1920, when the fortress also hosted a war prison camp. Helsinki suffered from a shortage of flats, and during the 1920s people lived in temporary emergency accommodation at Suomenlinna’s Kustaanmiekka. The fortress was a military area, which meant that the residents had to carry a pass granted by the commandant’s office. The poor condition of the residential buildings and the difficulties mentioned above caused discontent among the residents.

Various establishments and shops as well as a school and a nursery already operated in the fortress during the 1800s. Basic services were established after independence.  The primary school at Suomenlinna was founded in 1921, and the nursery started in 1924.

After the war years, the condition of the fortress buildings was poor, and the defence administration wanted to let the dilapidated property go. In 1964, Akateeminen magazine described living at Suomenlinna: “Half of the flats are lacking in basic conveniences. There is no water distribution, no sewage, and no central heating. A lavatory may be 200 metres away from a flat, and the woodshed 200 metres in the opposite direction. Some live within the stone walls dating from the time of Ehrensvärd, which must be heated even in the summer to keep the moisture out. Water is delivered by horse and by carrying it.” (Akateeminen, 29.4.1964). Despite the hardships, the residents appreciated the peace and proximity of nature that living in the fortress offered.

Shipbuilding played an important role in paying back the war reparations, creating more jobs at the Valmet Shipyards at Suomenlinna. Flats for the shipyard workers were renovated in the residential buildings on Länsi-Mustasaari island. The amount of civilian population reached its peak in 1952, when there were 1,649 residents living at Suomenlinna.

From those days, the population has decreased to less than 1,000 inhabitants. The number of conscripts at Suomenlinna has varied over time. Today, the Finnish Naval Academy operates on the islands, offering education to approximately 250 soldiers annually.

The requirement to carry a pass was eliminated in 1948, after which a small fee was collected for some years from people entering the island. Tourists and travellers began to take an interest in the fortress, and when the new Suomenlinna ferry started operations in 1952, the fortress started to develop as a tourist attraction.