Vörå

The Fänrik Ståls center. Photo by Sonja Onnela

On the coast of the Gulf of Bothnia lies a municipality which played an important role in Finnish history – both in its occupation by Russia, and its independence. Vörå, or Vöyri in Finnish, is a bilingual municipality with a majority of Swedish speakers. It is incidentally also where Jean Sibelius got married.

History

Until 1809, Finland was under Swedish rule. One of the main battles to change the fate of Finland was the battle of Oravais, which took place in Vörå during the Finnish War of 1808-9. During the course of the battle, Russian troops attacked the Swedish troops located in Oravais, causing the latter to retreat. The Battle is considered one of the bloodiest of the war – it is estimated that there were at least 1,000 Finnish and Swedish and 800 Russian casualties. The battle was also a critical one for Finland’s future – losing it meant becoming part of Russia.