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Finland has been inhabited for 9000 years, with the
Lapões being the first to settle in this country, more
precisely in the North, while the Ugro-Fineses occupy
the South of Finland three thousand years later. In the
Christian era, Finland began to suffer Swedish influence
even before the Viking period (8th to 11th centuries),
becoming more intense from the 12th century, when
Sweden, under papal authorization, started a series of
crusades that , in addition to conquering Finnish
territory, their ultimate objective is to prevent
Russia's influence and de facto presence in this
territory. Thus, after many military advances and
retreats, it was not until 1323 that Sweden, through the
Treaty of Pähkinäsaari (now Petrokrepost), secured
Finland as part of its kingdom. However, Finland's
life under Swedish jurisdiction was quite difficult, as,
over the centuries, Finns found themselves involved, not
only in the countless internal disputes between Swedish
nobles, but also in troubled Swedish foreign policy,
especially in successive ones existing conflicts with
Russia, a country with long-standing territorial claims
to Finland. This last aspect takes on more serious
contours during the 18th century, when successive wars
between the two countries put Finland in permanent
instability and insecurity, even being occupied by
Russia between 1713 and 1721. This situation led to an
increase among Finns. anti-Sweden spirit, culminating in
an agreement between Russia and Finland established in
1809 (Treaty of Hamina), in which, under the protection
of Tsar Alexander I,
The Russian period was characterized by considerable
economic development, which, however, did not cover the
entire vast rural population. On the other hand, the
existing bilingual framework in Finland (Swedish was the
language authorized in the administrative, economic and
educational circles) established a division between the
most favored and the least favored classes. This
situation aroused a strong reaction from the Finns since
the publication in Finnish of any work except for those
that favored religious and economic edification was
prohibited. It was then that many of the defenders of
the Finnish language, especially men of the arts,
started a process that was simultaneously creative and
the collection of Finnish works (a process in which the
celebrated epic work Calévala stands out), so that, in
1902, the two languages.
Russia's respect for Finnish constitutional autonomy
(which allowed for the establishment of its own
monetary, legal and military system) ended on February
15, 1889, when Tsar Nicholas II published a manifesto in
which he instituted restrictive powers over laws issued
Finnish Parliament. With this measure, Nicholas II
satisfied the claims of Russian nationalists, initiating
a process of Russification of Finnish society. However,
the Finnish parties (mainly the Marxist-inspired Social
Democratic Party), taking advantage of Russia's internal
instability in the early years of the 20th century,
organized a general strike that, despite some negative
reaction on the part of Nicholas II, forced, for its
impact, to carry out an unprecedented parliamentary
reform (20 July 1906), Parliament started to consist of
only one Chamber (instead of the four chambers
previously existing) and to be elected by universal
suffrage. The following years, and after the first
elections in 1907 (won by the SDP), were marked by
consecutive parliamentary dissolutions ordered by
Russia, whose parliament (Duma) would ultimately be
responsible, in 1910, for Finnish legislative
initiatives.
The First World War and the Bolshevik Revolution of
1917 were two historical facts that paved the way for
Finland towards independence. First, because the
independence movement found in Germany an ally in its
aspirations; later, taking advantage of the Russian
internal instability caused by the revolutionary
process, a Finnish government coalition formed in the
meantime took legislative responsibility for the country
(July 1917), an initiative that led to the proclamation
of independence on December 6, 1917, which was
recognized by Lenine on the last day of that
year. However, the first months of independence were,
for Finland, of great instability, since the SDP,
inspired by the Russian revolutionary current, he
obtained control by force of Helsinki and the industrial
regions of the South by force (28 January 1918),
provoking a counteroffensive on the part of the
conservatives who had the strong support of the German
army, obtaining the victory over the revolutionaries in
late May. The next problem was deciding between the
monarchy or the republic as Finland's statute, a
decision that ended up being consensual among all
parties in choosing the republican regime, as stipulated
in the Constitution approved on July 17, 1919, which
preceded the election of first Finnish president, Kaarlo
Juho Stählberg.
Over the years, the development of Finnish democracy
has been faced with a series of obstacles that, although
they did not imply periods as unstable as those seen in
1918, managed to disturb the normal institutional
functioning. At the domestic level, most of the problems
stemmed from the cleavage that occurred in the meantime
reformed SDP, which consisted of the departure of the
most left-wing elements to form the Labor Party, a party
that was nothing more than an iron forehead of the
Finnish Communist Party, founded in 1918 and since then
based in Moscow. This communist growth was countered by
the Lapua movement (Northern Finland), which, with the
support of conservatives, started a series of attacks
and persecutions against communist targets, actions
complemented by a law passed by the Finnish Parliament
in 1930 that banned all communist activities, as well as
the right to vote. At the external level, Finnish
diplomacy dealt mainly with the following two problems:
the definition of the eastern border with Russia,
resolved with the Treaty of Tartu (1920), which granted,
in the North of the border, a road towards the Arctic
Ocean; and dispute over sovereignty over the Aland
Islands between Finland and Sweden (which had occupied
the islands during the Finnish civil war), a dispute
resolved by the Society of Nations in favor of Finland
in 1921. that granted, in the North of the border, a
road towards the Arctic Ocean; and dispute over
sovereignty over the Aland Islands between Finland and
Sweden (which had occupied the islands during the
Finnish civil war), a dispute resolved by the Society of
Nations in favor of Finland in 1921. that granted, in
the North of the border, a road towards the Arctic
Ocean; and dispute over sovereignty over the Aland
Islands between Finland and Sweden (which had occupied
the islands during the Finnish civil war), a dispute
resolved by the Society of Nations in favor of Finland
in 1921.
The Second World War was used by the USSR to obtain
advantages in its territorial claims. Thus, in October
1939, under the pretext of defending Leningrad, the USSR
demands from Finland part of the Karelian isthmus, the
Hanko naval base and some islands in the Gulf of
Finland. And in the face of the Finnish refusal, the
USSR launched an attack on 30 November 1939 that would
lead to the signing of the Moscow Treaty on 12 March
1940, the date on which Finland delivers a vast area of
the south-east of the territory. In December of that
year, Risto Ryti assumed the presidency of the Republic,
being the protagonist of the approach to Nazi Germany
before and during the Russo-Germanic war (1941-44). By
inflicting successive defeats on the German army, the
USSR advances Finnish territory, which was the reason
for the resignation of Risto Ryti,
After the Second World War, Finland managed to
strengthen a spirit of national stability, as evidenced
by the fact that Urho Kekkonen was elected president
successively from 1956 until 1981, the year in which he
retired for health reasons. The success of this
stability is mainly due to the strong economic
development of the country, which, under the need to
satisfy the war indemnities, restructured its economy,
which now has industry as its fundamental sector. And it
was thanks to this favorable situation that Finland was
able to easily overcome the sporadic government crises,
due to the impossibility of having a majority party
among the countless ones in Finland.
Externally, Finland also established a climate of
trust with its neighbors, although the relationship with
the USSR was always surrounded by precautions. In 1948,
the two countries signed the Friendship, Cooperation and
Mutual Assistance Agreement, which lasted until the
dissolution of the USSR in 1991. Even so, there were
periods when relations cooled, or because there was a
momentary growth in Finland of an anti-Soviet spirit ,
or because Soviet foreign policy itself negatively
influenced the Finnish position as the westernmost
country in Eastern Europe. On the other hand, Finland
has established strong ties of political, economic and
social cooperation with the other Nordic countries
(Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden), allowing the
region to be strengthened.
The Europeanization of Finland began with the
country's entry into the European Free Trade Association
(EFTA) in 1986, culminating in its accession to the
European Union in 1995, after a referendum (16 October
1994), the results of which were favorable to the policy
followed by the President of the Republic, Martti
Ahtisaari, of the SDP. At this time, Finland had an
average inflation rate of 2%, however, facing a high
unemployment rate (close to 20%) and a huge economic
deficit (State debts represented 60% of GDP).
In 2003, Finland, having the president of the
Republic as Mrs. Tarja Halonen, is considered one of the
most competitive countries in the world, being also
evaluated, among 133 countries, as the least corrupt. |
